Causal mechanisms and balancing selection inferred from genetic associations with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common reproductive disorder in women, yet there is little consensus regarding its aetiology. Here we perform a genome-wide association study of PCOS in up to 5,184 self-reported cases of White European ancestry and 82,759 controls, with follow-up in a further ∼2,000 clinically validated cases and ∼100,000 controls. We identify six signals for PCOS at genome-wide statistical significance (P<5 × 10(-8)), in/near genes ERBB4/HER4, YAP1, THADA, FSHB, RAD50 and KRR1. Variants in/near three of the four epidermal growth factor receptor genes (ERBB2/HER2, ERBB3/HER3 and ERBB4/HER4) are associated with PCOS at or near genome-wide significance. Mendelian randomization analyses indicate causal roles in PCOS aetiology for higher BMI (P=2.5 × 10(-9)), higher insulin resistance (P=6 × 10(-4)) and lower serum sex hormone binding globulin concentrations (P=5 × 10(-4)). Furthermore, genetic susceptibility to later menopause is associated with higher PCOS risk (P=1.6 × 10(-8)) and PCOS-susceptibility alleles are associated with higher serum anti-Müllerian hormone concentrations in girls (P=8.9 × 10(-5)). This large-scale study implicates an aetiological role of the epidermal growth factor receptors, infers causal mechanisms relevant to clinical management and prevention, and suggests balancing selection mechanisms involved in PCOS risk.This work was supported by the Medical Research Council [U106179472; MC_U106179472; U106179471; MC_U106179471] and the National Human Genome Research Institute of the National Institutes of Health (grant number R44HG006981 to 23andMe). The UK Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust (092731), together with the University of Bristol, provide core support for the ALSPAC study. AMH assays in ALSPAC were funded with a grant from the US National Institute of Health (R01 DK077659). DAL works in a unit that receives funding from the University of Bristol and the UK Medical Research Council (MC_UU_12013/5).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Nature Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms946

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Lysyl-tRNA synthetase, a target for urgently needed M. tuberculosis drugs

Tuberculosis is a major global cause of both mortality and financial burden mainly in low and middle-income countries. Given the significant and ongoing rise of drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis within the clinical setting, there is an urgent need for the development of new, safe and effective treatments. Here the development of a drug-like series based on a fused dihydropyrrolidino-pyrimidine scaffold is described. The series has been developed against M. tuberculosis lysyl-tRNA synthetase (LysRS) and cellular studies support this mechanism of action. DDD02049209, the lead compound, is efficacious in mouse models of acute and chronic tuberculosis and has suitable physicochemical, pharmacokinetic properties and an in vitro safety profile that supports further development. Importantly, preliminary analysis using clinical resistant strains shows no pre-existing clinical resistance towards this scaffold

Host Transcription Factors in the Immediate Pro-Inflammatory Response to the Parasitic Mite Psoroptes ovis

BACKGROUND: Sheep scab, caused by infestation with the ectoparasitic mite Psoroptes ovis, results in the rapid development of cutaneous inflammation and leads to the crusted skin lesions characteristic of the disease. We described previously the global host transcriptional response to infestation with P. ovis, elucidating elements of the inflammatory processes which lead to the development of a rapid and profound immune response. However, the mechanisms by which this response is instigated remain unclear. To identify novel methods of intervention a better understanding of the early events involved in triggering the immune response is essential. The objective of this study was to gain a clearer understanding of the mechanisms and signaling pathways involved in the instigation of the immediate pro-inflammatory response. RESULTS: Through a combination of transcription factor binding site enrichment and pathway analysis we identified key roles for a number of transcription factors in the instigation of cutaneous inflammation. In particular, defined roles were elucidated for the transcription factors NF-kB and AP-1 in the orchestration of the early pro-inflammatory response, with these factors being implicated in the activation of a suite of inflammatory mediators. CONCLUSIONS: Interrogation of the host temporal response to P. ovis infestation has enabled the further identification of the mechanisms underlying the development of the immediate host pro-inflammatory response. This response involves key regulatory roles for the transcription factors NF-kB and AP-1. Pathway analysis demonstrated that the activation of these transcription factors may be triggered following a host LPS-type response, potentially involving TLR4-signalling and also lead to the intriguing possibility that this could be triggered by a P. ovis allergen

Loss-of-function mutations in SLC30A8 protect against type 2 diabetes.

