Search

STUDY DESIGN A retrospective study of the prospective cohort. OBJECTIVE To demonstrate the accurate distribution of the severity of scoliosis in patients with Marfan syndrome, and to identify the predictive physical features for progression of scoliosis in Marfan syndrome. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA To date, no study has unveiled the risk factors for the progression of scoliosis in Marfan syndrome. METHODS We retrospectively obtained data from a prospective cohort of the Marfan syndrome clinic at our institute. We enrolled patients whose whole spine radiographs in the standing position were evaluated at the age of 15 or above, from January 2014 to March 2020. The collected variables were physical manifestations defined as in the systemic score of the revised Ghent nosology. We classified the degree of scoliosis into four categories: "not apparent," "mild" (10° ≤ Cobb < 25°), "moderate" (25° ≤ Cobb < 40°), and "severe" (40° ≤ Cobb or surgery conducted). To identify the risk factors for progression of scoliosis in Marfan syndrome, we conducted univariate and multivariate association analyses between severe scoliosis and each physical manifestation. RESULTS We identified 131 eligible patients (61 men and 70 women) with a mean age of 31.2 years. Scoliosis with a Cobb angle of ≥10° was identified in 116 patients (88.5%). Moderate scoliosis was identified in 33 patients (25.2%) and severe scoliosis in 53 patients (40.5%). The prevalence of each physical manifestation was equivalent to that reported in previous studies. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that female sex (odds ratio, 3.27) and positive wrist sign (4.45) were predictive factors for progression of scoliosis into severe state in patients with Marfan syndrome. CONCLUSIONS The present study demonstrated the accurate distribution of the severity of scoliosis and identified the predictive factors for progression of scoliosis in patients with Marfan syndrome.Level of Evidence: 3.

Marfan syndrome can cause life-threatening aortic complications. We investigated the relationship betweenWe evaluated 248 patients with pathogenic or likely pathogenicThe cumulative event-free probability was significantly lower in the HI group than in the DN group (adjusted hazard ratio, 2.1; 95% confidence interval, 1.4 -3.2;DN-CD+HI patients should be monitored more carefully than DN-nonCD patients for rapid development of aortic root aneurysms.

Background— Balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) has become an alternative therapy for patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension who are ineligible for pulmonary endarterectomy. We retrospectively investigated intravascular ultrasound measurements to elucidate how the lumen enlarges immediately after BPA. Methods and Results— A total of 326 lesions in 71 patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension were analyzed. The cross-sectional areas (CSAs) of the external elastic membrane and lumen measured by intravascular ultrasound before and after BPA were assessed for each lesion type (type A, ring-like stenosis lesions; type B, web lesions; type C, subtotal occlusion lesions). Comparing the lesion types, the proportion of the area occupied by fibrous tissue was smallest in the type A lesions and largest in the type C lesions. The mean lesion lumen CSA was increased after BPA because of an increase in external elastic membrane CSA (from 23.2±12.9 to 27.2±14.3 mm 2 ; P 2 ; P r 2 =0.762; P Conclusions— Lumen enlargement immediately after BPA was obtained by the overall vessel expansion induced by a stretch of the arterial wall. In addition, the amount of fibrous tissue depended on each lesion type. Thus, it might be beneficial to change the balloon size to correspond with the lesion type.

Variants in TGFBR1 have been reported to induce two completely distinct diseases, namely Loeys–Dietz syndrome (LDS) and multiple self-healing squamous epithelioma (MSSE). However, detailed mechanisms underlying this effect remain unknown. We report a Japanese familial case of LDS with a novel splice donor site variant in TGFBR1 gene (c.973 + 1 G > A; NG_007461.1). The intronic variant was predicted to mediate in-frame exon 5 skipping within the serine/threonine kinase (STK) domain, which may also be mediated by a similar TGFBR1 variant of a splice acceptor site in intron 4 (c.806-2 A > C), identified in a British familial case of MSSE. Therefore, ex vivo splicing and functional assays were performed in mammalian cells to evaluate the effect of these sequence variants. The MSSE variant activated a cryptic acceptor site at 76 bp downstream of the 3′ natural splice acceptor site, which produced an out-of-frame transcript (r.807_882del, p.Asn270Thrfs*8). In contrast, the LDS variant generated two types of in-frame transcription products, r.[806_973del, 965_973 del], and produced two functionally inactivated proteins, p.[Asp269_Gln324del, Thr323_Gly325del], as a result of exon 5 skipping and the activation of a cryptic donor splice site at 9 bp upstream of the 5′ natural splice donor site, respectively. Our results support the previously proposed but not yet approved mechanism that dominant-negative and truncating variants in STK domain induce LDS and MSSE, respectively.

Gitelman's syndrome (GS) is an autosomal recessive disorder; it is rarely inherited over several generations. A 16-year-old boy showed hypokalemia and hypocalciuria. Clinically, he was diagnosed as GS because of diuretic responsiveness to furosemide but not thiazide. Genetic testing disclosed he was a compound heterozygote (T180K/V677M) for the SLC12A3 gene. Unexpectedly, the patient's father also showed hypokalemia and hypocalciuria. The genetic analysis showed he had an L849H mutation in addition to T180K. The present pedigree showed an extremely rare case. Diuretic tests are useful diagnostic methods, and genetic testing is necessary for precise evaluation of complicated cases as in this family.

Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (Nampt) catalyzes the rate-limiting step in the salvage pathway for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) biosynthesis and thereby regulates the deacetylase activity of sirtuins. Here we show accommodative regulation of myocardial NAD+ by monocyte-derived extracellular Nampt (eNampt), which is essential for hemodynamic compensation to pressure overload. Although intracellular Nampt (iNampt) expression was decreased in pressure-overloaded hearts, myocardial NAD+ concentration and Sirt1 activity were preserved. In contrast, iNampt was up-regulated in spleen and monocytes and circulating eNampt protein and nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), a key precursor of NAD+, were significantly increased. Pharmacological inhibition of Nampt by FK866 or depletion of monocytes/macrophages by clodronate liposomes disrupted the homeostatic mechanism of myocardial NAD+ levels and NAD+-dependent Sirt1 activity, leading to susceptibility to cardiomyocyte apoptosis and cardiac decompensation in pressure-overloaded mice. These biochemical and hemodynamic defects were prevented by systemic administration of NMN. Our studies uncover a crucial role of monocyte-derived eNampt in myocardial adaptation to pressure overload and highlight a potential intervention controlling myocardial NAD+ against heart failure.

Disruption of angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor prolonged life span in mice. Since aging-related decline in skeletal muscle function was retarded in Atgr1a−/− mice, we examined the role of AT1 receptor in muscle regeneration after injury. Administration of AT1 receptor blocker irbesartan increased the size of regenerating myofibers, decreased fibrosis and enhanced functional muscle recovery after cryoinjury. We recently reported that complement C1q, secreted by macrophages, activated Wnt/β-catenin signaling and promoted aging-related decline in regenerative capacity of skeletal muscle. Notably, irbesartan induced M2 polarization of macrophages, but reduced C1q expression in cryoinjured muscles and in cultured macrophage cells. Irbesartan inhibited up-regulation of Axin2, a downstream gene of Wnt/β-catenin pathway, in cryoinjured muscles. In addition, topical administration of C1q reversed beneficial effects of irbesartan on skeletal muscle regeneration after injury. These results suggest that AT1 receptor blockade improves muscle repair and regeneration through down-regulation of the aging-promoting C1q-Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

Emerging evidence has suggested a potential impact of gut microbiota on the pathophysiology of heart failure (HF). However, it is still unknown whether HF is associated with dysbiosis in gut microbiota. We investigated the composition of gut microbiota in patients with HF to elucidate whether gut microbial dysbiosis is associated with HF. We performed 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing of fecal samples obtained from 12 HF patients and 12 age-matched healthy control (HC) subjects, and analyzed the differences in gut microbiota. We further compared the composition of gut microbiota of 12 HF patients younger than 60 years of age with that of 10 HF patients 60 years of age or older. The composition of gut microbial communities of HF patients was distinct from that of HC subjects in both unweighted and weighted UniFrac analyses. Eubacterium rectale and Dorea longicatena were less abundant in the gut microbiota of HF patients than in that of HC subjects. Compared to younger HF patients, older HF patients had diminished proportions of Bacteroidetes and larger quantities of Proteobacteria. The genus Faecalibacterium was depleted, while Lactobacillus was enriched in the gut microbiota of older HF patients. These results suggest that patients with HF harbor significantly altered gut microbiota, which varies further according to age. New concept of heart-gut axis has a great potential for breakthroughs in the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic approach for HF.

Patient: Male, 83 Final Diagnosis: In-stent restenosis Symptoms: Chest discomfort Medication: — Clinical Procedure: Cardiac catheterization Specialty: Cardiology Objective: Unusual clinical course Background: In-stent restenosis (ISR) is still a recognized clinical problem in the era of drug-eluting stent (DES). Some previous studies have suggested that circulating eosinophils play an important role in both restenosis and thrombosis after DES implantation. However, the contribution of eosinophils to the pathogenesis of ISR has not yet been concisely clarified. Case Report: We present the case of an 83-year-old male Japanese patient with ISR exacerbated by drug-induced severe eosinophilia. He had previous histories of coronary stent implantations by DES and was referred to our hospital because of erythema with severe eosinophilia (maximum was 6500/μl [48% of total white blood cell count]). Around the same time, the patient developed ISR, for which a stent was deployed 2 years earlier. Arterial wall injury due to the increase in circulating eosinophils was verified in several findings, such as the increase of D-dimer and brain natriuretic peptide. In addition, the histology of the resected tissue from erythema demonstrated that the nuclei of endothelial cells were swollen where eosinophils and lymphocytes heavily infiltrated into the extravascular space, suggesting the presence of vascular injury. This injury due to the increase in circulating eosinophils may have a marked impact on the pathologic process of ISR in DES implantation. Conclusions: Just a few anecdotal reports are available of ISR occurring in the setting of hypereosinophilia. The clarification of the mechanism in this patient provides a new effective therapeutic strategy against ISR in the setting of DES implantation.