TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schulz, Anita
A1  - Jaksch, Sebastian
A1  - Schubel, Rene
A1  - Wegener, Erik
A1  - Di, Zhenyu
A1  - Han, Yingchao
A1  - Meister, Annette
A1  - Kressler, Jörg
A1  - Kabanov, Alexander V.
A1  - Luxenhofer, Robert
A1  - Papadakis, Christine M.
A1  - Jordan, Rainer
T1  - Drug-Induced Morphology Switch in Drug Delivery Systems Based on Poly(2-oxazoline)s
JF  - ACS Nano
N2  - Defined aggregates of polymers such as polymeric micelles are of great importance in the development of pharmaceutical formulations. The amount of drug that can be formulated by a drug delivery system is an important issue, and most drug delivery systems suffer from their relatively low drug-loading capacity. However, as the loading capacities increase, i.e., promoted by good drug–polymer interactions, the drug may affect the morphology and stability of the micellar system. We investigated this effect in a prominent system with very high capacity for hydrophobic drugs and found extraordinary stability as well as a profound morphology change upon incorporation of paclitaxel into micelles of amphiphilic ABA poly(2-oxazoline) triblock copolymers. The hydrophilic blocks A comprised poly(2-methyl-2-oxazoline), while the middle blocks B were either just barely hydrophobic poly(2-n-butyl-2-oxazoline) or highly hydrophobic poly(2-n-nonyl-2-oxazoline). The aggregation behavior of both polymers and their formulations with varying paclitaxel contents were investigated by means of dynamic light scattering, atomic force microscopy, (cryogenic) transmission electron microscopy, and small-angle neutron scattering. While without drug, wormlike micelles were present, after incorporation of small amounts of drugs only spherical morphologies remained. Furthermore, the much more hydrophobic poly(2-n-nonyl-2-oxazoline)-containing triblock copolymer exhibited only half the capacity for paclitaxel than the poly(2-n-butyl-2-oxazoline)-containing copolymer along with a lower stability. In the latter, contents of paclitaxel of 8 wt % or higher resulted in a raspberry-like micellar core.
KW  - amphiphilic poly(2-oxazoline)s
KW  - paclitaxel
KW  - drug delivery
KW  - rod-to-sphere transition
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-120766
N1  - This is an open access article published under an ACS AuthorChoice License (http://pubs.acs.org/page/policy/authorchoice_termsofuse.html), which permits copying and redistribution of the article or any adaptations for non-commercial purposes.
VL  - 8
IS  - 3
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mencacci, Niccoló E.
A1  - Isaias, Ioannis U.
A1  - Reich, Martin M.
A1  - Ganos, Christos
A1  - Plagnol, Vincent
A1  - Polke, James M.
A1  - Bras, Jose
A1  - Hersheson, Joshua
A1  - Stamelou, Maria
A1  - Pittman, Alan M.
A1  - Noyce, Alastair J.
A1  - Mok, Kin Y.
A1  - Opladen, Thomas
A1  - Kunstmann, Erdmute
A1  - Hodecker, Sybille
A1  - Münchau, Alexander
A1  - Volkmann, Jens
A1  - Samnick, Samuel
A1  - Sidle, Katie
A1  - Nanji, Tina
A1  - Sweeney, Mary G.
A1  - Houlden, Henry
A1  - Batla, Amit
A1  - Zecchinelli, Anna L.
A1  - Pezzoli, Gianni
A1  - Marotta, Giorgio
A1  - Lees, Andrew
A1  - Alegria, Paulo
A1  - Krack, Paul
A1  - Cormier-Dequaire, Florence
A1  - Lesage, Suzanne
A1  - Brice, Alexis
A1  - Heutink, Peter
A1  - Gasser, Thomas
A1  - Lubbe, Steven J.
A1  - Morris, Huw R.
A1  - Taba, Pille
A1  - Koks, Sulev
A1  - Majounie, Elisa
A1  - Gibbs, J. Raphael
A1  - Singleton, Andrew
A1  - Hardy, John
A1  - Klebe, Stephan
A1  - Bhatia, Kailash P.
A1  - Wood, Nicholas W.
T1  - Parkinson’s disease in GTP cyclohydrolase 1 mutation carriers
JF  - Brain
N2  - GTP cyclohydrolase 1, encoded by the GCH1 gene, is an essential enzyme for dopamine production in nigrostriatal cells. Loss-of-function mutations in GCH1 result in severe reduction of dopamine synthesis in nigrostriatal cells and are the most common cause of DOPA-responsive dystonia, a rare disease that classically presents in childhood with generalized dystonia and a dramatic long-lasting response to levodopa. We describe clinical, genetic and nigrostriatal dopaminergic imaging ([(123)I]N-ω-fluoropropyl-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl) tropane single photon computed tomography) findings of four unrelated pedigrees with DOPA-responsive dystonia in which pathogenic GCH1 variants were identified in family members with adult-onset parkinsonism. Dopamine transporter imaging was abnormal in all parkinsonian patients, indicating Parkinson's disease-like nigrostriatal dopaminergic denervation. We subsequently explored the possibility that pathogenic GCH1 variants could contribute to the risk of developing Parkinson's disease, even in the absence of a family history for DOPA-responsive dystonia. The frequency of GCH1 variants was evaluated in whole-exome sequencing data of 1318 cases with Parkinson's disease and 5935 control subjects. Combining cases and controls, we identified a total of 11 different heterozygous GCH1 variants, all at low frequency. This list includes four pathogenic variants previously associated with DOPA-responsive dystonia (Q110X, V204I, K224R and M230I) and seven of undetermined clinical relevance (Q110E, T112A, A120S, D134G, I154V, R198Q and G217V). The frequency of GCH1 variants was significantly higher (Fisher's exact test P-value 0.0001) in cases (10/1318 = 0.75%) than in controls (6/5935 = 0.1%; odds ratio 7.5; 95% confidence interval 2.4-25.3). Our results show that rare GCH1 variants are associated with an increased risk for Parkinson's disease. These findings expand the clinical and biological relevance of GTP cycloydrolase 1 deficiency, suggesting that it not only leads to biochemical striatal dopamine depletion and DOPA-responsive dystonia, but also predisposes to nigrostriatal cell loss. Further insight into GCH1-associated pathogenetic mechanisms will shed light on the role of dopamine metabolism in nigral degeneration and Parkinson's disease.
