Browsing by Author "Azocar, Lorena"

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    Amerindian ancestry proportion as a risk factor for inflammatory bowel diseases: results from a Latin American Andean cohort
    (2023) Pérez Jeldres, Tamara De Lourdes; Magne, Fabien; Ascui, Gabriel; Alvares, Danilo; Orellana, Matias; Álvarez Lobos Manuel Marcelo; Hernández Rocha, Cristián Antonio; Azocar, Lorena; Aguilar, Nataly; Espino, Alberto; Estela, Ricardo; Escobar, Sergio; Zazueta, Alejandra; Baez, Pablo; Silva, Veronica; de la Vega, Andres; Arriagada, Elizabeth; Pávez Ovalle, Carolina Denisse; Diaz-Asencio, Alejandro; Travisany, Dante; Miquel Poblete, Juan Francisco; Villablanca, Eduardo J.; Kronenberg, Mitchell; Bustamante, Maria Leonor
    Background and aimsLatin American populations remain underrepresented in genetic studies of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). Most genetic association studies of IBD rely on Caucasian, African, and Asian individuals. These associations have yet to be evaluated in detail in the Andean region of South America. We explored the contribution of IBD-reported genetic risk variants to a Chilean cohort and the ancestry contribution to IBD in this cohort.MethodsA total of 192 Chilean IBD patients were genotyped using Illumina's Global Screening Array. Genotype data were combined with similar information from 3,147 Chilean controls. The proportions of Aymara, African, European, and Mapuche ancestries were estimated using the software ADMIXTURE. We calculated the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for gender, age, and ancestry proportions. We also explored associations with previously reported IBD-risk variants independently and in conjunction with genetic ancestry.ResultsThe first and third quartiles of the proportion of Mapuche ancestry in IBD patients were 24.7 and 34.2%, respectively, and the corresponding OR was 2.30 (95%CI 1.52-3.48) for the lowest vs. the highest group. Only one variant (rs7210086) of the 180 reported IBD-risk SNPs was associated with IBD risk in the Chilean cohort (adjusted P = 0.01). This variant is related to myeloid cells.ConclusionThe type and proportion of Native American ancestry in Chileans seem to be associated with IBD risk. Variants associated with IBD risk in this Andean region were related to myeloid cells and the innate immune response.
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    Effect of cholecystectomy on bile acid synthesis and circulating levels of fibroblast growth factor 19
    (2015) Barrera Martínez, Francisco José; Azocar, Lorena; Molina, Héctor; Schalper, Kurt A.; Ocares, Marcia; Liberona, Jessica; Villarroel del Pino, Luis A.; Pimentel Muller, Fernando; Perez Ayuso, Rosa Maria; Nervi, Flavio; Groen, Albert K.; Miquel P., Juan Francisco
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    Galectin-8 counteracts folic acid-induced acute kidney injury and prevents its transition to fibrosis
    (2024) Perez-Moreno, Elisa; Toledo, Tomas; Campusano, Pascale; Zuniga, Sebastian; Azocar, Lorena; Feuerhake, Teo; Mendez, Gonzalo P.; Labarca, Mariana; Perez-Molina, Francisca; de la Pena, Adely; Herrera-Cid, Cristian; Ehrenfeld, Pamela; Godoy, Alejandro S.; Gonzalez, Alfonso; Soza, Andrea
    Acute kidney injury (AKI), characterized by a sudden decline in kidney function involving tubular damage and epithelial cell death, can lead to progressive tissue fibrosis and chronic kidney disease due to interstitial fibroblast activation and tissue repair failures that lack direct treatments. After an AKI episode, surviving renal tubular cells undergo cycles of dedifferentiation, proliferation and redifferentiation while fibroblast activity increases and then declines to avoid an exaggerated extracellular matrix deposition. Appropriate tissue recovery versus pathogenic fibrotic progression depends on fine-tuning all these processes. Identifying endogenous factors able to affect any of them may offer new therapeutic opportunities to improve AKI outcomes. Galectin-8 (Gal-8) is an endogenous carbohydrate-binding protein that is secreted through an unconventional mechanism, binds to glycosylated proteins at the cell surface and modifies various cellular activities, including cell proliferation and survival against stress conditions. Here, using a mouse model of AKI induced by folic acid, we show that pretreatment with Gal-8 protects against cell death, promotes epithelial cell redifferentiation and improves renal function. In addition, Gal-8 decreases fibroblast activation, resulting in less expression of fibrotic genes. Gal-8 added after AKI induction is also effective in maintaining renal function against damage, improving epithelial cell survival. The ability to protect kidneys from injury during both pre- and post-treatments, coupled with its anti-fibrotic effect, highlights Gal-8 as an endogenous factor to be considered in therapeutic strategies aimed at improving renal function and mitigating chronic pathogenic progression.
