Association between COX-2 rs 6681231 Genotype and Interleukin-6 in Periodontal Connective Tissue. A Pilot Study

This study was partially undertaken at the UCL Eastman Dental Institute, which received a proportion of funding from the Department of Health’s National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centres funding scheme

Genetic variation and exercise-induced muscle damage: implications for athletic performance, injury and ageing.

Prolonged unaccustomed exercise involving muscle lengthening (eccentric) actions can result in ultrastructural muscle disruption, impaired excitation-contraction coupling, inflammation and muscle protein degradation. This process is associated with delayed onset muscle soreness and is referred to as exercise-induced muscle damage. Although a certain amount of muscle damage may be necessary for adaptation to occur, excessive damage or inadequate recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage can increase injury risk, particularly in older individuals, who experience more damage and require longer to recover from muscle damaging exercise than younger adults. Furthermore, it is apparent that inter-individual variation exists in the response to exercise-induced muscle damage, and there is evidence that genetic variability may play a key role. Although this area of research is in its infancy, certain gene variations, or polymorphisms have been associated with exercise-induced muscle damage (i.e. individuals with certain genotypes experience greater muscle damage, and require longer recovery, following strenuous exercise). These polymorphisms include ACTN3 (R577X, rs1815739), TNF (-308 G>A, rs1800629), IL6 (-174 G>C, rs1800795), and IGF2 (ApaI, 17200 G>A, rs680). Knowing how someone is likely to respond to a particular type of exercise could help coaches/practitioners individualise the exercise training of their athletes/patients, thus maximising recovery and adaptation, while reducing overload-associated injury risk. The purpose of this review is to provide a critical analysis of the literature concerning gene polymorphisms associated with exercise-induced muscle damage, both in young and older individuals, and to highlight the potential mechanisms underpinning these associations, thus providing a better understanding of exercise-induced muscle damage

Polymorphisms of −174G>C and −572G>C in the Interleukin 6 (IL-6) Gene and Coronary Heart Disease Risk: A Meta-Analysis of 27 Research Studies

OBJECTIVE: Elevated serum IL-6 level is a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). The -174 G>C and -572 G>C polymorphisms in the IL-6 gene have previously been shown to modulate IL-6 levels. But the association between the -174 G>C and -572 G>C polymorphisms and the risk of CHD is still unclear. A meta-analysis of all eligible studies was carried out to clarify the role of IL-6 gene polymorphisms in CHD. METHODS AND RESULTS: PubMed, EMBASE, Vip, CNKI and CBM-disc were searched for eligible articles in English and Chinese that were published before October 2010. 27 studies involving 11580 patients with CHD and 17103 controls were included. A meta-analysis was performed for the included articles using the RevMan 5.0 and Stata 10.0 softwares. Overall, the -174 C allele was not significantly associated with CHD risk (ORs = 1.04, 95%CI = 0.98 to 1.10) when compared with the -174 G allele in the additive model, and meta-analysis under other genetic models (dominant, recessive, CC versus GG, and GC versus GG) also did not reveal any significant association. On the contrary, the -572 C allele was associated with a decreased risk of CHD when compared with the -572 G allele (ORs = 0.79, 95%CI = 0.68 to 0.93). Furthermore, analyses under the recessive model (ORs = 0.69, 95% = 0.59 to 0.80) and the allele contrast model (genotype of CC versus GG, ORs = 0.49, 95% = 0.35 to 0.70) yielded similar results. However, statistical significance was not found when the meta-analysis was restricted to studies focusing on European populations, studies with large sample size, and cohort studies by using subgroup analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The -174 G>C polymorphism in the IL-6 gene is not significantly associated with increased risks of CHD. However, The -572 G>C polymorphism may contribute to CHD development. Future investigations with better study design and large number of subjects are needed

Sökes - ett hem : Om hemlösa kvinnors hemlöshet

Denna uppsats undersöker hur tre kvinnor som är eller har varit hemlösa uppfattar sin situation samt hur de anser att den kommunala hjälp de blir erbjudna motsvarar deras behov. Kvinnorna befinner sig i olika livssituationer men har en sak gemensamt – egna erfarenheter av hemlöshet. Uppsatsen innehåller även intervjuer med två chefer som på olika sätt arbetar med hemlöshetsfrågor inom kommunen och som med sina svar ger en vidare förståelse för myndighetsperspektiven. Den allmänna debatten ger ofta en stereotyp bild genom att sätta likhetstecken mellan att vara hemlös och att vara uteliggare. Studiens resultat visar att verkligheten är mer mångsidig än så och att levnadsförhållanden varierar lika mycket mellan hemlösa som mellan andra medborgare. Ambitionen med uppsatsen var inte att förklara hemlösheten eller att analysera varför just dessa kvinnor är hemlösa. Uppsatsens fokus ligger istället på att beskriva just dessa tre kvinnors individuella livssituationer med syftet att utvärdera hur de uppfattar de kommunala insatser som erbjuds

