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Neurobiology of Disease Jun 2024Within the adult mouse subventricular zone (SVZ), neural stem cells (NSCs) produce neuroblasts and oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs). T, the active thyroid hormone,...
Within the adult mouse subventricular zone (SVZ), neural stem cells (NSCs) produce neuroblasts and oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs). T, the active thyroid hormone, influences renewal and commitment of SVZ progenitors. However, how regulators of T availability affect these processes is less understood. Using Mct8/Dio2 knockout mice, we investigated the role of MCT8, a TH transporter, and DIO2, the T-generating enzyme, in regulating adult SVZ-neurogliogenesis. Single-cell RNA-Seq revealed Mct8 expression in various SVZ cell types in WT mice, while Dio2 was enriched in neurons, astrocytes, and quiescent NSCs. The absence of both regulators in the knockout model dysregulated gene expression, increased the neuroblast/OPC ratio and hindered OPC differentiation. Immunostainings demonstrated compromised neuroblast migration reducing their supply to the olfactory bulbs, impairing interneuron differentiation and odor discrimination. These findings underscore the pivotal roles of MCT8 and DIO2 in neuro- and oligodendrogenesis, offering targets for therapeutic avenues in neurodegenerative and demyelinating diseases.
PubMed: 38901782
DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2024.106572 -
Clinical and Translational Allergy Jun 2024Type 2 inflammation has been described as a pathophysiological basis common to some diseases, such as atopic dermatitis (AD), chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps,...
BACKGROUND
Type 2 inflammation has been described as a pathophysiological basis common to some diseases, such as atopic dermatitis (AD), chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, and asthma (CRSwNP).
OBJECTIVE
The present study used population-based prevalence in Catalonia to analyse the coexistence of type 2 inflammatory diseases in patients primarily diagnosed with the above mentioned conditions.
RESULTS
We found a high degree of coexistence of type 2 inflammatory diseases among these patients, with the prevalence being higher in the severe forms, except for AD. For the severe forms of primary diseases, the proportion of patients with coexisting type 2 inflammatory diseases (severe or non-severe) was 16.2% for AD, 19.8% for asthma, and a striking 62.4% for CRSwNP. This patient population has the highest proportion of coexisting type 2 inflammatory diseases, both severe (48.9%) and non-severe (13.5%).
CONCLUSION
Our findings have significant implications for the management of patients with AD, asthma, and CRSwNP.
PubMed: 38898824
DOI: 10.1002/clt2.12376 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024The chemical industry explosion in the 20th century has led to increased environmental pollution, affecting fauna, flora, and waterways. These substances alter water's...
The chemical industry explosion in the 20th century has led to increased environmental pollution, affecting fauna, flora, and waterways. These substances alter water's taste, color, and smell, making it unfit for consumption or toxic. Agricultural water networks face threats from pollution before and after treatment. Some chemical contaminants, like pesticides, are embedded in natural biogeochemical cycles. In this study, we developed a simple and low-cost procedure for the fabrication of needles coated with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as an efficient sorbent for the microextraction of organic pollutant traces from water. The prepared needles were used as an alternative for commercial solid-phase micro-extraction (SPME) devices in analytical chemistry. The PDMS polymeric phase was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetry (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The PDMS-coated needles were used for extraction of thirteen pesticides by direct-immersion solid-phase microextraction (DI-SPME) from contaminated waters, followed by determination with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The developed analytical method showed limits of detection (LODs) between 0.3 and 2.5 ng mL and RSDs in the range of 0.8-12.2%. The homemade needles were applied for the extraction of pesticides in surface and ground aqueous samples collected from an agricultural area. Several target pesticides were identified and quantified in the investigated water samples.
Topics: Solid Phase Microextraction; Pesticides; Water Pollutants, Chemical; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Agriculture; Dimethylpolysiloxanes; Water; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; Limit of Detection; Needles
PubMed: 38893504
DOI: 10.3390/molecules29112628 -
Nutrients May 2024Aging is a progressive physiological degeneration associated with a decline in chemosensory processes and cognitive abilities and a reduction in synaptic plasticity. The...
