Effectiveness of cardiac resynchronization therapy in heart failure patients with valvular heart disease: comparison with patients affected by ischaemic heart disease or dilated cardiomyopathy. The InSync/InSync ICD Italian Registry

AimsTo analyse the effectiveness of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in patients with valvular heart disease (a subset not specifically investigated in randomized controlled trials) in comparison with ischaemic heart disease or dilated cardiomyopathy patients.Methods and resultsPatients enrolled in a national registry were evaluated during a median follow-up of 16 months after CRT implant. Patients with valvular heart disease treated with CRT (n = 108) in comparison with ischaemic heart disease (n = 737) and dilated cardiomyopathy (n = 635) patients presented: (i) a higher prevalence of chronic atrial fibrillation, with atrioventricular node ablation performed in around half of the cases; (ii) a similar clinical and echocardiographic profile at baseline; (iii) a similar improvement of LVEF and a similar reduction in ventricular volumes at 6-12 months; (iv) a favourable clinical response at 12 months with an improvement of the clinical composite score similar to that occurring in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and more pronounced than that observed in patients with ischaemic heart disease; (v) a long-term outcome, in term of freedom from death or heart transplantation, similar to patients affected by ischaemic heart disease and basically more severe than that of patients affected by dilated cardiomyopathy.ConclusionIn 'real world' clinical practice, CRT appears to be effective also in patients with valvular heart disease. However, in this group of patients the outcome after CRT does not precisely overlap any of the two other groups of patients, for which much more data are currently available

50 m freestyle in 21, 22 and 23 s: What differentiates the speed curve of world-class and elite male swimmers?

We examined the association between 50 m freestyle performance (50FS) and average speed (AS), peak speed (PS), minimum speed (MS) and intracyclic speed variation (ISV) and compared the speed curves from swimmers with different performance levels using functional analysis of variance (FANOVA). Fourteen male swimmers (50FS: 22.50 ± 0.58 s) performed a maximal sprint with a speedometer and AS, PS, MS, and IVV were assessed for correlational analysis. 50FS were obtained in official competitions. Swimmers were assigned to three groups based on actual 50FS: G21 (n = 2, 21.99 ± 0.04 s), G22 (n = 6, 22.82 ± 0.10 s) or G23 (n = 6, 23.55 ± 0.18 s). FANOVA compared the average curves. 50FS correlated to AS (r = −0.781, p = 0.001) and PS (ρ = −0.766, p = 0.001), but not to MS (r = −0.185, p = 0.527) or IVV (r = −0.323, p = 0.259). FANOVA showed that faster swimmers achieved higher PS and stayed longer at the upper part of the curve. 50FS performance is related to average and peak speed assessed with the speedometer. Swimmers should seek techniques to maintain the speed at the upper part of the curve as long as possible

Towards marker informed poplar breeding

Marker informed breeding could be a favorable opportunity to accelerate cultivar selection in poplar. Linking genotype to phenotypic variation of important economical and adaptive traits is the prerequisite. The two strategies chosen are QTL detection in mapping pedigrees and association studies in natural populations. An intra-specific mapping pedigree Populus nigra x P. nigra of 300 individuals segregating for leaf rust resistance is available. Another large progeny of 1400 individuals derived from a cross P. deltoides x P. trichocarpa for which two major factors and QTL of rust resistance segregated is already available. QTL for phenology and water use efficiency were also mapped. Large scale phenotyping of wood properties is underway. An association mapping population of 1100 P. nigra individuals coming from France, Germany, Netherlands and Spain was evaluated for rust resistance in both controlled and field conditions. Even if most of the genetic variation for rust resistance could be observed at the genotype level, significant differentiation between natural populations was detected. Taking advantages of genomics development in poplar including structural and functional genomics, positional, functional and expressional candidate genes were identified for rust resistance, phenology and wood properties. It became clear that SNP in those genes could be ideal combined to HTP genotyping technologies to identify causative polymorphism for phenotypic variation. We developed collections of SNP useful for both genetic and association mapping. With the help of the genome sequence, unique primer pairs were automatically designed and tested for their uniqueness before PCR amplification and HTP Sanger re-sequencing. Based on the analysis of 850 gene fragments, an average of 1SNP/90bp were found in the three Populus species studied. SNP appeared fixed in each species after comparison of SNP position between the three species. Analysis of linkage disequilibrium in P. nigra showed a rapid decline of LD with physical distanc

Towards marker informed poplar breeding

International audienceMarker informed breeding could be a favorable opportunity to accelerate cultivar selection in poplar. Linking genotype to phenotypic variation of important economical and adaptive traits is the prerequisite. The two strategies chosen are QTL detection in mapping pedigrees and association studies in natural populations. An intra-specific mapping pedigree Populus nigra x P. nigra of 300 individuals segregating for leaf rust resistance is available. Another large progeny of 1400 individuals derived from a cross P. deltoides x P. trichocarpa for which two major factors and QTL of rust resistance segregated is already available. QTL for phenology and water use efficiency were also mapped. Large scale phenotyping of wood properties is underway. An association mapping population of 1100 P. nigra individuals coming from France, Germany, Netherlands and Spain was evaluated for rust resistance in both controlled and field conditions. Even if most of the genetic variation for rust resistance could be observed at the genotype level, significant differentiation between natural populations was detected. Taking advantages of genomics development in poplar including structural and functional genomics, positional, functional and expressional candidate genes were identified for rust resistance, phenology and wood properties. It became clear that SNP in those genes could be ideal combined to HTP genotyping technologies to identify causative polymorphism for phenotypic variation. We developed collections of SNP useful for both genetic and association mapping. With the help of the genome sequence, unique primer pairs were automatically designed and tested for their uniqueness before PCR amplification and HTP Sanger re-sequencing. Based on the analysis of 850 gene fragments, an average of 1SNP/90bp were found in the three Populus species studied. SNP appeared fixed in each species after comparison of SNP position between the three species. Analysis of linkage disequilibrium in P. nigra showed a rapid decline of LD with physical distanc

Towards marker informed poplar breeding

International audienceMarker informed breeding could be a favorable opportunity to accelerate cultivar selection in poplar. Linking genotype to phenotypic variation of important economical and adaptive traits is the prerequisite. The two strategies chosen are QTL detection in mapping pedigrees and association studies in natural populations. An intra-specific mapping pedigree Populus nigra x P. nigra of 300 individuals segregating for leaf rust resistance is available. Another large progeny of 1400 individuals derived from a cross P. deltoides x P. trichocarpa for which two major factors and QTL of rust resistance segregated is already available. QTL for phenology and water use efficiency were also mapped. Large scale phenotyping of wood properties is underway. An association mapping population of 1100 P. nigra individuals coming from France, Germany, Netherlands and Spain was evaluated for rust resistance in both controlled and field conditions. Even if most of the genetic variation for rust resistance could be observed at the genotype level, significant differentiation between natural populations was detected. Taking advantages of genomics development in poplar including structural and functional genomics, positional, functional and expressional candidate genes were identified for rust resistance, phenology and wood properties. It became clear that SNP in those genes could be ideal combined to HTP genotyping technologies to identify causative polymorphism for phenotypic variation. We developed collections of SNP useful for both genetic and association mapping. With the help of the genome sequence, unique primer pairs were automatically designed and tested for their uniqueness before PCR amplification and HTP Sanger re-sequencing. Based on the analysis of 850 gene fragments, an average of 1SNP/90bp were found in the three Populus species studied. SNP appeared fixed in each species after comparison of SNP position between the three species. Analysis of linkage disequilibrium in P. nigra showed a rapid decline of LD with physical distanc

Impact of mitral regurgitation on the outcome of patients treated with CRT-D: data from the InSync ICD Italian Registry.

Background: We assessed the influence of clinically significant mitral regurgitation (MR) on clinical-echocardiographic response and outcome in heart failure (HF) patients treated with a biventricular defibrillator (cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator [CRT-D]). Methods and Results: A total of 659 HF patients underwent successful implantation of CRT-D and were enrolled in a multicenter prospective registry (median follow-up of 15 months). Following baseline echocardiographic evaluation, patients were stratified into two groups according to the severity of MR: 232 patients with more than mild MR (Group MR+: grade 2, 3, and 4 MR) versus 427 patients with mild (grade 1) or no functional MR (Group MR−). On 6- and 12-month echocardiographic evaluation, MR was seen to have improved in the vast majority of MR+ patients, while it remained unchanged in most MR− patients. On 12-month follow-up evaluation, a comparable response to CRT was observed in the two groups, in terms of the extent of left ventricular reverse remodeling and combined clinical and echocardiographic response. During long-term follow-up, event-free survival did not differ between MR+ and MR− patients, even when subpopulations of patients with ischemic heart disease and with dilated cardiomyopathy were analyzed separately. On multivariate analysis, the only independent predictor of death from any cause was the lack of β-blocker use. Conclusions: This observational analysis supports the use of CRT-D in HF patients with clinically significant MR; MR had no major influence on patient outcom

Cholecystocolonic fistula: facts and myths. A review of the 231 published cases

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