20.11.2006

Aalto, M. and Seppä, K.

Addict Behav. 2006. IF 1.581

OBJECTIVE: Little is known about the level of alcohol consumption at which physicians think that they should advise their patients to reduce drinking. This is especially true concerning the amounts consumed per one drinking occasion. The aim of the present study was to examine these issues and also characteristics of physicians possibly associated with their different opinions.

METHOD: Cross-sectional self-administered questionnaire survey to all 3193 primary health care physicians in Finland. Response rate was 61.0%.

RESULTS: The physicians reported that on average 14.8 drinks (one drink=12 g of absolute alcohol)/week for males and 10.6 drinks/week for females to be the threshold that would cause them to advise their patients. Corresponding figures for one drinking occasion were 6.6 and 4.9 drinks/week. In linear regression analyses physicians' AUDIT scores, use of brief intervention, experience as a physician and age explained the variance of all or some reported thresholds, but all the variables explained only about 10% of the phenomena.

CONCLUSIONS: Compared to the official Finnish recommendations regarding the definition of heavy drinking, the physicians reported similar levels of drinking per occasion for deciding to advise their patients, but rather low levels concerning weekly drinking. This may lead to extra workload for physicians and thus hamper implementation of brief intervention. Physicians' characteristics seem to be a decidedly minor issue in implementing drinking limits in health care.

No association between serum insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I, IGF-binding protein-3, and lung cancer risk

Ahn, J., Weinstein, S. J., Snyder, K., Pollak, M. N., Virtamo, J. and Albanes, D.

Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention. 2006; 15(10): 2010-2012. Editorial Material. IF 4.460

The scientific basis for trans fatty acid regulations-is it sufficient? A European perspective

Aro, A.

Atheroscler Suppl. 2006; 7(2): 67-8. IF 8.963

The C18:1 trans fatty acids (TFA) comprise a variety of positional isomers, but no definite differences have been documented so far between the metabolic and health effects of industrial and ruminant TFA. In Europe the intake of industrially produced TFA (IP-TFA) has declined, and the majority of TFA are of ruminant origin. TFA have been replaced with cis-unsaturates in soft margarines and they have been reduced also in industrial fats, but often by using palm kernel oils. When modifying the dietary fat composition the proportion of saturated plus TFA should be kept to one-third of total dietary fatty acid intake.

Coffee consumption and risk of total and cardiovascular mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes

Bidel, S., Hu, G., Qiao, Q., Jousilahti, P., Antikainen, R. and Tuomilehto, J.

Diabetologia. 2006; 49(11): 2618-2626. Article. IF 5.337

Higher habitual coffee drinking has been associated with a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The relation between coffee consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been examined in many studies, but the issue remains controversial. This study was designed to assess the association between coffee consumption and CVD mortality among patients with type 2 diabetes. We prospectively followed 3,837 randomly ascertained Finnish patients with type 2 diabetes aged 25 to 74 years. Coffee consumption and other study parameters were determined at baseline. The International Classification of Diseases was used to identify CHD, CVD and stroke cases using computerised record linkage to the national Death Registry. The associations between coffee consumption at baseline and risk of total, CVD, CHD, and stroke mortality were analysed by using Cox proportional hazards models. During the average follow-up of 20.8 years, 1,471 deaths were recorded, of which 909 were coded as CVD, 598 as CHD and 210 as stroke. The respective multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios in participants who drank 0-2, 3-4, 5-6, and >= 7 cups of coffee daily were 1.00, 0.77, 0.68 and 0.70 for total mortality (P < 0.001 for trend), 1.00, 0.79, 0.70 and 0.71 for CVD mortality (P=0.006 for trend), 1.00, 0.78, 0.70 and 0.63 for CHD mortality (p=0.01 for trend), and 1.00, 0.77, 0.64 and 0.90 for stroke mortality (p=0.12 for trend). In this large prospective study we found that in type 2 diabetic patients coffee drinking is associated with reduced total, CVD and CHD mortality.

Bioavailability of quercetin from berries and the diet

Erlund, I., Freese, R., Marniemi, J., Hakala, P. and Alfthan, G.

