Antibody to P. falciparum in Pregnancy Varies with Intermittent Preventive Treatment Regime and Bed Net Use

Antibodies towards placental-binding P. falciparum are thought to protect against pregnancy malaria; however, environmental factors may affect antibody development.Using plasma from pregnant Malawian women, we measured IgG against placental-binding P. falciparum parasites by flow cytometry, and related results to intermittent preventive treatment (IPTp) regime, and bed net use. Bed net use was associated with decreased antibody levels at mid-pregnancy but not at 1 month post partum (1 mpp). At 1 mpp a more intensive IPTp regime was associated with decreased antibody levels in primigravidae, but not multigravidae.Results suggest bed nets and IPTp regime influence acquisition of pregnancy-specific P. falciparum immunity

Genomic prediction of grain yield in a barley MAGIC population modelling genotype per environment interaction

Multi-parent Advanced Generation Inter-crosses (MAGIC) lines have mosaic genomes that are generated shuffling the genetic material of the founder parents following predefined crossing schemes. In cereal crops, these experimental populations have been extensively used to investigate the genetic bases of several traits and dissect the genetic bases of epistasis. In plants, genomic prediction models are usually fitted using either diverse panels of mostly unrelated accessions or individuals of biparental families and several empirical analyses have been conducted to evaluate the predictive ability of models fitted to these populations using different traits. In this paper, we constructed, genotyped and evaluated a barley MAGIC population of 352 individuals developed with a diverse set of eight founder parents showing contrasting phenotypes for grain yield. We combined phenotypic and genotypic information of this MAGIC population to fit several genomic prediction models which were cross-validated to conduct empirical analyses aimed at examining the predictive ability of these models varying the sizes of training populations. Moreover, several methods to optimize the composition of the training population were also applied to this MAGIC population and cross-validated to estimate the resulting predictive ability. Finally, extensive phenotypic data generated in field trials organized across an ample range of water regimes and climatic conditions in the Mediterranean were used to fit and cross-validate multi-environment genomic prediction models including GE interaction, using both genomic best linear unbiased prediction and reproducing kernel Hilbert space along with a non-linear Gaussian Kernel. Overall, our empirical analyses showed that genomic prediction models trained with a limited number of MAGIC lines can be used to predict grain yield with values of predictive ability that vary from 0.25 to 0.60 and that beyond QTL mapping and analysis of epistatic effects, MAGIC population might be used to successfully fit genomic prediction models. We concluded that for grain yield, the single-environment genomic prediction models examined in this study are equivalent in terms of predictive ability while, in general, multi-environment models that explicitly split marker effects in main and environmentalspecific effects outperform simpler multi-environment models

Enhancing lepton flavour violation in the supersymmetric inverse seesaw beyond the dipole contribution

In minimal supersymmetric models the $Z$-penguin usually provides sub-dominant contributions to charged lepton flavour violating observables. In this study, we consider the supersymmetric inverse seesaw in which the non-minimal particle content allows for dominant contributions of the $Z$-penguin to several lepton flavour violating observables. In particular, and due to the low-scale (TeV) seesaw, the penguin contribution to, for instance, \Br(\mu \to 3e) and $\mu-e$ conversion in nuclei, allows to render some of these observables within future sensitivity reach. Moreover, we show that in this framework, the $Z$-penguin exhibits the same non-decoupling behaviour which had previously been identified in flavour violating Higgs decays in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, 4 tables; v2: minor corrections, version to appear in JHE

