Association Between Melanoma And Glioma: An Observaitonal Study In A Random Sample Of The Taiwanese Populaiton

Background: In a previous study, it was shown that melanoma patients have a greater incidence of glioma as compared to the general population in United States. Because glioma and melanoma do not have common environmental risk factors, this observation suggests a common genetic predisposition shared by glioma and melanoma that maybe used to lead future research of the specific genes and drug targets for both malignancies. However, this observation has to be confirmed in other populations. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between melanoma and glioma in Taiwanese population. Methods: We used claim data of Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) from year 1998 to 2010. The study population included 1,000,000 randomly selected men and women ages 20 and older from the NHIRD database. Glioma was defined by ICD-9-CM codes 191, 192.0-192.3, 192.8, 192.9, 225 and 237.5. Melanoma was defined by ICD-9-CM codes 172, 173, 190.0, 190.9, 192.1, 216.X (X=0, 3-7, 9), 224, 223.2, 235.1, 235.2, 237.6, 238.2, 238.3, 238.8. We excluded participants under ages 20 at 1998 and unknown gender (n=324,879). Cox\u27s proportional hazard regression analysis was conducted to estimate the association between the history of melanoma on glioma risk. Main results: The hazard ratio of developing glioma was significantly higher in patients with melanoma than in those without melanoma (hazard ratio (HR) = 6.18; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 5.57-6.85). The hazard ratio for developing glioma was lower in male patients than in female patients, with the hazard ratio of 0.77 (95% CI = 0.71-0.84), adjusted for melanoma and age. The hazard ratio increased with age peaking at age group age from 60 to 69 and decrease after 70 years and older. Conclusion: The present study showed that Taiwanese patients with melanoma are at a higher risk of developing glioma. The exact underlying etiologies require further investigation

Donor-specific Cell-based Assays in Studying Sensitivity to Low-dose Radiation: A Population-based Perspective

Currently, a linear no-threshold model is used to estimate health risks associated with exposure to low-dose radiation, a prevalent exposure in the general population, because the direct estimation from epidemiological studies suffers from uncertainty. This model has been criticized based on unique biology of low-dose radiation. Whether the departure from linearity is toward increased or decreased risk is intensely debated. We present an approach based on individual radiosensitivity testing and discuss how individual radiosensitivity can be assessed with the goal to develop a quantifiable measure of cellular response that can be conducted via high-throughput population testing

Urinary F2-Isoprostanes and Metabolic Markers of Fat Oxidation

Metabolomic studies of increased fat oxidation showed increase in circulating acylcarnitines C2, C8, C10, and C12 and decrease in C3, C4, and C5. We hypothesize that urinary F2-isoprostanes reflect intensity of fatty acid oxidation and are associated with circulating C2, C8, C10, and C12 directly and with C3, C4, and C5 inversely. Four urinary F2-isoprostane isomers and serum acylcarnitines are quantified using LC-MS/MS within the Insulin Resistance Atherosclerosis Study nondiabetic cohort (n = 682). Cross-sectional associations between fasting urinary F2-isoprostanes (summarized as a composite index) and the selected acylcarnitines are examined using generalized linear models. F2-isoprostane index is associated with C2 and C12 directly and with C5 inversely: the adjusted beta coefficients are 0.109, 0.072, and −0.094, respectively (P \u3c 0.05). For these acylcarnitines and for F2- isoprostanes, the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of incident diabetes are calculated from logistic regression models: the ORs (95% CI) are 0.77 (0.60–0.97), 0.79 (0.62–1.01), 1.18 (0.92–1.53), and 0.51 (0.35–0.76) for C2, C12, C5, and F2-isoprostanes, respectively.The direction of the associations between urinary F2-isoprostanes and three acylcarnitines (C2, C5, and C12) supports our hypothesis. The inverse associations of C2 and C12 and with incident diabetes are consistent with the suggested protective role of efficient fat oxidation

Targeted Sequencing in Chromosome 17q Linkage Region Identifies Familial Glioma Candidates in the Gliogene Consortium

