Anti-Müllerian Hormone Levels and Urinary Cortisol in Women With Chronic Abdominal Pain

AbstractObjectiveTo explore the association of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal activity with ovarian functioning in women with and without chronic abdominal pain (CAP).Design and SettingA secondary data analysis was performed with data from female participants in a natural history protocol at the National Institutes of Health.ParticipantsA total of 36 women (age range = 19–39 years, mean = 27.11 years) were included in the study.MethodsThis pilot study was conducted with a subset of participants enrolled in a natural history protocol conducted in the Hatfield Clinical Research Center at the National Institutes of Health. The parent study included participants with and without CAP who provided a 5-hour urine sample for determination of cortisol levels and serum samples for determination of circulating levels of cortisol, luteinizing hormone, and follicle-stimulating hormone. CAP was defined as presence or absence of chronic pain for at least 6 months and was determined via self-report.ResultsAnti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) concentrations declined significantly with age as expected. When AMH levels were dichotomized as normal or abnormal (defined as higher or lower than age-specific normative ranges, respectively), there were significant associations between abnormal AMH levels and CAP and urine cortisol levels. Participants with CAP or low urine cortisol levels were significantly more likely to have abnormal AMH levels.ConclusionResults suggest that chronic abdominal pain and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal dysregulation may be associated with abnormal AMH levels

Genome-wide macrosynteny among Fusarium species in the Gibberella fujikuroi complex revealed by amplified fragment length polymorphisms

The Gibberella fujikuroi complex includes many Fusarium species that cause significant losses in yield and quality of agricultural and forestry crops. Due to their economic importance, whole-genome sequence information has rapidly become available for species including Fusarium circinatum, Fusarium fujikuroi and Fusarium verticillioides, each of which represent one of the three main clades known in this complex. However, no previous studies have explored the genomic commonalities and differences among these fungi. In this study, a previously completed genetic linkage map for an interspecific cross between Fusarium temperatum and F. circinatum, together with genomic sequence data, was utilized to consider the level of synteny between the three Fusarium genomes. Regions that are homologous amongst the Fusarium genomes examined were identified using in silico and pyrosequenced amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fragment analyses. Homology was determined using BLAST analysis of the sequences, with 777 homologous regions aligned to F. fujikuroi and F. verticillioides. This also made it possible to assign the linkage groups from the interspecific cross to their corresponding chromosomes in F. verticillioides and F. fujikuroi, as well as to assign two previously unmapped supercontigs of F. verticillioides to probable chromosomal locations. We further found evidence of a reciprocal translocation between the distal ends of chromosome 8 and 11, which apparently originated before the divergence of F. circinatum and F. temperatum. Overall, a remarkable level of macrosynteny was observed among the three Fusarium genomes, when comparing AFLP fragments. This study not only demonstrates how in silico AFLPs can aid in the integration of a genetic linkage map to the physical genome, but it also highlights the benefits of using this tool to study genomic synteny and architecture.National Research Foundation of South Africahttp://www.plosone.orgtm201

First fungal genome sequence from Africa : a preliminary analysis

Some of the most significant breakthroughs in the biological sciences this century will emerge from the development of next generation sequencing technologies. The ease of availability of DNA sequence made possible through these new technologies has given researchers opportunities to study organisms in a manner that was not possible with Sanger sequencing. Scientists will, therefore, need to embrace genomics, as well as develop and nurture the human capacity to sequence genomes and utilise the ’tsunami‘ of data that emerge from genome sequencing. In response to these challenges, we sequenced the genome of Fusarium circinatum, a fungal pathogen of pine that causes pitch canker, a disease of great concern to the South African forestry industry. The sequencing work was conducted in South Africa, making F. circinatum the first eukaryotic organism for which the complete genome has been sequenced locally. Here we report on the process that was followed to sequence, assemble and perform a preliminary characterisation of the genome. Furthermore, details of the computer annotation and manual curation of this genome are presented. The F. circinatum genome was found to be nearly 44 million bases in size, which is similar to that of four other Fusarium genomes that have been sequenced elsewhere. The genome contains just over 15 000 open reading frames, which is less than that of the related species, Fusarium oxysporum, but more than that for Fusarium verticillioides. Amongst the various putative gene clusters identified in F. circinatum, those encoding the secondary metabolites fumosin and fusarin appeared to harbour evidence of gene translocation. It is anticipated that similar comparisons of other loci will provide insights into the genetic basis for pathogenicity of the pitch canker pathogen. Perhaps more importantly, this project has engaged a relatively large group of scientists including students in a significant genome project that is certain to provide a platform for growth in this important area of research in the future.We thank the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, members of the Tree Protection Co-operative Programme, the THRIP initiative of the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Science and Technology (DST)/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology and the Oppenheimer Foundation for funding.http://www.sajs.co.zanf201

