Gay Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Gay, including details on homosexuality, genetics, safe sex, health.

Expression of cathepsin K and MMP-1 indicate persistent osteodestruktive activity in longstanding ankylosing spondylitis.

Neidhart M, Baraliakos X, Seemayer C, Zelder C, Gay RE, Michel BA, Boehm H, Gay S, Braun J

WHO Collaboratory Center for Molecular Biology, University Hospital Zürich, Switzerland.

BACKGROUND: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a frequent largely genetically determined rheumatic disease that is characterised by spinal inflammation and new bone formation. However, the exact pathogenesis including pathology is still not clear. OBJECTIVE: To analyse tissue obtained at spinal surgery by immunohistochemistry and compare the specimen of patients with AS to those with degenerative disc disease (DDD). METHODS: Bony and soft tissue specimens of 30 AS and 20 DDD patients were obtained during spinal osteotomy from different anatomic regions including articular and spinous processes, interspinous ligaments and intervertebral disks. Immunohistolochemistry was performed with established markers for cathepsin-K, MMP-1, MMP-3 and RANK-ligand. RESULTS: Cathepsin-K and MMP-1-positive cells were only observed in AS specimen. Cathepsin-K-positive multinucleated cells were detected at articular processes adjacent to fibrous tissues. MMP-1 was expressed in smaller mononuclear cells attached to bone, Invasion of bone by MMP-1 cells was seen at entheseal sites. In the intervertebral disks, most mononuclear cells were cathepsin-K-positive. Isolated cells expressing these matrix degrading enzymes found in DDD never showed signs of invasion. No differences were found for MMP-3 between AS and DDD. Clear expression of RANK ligand was only detected in one AS patient. CONCLUSION: /B> Cathepsin-K is strongly expressed in different regions of the spine in AS. Mainly mononuclar cells, fibroblast-like cells, and cells attached to bone and at sites of bone remodelling expressed cathepsin K suggestive of high osteoclastic activity. This supports the role of persistent inflammation in the pathogenesis of AS. How these changes relate to osteoproliferation remains to be determined.

Published 5 August 2008 in Ann Rheum Dis.
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Articles on Gay published 5 August 2008:

Antioxidant effect of diphenyl diselenide on oxidative damage induced by smoke in rats: Involvement of glutathione.   Ecotoxicol Environ Saf.

In the present study, the involvement of glutathione system in the restorative effect of diphenyl diselenide (PhSe)(2) on damage induced by cigarette smoke was investigated. Rat pups were progressively exposed to four, five, and six cigarettes for exposure periods of 15min during their first, second, and third weeks of life. Thiobarbituric acid reactive species (TBARS) levels, components of the enzymatic antioxidant defenses (superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, glutathione peroxidase (GPx), ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Gay published 4 August 2008:

Characterizing left atrial appendage functions in sinus rhythm and atrial fibrillation using computational models.   J Biomech, 41(11): 2515-23.

Clinical studies show that the left atrial appendage, a blind-ended structure that is attached to the left atrium, may be the cause of 90% of atrial thrombi in atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm), and it is much reduced in sinus (normal) rhythm. In this paper, the effects of blood flows in left atrium and left atrial appendage are studied to help characterize the atrial appendage functions in sinus rhythm and atrial fibrillation using mathematical models. Our results show that the left ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Clathrin and Cx43 gap junction plaque endoexocytosis.   Biochem Biophys Res Commun.

In earlier transmission electron microscopic studies, we have described pentilaminar gap junctional membrane invaginations and annular gap junction vesicles coated with short, electron-dense bristles. The similarity between these electron-dense bristles and the material surrounding clathrin-coated pits led us to suggest that the dense bristles associated with gap junction structures might be clathrin. To confirm that clathrin is indeed associated with annular gap junction vesicles and gap ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Social and Psychological Context for HIV Risk in Non-Gay-Identified African American Men who have Sex with Men.   AIDS Educ Prev, 20(4): 347-59.

This study used qualitative methods to explore the social and psychological context of sexual behavior and HIV risk among African American non-gay-identified men who have sex with men. Analysis of men's narratives on their sexual behaviors revealed four social and psychological factors contributing to risk for HIV infection: (a) a tendency to compartmentalize and personally disengage from same-sex behavior, (b) traditional gender roles that reinforce men's adherence to masculine images and ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Condom availability in taiwanese gay bathhouses: the right things in the wrong places.   AIDS Educ Prev, 20(4): 338-46.

Gay bathhouses were identified as public venues where men having sex with men are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors. This study applied Binson and Woods's (Journal of Homosexuality, 44, 2003) theoretical framework of risk environment/bathhouse setting to (a) describe four domains of bathhouse environments, (b) investigate condom availability in bathhouses, and (c) identify barriers of condom distribution. An ethnographic study was conducted at eight gay bathhouses in Taiwan, ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Gay published 1 August 2008:

Hair today, gone tomorrow: a comparison of body hair removal practices in gay and heterosexual men.   Body Image, 5(3): 312-6.

Although hairlessness is rapidly becoming a component of the ideal male body, little research has examined men's concerns about their body hair or their hair removal practices. Samples of gay and heterosexual men completed questionnaires that assessed whether they had ever removed their back, buttock or pubic hair, the frequency with which they did so, the methods used and their self-reported reasons for removing this hair, as well as their level of appearance investment. Results indicated that ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Variations in quality of care for men with early-stage prostate cancer.   J Clin Oncol, 26(22): 3735-42.

PURPOSE: The commencement of quality-improvement initiatives such as Pay for Performance and the Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement has underscored calls to evaluate the quality of cancer care on a patient level for nationally representative samples. METHODS: We sampled early-stage prostate cancer cases diagnosed in 2000 through 2001 from the American College of Surgeons National Cancer Data Base and explicitly reviewed medical records from 2,775 men (weighted total = 55,160 ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Gay published 30 July 2008:

Awareness of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Among Men Who Have Sex With Men.   Sex Transm Dis.

BACKGROUND:: Despite burgeoning scientific knowledge about Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), the etiologic agent of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), little is known about awareness of this virus in the general community. This is particularly the case for men who have sex with men (MSM), the group at greatest risk for infection. METHODS:: The California Health Interview Survey was a random digit- dial survey of over 50,000 households. Men aged 18 to 64 years who self-identified as gay or ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

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