Low bone mineral density is related to male gender and decreased functional capacity in early spondylarthropathies

The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of low bone mineral density (BMD) in patients with spondylarthropathies (SpA) at an early stage of disease. In this cross-sectional study, the BMD of lumbar spine and hips was measured in 130 consecutive early SpA patients. The outcome measure BMD was defined as (1) osteoporosis, (2) osteopenia, and (3) normal bone density. Logistic regression analyses were used to investigate relations between the following variables: age, gender, disease duration, diagnosis, HLA-B27, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), extra-spinal manifestations and medication, with outcome measure low BMD (osteopenia and/or osteoporosis). The SpA population had a median time since diagnosis of 6.6 months and a disease duration of 6.3 years. In total, 9% of the early SpA patients had osteoporosis, 38% osteopenia, and 53% normal BMD. On univariate analyses, male gender, diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis, increased CRP, high BASFI, and high BASMI were significantly associated with low BMD. Factors showing a relation with low BMD in the multivariate model were male gender (OR 4.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.73–10.09), high BASMI (OR 1.54, 95% CI 1.14–2.07), and high BASFI (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.00–1.39). In early SpA patients, a high frequency (47%) of low BMD in femur as well as in lumbar spine was found. Low BMD was associated with male gender and decreased functional capacity. These findings emphasize the need for more alertness for osteoporosis and osteopenia in spondylarthropathy patients at an early stage of the disease

Analysis of polymorphisms in the mitochondrial ND5 gene in Pantaneira and Creole breeds of sheep

The aim of this study was to assess genetic variation between a population of Pantaneira sheep in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, and Creole sheep from the south of the country by molecular analysis of the ND5 gene in mitochondrial DNA. The analysis revealed the presence of 16 haplotypes with all Pantaneira sheep grouped together carrying a single haplotype, and there was no grouping with any of the Creole sheep. The FST value was 0.44, indicating that there is a genetic difference between the two breeds, which may indicate that both breeds underwent differentiation.Key words: Ovis aries, ND5 gene, genetic diversity, phylogeny, breed differentiation

Intravarietal polymorphisms reveal possible common ancestor of native Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi populations in Brazil

Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi is a perennial native from Atlantic forest. It is of high ecological plasticity and is used in traditional medicine. Based on promising reports concerning its bioactivity, it was included as a species of great interest for distribution through the National Health System. A number of agronomic studies to guide its crop production are therefore underway. This study examined diversity and phylogenetic relationships among native S. terebinthifolius populations from different Brazilian ecosystems: Cerrado; sandbanks; dense rainforest; and deciduous forest. The intergenic regions rpl20-5'rps12, trnH-psbA, and trnS-trnG were sequenced from cpDNA and aligned using BLASTn. There were few fragments for comparison in GenBank and so only region trnS-trnG was informative. There were variations among and within populations with intravarietal polymorphisms and three distinct haplotypes (HpSM, HpDDO, HpNE), once populations from NE (sandbanks and rainforest) clustered together. Sequences from HpSM, HpNE, and HpDDO returned greater similarity to haplotypes A (AY928398.1), B (AY928399.1), and C (AY928400.1), respectively. A network, built by median-joining among native haplotypes and 10 available on GenBank, revealed HpSM as the origin of all other haplogroups. HpDDO showed the most mutations and was closely related to haplogroups from Argentina. While this could indicate hybridization, we believe that the polymorphisms resulted from adaptation to events such as deforestation, fire, rising temperature, and seasonal drought during the transition from Atlantic forest to Cerrado. While more detailed phylogeographical studies are needed, these results indicate eligible groups for distinct climates as an important step for prebreeding programs before field propagation