Correlation of periodontal pathogens in concurrent endodontic-periodontal diseases

Objectives: This study investigated the correlation between Tannerella forsythia, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans at dual sites in concurrent endodonticperiodontal diseases. Material and methods: Samples were collected from endodontium and periodontium in cases of concurrent endodontic-periodontal diseases from thirty participants. The sensitivity and specificity of SYBR Green real-time PCR was used to identify the targeted species. Absolute number of targeted genome copies in tested samples were extrapolated from respective calibration curve. Results: No statistical difference was found in the number of detected endodontic-periodontal pathogens between the endodontium and periodontium. The Pearson test detected significant correlation (P\u3c0.001) between targeted bacteria; T. forsythia, F. nucleatum, and P. gingivalis from endodontic-periodontal lesions. Synergistic component observed separately in endodontic biofilm was found only between T. forsythia and F. nucleatum (r=0.380, P=0.03) while in periodontal biofilm T. forsythia, F. nucleatum and P. gingivalis gave high synergism result (P\u3c0.0001). Correlation analysis showed that T. forsythia in primary endodontic infection and in periodontal lesion was significantly decreased with the increase of patients age (r=-0.308, P=0.017). Conclusions: Correlation between targeted bacterial species levels from concurrent endodonticperiodontal diseases confirmed that coronal and cervical dentinal tubules may represent a viable pathway that allows spreading and maintaining of dual sites infection. Periodontal bacteria detected in root canal of concurrent endodontic-periodontal infections may originate from the local periodontal lesions

Phenotypic association of seven observed traits of hand complex

This paper provides an overview of the seven possible hand-related traits, with an idea to estimate the statistical phenotypic association between them. The traits observed in this study were: midphalangeal hair, Hitchhiker’s thumb, extensibility of proximal joint of thumb, digital index, nail shape, crooked fifth finger and hand clasping. The mentioned characteristics were observed in 7431 unrelated subjects, with approximately equal gender distribution. For each case, three groups were formed: total, male and female. The subjects were evenly distributed throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina’s various geographical regions, and they properly represent the country’s national and ethnic composition. The Chi-squared test was used to determine the statistical significance of the association between these traits, while Fisher’s exact test was utilized as an extra test to analyze the association between each pair of observed features. Also, Chi-squared test was applied for observing differences in the frequencies of the phenotypic characteristics of the hand between the genders. Following traits were shown to have a statistically significant association: midphalangeal hair-Hitchhiker’s thumb, midphalangeal hair – digital index, midphalangeal hair – nail shape, midphalangeal hair – crooked fifth finger, Hitchhiker’s thumb- extensibility of proximal joint of thumb, digital index – nail shape, digital index -crooked fifth finger, midphalangeal hair – hand clasping, crooked fifth finger – hand clasping. Analysis of differences in the frequencies of the observed phenotypic traits of the hand according to the genders showed statistical significance for D, Dht, Ref and Lf

Frequency of Main Western-Euroasian mtDNA Haplogroups and Paleolithic and Neolithic Lineages in the Genetic Structure of Population of Northeastern Bosnia

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variations were analyzed in a sample of 245 individuals of Bosnian-Herzegovinian population from the area of ​​ Northeastern Bosnia (also known as Tuzla region). Haplogroup affiliation was determined using RFLP method (Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism) analyzing haplogroup-specific markers of mtDNA coding region, characteristic for the main Western-Eurasian haplogroups. Additional analyses of two sequenced hypervariable segments (HVSI and HVSII) of mtDNA control region were performed in order to identify U subhaplogroups. The study revealed that 95.51% of the analyzed individuals belonged to the typical Western-Eurasian haplogroups: H, I, J, K, T, U, V, W or X. The most frequent haplogroup in the analyzed population was the haplogroup H (52.65%) which, due to its increased frequency, represents a marking haplogroup of the population of Northeastern Bosnia. The results of intergroup genetic analysis showed that Bosnian-Herzegovinian population is genetically closer to previously studied populations of Herzegovinians (part of Bosnia and Herzegovina), Slovenians and Croats in relation to other neighboring populations located in Southeastern Europe. Our study also suggests that population genetic structure of Tuzla region is dominated by mutations that are classified as „Paleolithic”. These mutations were probably brought to the area of Northeastern Bosnia through waves of prehistoric and historic migrations, but the impact of any pre-Neolithic, Neolithic or some ,,later,, migrations, with a slightly lower contribution to the genetic structure of this population, also can-not be neglected

Diversity of nuclear short tandem repeat loci in representative sample of North-eastern Bosnian and Herzegovina population

