Glycosylation of immunoglobulin G is regulated by a large network of genes pleiotropic with inflammatory diseases

Effector functions of immunoglobulin G (IgG) are regulated by the composition of a glycan moiety, thus affecting activity of the immune system. Aberrant glycosylation of IgG has been observed in many diseases, but little is understood about the underlying mechanisms. We performed a genome-wide association study of IgG N-glycosylation (N = 8090) and, using a data-driven network approach, suggested how associated loci form a functional network. We confirmed in vitro that knockdown of IKZF1 decreases the expression of fucosyltransferase FUT8, resulting in increased levels of fucosylated glycans, and suggest that RUNX1 and RUNX3, together with SMARCB1, regulate expression of glycosyltransferase MGAT3. We also show that variants affecting the expression of genes involved in the regulation of glycoenzymes colocalize with variants affecting risk for inflammatory diseases. This study provides new evidence that variation in key transcription factors coupled with regulatory variation in glycogenes modifies IgG glycosylation and has influence on inflammatory diseases

Stres u radu sveučilišnih nastavnika: rodne i pozicijske razlike

The aim of this study was to investigate exposure to stress at work in university teachers and see if there were differences between men and women as well as between positions. The study was carried out online and included a representative sample of 1,168 teachers employed at universities in Croatia. This included all teaching positions: assistants (50 %), assistant professors (18 %), associate professors (17 %), and full professors (15 %). Fifty-seven percent of the sample were women. The participants answered a questionnaire of our own design that measured six groups of stressors: workload, material and technical conditions at work, relationships with colleagues at work, work with students, work organisation, and social recognition and status. Women reported greater stress than men. Assistant professors, associate professors, and full professors reported greater stress related to material and technical conditions of work and work organisation than assistants, who, in turn, found relationships with colleagues a greater stressor. Full professors, reported lower exposure to stress at work than associate professors, assistant professors, and assistants.Cilj rada bio je istražiti izloženost sveučilišnih nastavnika stresu u radu i ispitati postoje li razlike između muškaraca i žena te zaposlenika na različitim pozicijama u stupnju izloženosti i prirodi radnih stresora. Istraživanje je metodom on-line ankete provedeno na reprezentativnom uzorku od 1168 nastavnika zaposlenih na sveučilištima u Hrvatskoj. Obuhvaćene su bile sve znanstveno-nastavne pozicije: asistenti (51 %), docenti (19 %), izvanredni profesori (15 %) i redoviti profesori (15 %). 57 % uzorka činile su žene. Primijenjen je Upitnik izloženosti stresu u radu za sveučilišne nastavnike (ISR-SN) koji sadržava 37 čestica i mjeri šest latentnih dimenzija izvora stresa: radno opterećenje, materijalne/tehničke uvjete rada, odnose na poslu, studente, organizaciju rada i društvene uvjete rada. Žene u odnosu prema muškarcima u prosjeku izvještavaju o većoj prisutnosti izvora stresa u svom poslu. Docenti, izvanredni i redoviti profesori u prosjeku procjenjuju veću prisutnost stresora vezanih uz materijalne/tehničke uvjete rada i organizaciju rada u odnosu na asistente koji, pak, u većoj mjeri procjenjuju prisutnost stresora vezanih uz međuljudske odnose. Redoviti profesori u prosjeku izvještavaju o manjoj izloženosti stresorima u svom poslu od izvanrednih profesora, docenata i asistenata

Quantitative and qualitative methods applied in comparative student reading habits and book buying research in Croatia, Italy and China: pilot study

The objective of this poster is to present the methodology and the results of a research which aimed is to analyze the main aspects of reading habits and book purchasing behavior of university students. In the past, numerous studies on reading behavior have been carried out which involved individual countries and Europe as a whole. These studies allowed us to define the general framework of the phenomenon and to distinguish readers based on: age, place of residence, gender, occupation and other socio-demographic variables. However, university student population has never been specifically investigated, particularly regarding the behavior of voluntary reading (ie autonomous and independent reading of the books not related to exams) . This study aims to fill this gap. The authors will present a theorethical framework and outcomes of a pilot study comparatively conducted at the University of Pisa, Italy, University of Zadar, Croatia and University of Nanchin, China. Authors argue that the combination of qualitative and quantitative methods is a way to find out interesting answers to research questions related to dependance of reading habits research and books buying. The poster will consist of two main parts. The first part will discuss the theorethical framework based upon the slow but constant use of qualitative research in social sciences, namely in information science and marketing in respective countries. The second part will present the results of a pilot study based upon quantitative and qualitative methods used in the comparative study of university students' habits in book buying and reading in Pisa, Italy (total 55.000 students, sample of 561 students and Zadar, Croatia (total 5.500 students, sample of 193 students)

Characterization of Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni from Prunus spp. orchards in Western Balkans

The present study provides a new insight into the existing Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni (Xap) bacterial population originating from peach and apricot in two Western Balkans countries (Serbia and Montenegro). Multilocus sequence typing and analysis of the sequences of nine housekeeping genes revealed homology between the tested Xap strains as well as with the European population of this bacterium. The tested strains share the same haplotype (Haplotype I) with the Xap strains from Italy, France, Spain, United States, Australia and Brazil. The revealed single nucleotide change (G ↔ C) in the sequences of the gyrB1 gene differentiates Haplotype I from Haplotype II (Xap from South Korea, New Zealand, Argentina and Uruguay). The detached-leaf bioassay results confirmed differences in virulence between strains originating from peach and apricot towards Prunus armeniaca (apricot), indicating host specialization of the apricot strain towards this host. For the first time, immunity of P. fruticosa (European ground cherry) to Xap was established. According to the AUDPC, PCA and cluster analysis, other Prunus spp. were classified as having low susceptibility (P. mahaleb, P. cerasus and P. avium), as susceptible (P. domestica) and as highly susceptible (P. persica, P. dulcis, P. cerasifera and P. spinosa). Xap strains were also found to be susceptible to 10 tested antibiotics. This study provides valuable knowledge on the Xap population from stone fruit grown in the Western Balkans region as well as the source of immunity, which could serve as a starting point for breeding Prunus cultivars and could be used as the main control strategy. © 2022 British Society for Plant Pathology