The analysis of geographically specific regions and the characterization of fine-scale patterns of genetic diversity may facilitate a much better understanding of the microevolutionary processes ...affecting local human populations. Here we generated genome-wide high-density SNP genotype data in 425 individuals from six geographical regions in Lithuania and combined our dataset with available ancient and modern data to explore genetic population structure, ancestry components and signatures of natural positive selection in the Lithuanian population. Our results show that Lithuanians are a homogenous population, genetically differentiated from neighbouring populations but within the general expected European context. Moreover, we not only confirm that Lithuanians preserve one of the highest proportions of western, Scandinavian and eastern hunter-gather ancestry components found in European populations but also that of an steppe Early to Middle Bronze Age pastoralists, which together configure the genetic distinctiveness of the Lithuanian population. Finally, among the top signatures of positive selection detected in Lithuanians, we identified several candidate genes related with diet (PNLIP, PPARD), pigmentation (SLC24A5, TYRP1 and PPARD) and the immune response (BRD2, HLA-DOA, IL26 and IL22).
The objective of this study was to explore through both in vitro and in vivo experiments the use of reclaimed urban wastewater in dairy cattle production systems with the aim of improving water ...efficiency and sustainability. Firstly, the use of different tertiary treatments (ultrafiltration (UF), ultraviolet disinfection (UV), chlorination process, and their combination) to improve the quality of an urban secondary effluent was studied in intestinal primary cell cultures evaluating the expression of genes related to apoptosis, cell damage, and inflammation. The results revealed that secondary treated wastewater and waters that were treated with a chlorination process (even tap water) caused an increase in apoptosis, intestinal primary cell damage, and inflammation. The in vivo experiment evaluated the short-term effects on health and performance of using UF- and UV-treated secondary effluent compared with the use of tap water for drinking and preparing milk replacer in young calves from 5 to 47 days of age. Calves previously fed with UF + UV treated secondary effluent clearly preferred tap water when they were exposed to a double water choice at the end of the study. This reduction of the palatability and acceptability was probably due to a greater level of water salinity of the treated reclaimed water (570 vs 1437 ± 76.5 μS/cm of conductivity for tap water and UF-UV treated secondary effluent, respectively), which potentially entailed a reduction of calf concentrate intake (466 vs 351 ± 32.2 g/d for calves fed with tap water and UF-UV treated water, respectively). The use of reclaimed water did not pose an acute risk to animal health. It is concluded that improvements on the tertiary treatment to reduce water salinity should be considered when using reclaimed water for drinking purposes in livestock production systems. This study is a first approach to a more sustainable and efficient use of water in animal husbandry for countries with water scarcity. However, more studies are required before its implementation to further study long-term effects and the presence of new-contaminants not defined in the current legislation.
•Water scarcity and demand in agriculture imply innovative water reuse schemes.•Livestock drinking water quality standards are achieved by UF and UV disinfection.•Salinity of reclaimed water impairs animal performance.•Treated UF and UV reclaimed water does not pose an acute health risk for calves.
The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most frequently prescribed antidepressant drugs, because they are well tolerated and have no severe side effects. They rapidly block ...serotonin (5-HT) reuptake, yet the onset of their therapeutic action requires weeks of treatment. This delay is the result of presynaptic and postsynaptic adaptive mechanisms secondary to reuptake inhibition. The prevention of a negative feedback mechanism operating at the 5-HT autoreceptor level enhances the neurochemical and clinical effects of SSRIs. The blockade of 5-HT2A receptors also seems to improve the clinical effects of SSRIs. These receptors are located postsynaptically to 5-HT axons, mainly in the neocortex. Pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex are particularly enriched in 5-HT2A receptors. Their blockade may affect the function of prefrontal-subcortical circuits, an effect that probably underlies the beneficial effects of the addition of atypical antipsychotic drugs, which are 5-HT2A receptor antagonists, to SSRIs in treatment-resistant patients.
