Development of actinic lentigines due to multiple sub‐erythemal exposure to UVA1 radiation in Asian skin

Posted on by

Abstract

The appearance of actinic lentigines mainly found on face, back of the hands, upper back and décolleté is associated with chronic sun exposure. However, there is no study looking at the role of long UVA specifically in the development of actinic lentigines. This study was conducted in 20 Japanese adult women exposed on the upper back area three times per week for 6 weeks to incremental sub-erythemal UVA1 doses (5 J/cm2 at weeks 1 and 2, 10 J/cm2 at weeks 3 and 4 and 15 J/cm2 at weeks 5 and 6). Clinical assessment, performed on day 0 (before any exposure), and on days 14, 28 and 42, included the evaluation of skin pigmentation (pigmented spots), chromametry of the pigmented skin lesions and measurement of dyschromy. The number of pigmented spots and uniformity of the skin's pigmentation were clearly increased in comparison with baseline, statistical significance of the difference (p < 0.05) being reached at D 28 and D 42 in both cases. In conclusion, repeated sub-erythemal UVA1 exposure induces the development of actinic lentigines. Thus, a suitable protection including long UVA coverage is also needed to prevent from the damages induced by low, sub-erythemal doses of UV exposure.

Predictors of milk cortisol in North American women

Posted on by

Abstract

Objectives

Human milk content varies across mother–child dyads, environments, and populations. Among the hormones in milk is cortisol, a glucocorticoid; its impact on the breastfeeding child is unknown. Milk cortisol may constitute a signal to the child's developing physiology which can shape characteristics (e.g., growth, temperament) to prevailing environmental conditions. This exploratory study evaluated the maternal, breastfeeding, and infant characteristics associated with milk cortisol.

Methods

We evaluated archived milk specimens for cortisol using enzyme immunoassay and employed an information-theoretic approach to assess associations between milk cortisol and participant characteristics with linear regression modeling. Because we employed secondary data, information for some variables likely to impact milk cortisol variation (e.g., time of day, socioeconomic status, maternal or infant body mass index, milk energy density) was unavailable.

Results

Participants were 48 lactating mothers from upstate New York, aged 21–40 years. Milk cortisol ranged from 0.098 to 1.007 μg/dL. Child age ranged from 1 to 26 months. In linear regression employing best fit modeling criteria, milk cortisol increased with child age (B: 0.069; p: .000; a 7.1% increase in milk cortisol for each month of child age), while child symptoms of illness (B: −0.398; p: .057; a 33% decrease) and consumption of complementary foods (B: −.525; p: .020; a 41% decrease) were associated with lower milk cortisol.

Conclusions

We speculate that increasing milk cortisol with child age plays a role in signaling development (e.g., as increasing independence increases risk for injury and other negative health outcomes), independent of the maternal stressors we could capture.

Dietary lithium stimulates female fecundity in Drosophila melanogaster

Posted on by
Dietary lithium stimulates female fecundity in Drosophila melanogaster

Dietary lithium (0.1–5 mM LiCl) improved the lithium status of the female fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and substantially increased egg production. These findings were accompanied by alterations in mRNA levels of genes encoding proteins involved with chorion formation and yolk protein biosynthesis, which are essential steps in Drosophila oogenesis. (Image created with BioRender.com).


Abstract

The trace element lithium exerts a versatile bioactivity in humans, to some extend overlapping with in vivo findings in the model organism Drosophila melanogaster. A potentially essential function of lithium in reproduction has been suggested since the 1980s and multiple studies have since been published postulating a regulatory role of lithium in female gametogenesis. However, the impact of lithium on fruit fly egg production has not been at the center of attention to date. In the present study, we report that dietary lithium (0.1–5.0 mM LiCl) substantially improved life time egg production in D. melanogaster w 1118 females, with a maximum increase of plus 45% when supplementing 1.0 mM LiCl. This phenomenon was not observed in the insulin receptor mutant InR E19 , indicating a potential involvement of insulin-like signaling in the lithium-mediated fecundity boost. Analysis of the whole-body and ovarian transcriptome revealed that dietary lithium affects the mRNA levels of genes encoding proteins related to processes of follicular maturation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on dietary lithium acting as an in vivo fecundity stimulant in D. melanogaster, further supporting the suggested benefit of the trace element in female reproduction.

Secular trends and urban–rural disparities in height of Chinese adolescents aged 18 years from 1985 to 2019

Posted on by

Abstract

Objectives

To examine the secular trends and urban–rural disparities in height of Chinese adolescents aged 18 years from 1985 to 2019.

Methods

Data were extracted from the Chinese National Surveys on Students' Constitution and Health from 1985 to 2019, and the heights of a total of 76 554 boys and 75 908 girls aged 18 years were measured. The Mann–Kendall trend test was used to analyze the secular trends in height. Changes in different periods and urban–rural disparities were tested by z-tests and calculating the ratios of the coefficient of variation (CV) of height.

