Publications

Abstract Renal fibrosis is the central pathogenic process in progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Collagen type VI (COL VI) is upregulated in renal fibrosis. Endotrophin is released from COL VI and promotes pleiotropic pro-fibrotic effects. Kidney disease severity varies considerably and accurate information regarding CKD progression may improve clinical decisions. We tested the hypothesis […]

Abstract BACKGROUND Change in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV) is important for defining severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Serological neoepitope markers of collagen turnover may predict rate of change in FEV. METHODS One thousand COPD subjects from the observational, multicentre, three-year ECLIPSE (Evaluation of COPD Longitudinally to Identify Predictive Surrogate Endpoints) […]

Abstract BACKGROUND Hyperglycaemia increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke, and is influenced by weight. However, the impact of preceding weight change on blood glycemia levels in late-life is less well understood. AIM We studied the interplay between weight change and risk of hyperglycaemia in a prospective cohort of elderly women. […]

Abstract OBJECTIVE Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is among the higher contributors to global disability. Despite its high prevalence, currently, there is no cure for this disease. Furthermore, the available diagnostic approaches have large precision errors and low sensitivity. Therefore, there is a need for new biomarkers to correctly identify early knee OA. METHOD We have created […]

Abstract OBJECTIVE To investigate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of ABT-981, a human dual variable domain immunoglobulin simultaneously targeting interleukin (IL)-1α and IL-1β, in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). METHOD This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center study of multiple subcutaneous (SC) injections of ABT-981 in patients with mild-to-moderate OA of the knee (NCT01668511). […]

Abstract Amylin and GLP-1 agonism induce a well-known anorexic effect at dose initiation, which is managed by dose escalation. In this study we investigated how to optimize tolerability while maintaining efficacy of a novel, highly potent dual amylin and calcitonin receptor agonist (DACRA), KBP-089. Furthermore, we tested the GLP-1 add-on potential of KBP-089 in high-fat […]

Abstract Usually the dense extracellular structure in fibrotic tissues is described as extracellular matrix (ECM) or simply as collagen. However, fibrosis is not just fibrosis, which is already exemplified by the variant morphological characteristics of fibrosis due to viral versus cholestatic, autoimmune or toxic liver injury, with reticular, chicken wire and bridging fibrosis. Importantly, the […]

Abstract OBJECTIVE To examine the effects of dietary weight loss, with and without exercise, on selected soluble biomarkers in overweight and obese older adults with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis (OA). DESIGN Blood samples were analyzed from 429 participants in the Intensive Diet and Exercise for Arthritis (IDEA) trial randomized to either an 18 month exercise control […]

Abstract BACKGROUND Diabetes mellitus type 2 (T2DM) is a significant risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). In a previous microarray study of internal mammary arteries from patients with and without T2DM, we observed several elastin-related genes with altered mRNA-expression in diabetic patients, namely matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP-2), lysyl oxidase (LOX) and elastin […]

Abstract OBJECTIVE Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 18 has been shown to increase cartilage volume when injected intra-articularly in animal models of osteoarthritis (OA) and in patients with knee OA (during clinical development of the recombinant human FGF18, sprifermin). However, the exact nature of this effect is still unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate […]