Relationship of ankle blood pressures to cardiovascular events in older adults.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE - Low values of ankle-arm systolic blood pressure ratio predict mortality and cardiovascular events. High values, associated with arterial calcification, also carry risk for mortality. We focus on the extent to which low and high ankle-arm index values as well as noncompressible arteries are associated with mortality and cardiovascular events, including stroke in older adults. METHODS - We followed 2886 adults aged 70 to 79 for a mean of 6.7 years for vital status and cardiovascular events (coronary heart disease, stroke, and congestive heart failure). RESULTS - Normal ankle-arm index values of 0.91 to 1.3 were found in 80%, low values of ≤0.9 were found in 13%, high values of >1.3 were obtained in 5%, and noncompressible arteries were found in 2% of the group. Increased mortality was associated with both low and high ankle-arm index values beginning at levels of <1.0 or ≥1.4. Subjects with low ankle-arm index values or noncompressible arteries had significantly higher event rates than those with normal ankle blood pressures for all end points. For coronary heart disease, hazard ratios associated with a low ankle-arm index, high ankle-arm index, and noncompressible arteries were 1.4, 1.5, and 1.7 (P<0.05 for all) after controlling for age, gender, race, prevalent cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and major cardiovascular risk factors. Noncompressible arteries carried a particularly high risk of stroke and congestive heart failure (hazard ratio=2.1 and 2.4, respectively). CONCLUSIONS - Among older adults, low and high ankle-arm index values carry elevated risk for cardiovascular events. Noncompressible leg arteries carry elevated risk for stroke and congestive heart failure specifically. © 2008 American Heart Association, Inc

The origin of polyploids via 2n gametes in Vaccinium section Cyanococcus

The production of 2n pollen (pollen with the sporophytic chromosome number) was evaluated in 4x and 6x taxa of Vaccinium section Cyanococcus . Mean frequencies of 2n pollen producers were 17.1% and 8.3% in natural 4x and 6x populations, respectively. The frequency of 2n pollen producers in the 4x species ranged from 8.6% ( V. angustifolium ) to 23.8% ( V. pallidum ). Level of 2n pollen production was genotypically variable (1% to 37.4%). The widespread occurrence of 2n pollen in 2x, 4x and 6x taxa suggests that sexual polyploidization was widespread and responsible for the origin of the polyploid species found in this genus. The frequency of 2n pollen producers was not significantly different between the 4x species and their putative 2x ancestors. These results support the origin of 4x and 6x taxa as a consequence of sexual polyploidization. Polyploids derived from sexual polyploidization would be expected to have increased fitness and flexibility due to the mode of 2n pollen formation. In blueberry species the predominant mode of 2n pollen formation is genetically equivalent to a first division restitution mechanism (FDR). FDR 2n pollen transmits a high percentage of the heterozygosity and a large fraction of the epistasis from the 2x parent to the 4x offspring.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42736/1/10681_2004_Article_BF00039664.pd

Trans-ethnic fine-mapping of genetic loci for body mass index in the diverse ancestral populations of the Population Architecture using Genomics and Epidemiology (PAGE) Study reveals evidence for multiple signals at established loci

Most body mass index (BMI) genetic loci have been identified in studies of primarily European ancestries. The effect of these loci in other racial/ethnic groups is less clear. Thus, we aimed to characterize the generalizability of 170 established BMI variants, or their proxies, to diverse US populations and trans-ethnically fine-map 36 BMI loci using a sample of &gt;102,000 adults of African, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, European and American Indian/Alaskan Native descent from the Population Architecture using Genomics and Epidemiology Study. We performed linear regression of the natural log of BMI (18.5–70 kg/m2) on the additive single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at BMI loci on the MetaboChip (Illumina, Inc.), adjusting for age, sex, population stratification, study site, or relatedness. We then performed fixed-effect meta-analyses and a Bayesian trans-ethnic meta-analysis to empirically cluster by allele frequency differences. Finally, we approximated conditional and joint associations to test for the presence of secondary signals. We noted directional consistency with the previously reported risk alleles beyond what would have been expected by chance (binomial p &lt; 0.05). Nearly, a quarter of the previously described BMI index SNPs and 29 of 36 densely-genotyped BMI loci on the MetaboChip replicated/generalized in trans-ethnic analyses. We observed multiple signals at nine loci, including the description of seven loci with novel multiple signals. This study supports the generalization of most common genetic loci to diverse ancestral populations and emphasizes the importance of dense multiethnic genomic data in refining the functional variation at genetic loci of interest and describing several loci with multiple underlying genetic variants

Study of CP violation in B0 → DK⋆(892)0 decays with D → Kπ(ππ), ππ(ππ), and KK final states

A measurement of CP-violating observables associated with the interference of B0 → D0K⋆ (892)0 and B0 → D¯ 0K⋆ (892)0 decay amplitudes is performed in the D0 → K∓π ±(π +π −), D0 → π +π −(π +π −), and D0 → K+K− fnal states using data collected by the LHCb experiment corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb−1 . CP-violating observables related to the interference of B0 s → D0K¯ ⋆ (892)0 and B0 s → D¯ 0K¯ ⋆ (892)0 are also measured, but no evidence for interference is found. The B0 observables are used to constrain the parameter space of the CKM angle γ and the hadronic parameters r DK⋆ B0 and δ DK⋆ B0 with inputs from other measurements. In a combined analysis, these measurements allow for four solutions in the parameter space, only one of which is consistent with the world average

Curvature-bias corrections using a pseudomass method

Momentum measurements for very high momentum charged particles, such as muons from electroweak vector boson decays, are particularly susceptible to charge-dependent curvature biases that arise from misalignments of tracking detectors. Low momentum charged particles used in alignment procedures have limited sensitivity to coherent displacements of such detectors, and therefore are unable to fully constrain these misalignments to the precision necessary for studies of electroweak physics. Additional approaches are therefore required to understand and correct for these effects. In this paper the curvature biases present at the LHCb detector are studied using the pseudomass method in proton-proton collision data recorded at centre of mass energy √(s)=13 TeV during 2016, 2017 and 2018. The biases are determined using Z→μ + μ - decays in intervals defined by the data-taking period, magnet polarity and muon direction. Correcting for these biases, which are typically at the 10-4 GeV-1 level, improves the Z→μ + μ - mass resolution by roughly 18% and eliminates several pathological trends in the kinematic-dependence of the mean dimuon invariant mass

Skeletal muscle morphology, protein synthesis, and gene expression in Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

Item does not contain fulltextPatients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) are known to have genetically impaired connective tissue and skeletal muscle symptoms in form of pain, fatigue, and cramps; however earlier studies have not been able to link these symptoms to morphological muscle changes. We obtained skeletal muscle biopsies in patients with classic EDS [cEDS; n = 5 (Denmark)+ 8 (The Netherlands)] and vascular EDS (vEDS; n = 3) and analyzed muscle fiber morphology and content (Western blotting and muscle fiber type/area distributions) and muscle mRNA expression and protein synthesis rate (RT-PCR and stable isotope technique). The cEDS patients did not differ from healthy controls (n = 7-11) with regard to muscle fiber type/area, myosin/alpha-actin ratio, muscle protein synthesis rate, or mRNA expression. In contrast, the vEDS patients demonstrated higher expression of matrix proteins compared with cEDS patients (fibronectin and MMP-2). The cEDS patients had surprisingly normal muscle morphology and protein synthesis, whereas vEDS patients demonstrated higher mRNA expression for extracellular matrix remodeling in skeletal musculature compared with cEDS patients.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study is the first of its kind to systematically investigate muscle biopsies from Ehlers-Danlos patients, focusing on muscle structure and function. These patients suffer from severe muscle symptoms, but in our study they show surprisingly normal muscle findings, which points toward indirect muscle symptoms originating from the surrounding connective tissue. These findings have basal physiological importance and implications for future physiotherapeutic treatment options for these patients