Genetic variability in the severity and outcome of community-acquired pneumonia

SummaryBackgroundSeveral studies have investigated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in candidate genes associated with susceptibility, severity or outcome in patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) with conflicting results.MethodsMulti-centre, prospective observational study. We studied 1162 white Spanish patients with CAP and 1413 controls. Severe forms of sepsis were recorded in 325 patients. Subjects were genotyped for the following polymorphisms: TNF −238 and −308, LTA +252, IL6 −174, IL1RN 86bp variable number of tandem repeats and TNFRSF1B+676 (TNFR2 M196R).ResultsNo significant differences in genotype or allele frequencies were seen among patients and controls. We did not find any association between TNF, LTA, IL6 and IL1RN polymorphisms with disease severity or outcome. Analysis of 28-day mortality showed a significant difference in the distribution of TNFRSF1B+676 G/T genotypes (p=0.0129). Sequential Kaplan–Meier survival analysis of TNFRSF1B+676 G/T polymorphism showed a protective role of the GT genotype. Cox regression analysis adjusted for age, gender, hospital of origin and comorbidities showed that patients with GT genotypes had lower mortality rates compared to patients with GG or TT genotypes (p=0.02; HR 0.53; 95% CI 0.31–0.90 for 90-day survival; p=0.01; HR 0.41; 95% CI 0.21–0.81 for 28-day survival and p=0.049; HR 0.48; 95% CI 0.23–0.997 for 15-day survival).ConclusionsOur study does not support a role for the controversial studied polymorphisms of the TNF, LTA, IL6 and IL1RN genes in the susceptibility or outcome of CAP. A protective role of heterozygosity for the functionally relevant TNFRSF1B+676 polymorphism in the outcome of CAP was observed

Delaying surgery for patients with a previous SARS-CoV-2 infection

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Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved