Somatotrophic axis genes on growth traits in a bovine F2 population

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a associação dos polimorfismos dos genes bGH, IGF-1 e PIT-1 com características de peso e ganho de peso numa população F2 de bovinos (Gir x Holandês), pela técnica de PCR-RFLP. As freqüências alélicas A e B, do gene PIT-1, e dos genótipos AA, AB e BB, nas populações parentais foram semelhantes entre si, mas diferentes das freqüências nas populações cruzadas F1 e F2, para esse gene. Quanto ao gene bGH, os animais da raça Holandesa apresentaram freqüência de 100% para o alelo E e os animais da raça Gir, 92% para o alelo F, resultando em alta freqüência de indivíduos heterozigotos nas populações F1 e F2. Quanto ao gene IGF-1, todos os animais da raça Holandesa eram heterozigotos (AB) e, nos animais Gir, a maioria dos indivíduos foi de homozigotos (AA), o que resultou em alta freqüência do alelo A nas populações F1 e F2. Foram encontradas associações significativas do alelo A do gene PIT-1 com as características de peso aos 60, 205, 365 dias e ganho de peso do nascimento aos 60 dias. Em bGH, observou-se efeito significativo do alelo E para peso aos 365 dias e ganho de peso do nascimento aos 60 dias, enquanto o efeito do alelo A do IGF-1 foi significativo somente para peso ao nascimento. Os alelos identificados podem ser usados como marcadores no melhoramento animal.The objective of this work was to evaluate the association between polymorphisms of bGH, IGF-1 and PIT-1 genes with weight and weight gain traits in a bovine F2 population derived from Holstein x Gyr crosses, using the PCR-RFLP technique. Allelic frequencies A and B of PIT-1 gene and AA, AB, and BB genotypes were similar between parental populations but different from F1 and F2 crossed populations. For the bGH gene, Holstein animals showed allelic frequency of 100% for E allele, while Gyr animals showed allelic frequency of 92% for F allele, resulting in high frequency of heterozygous animals in F1 and F2 populations. For the IGF-1 gene, all Holstein were heterozygous (AB) and most Gyr were homozygous (AA), resulting in a high frequency of A allele in F1 and F2 populations. Significant associations were found between PIT-1 allele A with traits weight at 60, 205 and 365 days and weight gain from birth to 60 days. For IGF-1, significant association was found between A allele and birth weight. For bGH gene, significant associations were found between E allele and 365 days weight and weight gain from birth to 60 days. The selected alleles could be used as markers in animal breeding for these traits

Allergen immunotherapy in MASK-air users in real-life : Results of a Bayesian mixed-effects model

Background Evidence regarding the effectiveness of allergen immunotherapy (AIT) on allergic rhinitis has been provided mostly by randomised controlled trials, with little data from real-life studies. Objective To compare the reported control of allergic rhinitis symptoms in three groups of users of the MASK-air(R) app: those receiving sublingual AIT (SLIT), those receiving subcutaneous AIT (SCIT), and those receiving no AIT. Methods We assessed the MASK-air(R) data of European users with self-reported grass pollen allergy, comparing the data reported by patients receiving SLIT, SCIT and no AIT. Outcome variables included the daily impact of allergy symptoms globally and on work (measured by visual analogue scales-VASs), and a combined symptom-medication score (CSMS). We applied Bayesian mixed-effects models, with clustering by patient, country and pollen season. Results We analysed a total of 42,756 days from 1,093 grass allergy patients, including 18,479 days of users under AIT. Compared to no AIT, SCIT was associated with similar VAS levels and CSMS. Compared to no AIT, SLIT-tablet was associated with lower values of VAS global allergy symptoms (average difference = 7.5 units out of 100; 95% credible interval [95%CrI] = -12.1;-2.8), lower VAS Work (average difference = 5.0; 95%CrI = -8.5;-1.5), and a lower CSMS (average difference = 3.7; 95%CrI = -9.3;2.2). When compared to SCIT, SLIT-tablet was associated with lower VAS global allergy symptoms (average difference = 10.2; 95%CrI = -17.2;-2.8), lower VAS Work (average difference = 7.8; 95%CrI = -15.1;0.2), and a lower CSMS (average difference = 9.3; 95%CrI = -18.5;0.2). Conclusion In patients with grass pollen allergy, SLIT-tablet, when compared to no AIT and to SCIT, is associated with lower reported symptom severity. Future longitudinal studies following internationally-harmonised standards for performing and reporting real-world data in AIT are needed to better understand its 'real-world' effectiveness.Peer reviewe

