Mitochondrial and nuclear genes suggest that stony corals are monophyletic but most families of stony corals are not (Order Scleractinia, Class Anthozoa, Phylum Cnidaria)

Modern hard corals (Class Hexacorallia; Order Scleractinia) are widely studied because of their fundamental role in reef building and their superb fossil record extending back to the Triassic. Nevertheless, interpretations of their evolutionary relationships have been in flux for over a decade. Recent analyses undermine the legitimacy of traditional suborders, families and genera, and suggest that a non-skeletal sister clade (Order Corallimorpharia) might be imbedded within the stony corals. However, these studies either sampled a relatively limited array of taxa or assembled trees from heterogeneous data sets. Here we provide a more comprehensive analysis of Scleractinia (127 species, 75 genera, 17 families) and various outgroups, based on two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome oxidase I, cytochrome b), with analyses of nuclear genes (ßtubulin, ribosomal DNA) of a subset of taxa to test unexpected relationships. Eleven of 16 families were found to be polyphyletic. Strikingly, over one third of all families as conventionally defined contain representatives from the highly divergent "robust" and "complex" clades. However, the recent suggestion that corallimorpharians are true corals that have lost their skeletons was not upheld. Relationships were supported not only by mitochondrial and nuclear genes, but also often by morphological characters which had been ignored or never noted previously. The concordance of molecular characters and more carefully examined morphological characters suggests a future of greater taxonomic stability, as well as the potential to trace the evolutionary history of this ecologically important group using fossils

Impact of EMA regulatory label changes on systemic diclofenac initiation, discontinuation, and switching to other pain medicines in Scotland, England, Denmark, and The Netherlands

PURPOSE: In June 2013 a European Medicines Agency referral procedure concluded that diclofenac was associated with an elevated risk of acute cardiovascular events and contraindications, warnings, and changes to the product information were implemented across the European Union. This study measured the impact of the regulatory action on the prescribing of systemic diclofenac in Denmark, The Netherlands, England, and Scotland. METHODS: Quarterly time series analyses measuring diclofenac prescription initiation, discontinuation and switching to other systemic nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory (NSAIDs), topical NSAIDs, paracetamol, opioids, and other chronic pain medication in those who discontinued diclofenac. Absolute effects were estimated using interrupted time series regression. RESULTS: Overall, diclofenac prescription initiations fell during the observation periods of all countries. Compared with Denmark where there appeared to be a more limited effect, the regulatory action was associated with significant immediate reductions in diclofenac initiation in The Netherlands (−0.42%, 95% CI, −0.66% to −0.18%), England (−0.09%, 95% CI, −0.11% to −0.08%), and Scotland (−0.67%, 95% CI, −0.79% to −0.55%); and falling trends in diclofenac initiation in the Netherlands (−0.03%, 95% CI, −0.06% to −0.01% per quarter) and Scotland (−0.04%, 95% CI, −0.05% to −0.02% per quarter). There was no significant impact on diclofenac discontinuation in any country. The regulatory action was associated with modest differences in switching to other pain medicines following diclofenac discontinuation. CONCLUSIONS: The regulatory action was associated with significant reductions in overall diclofenac initiation which varied by country and type of exposure. There was no impact on discontinuation and variable impact on switching

Future Prospects for Periodontal Bioengineering Using Growth Factors

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142015/1/cap0088.pd

Personalized scaffolding technologies for alveolar bone regenerative medicine

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/149271/1/ocr12275.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/149271/2/ocr12275_am.pd

Environmental factors shaping the distribution of common wintering waterbirds in a lake ecosystem with developed shoreline

In this study, we tested whether the spatial distribution of waterbirds is influenced by shoreline urbanization or other habitat characteristics. We conducted monthly censuses along shoreline sections of a continental lake (Lake Balaton, Hungary) to assess the abundance of 11 common species that use this lake as a feeding and staging area during migration and winter. We estimated the degree of urbanization of the same shoreline sections and also measured other habitat characteristics (water depth, extent of reed cover, biomass of zebra mussels, distances to waste dumps and to other wetlands). We applied linear models and model averaging to identify habitat variables with high relative importance for predicting bird distributions. Bird abundance and urbanization were strongly related only in one species. Other habitat variables exhibited stronger relationships with bird distribution: (1) diving ducks and coots preferred shoreline sections with high zebra mussel biomass, (2) gulls preferred sites close to waste dumps, and (3) the abundances of several species were higher on shoreline sections close to other wetlands. Our findings suggest that the distribution of waterbirds on Lake Balaton is largely independent of shoreline urbanization and influenced by food availability and connectivity between wetlands

Genome-wide array comparative genomic hybridization analysis reveals distinct amplifications in osteosarcoma