Aging is a progressive physiological degeneration associated with a decline in chemosensory processes and cognitive abilities and a reduction in synaptic plasticity. The biological bases of ageing are still not completely understood, and many theories have been proposed. This study aimed to evaluate the occurrence of age-related changes affecting the chemosensory function (gustatory and olfactory) and general cognitive abilities and their potential associations in women. To this aim, 319 women (the age ranging from 18 to 92 years) were recruited and divided into four different age groups: 18-34 years, 35-49 years, 50-64 years, and ≥65 years. Our results confirmed that in women, gustatory, olfactory, and cognitive functions decline, though in a different manner during aging. Olfactory and cognitive function showed a slight decline along the first three age classes, with a dramatic decrease after age 65 years, while gustatory function decreased more gradually. Olfactory and gustatory deficits may have a high degree of predictivity for general cognitive function as well as for specific cognitive subdomains such as visuospatial/executive abilities, language, memory, and attention. Our study highlighted the importance of using chemosensory assessments for the early diagnosis of cognitive decline and for the development of appropriate personalized risk prevention strategies.
Topics: Humans; Female; Middle Aged; Adult; Cognition; Aged; Young Adult; Adolescent; Aging; Smell; Aged, 80 and over; Taste; Cognitive Dysfunction; Age Factors
PubMed: 38892664
DOI: 10.3390/nu16111731 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2024The cell surface metalloprotease ADAM17 (a disintegrin and metalloprotease 17) and its binding partners iRhom2 and iRhom1 (inactive Rhomboid-like proteins 1 and 2)...
The cell surface metalloprotease ADAM17 (a disintegrin and metalloprotease 17) and its binding partners iRhom2 and iRhom1 (inactive Rhomboid-like proteins 1 and 2) modulate cell-cell interactions by mediating the release of membrane proteins such as TNFα (Tumor necrosis factor α) and EGFR (Epidermal growth factor receptor) ligands from the cell surface. Most cell types express both iRhoms, though myeloid cells exclusively express iRhom2, and iRhom1 is the main iRhom in the mouse brain. Here, we report that iRhom2 is uniquely expressed in olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs), highly specialized cells expressing one olfactory receptor (OR) from a repertoire of more than a thousand OR genes in mice. mice had no evident morphological defects in the olfactory epithelium (OE), yet RNAseq analysis revealed differential expression of a small subset of ORs. Notably, while the majority of ORs remain unaffected in OE, OSNs expressing ORs that are enriched in OE showed fewer gene expression changes upon odor environmental changes than the majority of OSNs. Moreover, we discovered an inverse correlation between the expression of iRhom2 compared to OSN activity genes and that odor exposure negatively regulates iRhom2 expression. Given that ORs are specialized G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) and many GPCRs activate iRhom2/ADAM17, we investigated if ORs could activate iRhom2/ADAM17. Activation of an olfactory receptor that is ectopically expressed in keratinocytes (OR2AT4) by its agonist Sandalore leads to ERK1/2 phosphorylation, likely via an iRhom2/ADAM17-dependent pathway. Taken together, these findings point to a mechanism by which odor stimulation of OSNs activates iRhom2/ADAM17 catalytic activity, resulting in downstream transcriptional changes to the OR repertoire and activity genes, and driving a negative feedback loop to downregulate iRhom2 expression.
Topics: Animals; Receptors, Odorant; Mice; Olfactory Receptor Neurons; Smell; ADAM17 Protein; Mice, Knockout; Carrier Proteins; Olfactory Mucosa; Gene Expression Regulation; Membrane Proteins; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Humans
PubMed: 38892263
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25116079 -
Foods (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024The aim of the study was to analyze the acceptance of muffins containing a 15% addition of powder from four edible insect species () in both savory and sweet versions,...
The aim of the study was to analyze the acceptance of muffins containing a 15% addition of powder from four edible insect species () in both savory and sweet versions, focusing on the psychological factors influencing their consumption. The study involved 106 adult consumers. Initially, the level of food neophobia (FNS) among participants was determined. Over 80% displayed low to medium levels of neophobia. Similar results were obtained when assessing attitudes towards insects, with most participants showing positive and ambivalent attitudes. Based on these findings, the acceptance of insect-based muffins was evaluated. The level of acceptance of insects varied and depended mainly on taste, smell, and texture. Participants with lower levels of neophobia and positive attitudes towards consuming insects generally rated the insect muffins higher compared to those with higher levels of neophobia and negative attitudes. The sweet versions of insect powder muffins were rated higher, which also indicates preferences and dietary habits. Products with grasshopper powder (GS, GCL) were rated the lowest for both taste versions. Conversely, products based on buffalo worms (BS, BCL) were seen as having the greatest potential for acceptance. Understanding consumer attitudes, neophobia, and levels of acceptance provides valuable insights for designing new insect-based foods.
PubMed: 38890963
DOI: 10.3390/foods13111735 -
Foods (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024The aim of the present research was to determine if the developed ovo-vegetarian sausage (SO), which was made with 15% chickpea flour, 51% albumin and 34% soy protein...
The aim of the present research was to determine if the developed ovo-vegetarian sausage (SO), which was made with 15% chickpea flour, 51% albumin and 34% soy protein concentrate, exhibited improved physicochemical and sensory characteristics compared to vegetarian sausages available on the local market (classic vegan sausage, SC; vegan fine herb sausage, SH; and quinoa sausage, SQ). According to the physicochemical results, the developed sample, SO, presented significant differences ( < 0.05) compared to the others, including higher protein content, lower pH and a higher a* value. Three types of sensory analyses were conducted-flash profile, overall liking and purchase intention (to determine consumers' willingness to purchase the product)-with the first involving 15 consumers and the second and third involving 60 participants each. Descriptors for each sample were determined using the vocabulary provided by consumers in the flash profile analysis. Descriptors for SO included 'elastic', 'smell of cooked corn', 'characteristic flavor', 'pasty', 'soft' and 'pastel color', contributing to its greater overall liking and purchase intention compared to the others. Through the hierarchical multiple factor analysis, a positive correlation was observed between the texture and sensory descriptors of the flash profile. Conversely, a correlation was found between the physicochemical characteristics (pH, a, color) and overall liking and purchase intention.
PubMed: 38890961
DOI: 10.3390/foods13111733 -
Journal of Investigational Allergology... Jun 2024
Topics: Humans; Female; Prevalence; Male; Middle Aged; Asthma-Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Overlap Syndrome; Aged; Lung; Asthma; Cohort Studies; Adult; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive
PubMed: 38888581
DOI: 10.18176/jiaci.0966 -
United European Gastroenterology Journal Jun 2024
PubMed: 38888204
DOI: 10.1002/ueg2.12618 -
Journal of Thoracic Disease May 2024The specific long-term sequela of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), also known as long COVID of the Omicron variant remain unclear, due to a lack of cohort studies...
BACKGROUND
The specific long-term sequela of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), also known as long COVID of the Omicron variant remain unclear, due to a lack of cohort studies that include non-COVID patients with cold-like symptoms. The study was conducted to examine specific sequelae symptoms after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, which is considered the Omicron variant, compared with patients who were never-infected.
METHODS
In this retrospective cohort study, we sent questionnaires in November 2022, targeting those who visited our fever outpatient unit of a single institution from July to September 2022. SARS-CoV-2 infection status was determined by SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results during the study period collected in electronic medical records. Clinical characteristics at 30 days or more since the date of SARS-CoV-2 PCR test were assessed by the questionnaires. Multiple logistic regression was performed to investigate the independent association between SARS-CoV-2 infection and possible sequelae symptoms.
RESULTS
In total, valid responses were received from 4,779 patients (mean age: 41.4 years, standard deviation: 19.8 years old). Among them, 3,326 (69.6%) and 1,453 (30.4%) were SARS-CoV-2 PCR test positive and never-infected, respectively. We found that patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection were more likely to have a loss of taste or smell [odds ratio (OR) 4.55, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.93, 10.71], hair loss (OR 3.19, 95% CI: 1.67, 6.09), neurocognitive symptoms (OR 1.95, 95% CI: 1.43, 2.65), and respiratory symptoms (OR 1.23, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.47) than never-infected patients. SARS-CoV-2 infection was not associated with common cold symptoms, chronic physical distress, or diarrhea as sequelae symptoms. Further, SARS-CoV-2 vaccination showed protective effects on sequelae of loss of taste or smell and hair loss.
CONCLUSIONS
Loss of taste or smell, hair loss, neurocognitive symptoms, and respiratory symptoms were found to be specific sequelae of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. It is important not to miss these symptoms that follow SARS-CoV-2 infection and to recognize and manage the long COVID.
PubMed: 38883639
DOI: 10.21037/jtd-23-1672