Development and validation of combined symptom-medication scores for allergic rhinitis*

Background Validated combined symptom-medication scores (CSMSs) are needed to investigate the effects of allergic rhinitis treatments. This study aimed to use real-life data from the MASK-air(R) app to generate and validate hypothesis- and data-driven CSMSs. Methods We used MASK-air(R) data to assess the concurrent validity, test-retest reliability and responsiveness of one hypothesis-driven CSMS (modified CSMS: mCSMS), one mixed hypothesis- and data-driven score (mixed score), and several data-driven CSMSs. The latter were generated with MASK-air(R) data following cluster analysis and regression models or factor analysis. These CSMSs were compared with scales measuring (i) the impact of rhinitis on work productivity (visual analogue scale [VAS] of work of MASK-air(R), and Work Productivity and Activity Impairment: Allergy Specific [WPAI-AS]), (ii) quality-of-life (EQ-5D VAS) and (iii) control of allergic diseases (Control of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma Test [CARAT]). Results We assessed 317,176 days of MASK-air(R) use from 17,780 users aged 16-90 years, in 25 countries. The mCSMS and the factor analyses-based CSMSs displayed poorer validity and responsiveness compared to the remaining CSMSs. The latter displayed moderate-to-strong correlations with the tested comparators, high test-retest reliability and moderate-to-large responsiveness. Among data-driven CSMSs, a better performance was observed for cluster analyses-based CSMSs. High accuracy (capacity of discriminating different levels of rhinitis control) was observed for the latter (AUC-ROC = 0.904) and for the mixed CSMS (AUC-ROC = 0.820). Conclusion The mixed CSMS and the cluster-based CSMSs presented medium-high validity, reliability and accuracy, rendering them as candidates for primary endpoints in future rhinitis trials.Peer reviewe

Development and validation of combined symptom‐medication scores for allergic rhinitis*

Background: Validated combined symptom-medication scores (CSMSs) are needed to investigate the effects of allergic rhinitis treatments. This study aimed to use real-life data from the MASK-air® app to generate and validate hypothesis- and data-driven CSMSs. Methods: We used MASK-air® data to assess the concurrent validity, test-retest reliability and responsiveness of one hypothesis-driven CSMS (modified CSMS: mCSMS), one mixed hypothesis- and data-driven score (mixed score), and several data-driven CSMSs. The latter were generated with MASK-air® data following cluster analysis and regression models or factor analysis. These CSMSs were compared with scales measuring (i) the impact of rhinitis on work productivity (visual analogue scale [VAS] of work of MASK-air® , and Work Productivity and Activity Impairment: Allergy Specific [WPAI-AS]), (ii) quality-of-life (EQ-5D VAS) and (iii) control of allergic diseases (Control of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma Test [CARAT]). Results: We assessed 317,176 days of MASK-air® use from 17,780 users aged 16-90 years, in 25 countries. The mCSMS and the factor analyses-based CSMSs displayed poorer validity and responsiveness compared to the remaining CSMSs. The latter displayed moderate-to-strong correlations with the tested comparators, high test-retest reliability and moderate-to-large responsiveness. Among data-driven CSMSs, a better performance was observed for cluster analyses-based CSMSs. High accuracy (capacity of discriminating different levels of rhinitis control) was observed for the latter (AUC-ROC = 0.904) and for the mixed CSMS (AUC-ROC = 0.820). Conclusion: The mixed CSMS and the cluster-based CSMSs presented medium-high validity, reliability and accuracy, rendering them as candidates for primary endpoints in future rhinitis trials

