TRPV6 as a putative genomic susceptibility locus influencing racial disparities in cancer

It is well established that African Americans exhibit higher incidence, higher mortality, and more aggressive forms of some cancers, including those of breast, prostate, colon, stomach, and cervix. Here we examine the ancestral haplotype of the TRPV6 calcium channel as a putative genomic factor in this racial divide. The minor (ancestral) allele frequency is 60% in people of African ancestry, but between 1 and 11% in all other populations. Research on TRPV6 structure/function, its association with specific cancers, and the evolutionary-ecological conditions which impacted selection of its haplotypes are synthesized to provide evidence for TRPV6 as a germline susceptibility locus in cancer. Recently elucidated mechanisms of TRPV6 channel deactivation are discussed in relation to the location of the allele favored in selection, suggesting a reduced capacity to inactivate the channel in those who have the ancestral haplotype. This could result in an excessively high cellular Ca2+, which has been implicated in cancer, for those in settings where calcium intake is far higher than in their ancestral environment. A recent report associating increasing calcium intake with a pattern of increase in aggressive prostate cancer in African-American but not European-American men may be related. If TRPV6 is found to be associated with cancer, further research would be warranted to improve risk assessment and examine interventions with the aim of improving cancer outcomes for people of African ancestr

Relation Between Job Stress Dimensions and Job Satisfaction in Workers of a Refinery Control Room

Introduction: Job stress can result from an imbalance between job demands and the abilities to cope them. Stress can affect individuals and lead to job dissatisfaction. This study was conducted to assess the influence of different job stress dimensions on job satisfaction in workers of a refinery control room located at the south of Iran. Materials & Methods: In this cross sectional study all 100 workers of an oil refinery control room were studied. Job stress and job satisfaction was measured using standard questionnaires provided by national institute of mental health (NIMH) and Robbins respectively. After collecting, data were analyzed using SPSS ver.16 software. A general linear model was used to estimate the effect of different job stress dimensions on the job satisfaction. Results: In this study 62.08 percent of workers were categorized as having high level of stress. In job satisfaction case, 9.2, 27.6, 28.7, 16.1 and 18.4 of workers were classified as totally dissatisfied, dissatisfied, not satisfied nor dissatisfied, satisfied and totally satisfied, respectively. A Pearson correlation test revealed a significant negative correlation between job satisfaction and all studied dimensions of job stress (p= 0.01). In the general regression model, partial Eta squared was 0.03, 0.3 and 0.23 for respectively interpersonal relationships, physical conditions of work and job interest. Conclusion: This study showed that job satisfaction is mostly influenced by physical conditions and job interest dimensions of job stress. Therefore, for improvement of job satisfaction in workers, different parameters of these two dimensions of job stress should be considered