Glioma is a rare, but highly fatal, cancer that accounts for the majority of malignant primary brain tumors. Inherited predisposition to glioma has been consistently observed within non-syndromic families. Our previous studies, which involved non-parametric and parametric linkage analyses, both yielded significant linkage peaks on chromosome 17q. Here, we use data from next generation and Sanger sequencing to identify familial glioma candidate genes and variants on chromosome 17q for further investigation. We applied a filtering schema to narrow the original list of 4830 annotated variants down to 21 very rare (,0.1% frequency), non-synonymous variants. Our findings implicate the MYO19 and KIF18B genes and rare variants in SPAG9 and RUNDC1 as candidates worthy of further investigation. Burden testing and functional studies are planned

Highlighted Findings Related to Use of Smokeless Tobacco and Prevalence of Precancerous Oral Lesions from Wave 1 (2013-2014) of Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health dataset

Aim: To determine if there is any difference in the prevalence of pre-cancerous oral lesions in people using smokeless tobacco compared to people who are not using smokeless tobacco from wave 1 of Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health dataset Background: One of the major reasons of chronic disease and death all around the world including United States is the use of tobacco. Smokeless tobacco is one of the most prevalent forms of tobacco used in adults. (2) Antioxidant defense mechanisms are affected in oral epithelium due to free radicals of oxygen and nitrogen, which are produced during the consumption of snuff. Free radicals are capable of promoting mutations by complex mechanisms (11) According to an article by Galucci et al. purchase of smokeless tobacco by retailers and wholesalers from manufacturers rose by 2.22 million pounds within one year. They found that the sales of moist snuff accounted to 85.6% of total smokeless tobacco sales in 2011. (17) Methods: Data that is used for the analysis are from wave 1 of PATH dataset which has used a four- stage stratified area probability sample design with a two-phase design for sampling adults in the final stage. Population Assessment of Tobacco Health screens households by using computer assisted personal interviewing while adult and youth interviews were done using parent interview and computer assisted self-interviewing. Statistical analysis of the data is done using SAS 9.4 software Results: In the adjusted multivariable regression model the covariate age is the only one which yielded statistically significant results (p Discussion: Public health research plays a very significant role in preventing major global health issues. Oral cancer is one such problem which is affecting people world-wide based on the empirical evidence of many studies. Research shows that use of smokeless tobacco can result in the occurrence of pre- cancerous oral lesions and oral cancer. Considering other covariates such as age and smoking the results of this analysis showed that there is a statistically significant association between usage of smokeless tobacco and occurrence of pre-cancerous oral lesions

Effects of 2 years of caloric restriction on oxidative status assessed by urinary F2-isoprostanes: The CALERIE 2 randomized clinical trial

9siCalorie restriction (CR) without malnutrition slows aging in animal models. Oxidative stress reduction was proposed to mediate CR effects. CR effect on urinary F2-isoprostanes, validated oxidative stress markers, was assessed in CALERIE, a two-year randomized controlled trial. Healthy volunteers (n = 218) were randomized to prescribed 25% CR (n = 143) or ad libitum control (AL, n = 75) stratifying the randomization schedule by site, sex, and BMI. F2-isoprostanes were quantified using LC-MS/MS in morning, fasted urine specimens at baseline, at 12 and 24 months. The primary measure of oxidative status was creatinine-adjusted 2,3-dinor-iPF(2α)-III concentration, additional measured included iPF(2α)-III, iPF2a-VI, and 8,12-iso-iPF2a-VI. Intention-to-treat analyses assessed change in 2,3-dinor-iPF(2α)-III using mixed models assessing treatment, time, and treatment-by-time interaction effects, adjusted for blocking variables and baseline F2-isoprostane value. Exploratory analyses examined changes in iPF(2α)-III, iPF(2α)-VI, and 8,12-iso-iPF(2α)-VI. A factor analysis used aggregate information on F2-isoprostane values. In CR group, 2,3-dinor-iPF(2α)-III concentrations were reduced from baseline by 17% and 13% at 12 and 24 months, respectively; these changes were significantly different from AL group (p < .01). CR reduced iPF(2α)-III concentrations by 20% and 27% at 12 and 24 months, respectively (p < .05). The effects were weaker on the VI-species. CR caused statistically significant reduction in isoprostane factor at both time points, and mean (se) changes were -0.36 (0.06) and -0.31 (0.06). No significant changes in isoprostane factor were at either time point in AL group (p < .01 between-group difference). We conclude that two-year CR intervention in healthy, nonobese men and women reduced whole body oxidative stress as assessed by urinary concentrations of F2-isoprostanes.nonenoneIl'yasova, Dora; Fontana, Luigi; Bhapkar, Manjushri; Pieper, Carl F; Spasojevic, Ivan; Redman, Leanne M; Das, Sai Krupa; Huffman, Kim M; Kraus, William EIl'Yasova, Dora; Fontana, Luigi; Bhapkar, Manjushri; Pieper, Carl F; Spasojevic, Ivan; Redman, Leanne M; Das, Sai Krupa; Huffman, Kim M; Kraus, William