Diversity of nuclear microsatellite markers were analyzed in a reference sample of the population of northeast Bosnia and Herzegovina. 437 samples taken from unrelated individuals were processed and three samples of paternity proof were shown. Detection effectiveness profile of the research, points to a valid choice of method of extraction, amplification and genotyping short tandem repeat (STR) loci with PowerPlextm16 kit. Genetic analysis of allelic variants of the 15 STR loci PowerPlextm16 kit detected 17 samples determined as rare allelic variants or microvariants. Samples were divided into 15 different allelic variants at 7 different loci, and are: in locus D7S820, D16S539, D3S1358, D18S51, PENTA D, PENTA E and in locus vWA. Genetic analysis of mutations in cases of paternity determined three examples of single-step mutations in the loci FGA, Penta D and D3S1358. Genetic analysis of observed STR loci detected three allelic variant of genotype combination 7/10/11.3 in locus D7S820 Type II. Population genetic analysis of STR loci in a representative sample of the population of northeast Bosnia and Herzegovina included the application of the assessment tests of within-population genetic diversity and interpopulation diversity, as well as genetic differentiation between populations: North-eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH) and BH general reference, then the Croatian population, Macedonian, Serbian and Slovenian. Based on the result analysis of specific forensic parameters, it can be assumed that the most informative marker is PENTA E for population genetic analysis and forensic testing in the population of northeast Bosnia and Herzegovina. Research results fit regional STR database of this part of Europe

GENETIC CHARACTERISTICS OF BROOK TROUT Salvelinus fontinalis (MITCHILL, 1848) BROODSTOCKS FROM HATCHERIES IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Najčešće uzgajane riblje vrste u Bosni i Hercegovini su iz porodice Salmonidae, uključujući i potočnu zlatovčicu (Salvelinus fontinalis) koju se uzgaja za prehranu i za potrebe poribljavanja. Na uzgajalištima je primjećena povećana učestalost anatomskih deformacija kod mlađi potočne zlatovčice koje uzrokuju smanjenje kondicije kod riba, a time i značajne financijske gubitke. S obzirom da je dokazano da je pojava deformacija u korelaciji s niskom genetičkom raznolikošću i visokom stopom uzgoja u srodstvu, ova studija je imala za cilj procijeniti unutar i međupopulacijsku raznolikost Salvelinus fontinalis iz različitih ribogojilišta u Bosni i Hercegovini na osnovu varijacija mitohondrijskog i nuklearnog genoma. Primjenom mitohondrijskog kontrolnog područja i sedam nuklearnih mikrosatelitnih lokusa analizirano je ukupno 109 uzoraka potočne zlatovčice iz tri ribogojilišta locirana na rijeci Neretvi. Metoda PCR-RFLP i metoda sekvenciranja pokazale su samo jedan haplotip kontrolnog područja u svim istraživanim jedinkama. Uočen je mali broj genotipova za sve promatrane mikrosatelitne lokuse. Vrijednost genetičke raznolikosti i sadržaj informativnog polimorfizma pratili su porast u broju alela po lokusu. Općenito, vrijednost koeficijenta uzgoja u srodstvu bio je generalno veoma visok, dok su genetska raznolikost i uočena heterozigotnost imali niske stope. Rezultati provedene studije u suglasnosti su s rezultatima prethodnih istraživanja u kojima su razvojne deformacije bile praćene niskom genetičkom raznolikošću i inbreeding depresijom. Stoga se posebno preporuča redovno nadopunjavanje matičnog jata novim, nesrodnim jedinkama s obzirom da je to od presudnog značaja za održanje zadovoljavajuće razine genetičke raznolikosti i sprečavanje inbreeding depresije. Također, održavanje dobre prakse upravljanja u pogledu fluktuacije temperature vode, izloženosti zagađenju, prehrane itd. će dodatno prevenirati nastanak ovog štetnog stanja.The most commonly farmed fish species in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s aquaculture are from the family Salmonidae, including brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis which is reared both for consumption and stocking purposes. A number of farmers complained about the elevated frequency of anatomical deformities in the smolts and fingerlings of brook trout, decreasing their fitness rate and causing significant financial loss. Since it has been shown that occurrence of deformities is correlated with the low genetic diversity and high inbreeding, this study aimed to assess intra- and interpopulation diversity of Salvelinus fontinalis from different freshwater fish farms in Bosnia and Herzegovina by observing variation in mitochondrial and nuclear genome. Total of 109 samples of brook trout from three hatcheries located at the Neretva River were analyzed for the mitochondrial control region and seven nuclear microsatellite loci. Both PCR-RFLP and sequencing revealed only one haplotype of the control region in all investigated trout. Overall, a low number of genotypes was evident across all the observed loci. Values of genetic diversity and polymorphic information content followed the increase in the number of alleles per locus. In general, values of inbreeding coefficient were generally very high, while the genetic diversity and observed heterozygosity had low rates. The results of our study are congruent with the findings of previous studies in which developmental deformities were concomitant with the low genetic diversity and inbreeding depression. It is, therefore, strongly advised to regularly supplement the broodstock with new, unrelated individuals, as it is of vital importance for sustaining a satisfying level of genetic diversity and preventing inbreeding depression. Additionally, maintaining good management practices regarding the fluctuation of water temperature, exposure to pollution, nutrition, etc., will further contribute to the prevention of this detrimental condition

