Trends in Bacterial Vaginosis Prevalence in a Cohort of U.S. Women with and at Risk for HIV

Background: Women with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) often have bacterial vaginosis (BV). The goal of this analysis was to assess how BV prevalence changed over time and across U.S. regions in enrollment cohorts of the Women's Interagency HIV Study. Methods: In a multisite study, BV was diagnosed retrospectively when pH and two of three other Amsel criteria were met. Prevalence was determined across four recruitment waves: 1994-5, 2001-2, 2011-2, and 2013-5. Generalized estimating equation multivariable logistic regression models assessed changes in visit prevalence across waves after controlling for HIV disease severity and other risks. Results: Among 4,790 women (3,539 with HIV and 1,251 without HIV), BV was diagnosed at 7,870 (12%) of 64,444 visits. Baseline prevalence across enrollment waves was 15.0%-19.2%, but declined in all cohorts, with prevalence in the initial cohort falling to 3.9% in the 1994-5 cohort after up to 21 years of continuous observation. Prevalence varied within U.S. regions. HIV status was not associated with BV. Conclusion: BV prevalence decreased with time in study. Prevalence varied across sites, but was not uniformly increased or decreased in any U.S. region. Clinical Trials.gov identifier: NCT00000797

A DNA mismatch repair gene links to the Ph2 locus in wheat

DNA mismatch repair is an essential system for maintaining genetic stability in bacteria and higher eukaryotes. Based on the conserved regions of the bacterial MutS gene and its homologues in yeast and human, a wheat cDNA homologue of MSH6, designated TaMSH7, was isolated by RT–PCR. The deduced amino acid sequence of TaMSH7 shows conserved domains characteristic of other MSH6 genes, with highest similarity to maize MSH7 and Arabidopsis MSH7. TaMSH7 is expressed in meristem tissue associated with a high level of mitotic and meiotic activity, with maximum expression in the reproductive organs of young flower spikes. TaMSH7 is located on the short arms of chromosomes 3A, 3B, and 3D and has been mapped within barley chromosome 3HS. The copy on 3DS is located within the region deleted in the wheat mutant ph2a, which shows altered recombination frequency in the interspecific hybrids. The relationship between the ph2a mutant and TaMSH7 gene function is discussed.Chongmei Dong, Ryan Whitford, and Peter Langridg