Fungal Planet description sheets : 320–370

Novel species of fungi described in the present study include the following from Malaysia: Castanediella eucalypti from Eucalyptus pellita, Codinaea acacia from Acacia mangium, Emarcea eucalyptigena from Eucalyptus brassiana, Myrtapenidiella eucalyptorum from Eucalyptus pellita, Pilidiella eucalyptigena from Eucalyptus brassiana and Strelitziana malaysiana from Acacia mangium. Furthermore, Stachybotrys sansevieriicola is described from Sansevieria ehrenbergii (Tanzania), Phacidium grevilleae from Grevillea robusta (Uganda), Graphium jumulu from Adansonia gregorii and Ophiostoma eucalyptigena from Eucalyptus marginata (Australia), Pleurophoma ossicola from bone and Plectosphaerella populi from Populus nigra (Germany), Colletotrichum neosansevieriae from Sansevieria trifasciata, Elsinoë othonnae from Othonna quinquedentata and Zeloasperisporium cliviae (Zeloasperisporiaceae fam. nov.) from Clivia sp. (South Africa), Neodevriesia pakbiae, Phaeophleospora hymenocallidis and Phaeophleospora hymenocallidicola on leaves of a fern (Thailand), Melanconium elaeidicola from Elaeis guineensis (Indonesia), Hormonema viticola from Vitis vinifera (Canary Islands), Chlorophyllum pseudoglobossum from a grassland (India), Triadelphia disseminata from an immunocompromised patient (Saudi Arabia), Colletotrichum abscissum from Citrus (Brazil), Polyschema sclerotigenum and Phialemonium limoniforme from human patients (USA), Cadophora vitícola from Vitis vinifera (Spain), Entoloma flavovelutinum and Bolbitius aurantiorugosus from soil (Vietnam), Rhizopogon granuloflavus from soil (Cape Verde Islands), Tulasnella eremophila from Euphorbia officinarum subsp. echinus (Morocco), Verrucostoma martinicensis from Danaea elliptica (French West Indies), Metschnikowia colchici from Colchicum autumnale (Bulgaria), Thelebolus microcarpus from soil (Argentina) and Ceratocystis adelpha from Theobroma cacao (Ecuador). Myrmecridium iridis (Myrmecridiales ord. nov., Myrmecridiaceae fam. nov.) is also described from Iris sp. (The Netherlands). Novel genera include (Ascomycetes): Budhanggurabania from Cynodon dactylon (Australia), Soloacrosporiella, Xenocamarosporium, Neostrelitziana and Castanediella from Acacia mangium and Sabahriopsis from Eucalyptus brassiana (Malaysia), Readerielliopsis from basidiomata of Fuscoporia wahlbergii (French Guyana), Neoplatysporoides from Aloe ferox (Tanzania), Wojnowiciella, Chrysofolia and Neoeriomycopsis from Eucalyptus (Colombia), Neophaeomoniella from Eucalyptus globulus (USA), Pseudophaeomoniella from Olea europaea (Italy), Paraphaeomoniella from Encephalartos altensteinii, Aequabiliella, Celerioriella and Minutiella from Prunus (South Africa). Tephrocybella (Basidiomycetes) represents a novel genus from wood (Italy). Morphological and culture characteristics along with ITS DNA barcodes are provided for all taxa.Alina V. Alexandrova was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project N 14-50-00029). Ekaterina F. Malysheva, Olga V. Morozova, Alexander E. Kovalenko and Eugene S. Popov acknowledge financial support from the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project 13-04-00838a and 15-04-04645a). Margarita Dueñas, María P. Martín and M. Teresa Telleria acknowledge financial support from the Plan Nacional I+D+I projects No. CGL2009-07231 and CGL2012-3559. Cony Decock gratefully acknowledges the financial support received from the FNRS / FRFC (convention FRFC 2.4544.10), the CNRS-French Guiana and the Nouragues staff, which enabled fieldwork in French Guiana, and the Belgian State – Belgian Federal Science Policy through the BCCMTM research programme.http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/nhn/pimjam201