Nutr Cancer. 2006; 54(1): 13-7. IF 2.426

Berries are a rich source of various polyphenols, including the flavonoid quercetin. In this article, the results of three intervention studies investigating the bioavailability of quercetin from berries are reviewed. In the first study, we investigated the short-term kinetics of quercetin after consumption of black currant juice and showed that quercetin is rapidly absorbed from it. In the second study, we showed that plasma quercetin levels increase up to 50% in subjects consuming 100 g/day of bilberries, black currants, and lingonberries as a part of their normal diets for 2 mo. In the third study, healthy subjects consumed a diet high or low in vegetables, berries, and other fruit for 6 wk. Quercetin concentrations nearly doubled in the high-vegetable, -berry, and -other fruit group and decreased by 30% in subjects consuming less of these foods than normally. The results showed that plasma quercetin is bioavailable from a diet containing berries and indicate that it may be a good biomarker of fruit and vegetable intake in general.

Temperament, character and symptoms of anxiety and depression in the general population

Jylhä, P. and Isometsä, E.

Eur Psychiatry. 2006; 21(6): 389-95. IF 1.273

Few studies have investigated the relationship of temperament and character, as conceptualized in the Temperament and Character Inventory-Revised (TCI-R), to symptoms of depression and anxiety in the general population. In this study a random sample of subjects (20 to 70 years), in two Finnish cities, were surveyed with the TCI-R, Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories, plus questions related to diagnosed lifetime mental disorders, health care use for psychiatric reasons during the past 12 months, and history of mental disorders in first-degree relatives. Altogether 347 subjects (38.6%) responded. Of the TCI-R dimensions, Harm Avoidance correlated with symptoms of depression (r(s)=0.555, p<0.001), anxiety (r(s)=0.560, p<0.001), self-reported lifetime mental disorder (r(s)=0.272, p<0.001), health care use for psychiatric reason during the past 12 months (r(s)=0.241, p<0.001) and family history of mental disorder (r(s)=0.202, p<0.001). Self-directedness correlated negatively with symptoms of depression (r(s)=-0.495, p<0.001), anxiety (r(s)=-0.458, p<0.001), lifetime mental disorder (r(s)=0.225, p<0.001) and health care use (r(s)=-0.135, p=0.013). Overall, Harm Avoidance and Self-directedness seem to associate moderately with depressive and anxiety symptoms, and somewhat predict self-reported use of health services for psychiatric reasons, and lifetime mental disorder. High harm avoidance may associate with a family history of mental disorder.

Rapid genotyping of lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) C(1341)-->T (Leu(436)-->Phe) polymorphism by LightCycler real-time PCR

Korhonen, T., Grauling-Halama, S., Halama, N., Silvennoinen-Kassinen, S., Leinonen, M. and Saikku, P.

J Immunol Methods. 2006. IF 2.572

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is an exdotoxin found in the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria. In circulation, LPS is bound by LPS-binding protein (LBP), which participates in cell activation by transferring LPS to CD14 and Toll-like receptor 4. A high LPS concentration may give rise to an exaggerated immune response, which may lead to septic shock during septicemia. However, LBP also neutralizes and removes LPS by transferring it to plasma lipoproteins. Recently, the presence of an amino acid-changing polymorphism in the LBP gene was reported, which, in men, was associated with sepsis and its severity and with myocardial infarction. Here, we describe a new LightCycler real-time PCR method for genotyping this LBP C(1341)-->T (Leu(436)-->Phe) polymorphism. In our study population of 393 Finnish blood donors, the genotype frequencies were: 86% TT, 13% CT and 1% CC.

The effects of changing water flow velocity on the formation of biofilms and water quality in pilot distribution system consisting of copper or polyethylene pipes

Lehtola, M. J., Laxander, M., Miettinen, I. T., Hirvonen, A., Vartiainen, T. and Martikainen, P. J.

Water Res. 2006; 40(11): 2151-60. IF 3.019

We studied the effects of flow velocity on the formation of biofilms and the concentration of bacteria in water in copper and plastic (polyethylene, PE) pipes. The formation of biofilms increased with the flow velocity of water. The increase in microbial numbers and contents of ATP was clearer in the PE pipes than in the copper pipes. This was also seen as increased consumption of microbial nutrients in the pipeline system. This indicates that the mass transfer of nutrients is in major role in the growth of biofilms. However, the increased biomass of biofilms did not affect microbial numbers in the water. Rapid changes in water flow rate resuspended biofilms and sediments which increased the concentrations of bacteria and copper in water. The disturbance caused by the changing water flow was also seen as an increase in the particle counts and water turbidity recorded with online instrumentation.

