Genome-wide association analysis of body conformation traits in Mexican Holstein cattle using a mix of sampled and imputed SNP genotypes.

In arid and semi-arid zones, animal health and production are closely correlated with body conformation traits. These selected traits, in turn, allow livestock to adapt unfavorable soil and environmental conditions. The primary objective of this study was to perform a genome-wide association analysis for a set of sampled and imputed SNPs with 16 conformation traits in a population of Holstein cows from a desert area of Northwestern Mexico. Imputation from 6K to 50K SNPs was performed as a low-cost optimization strategy. Results show eight SNPs associated with two conformation traits. The Udder Depth trait resulted in seven associated SNPs from chromosome 10, that related to Marbling Score, Milk Yield, Fat Yield, Protein Yield, and Protein Percentage Quantitative Trait Loci (QTLs). The Body Depth trait resulted in one associated SNP from chromosome 2, although no QTL relation was found. The discovery of genes associated with conformation traits may be indicative of the adaptive selection pressures the Holstein breed has undergone in response to the extreme weather conditions found in the northwestern areas of Mexico. Results of this study indicate that traits such as stature and body depth may be used as indicators of cows' potential genetic merits for milk, fat, and protein production.

Multi-center prospective survey of inflammatory bowel diseases in Kerala: More than 2000 cases.

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is considered uncommon in Asia. The aim of this study was to document the demographic characteristics and clinical aspects of ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) in Kerala, India. METHODS: A survey of IBD in Kerala was performed. All gastroenterologists in the region were invited. From May 2013 to October 2015, data were collected in a standardized pro-forma. RESULTS: Forty-seven doctors in 34 centers contributed data. A total of 2142 patients were analyzed. This is the largest state-wide survey of IBD in India. Ulcerative colitis was diagnosed in 1112 (38 new), Crohn's disease in 980 (53 new), and 50 were unclassified (5 new). The district-wise distribution of IBD cases correlated with the District-wise Gross State Domestic Product (r = 0.69, p < 0.01). Three percent was below the age of 18. Patients with UC had more diarrhea (73% vs. 51%), bleeding PR (79% vs. 34%), and intermittent flares (35% vs. 13%) (all p < 0.01). Patients with CD had more abdominal pain (62% vs. 46%), weight loss (53% vs. 40%), fever (28% vs. 18%), and history of antituberculosis treatment (21% vs. 5%) (all p < 0.01). Compared to adults, children (below 18 years) were more likely to have extensive UC (58% vs. 34%, p < 0.01) and unclassified IBD (15% vs. 2%, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Inflammatory bowel disease is common in Kerala, India. The disease characteristics of patients with IBD are almost similar to those from other parts of the country. Both UC and CD were seen in equal proportion in Kerala.

Detailed study of survival of patients with renal cell carcinoma in India.

PURPOSE: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for approximately 90% of all renal malignancies. The rates of kidney cancers are high in developed countries and low in eastern countries and Africa. The objective was to conduct a survival study among Indian population following nephrectomy for RCC as there was a paucity of Indian studies in medical literature. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a follow-up study of eighty RCC patients who had nephrectomy between January 2003 and December 2010. These patients had pathological diagnosis after nephrectomy. The follow-up was done up to December 2015. The survival statistics were compiled according to Kaplan-Meier survival curves. RESULTS: The overall survival of eighty patients was 77%. The patients with tumor size ≤7 cm and the patients with tumor size> 7 cm showed significant statistical difference at 5-year survival (P < 0.0001). The patients with low nuclear grade (1 and 2) and the patients with high nuclear grade (3 and 4) showed significant statistical difference at 5-year survival (P < 0.0001). The patients with tumor node metastasis stage below T3 and the patients with clinical stage above or equal to T3 showed significant statistical difference at 5-year survival (P = 0.003). CONCLUSION: This study has demonstrated the importance of factors such as tumor size, nuclear grade, and stage in the assessment of prognosis of RCC patients. More studies in India with more patients are needed to demonstrate the importance of these prognostic factors.

