Effect of individual-level and socioeconomic factors on long-term survival after cataract surgery over a 30-year period

Purpose: To evaluate survival and the risk for mortality after cataract surgery in relation to individual-level and socioeconomic factors in Scotland over 3 decades. Setting: Linked healthcare data, United Kingdom. Design: Representative population-based study. Methods: A 5% random sample of Scottish decedents linked to hospital records (1981 to 2012) was assessed. Survival time, survival probability, and determinants of mortality were evaluated after the first and second recorded hospital episodes for cataract surgery. Cox proportional-hazards regression models were used to assess the effect of individual-level and socioeconomic factors including age, geographic location, socioeconomic status, and comorbidity on mortality. Results: The study evaluated linked administrative healthcare data from 9228 deceased patients who had cataract surgery. The mean survival time was 2383 days ± 1853 (SD). The survival probability decreased from 98% 90 days after surgery to 22% at 10 years, 2% at 20 years, and 0% after 30 years. The mean age was 77 ± 9 years. Age (hazard ratio [HR] 3.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.97-3.80; P < .001) and severe comorbidity (HR 1.68; 95% CI, 1.47-1.91; P < .001) were associated with an increased risk for mortality; women had a 20% lower risk than men (HR 0.80; 95% CI, 0.76-0.83; P < .001). Socioeconomic status and rural geographic locations were not linked to mortality. Conclusions: Long-term survival after cataract surgery was determined by individual-level characteristics reflecting the mortality patterns of aging populations. The mortality risk was independent of socioeconomic and geographic factors per se

Semimetallic behavior in Heusler-type Ru2TaAl and thermoelectric performance improved by off-stoichiometry

We report a study of the temperature-dependent electrical resistivity, Seebeck coefficient, thermal conductivity, specific heat, and Al27 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in Heusler-type Ru2TaAl, to shed light on its semimetallic behavior. While the temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity exhibits semiconductorlike behavior, the analysis of low-temperature specific heat reveals a residual Fermi-level density of states (DOS). Both observations can be realized by means of a semimetallic scenario with the Fermi energy located in the pseudogap of the electronic DOS. The NMR Knight shift and spin-lattice relaxation rate show activated behavior at higher temperatures, attributing to the thermally excited carriers across a pseudogap in Ru2TaAl. From the first-principles band structure calculations, we further provide a clear picture that an indirect overlap between electron and hole pockets is responsible for the formation of a pseudogap in the vicinity of the Fermi level of Ru2TaAl. In addition, an effort for improving the thermoelectric performance of Ru2TaAl has been made by investigating the thermoelectric properties of Ru1.95Ta1.05Al. We found significant enhancements in the electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient and marked reduction in the thermal conductivity via the off-stoichiomet ric approach. This leads to an increase in the figure-of-merit ZT value from 6.1×10-4 in Ru2TaAl to 3.4×10-3 in Ru1.95Ta1.05Al at room temperature. In this respect, a further improvement of thermoelectric performance based on Ru2TaAl through other off-stoichiometric attempts is highly probable

GWAS for discovery and replication of genetic loci associated with sudden cardiac arrest in patients with coronary artery disease

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Epidemiologic evidence suggests a heritable component to risk for sudden cardiac arrest independent of risk for myocardial infarction. Recent candidate gene association studies for community sudden cardiac arrests have focused on a limited number of biological pathways and yielded conflicting results. We sought to identify novel gene associations for sudden cardiac arrest in patients with coronary artery disease by performing a genome-wide association study.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Tagging SNPs (n = 338,328) spanning the genome were typed in a case-control study comparing 89 patients with coronary artery disease and sudden cardiac arrest due to ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation to 520 healthy controls.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fourteen SNPs including 7 SNPs among 7 genes (ACYP2, AP1G2, ESR1, DGES2, GRIA1, KCTD1, ZNF385B) were associated with sudden cardiac arrest (all p < 1.30 × 10^-7), following Bonferroni correction and adjustment for population substructure, age, and sex; genetic variation in ESR1 (p = 2.62 × 10^-8; Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.277, 1.596) has previously been established as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In tandem, the role of 9 genes for monogenic long QT syndrome (LQT1-9) was assessed, yielding evidence of association with CACNA1C (LQT8; p = 3.09 × 10^-4; OR = 1.18, 95% CI:1.079, 1.290). We also assessed 4 recently published gene associations for sudden cardiac arrest, validating NOS1AP (p = 4.50 × 10^-2, OR = 1.15, 95% CI:1.003, 1.326), CSMD2 (p = 6.6 × 10^-3, OR = 2.27, 95% CI:1.681, 2.859), and AGTR1 (p = 3.00 × 10^-3, OR = 1.13, 95% CI:1.042, 1.215).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We demonstrate 11 gene associations for sudden cardiac arrest due to ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation in patients with coronary artery disease. Validation studies in independent cohorts and functional studies are required to confirm these associations.</p

