Genome-wide analysis of major intrinsic proteins in the tree plant Populus trichocarpa: Characterization of XIP subfamily of aquaporins from evolutionary perspective

10.1186/1471-2229-9-134BMC Plant Biology913

Correlation of lateral placental location with development of preeclampsia

Background: Preeclampsia is a complex clinical syndrome which involves multiple organ systems and remains the principle cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Preeclampsia is a disease of trophoblastic tissue. Placental abnormality is one of the initial events in patients who are destined to develop pregnancy induced hypertension subsequently. Objective of this study was to evaluate the association of laterally located placenta on ultrasound with development of preeclampsia.Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted on 200 antenatal women with singleton pregnancy at 18-24 weeks of gestation who attended antenatal clinic of obstetrics and gynaecology, PGIMS Rohtak from October 2017 to October 2018. Detailed antenatal transabdominal ultrasound along with placental location was done between 18-24 weeks of gestation in women who fitted into inclusion criteria. All the antenatal women belonged to 18-24 weeks of gestation were included in the study except those women with chronic hypertension, diabetes mellitus, renal disease, severe anaemia, thyrotoxicosis, low lying placenta, previous history of preeclampsia or eclampsia.Results: Out of 200 antenatal women, 84 had lateral placenta while 116 had central placenta. Out of these 84 women who had lateral placenta, 55 women (65.5%) developed preeclampsia and out of 116 (58%) women who had central placenta, 28 women (24.1%) developed preeclampsia.Conclusions: From the above study, we concluded that women with laterally located placenta by ultrasound at 18-24 weeks of gestation have greater risk of developing preeclampsia

A comparative study of feto-maternal outcome in instrumental vaginal delivery at tertiary health level hospital in Uttarakhand state

Background: Instrumental vaginal delivery is an age-long obstetric practice used to expedite vaginal delivery or avert recourse to caesarean delivery. Objective of the study is to compare maternal and neonatal outcomes of vacuum and forceps application in instrumental vaginal delivery.Methods: This is a retrospective observational study. Retrospective study of 70 consecutive ventouse and 70 consecutive forceps deliveries was done. Maternal and neonatal morbidity were compared in terms of perineal laceration, episiotomy extension, postpartum hemorrhage, apgar score, neonatal injuries and NICU admissions.Results: Maternal morbidity in terms of periurethral tear, second and third degree perineal tear were significantly more in forceps group (p=0.0332 and p=0.0173 respectively). However neonatal outcomes were found to be similar in both types of instrumental deliveries.Conclusions: Ventouse should be preferred over forceps whenever there is an indication for instrumental delivery (except in fetal distress) as it is associated with less maternal trauma and most of the neonatal morbidities were insignificant in comparison with both instruments

Cross-Species Analyses Identify the BNIP-2 and Cdc42GAP Homology (BCH) Domain as a Distinct Functional Subclass of the CRAL_TRIO/Sec14 Superfamily

The CRAL_TRIO protein domain, which is unique to the Sec14 protein superfamily, binds to a diverse set of small lipophilic ligands. Similar domains are found in a range of different proteins including neurofibromatosis type-1, a Ras GTPase-activating Protein (RasGAP) and Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factors (RhoGEFs). Proteins containing this structural protein domain exhibit a low sequence similarity and ligand specificity while maintaining an overall characteristic three-dimensional structure. We have previously demonstrated that the BNIP-2 and Cdc42GAP Homology (BCH) protein domain, which shares a low sequence homology with the CRAL_TRIO domain, can serve as a regulatory scaffold that binds to Rho, RhoGEFs and RhoGAPs to control various cell signalling processes. In this work, we investigate 175 BCH domain-containing proteins from a wide range of different organisms. A phylogenetic analysis with ∼100 CRAL_TRIO and similar domains from eight representative species indicates a clear distinction of BCH-containing proteins as a novel subclass within the CRAL_TRIO/Sec14 superfamily. BCH-containing proteins contain a hallmark sequence motif R(R/K)h(R/K)(R/K)NL(R/K)xhhhhHPs (‘h’ is large and hydrophobic residue and ‘s’ is small and weekly polar residue) and can be further subdivided into three unique subtypes associated with BNIP-2-N, macro- and RhoGAP-type protein domains. A previously unknown group of genes encoding ‘BCH-only’ domains is also identified in plants and arthropod species. Based on an analysis of their gene-structure and their protein domain context we hypothesize that BCH domain-containing genes evolved through gene duplication, intron insertions and domain swapping events. Furthermore, we explore the point of divergence between BCH and CRAL-TRIO proteins in relation to their ability to bind small GTPases, GAPs and GEFs and lipid ligands. Our study suggests a need for a more extensive analysis of previously uncharacterized BCH, ‘BCH-like’ and CRAL_TRIO-containing proteins and their significance in regulating signaling events involving small GTPases

