<i>Aims</i> - The risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is increased in overweight and obese women potentially involving secreted mediators from adipose tissue. Our main aim was to evaluate if circulating adipokines and monocyte/macrophage markers were dysregulated in GDM and the influence body mass and indices of glucose metabolism had on this association. We further explored if early detection ...

Activation of inflammatory processes has been identified as a major driver of pulmonary vascular remodeling that contributes to the development of precapillary pulmonary hypertension (PH). We hypothesized that circulating markers of leukocyte activation, reflecting monocytes/macrophages (sCD163, sCD14), T-cells (sCD25) and neutrophils (myeloperoxidase [MPO], neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin ...

<i>Context</i> - Cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) regulates high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels and interaction between glucose, and HDL metabolism is central in the development of diabetes.<p> <p><i>Objective</i> - We hypothesized that CETP levels would be regulated in diabetic pregnancies. We tested the hypothesis by evaluating CETP activity measured multiple times during ...

Background -Schizophrenia (SCZ) and bipolar disorder (BD) are severe mental illnesses (SMI) that are part of a psychosis continuum, and dysregulated innate immune responses have been suggested to be involved in their pathophysiology. However, disease-specific immune mechanisms in SMI are not known yet. Recently, dyslipidemia has been linked to systemic inflammasome activation, and elevated atherogenic ...

<i>Objective</i> - Evidence indicates that the pathophysiology of adult psychosis involves immune dysregulation, but its associations with stress are often not considered. The inflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-18, which is elevated in adult schizophrenia, is suggested to be sensitive to stress. We compared the associations of IL-18 with cortisol and clinical variables in adolescents with ...

Background: The lungs are the organ most likely to sustain serious injury from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, the mechanisms for long-term complications are not clear. Patients with severe COVID-19 have shorter telomere lengths and higher levels of cellular senescence, and we hypothesized that circulating levels of the telomere-associated senescence markers chitotriosidase, ...

Early detection and treatment of women at risk for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) could improve perinatal and long-term outcomes in GDM women and their offspring. We explored if a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at 14-16 weeks of gestation could identify women who will (1) develop GDM or give birth to large-for-gestational-age (LGA) babies in 1031 pregnant women from the STORK study ...

Background - The mechanisms that control local and systemic inflammation in scrub typhus have only been partially elucidated. The wingless (Wnt) signaling pathways are emerging as important regulators of inflammation and infection, but have not been investigated in scrub typhus. <p> <p>Methodology/Principal findings - Plasma levels of secreted Wnt antagonists (i.e. DKK-1, sFRP-3, WIF-1 and SOST) ...

<p><b>Background</b> Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) orchestrate leukocyte trafficking and could link peripheral and neuroinflammation in patients with severe mental illness (SMI), by promoting inflammatory and immune-mediated responses and mediating signals across blood-brain barrier. We hypothesized that CAMs would be dysregulated in SMI and evaluated plasma levels of different vascular and ...