Sustained reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes by lifestyle intervention: follow-up of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study

Lindström, J., Ilanne-Parikka, P., Peltonen, M., Aunola, S., Eriksson, J. G., Hemio, K., Hämäläinen, H., Harkonen, P., Keinänen-Kiukaanniemi, S., Laakso, M., Louheranta, A., Mannelin, M., Paturi, M., Sundvall, J., Valle, T. T., Uusitupa, M. and Tuomilehto, J.

Lancet. 2006; 368(9548): 1673-9. IF 23.878

BACKGROUND: Lifestyle interventions can prevent the deterioration of impaired glucose tolerance to manifest type 2 diabetes, at least as long as the intervention continues. In the extended follow-up of the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study, we assessed the extent to which the originally-achieved lifestyle changes and risk reduction remain after discontinuation of active counselling.

METHODS: Overweight, middle-aged men (n=172) and women (n=350) with impaired glucose tolerance were randomly assigned to intensive lifestyle intervention or control group. After a median of 4 years of active intervention period, participants who were still free of diabetes were further followed up for a median of 3 years, with median total follow-up of 7 years. Diabetes incidence, bodyweight, physical activity, and dietary intakes of fat, saturated fat, and fibre were measured.

FINDINGS: During the total follow-up, the incidence of type 2 diabetes was 4.3 and 7.4 per 100 person-years in the intervention and control group, respectively (log-rank test p=0.0001), indicating 43% reduction in relative risk. The risk reduction was related to the success in achieving the intervention goals of weight loss, reduced intake of total and saturated fat and increased intake of dietary fibre, and increased physical activity. Beneficial lifestyle changes achieved by participants in the intervention group were maintained after the discontinuation of the intervention, and the corresponding incidence rates during the post-intervention follow-up were 4.6 and 7.2 (p=0.0401), indicating 36% reduction in relative risk.

INTERPRETATION: Lifestyle intervention in people at high risk for type 2 diabetes resulted in sustained lifestyle changes and a reduction in diabetes incidence, which remained after the individual lifestyle counselling was stopped.

Parallel optimization and genotyping of multiple single-nucleotide polymorphism markers by sample pooling approach using cycling-gradient CE with multiple injections

Minarik, M., Benesova, L., Fantova, L., Horacek, J., Heracek, J. and Loukola, A.

Electrophoresis. 2006; 27(19): 3856-3863. Article. IF 3.850

Increasing importance of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in determination of disease susceptibility or in prediction of therapy response brings attention of many molecular diagnostic laboratories to simple and low-cost SNP genotyping methodologies. We have recently introduced a mutation detection technique based on analysis of homo- and heteroduplex PCR fragments resolved in cycling temperature gradient conditions on a conventional multicapillary-array DNA sequencer. The main advantage of this technique is in its simplicity with no requirement for sample cleanup prior to the analysis. In this report we present a practical application of the technology for genotyping of SNP markers in two separate clinical projects resulting in a combined set of 44 markers screened in over 500 patients. Initially, a design of PCR primers and conditions was performed for each SNP marker. Then, optimization of CE running conditions (limited just to the proper selection of temperature cycling) was performed on pools of 20 DNA samples to increase the probability of having each of the two allele types represented in the sample. After selecting the optimum conditions, screening of markers in patients was performed using a multiple-injection approach for further acceleration of the sample throughput. The rate of successful optimization of experimental conditions without any pre-selection based on the SNP sequence or melting characteristics was 80% from the initial SNP marker candidates. By studying the failed markers, we attempt to identify critical factors enabling successful typing. The presented technique is very useful for low to medium sized SNP genotyping projects mostly applied in pharmacogenomic research as well as in clinical diagnostics. The main advantages include low cost, simple setup and validation of SNP markers.

Moisture damage and childhood asthma - a population-based incident case-control study

Pekkanen, J., Hyvärinen, A., Haverinen-Shaughnessy, U., Korppi, M., Putus, T. and Nevalainen, A.