Overview of Human Population-Genetic Studies in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Last Three Centuries: History and Prospective

Modern Bosnia and Herzegovina is a multi-ethnic and multi-religion country, with a very stormy history. Certain archaeological findings indicate continuous population of its territory since the Paleolithic. In time, vast number of different factors jointly influenced fascinating diversity of local human populations. A great number of small, more or less isolated, indigenous populations, make this area quite attractive for population-genetic surveys of different levels and approaches. Austro-Hungarian military physicians conducted the very first known bio-anthropological analyses of Bosnia-Herzegovina population at the end of the 19th century. Thus, the first step towards resolving the genetic structures of local B&H human populations was made. The studies that followed (conducted throughout most of the 20th century) were primarily based on the observation of various phenotypic traits. This stage was followed by the examination of various cytogenetic and fundamental DNA based molecular markers. The efforts undertaken over the last three centuries revealed »human genetic treasure« in Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, even now, after all the studies that were conducted, many interesting features remain to be discovered and described within the existing local human populations

Genetic structure of apple accessions maintained ex situ in Bosnia and Herzegovina examined by microsatellite markers

In order to identify possible mislabeling of the apple accession maintained ex situ in Srebrenik and to gain insight into the genetic structure of the conserved germplasm, 14 accessions from the collection were genotyped using 10 SSR (Simple Sequence Repeats) markers. Obtained SSR profiles were then added to an existing database constructed for previously characterized 24 traditional and 13 international, reference apple cultivars maintained at the same collection. Bayesian analysis implemented in the STRUCTURE program grouped 42 out of 51 analyzed apple accessions (38 traditional and 13 international) into three RPPs (reconstructed panmictic populations) with probability of membership qI higher than 75%. Almost all international, reference cultivars grouped in RPP3, whereas traditional B&H cultivars from the Srebrenik collection grouped in all three RPPs. Large and significant differentiations between all three individual RPPs were detected through the analyses of molecular variance and confirmed with FCA (factorial correspondence analyses). NJ cluster analysis, based on the Bruvo genetic distance, revealed that out of 38 traditional B&H apple cultivars, analyzed in the study, ‘Ljepocvjetka’, ‘Bobovec’ and ‘Bobovec J’ grouped closest to the international reference cultivars. Available date indicates that unlike a large number of B&H apple cultivars which were introduced during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, ‘Ljepocvjetka’ and ‘Bobovec’ were probably introduced at a later date. Cluster analyses also enabled the detection of one synonym and three homonyms within the collection. In four cases, previously conducted identification based on phenotypic analyses was confirmed by genetic analyses. Results of the structure analyses indicate a heterogeneous genetic structure of the analyzed accessions. This characteristic of the B&H apple germplasm could be useful for future breeding programs

VALIDATION OF VAGINAL SELF-SAMPLING AS AN ALTERNATIVE OPTION IN PCR BASED DETECTION OF HPV IN CERVICAL CANCER SCREENING IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Cervical cancer represents a serious health problem affecting women worldwide especially in developing countries due to low socioeconomic status, inadequate health-care infrastructure, weaknesses in education on this particular issue and lack of effective screening programmes. The primary aim of this study was to assess alternative screening method for the improvement of cervical cancer prevention in conditions of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), which could be applicable in other developing countries as well. The study was conducted on 101 subjects who provided their self-sampled vaginal swabs and/or cervical specimens collected by their gynecologists. Universal Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) primer set optimized to detect a wide range of HPV types was used for HPV genotyping from obtained swab samples in multiplex PCR. Amplicons were analyzed in agarose gel and Agilent 2100 bioanalyzer – a platform based on microfluid technology. Inter-rater agreement kappa (MedCalc2) was used to assess concordance between results of cervical and vaginal sample analysis. Out of 39 subjects who provided their vaginal and cervical samples, results of HPV detection mismatched in 10% of the cases. Inter-rater agreement showed good strength of coincidence between the results of cervical and vaginal sample analysis (kappa=0,748, CI=95 %). We presented an alternative PCR method for the detection of HPV based on vaginal self sampling which is affordable, informative, simple and applicable with high coverage level of defined targeted population and potentially significant in the given cultural and socioeconomic context