Browsing by Author "Rantala, Markus J."

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Body height affects the strength of immune response in young men, but not young women
    (2014-08-28) Krams, Indrikis A.; Skrinda, Ilona; Kecko, Sanita; Moore, Fhionna R.; Krama, Tatjana; Kaasik, Ants; Meija, Laila; Lietuvietis, Vilnis; Rantala, Markus J.; Rīga Stradiņš University
    Body height and other body attributes of humans may be associated with a diverse range of social outcomes such as attractiveness to potential mates. Despite evidence that each parameter plays a role in mate choice, we have little understanding of the relative role of each, and relationships between indices of physical appearance and general health. In this study we tested relationships between immune function and body height of young men and women. In men, we report a non-linear relationship between antibody response to a hepatitis-B vaccine and body height, with a positive relationship up to a height of 185 cm, but an inverse relationship in taller men. We did not find any significant relationship between body height and immune function in women. Our results demonstrate the potential of vaccination research to reveal costly trai.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    The obesity paradox predicts the second wave of COVID-19 to be severe in western countries
    (2021-01-25) Krams, Indrikis A.; Jõers, Priit; Luoto, Severi; Trakimas, Giedrius; Lietuvietis, Vilnis; Krams, Ronalds; Kaminska, Irena; Rantala, Markus J.; Krama, Tatjana; Department of Surgery
    While COVID-19 infection and mortality rates are soaring in Western countries, Southeast Asian countries have successfully avoided the second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic despite high population density. We provide a biochemical hypothesis for the connection between low COVID-19 incidence, mortality rates, and high visceral adiposity in Southeast Asian populations. The SARS-CoV-2 virus uses angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) as a gateway into the human body. Although the highest expression levels of ACE2 are found in people’s visceral adipose tissue in Southeast Asia, this does not necessarily make them vulnerable to COVID-19. Hypothetically, high levels of visceral adiposity cause systemic inflammation, thus decreasing the ACE2 amount on the surface of both visceral adipocytes and alveolar epithelial type 2 cells in the lungs. Extra weight gained during the pandemic is expected to increase visceral adipose tissue in Southeast Asians, further decreasing the ACE2 pool. In contrast, weight gain can increase local inflammation in fat depots in Western people, leading to worse COVID-related outcomes. Because of the biological mechanisms associated with fat accumulation, inflammation, and their differential expression in Southeast Asian and Western populations, the second wave of the pandemic may be more severe in Western countries, while Southeast Asians may benefit from their higher visceral fat depots.