32 research outputs found
Bostonia. Volume 11
Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs
Bostonia: The Boston University Alumni Magazine. Volume 4
Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs
Non-replication study of a genome-wide association study for hypertension and blood pressure in African Americans
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A recent genome wide association study in 1017 African Americans identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms that reached genome-wide significance for systolic blood pressure. We attempted to replicate these findings in an independent sample of 2474 unrelated African Americans in the Milwaukee metropolitan area; 53% were women and 47% were hypertensives.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We evaluated sixteen top associated SNPs from the above genome wide association study for hypertension as a binary trait or blood pressure as a continuous trait. In addition, we evaluated eight single nucleotide polymorphisms located in two genes (<it>STK-39 and CDH-13</it>) found to be associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressures by other genome wide association studies in European and Amish populations. TaqMan MGB-based chemistry with fluorescent probes was used for genotyping. We had an adequate sample size (80% power) to detect an effect size of 1.2-2.0 for all the single nucleotide polymorphisms for hypertension as a binary trait, and 1% variance in blood pressure as a continuous trait. Quantitative trait analyses were performed both by excluding and also by including subjects on anti-hypertensive therapy (after adjustments were made for anti-hypertensive medications).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For all 24 SNPs, no statistically significant differences were noted in the minor allele frequencies between cases and controls. One SNP (rs2146204) showed borderline association (p = 0.006) with hypertension status using recessive model and systolic blood pressure (p = 0.02), but was not significant after adjusting for multiple comparisons. In quantitative trait analyses, among normotensives only, rs12748299 was associated with SBP (p = 0.002). In addition, several nominally significant associations were noted with SBP and DBP among normotensives but none were statistically significant.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study highlights the importance of replication to confirm the validity of genome wide association study results.</p
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Risk of COVID-19 after natural infection or vaccinationResearch in context
Background: While vaccines have established utility against COVID-19, phase 3 efficacy studies have generally not comprehensively evaluated protection provided by previous infection or hybrid immunity (previous infection plus vaccination). Individual patient data from US government-supported harmonized vaccine trials provide an unprecedented sample population to address this issue. We characterized the protective efficacy of previous SARS-CoV-2 infection and hybrid immunity against COVID-19 early in the pandemic over three-to six-month follow-up and compared with vaccine-associated protection. Methods: In this post-hoc cross-protocol analysis of the Moderna, AstraZeneca, Janssen, and Novavax COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials, we allocated participants into four groups based on previous-infection status at enrolment and treatment: no previous infection/placebo; previous infection/placebo; no previous infection/vaccine; and previous infection/vaccine. The main outcome was RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 >7–15 days (per original protocols) after final study injection. We calculated crude and adjusted efficacy measures. Findings: Previous infection/placebo participants had a 92% decreased risk of future COVID-19 compared to no previous infection/placebo participants (overall hazard ratio [HR] ratio: 0.08; 95% CI: 0.05–0.13). Among single-dose Janssen participants, hybrid immunity conferred greater protection than vaccine alone (HR: 0.03; 95% CI: 0.01–0.10). Too few infections were observed to draw statistical inferences comparing hybrid immunity to vaccine alone for other trials. Vaccination, previous infection, and hybrid immunity all provided near-complete protection against severe disease. Interpretation: Previous infection, any hybrid immunity, and two-dose vaccination all provided substantial protection against symptomatic and severe COVID-19 through the early Delta period. Thus, as a surrogate for natural infection, vaccination remains the safest approach to protection. Funding: National Institutes of Health