Genome-wide identification of copy number variations in Holstein cattle from Baja California, Mexico, using high-density SNP genotyping arrays.

Copy number variations (CNVs) are an important source of genomic structural variation, and can be used as markers to investigate phenotypic and economic traits. CNVs also have functional effects on gene expression and can contribute to disease susceptibility in mammals. Currently, single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping arrays (SNP chips) are the technology of choice for identifying CNV variations. Microarray technologies have recently been used to study the bovine genome. The objective of the present study was to develop CNVs in Holstein cows from the Northwest of Mexico using the Affymetrix Axiom Genome-Wide BOS 1 Array, which assays 648,315 SNPs and provides a wide coverage for genome-wide studies. We applied the two most widely used algorithms for the discovery of CNVs (PennCNV and QuantiSNP) and found 56 CNV regions (CNVRs) representing 0.33% of the bovine genome (8.46 Mb). These CNVRs ranged from 1.5 to 970.8 kb with an average length of 151 kb. They involved 103 genes and showed a 28% overlap with CNVRs already reported. Of the 56 CNVRs found, 20 were novel. In this study we present the first genomic analysis of CNVs in Mexican cattle using high-density SNP data. Our results provide a new reference basis for future genomic variation and association studies between CNVs and phenotypes, especially in Mexican cattle.

Increasing cancer incidence in a tertiary care hospital in a developing country, India.

OBJECTIVE: Cancer is a major health problem in many countries including India. Since Cancer Registries are incomplete in India, only a few epidemiological studies have been done so far. The objective was to determine the leading causes of cancer in a tertiary care hospital and compare the incidences of different types of cancer with the incidences in India and developed countries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An epidemiological study was done to collect data from pathology records of 1003 cancer cases during 6-month period in the year 2010. The data was collected in a computer and the data was utilized to make tables and histograms. RESULTS: Of the 1003 cases, the leading cancer site was breast, followed by colon and rectum, lymph node and stomach. The leading cancer site for men was colon and rectum and for women was breast. CONCLUSION: Cancer incidence is now low in India, a developing country, compared to developed Western countries. However, some cancers, like breast and colon and rectum cancers are increasing every year. IMPACT: The findings of this study support that cancer incidence is increasing in India and more epidemiological studies are needed.

Self-energy on the low- to high-energy electronic structure of correlated metal SrVO3.

The correlated electronic structure of SrVO(3) has been investigated by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy using in situ prepared thin films. Pronounced features of band renormalization have been observed: a sharp kink ∼60 meV below the Fermi level (E(F)) and a broad so-called "high-energy kink" ∼0.3 eV below E(F) as in the high-T(c) cuprates, although SrVO(3) does not show magnetic fluctuations. We have deduced the self-energy in a wide energy range by applying the Kramers-Kronig relation to the observed spectra. The obtained self-energy clearly shows a large energy scale of ∼0.7 eV, which is attributed to electron-electron interaction and gives rise to the ∼0.3 eV kink in the band dispersion as well as the incoherent peak ∼1.5 eV below E(F). The present analysis enables us to obtain a consistent picture for both the incoherent spectra and the band renormalization.

Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm in tropical chronic pancreatitis.

We report a 56-year-old man with chronic calcifying pancreatitis of the tropics (tropical calcific pancreatitis) who had been asymptomatic and on follow up developed a pancreatic mass that was identified as intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm. He has been asymptomatic after distal pancreatectomy.

Integrated management of filarial lymphedema for rural communities.