Adenosine A2A receptor modulation of hippocampal CA3-CA1 synapse plasticity during associative learning in behaving mice

© 2009 Nature Publishing Group All rights reservedPrevious in vitro studies have characterized the electrophysiological and molecular signaling pathways of adenosine tonic modulation on long-lasting synaptic plasticity events, particularly for hippocampal long-term potentiation(LTP). However, it remains to be elucidated whether the long-term changes produced by endogenous adenosine in the efficiency of synapses are related to those required for learning and memory formation. Our goal was to understand how endogenous activation of adenosine excitatory A2A receptors modulates the associative learning evolution in conscious behaving mice. We have studied here the effects of the application of a highly selective A2A receptor antagonist, SCH58261, upon a well-known associative learning paradigm - classical eyeblink conditioning. We used a trace paradigm, with a tone as the conditioned stimulus (CS) and an electric shock presented to the supraorbital nerve as the unconditioned stimulus(US). A single electrical pulse was presented to the Schaffer collateral–commissural pathway to evoke field EPSPs (fEPSPs) in the pyramidal CA1 area during the CS–US interval. In vehicle-injected animals, there was a progressive increase in the percentage of conditioning responses (CRs) and in the slope of fEPSPs through conditioning sessions, an effect that was completely prevented (and lost) in SCH58261 (0.5 mg/kg, i.p.)-injected animals. Moreover, experimentally evoked LTP was impaired in SCH58261- injected mice. In conclusion, the endogenous activation of adenosine A2A receptors plays a pivotal effect on the associative learning process and its relevant hippocampal circuits, including activity-dependent changes at the CA3-CA1 synapse.This study was supported by grants from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Research (BFU2005-01024 and BFU2005-02512), Spanish Junta de Andalucía (BIO-122 and CVI-02487), and the Fundación Conocimiento y Cultura of the Pablo de Olavide University (Seville, Spain).B. Fontinha was in receipt of a studentship from a project grant (POCI/SAU-NEU/56332/2004) supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal), and of an STSM from Cost B30 concerted action of the EU

Trait evaluation and trial cultivation of Dongfang No. 2, the hybrid of a male gametophyte clone of Laminaria longissima (Laminariales, Phaeophyta) and a female one of L. japonica

Direct cultivation of the first filial generation of gametophyte clones from different Laminaria species is a highly effective way of utilizing kelp heterozygous vigor (heterosis). A male gametophyte clone of L. longissima Miyabe and a female one of L. japonica Areschoug were hybridized, generating Dongfang No. 2 hybrid kelp. This hybrid kelp was used directly in trial cultivation, and its agronomical traits were evaluated. L. longissima and L. japonica are obviously different and complement each other in their morphological characteristics and ecological performances. The hybrid of their gametophyte clones, Dongfang No. 2, showed 56.8% heterozygous vigor in yield. It also showed increased yields of 41.0 and 76.4% compared to the widely used commercial kelps Variety 1 and Variety 2, respectively. In large-scale cultivation trials at different locations and in different years, Dongfang No. 2 attained significantly higher yields than Varieties 1 and 2, increasing yield by 26.4% on average over Variety 1 and by 65.0% over the other. Dongfang No. 2 has a robust holdfast and a wide, long and deep-brown uniform blade, which shows a distinct middle groove. In addition to yield, Dongfang No. 2 also demonstrates obvious heterozygous vigor in other agronomic traits. It is resistant to strong irradiance, as the two commercial varieties are, has an appropriate vegetative maturation time, and adapts well to a range of different culture conditions. The parentage analysis using AFLP of total DNA and SNP of the ITS region of ribosomal RNA transcription unit showed that Dongfang No. 2 is the real hybrid of L. japonica and L. longissima