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Genome scan for QTL related to bovine resistance to Boophilus microplus

Nos países tropicais, as perdas causadas pela infestação de carrapatos em bovinos acarretam um grande impacto no sistema de produção animal. A variação genética entre Bos taurus e Bos indicus, para a resistência a carrapatos, juntamente com as ferramentas da biologia molecular, sugerem o uso de marcadores moleculares, associados às características de resistência, como ferramenta auxiliar nos programas de seleção. O objetivo desse trabalho foi identificar QTL associados à resistência/suscetibilidade ao carrapato (R. microplus) em uma população F2 de bovinos derivada do cruzamento entre touros da raça Holandesa (Bos taurus) e vacas de raça Gir (Bos indicus). Foi utilizada a avaliação absoluta para determinação do nível de resistência de cada animal, que é baseada na contagem das fêmeas de carrapatos que completaram seu ciclo após a infestação artificial com um número conhecido de larvas. Foram coletadas amostras de sangue de toda população parental, F1 e F2 para extração de DNA. Para a varredura do genoma, foram utilizados marcadores microssatélites escolhidos no mapa do MARC - USDA. A escolha de cada marcador foi baseada na sua posição no mapa, multi-alelismo e mínimo de 50% de heterozigosidade. Ao todo, foram selecionados 21 marcadores microssatélites, visando cobrir os cromossomos 13, 18, 19 e 27, com um espaçamento de 20 cM, em média, entre os marcadores. Os dados obtidos a partir da varredura genômica referente aos quatro cromossomos em estudo demonstraram a presença de um QTL com efeito aditivo e dominante (P<0,01), para resistência a carrapato localizado no final do cromossomo 18. Não está claro qual é a origem da resistência para este QTL, visto que ambas as raças compartilham alelos que estão interferindo na resistência ou suscetibilidade nos animais F2. Um possível QTL, com efeito aditivo (P<0,07) e localizado a 16 cM do centrômero também foi encontrado no cromossomo 27. As próximas etapas, após a identificação dos QTL, envolvem: 1- validação destes resultados em rebanhos comerciais de gado de leite e corte, possibilitando a utilização da seleção assistida por marcadores nos programas de melhoramento e 2- refinamento da posição onde o QTL foi mapeado, permitindo a localização mais precisa dos limites do QTL, diminuindo o intervalo em cM, favorecendo assim a identificação dos genes responsáveis pelo efeito do QTL.In tropical countries losses caused by bovine tick infestation have a tremendous economic impact on production systems. Genetic variation between Bos taurus and Bos indicus to tick resistance and molecular biology tools might facilitate the use of molecular markers linked to resistance traits as an auxiliary tool in selection programs. The objective of this work was to identify QTL associated with tick resistance/susceptibility in a bovine F2 population derived from the Gyr (Bos indicus) x Holstein (Bos taurus) cross. Tick resistance on each F2 animal was evaluated by counting the number of tick females after 21 days of an artificial infestation with 10,000 larvae. Blood samples of parents, F1 and F2 animals were collected for DNA extraction. Microsatellite markers were chosen from MARC USDA map to perform a genome scan in four chromosomes. Markers were chosen based on their position in the map, multi-allelism and minimum of 50% heterozygosity. A total of 21 markers were selected to cover chromosomes 13, 18, 19 and 27, with marker interval of 20 cM. This genome scan showed the presence of a QTL with additive and dominant effect (P<0.01) for tick resistance located in the end of the chromosome 18. It is not clear the origin of resistance in this QTL, since both breeds share alleles that most impact resistance or susceptibility in the F2. A putative QTL with dominant effect (P<0.07) located at 16 cM from centromere was also found on chromosome 27. The future steps after QTL mapping involve validation of these results in commercial herds of dairy cattle and beef cattle and fine mapping the position of the QTL favoring the identification of candidate genes involved with tick resistance.Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuári

Detection of resistance QTL to tick Riphicephalus (Boophilus) microplus through a genome scan on bovine

