Background Serum angiopoietin 2 levels have been associated with endothelial dysfunction and diabetic kidney disease. Derangements in autonomous nervous system lead to increased production of vasoconstrictory and angiogenic mediators such as norepinephrine and neuropeptide Y and are associated with increased risk of microvascular complications. Aim To investigate associations between angiopoietin 2, neuropeptide Y and diabetic kidney disease in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Methods 289 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus duration > 1 year were included. Patients were stratified according to presence of diabetic nephropathy (macroalbuminuria, estimated glomerular filtration rate<60 ml/min/1.73 m2 or end-stage renal disease). Angiopoietin 2 was measured by Luminex technology. Neuropeptide Y was measured by ELISA. Results Patients with diabetic nephropathy had significantly increased levels of angiopoietin 2 (4020.5 (2172.4–5778.1) pg/ml vs. 2001.0 (1326.7–2862.7) pg/ml) and neuropeptide Y (18.22 (14.85–21.85) ng/ml vs. 12.91 (9.96–17.07) ng/ml). Higher levels of angiopoietin 2 and neuropeptide Y were observed also in patients with arterial hypertension. Angiopoietin 2 and neuropeptide Y correlated significantly (ρ=0.245, p<0.001). Both biomarkers were significant predictors of estimated glomerular filtration rate and diabetic nephropathy in univariate regression models. In the fully adjusted regression models and after application of a stepwise selection regression method, angiopoietin 2 demonstrated a stronger predictive power for diabetic nephropathy compared to neuropeptide Y. Conclusion Diabetic nephropathy is associated with increased serum concentrations of angiopoietin 2 (marker of endothelial dysfunction) and neuropeptide Y (marker of sympathetic activity) in type 1 diabetes. Angiopoietin 2 is a more potent predictor of diabetic nephropathy compared to neuropeptide Y.

Background: Thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) plays a significant role in the metabolism of thiopurines, and, for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), it is useful to perform TPMT genotyping prior to azathioprine (AZA) treatment. In this study, we determined TPMT gene polymorphisms in a cohort of IBD patients in Latvia. Methods: DNA samples were obtained from 244 IBD patients, and qPCR was performed for detection of rs1800462, rs1800460, and rs1142345 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Three common, non-functional TPMT alleles ( TPMT*2, *3B, and *3C) were identified (women, 51%; men, 49%). TPMT*2, *3A, *3B, and *3C allelic variants detected using qPCR were consistent with restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) data. Results: Among patients, 78% had ulcerative colitis and 22% had Crohn’s disease, with 93.9% of the former carrying a wild-type homozygous TPMT*1/*1 genotype and 6.1% carrying heterozygous genotypes. The most frequent polymorphisms were TPMT*1/*3A (5.3%: two variants: TPMT*3B and TPMT*3C), TPMT*1/*3C (0.4%), and TPMT*1/*2 (0.4%). None of the patients carried a TPMT*3B polymorphism and no patients were homozygous for any mutation. Conclusion: This is the first study to identify TPMT gene polymorphisms in adult IBD patients in Latvia. The results indicate that the frequency of common TPMT alleles is similar to that of other European populations.

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