Most studies of European genetic diversity have focused on large-scale variation and interpretations based on events in prehistory, but migrations and invasions in historical times could also have ...had profound effects on the genetic landscape. The Iberian Peninsula provides a suitable region for examination of the demographic impact of such recent events, because its complex recent history has involved the long-term residence of two very different populations with distinct geographical origins and their own particular cultural and religious characteristics—North African Muslims and Sephardic Jews. To address this issue, we analyzed Y chromosome haplotypes, which provide the necessary phylogeographic resolution, in 1140 males from the Iberian Peninsula and Balearic Islands. Admixture analysis based on binary and Y-STR haplotypes indicates a high mean proportion of ancestry from North African (10.6%) and Sephardic Jewish (19.8%) sources. Despite alternative possible sources for lineages ascribed a Sephardic Jewish origin, these proportions attest to a high level of religious conversion (whether voluntary or enforced), driven by historical episodes of social and religious intolerance, that ultimately led to the integration of descendants. In agreement with the historical record, analysis of haplotype sharing and diversity within specific haplogroups suggests that the Sephardic Jewish component is the more ancient. The geographical distribution of North African ancestry in the peninsula does not reflect the initial colonization and subsequent withdrawal and is likely to result from later enforced population movement—more marked in some regions than in others—plus the effects of genetic drift.
Background
The foremost cause of death of breast cancer (BC) patients is metastasis, and the first site to which BC predominantly metastasizes is the axillary lymph node (ALN). Thus, ALN status is a ...key prognostic indicator at diagnosis. The immune system has an essential role in cancer progression and dissemination, so its evaluation in ALNs could have significant applications. In the present study we aimed to investigate the association of clinical-pathological and immune variables in the primary tumour and non-metastatic ALNs (ALNs
–
) of a cohort of luminal A and triple-negative BC (TNBC) patients with cancer-specific survival (CSS) and time to progression (TTP).
Methods
We analysed the differences in the variables between patients with different outcomes, created univariate and multivariate Cox regression models, validated them by bootstrapping and multiple imputation of missing data techniques, and used Kaplan–Meier survival curves for a 10-years follow-up.
Results
We found some clinical-pathological variables at diagnosis (tumour diameter, TNBC molecular profile and presence of ALN metastasis), and the levels of several immune markers in the two studied sites, to be associated with worse CSS and TTP. Nevertheless, only CD68 and CD83 in ALNs
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were confirmed as independent prognostic factors for TTP.
Conclusions
The study identified the importance of macrophage and dendritic cell markers as prognostic factors of relapse for BC. We highlight the importance of studying the immune response in ALNs
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, which could be relevant to the prediction of BC patients’ outcome.
Abstract
Demographic history plays a major role in shaping the distribution of genomic variation. Yet the interaction between different demographic forces and their effects in the genomes is not ...fully resolved in human populations. Here, we focus on the Roma population, the largest transnational ethnic minority in Europe. They have a South Asian origin and their demographic history is characterized by recent dispersals, multiple founder events, and extensive gene flow from non-Roma groups. Through the analyses of new high-coverage whole exome sequences and genome-wide array data for 89 Iberian Roma individuals together with forward simulations, we show that founder effects have reduced their genetic diversity and proportion of rare variants, gene flow has counteracted the increase in mutational load, runs of homozygosity show ancestry-specific patterns of accumulation of deleterious homozygotes, and selection signals primarily derive from preadmixture adaptation in the Roma population sources. The present study shows how two demographic forces, bottlenecks and admixture, act in opposite directions and have long-term balancing effects on the Roma genomes. Understanding how demography and gene flow shape the genome of an admixed population provides an opportunity to elucidate how genomic variation is modeled in human populations.
Erythema Multiforme: When targets lead to diagnosis Alamon-Reig, Francesc; Castrejón, Natalia; Bosch-Amate, Xavier
Sultan Qaboos University medical journal,
11/2021, Letnik:
21, Številka:
4
Journal Article
In Mediterranean environments, livestock effluents might improve soil physical properties. The study was located in an intensive crop production system of northwest Spain. After nine consecutive ...years of dairy cattle slurry (DCS) use as fertilizer, the aim of the experiment was to evaluate the impacts of DCS on soil porosity and pore shape. Soil texture was loam. The applied DCS rates were equivalent to 170 and 250 kg N ha−1 (170DCS and 250DCS, respectively) and they were complemented with mineral N up to 450 kg N ha-1 (two crops). A nonfertilized control was included. Digital binary images were obtained from soil thin sections. Pores with an apparent diameter (AD) >30 µm were analysed. The 250DCS treatment improved soil porosity (>30 µm): it doubled in comparison with the 170DCS and the control. The application of DCS favored the presence of pores with an AD >400 µm, the roughness for AD >100 µm and the elongation in the AD interval of 100-200 µm. From the study, the 250DCS treatment is recommended as it increases macroporosity (compaction reduction) and produces more elongated and tortuous pores, which will be a constraint for fast drainage but it will be advantageous in coarse textured soils.
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