Association of Val66Met polymorphism at brain derived neurotrophic factor gene with depression among Chinese adolescents after Wenchuan earthquake: An 18months longitudinal study.

To longitudinally investigate the association of Val66Met polymorphism at brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene (BDNF) with depression in Chinese Han adolescents after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, BDNF Val66Met was identified by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses and verified by DNA sequencing. Depression was assessed by Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) among high school students at 6, 12 and 18months after the earthquake. The results showed that the females constantly had higher depression prevalence than the males during the follow-up in the Met allele carriers, but not in the Val/Val homozygotes. When compared to that at 6months, the prevalence was lowered at 12months in the male Met allele carriers, and at 18months in all the females and the male Met allele carriers. Moreover, the Met allele carriers had higher BDI scores than the Val/Val homozygotes only in the females at 18months. The females had higher BDI scores than the males constantly during the follow-up in the Met allele carriers and at 12months only in the Val/Val homozygotes. When compared to those at 12months, the scores decreased at 18months in all the females and the male Met allele carriers. In addition, the potential factors of prevalence or predictors of severity of depression were different between the Val/Val homozygotes and the Met allele carriers at different times after the earthquake. The results suggest that interactions may occur after stresses among BDNF Val66Met, gender and time course to influence depression. This may be one of the explanations for the inconsistent relationships reported before between depression and BDNF Val66Met and need to take into account for precision medical and more effective interference of depression in adolescents after disasters.

Reduced severity of posttraumatic stress disorder associated with Val allele of Val66Met polymorphism at brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene among Chinese adolescents after Wenchuan earthquake.

The aim of the present study was to longitudinally investigate the association of BDNF Val66Met with PTSD symptoms in Chinese Han adolescents who experienced the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. Variants of BDNF Val66Met were identified by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses and verified by DNA sequencing. PTSD symptoms were assessed by the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) among high school students at 6, 12, and 18 months after the earthquake. No differences of PTSD prevalence and PCL-C scores were found between the Val/Val homozygotes and the Met allele carriers at 6, 12, and 18 months after the earthquake regardless of gender. Decreased PTSD prevalence was observed at 12 and 18 months when compared with that at 6 months after the earthquake regardless of gender and the genotype. Meanwhile, PCL-C scores were decreased consecutively in the female subjects regardless of the genotypes. However, the scores at 18 months were lower when compared with those at 12 months in the male Val/Val homozygotes, but not in the male Met allele carriers. In addition, differences were found for the predictors of PCL-C scores and PTSD prevalence between the Val/Val homozygotes and the Met allele carriers during follow-up. These findings suggest that the association of BDNF Val66Met with PTSD is longitudinally different in Chinese Han adolescents after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. The Val allele may be associated with reduced PTSD severity in male adolescents in the later stage of PTSD rehabilitation during follow-up.

[Effects of APOC3 polymorphisms on the plasma lipids in healthy adolescents with different body mass index].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the possible effects of apolipoprotein C I gene (APOC3) polymorphisms on plasma lipids in healthy adolescents with different body mass index (BMI). METHODS: Seven hundred and twenty three adolescents were divided into four groups according to BMI: group 1 CBMI= (17.80 +/- 0.75) kg/m2,n=180], group 2 [BMI = (19.39 +/- 0.32) kg/m2, n=182), group 3 [BMI= (20.68 +/- 0.43) kg/m2, n=1813 and group 4 [BMI= (23.40 +/- 2.05) kg/m2 ,n=180J. Fasting venous blood samples were collected, plasma lipids were determined and genome DNA was extracted for determining the genotypes of the APOC3 Sst I and -482C>T polymorphisms by PCR-RFLP. RESULTS: With the elevation of BMI, height and plasma high-density lipoprotein cholesterol decreased significantly (P<0.001 for both), body mass, waist circumference, hip circumference, waist/hip ratio, plasma triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels increased significantly (P<0.001 for all). No significant differences in TG levels among Sst I genotypes were observed in group 1, group 2 and group 3; but in group 4, significant differences in TG levels among Sst I genotypes were observed, S2 carriers had higher TG levels than the adolescents with S1S1 genotype. No significant differences in plasma lipids among -482C>T genotypes were observed in all groups. CONCLUSION: The elevation of plasma TG levels by the S2 allele of APOC3 Sst I polymorphism is associated with BMI. It is possible that the reduction of body mass could favorably modulate the elevation of TG levels by S2 allele in healthy adolescents.

