Anja Plemenitas Iljes

Dr. Anja Plemenitas Iljes


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

13Years (2014-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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15 July 2022 in Antioxidants
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
Evangelia Eirini TsermpiniEvangelia Eirini Tsermpini
Evangelia Eirini Tsermpini
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
VDVita Dolžan
Vita Dolžan
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a highly prevalent, comorbid, and disabling disorder. The underlying mechanism of ethanol neurotoxicity and the involvement of oxidative stress is still not fully elucidated. However, ethanol metabolism has been associated with increased oxidative stress through alcohol dehydrogenase, the microsomal ethanol oxidation system, and catalase metabolic pathways. We searched the PubMed and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) catalog databases to review the literature systematically and summarized the findings focusing on AUD and alcohol abstinence in relation to oxidative stress. In addition, we reviewed the ClinicalTrials.gov resource of the US National Library of Medicine to identify all ongoing and completed clinical trials that include therapeutic interventions based on antioxidants. The retrieved clinical and preclinical studies show that oxidative stress impacts AUD through genetics, alcohol metabolism, inflammation, and neurodegeneration.

9 June 2022 in Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
Evangelia Eirini TsermpiniEvangelia Eirini Tsermpini
Evangelia Eirini Tsermpini
KGKatja Goričar
Katja Goričar
BPBlanka Kores Plesničar
Blanka Kores Plesničar
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
VDVita Dolžan
Vita Dolžan
Alcohol dependence is a chronic mental disorder that leads to decreased quality of life for patients and their relatives and presents a considerable burden to society. Incretin hormones, such as glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) are endogenous gut-brain peptides, which can travel across the blood-brain barrier and access the nervous system. Their respective receptors, GIPR and GLP-1R, are expressed in the reward-related brain areas and are involved in memory formation and neurogenesis, which results in behavioral changes in rodent models. The current study investigated the potential association of genetic variability of incretin receptors with alcohol dependence and alcohol-related psychosymptomatology. Alcohol dependence and comorbid psychosymptomatology were assessed in a cohort of Slovenian male participants, comprised of 89 hospitalized alcohol-dependent patients, 98 abstinent alcohol-dependent patients, and 93 healthy blood donors. All participants were genotyped for GIPR rs1800437 and GLP1R rs10305420 and rs6923761 polymorphisms. For the statistical analysis Kruskal–Wall and Mann–Whitney tests were used in additive and dominant genetic models. Our findings indicated that GIPR rs1800437 genotypes were associated with an increased risk of alcohol dependence. Statistically significant association between GIPR rs1800437 GG genotype and Brief Social Phobia Scale scores were observed in the abstinent alcohol-dependent patients, while GLP1R rs6923761 GG genotype was associated with Zung anxiety scores in healthy controls. Our pilot study indicates that GIPR rs1800437 may play some role in susceptibility to alcohol dependence, as well as in alcohol-related psychosymptomatology symptoms. To our knowledge, this is the first study that indicates the involvement of GIPR in alcohol dependence. However, studies with larger cohorts are needed to confirm these preliminary findings.

2 September 2024 in Healthcare
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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JKJožica Černe Kolarič
Jožica Černe Kolarič
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
DKDarja Kraner
Darja Kraner
VGVida Gönc
Vida Gönc
MLMateja Lorber
Mateja Lorber
SKSergej Kmetec
Sergej Kmetec
The review examines the long-term impact of community psychiatric care on improving the quality of life of people with schizophrenia. It addresses the global burden of this disorder and the need for effective community-based care strategies. A systematic literature search was conducted in databases such as CINAHL, Medline, Web of Science, Sage and ScienceDirect, with the search lasting until March 2024 and following the PRISMA guidelines. The inclusion criteria targeted studies that addressed the long-term effects of community mental health care for people aged 18 years and older with schizophrenia and included both quantitative and qualitative research designs. Studies unrelated to the research question or with significant methodological flaws were excluded. The risk of bias was assessed using GRADE and GRADECERqual, in addition to critical appraisal using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) checklists. Independent screening and data extraction was performed, with results summarised by thematic analysis. In total, 11 studies met the inclusion criteria and included cross-sectional, cohort, qualitative and randomised controlled trial designs. The results showed that community psychiatric care significantly improves the quality of life, well-being and social integration of people with schizophrenia. Effective interventions identified include psychoeducation, cognitive behavioural therapy, social skills training and individualised care plans. However, challenges such as limited resources, labour shortages and social stigma, particularly in low-income neighbourhoods, were also identified. This study highlights the importance of continuous, personalised, multidisciplinary community-based care for sustainable mental health outcomes. Further research is recommended to investigate the long-term impact and strategies to overcome implementation challenges.