Results

The height of Chinese boys and girls aged 18 years increased from 168.21 and 157.10 cm in 1985 to 172.15 cm and 160.11 cm in 2019, respectively, with a larger increase in rural areas. The secular trends in height were the largest for boys from 1995 to 2005 and for girls from 2014 to 2019, and the same results were observed in urban and rural areas. The urban–rural disparities for boys and girls decreased by 1.79 and 0.91 cm, respectively, with significant decreases for boys in all regions and for girls in the eastern region. The overall CVs of height increased by 0.13% and 0.25% for boys and girls, respectively, with the largest increase among rural girls.

Conclusions

The height of Chinese adolescents aged 18 years continued to increase between 1985 and 2019. The urban–rural disparities narrowed, and inequalities within rural areas for girls increased.

Vitamin D3 mitigates autoimmune inflammation caused by activation of myeloid dendritic cells in SLE

Posted on by

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease in which defective T cells, immune complex deposition and other immune system alterations contribute to pathological changes of multiple organ systems. The vitamin D metabolite c is a critical immunomodulator playing pivotal roles in the immune system. Epidemiological evidence indicates that vitamin D deficiency is correlated with the severity of SLE. Our aim is to investigate the effects of 1,25(OH)2D3 (VitD3) on the activation of myeloid dendritic cells (mDCs) by autologous DNA-containing immune complex (DNA-ICs), and the effects of VitD3 on immune system balance during SLE. We purified DNA-ICs from the serum of SLE patients and isolated mDCs from normal subjects. In vitro studies showed that DNA-ICs were internalized and consumed by mDCs. VitD3 blocked the effects of DNA-ICs on RelB, IL-10 and TNF-α in mDCs. Further analysis indicated that DNA-ICs stimulated histone acetylation in the RelB promoter region, which was inhibited by VitD3. Knockdown of the histone deacetylase 3 gene (HDAC3) blocked these VitD3-mediated effects. Co-culture of mDCs and CD4+ T cells showed that VitD3 inhibited multiple processes mediated by DNA-ICs, including proliferation, downregulation of IL-10, TGF-β and upregulation of TNF-α. Moreover, VitD3 could also reverse the effects of DNA-IC-induced imbalance of CD4+ CD127− Foxp3+ T cells and CD4+ IL17+ T cells. Taken together, our results indicated that autologous DNA-ICs stimulate the activation of mDCs in the pathogenesis of SLE, and VitD3 inhibits this stimulatory effects of DNA-ICs by negative transcriptional regulation of RelB gene and maintaining the Treg/Th17 immune cell balance. These results suggest that vitamin D may have therapeutic value for the treatment of SLE.

Exploring the therapeutic potential of naturally occurring piceatannol in non‐communicable diseases

Posted on by
Exploring the therapeutic potential of naturally occurring piceatannol in non-communicable diseases

The natural stilbene Piceatannol is having a promising therapeutic potential for the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of complex human diseases like asthma, cancer, diabetes, and so forth.


Abstract

Piceatannol is a naturally occurring hydroxylated resveratrol analogue that can be found in a variety of fruits and vegetables. It has been documented to have a wide range of beneficial effects, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-allergic, antidiabetic, neuroprotective, cardioprotective, and chemopreventive properties. Piceatannol has significantly higher antioxidant activity than resveratrol. Piceatannol has been shown in preclinical studies to have the ability to inhibit or reduce the growth of cancers in various organs such as the brain, breast, lung, colon, cervical, liver, prostate, and skin. However, the bioavailability of Piceatannol is comparatively lower than resveratrol and other stilbenes. Several approaches have been reported in recent years to enhance its bioavailability and biological activity, and clinical trials are required to validate these findings. This review focuses on several aspects of natural stilbene Piceatannol, its chemistry, and its mechanism of action, and its promising therapeutic potential for the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of complex human diseases.

Using ultraviolet dermoscopy in diagnosing scabies

Posted on by

Abstract

The latest generation ultraviolet (UV) dermatoscopes, which emit UV light at a wavelength of 365 nm and enlarge lesions, are practical devices that can facilitate the diagnosis and follow-up of some dermatological diseases with fluorescence that can be observed in skin lesions. In 305 patients, 468 tunnels were evaluated: first in polarized mode and later in UV mode. The recorded samples were compared one-to-one by the same dermatologist. Due to the study's design, images were examined in three stages: tunnel borders, tunnel content and mite appearance. In UV mode, the entire body of mites gives a bright reflex along with an oval-shaped diagnostic clue well beyond the delta sign. The borders of the tunnel reflect brightly in UV mode, with borders that are more sharply visible than in polarized mode. Although the tunnel content cannot be clearly distinguished in polarized mode, especially in people with hyperkeratotic palms, or ‘working hands’ (e.g. farmers, mechanics and construction workers), with the bright reflex, the tunnel borders in UV mode give a bright reflection and provide a clear view of tunnels. Tunnel content gives a bright reflection in UV mode. Our results show that UV dermatoscopes provide more effective and clearer images than polarized dermatoscopes in the diagnosis of scabies.