Hair Cortisol in Wild and Captive Primates: Environmental Effects and Behavioral Phenotypes

Cortisol archived in hair represents circulating concentrations averaged over the growth period of the hair. Measurement of cortisol in hair is finding wider application in animal studies of stable behavioral trends or the effects of chronic stressors. In primatology the method has only been applied to a small number of species, and only in captivity. The goal of this dissertation was first, to assess whether patterns of hair cortisol reflect biologically meaningful variation within and between wild and captive non-human primate species, and second, to apply the method to the study of behavioral and environmental effects on stress in wild non-human primate populations. These studies also make methodological contributions to the use of hair as a tool in behavioral endocrinology. I used enzyme-linked immunosorbernt assay techniques (ELISA) to measure cortisol extracted from hair samples from 653 individuals, representing 17 primate species. First, I demonstrated that hair cortisol concentrations reflect known phylogenetic, species, and age related patterns in circulating cortisol. Second, using a cross-sectional population level approach, I showed that populations of wild baboons (anubis—Papio anubis, hamadryas— P. hamadryas and their hybrids) in the Awash National Park, Ethiopia, differed in chronic cortisol profiles, specifically, I found that male hybrids have elevated and relatively variable hair cortisol. This may reflect the destabilizing effect of hybridization on bio-behavioral stress complexes. Hamadryas populations sampled during a drought in 1973, exhibited elevated hair cortisol consistent with evidence of severe nutritional stress in these populations, while both mixed hamadryas and hybrid populations exhibited variation in basal cortisol profiles consistent with hybrid dysregulation. Females of these populations did not exhibit similar patterns in hair cortisol. I demonstrated that variation in hair cortisol in wild juvenile anubis baboons is marked by infant hypercortisolism and a sharp decline in cortisol with age. These results further suggest maternal effects on offspring development, in that light-for-age juvenile males exhibited elevated hair cortisol compared to heavy-for-age animals. Finally, an analysis of vervet monkey ( Chlorocebus aethiops) hair cortisol, in samples from populations occupying habitats with varying levels of human disturbance, found that male animals in habitats with high levels of human disturbance have elevated cortisol concentrations

A computational framework for predicting obesity risk based on optimizing and integrating genetic risk score and gene expression profiles

<div><p>Recent large-scale genome-wide association studies have identified tens of genetic loci robustly associated with Body Mass Index (BMI). Gene expression profiles were also found to be associated with BMI. However, accurate prediction of obesity risk utilizing genetic data remains challenging. In a cohort of 75 individuals, we integrated 27 BMI-associated SNPs and obesity-associated gene expression profiles. Genetic risk score was computed by adding BMI-increasing alleles. The genetic risk score was significantly correlated with BMI when an optimization algorithm was used that excluded some SNPs. Linear regression and support vector machine models were built to predict obesity risk using gene expression profiles and the genetic risk score. An adjusted R² of 0.556 and accuracy of 76% was achieved for the linear regression and support vector machine models, respectively. In this paper, we report a new mathematical method to predict obesity genetic risk. We constructed obesity prediction models based on genetic information for a small cohort. Our computational framework serves as an example for using genetic information to predict obesity risk for specific cohorts.</p></div

Multiomic/Phenotype concordance of the 5 SNPs.

<p>Multiomic/Phenotype concordance of the 5 SNPs.</p

Flow charts for the computational procedures.

<p>A) Flow chart of the entire procedure of data processing and analysis. B) Flow chart of the feature selection algorithm for SNP data. C) Flow chart of the feature selection algorithm for microarray data.</p

Baseline demographic characteristics of the 90 participants with BMI data.

<p>Baseline demographic characteristics of the 90 participants with BMI data.</p