Polymorphisms in regulatory regions of Cyclooxygenase-2 gene and breast cancer risk in Brazilians: a case-control study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is up-regulated in several types of cancer, and it is hypothesized that COX-2 expression may be genetically influenced. Here, we evaluate the association between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the COX-2 gene (<it>PTGS2</it>) and the occurrence of breast cancer among Brazilian women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was conducted prospectively in two steps: First, we screened the promoter region and three fragments of the 3'-untranslated region of <it>PTGS2 </it>from 67 healthy Brazilians to identify SNPs and to select those with a minor allele frequency (MAF) of at least 0.10. The MAF of these selected SNPs was further characterized in 402 healthy volunteers to evaluate potential differences related to heterogeneous racial admixture and to estimate the existence of linkage disequilibrium among the SNPs. The second step was a case-control study with 318 patients and 273 controls designed to evaluate <it>PTGS2 </it>genotype- or haplotype-associated risk of breast cancer.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The screening analysis indicated nine SNPs with the following MAFs: rs689465 (0.22), rs689466 (0.15), rs20415 (0.007), rs20417 (0.32), rs20419 (0.015), rs5270 (0.02), rs20424 (0.007), rs5275 (0.22) and rs4648298 (0.01). The SNPs rs689465, rs689466, rs20417 and rs5275 were further studied: Their genotypic distributions followed Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and the MAFs were not affected by gender or skin color. Strong linkage disequilibrium was detected for rs689465, rs20417 and rs5275 in the three possible pairwise combinations. In the case-control study, there was a significant increase of rs5275TC heterozygotes in cases compared to controls (OR = 1.44, 95% CI = 1.01-2.06; P = 0.043), and the haplotype formed by rs689465G, rs689466A, rs20417G and rs5275C was only detected in cases. The apparent association with breast cancer was not confirmed for rs5275CC homozygotes or for the most frequent rs5275C-containing haplotypes.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results indicate no strong association between the four most frequent <it>PTGS2 </it>SNPs and the risk of breast cancer.</p

Applauding with Closed Hands: Neural Signature of Action-Sentence Compatibility Effects

BACKGROUND: Behavioral studies have provided evidence for an action-sentence compatibility effect (ACE) that suggests a coupling of motor mechanisms and action-sentence comprehension. When both processes are concurrent, the action sentence primes the actual movement, and simultaneously, the action affects comprehension. The aim of the present study was to investigate brain markers of bidirectional impact of language comprehension and motor processes. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Participants listened to sentences describing an action that involved an open hand, a closed hand, or no manual action. Each participant was asked to press a button to indicate his/her understanding of the sentence. Each participant was assigned a hand-shape, either closed or open, which had to be used to activate the button. There were two groups (depending on the assigned hand-shape) and three categories (compatible, incompatible and neutral) defined according to the compatibility between the response and the sentence. ACEs were found in both groups. Brain markers of semantic processing exhibited an N400-like component around the Cz electrode position. This component distinguishes between compatible and incompatible, with a greater negative deflection for incompatible. Motor response elicited a motor potential (MP) and a re-afferent potential (RAP), which are both enhanced in the compatible condition. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The present findings provide the first ACE cortical measurements of semantic processing and the motor response. N400-like effects suggest that incompatibility with motor processes interferes in sentence comprehension in a semantic fashion. Modulation of motor potentials (MP and RAP) revealed a multimodal semantic facilitation of the motor response. Both results provide neural evidence of an action-sentence bidirectional relationship. Our results suggest that ACE is not an epiphenomenal post-sentence comprehension process. In contrast, motor-language integration occurring during the verb onset supports a genuine and ongoing brain motor-language interaction

The role of teacher behavior management in the development of disruptive behaviors: an intervention study with the good behavior game

Abstract The role of teacher behavior management for children’s disruptive behavior development (hyperactive and oppositional behavior) was investigated using a universal classroom preventive intervention study. Five-hundred seventy children were followed from second to third grade of elementary school. Observations of teacher behavior management and children’s on-task and off-task classroom behavior and peer reports of hyperactive and oppositional behavior were available. Results showed that the reduced use of negative remarks of intervention teachers predicted children’s increase in on-task behavior and decrease in talking-out behavior. These improved children’s classroom behaviors in turn mediated the impact of the intervention on the development of hyperactive and oppositional behavior over the studied period. These results were similar for girls and boys. The results underscore the role of teachers’ classroom management strategies in improving children’s classroom behavior, which, in turn is an important component in the reduction of disruptive behavior development

Vampires in the village Žrnovo on the island of Korčula: following an archival document from the 18th century

Središnja tema rada usmjerena je na raščlambu spisa pohranjenog u Državnom arhivu u Mlecima (fond: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) koji se odnosi na događaj iz 1748. godine u korčulanskom selu Žrnovo, kada su mještani – vjerujući da su se pojavili vampiri – oskvrnuli nekoliko mjesnih grobova. U radu se podrobno iznose osnovni podaci iz spisa te rečeni događaj analizira u širem društvenom kontekstu i prate se lokalna vjerovanja.The main interest of this essay is the analysis of the document from the State Archive in Venice (file: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) which is connected with the episode from 1748 when the inhabitants of the village Žrnove on the island of Korčula in Croatia opened tombs on the local cemetery in the fear of the vampires treating. This essay try to show some social circumstances connected with this event as well as a local vernacular tradition concerning superstitions