Effects of Resveratrol on Liver Function Tests in Patients with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Background. Some studies have shown that resveratrol may prevent, delay, or treat liver damage. This study aimed to provide up-to-date evidence regarding the effect of resveratrol on the liver enzymes (ALT & AST) in NAFLD patients. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of resveratrol on liver enzymes in patients with NAFLD by searching various databases for published RCTs.Methods. A systematic search in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science was performed up to September 2023. This systematic review and meta-analysis included all the RCT studies assessing resveratrol supplements on serum AST and/or ALT in NAFLD patients. The effect was presented as a mean difference and 95 % confidence interval (CI) in a random-effects model.Results. Finally, six eligible randomized controlled trials consisting of 256 patients were found. Resveratrol had no significant effect on serum ALT (Mean diff = 3.30 IU/L; 95 % CI: –2.34, 8.94; p = 0.25) and AST (Mean diff = 0.07 IU/L; 95 % CI: –2.96, 3.10; p = 0.96) concentrations. Moreover, subgroup analysis revealed that neither resveratrol dose nor intervention duration had any significant effect on the serum ALT and AST levels.Conclusion. The current evidence shows that resveratrol supplementation did not affect liver enzymes in NAFLD patients

Genetics of intellectual disability in consanguineous families

Autosomal recessive (AR) gene defects are the leading genetic cause of intellectual disability (ID) in countries with frequent parental consanguinity, which account for about 1/7th of the world population. Yet, compared to autosomal dominant de novo mutations, which are the predominant cause of ID in Western countries, the identification of AR-ID genes has lagged behind. Here, we report on whole exome and whole genome sequencing in 404 consanguineous predominantly Iranian families with two or more affected offspring. In 219 of these, we found likely causative variants, involving 77 known and 77 novel AR-ID (candidate) genes, 21 X-linked genes, as well as 9 genes previously implicated in diseases other than ID. This study, the largest of its kind published to date, illustrates that high-throughput DNA sequencing in consanguineous families is a superior strategy for elucidating the thousands of hitherto unknown gene defects underlying AR-ID, and it sheds light on their prevalence

The XMM cluster survey: exploring scaling relations and completeness of the dark energy survey year 3 redMaPPer cluster catalogue

We cross-match and compare characteristics of galaxy clusters identified in observations from two sky surveys using two completely different techniques. One sample is optically selected from the analysis of 3 years of Dark Energy Survey observations using the redMaPPer cluster detection algorithm. The second is X-ray selected from XMM observations analysed by the XMM Cluster Survey. The samples comprise a total area of 57.4 deg2, bounded by the area of four contiguous XMM survey regions that overlap the DES footprint. We find that the X-ray-selected sample is fully matched with entries in the redMaPPer catalogue, above λ > 20 and within 0.1 <0.9. Conversely, only 38 per cent of the redMaPPer catalogue is matched to an X-ray extended source. Next, using 120 optically clusters and 184 X-ray-selected clusters, we investigate the form of the X-ray luminosity-temperature (LX -TX ), luminosity-richness (LX -λ), and temperature-richness (TX -λ) scaling relations. We find that the fitted forms of the LX -TX relations are consistent between the two selection methods and also with other studies in the literature. However, we find tentative evidence for a steepening of the slope of the relation for low richness systems in the X-ray-selected sample. When considering the scaling of richness with X-ray properties, we again find consistency in the relations (i.e. LX -λ and TX -λ) between the optical and X-ray-selected samples. This is contrary to previous similar works that find a significant increase in the scatter of the luminosity scaling relation for X-ray-selected samples compared to optically selected samples

The XMM Cluster Survey analysis of the SDSS DR8 redMaPPer Catalogue:mplications for scatter, selection bias, and isotropy in cluster scaling relations

In this paper, we present the X-ray analysis of SDSS DR8 redMaPPer (SDSSRM) clusters using data products from the XMM Cluster Survey (XCS). In total, 1189 SDSSRM clusters fall within the XMM-Newton footprint. This has yielded 456 confirmed detections accompanied by X-ray luminosity (LX) measurements. Of these clusters, 381 have an associated X-ray temperature measurement (TX). This represents one of the largest samples of coherently derived cluster TX values to date. Our analysis of the X-ray observable to richness scaling relations has demonstrated that scatter in the TX − λ relation is roughly a third of that in the LX − λ relation, and that the LX − λ scatter is intrinsic, i.e. will not be significantly reduced with larger sample sizes. Analysis of the scaling relation between LX and TX has shown that the fits are sensitive to the selection method of the sample, i.e. whether the sample is made up of clusters detected “serendipitously” compared to those deliberately targeted by XMM. These differences are also seen in the LX − λ relation and, to a lesser extent, in the TX − λ relation. Exclusion of the emission from the cluster core does not make a significant impact on the findings. A combination of selection biases is a likely, but yet unproven, reason for these differences. Finally, we have also used our data to probe recent claims of anisotropy in the LX − TX relation across the sky. We find no evidence of anistropy, but stress this may be masked in our analysis by the incomplete declination coverage of the SDSS