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenLoss-of-function mutations protective against human disease provide in vivo validation of therapeutic targets, but none have yet been described for type 2 diabetes (T2D). Through sequencing or genotyping of ~150,000 individuals across 5 ancestry groups, we identified 12 rare protein-truncating variants in SLC30A8, which encodes an islet zinc transporter (ZnT8) and harbors a common variant (p.Trp325Arg) associated with T2D risk and glucose and proinsulin levels. Collectively, carriers of protein-truncating variants had 65% reduced T2D risk (P = 1.7 × 10(-6)), and non-diabetic Icelandic carriers of a frameshift variant (p.Lys34Serfs*50) demonstrated reduced glucose levels (-0.17 s.d., P = 4.6 × 10(-4)). The two most common protein-truncating variants (p.Arg138* and p.Lys34Serfs*50) individually associate with T2D protection and encode unstable ZnT8 proteins. Previous functional study of SLC30A8 suggested that reduced zinc transport increases T2D risk, and phenotypic heterogeneity was observed in mouse Slc30a8 knockouts. In contrast, loss-of-function mutations in humans provide strong evidence that SLC30A8 haploinsufficiency protects against T2D, suggesting ZnT8 inhibition as a therapeutic strategy in T2D prevention.US National Institutes of Health (NIH) Training 5-T32-GM007748-33 Doris Duke Charitable Foundation 2006087 Fulbright Diabetes UK Fellowship BDA 11/0004348 Broad Institute from Pfizer, Inc. NIH U01 DK085501 U01 DK085524 U01 DK085545 U01 DK085584 Swedish Research Council Dnr 521-2010-3490 Dnr 349-2006-237 European Research Council (ERC) GENETARGET T2D GA269045 ENGAGE 2007-201413 CEED3 2008-223211 Sigrid Juselius Foundation Folkh lsan Research Foundation ERC AdG 293574 Research Council of Norway 197064/V50 KG Jebsen Foundation University of Bergen Western Norway Health Authority Lundbeck Foundation Novo Nordisk Foundation Wellcome Trust WT098017 WT064890 WT090532 WT090367 WT098381 Uppsala University Swedish Research Council and the Swedish Heart- Lung Foundation Academy of Finland 124243 102318 123885 139635 Finnish Heart Foundation Finnish Diabetes Foundation, Tekes 1510/31/06 Commission of the European Community HEALTH-F2-2007-201681 Ministry of Education and Culture of Finland European Commission Framework Programme 6 Integrated Project LSHM-CT-2004-005272 City of Kuopio and Social Insurance Institution of Finland Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Disease NIH/NIDDK U01-DK085545 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities N01 HC-95170 N01 HC-95171 N01 HC-95172 European Union Seventh Framework Programme, DIAPREPP Swedish Child Diabetes Foundation (Barndiabetesfonden) 5U01DK085526 DK088389 U54HG003067 R01DK072193 R01DK062370 Z01HG000024info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/20201

An Empirical Comparison of Consumer Innovation Adoption Models: Implications for Subsistence Marketplaces

So called “pro-poor” innovations may improve consumer wellbeing in subsistence marketplaces. However, there is little research that integrates the area with the vast literature on innovation adoption. Using a questionnaire where respondents were asked to provide their evaluations about a mobile banking innovation, this research fills this gap by providing empirical evidence of the applicability of existing innovation adoption models in subsistence marketplaces. The study was conducted in Bangladesh among a geographically dispersed sample. The data collected allowed an empirical comparison of models in a subsistence context. The research reveals the most useful models in this context to be the Value Based Adoption Model and the Consumer Acceptance of Technology model. In light of these findings and further examination of the model comparison results the research also shows that consumers in subsistence marketplaces are not just motivated by functionality and economic needs. If organizations cannot enhance the hedonic attributes of a pro-poor innovation, and reduce the internal/external constraints related to adoption of that pro-poor innovation, then adoption intention by consumers will be lower

Gene Expression Patterns in Larval Schistosoma mansoni Associated with Infection of the Mammalian Host

The schistosome cercaria develops from undifferentiated germ balls within the daughter sporocyst located in the hepatopancreas of its snail intermediate host. This is where the proteins it uses to infect humans are synthesised. After a brief free life in fresh water, if the cercaria locates a host, it infects by direct penetration through the skin. It then transforms into the schistosomulum stage, adapted for life in human tissues. We have designed a large scale array comprising probes representing all known schistosome genes and used it in hybridisation experiments to establish which genes are turned on or off in the parasite during these stages in its life cycle. Genes encoding proteins involved in cell division were prominent in the germ ball along with those for proteases and potential immunomodulators, deployed during skin penetration. The non-feeding cercaria was the least active at synthesising proteins. Conversion to the schistosomulum was accompanied by transcription of genes involved in body remodeling, including production of a new outer surface, and gut activation long before ingestion of red blood cells begins. Our data help us to understand better the proteins deployed to achieve infection, and subsequent adaptations necessary for establishment of the parasite in the human host

Improved imputation of low-frequency and rare variants using the UK10K haplotype reference panel

Imputing genotypes from reference panels created by whole-genome sequencing (WGS) provides a cost-effective strategy for augmenting the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) content of genome-wide arrays. The UK10K Cohorts project has generated a data set of 3,781 whole genomes sequenced at low depth (average 7x), aiming to exhaustively characterize genetic variation down to 0.1% minor allele frequency in the British population. Here we demonstrate the value of this resource for improving imputation accuracy at rare and low-frequency variants in both a UK and an Italian population. We show that large increases in imputation accuracy can be achieved by re-phasing WGS reference panels after initial genotype calling. We also present a method for combining WGS panels to improve variant coverage and downstream imputation accuracy, which we illustrate by integrating 7,562 WGS haplotypes from the UK10K project with 2,184 haplotypes from the 1000 Genomes Project. Finally, we introduce a novel approximation that maintains speed without sacrificing imputation accuracy for rare variants