Zebrafish: a model for understanding diabetic complications

Diabetes mellitus causes several vascular complications in patients, such as macrovascular problems including myocardial infarction, peripheral artery diseases and stroke and microvascular problems including nephropathy and retinopathy. Likewise, diabetes mellitus is associated with other complications such as neuropathy and delayed wound healing. The zebrafish has been used for decades as a model organism for studies in developmental biology. In fact several common and important developmental mechanisms have been identified in zebrafish which are similar in mammals. The zebrafish has short generation intervals and zebrafish embryos are transparent and therefore provide unique imaging opportunities. In combination with genetic manipulations, including gene silencing protocols by using morpholinos, mutant or transgenic fish lines, the zebrafish has become one of the most important models in developmental biology. Over and above, zebrafish is also an established model organism for several pathophysiological conditions which are related to human diseases. For instance, zebrafish is used as an inflammation and regeneration model because of its ability to partially compensate for organ loss (e. g., heart and fins). It is also used for drug screening, in tumor biology, for systems biology, congenital and hereditary disease, and in infection [1].

Radon therapy for the treatment of rheumatic diseases--review and meta-analysis of controlled clinical trials

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of radon therapy on pain in rheumatic diseases.

METHODS

MEDLINE and MedKur databases were searched for the terms radon plus therapy, rheum, arthritis, and osteo. Radon therapy centers and experts in the field were contacted, proceedings hand-searched, and bibliographies checked for references of potential importance. Included were all prospective randomized controlled clinical trials that compared clinical effects of radon therapy with other interventions in patients with rheumatic diseases and studied pain intensity. Information concerning patients, interventions, results, and methodology were extracted in a standardized manner by all authors independently and summarized descriptively. Reports on pain reduction were pooled for meta-analysis.

RESULTS

Five clinical trials with a total of 338 patients and comparing the effect on pain of radon baths (three trials) or radon speleotherapy (two trials) with control intervention in degenerative spinal disease (two trials), rheumatoid arthritis (one trial) and ankylosing spondylitis (two trials) met the inclusion criteria. In meta-analysis, the pooled data showed no difference immediately after treatment (P=0.13) but significantly better pain reduction in the radon group than the control group at 3 months (P=0.02) and 6 months (P=0.002) after treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

The existing trials suggest a positive effect of radon therapy on pain in rheumatic diseases. With respect to the potential clinical effect and given the increasing public interest in radon therapy, there is an urgent need for further randomized controlled clinical investigations with long-term follow-up.

Cyclosporin treatment in rheumatoid arthritis is associated with an increased serum activity of beta-glucuronidase

The serum activity of beta-glucuronidase (beta-gluc) has been presumed to indicate the disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In 10 patients with RA the serum beta-gluc was repeatedly determined after the initiation of a treatment with cyclosporin for one year. A significant increase of beta-gluc was found after 8, 12 and 16 weeks compared to the values before treatment, while the concentration of the soluble interleukin 2-receptor decreased. The data reveal, that beta-gluc is not a useful indicator of the disease activity during cyclosporin treatment.

Association of class I, II, and III MHC gene products with systemic lupus erythematosus. Results of a Central European multicenter study

Class I, II, and III MHC gene products were examined in 248 Central European SLE patients. The previously reported association with HLA-A1, -B8 and -DR3, and C4AQ0 alleles was confirmed. The frequency of HLA-DR2 was also slightly elevated in SLE patients, while no increase in C4BQ0 alleles was observed. Additional findings were a significantly increased frequency of HLA-B13 and a significant decrease of HLA-B44.

[Histone antibodies: significance in the diagnosis of SLE in comparison to dsDNA antibodies and antibodies to extractable nuclear antigens]

Antibodies to histones of the IgG-class are specific for SLE and can be shown in 23% of the sera. They are not associated with clinical symptoms of SLE, but with dsDNA-antibodies.

Antibodies to dsDNA and ssDNA in the immunoglobulin classes IgG and IgM: prognostic value in the course of SLE

Antibodies to dsDNA of the IgG-class show a strong association with disease activity in the course of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Of 22 patients with low dsDNA-levels only one had an exacerbation. In 8 patients a rise of IgG-dsDNA antibodies to high levels occurred, followed by an exacerbation in 7 of them. In 6 of these 7 patients the IgG-dsDNA antibodies had a prognostic value by rising into high ranges 2-12 weeks before the exacerbation. IgG-ssDNA antibodies showed only a weak association to the clinical course. IgM antibodies to dsDNA as well as to ssDNA did not correlate with the clinical activity at all.

[DNA antibodies during the clinical course of systemic lupus erythematosus]

IgG-dsDNA-antibodies are of prognostic value in the course of SLE. At present it remains open whether they are suitable to use them for therapeutic measures.