The Impact of Cognitive Training Program for Children (CTPC) to Development the Mathematical Conceptual and Achievement

This study aimed to investigate the impact of the Cognitive Training Program of Children (CTPC) on development the of mathematical concepts and achievement in mathematics among third-grade students. The study sample consisted of (113) students distributed randomly into three groups: the first experimental group (39) students who taught through CTPC individually, the second experimental group (36) students who taught through CTPC in small groups, and the control group (38) taught in the traditional method. A mathematical conceptual development test, mathematical achievement test, and qualitative scoring rubric were prepared as instruments to collect the data. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences between the three groups, in favor of the two experimental groups, and statistically significant differences between the two experimental groups in favor of the second experimental group, which was trained on CTPC in small groups, compared to the first experimental group, which was trained on CTPC individually. The study recommended paying attention to CTPC, inviting teachers to use it in teaching mathematics, and providing guides for teachers to plan lessons using CTPC

Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis

Funding GMP, PN, and CW are supported by NHLBI R01HL127564. GMP and PN are supported by R01HL142711. AG acknowledge support from the Wellcome Trust (201543/B/16/Z), European Union Seventh Framework Programme FP7/2007–2013 under grant agreement no. HEALTH-F2-2013–601456 (CVGenes@Target) & the TriPartite Immunometabolism Consortium [TrIC]-Novo Nordisk Foundation’s Grant number NNF15CC0018486. JMM is supported by American Diabetes Association Innovative and Clinical Translational Award 1–19-ICTS-068. SR was supported by the Academy of Finland Center of Excellence in Complex Disease Genetics (Grant No 312062), the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research, the Sigrid Juselius Foundation, and University of Helsinki HiLIFE Fellow and Grand Challenge grants. EW was supported by the Finnish innovation fund Sitra (EW) and Finska Läkaresällskapet. CNS was supported by American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowships 15POST24470131 and 17POST33650016. Charles N Rotimi is supported by Z01HG200362. Zhe Wang, Michael H Preuss, and Ruth JF Loos are supported by R01HL142302. NJT is a Wellcome Trust Investigator (202802/Z/16/Z), is the PI of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (MRC & WT 217065/Z/19/Z), is supported by the University of Bristol NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC-1215–2001) and the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit (MC_UU_00011), and works within the CRUK Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme (C18281/A19169). Ruth E Mitchell is a member of the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol funded by the MRC (MC_UU_00011/1). Simon Haworth is supported by the UK National Institute for Health Research Academic Clinical Fellowship. Paul S. de Vries was supported by American Heart Association grant number 18CDA34110116. Julia Ramierz acknowledges support by the People Programme of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme grant n° 608765 and Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant n° 786833. Maria Sabater-Lleal is supported by a Miguel Servet contract from the ISCIII Spanish Health Institute (CP17/00142) and co-financed by the European Social Fund. Jian Yang is funded by the Westlake Education Foundation. Olga Giannakopoulou has received funding from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) (FS/14/66/3129). CHARGE Consortium cohorts were supported by R01HL105756. Study-specific acknowledgements are available in the Additional file 32: Supplementary Note. The views expressed in this manuscript are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; the National Institutes of Health; or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis

Abstract Background Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery. Results To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N = 1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3–5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism. Conclusions Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk

Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis

Publisher Copyright: © 2022, The Author(s).Background: Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery. Results: To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N = 1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3–5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism. Conclusions: Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk.Peer reviewe

Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis

Background: Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery. Results: To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N = 1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3–5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism. Conclusions: Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk.GMP, PN, and CW are supported by NHLBI R01HL127564. GMP and PN are supported by R01HL142711. AG acknowledge support from the Wellcome Trust (201543/B/16/Z), European Union Seventh Framework Programme FP7/2007–2013 under grant agreement no. HEALTH-F2-2013–601456 (CVGenes@Target) & the TriPartite Immunometabolism Consortium [TrIC]-Novo Nordisk Foundation’s Grant number NNF15CC0018486. JMM is supported by American Diabetes Association Innovative and Clinical Translational Award 1–19-ICTS-068. SR was supported by the Academy of Finland Center of Excellence in Complex Disease Genetics (Grant No 312062), the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research, the Sigrid Juselius Foundation, and University of Helsinki HiLIFE Fellow and Grand Challenge grants. EW was supported by the Finnish innovation fund Sitra (EW) and Finska Läkaresällskapet. CNS was supported by American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowships 15POST24470131 and 17POST33650016. Charles N Rotimi is supported by Z01HG200362. Zhe Wang, Michael H Preuss, and Ruth JF Loos are supported by R01HL142302. NJT is a Wellcome Trust Investigator (202802/Z/16/Z), is the PI of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (MRC & WT 217065/Z/19/Z), is supported by the University of Bristol NIHR Biomedical Research Centre (BRC-1215–2001) and the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit (MC_UU_00011), and works within the CRUK Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme (C18281/A19169). Ruth E Mitchell is a member of the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol funded by the MRC (MC_UU_00011/1). Simon Haworth is supported by the UK National Institute for Health Research Academic Clinical Fellowship. Paul S. de Vries was supported by American Heart Association grant number 18CDA34110116. Julia Ramierz acknowledges support by the People Programme of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme grant n° 608765 and Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant n° 786833. Maria Sabater-Lleal is supported by a Miguel Servet contract from the ISCIII Spanish Health Institute (CP17/00142) and co-financed by the European Social Fund. Jian Yang is funded by the Westlake Education Foundation. Olga Giannakopoulou has received funding from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) (FS/14/66/3129). CHARGE Consortium cohorts were supported by R01HL105756. Study-specific acknowledgements are available in the Additional file 32: Supplementary Note. The views expressed in this manuscript are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; the National Institutes of Health; or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Molecular and Immunological Evaluation of Some Bacteria Causing Calf Diarrhea

