Effects of anthropogenic and demographic factors on patterns of parasitism in African small mammal communities.

Habitat disturbance often results in alterations in community structure of small mammals. Additionally, the parasites harboured by these small mammals may be impacted by environmental changes or indirectly affected by changes in available hosts. To improve our understanding of this interplay, we examined the patterns of parasitism in small mammal communities from a variety of habitats in forested Uganda. Small mammals were collected from areas experiencing variable habitat disturbance, host density and species richness. The analysis focused on 3 most abundant rodent species, Lophuromys aquilus, Praomys jacksoni and Hylomyscus stella, and a diverse group of parasites they harbour. The impact of various habitat and host community factors on parasite prevalence was examined using linear regression and Spearman's rank-order correlation. We further investigated the parasite communities associated with each individual using correspondence analysis. We determined that, parasite prevalence and richness may be occasionally influenced by community and habitat factors, but taxonomy is a driving force in influencing the parasite community harboured by an individual host. Ultimately, applying general principles across a broad range of disturbance levels and diverse host communities needs to be approached with caution in complex communities.

Estrogen receptor α and aromatase polymorphisms affect risk, prognosis, and therapeutic outcome in men with castration-resistant prostate cancer treated with docetaxel-based therapy.

CONTEXT: Reactive estrogen species cause genotoxicity and interfere with docetaxel-mediated tubulin polymerization resulting in shortened survival in men with castrate-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). OBJECTIVE: We hypothesized that polymorphisms in estrogen synthesis and estrogen targets (i.e., CYP19 and ERα) would be linked to interindividual variation in CRPC risk, docetaxel response, and overall survival in men with CRPC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with CRPC (n=115) treated with docetaxel, single-agent thalidomide (n=42), or healthy controls (n=289) were genotyped for the CYP19 R264C (rs700519) and the ERα PvuII T>C (rs2234693) and XbaI A>G (rs9340799) polymorphisms. RESULTS: Patients carrying two copies of ERα polymorphisms had shorter progression-free survival on docetaxel than other patients (median survival difference ≥ 3.1 months; P ≤ 0.036). When the analysis was limited to nonobese patients, the relationship between the ERα XbaI A>G polymorphism and PFS improved (median survival difference = 3.5 months; P = 0.0078). The CYP19 R264C variant was related to the duration of survival after docetaxel in patients who were >70 years old (median survival difference =10.6 months; P=0.041). Both ERα polymorphisms were also associated with increases in CRPC risk [P ≤ 0.032; double variants vs. wild-type odds ratio ≥ 2.6], and the association with the ERα PvuII T>C also improved in those men who were <70 years old (P = 0.0073; odds ratio = 3.0). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that estrogen-related genetic variation affects docetaxel clinical response and that this relationship is dependent on age and body-type in men with CRPC. Moreover, this study suggests ERα polymorphisms confer risk of developing prostate cancer, especially in men under 70 years of age.

Androgen receptor sequence and variations in several common prostate cancer cell lines.

The androgen receptor gene (AR) plays an important role in molecular signaling and regulation and the subsequent cellular growth of prostate cancer. In addition, it is a highly variable region of the genome. We used direct nucleotide sequencing to genotype the entire exogenous coding region of the androgen receptor in ten commonly used prostate cancer cell lines. Our analysis confirmed the presence or absence of several known SNPs in the cell lines studied. We also assayed the number of CAG-repeat and GGC-repeat sequences for each for the ten cell lines. Our analysis identified three new mutations, one each in the DU145, LnCAP and RWPE-2 cell lines. In DU145, the DNA isolated in our lab was heterozygous at G527G (T>C transition), a polymorphism not previously reported. The LnCAP cells cultured in our lab were found to have a T>C transition (heterozygous), resulting in a S641P change that was not present in the ATCC cell line DNA. Lastly, a homozygous G>T transversion was found in RWPE-2 cells, resulting in the S187I change. This is potentially significant for use in cell culture and future cell model development.

Population pharmacokinetics of romidepsin in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and relapsed peripheral T-cell lymphoma.

PURPOSE: Romidepsin is a potent histone deacetylase inhibitor under clinical development. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of demographic, clinical, and pharmacogenetic covariates on the pharmacokinetics of romidepsin in patients with T-cell lymphoma. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Pharmacokinetic assessment was done in 98 patients enrolled in a phase II study who received 14 or 18 mg/m2 of romidepsin as a 4-hour infusion on day 1 during their first treatment cycle. Population modeling was done using a nonlinear mixed effects modeling approach to explore the effects of polymorphic variations in CYP3A4, CYP3A5, SLCO1B3, and ABCB1, all of which encode genes thought to be involved in romidepsin disposition. RESULTS: A two-compartment model with linear kinetics adequately described the romidepsin disposition. Population clearance was 15.9 L/h with between-patient variability of 37%. ABCB1 2677G>T/A variant alleles tended toward a reduced clearance and lower volume of tissue distribution, but this was not supported by a statistical significance. Genetic variations in CYP3A4/5 and SCLO1B3 had no effect on the systemic exposure. CONCLUSION: The population pharmacokinetic analysis indicates moderate interindividual variability in romidepsin pharmacokinetics and no clinically relevant covariates associated with the unexplained pharmacokinetic variability of romidepsin in this population.

Association of the ABCG2 C421A polymorphism with prostate cancer risk and survival.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if the C421A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the ATP-binding cassette transporter ABCG2 increases prostate cancer risk or affects survival. PATIENTS, SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Numerous studies have suggested that dietary, hormonal and environmental factors all play a role in the initiation in prostate cancer; among these, the carcinogenic heterocyclic amine 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP), a known substrate of the ABCG2. A SNP of ABCG2, C421A, resulting in a glutamine to lysine change at amino acid 141, has been shown to result in decreased function of the protein. Due to the expression of ABCG2 in the prostate, together with the purported role of dietary carcinogens and steroids in the development and progression of prostate cancer, 311 individuals were genotyped for the ABCG2 C421A SNP, 170 patients with androgen-independent prostate cancer (AIPC) and 141 'healthy' controls. We also evaluated the effect of this SNP on the intracellular accumulation of PhIP and testosterone in vitro. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the prevalence of prostate cancer based on ABCG2 genetic variation in this population. However, survival was significantly longer for individuals with wild-type ABCG2, as compared with those hetero- or homozygous for the C421A SNP (7.4 years vs 5.3 years, P = 0.044). Intracellular accumulation of PhIP was 80% higher in HEK293 cells transfected with Q141K ABCG2 than in wild-type cells, confirming that this SNP decreases transport of PhIP. In contrast, testosterone was not transported by either wild-type or variant transfected cells, nor did it act as in inhibitor of ABCG2 in subsequent transport assays. CONCLUSION: Increased exposure to PhIP may decrease survival, but the ABCG2 C421A polymorphism does not appear to increase the risk of prostate cancer.