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Topic Review
Biography
Topic Review
Insights into Acute Pancreatitis Associated COVID-19
Pancreatic injury can manifest from an asymptomatic elevation of amylase and lipase to severe acute pancreatitis (AP).
639
07 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Clostridioides difficile
Infection in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Patients
Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) represents a major health burden with substantial economic and clinical impact. Patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) were identified as a risk category for Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). In addition to traditional risk factors for C. difficile acquisition, IBD-specific risk factors such as immunosuppression, severity and extension of the inflammatory disease were identified. C. difficile virulence factors, represented by both toxins A and B, induce the damage of the intestinal mucosa and vascular changes, and promote the inflammatory host response. Given the potential life-threatening complications, early diagnostic and therapeutic interventions are required. The screening for CDI is recommended in IBD exacerbations, and the diagnostic algorithm consists of clinical evaluation, enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) or nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs). An increased length of hospitalization, increased colectomy rate and mortality are the consequences of concurrent CDI in IBD patients. Selection of CD strains of higher virulence, antibiotic resistance, and the increasing rate of recurrent infections make the management of CDI in IBD more challenging.
639
08 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Human Herpesviruses
Human herpesviruses (HHVs): herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 (HSV-1) and 2 (HSV-2), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), HHV-6, HHV-7, and HHV-8, are known to be part of a family of DNA viruses that cause several diseases in humans. In clinical practice of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the complication of CMV enterocolitis, which is caused by CMV reactivation under disruption of intestinal barrier function, inflammation, or strong immunosuppressive therapy, is well known to affect the prognosis of disease. However, the relationship between other HHVs and IBD remains unclear.
638
27 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Vitamin D Metabolism in Celiac Disease
Celiac disease is a chronic autoimmune disorder involving the small intestine, characterized by villous atrophy, crypt hyperplasia and an increase in intraepithelial lymphocytes. Due to both calcium malabsorption and immune activation, a high prevalence of bone mass derangement is evident in this condition, regardless of the presence of overt malabsorption. In untreated patients, secondary hyperparathyroidism is responsible for the hyperconversion of 25-vitamin D into 1,25-vitamin D making mandatory the determination of serum levels of both vitamin metabolites to avoid a wrong diagnosis of vitamin D deficit. A gluten-free diet allows for a normalization of bone and mineral metabolism, reverting these abnormalities and raising some doubts on the need for vitamin supplementation in all the patients.
635
19 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Cytotoxicity of Thiopurine Drugs in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
As the principal representatives of thiopurines, 6-mercaptopurine (6MP) and its prodrug azathioprine (AZA) are primary immunomodulating agents. They are used for example to manage inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD), chronic inflammatory disorders of the gastrointestinal tract. Thiopurines were used to treat CD in the late 1960s and they are currently applied in around 60% of IBD patients.
634
31 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Protocols of Investigation of Neonatal Cholestasis
Neonatal cholestasis (NC) starts during the first three months of life and comprises extrahepatic and intrahepatic groups of diseases, some of which have high morbimortality rates if not timely identified and treated. Prolonged jaundice, clay-colored or acholic stools, and choluria in an infant indicate the urgent need to investigate the presence of NC, and thenceforth the differential diagnosis of extra- and intrahepatic causes of NC. The differential diagnosis of NC is a laborious process demanding the accurate exclusion of a wide range of diseases, through the skillful use and interpretation of several diagnostic tests. A wise integration of clinical-laboratory, histopathological, molecular, and genetic evaluations is imperative, employing extensive knowledge about each evaluated disease as well as the pitfalls of each diagnostic test.
634
02 Nov 2022
Topic Review
The Microbiome in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma
Pancreatic cancer is a highly lethal cancer and less than 10% of patients survive the 5-year mark. The molecular and biological underpinnings leading to this dismal prognosis are well-described, however, translation of these findings with subsequent improvement of the poor prognosis has been slow. The complex and dynamic accumulation of microbes, also called the microbiome, has attracted scientific interest in the pathogenesis of several diseases including pancreatic cancer. Since then, a limited number of significant findings were published pointing towards an important role of the microbiome in cancer, in particular pancreatic cancer.
634
16 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Developments in the Diagnosis of Postoperative Crohn’s Disease
Crohn’s disease (CD) is a chronic progressive inflammatory bowel disease leading to bowel damage and disability. The diagnosing recurrence in postoperative Crohn's disease is discussed.
631
06 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Major Genetic Factors Involved in Liver Diseases Pathogenesis
Over the past century, our genetic background has not changed, but chronic diseases are on the rise globally. In addition to the genetic component, the critical factors for many diseases are lifestyle, eating changes, exposure to drugs, xenobiotics, alcohol, smoking, polluted air, etc. These techniques include genome-wide association studies (GWAS) that allow the identification of unknown genetic risk factors, positional cloning of unknown genes associated with different diseases, the gene tests for single nucleotide variants (SNVs), and next-generation sequencing (NGS) of selected genes or/and the entire genome. Gut microbiome composition and its metabolites are not only regulating factors in carcinogenesis (including de novo after liver transplantation) but also in xenobiotics and anticancer treatment failure, observations that may be related to the genetic background of the individuals.
633
21 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Microbiome-Immune Interactions in Ulcerative Colitis
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic autoimmune condition affecting the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. IBD includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), with UC characterized by inflammation of colonic mucosa and submucosa starting at the rectum and extending through the colon. The precise etiology of UC is unknown but is thought to involve a combination of environmental and genetic factors. Chief among these is the intestinal microbiome, which has been extensively studied both for its role in disease pathogenesis and possible treatment. In this review, we will discuss the microbial changes that have been described in UC, its interplay with host immune function, and evidence supporting its role as a potential therapeutic. We will also discuss parallels between UC, the microbiome and colitis-associated cancer (CAC).
630
05 Nov 2021
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