ABSTRACT
Acute mountain sickness (AMS) is an illness that affects many individuals at altitudes above 2,400 m (8,000 ft) resulting in decreased performance. Models that provide quantitative estimates of AMS risk are expanding, but predictive genetic models for AMS susceptibility are still under investigation. Thirty-four male U.S. Army Soldier volunteers were exposed to baseline, 3,000 m, 3,500 m, or 4,500 m altitude conditions in a hypobaric chamber and evaluated for onset of AMS symptoms. In addition, mice were evaluated at extreme hypoxia conditions equivalent to 7,600 m. Real-time polymerase chain reaction hypoxia response array was used to identify 15 genes that were activated in Soldiers and 46 genes that were activated in mice. We identified angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4) as a gene that is significantly activated in response to hypoxia (5.8-fold upregulated at 4,500 m in humans). The role of ANGPTL4 in high-altitude response has not been explored. Pretreatment of mice with fenofibrate, an ANGPTL4-activating pharmaceutical, had a considerable effect on overall hypoxia response gene expression and resulted in significantly decreased cerebral edema following exposure to hypoxia. Activation of ANGPTL4 may protect against cerebral edema by inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor and therefore serve as a potential target for AMS prevention.
Subject(s)
Altitude Sickness/genetics , DNA/genetics , Gene Expression , Genetic Markers/genetics , Military Personnel , Acute Disease , Altitude Sickness/metabolism , Animals , Disease Models, Animal , Genetic Predisposition to Disease , Humans , Male , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction , Young AdultABSTRACT
Many research abstracts presented at orthopaedic conferences do not undergo a formal editorial, or peer-review process; however, abstracts are frequently referenced in textbooks and influence clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to determine the publication rate of abstracts formally presented at the Society of Military Orthopaedic Surgeons (SOMOS) annual meetings from 1998 to 2006 that went to full-text publication. Using Google Scholar and PubMed, a literature search was performed for each abstract presented at the annual SOMOS meeting in the years 1998-2006, to calculate the overall full-text publication rate, the average duration from presentation to publication, and the distribution of publications in the various journals. A total of 770 abstracts were presented at the annual SOMOS meetings. The overall full-text publication rate at a minimum of 3 years was 45.7% (352 publications). The average time from presentation to publication was 2.7 years. The published articles appeared in 65 peer-reviewed journals, with notable distribution in Spine (10.0%), The American Journal of Sports Medicine (9.4%), and The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (9.4%). The full-text publication rate of abstracts presented at the annual SOMOS meetings compares favorably with that of other major orthopaedic conferences in the United States. Nonetheless, more than half of abstracts presented at the SOMOS meetings remain unpublished.