Efficacy and safety of pitavastatin versus simvastatin: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Pitavastatin is the latest statin to be approved and has shown beneficial effects on plasma lipid profiles. The aim of the present meta-analysis was to assess both the efficacy and safety of pitavastatin versus simvastatin, one of the most commonly used statins. METHODS: A search of the MEDLINE, EMBASE, OVID and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) databases was undertaken. Clinical trials evaluating the efficacy and safety of simvastatin versus pitavastatin, published up to February 2014, were identified. Trials were included if they (1) were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of at least 12 weeks' duration; (2) included patients with primary hypercholesterolaemia or mixed dyslipidaemia; (3) studied outcomes included low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C); and (4) were published in the English language. A fixed-effects model was used for data analysis if no significant heterogeneity was present; otherwise a random-effects model was used. Efficacy is reflected by the mean difference in the percentage change of plasma lipid profiles. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) are presented as risk ratio (RR). RESULTS: A total of 1,468 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The results indicated similar efficacy of pitavastatin (versus simvastatin) in lowering LDL-C. Pitavastatin also had similar effects to simvastatin on other major aspects of plasma lipids, including TC, TG and HDL-C. Somewhat in contrast to common belief (based on distinct metabolism by P450 subtypes), the two statins did not differ in the incidence of TEAE. CONCLUSIONS: In clinical trials, pitavastatin was comparable to simvastatin in both efficacy and safety profile. Large-scale, high-quality observational studies are required to determine whether the advantage of pitavastatin in metabolism profiles could be translated into noticeable benefits.

[The association study of the LIPC -250g/A polymorphism and high-carbohydrate/low-fat diet induced serum lipid and apolipoprotein concentration changes in healthy youth].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of the - 250G/A polymorphism in the promoter region of hepatic lipase gene (LIPC) on serum lipid profile and its interactions with a high-carbohydrate/low-fat (HC/LF) diet on serum lipid profiles in a young healthy Chinese population. METHODS: After a stabilization diet for seven days, fifty-six young healthy subjects (27 males, 29 females) were given the HC/LF diet for six days. The serum lipid profiles were analyzed of the twelve-hour fasting venous blood samples collected in the mornings of the first, the eighth and the fourteenth days. The concentrations of serum apolipoproteins were measured. The LIPC -250G/A polymorphism were analyzed. RESULTS: At baseline, the female subjects with the GG genotype had significantly higher high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (P= 0. 041) and apolipoprotein A- I (Apo A- I ) (P= 0. 020) than the male subjects with the same genotype. After the stabilization diet, the females had significantly higher HDL-C (GG genotype: P=0. 021, A carriers: P=0. 014) and Apo A-I (GG genotype: P= 0. 035, A carriers: P= 0. 006) than the males in all genotypes. After the HC/LF diet, the female A carriers had significantly higher total cholesterol (TC) (P= 0. 042) than the male A carriers, and the females had significantly higher Apo A- I than the males in all genotypes (GG genotype: P=0. 010, A carriers: P=0. 009). Compared with thosebefore the HC / LF diet , TC ( males with GG genotype : P = 0. 013 , male A carriers: P = 0. 000 ; females with GG genotype: P=0. 025, female A carriers: P=0. 048) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (males with GG genotype: P = 0. 028, male A carriers: P = 0. 000; females with GG genotype: P= 0. 004, female A carriers: P=0. 001) significantly decreased after the diet in all the subjects. Triglycerides (TAG) (GG genotype: P=0. 006, A carriers: P= 0. 001) significantly increased in the females regardless of the genotype. However, only in the male A carriers, HDL-C (P= 0. 011) and Apo A- I (P= 0. 041) significantly increased after the diet. CONCLUSION: The A allele at the LIPC -250G/A polymorphism is associated with the HC/LF diet induced HDL-C and Apo A-I concentration changes in the males.