On the genetic variation of interleukin-6 in health and coronary heart disease

There is increasing evidence that inflammation plays an important role in the development of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (CHD). Prospective studies on healthy individuals and on patients with unstable angina pectoris or non-Q-wave myocardial infarction have shown that individuals with high interleukin-6 (IL-6) concentrations have an increased risk of myocardial infarction and death due to cardiovascular disease. The mechanisms responsible for triggering and sustaining elevation of IL-6 in healthy subjects and patients with CHD are largely unknown and remain to be defined. Thrombosis underlies most of the acute manifestations of CHD including myocardial infarction. The causes of thrombosis are not fully clear, but an important mechanism might be the connection between inflammation and coagulation. The present research program was set up to investigate the genetic variation of IL-6 in vivo in health and CHD and connection between inflammation and coagulation. In study I 222 patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction were included. They were genotyped for - 174 G>C single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the IL-6 gene. Plasma IL-6 concentration was measured at admission and after 48 hrs. This study showed that patients with IL-6 above the median at admission had an increased risk for CHD death or a new myocardial infarction, whereas the genotype did not influence CHD risk or plasma IL-6 levels. In study II and III, the effect of an inflammatory stimulus on circulating IL-6 and factor VIIa (FVlla) concentrations depending on genotype was investigated in forty healthy subjects by challenged vaccination with Salmonella typhii vaccine. The study subjects were genotyped for the -174 G>C SNP of the IL-6 gene and for the Arg353GIn SNP of the FVII gene. The result demonstrates that the response differed according to genotype, indicating that IL-6 and FVIIa are influenced by genetic variation. In study IV the influence of environmental factors and IL-6 genotype on IL-6 concentration was investigated. Three hundred eighty-seven patients with their first myocardial infarction before the age of 60 and matched healthy controls were enrolled. Antibodies against different pathogens were examined. Patients and controls were genotyped for the - 174 G>C SNP of the IL-6 gene. Plasma IL6 concentrations were significantly higher in patients compared to healthy controls when measured 3 months after the acute event. Furthermore, patients who were homozygous for the G-allele had higher IL-6 levels compared to those being hetereo- or homozygotes for the C-allele. In healthy controls no such genotype-phenotype association was found. We were not able to show any association between -174 G>C genotype and risk of CHD. Neither a single, nor a number of antibodies against multiple pathogens differed between patients and healthy controls and no associations between these and circulating IL-6 concentration were indicated. Conclusion: This thesis demonstrates that circulating IL-6 concentration is influenced by genetic variation of the IL-6 gene in vivo both in health and CHD. However, we found no association between the -174 G>C genotype of the IL-6 gene and CHD. Nonetheless, our results showed that patients with myocardial infarction and a plasma IL-6 concentration above the median at admission had an increased cardiovascular risk, which supports the importance of IL-6 as a risk marker in CHD

Experten eller konsumenten - vem påverkar oss mest? : En kvantitativ studie om skillnaden mellan expert- och konsumentrecensioner i media och på internet

Titel: Experten eller konsumenten – Vem påverkar oss mest? Nivå: C-uppsats inom företagetsekonomi Författare: Mattias Strömberg Bennermo & Johan Öhlund Svensson Handledare: Akmal Hyder Datum: 2015-06-05 Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att jämföra expert- och konsumentrecensioner för att se vad som påverkar konsumenten mest inför ett köpbeslut av search goods. För att jämföra dessa har vi valt ut tre variabler för att kunna identifiera likheter och skillnader. Dessa är tillgänglighet, användbarhet och pålitlighet. Metod: För denna studie har vi använt oss av en kvantitativ metod och en surveydesign. Vi har genomfört en enkätundersökning där vi har ställt frågor med bakgrund i vår teori som i sin tur har byggt på vår forskningsfråga och syfte. Materialet har sedan insamlats och därefter analyserats med programmet SPSS. Resultat & slutsats: Studien har visat att konsumentrecensioner uppfattas som mer tillgängliga, mer användbara och mer pålitliga än expertrecensioner. Det gör att vi tydligt kan slå fast att det finns tydliga skillnader i hur konsumentrecensioner och expertrecensioner uppfattas bland våra respondenter. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Ett resultat ifrån vår studie som ligger till grund för vårt främsta förslag till vidare forskning är vad den stora skillnaden i uppfattad användbarhet mellan expert- och konsumentrecensioner kan bero på. Vilka är anledningarna till att experters recensioner inte anses vara användbara inför ett köp? Uppsatsens bidrag: Vi hoppas att den här studien har gett ett beständigt bidrag till forskningen gällande i hur hög grad konsumenter tillhörandes generation Y litar på och använder sig av konsumentrecensioner och expertrecensioner när det gäller search goods. Nyckelord: Konsumentrecensioner, expertrecensioner, internetanvändning, eWOM, internet, Generation Y.Title: The expert or the consumer – Whom influence us the most? Level: Final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Author: Mattias Strömberg Bennermo & Johan Ölund Svensson Supervisor: Akmal Hyder Date: 2015-06-05 Aim: Our aim with this paper is to compare expert and consumer reviews so to see what affects the consumers in their buying decision when it comes to search goods. To be able to do that we have chosen three variables in order to identify similarities and differences. These are availability, reliability and usefulness. Method: For this study we have made a quantitative research with a survey design. We have made a survey in which we have asked questions based on our theory, applied in relation to our aim and research questions. The material has then been collected and later on analyzed with SPSS. Result & Conclusions: Our study shows that consumer reviews are believed to be more reliable, more accessible and more useful than expert reviews. That make us conclude that there are significant differences between how consumer reviews and expert reviews are perceived among the respondents. Suggestions for future research: Our results creates several suggestions for further research. We have found that there is a big difference in the perceived usefulness  between consumer reviews and expert reviews. However we do not know why this big difference occurs, which is something we suggest that future research may investigate. Contribution of the thesis: We hope that this study will give a durable contribution to science regarding to which extent generation Y trust and use consumer reviews and expert reviews when it comes to search goods. Key words: Consumer reviews, online reviews, expert reviews, internet use, eWOM, internet, Generation