Eur Respir J. 2006. IF 3.947

Most previous studies on the association between moisture damage and asthma have been cross-sectional and relied on self-reported exposure and health. We studied the association by doing careful home inspections among new, clinically determined cases of asthma and controls.We recruited prospectively new cases of asthma aged 12-84 months (n=121) and matched them for year of birth, sex and living area with two randomly selected population controls (n=241). Trained engineers visited all homes. Both cases and controls had lived at least 75% of their lifetime or the past two years in their current home.Risk of asthma increased with severity of moisture damage (OR 2.11, 95%CI 1.06-4.21 for minor damage and 2.46, 95%CI 1.09-5.55 for major damage) and presence of visible mold (adjusted OR 2.59, 95%CI 1.15-5.85) in the main living quarters, but not in other areas of the house. Cases had more often any damage in their bedroom (OR 1.97, 95%CI 1.00-3.90). Associations were comparable for atopic and non-atopic asthma and for children above or below 30 months of age.Present results using standardized assessment of both exposure and asthma suggest that moisture damage and mold growth in the main living quarters is associated with development of asthma in early childhood.

Aire deficient mice do not develop the same profile of tissue-specific autoantibodies as APECED patients

Pontynen, N., Miettinen, A., Arstila, T. P., Kampe, O., Alimohammadi, M., Vaarala, O., Peltonen, L. and Ulmanen, I.

Journal of Autoimmunity. 2006; 27(2): 96-104. Article. IF 2.491

Autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED, or APS1), is a monogenic autoimmune disease caused by mutations in the autoimmune regulator (AIRE) gene. The three main components of APECED are chronic mucocuteaneous candidiasis, hypoparathyroidism and adrenocortical insufficiency. However, several additional endocrine or other autoimmune disease components, or ectodermal dystrophies form the individually variable clinical picture of APECED. An important feature of APECED is a spectrum of well-characterized circulating autoantibodies, reacting against tissue-specific autoantigens. Aire deficient mice develop some characteristics of APECED phenotype. In order to investigate whether the Aire deficient mice produce autoantibodies similar to human APECED, we studied the reactivity of Aire mouse sera against mouse homologues of 11 human APECED antigens. None of the APECED antigens indicated elevated reactivity in the Aire knock-out mouse sera, implying the absence of APECED associated autoantibodies in Aire deficient mice. These findings were supported by the failure of the autoantigens to activate mouse T-cells. Furthermore, Aire knock-out mice did not express increased levels of antinuclear antibodies compared to wt mice. This study indicates that spontaneous induction of tissue-specific autoantibodies similar to APECED does not occur in the rodent model suggesting differences in the immunopathogenic mechanisms between mice and men. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

emm typing of invasive T28 group A streptococci, 1995-2004, Finland

Siljander, T., Toropainen, M., Muotiala, A., Hoe, N. P., Musser, J. M. and Vuopio-Varkila, J.

J Med Microbiol. 2006; 55(Pt 12): 1701-1706. IF 2.318

A total of 985 group A streptococcus (GAS) bacteraemia isolates collected in Finland during 1995-2004 were T-serotyped, and of these, 336 isolates of serotype T28 were subjected to further emm typing. The total number of isolates referred per year showed an increase within the study period, from 43 in 1995 to 130 in 2004. The annual incidence of invasive GAS (iGAS) bacteraemia showed a general increase during the study period, from 1.1 to 2.5 per 100 000 population. Serotype T28 remained among the most common serotypes, in addition to serotypes TB3264 and T1. The serotype T28 isolates were found to be distributed across six distinct emm types: emm28, emm77, emm53 (including subtypes 53.2 and 53.4), emm87, emm2 and emm4. The serotype distribution and the emm type distribution of serotype T28 fluctuated over time. Within the study period, the proportion of T28/emm28 isolates became the most prominent. During periods of low emm28 incidence, emm types 77 and 53 seemed to show a resurgence. emm typing revealed T28 isolates to be a genetically heterogeneous group harbouring a variety of distinct M proteins. This study confirms that T serotyping alone is not a sufficient method for epidemiological surveillance of iGAS.

Serum antibodies to pneumococcal neuraminidase NanA in relation to pneumococcal carriage and acute otitis media

Simell, B., Jaakkola, T., Lahdenkari, M., Briles, D., Hollingshead, S., Kilpi, T. M. and Käyhty, H.