KW  - DOPA-responsive-dystonia
KW  - GCH1
KW  - Parkinson's disease
KW  - dopamine
KW  - exome sequencing
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-121268
VL  - 137
IS  - 9
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bielaszewska, Martina
A1  - Schiller, Roswitha
A1  - Lammers, Lydia
A1  - Bauwens, Andreas
A1  - Fruth, Angelika
A1  - Middendorf, Barbara
A1  - Schmidt, M. Alexander
A1  - Tarr, Phillip I.
A1  - Dobrindt, Ulrich
A1  - Karch, Helge
A1  - Mellmann, Alexander
T1  - Heteropathogenic virulence and phylogeny reveal phased pathogenic metamorphosis in Escherichia coli O2:H6
JF  - EMBO Molecular Medicine
N2  - Extraintestinal pathogenic and intestinal pathogenic (diarrheagenic) Escherichia coli differ phylogenetically and by virulence profiles. Classic theory teaches simple linear descent in this species, where non-pathogens acquire virulence traits and emerge as pathogens. However, diarrheagenic Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC) O2:H6 not only possess and express virulence factors associated with diarrheagenic and uropathogenic E.coli but also cause diarrhea and urinary tract infections. These organisms are phylogenetically positioned between members of an intestinal pathogenic group (STEC) and extraintestinal pathogenic E.coli. STEC O2:H6 is, therefore, a 'heteropathogen,' and the first such hybrid virulent E.coli identified. The phylogeny of these E.coli and the repertoire of virulence traits they possess compel consideration of an alternate view of pathogen emergence, whereby one pathogroup of E.coli undergoes phased metamorphosis into another. By understanding the evolutionary mechanisms of bacterial pathogens, rational strategies for counteracting their detrimental effects on humans can be developed.
KW  - phased metamorphosis
KW  - phylogeny
KW  - heteropathogenicity
KW  - Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli
KW  - hemolytic-uremic syndrome
KW  - urinary-tract-infection
KW  - cytolethal distending toxin
KW  - shiga toxin
KW  - Crohns-disease
KW  - outbreak
KW  - genes
KW  - island
KW  - strains
KW  - parallel evolution
KW  - uropathogenic Escherichia coli
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-117254
SN  - 1757-4684
VL  - 6
IS  - 3
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Miras, Alexander D.
A1  - Seyfried, Florian
A1  - Phinikaridou, Alkystis
A1  - Andia, Marcelo E.
A1  - Christakis, Ioannis
A1  - Spector, Alan C.
A1  - Botnar, Rene M.
A1  - le Roux, Carel W.
T1  - Rats Fed Diets with Different Energy Contribution from Fat Do Not Differ in Adiposity
JF  - OBESITY FACTS
N2  - Objective: To determine whether rats reaching the same body mass, having been fed either a low-fat (LFD) or a high-fat diet (HFD), differ in white adipose tissue (WAT) deposition. Methods: In experiment 1, 22 Sprague-Dawley rats of the same age were divided into 11 rats with body mass below the batch median and fed a HFD, and 11 above the median and fed a LFD. In experiment 2, 20 Sprague-Dawley rats of the same age and starting body mass were randomised to either a HFD or LFD. When all groups reached similar final body mass, WAT was quantified using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), dissection, and plasma leptin. Results: In experiment 1, both groups reached similar final body mass at the same age; in experiment 2 the HFD group reached similar final body mass earlier than the LFD group. There were no significant differences in WAT as assessed by MRI or leptin between the HFD and LFD groups in both experiments. Dissection revealed a trend for higher retroperitoneal and epididymal adiposity in the HFD groups in both experiments. Conclusions: We conclude that at similar body mass, adiposity is independent of the macronutrient composition of the feeding regimen used to achieve it. (C) 2014 S Karger GmbH, Freiburg
KW  - Leptin
KW  - body fat
KW  - induced obesity
KW  - visceral fat
KW  - isocaloric intake
KW  - mass
KW  - tissue
KW  - weight-gain
KW  - metabolism
KW  - expenditure
KW  - accumulation
KW  - High-fat diet
KW  - Low-fat diet
KW  - MRI
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-115249
VL  - 7
IS  - 5
ER  -