Demographic Determinants and Geographical Variability of COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in Underserved Communities

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths disproportionately affect underserved and minority populations, emphasizing that vaccine hesitancy can be an especially important public health risk factor in these populations. OBJECTIVE: To characterize COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in underserved diverse populations. METHODS: The Minority and Rural Coronavirus Insights Study recruited a convenience sample of adults (ages ≥18, n=3,735) from Federally Qualified Health Centers in California, Midwest (Illinois/Ohio), Florida and Louisiana and collected baseline data in November 2020-April 2021. Vaccine hesitancy status was defined as responses no or undecided to the question Would you get a coronavirus vaccine, if it was available? ( yes categorized as not hesitant). The cross-sectional descriptive analyses and logistic regression models examined vaccine hesitancy prevalence by age, gender, race/ethnicity, and geography. The expected vaccine hesitancy estimates for the general population were calculated for the study counties using published county-level data. Crude associations with demographic characteristics within each region were assessed by the chi-squared test. The main effect model included age, gender, race/ethnicity, and geographical region to estimate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Interactions between geography and each demographic characteristic were evaluated in separate models. RESULTS: The strongest vaccine hesitancy variability was by geographic region: in California 28.3% (26.5-31.1), the Midwest 36.1 % (32.1-40.2), Louisiana 59.1% (56.0-62.1), Florida 67.9% (65.0-70.8). The expected estimates for the general population were lower: 9.7% (California), 15.2 % (Midwest), 18.2% (Florida), and 27.0% (Louisiana). The demographic patterns also varied by geography. An inverted U-shape age pattern was found, with the highest prevalence among ages 25-34 in the Midwest (39.3%), Florida (79.5%,) and Louisiana (79.4%) (p \u3c0.05). Females were more hesitant than males in the Midwest (36.5% vs 23.9%), Florida (71.6% vs 59.4%), and Louisiana (66.5% vs. 46.4%) (p\u3c0.05). Racial/ethnic differences were found in California with the highest prevalence among non-Hispanic Black (45.8%) and in Florida with the highest among Hispanic (69.3%) participants (p\u3c0.05) but not in the Midwest and Louisiana. The main effect model confirmed the U-shape association with age: strongest association with age 25-34, OR=2.28 (1.74, 2.99). Statistical interactions of gender and race/ethnicity with the region were significant, following the pattern found by the crude analysis. The associations with the female gender were strongest in Florida and Louisiana: ORs were 7.83 (5.94, 10.33) and 6.04 (4.52, 8.06) compared to males in California, respectively. Compared to non-Hispanic White participants in California, the strongest associations were found with being Hispanic in Florida and Black in Louisiana: ORs were 11.18 (7.01, 17.85) and 8.94 (5.53, 14.47), respectively. However, the strongest race/ethnicity variability was observed within California and Florida: ORs varied 4.7- and 2-fold between racial/ethnic groups in these regions, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the role of local contextual factors in driving vaccine hesitancy and its demographic patterns