Endothelial nitric oxide synthase gene polymorphism (Glu298Asp) and development of pre-eclampsia: a case-control study and a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Pre-eclampsia is thought to have an important genetic component. Recently, pre-eclampsia has been associated in some studies with carriage of a common eNOS gene Glu298Asp polymorphism, a variant that leads to the replacement of glutamic acid by aspartic acid at codon 298. METHOD: Healthy women with singleton pregnancies were recruited from 7 district general hospitals in London, UK. Women at high risk of pre-eclampsia were screened by uterine artery Doppler velocimetry at 22–24 weeks of gestation and maternal blood was obtained to genotype the eNOS Glu298Asp polymorphism. Odds ratios (OR) and 95%CI, using logistic regression methods, were obtained to evaluate the association between the Glu298Asp polymorphism and pre-eclampsia. A meta-analysis was then undertaken of all published studies up to November 2005 examining the association of eNOS Glu298Asp genotype and pre-eclampsia. RESULTS: 89 women with pre-eclampsia and 349 controls were included in the new study. The Glu298Asp polymorphism in a recessive model was not significantly associated with pre-eclampsia (adjusted-OR: 0.83 [95%CI: 0.30–2.25]; p = 0.7). In the meta-analysis, under a recessive genetic model (1129 cases & 2384 controls) women homozygous for the Asp298 allele were not at significantly increased risk of pre-eclampsia (OR: 1.28 [95%CI: 0.76–2.16]; p = 0.34). A dominant model (1334 cases & 2894 controls) was associated with no increase of risk of pre-eclampsia for women carriers of the Asp298 allele (OR: 1.12 [95%CI: 0.84–1.49]; p = 0.42). CONCLUSION: From the data currently available, the eNOS Glu298Asp polymorphism is not associated with a significant increased risk of pre-eclampsia. However, published studies have been underpowered, much larger studies are needed to confirm or refute a realistic genotypic risk of disease, but which might contribute to many cases of pre-eclampsia in the population

Phytoplankton dynamics in relation to seasonal variability and upwelling and relaxation patterns at the mouth of Ria de Aveiro (West Iberian Margin) over a four-year period

From June 2004 to December 2007, samples were weekly collected at a fixed station located at the mouth of Ria de Aveiro (West Iberian Margin). We examined the seasonal and inter-annual fluctuations in composition and community structure of the phytoplankton in relation to the main environmental drivers and assessed the influence of the oceano-graphic regime, namely changes in frequency and intensity of upwelling events, over the dynamics of the phytoplankton assemblage. The samples were consistently handled and a final subset of 136 OTUs (taxa with relative abundance > 0.01%) was subsequently submitted to various multivariate analyses. The phytoplankton assemblage showed significant changes at all temporal scales but with an overriding importance of seasonality over longer-(inter-annual) or shorter-term fluctuations (upwelling-related). Sea-surface temperature, salinity and maximum upwelling index were retrieved as the main driver of seasonal change. Seasonal signal was most evident in the fluctuations of chlorophyll a concentration and in the high turnover from the winter to spring phytoplankton assemblage. The seasonal cycle of production and succession was disturbed by upwelling events known to disrupt thermal stratification and induce changes in the phytoplankton assemblage. Our results indicate that both the frequency and intensity of physical forcing were important drivers of such variability, but the outcome in terms of species composition was highly dependent on the available local pool of species and the timing of those events in relation to the seasonal cycle. We conclude that duration, frequency and intensity of upwelling events, which vary seasonally and inter-annually, are paramount for maintaining long-term phytoplankton diversity likely by allowing unstable coexistence and incorporating species turnover at different scales. Our results contribute to the understanding of the complex mechanisms of coastal phytoplankton dynamics in relation to changing physical forcing which is fundamental to improve predictability of future prospects under climate change.Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) [SFRH/BPD/ 94562/2013]; FEDER funds; national funds; CESAM [UID/AMB/50017]; FCT/MEC through national funds; FEDERinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Parents’ Beliefs about and Associations to their Elementary Children’s Home Technology Usage