BACKGROUND: Osteosarcoma is a highly malignant bone neoplasm of children and young adults. It is characterized by extremely complex karyotypes and high frequency of chromosomal amplifications. Currently, only the histological response (degree of necrosis) to therapy represent gold standard for predicting the outcome in a patient with non-metastatic osteosarcoma at the time of definitive surgery. Patients with lower degree of necrosis have a higher risk of relapse and poor outcome even after chemotherapy and complete resection of the primary tumor. Therefore, a better understanding of the underlying molecular genetic events leading to tumor initiation and progression could result in the identification of potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets. METHODS: We used a genome-wide screening method – array based comparative genomic hybridization (array-CGH) to identify DNA copy number changes in 48 patients with osteosarcoma. We applied fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to validate some of amplified clones in this study. RESULTS: Clones showing gains (79%) were more frequent than losses (66%). High-level amplifications and homozygous deletions constitute 28.6% and 3.8% of tumor genome respectively. High-level amplifications were present in 238 clones, of which about 37% of them showed recurrent amplification. Most frequently amplified clones were mapped to 1p36.32 (PRDM16), 6p21.1 (CDC5L, HSPCB, NFKBIE), 8q24, 12q14.3 (IFNG), 16p13 (MGRN1), and 17p11.2 (PMP22 MYCD, SOX1,ELAC27). We validated some of the amplified clones by FISH from 6p12-p21, 8q23-q24, and 17p11.2 amplicons. Homozygous deletions were noted for 32 clones and only 7 clones showed in more than one case. These 7 clones were mapped to 1q25.1 (4 cases), 3p14.1 (4 cases), 13q12.2 (2 cases), 4p15.1 (2 cases), 6q12 (2 cases), 6q12 (2 cases) and 6q16.3 (2 cases). CONCLUSIONS: This study clearly demonstrates the utility of array CGH in defining high-resolution DNA copy number changes and refining amplifications. The resolution of array CGH technology combined with human genome database suggested the possible target genes present in the gained or lost clones

The VEGF -634G>C promoter polymorphism is associated with risk of gastric cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Both TGF-β1 and VEGF play a critic role in the multiple-step process of tumorgenesis of gastric cancer. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the <it>TGFB1 </it>and <it>VEGF </it>genes have been associated with risk and progression of many cancers. In this study, we investigated the association between potentially functional SNPs of these two genes and risk of gastric cancer in a US population.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The risk associated with genotypes and haplotypes of four <it>TGFB1 </it>SNPs and four <it>VEGF </it>SNPs were determined by multivariate logistic regression analysis in 171 patients with gastric cancer and 353 cancer-free controls frequency-matched by age, sex and ethnicity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared with the <it>VEGF</it>-634GG genotype, the -634CG genotype and the combined -634CG+CC genotypes were associated with a significantly elevated risk of gastric cancer (adjusted OR = 1.88, 95% CI = 1.24-2.86 and adjusted OR = 1.56, 95% CI = 1.07-2.27, respectively). However, none of other <it>TGFB1 </it>and <it>VEGF </it>SNPs was associated with risk of gastric cancer.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data suggested that the <it>VEGF</it>-634G>C SNP may be a marker for susceptibility to gastric cancer, and this finding needs to be validated in larger studies.</p

Structural View of a Non Pfam Singleton and Crystal Packing Analysis

Comparative genomic analysis has revealed that in each genome a large number of open reading frames have no homologues in other species. Such singleton genes have attracted the attention of biochemists and structural biologists as a potential untapped source of new folds. Cthe_2751 is a 15.8 kDa singleton from an anaerobic, hyperthermophile Clostridium thermocellum. To gain insights into the architecture of the protein and obtain clues about its function, we decided to solve the structure of Cthe_2751.The protein crystallized in 4 different space groups that diffracted X-rays to 2.37 Å (P3(1)21), 2.17 Å (P2(1)2(1)2(1)), 3.01 Å (P4(1)22), and 2.03 Å (C222(1)) resolution, respectively. Crystal packing analysis revealed that the 3-D packing of Cthe_2751 dimers in P4(1)22 and C222(1) is similar with only a rotational difference of 2.69° around the C axes. A new method developed to quantify the differences in packing of dimers in crystals from different space groups corroborated the findings of crystal packing analysis. Cthe_2751 is an all α-helical protein with a central hydrophobic core providing thermal stability via π:cation and π: π interactions. A ProFunc analysis retrieved a very low match with a splicing endonuclease, suggesting a role for the protein in the processing of nucleic acids.Non-Pfam singleton Cthe_2751 folds into a known all α-helical fold. The structure has increased sequence coverage of non-Pfam proteins such that more protein sequences can be amenable to modelling. Our work on crystal packing analysis provides a new method to analyze dimers of the protein crystallized in different space groups. The utility of such an analysis can be expanded to oligomeric structures of other proteins, especially receptors and signaling molecules, many of which are known to function as oligomers

Cell‐ and Gene‐Based Therapeutic Strategies for Periodontal Regenerative Medicine

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142086/1/jper1223.pd

Biomonitoring of bisphenol A concentrations in maternal and umbilical cord blood in regard to birth outcomes and adipokine expression: a birth cohort study in Taiwan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bisphenol A (BPA) is a sealant and flux of plastic materials and has been determined to be an endocrine-disrupting chemical. Prenatal exposure to BPA can lead to substantial adverse effects on fetal growth and development. This study was conducted to assess BPA concentration in pregnant women and umbilical cord blood, and to investigate whether maternal BPA exposure affected fetal outcomes including lower birth weight (LBW), smaller size for gestational age (SGA), and high leptin (HLP) and low adiponectin (LAD) secretion.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We measured the BPA levels of maternal blood (n = 97) and umbilical cord blood (n = 97) with a high-performance liquid chromatography/UV detector. The protein secretion of leptin and adiponectin were separately determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A logistic regression was performed to estimate the effects of maternal exposure to BPA on LBW, SGA, and adverse action of adipokines in newborns.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The geometric means of BPA concentration in maternal blood and fetal cord blood were 2.5 ng/ml and 0.5 ng/ml, respectively. Elevated risks of LBW (OR 2.42, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.72-3.36), SGA (OR 2.01, 95% CI 1.39-3.01), and adverse action of leptin (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.12-2.25) and adiponectin (OR 1.25, 95% CI 1.52-3.97) were observed in male neonates in the highest quartile of maternal BPA exposure.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Elevated prenatal BPA exposure increased the risk of LBW, SGA, and adverse actions of adipokines in neonates, especially in male infants. These results provide further evidence that maternal exposure is correlated with adverse birth outcomes.</p