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    Genotype Prevalence of Lactose Deficiency, Vitamin D Deficiency, and the Vitamin D Receptor in a Chilean Inflammatory Bowel Disease Cohort: Insights from an Observational Study
    (MDPI, 2023) Pérez Jeldres, Tamara De Lourdes; Bustamante, M. Leonor; Segovia-Melero, Roberto; Aguilar, Nataly; Magne, Fabien; Ascui, Gabriel; Uribe, Denisse; Azocar, Lorena; Hernández Rocha, Cristián Antonio; Estela, Ricardo; Silva, Veronica; De La Vega, Andres; Arriagada, Elizabeth; Gonzalez, Mauricio; Onetto, Gian-Franco; Escobar, Sergio; Baez, Pablo; Zazueta, Alejandra; Pávez Ovalle Carolina Denisse; Miquel Poblete, Juan Francisco; Álvarez Lobos Manuel Marcelo
    Lactose intolerance (LI) and vitamin D deficiency (VDD) have been linked to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We conducted an observational study in 192 Chilean IBD patients to investigate the prevalence of a specific gene variant (LCT-13910 CC genotype) associated with LI and the prevalence of VDD/Vitamin D Receptor (VDR) gene variants. Blood samples were analyzed using Illumina's Infinium Global Screening Array. The LCT-13910 CC genotype was found in 61% of IBD patients, similar to Chilean Hispanic controls and lower than Chilean Amerindian controls. The frequency of the LCT-13910-C allele in Chilean IBD patients (0.79) was comparable to the general population and higher than Europeans (0.49). Regarding VDR and VDD variants, in our study, the rs12785878-GG variant was associated with an increased risk of IBD (OR = 2.64, CI = 1.61-4.32; p-value = 0.001). Sixty-one percent of the Chilean IBD cohort have a genetic predisposition to lactose malabsorption, and a significant proportion exhibit genetic variants associated with VDD/VDR. Screening for LI and VDD is crucial in this Latin American IBD population.
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    Localization of the Sodium-Taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide in membrane rafts and modulation of its activity by cholesterol in vitro
    (ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV, 2008) Molina, Hector; Azocar, Lorena; Ananthanarayanan, Meenakshisundaram; Arrese, Marco; Miquel, Juan Francisco
    Background: The relevance of discrete localization of hepatobiliary transporters in specific membrane microdomains is not well known. Aim: To determine whether the Na+/taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (Ntcp), the main hepatic sinusoidal bile salt transporter, is localized in specific membrane microdomains. Methods: Presence of Ntcp in membrane rafts obtained from mouse liver was studied by immunoblotting and immunofluorescence. HEK-293 cells stably transfected with rat Ntcp were used for in vitro studies. Expression, localization and function of Ntcp in these cells were assessed by immunoblotting, immunofluorescence and biotinylation studies and Na+-dependent taurocholate uptake assays, respectively. The effect of cholesterol depletion/repletion assays on Ntcp function was also investigated. Results: Ntcp localized primarily to membrane rafts in in vivo studies and localized partially in membrane rafts in transfected HEK-293 cells. In these cells, membrane cholesterol depletion resulted in a shift of Ntcp localization into non-membrane rafts, which correlated with a 2.5-fold increase in taurocholate transport. Cholesterol repletion shifted back part of Ntcp into membrane rafts, and normalized taurocholate transport to values similar to control cells. Conclusion: Ntcp localizes in membrane rafts and its localization and function are regulated by membrane cholesterol content. This may serve as a novel regulatory mechanism of bile salt transport in liver. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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    The European lactase persistence genotype determines the lactase persistence state and correlates with gastrointestinal symptoms in the Hispanic and Amerindian Chilean population: a case-control and population-based study
    (BMJ PUBLISHING GROUP, 2011) Morales, Eugenia; Azocar, Lorena; Maul, Ximena; Perez, Claudio; Chianale, Jose; Francisco Miquel, Juan
    Background: The lactase persistent (LP) or lactase nonpersistent (LNP) state in European adults is genetically determined by a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) located 13.9 kb upstream of the lactase (LCT) gene, known as LCT C>T-13910 (rs4988235). The LNP condition leads to an inability to digest the milk sugar lactose leading to gastrointestinal symptoms and can affect nutrient and calcium intake in certain populations.