[Effects of a high-carbohydrate diet on the serum lipid and apolipoprotein ratios in healthy young adults with different genotypes of APOA1 -75 G/A polymorphism].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of a high-carbohydrate diet on the lipid and apolipoprotein ratios in healthy young adults with different genotypes of the polymorphism at -75 site in the promoter region of the gene of apolipoprotein AI (APOA1). METHODS: Fifty-six subjects aged (22.89 +/- 1.80) years were given a wash-out diet for 7 days, followed by a high-carbohydrate diet for 6 days. The wash-out diet contained 15% protein, 31% fat, and 54% carbohydrate. The high-carbohydrate diet contained 15% protein, 15% fat, and 70% carbohydrate. Twelve-hour fasting serum lipids and apolipoproteins B100 and AI were measured on the mornings of the 1st, the 8th, and the 14th days from the beginning of the wash-out diet. The ratios of triglyceride (TG)/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC)/HDL-C, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)/HDL-C, and apolipoprotein B100 (APOB100)/apolipoprotein AI (APOAI) were calculated. The genome DNA was extracted and the polymorphism of APOA1 -75 G/A was determined by polymerase chain reaction followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism assay. RESULTS: At baseline, the lipid and apolipoprotein ratios showed no significant differences between the GG genotype and the A carriers in males (P > 0.05), whereas the female A carriers had a significantly higher ratio of LDL-C/ HDL-C compared with the female subjects with the GG genotype (P < 0.05). Following the high-carbohydrate diet, significant decreases of TC/HDL-C were found in all the groups, regardless of sex and genotype (P < 0.01). LDL-C/HDL-C experienced significant decreases in both the genotypes in males (P < 0.05), while in females, significant decrease of LDL-C/HDL-C was only observed in A carriers (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: The A allele of the -75 G/A polymorphism in APOA1 may have specific effects on the LDL-C/HDL-C ratio in females.

[Effects of a low-fat and high-carbohydrate diet on the physiological and biochemical indices in healthy youth with different body mass index].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of a low-fat and high-carbohydrate (LF-HC) diet on the physiological and biochemical indexes in healthy youth with different body mass index (BMI). METHODS: Seven overweight participants [BMI=(27.82 +/- 1.64) kg/m2] and 49 age-matched controls [BMI = (20.06 +/- 2.41) kg/ m2] were given a washout diet for 7 d, followed by a LF-HC diet for 6 d. The washout diet contained 31.1% fat and 54.1% carbohydrate, and the LF-HC diet contained 14.8% fat and 70.1% carbohydrate of total energy. Anthropometric measurements were conducted on the mornings of the first, eighth and fourteenth days. Serum samples were prepared from twelve-hour fasting venous blood. Biochemical indexes including lipids; glucose and insulin were measured with routine methods. The homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was calculated. RESULTS: At baseline, the control group had lower levels of body mass (P = 0.000), BMI (P = 0.000), waist-hip ratio (P = 0.000), systolic blood pressure (P = 0.001), diagnostic blood pressure (P = 0.016) and triglycerides (P = 0.006), and a higher level of HDL cholesterol (P = 0.005) than the overweight group. When compared with those before the ILF-HC diet, total cholesterol (P < 0.05) and LDL cholesterol (P < 0.05) decreased, and insulin (P < 0.05) and HOMA-IR (P < 0.05) increased in both the control group and the overweight group after the LF-HC diet. Increased triglycerides (P = 0.000) were observed only in the control subjects, and HDL cholesterol (P = 0.018) increased only in the overweight subjects after the LF-HC diet. CONCLUSION: The responses of serum TG and HDL-C to the LF-HC diet are related to BMI in healthy youth.