Clinical and Vaccine Immunology. 2006; 13(10): 1177-1179. Article.

Pneumococcal neuraminidase, NanA, is a pneumococcal vaccine candidate. Prior culture-confirmed pneumococcal contacts were shown to induce serum anti-NanA antibodies during the first 2 years of life. The antibody concentrations at neither 12 nor 18 months were significantly associated with the risk of subsequent pneumococcal carriage or acute otitis media.

Deleterious Pleiotropic Effects of the Atypical Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) Allele: Comment on Luo et al., 2005

Sinclair, D.

Biochem Genet. 2006. IF 0.776

Luo [Biochem. Genet. 43:223-227] concluded, "The mutation ALDH2(() 487Lys allele is not deleterious but is of great benefit to human health." This statement is easily subject to misinterpretation and needs to be clarified. Their results actually show there is a pleiotropic effect associated with the mutation ALDH2(() 487Lys allele that is as deleterious as the risk of alcoholism for which it offers protection, and thus there is no net benefit from having the mutation. A clarification is needed because this statement and others in the paper might be used inappropriately as an endorsement of practices that are in fact worthless, because it masks the need to find what the pleiotropic effect is, and because it seems to contradict what otherwise seems to be a general rule of evolution.

Antidepressant use and the risk of suicide, attempted suicide and overall mortality in a nation-wide cohort

Tiihonen, J., Lönnqvist, J., Wahlbeck, K., Klaukka, T., Tanskanen, A. and Haukka, J.

European Neuropsychopharmacology. 2006; 16: S321-S321. Meeting Abstract. IF 3.510

Mycobacteria and fungi in moisture-damaged building materials

Torvinen, E., Meklin, T., Torkko, P., Suomalainen, S., Reiman, M., Katila, M. L., Paulin, L. and Nevalainen, A.

Appl Environ Microbiol. 2006; 72(10): 6822-4. IF 3.818

In contrast to the growth of fungi, the growth of mycobacteria in moisture-damaged building materials has rarely been studied. Environmental mycobacteria were isolated from 23% of samples of moisture-damaged materials (n = 88). The occurrence of mycobacteria increased with increasing concentrations of fungi. Mycobacteria may contribute to indoor exposure and associated adverse health effects.

Murine model of food allergy after epicutaneous sensitization: Role of mucosal mast cell protease-1

Vaali, K., Puumalainen, T. J., Lehto, M., Wolff, H., Rita, H., Alenius, H. and Palosuo, T.

Scand J Gastroenterol. 2006; 41(12): 1405-13. IF 1.790

Objective. Studies of the pathological mechanisms of food allergy have been impeded by the lack of relevant animal models. The purpose of this study was to develop a physiological model of food allergy that was not dependent on immunostimulatory adjuvants. Material andmethods. Balb/c mice were epicutaneously sensitized four times at varying intervals over a 22-day period, and challenged orally from day 40, 6 times every 1-3 days with either saline or ovalbumin. Results. After sensitization (day 35) but before the oral challenges, the ovalbumin-sensitized groups showed increased specific IgE and IgG1 production when compared with the sham-sensitized groups. Mucosal mast cell protease-1 (MMCP-1) was undetectable in serum before the intragastric challenge. MMCP-1 concentrations were increased after the first ovalbumin dose, solely in the ovalbumin-sensitized and -challenged group. After the challenge period, the mean serum MMCP-1 concentration increased from an undetectable level in controls to an over 44-fold level in the ovalbumin-sensitized and -challenged mice. In this group, MMCP-1-positive cells were present in the small intestine and expressions of IFN-gamma and CXCL-9 mRNA were decreased in the ileum, suggesting an impaired Th-1-type response. Within one hour of the last ovalbumin challenge, 5 out of 6 mice developed diarrhea in the ovalbumin-sensitized and -challenged group, but there was no diarrhea in the other groups. Conclusions. A murine model of food allergy based on sensitization via epicutaneous exposure to allergen without immunostimulatory adjuvants was developed. Effective production of MMCP-1 together with specific IgE and IgG1 suggests a breakdown in oral tolerance to the allergen. Intragastric challenges were accompanied by mast cell-dependent immunopathological changes and diarrhea.