1.
Relationship between serum levels of immunoglobulins and metabolic syndrome in an adult population: A population study from the TCLSIH cohort study.
Wang, X, Fu, J, Gu, Y, Chi, VTQ, Zhang, Q, Liu, L, Meng, G, Yao, Z, Wu, H, Bao, X, et al
Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases : NMCD. 2019;(9):916-922
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a combination of metabolic disorders that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, and inflammation is considered as a pathological basis for MetS. Immunoglobulins (Igs) are the major secretory products of the adaptive immune system. However, no large-scale population study has focused on a possible relationship between Igs and MetS. We designed a cross-sectional study to investigate the relationship between Igs and prevalence of MetS in a large-scale adult population. METHODS AND RESULTS A total of 10,289 participants were recruited among residents in Tianjin, China. Metabolic syndrome was defined in accordance with the criteria of the American Heart Association scientific statements of 2009. Serum levels of Igs were determined by immunonephelometry. Multiple logistic regression models were used to assess the relationship between the quintiles of serum levels of Igs and the prevalence of MetS. The overall prevalence of MetS was 36.1%. The mean (standard deviation) values of Igs (IgG, IgE, IgM, and IgA) were 1205.7 (249.3) mg/dL, 93.1 (238.9) IU/mL, 105.7 (57.3) mg/dL, and 236.2 (97.6) mg/dL, respectively. The adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence interval) of MetS for the highest quintile of Igs (IgG, IgE, IgM, and IgA), when compared to the lowest quintile, were 0.81 (0.70, 0.95), 0.97 (0.83, 1.12), 1.13 (0.97, 1.33), and 1.52 (1.30, 1.77), respectively. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrated that decreased IgG and increased IgA are independently related to a higher prevalence of MetS. The results indicate that the Igs might be useful predictive factors for MetS in the general adult population.
2.
Two-layered injectable self-assembling peptide scaffold hydrogels for long-term sustained release of human antibodies.
Koutsopoulos, S, Zhang, S
Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society. 2012;(3):451-8
Abstract
The release kinetics for human immunoglobulin (IgG) through the permeable structure of nanofiber scaffold hydrogels consisting of the ac-(RADA)(4)-CONH(2) and ac-(KLDL)(3)-CONH(2) self-assembling peptides were studied during a period of 3 months. Self assembling peptides are a class of stimuli-responsive materials which undergo sol-gel transition in the presence of an electrolyte solution such as biological fluids and salts. IgG diffusivities decreased with increasing hydrogel nanofiber density providing a means to control the release kinetics. Two-layered hydrogel structures were created consisting of concentric spheres of ac-(RADA)(4)-CONH(2) core and ac-(KLDL)(3)-CONH(2) shell and the antibody diffusion profile was determined through the 'onion-like' architecture. Secondary and tertiary structure analyses as well as biological assays using single molecule analyses and quartz crystal microbalance of the released IgG showed that encapsulation and release did not affect the conformation of the antibody and the biological activity even after 3 months inside the hydrogel. The functionality of polyclonal human IgG to the phosphocholine antigen was determined and showed that IgG encapsulation and release did not affect the antibody binding efficacy to the antigen. Our experimental protocol allows for 100% IgG loading efficiency inside the hydrogel while the maximum amount of antibody loading depends solely on the solubility of the antibody in water because the peptide hydrogel consists of water up to 99.5%. Our results show that this fully biocompatible and injectable peptide hydrogel system may be used for controlled release applications as a carrier for therapeutic antibodies.