The Global Alliance for the Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis (GAELF) has recommended exploring local health traditions of skin care and a low cost treatment paradigm for rural communities has been proposed by Vaqas and Ryan. Our case study incorporates these promising treatments for use in treating filariasis in rural communities. Patients having lymphedema of one or both lower limbs (skin: normal, thickened or with trophic/warty changes) received treatment components from ayurveda, yoga and biomedicine simultaneously: including soap wash, phanta soaking, Indian manual lymph drainage (IMLD), pre- and post-IMLD yoga exercises, and compression using bandages for 194 days, along with diet restrictions and oral herbal medicines indicated for "elephantiasis" in Ayurveda. Entry points when infected were treated with biomedical drugs. The study was conducted in the reverse pharmacology design. 112 patients and 149 lower limbs completed 194 days of treatment during 2003-2006. Significant improvements were observed in the limb circumference measurements and the frequency of acute dermatolymphangioadenitis, use of preventive antibiotics, and reduction in the number of entry points were also improved. The objective to obtain significant benefit for a common problem using locally available, sustainable and affordable means has been achieved. It has not been our purpose to show that the regimen employed is better than another but the results do pose the question--"Are there components of Ayurvedic medicine that deserve further study?" It is important to understand that the regimen has been delivered mostly at home and that participants we have treated, representing a population suffering from a common problem, have not had access to effective conservative therapy that is culturally acceptable, safe, and efficacious.

Spin, charge, and orbital ordering in La0.5Sr1.5Mno4.

We have analyzed the experimental evidence of charge and orbital ordering in La0.5Sr1.5MnO4 using first principles band structure calculations. Our results suggest the presence of two types of Mn sites in the system. One of the Mn sites behaves as an Mn3+ ion, favoring a Jahn-Teller distortion of the surrounding oxygen atoms, while the distortion around the other is not a simple breathing mode kind. Band structure effects are found to dominate the experimental spectrum for orbital and charge ordering, providing an alternate explanation for the experimentally observed results.

Isolated duodeno-pancreatic involvement due to metastatic dysgerminoma ovary and its management by a modified pancreatico-duodenal resection.

Dysgerminomas of the ovary rarely metastasize to abdominal viscera and when they do, the involvement is a part of a disseminated disease. A 30-year-old woman developed isolated duodenopancreatic dysgerminoma 14 years after salpingo-oophorectomy. The clinical picture was complicated by the presence of tuberculous lesions in the liver which mimicked metastatic disease. Surgical excision was carried out using a modified pancreatic head resection.

Brunner's gland adenoma with circumferential duodenal involvement.

Brunner's gland adenoma is a benign tumor of the duodenum. We report a 58-year-old man who presented with abdominal pain, vomiting and weight loss. The patient underwent Whipple resection along with lymph node clearance. The resected tumor, 4 cm long, showed hypertrophied Brunner's glands.

Electronic structure of Sr2FeMoO6

We have analyzed the unusual electronic structure of Sr2FeMoO6 combining ab initio and model Hamiltonian approaches. Our results indicate that there are strong enhancements of the intra-atomic exchange strength at the Mo site as well as the antiferromagnetic coupling strength between Fe and Mo sites. We discuss the possibility of a negative effective Coulomb correlation strength ( U(eff)) at the Mo site due to these renormalized interaction strengths.

Production of hyaluronan by glomerular mesangial cells in response to fibronectin and platelet-derived growth factor.

The formation of the non-sulphated glycosaminoglycan hyaluronan by cells of the renal glomerulus in diabetes may contribute to altered matrix composition. We describe an increased production of hyaluronan from mesangial cell-enriched glomerular cores from diabetic animals, and further show that increased hyaluronan production follows the exposure of non-diabetic and diabetic preparations to fibronectin and to platelet-derived growth factor in vitro. Hyaluronan production appeared dependent on protein kinase C activity, and could not be shown after prolonged phorbol ester preincubation. Stimulation by fibronectin was wholly dependent on cyclooxygenase activity and prior prostaglandin production, while the effect of platelet-derived growth factor showed only a partial dependence.

Effect of prostaglandin E2 and hyaluronan on mesangial cell proliferation. A potential contribution to glomerular hypercellularity in diabetes.

