Association between Genetic Variants of GC Gene at 4q13.3 and Vitamin D Concentrations in Adult Females

Background: Vitamin D binding protein, encoded by the GC gene (on 4q13.3), plays an important role in transporting vitamin D. Several Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWASs) have established a significant association between variants of GC gene and circulating vitamin D. Objective: This study aims to determine the association of GC gene polymorphisms with vitamin D concentrations in young healthy Arab females. Methodology: 214 female subjects from Qatar University were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The cut-off value for optimal vitamin D levels was set at 30 ng/mL. The serum vitamin D was measured using ELISA, the genotyping of SNPs (rs2298850, rs3755967, rs2282679, rs7041, rs1155563, and rs17467825) of GC gene was performed by TaqMan assay, and the data was analyzed using SPSS software. Results: The mean age of 214 participants was found to be 21.97 years. Of these, only 182 subjects were included in this study. The data showed that 14.8% were found to have optimal vitamin D levels and 85.2% with suboptimal levels. All studied SNPs were in HWE except SNPs rs7041 and rs1155563. Using the dominant model for rs2298850, the odds ratio to have low vitamin D is 1.48 (p=0.419). Similarly, rs3755967 has a risk of 1.62 (p=0.294); rs2282679 has an odds ratio of 1.32 (p=0.549); and rs17467825 with a risk of 1.48 (p=0.40). The genotypes for vitamin D levels had no significant difference (p>0.05) for all study subjects. Conclusion: The current data showed no significant association between risk alleles of SNPs (rs2298850, rs3755967, rs2282679, rs7041, rs1155563, and rs17467825) with vitamin D levels. Keywords: Vitamin D deficiency; 25-hydroxyvitamin D; GC gene; Vitamin D binding protein; SNPs Abbreviations: 25-hydroxyvitamin D/calcifediol (25-(OH)D); 1, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D/calcitriol (1,25-(OH)2D); Vitamin D Binding Protein (DBP); Group-specific Component (GC); Ultraviolet radiation B(UVB); Vitamin D Receptor (VDR); Retinoid X Receptor (RXR); Parathyroid Hormone (PTH); DNase Hypersensitivity Site (HSIV); Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP); Chemiluminescent Immunoassay (CLIA); Chemiluminescent- Microparticle Immunoassay (CMIA); Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA); High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC); Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS); Body Mass Index (BMI); Overweight and Obese (OWOB); Waist Circumference (WC); Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL); High Density Lipoprotein (HDL); Triglycerides (TG); Interleukin-6 (IL-6); Minor Allele Frequency (MAF); Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE); Confidence Intervals (CI); Analysis of Variance (ANOVA

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

Will AUC reflect the society\u27s Islamic affiliations?

The Egyptian society is getting more and more religious oriented and the Islamic movements are taking more power after the 25th of January revolution. But is The American University in Cairo going to be affected? Is the elite’s school, the so called “bubble” going to reflect these affiliations

Look-alike and sound-alike medicines: risks and 'solutions'

'Look-alike, sound-alike' medicines are associated with dispensing errors. This commentary aims to fuel discussion surrounding how drug name nomenclature and similar packaging between medicines can lead to selection errors, the need for enhanced approval systems for medicine names and packaging, and best practice 'solutions'. The literature reveals a number of environmental risks and human factors that can contribute to such errors. To contextualise these risks, we interviewed 13 quality and safety experts, psycholinguists, and hospital and community pharmacy practitioners in Australia, and commissioned a medical software industry expert to conceptualise electronic initiatives. Environmental factors contributing to such errors, identified through both the literature and interviews, include distractions during dispensing; workflow controls should minimise the 'human factors' element of errors. Technological solutions with some support, and yet recognised limitations, include font variations, automated alerts, barcode scanning and realtime reporting programmed into dispensing software; further development of these initiatives is recommended

Knowledge, perceptions, and practices regarding cooking and storage of olive oil: A consumer survey in Lebanon

Background: Olive oil consumption and production are evident among Lebanese households, yet little is known about the knowledge, perceptions, and practices of Lebanese consumers of olive oil. Methods: A total of 610 adolescents and adults who consume olive oil were surveyed using a semi-qualitative questionnaire comprising 47 questions between August 2022 and May 2023. Descriptive analyses of knowledge, perceptions, and practices were conducted in addition to a regression analysis of the predictors of higher knowledge. Results: 610 participants were included (61.0 % aged <25 years, and 71.5 % females; 53.8 % olive oil producers). Mainly, participants bought their olive oil once (37.0 %) and in bulk (52.8 %), utilized olive oil daily (55.1 %), and used approximately 2 teaspoons per day (27.4 %). In addition, 29.5 % of the participants’ households consumed more than 30 L per year. Most participants described olive oil as ‘fresh’ (66.1 %), expressed a strong preference for domestic olive oil over imported varieties (66.1 %), believed that olive oil is good for consumption without cooking, other oils/fats are better to cook (53.4 %), and 53.1 % favored olive oil based on its color. Regarding storage, 76 % stored olive oil in a closed cabinet, and 36.6 % used tinplate containers. Half the participants were not concerned about the oil being adulterated (50.2 %); 73.4 % trusted olive mills, and 33.1 % had no trust at all in public food safety authorities concerning olive oil and table olives. Finally, 37.2 % considered that the price of olive oil was high relative to other fats and oils. The mean knowledge score ± standard deviation (SD) was 7.33 ± 2.71 over 10. Higher age than 25 years, male gender, living in the South or Bekaa, being married, having a higher reported BMI, obtaining olive oil from self/family/known sources and olive oil mills, purchasing in bulk, and storing in opaque glass containers colored green, or brown were positively associated with knowledge of olive oil. Conclusion: Our study reveals high consumption of olive oil but poor related knowledge and practices among consumers. Consumer education programs on olive oil and relevant practices are warranted, especially for young, female, people living in Beirut, single, and lean individuals. Addressing consumer concerns regarding adulteration and strengthening trust in public food safety authorities are needed

Comparative HPTLC study for simultaneous determination of ivabradine and metoprolol using UV and fluorescence detectors

Abstract New, simple, accurate, sensitive and validated high performance thin layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method coupled with UV absorbance mode and fluorescence (FL) detectors which were used for simultaneous determination of ivabradine (IVA) and metoprolol (MET) in their bulk and pharmaceutical dosage form using TLC silica 60 F254 plates and non-fluorescent TLC silica gel 60 plates. The developing system was chloroform: methanol: formic acid: ammonia (8.5:1.5:0.2:0.1, v/v). Desnitometric analysis in UV absorbance mode was set at λ = 275 nm. While, fluorescence mode was performed with excitation at 260 nm for quantitative simultaneous determination of IVA and MET using optical filter K320. The retention factors values were 0.45 ± 0.05 and 0.89 ± 0.01 of IVA and MET, respectively. UV absorbance mode, linearity was 50.0–600.0 ng/band for IVA and 50.0–900.0 ng/band for MET. For fluorescence mode, the linearity ranges were 18.0–400.0 ng/band and 50.0–550.0 ng/band for IVA and MET; respectively. ICH guidelines were followed in respect to linearity and range, accuracy, precision and selectivity, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ) and robustness. The analytical eco-scale, green analytical procedure index (GAPI) and analytical greenness metric tools were used to assess the suggested method. The quantitative proposed method results showed there was no statistically significant difference at 95% confidence when compared to the reported method of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)