21 December 2023 in Antioxidants
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
Evangelia Eirini TsermpiniEvangelia Eirini Tsermpini
Evangelia Eirini Tsermpini
KGKatja Goričar
Katja Goričar
BPBlanka Kores Plesničar
Blanka Kores Plesničar
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
VDVita Dolžan
Vita Dolžan
Oxidative stress and neuroinflammation are involved in the pathogenesis of alcohol addiction. However, little is known regarding the effect of genetic, behavioral, psychological, and environmental sources of origin on the inflammation and oxidative stress pathways of patients with alcohol addiction. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of selected common functional single-nucleotide polymorphisms in inflammation and oxidative stress genes on alcohol addiction, and common comorbid psychosymptomatology. Our study included 89 hospitalized alcohol-addicted patients and 93 healthy individuals, all Slovenian males. Their DNA was isolated from peripheral blood and patients were genotyped for PON1 rs705379, rs705381, rs854560, and rs662, SOD2 rs4880, GPX1 rs1050450, IL1B rs1143623, rs16944, and rs1071676, IL6 rs1800795, IL6R rs2228145, and miR146a rs2910164. Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney tests were used for the additive and dominant genetic models, respectively. Our findings suggested the involvement of IL6 rs1800795 in alcohol addiction. Moreover, our data indicated that the genetic variability of SOD2 and PON1, as well as IL1B and IL6R, may be related to comorbid psychosymptomatology, revealing a potential indirect means of association of both the oxidative stress and inflammation pathways.

1 May 2023 in Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
NSNina Senica
Nina Senica
Branko AleksicBranko Aleksic
Branko Aleksic
TIToshiya INADA
Toshiya INADA
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
TZTilen Zamuda
Tilen Zamuda
HKHojka Gregoric Kumperscak
Hojka Gregoric Kumperscak
Aim: The Drug-Induced Extrapyramidal Symptom Scale (DIEPSS) is a multidimensional rating scale for the assessment of drug-induced extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS), developed in 1994. It is suitable for evaluating EPS considering the degree of influence EPS has on daily activities and the subjective distress that it causes. Method: This study to evaluate the interrater and test-retest reliability of the DIEPSS Slovenian version conducted at the University Medical Center Maribor in Slovenia in November 2018. Results: Six raters performed the interrater assessment of 135 DIEPSS video clips with recordings of patients with EPS. A second assessment was then performed by 2 raters to evaluate the test-retest reliability, which was high (interclass correlation coefficients from 0.743 to 0.936). Conclusions: The results for the Slovenian language version of the DIEPSS show high interrater and test-retest reliability, with high concordance rates for all evaluated items (interclass correlation coefficient > 0.8).

24 November 2021
Verified
Book Chapter
Open access
PDF file
AIAnja Plemenitas Iljes
Anja Plemenitas Iljes
Attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often presents with comorbid substance use disorder (SUD). The extant literature on the comorbidity of adult ADHD and SUD was summarized on the etiology, prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment. ADHD is diagnosed in 15–20% of SUD patients, mostly as ADHD with a combined presentation. ADHD and SUD are believed to have shared pathophysiology. ADHD is associated with the majority of dependence diagnoses. A most used screening questionnaire for screening ADHD patients presenting with SUD is the Adult ADHD Self-report Scale (ARSR). Evidence on pharmacological treatment is limited, but new trials support the use of long-acting stimulants as also recommended with a combination of psychotherapy by expert opinion. Given the prevalence of both ADHD and SUD, more research is needed to understand the theoretical and clinical implications of this comorbidity.