Data and Image Transfer Using Mobile Phones to Strengthen Microscopy-Based Diagnostic Services in Low and Middle Income Country Laboratories

Background: The emerging market of mobile phone technology and its use in the health sector is rapidly expanding and connecting even the most remote areas of world. Distributing diagnostic images over the mobile network for knowledge sharing, feedback or quality control is a logical innovation. Objective: To determine the feasibility of using mobile phones for capturing microscopy images and transferring these to a central database for assessment, feedback and educational purposes. Methods: A feasibility study was carried out in Uganda. Images of microscopy samples were taken using a prototype connector that could fix a variety of mobile phones to a microscope. An Information Technology (IT) platform was set up for data transfer from a mobile phone to a website, including feedback by text messaging to the end user. Results: Clear images were captured using mobile phone cameras of 2 megapixels (MP) up to 5MP. Images were sent by mobile Internet to a website where they were visualized and feedback could be provided to the sender by means of text message. Conclusion: The process of capturing microscopy images on mobile phones, relaying them to a central review website and feeding back to the sender is feasible and of potential benefit in resource poor settings. Even though the system needs furthe

Difference-based clustering of short time-course microarray data with replicates

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There are some limitations associated with conventional clustering methods for short time-course gene expression data. The current algorithms require prior domain knowledge and do not incorporate information from replicates. Moreover, the results are not always easy to interpret biologically.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We propose a novel algorithm for identifying a subset of genes sharing a significant temporal expression pattern when replicates are used. Our algorithm requires no prior knowledge, instead relying on an observed statistic which is based on the first and second order differences between adjacent time-points. Here, a pattern is predefined as the sequence of symbols indicating direction and the rate of change between time-points, and each gene is assigned to a cluster whose members share a similar pattern. We evaluated the performance of our algorithm to those of K-means, Self-Organizing Map and the Short Time-series Expression Miner methods.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Assessments using simulated and real data show that our method outperformed aforementioned algorithms. Our approach is an appropriate solution for clustering short time-course microarray data with replicates.</p

UDP-glucuronosyltransferase UGT1A7 genetic polymorphisms in hepatocellular carcinoma: a differential impact according to seropositivity of HBV or HCV markers?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background:</p> <p>We conducted a case-control study to evaluate the role of UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1A7 (UGT1A7) polymorphisms in the onset of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).</p> <p>Methods:</p> <p>The study included 165 patients with HCC, 134 with cirrhosis and 142 controls without liver disease, matched for age and hospital. All were men younger than 75 years. HCC and cirrhosis patients were stratified according to time since cirrhosis diagnosis.</p> <p>Results:</p> <p>We found a positive association between the UGT1A7*3/*3 genotype and HCC when the comparison was restricted to patients whose disease was of viral origin [OR = 3.4 (0.3–45)] but a negative association when it included only alcoholic patients [OR = 0.1 (0.02–0.6), p = 0.01].</p> <p>Conclusion:</p> <p>Our study shows that UGT1A7 may play a role in hepatocellular carcinogenesis and that this role may differ according to the primary cause of the cirrhosis.</p

Long-Distance Signals Are Required for Morphogenesis of the Regenerating Xenopus Tadpole Tail, as Shown by Femtosecond-Laser Ablation

tadpoles has recently emerged as an important model for these studies; we explored the role of the spinal cord during tadpole tail regeneration.Using ultrafast lasers to ablate cells, and Geometric Morphometrics to quantitatively analyze regenerate morphology, we explored the influence of different cell populations. For at least twenty-four hours after amputation (hpa), laser-induced damage to the dorsal midline affected the morphology of the regenerated tail; damage induced 48 hpa or later did not. Targeting different positions along the anterior-posterior (AP) axis caused different shape changes in the regenerate. Interestingly, damaging two positions affected regenerate morphology in a qualitatively different way than did damaging either position alone. Quantitative comparison of regenerate shapes provided strong evidence against a gradient and for the existence of position-specific morphogenetic information along the entire AP axis.We infer that there is a conduit of morphology-influencing information that requires a continuous dorsal midline, particularly an undamaged spinal cord. Contrary to expectation, this information is not in a gradient and it is not localized to the regeneration bud. We present a model of morphogenetic information flow from tissue undamaged by amputation and conclude that studies of information coming from far outside the amputation plane and regeneration bud will be critical for understanding regeneration and for translating fundamental understanding into biomedical approaches