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

A comparative study of feto-maternal outcome in instrumental vaginal delivery at tertiary health level hospital in Uttarakhand state

Background: Instrumental vaginal delivery is an age-long obstetric practice used to expedite vaginal delivery or avert recourse to caesarean delivery. Objective of the study is to compare maternal and neonatal outcomes of vacuum and forceps application in instrumental vaginal delivery.Methods: This is a retrospective observational study. Retrospective study of 70 consecutive ventouse and 70 consecutive forceps deliveries was done. Maternal and neonatal morbidity were compared in terms of perineal laceration, episiotomy extension, postpartum hemorrhage, apgar score, neonatal injuries and NICU admissions.Results: Maternal morbidity in terms of periurethral tear, second and third degree perineal tear were significantly more in forceps group (p=0.0332 and p=0.0173 respectively). However neonatal outcomes were found to be similar in both types of instrumental deliveries.Conclusions: Ventouse should be preferred over forceps whenever there is an indication for instrumental delivery (except in fetal distress) as it is associated with less maternal trauma and most of the neonatal morbidities were insignificant in comparison with both instruments

Sequence logos of CRAL_TRIO and BCH domains.

<p>The sequence logos derived from 175 BCH and 78 CRAL_TRIO domain sequences are shown in this figure. The conserved residues are marked with arrows and the numbering is given according to the yeast Sec14p protein (NCBI accession: NP_013796) for CRAL_TRIO domains and the human BNIP-2 protein (NCBI accession: NP_004321) for BCH domains. The approximate positions of α-helices and β-beta strands are indicated at the bottom by blue cylinders and red arrows. In order to avoid any biased data, the ‘BCH-like’ groups (NF1 and RhoGEFs) were excluded from the logo calculation. These logos reveal characteristic differences between BCH and CRAL_TRIO domains. Unique positions within the two groups are marked by arrows. BCH domains have a unique signature motif R(R/K)h(R/K)(R/K)NL(R/K)xhhhhHPs in which ‘h’ refers to any large and hydrophobic residue and ‘s’ is a small and weekly polar residue (A, T, G, S). This motif is missing in CRAL_TRIO domains. The motif contains a patch of positively charged residues referred to as an Arg/Lys patch. Similarly, as exemplified by the aromatic residue in the middle of three α-helices, many of the hydrophobic residues (shown in grey) are conserved at various positions. The conservation of long and hydrophobic residues in the β-strands provides a hydrophobic surface.</p

Conservation of residues characteristic of (a) CRAL_TRIO and (b) BCH domains of the Sec14 superfamily.

<p>The numbering of residues is given according to the positions of residues in yeast Sec14p and Human BNIP-2 proteins in Table columns (a) and (b) respectively. Only values above 50% are given in the table. *Proline residues of CRAL_TRIO and BCH domains are not in single column in multiple sequence alignment, they are conserved at one position apart (<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0033863#pone-0033863-g002" target="_blank">Figure 2</a>).</p

Average sequence identity within and across the groups of Sec14 superfamily.

<p>The average sequence identity is given as calculated between all pairs of sequences. The numbers in bracket refers to the number of comparisons made in each group. The values are higher when compared within the group. The domains of NF1 and RhoGEF groups share comparable sequence similarity with BCH and with CRAL_TRIO domains. Thus, the domains of these proteins were referred as ‘<i>BCH-like</i>’.</p