Nos países tropicais, as perdas causadas pela infestação de carrapatos em bovinos acarretam um grande impacto no sistema de produção animal. Já está bem caracterizada a diferença existente com relação à resistência a carrapatos entre as duas subespécies bovinas, B.p. taurus e B.p. indicus. A variação genética entre B.p.taurus e Bpindicus, para a resistência a carrapatos, juntamente com o avanço nas técnicas moleculares sugerem o uso de marcadores moleculares, associados às características de resistência, como ferramenta auxiliar nos programas de seleção. O objetivo desse trabalho foi identificar QTL associados à resistência/ suscetibilidade ao carrapato R. (B.) microplus em uma população F2 de bovinos oriunda do cruzamento entre touros da raça Holandesa e vacas de raça Gir. Foram realizadas infestações artificiais com carrapato bovino para determinação do nível de resistência de cada animal F2. As avaliações foram realizadas em duas estações, na seca e na chuvosa. Foram selecionados 109 marcadores microssatélites, a partir do mapa do MARC/USDA, visando cobrir os cromossomos 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 25 e 28, com um espaçamento médio de 20 CM entre os marcadores. Os estudos de associação indicaram a presença de QTL significativos em quatro cromossomos. Para a maioria dos QTL detectados foi encontrada uma diferença no padrão de resposta de acordo com a estação. No BTA2 foi identificado um QTL (Pc <0,01) na região central do cromossomo com efeito dominante, na estação seca. No BTA6 foram detectados três QTL (Pc <0,05). O QTL localizado na extremidade centromérica apresentou o mesmo padrão em ambas as estações. O QTL localizado na posição de 40 cM foi detectado apenas na estação seca e o QTL localizado na posição de 100 cM foi detectado apenas na estação chuvosa. Todos os QTL identificados no BTA6 apresentaram efeito aditivo, sendo a resistência ao carrapato herdada da raça Gir. No BTA1O foram identificados dois QTL (PC <0,01) na estação chuvosa ambos com efeito aditivo. O QTL identificado com o maior valor de F (16,5) foi detectado na posição 43 cM no BTA11, em que foi possível identificar um QTL com efeito aditivo altamente significativo (Pc<0,01), na estação seca. Esse QTL é responsável por 5,02% da variação fenotípica da característica. As regiões em que foram detectados QTL mais significativamente associados devem ser saturadas com marcadores adicionais e também validados em populações comerciais.ln tropical countries losses caused by bovine tick infestation have a tremendous economic impact on production systems. The different levels of tick resistance between B. p. taurus e B. p. indicus is well documented. Genetic variation between Bos p. taurus and Bos p. indicus to tick resistance and molecular biology tools might facilitate the use of molecular markers linked to resistance traits as an auxiliary tool in selection programs. The objective of this work was to identify QTL associated with tick R. (B.) microplus resistance/susceptibility in a bovine F2 population derived from the Gyr (B. p. indicus) x Holstein (B. p.taurus) cross. Artificial infestations with tick were conducted to determine the level of resistance of each F2 animal. Evaluations were performed in two seasons, dry and wet. A total of 109 microsatellite markers were selected from MARC/USDA map to cover chromosomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 25 e 28 in 20 cM intervals. Association studies indicated the presence of significant QTL in four chromosomes. ln each season distinct response patterns were found for most detected QTL. A dominant QTL (PC <0.01) was found in the central region of BTA2 for the dry season. Three QTL were detected on BTA6 (Pc <0.05). The one located in the beginning of the chromosome showed the same pattern in both dry and wet seasons. The QTL located close to 40 cM was detected only in wet season and the QTL located close to 100 cM was detected only in dry season. All QTL detected on BTA6 showed additive effect with the tick resistance derived from Gir breed. Two additive QTL were detected (Pc <0.01) on BTA1O for wet season. The highest significant F value (16.5) was detected at 43 cM position on BTA 11 showing a highly significant QTL with additive effect (Pc <0.01) for dry season. This QTL alone is responsible for 5,02% of the trait phenotypic variance. Highly significant detected QTL should be saturated with additional markers and also validated in commercial herds.Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuári