Analysis of IL-12 p40 subunit gene and IFN-γ G5644A polymorphisms in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Genes encoding cytokine mediators are prime candidates for genetic analysis in conditions with T-helper (Th) cell disease driven imbalance. Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is a predominantly Th2 mediated disease associated with a paucity of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). The paucity of IFN-γ may favor the development of progressive fibrosis in IPF. Interleukin-12 (IL-12) plays a key role in inducing IFN-γ production. The aim of the current study was to assess whether the 1188 (A/C) 3'UTR single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the <it>IL-12 </it>p40 subunit gene which was recently found to be functional and the 5644 (G/A) 3' UTR SNP of the <it>IFN</it>-γ gene were associated with susceptibility to IPF.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We investigated the allelic distribution in these loci in UK white Caucasoid subjects comprising 73 patients with IPF and 157 healthy controls. The SNPs were determined using the polymerase chain reaction in association with sequence-specific primers incorporating mismatches at the 3'-end.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results showed that these polymorphisms were distributed similarly in the IPF and control groups</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We conclude that these two potentially important candidate gene single nucleotide polymorphisms are not associated with susceptibility to IPF.</p

Evidence for a Smooth Onset of Deformation in the Neutron-Rich Kr Isotopes

The neutron-rich nuclei 94;96Kr were studied via projectile Coulomb excitation at the REX-ISOLDE facility at CERN. Level energies of the first excited 2+ states and their absolute E2 transition strengths to the ground state are determined and discussed in the context of the E(2+) and B(E2;2->0) systematics of the krypton chain. Contrary to previously published results no sudden onset of deformation is observed. This experimental result is supported by a new proton-neutron interacting boson model calculation based on the constrained Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov approach using the microscopic Gogny-D1M energy density functional.status: publishe

Observation of an exotic narrow doubly charmed tetraquark

Conventional, hadronic matter consists of baryons and mesons made of three quarks and a quark-antiquark pair, respectively(1,2). Here, we report the observation of a hadronic state containing four quarks in the Large Hadron Collider beauty experiment. This so-called tetraquark contains two charm quarks, a (u) over bar and a (d) over tilde quark. This exotic state has a mass of approximately 3,875 MeV and manifests as a narrow peak in the mass spectrum of (DD0)-D-0 pi(+) mesons just below the D*D-+(0) mass threshold. The near-threshold mass together with the narrow width reveals the resonance nature of the state

Constraints on the CKM angle gamma from B-+/- -> Dh(+/-) decays using D -> h(+/-)h'(-/+)pi(0) final states

A data sample collected with the LHCb detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9 fb(-1) is used to measure eleven CP violation observables in B-+/- -> Dh(+/-) decays, where h is either a kaon or a pion. The neutral D meson decay is reconstructed in the three-body final states: K-+/-pi(-/+)pi(0); pi(+)pi(-)pi(0); K+ K- pi(0) and the suppressed pi K-+(-/+)pi(0) combination. The mode where a large CP asymmetry is expected, B-+/- -> [K-+/-pi(-/+)pi(0)] K-D(+/-), is observed with a significance greater than seven standard deviations. The ratio of the partial width of this mode relative to that of the favoured mode, B-+/- -> [K-+/-pi(-/+)pi(0)] K-D(+/-), is R-ADS(K) = (1.27 +/- 0.16 +/- 0.02) x 10(-2). Evidence for a large CP asymmetry is also seen: A(ADS(K)) = - 0.38 +/- 0.12 +/- 0.02. Constraints on the CKM angle gamma are calculated from the eleven reported observables