One issue that intensive farming has to deal with is neonatal calf diarrhea, and probiotics are seen to be a viable solution to improve the health of calves. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of short-term administration of an antibiotic or probiotic to diarrheal calves on total leukocytic count, serum bactericidal activity, and phagocytosis, as well as to identify potential bacteria that may cause calf diarrhea in early life stages. 55 diarrheal calves, ranging in age from 1 to 20 days, were sampled for feces at a private dairy farm in the Sharkia governorate. E. coli, Salmonella spp., and Clostridium species were among the isolated bacteria, with prevalence rates of 58.2%, 8%, and 12%, respectively. The O26, O111, O119, O128 and O125 serogroups of E. coli isolates were the identified serotypes. While S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis were the recovered Salmonella serotypes. The results of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) showed that the invA gene was amplified in the four salmonella isolates but the phoA gene was amplified in all E. coli isolates. Since only the alpha toxin gene was present in each isolate of C. perfringens, they were all type A. Antibiogram test results showed that most isolated species were multi-drug resistant to the ten commonly used antibiotics. On the other hand, isolates of E. coli, salmonella, and clostridium that demonstrated sensitivity for amoxicillin with percentages of 93.3%, 100%, and 66.7%, respectively, represented the medicine that was most successful. Regardless of infection, probiotic or antibiotic treatment, the total leukocytic count values in all diarrheal calves were considerably greater than those in the control group. Serum bactericidal activity in probiotic-treated calves was significantly higher than in the control and antibiotic-treated groups, while it was significantly lower in the antibiotic-treated group. Calf polymorphonuclear leukocytes treated with antibiotics or probiotics had considerably increased phagocytic activity than the control group. In conclusion, probiotics supplementation is an effective strategy for the prevention and control of calf diarrhea

Impact of the Poor Oral Health Status of Children on Their Families: An Analytical Cross-Sectional Study

The impact of poor oral health may not just be limited to the children themselves but can impact their families. The current study aims to perform psychometric analyses of the Arabic version of the Family Impact Scale and investigate the association of its domains with the oral health status of children. This cross-sectional study was carried out in a sample of 500 parent-child dyads from high schools of Jazan city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Arabic version of the Family Impact Scale was subjected to reliability and validity tests. The explanatory variables in the current study are: the oral health status, parents combined income, parents’ education, age and sex of the child. The descriptive analysis was reported using proportions, this was followed by the bivariate and multivariable analyses. About 24.2% of children were reported to have fair, poor, and very poor oral health. A lower frequency of family impact corresponded with better oral health (OH) status of children (p < 0.001). The likelihood of parent’s taking time off from work and having financial difficulties was nearly two-times greater if their children had poor oral health. Similarly, interruption in sleep and other normal activities of parents is four times and five times greater, respectively, if the child has poor oral health status. Thus, the poor oral health of school children in the Jazan region of Saudi Arabia is a matter of grave concern as it is observed to be associated with family impacts; particularly affecting the parent’s work, sleep, and other normal family activities

Author Correction:The power of genetic diversity in genome-wide association studies of lipids

In the version of this article initially published, Noha A. Yousri (Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha, Qatar and Department of Computer and Systems Engineering, Alexandria University, Egypt) and Steven C. Hunt (Department of Internal Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA and Department of Genetic Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Doha, Qatar) were not included in the author list. In addition, Hieab H. H. Adams (Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands and Department of Clinical Genetics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands) was shown with an incorrect second affiliation in the HTML and PDF versions of the article. Finally, in the HTML version, Cristen J. Willer was mistakenly listed with an extra affiliation (Princess Al-Jawhara Al-Brahim Centre of Excellence in Research of Hereditary Disorders (PACER-HD), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia). The authors and affiliations have been corrected in the HTML and PDF versions of the article

A comprehensive health effects assessment of the use of sanitizers and disinfectants during COVID-19 pandemic: a global survey

COVID-19 has affected all aspects of human life so far. From the outset of the pandemic, preventing the spread of COVID-19 through the observance of health protocols, especially the use of sanitizers and disinfectants was given more attention. Despite the effectiveness of disinfection chemicals in controlling and preventing COVID-19, there are critical concerns about their adverse effects on human health. This study aims to assess the health effects of sanitizers and disinfectants on a global scale. A total of 91,056 participants from 154 countries participated in this cross-sectional study. Information on the use of sanitizers and disinfectants and health was collected using an electronic questionnaire, which was translated into 26 languages via web-based platforms. The findings of this study suggest that detergents, alcohol-based substances, and chlorinated compounds emerged as the most prevalent chemical agents compared to other sanitizers and disinfectants examined. Most frequently reported health issues include skin effects and respiratory effects. The Chi-square test showed a significant association between chlorinated compounds (sodium hypochlorite and per-chlorine) with all possible health effects under investigation (p-value <0.001). Examination of risk factors based on multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that alcohols and alcohols-based materials were associated with skin effects (OR, 1.98; 95%CI, 1.87-2.09), per-chlorine was associated with eye effects (OR, 1.83; 95%CI, 1.74-1.93), and highly likely with itching and throat irritation (OR, 2.00; 95%CI, 1.90-2.11). Furthermore, formaldehyde was associated with a higher prevalence of neurological effects (OR, 2.17; 95%CI, 1.92-2.44). Furthermore, formaldehyde was associated with a higher prevalence of neurological effects (OR, 2.17; 95%CI, 1.92-2.44). The use of sodium hypochlorite and per-chlorine also had a high chance of having respiratory effects. The findings of the current study suggest that health authorities need to implement more awareness programs about the side effects of using sanitizers and disinfectants during viral epidemics especially when they are used or overused