Proliferation of mesangial cells is a feature of several forms of human and experimental glomerulopathy, including that seen in diabetes. The nonsulfated glycosaminoglycan hyaluronan participates in the regulation of pericellular matrix assembly and is a mitogen in some cell types. We have shown previously that hyaluronan production is increased in the glomerulus in a glucose- and prostaglandin-dependent manner. We have investigated the effect of diabetes and of addition of hyaluronan and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) on the uptake of [3H]thymidine by glomerular core preparations enriched in mesangial cells. When compared with nondiabetic controls, it was shown that [3H]thymidine uptake was significantly increased in glomerular core preparations from streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats (to 169 +/- 5%, P < 0.001). In glomerular cores from both experimental groups, hyaluronan (50-250 ng/ml) or PGE2 (10(-12) to 10(-8) mol/l) increased the uptake of [3H]thymidine. Further, mesangial cells from nondiabetic control glomerular cores, when maintained in culture in early passage, responded with increased [3H]thymidine uptake to raised glucose (5.6-25 mmol/l) and to added hyaluronan and PGE2. We propose that prostaglandin and hyaluronan production in response to a raised glucose environment in diabetes can contribute to mesangial hypercellularity.

Glycoside-bearing liposomal delivery systems against macrophage-associated disorders involving Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Asiaticoside, a plant glycoside with rhamnose as end sugar and having microbicidal properties was tested against Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium tuberculosis both in vivo and in vitro. As rhamnose is reported to have no tissue specificity, corchorusin D having glucose as end sugar was used for targeting with an equimolar proportion of asiaticoside in liposomal form for testing the drug value. Results showed that liposomal asiaticoside had better microbicidal property against M. leprae and M. tuberculosis when compared to that of free asiaticoside whereas liposomes containing asiaticoside and corchorusin D were found to be equally or more active in comparison to liposomal asiaticoside alone. It is inferred that appropriate glycosides, if used in liposomal form (incorporated or covalently grafted) have enhanced drug efficacy and such glycoside bearing liposomes as targeted delivery systems could be used for chemotherapeutic control of several other diseases.

Increased hyaluronan production in the glomeruli from diabetic rats: a link between glucose-induced prostaglandin production and reduced sulphated proteoglycan.

Exposure in vivo or in vitro to elevated glucose increases production of vasoactive prostaglandins by glomeruli and mesangial cells. This study aimed to determine whether this increased prostaglandin production could provide a link with later structural changes in diabetic nephropathy. Glomerular cores were prepared from control rats and streptozotocin-diabetic rats (3 weeks' duration). Over 24 h in culture hyaluronan production from diabetic glomerular cores was higher than production from control glomerular cores whether maintained in 5.6 mmol/l glucose (105.6 +/- 15.5 vs 53.6 +/- 8.5 ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.001); in 25 mmol/l glucose (149.3 +/- 34.8 vs 62.7 +/- 7.8 ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.01); or in 45 mmol/l glucose (176.8 +/- 23.3 vs 102.0 +/- 17.9 ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.01). At 5.6 mmol/l glucose, exposure in vitro to prostaglandin E2 caused an increase in hyaluronan production [maximal at 10(-9) mol/l prostaglandin E2, 237 +/- 19 vs 42 +/- 4, ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.001 (control) and 195 +/- 7 vs 103 +/- 5, ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.001 (diabetic)]. In both control and diabetic glomerular cores hyaluronan production was reduced significantly by the cyclooxygenase inhibitor indomethacin (10(-5) mol/l) [24.7 +/- 3.33 vs. 40.25 +/- 4.11 ng hyaluronan per 250 glomerular cores, p < 0.05 (control) and 36.5 +/- 6.25 vs 118.0 +/- 22.6, p < 0.01 (diabetic)]. A direct spectrophotometric microassay was used to determine the concentration of sulphated glycosaminoglycans derived from papain-digested glomerular core proteoglycans.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)