This study sought to gather information through a survey of how newcomer parents’ beliefs about technology usage and how they engage with technology as they support their children with twenty-first century literacies. Parent respondents (N = 70) were drawn from two publicly funded schools in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada, where the population tends to be immigrant, visible minority, with post-secondary education, but unemployed and low income. Descriptive statistics quantified daily technology activities as being communication-oriented with the majority of parents holding distinct beliefs about the amount and type of their children’s technology usage. Chi-square tests indicated significant associations for demographic characteristics such as the gender, age, education, first language, and ethnicity of the parents as determinants of their beliefs about their children’s technology usage (e.g., social media, mobile phones, television). As well, levels of access and use varied in terms of the number of new technologies and the types of literacy practices that families engage in. Immigrant parents might hold misconceptions about twenty-first century literacies, therefore there should be an attempt to assist them to provide responsive twenty-first century literacy and technology support for their children

Relation between the Global Burden of Disease and Randomized Clinical Trials Conducted in Latin America Published in the Five Leading Medical Journals

Background: Since 1990 non communicable diseases and injuries account for the majority of death and disability-adjusted life years in Latin America. We analyzed the relationship between the global burden of disease and Randomized Clinical Trials (RCTs) conducted in Latin America that were published in the five leading medical journals.Methodology/Principal Findings: We included all RCTs in humans, exclusively conducted in Latin American countries, and published in any of the following journals: Annals of Internal Medicine, British Medical Journal, Journal of the American Medical Association, Lancet, and New England Journal of Medicine. We described the trials and reported the number of RCTs according to the main categories of the global burden of disease. Sixty-six RCTs were identified. Communicable diseases accounted for 38 (57%) reports. Maternal, perinatal, and nutritional conditions accounted for 19 (29%) trials. Non-communicable diseases represent 48% of the global burden of disease but only 14% of reported trials. No trial addressed injuries despite its 18% contribution to the burden of disease in 2000.Conclusions/Significance: A poor correlation between the burden of disease and RCTs publications was found. Non communicable diseases and injuries account for up to two thirds of the burden of disease in Latin America but these topics are seldom addressed in published RCTs in the selected sample of journals. Funding bodies of health research and editors should be aware of the increasing burden of non communicable diseases and injuries occurring in Latin America to ensure that this growing epidemic is not neglected in the research agenda and not affected by publication bias

The macroecology of phylogenetically structured hummingbird-plant networks

Aim To investigate the association between species richness, species' phylogenetic signal, insularity and historical and current climate with hummingbird-plant network structure. Location 54 communities along a c. 10,000 kilometer latitudinal gradient across the Americas (39ºN - 32ºS), ranging from sea level to c. 3700 m asl, located on the mainland and on islands, and covering a wide range of climate regimes. Methods We measured null-modeled corrected complementary specialization and bipartite modularity (compartmentalization) in networks of quantitative interactions between hummingbird and plant species. Using an ordinary least squares multi-model approach, we examined the influence of species richness, phylogenetic signal, insularity, and current and historical climate conditions on network structure. Results Phylogenetically-related species, especially plants, showed a tendency to interact with a similar array of partners. The spatial variation in network structure exhibited a constant association with species' phylogeny (R2=0.18-0.19). Species richness and environmental factors showed the strongest associations with network structure (R2=0.20-0.44; R2138 =0.32-0.45, respectively). Specifically, higher levels of complementary specialization and modularity were associated to species-rich communities and communities in which closely-related hummingbirds visited distinct sets of flowering species. On the mainland, warmer temperatures and higher historical temperature stability associated to higher levels of complementary specialization. Main conclusions Previous macroecological studies of interaction networks have highlighted the importance of environment and species richness in determining network structure. Here, for the first time, we report an association between species phylogenetic signal and network structure at macroecological scale. Specifically, null model corrected complementary specialization and modularity exhibited a positive association with species richness and a negative association with hummingbird phylogenetic signal, indicating that both high richness and high inter-specific competition among closely-related 150 hummingbirds exhibit important relationships with specialization in hummingbird-plant networks. Our results document how species richness, phylogenetic signal and climate associate with network structure in complex ways at macroecological scale