Maternal fasting blood lipids: a marker of severity of pre-eclampsia in Jos, north-central Nigeria

Background: Pre-eclampsia is a common medical disorder of pregnancy, in Nigeria, and has been reported to be characterized by blood lipid derangements with oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction.Objective:Methods and materials: This was comparative cross-sectional study, amongst women with Preeclampsia. Fasting venous blood samples were taken into plain vacuitainers and analyzed in batches after days for serum lipids using Cobas C-III Roche auto analyzer machine. The data were analysed using Epi-info version 3.5.4 The duration of study was for about seven month's periodResults: The mean serum levels of triglycerides in mild pre-eclampsia was 1.13±0.50mmo/L, while in severe pre-eclampsia=2.22±0.92mmo/L, p-value=0.00001. Other lipid components: Total cholesterol, High density lipoprotein, Low density lipoprotein were not significantly different in the two studied groups (p>0.005) Multiple linear regressions model revealed serum triglycerides had the highest standardized absolute coefficient of 0.332 and lead value of 0.591.Conclusion: Serum triglycerides alone, appear to be a significant predictor of severity of pre-eclampsia; hence can serve as a surveillance tool during conservative management of pre-eclampsia.Keywords: Maternal, Serum, lipids, Pre-eclampsia, Triglycerides, Total cholesterol, Low-density lipoprotein and High-density Lipoprotei

Penggunaan Blended Learning dengan Media Moodle untuk Meningkatkan Kemampuan Kognitif Siswa SMP

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan kemampuan kognitif siswa SMP melalui penerapan model blended learning menggunakan media Moodle pada pembelajaran IPA Terpadu dengan tema Pelestarian Lingkungan. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian tindakan kelas yang diadopsi dari model Kurt Lewin dengan model kolaboratif. Objek dalam penelitian ini adalah kemampuan kognitif siswa. Subjek penelitian adalah siswa kelas VIII SMPN 5 Surakarta dan kelas VII SMPN 14 Surakarta, kelas VIII SMPN 2 Sidoharjo, kelas VII SMPN 8 Surakarta, dan kelas VII SMPN 15 Surakarta. Data yang dikumpulkan berupa data kualitatif didukung dengan data kuantitatif melalui teknik tes, kajian dokumen, dan wawancara. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa penggunaan blended learning menggunakan media Moodle pada pembelajaran IPA Terpadu dengan tema Pelestarian Lingkungan dapat meningkatkan kemampuan kognitif siswa SMP dengan besaran persentase ketuntasan siswa mencapai 50,7% pada siklus I dan 78,76% pada siklus II

Associations of common polymorphisms in GCKR with type 2 diabetes and related traits in a Han Chinese population: a case-control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several studies have shown that variants in the glucokinase regulatory protein gene (<it>GCKR</it>) were associated with type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemia. The purpose of this study was to examine whether tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the <it>GCKR </it>region were associated with type 2 diabetes and related traits in a Han Chinese population and to identify the potential mechanisms underlying these associations.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We investigated the association of polymorphisms in the <it>GCKR </it>gene with type 2 diabetes by employing a case-control study design (1118 cases and 1161 controls). Four tag SNPs (rs8179206, rs2293572, rs3817588 and rs780094) with pairwise r²> 0.8 and minor allele frequency > 0.05 across the <it>GCKR </it>gene and its flanking regions were studied and haplotypes were constructed. Genotyping was performed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectroscopy using a MassARRAY platform.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The G alleles of <it>GCKR </it>rs3817588 and rs780094 were associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes after adjustment for year of birth, sex and BMI (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.08-1.43, p = 0.002 and OR = 1.22, 95% CI 1.07-1.38, p = 0.002, respectively). In the non-diabetic controls, the GG carriers of rs3817588 and rs780094 were nominally associated with a lower plasma triglyceride level compared to the AA carriers after adjustment for year of birth, sex and BMI (p for trend = 0.00004 and 0.03, respectively). Furthermore, the association of rs3817588 with plasma triglyceride level was still significant after correcting for multiple testing.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The rs3817588 A/G polymorphism of the <it>GCKR </it>gene was associated with type 2 diabetes and plasma triglyceride level in the Han Chinese population.</p

Savanna fire and the origins of the 'underground forests' of Africa

1. The origin of fire-adapted lineages is a long-standing question in ecology. Although phylogeny can provide a significant contribution to the ongoing debate, its use has been precluded by the lack of comprehensive DNA data. Here we focus on the ‘underground trees’ (= geoxyles) of southern Africa, one of the most distinctive growth forms characteristic of fire-prone savannas. 2. We placed geoxyles within the most comprehensive dated phylogeny for the regional flora comprising over 1400 woody species. Using this phylogeny, we tested whether African geoxyles evolved concomitantly with those of the South American cerrado and used their phylogenetic position to date the appearance of humid savannas. 3. We found multiple independent origins of the geoxyle life-form mostly from the Pliocene, a period consistent with the origin of cerrado, with the majority of divergences occurring within the last 2 Ma. When contrasted with their tree relatives, geoxyles occur in regions characterized by higher rainfall and greater fire frequency. 4. Our results indicate that the geoxylic growth form may have evolved in response to the interactive effects of frequent fires and high precipitation. As such, geoxyles may be regarded as markers of fire-maintained savannas occurring in climates suitable for forests.Government of Canada through Genome Canada and the Ontario Genomics Institute (2008-OGI-ICI-03), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada and the University of Johannesburg.http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1469-81372015-10-31hb201

Myo-inositol nutritional supplement for prevention of gestational diabetes (EMmY): a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind pilot trial with nested qualitative study.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the feasibility and acceptability of conducting a randomised trial on the effects of myo-inositol in preventing gestational diabetes in high-risk pregnant women. DESIGN: A multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, pilot randomised trial with nested qualitative evaluation. SETTING: Five inner city UK National Health Service hospitals PARTICIPANTS: Multiethnic pregnant women at 12+0 and 15+6 weeks' gestation with risk factors for gestational diabetes. INTERVENTIONS: 2 g of myo-inositol or placebo, both included 200 µg folic acid, twice daily until delivery. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Rates of recruitment, randomisation, adherence and follow-up. SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Glycaemic indices (including homoeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance HOMA-IR), gestational diabetes (diagnosed using oral glucose tolerance test at 28 weeks and by delivery), maternal, perinatal outcomes, acceptability of intervention and costs. RESULTS: Of the 1326 women screened, 58% (773/1326) were potentially eligible, and 27% (205/773) were recruited. We randomised 97% (198/205) of all recruited women (99 each in intervention and placebo arms) and ascertained outcomes in 90% of women (178/198) by delivery. The mean adherence was 52% (SD 44) at 28 weeks' and 34% (SD 41) at 36 weeks' gestation. HOMA-IR and serum insulin levels were lower in the myo-inositol vs placebo arm (mean difference -0.6, 95% CI -1.2 to 0.0 and -2.69, 95% CI -5.26 to -0.18, respectively). The study procedures were acceptable to women and healthcare professionals. Women who perceived themselves at high risk of gestational diabetes were more likely to participate and adhere to the intervention. The powder form of myo-inositol and placebo, along with nausea in pregnancy were key barriers to adherence. CONCLUSIONS: A future trial on myo-inositol versus placebo to prevent gestational diabetes is feasible. The intervention will need to be delivered in a non-powder form to improve adherence. There is a signal for efficacy in reducing insulin resistance in pregnancy with myo-inositol. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN48872100

Вихретоковый анизотропный термоэлектрический первичный преобразователь лучистого потока

Представлена оригинальная конструкция первичного преобразователя лучистого потока, который может служить основой для создания приемника неселективного излучения с повышенной чувствительностью

Genome-Wide Association Study of Lung Adenocarcinoma in East Asia and Comparison With a European Population

Lung adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancer. Known risk variants explain only a small fraction of lung adenocarcinoma heritability. Here, we conducted a two-stage genome-wide association study of lung adenocarcinoma of East Asian ancestry (21,658 cases and 150,676 controls; 54.5% never-smokers) and identified 12 novel susceptibility variants, bringing the total number to 28 at 25 independent loci. Transcriptome-wide association analyses together with colocalization studies using a Taiwanese lung expression quantitative trait loci dataset (n = 115) identified novel candidate genes, including FADS1 at 11q12 and ELF5 at 11p13. In a multi-ancestry meta-analysis of East Asian and European studies, four loci were identified at 2p11, 4q32, 16q23, and 18q12. At the same time, most of our findings in East Asian populations showed no evidence of association in European populations. In our studies drawn from East Asian populations, a polygenic risk score based on the 25 loci had a stronger association in never-smokers vs. individuals with a history of smoking (Pinteraction = 0.0058). These findings provide new insights into the etiology of lung adenocarcinoma in individuals from East Asian populations, which could be important in developing translational applications