POS0664 A MULTICENTER RANDOMIZED STUDY IN RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS TO COMPARE IGURATIMOD, METHOTREXATE, OR COMBINATION: 52 WEEK EFFICACY AND SAFETY RESULTS OF THE SMILE TRIAL

Background:

Iguratimod (IGU) has demonstrated efficacy and safety for active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in double-blind clinical trials in China and Japan as a new disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD). There are no studies evaluating the radiographic progression of structural joint damage of IGU for the treatment of RA using the mTSS as the primary endpoint.

Objectives:

Our study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of IGU monotherapy and IGU combined methotrexate (MTX) compared with MTX monotherapy, including the inhibitory effects of joint destruction.

Methods:

This randomized, double-blind, parallel-controlled, multicenter study in patients with active RA who have not previously used MTX and biological DMARDs (bDMARDs) (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01548001) was carried out in China. Patients were randomized 1:1:1 to receive IGU 25 mg twice a day (bid), MTX 10mg once a week(qw) for the first 4 weeks and 15 mg once a week(qw) for week 5 to 52, or IGU combined MTX (IGU+MTX) for 52 weeks. The primary endpoints were to assess and compare American College of Rheumatology 20% (ACR20) response and the change of modified total Sharp scoring (mTSS) score over 52 weeks (Intention-to-treat, ITT analysis). The non-inferiority test was used to analyze the difference of ACR20 response at 52 weeks between the IGU monotherapy and the MTX monotherapy arms, and the non-inferiority limit value was 10%. The difference test was used for the comparison between the IGU+MTX and MTX monotherapy arms. Two-way ANOVA was used to analyze the difference of the changes of mTSS score of each arm compared with baseline value (0 week).

Results:

A total of 895 patients were randomized to IGU 25mg bid (n =297), MTX 10-15mg qw(n=293), and IGU+MTX (n=305). Baseline characteristics were comparable between the arms (Table 1).

Table 1.

Demographic and Other Baseline Characteristics (SAS)

IGUMTXIGU+MTXNumber of Subjects297293305Age, mean (SD) years46.87(10.67)47.63(10.70)48.37(10.69)Female/male, %77.44/22.5679.18/20.8278.03/21.97Duration of RA, mean(SD) years11.67±7.1611.60±7.9811.67±7.27CRP, mean(SD) mg/L222.32±35.4720.67±26.6119.74±31.38Tender joint count, mean (SD)14.59±9.1614.83±9.3014.93±9.88Swollen joint count, mean (SD)9.81±6.639.73±7.209.51±6.22DAS28-CRP, mean (SD)5.084±0.9945.102±0.9795.103±0.956HAQ score, mean (SD)15.82±11.2515.24±10.9316.06±10.92

SAS: Safety Analysis Set; CRP: C-reactive protein;

DAS28: disease activity score; HAQ: Health Assessment Questionnaire

The study met its primary endpoints. More concretely, IGU monotherapy and IGU+MTX were found to be superior to MTX at week 52 with a higher ACR20 response of 77.44%(230/297, P=0.0019) and 77.05%(235/305, P=0.0028) versus 65.87%(193/293) (fig 1). As shown in fig 1, the structural remission (ΔmTSS≤0.5) was statistically significant for IGU monotherapy (57.4%, P=0.0308) but not for IGU+MTX arm (55%) versus MTX monotherapy (47.8%).

Overall incidence of the adverse events (AEs) leading to study discontinuation were reported in 13.8% (41/297) in IGU monotherapy arm, 11.26% (33/293) in MTX monotherapy arm and 11.51% (35/305) patients in IGU+MTX arm. The incidence of adverse drug reactions (ADR) leading to study discontinuation were 11.45% (34/297), 8.53% (25/293) and 9.21% (28/305), respectively. There was no one death and no significant difference in all the safety indicators among the three arms.

Conclusion:

Iguratimod alone or in combination with MTX demonstrated superior efficacy with acceptable safety compared to MTX for patients with active RA who have not previously used MTX bDMARDs.

Disclosure of Interests:

None declared

Test of Lepton-Flavor Universality in B→K^{*}ℓ^{+}ℓ^{-} Decays at Belle

We present a measurement of R_{K^{*}}, the branching fraction ratio B(B→K^{*}μ^{+}μ^{-})/B(B→K^{*}e^{+}e^{-}), for both charged and neutral B mesons. The ratio for the charged case R_{K^{*+}} is the first measurement ever performed. In addition, we report absolute branching fractions for the individual modes in bins of the squared dilepton invariant mass q^{2}. The analysis is based on a data sample of 711  fb^{-1}, containing 772×10^{6}  BB[over ¯] events, recorded at the ϒ(4S) resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e^{+}e^{-} collider. The obtained results are consistent with standard model expectations.

Genetic diversity of Ethiopian sorghum reveals signatures of climatic adaptation

A large collection of Ethiopian sorghum landraces, characterized by agro-ecology and racial-group, was found to contain high levels of diversity and admixture, with significant SNP associations identified for environmental adaptation. Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor L. (Moench)] is a major staple food crop in Ethiopia, exhibiting extensive genetic diversity with adaptations to diverse agroecologies. The environmental and climatic drivers, as well as the genomic basis of adaptation, are poorly understood in Ethiopian sorghum and are critical elements for the development of climate-resilient crops. Exploration of the genome-environment association (GEA) is important for identifying adaptive loci and predicting phenotypic variation. The current study aimed to better understand the GEA of a large collection of Ethiopian sorghum landraces (n = 940), characterized with genome-wide SNP markers, to investigate key traits related to adaptation to temperature, precipitation and altitude. The Ethiopian sorghum landrace collection was found to consist of 12 subpopulations with high levels of admixture (47%), representing all the major racial groups of cultivated sorghum with the exception of kafir. Redundancy analysis indicated that agroecology explained up to 10% of the total SNP variation, and geographical location up to 6%. GEA identified 18 significant SNP markers for environmental variables. These SNPs were found to be significantly enriched (P < 0.05) for a priori QTL for drought and cold adaptation. The findings from this study improve our understanding of the genetic control of adaptive traits in Ethiopian sorghum. Further, the Ethiopian sorghum germplasm collection provides sources of adaptation to harsh environments (cold and/or drought) that could be deployed in breeding programs globally for abiotic stress adaptation.

Cardiac biomarkers of disordered eating as a function of diagnostic subtypes

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to identify cardiac biomarkers of disordered eating as a function of diagnostic subtype as assessed via self-report inventory.

METHOD

Mean heart rate (HR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, mean R wave amplitude (mV), mean T wave amplitude (mV), QTc interval (sec), Tpeak-Tend interval prolongation (sec), QTc interval prolongation (sec), QRS prolongation (sec), and spectral indicators of cardiac dysfunction (LF/HF spectral ratio, HF spectral power) were assessed via electrocardiography among women with no eating disorder symptoms (n = 32), subclinical eating disorder symptoms (n = 92), anorexia nervosa (n = 7), bulimia nervosa (n = 89), binge eating disorder (BED: n = 20), and other specified feeding and eating disorders (OSFED: n = 19).

RESULTS

MANOVA results showed statistically significant group differences. Follow-up tests revealed significantly decreased mean R wave amplitude among participants with self-indicated clinical (bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder) and subclinical forms of disordered eating compared to asymptomatic controls.

DISCUSSION

Results suggest decreased mean R wave amplitude is a promising cardiac biomarker of disordered eating.

[Expression of SOX-11 and TFE3 in solid-pseudopapillary tumor of pancreas and its clinical significance]

Objective: To investigate the expression status and diagnostic value of SRY related high mobility group box 11 (SOX-11) and transcription factor E-3 (TFE3) in solid pseudopapillary tumors of pancreas (SPTPs). Methods: Thirty-eight cases of SPTPs, 36 cases of well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PanNETs) and six cases of pancreatic acinar cell carcinomas (PACCs) were collected at the Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School from 2012 to 2019. The expression of SOX-11, TFE3 and β-catenin was detected by immunohistochemistry, and the TFE3 gene status was detected by FISH in 18 cases of SPTPs. Results: Among the 38 SPTP patients, 29 were female and 9 were male, with a mean age of 50 years; among 36 PanNET patients, 32 were female and 4 were male, with a mean age of 39 years; for the six PACC patients, four were male and two were female, with a mean age of 60 years. β-catenin was positive in all 38 SPTPs, but was negative in all 36 PanNETs and 5/6 PACCs. SOX-11 was positive in 35/38 (92.1%) of SPTPs, but was negative in all 36 PanNETs and 6 PACCs. TFE3 was positive in 36/38 (94.7%) of SPTPs, but was negative in all 36 PanNETs and 6 PACCs. Among these three tumors, the specificity and sensitivity of β-catenin were 97.6% and 100.0%, the specificity and sensitivity of SOX-11 were 92.1% and 100.0%, the specificity and sensitivity of TFE3 were 94.7% and 100.0%, respectively. There was a significant difference of the expression status of all three markers in SPTPs compared with PanNETs and PACCs (P<0.01). The results of SOX-11 and TFE3 immunostaining showed high consistency (Kappa>0.6). No gene rearrangement (0/18) of TFE3 was found in SPTPs. Conclusion: SOX-11 and TFE3 are highly expressed in SPTPs, and their specificity in the differential diagnosis of SPTPs is better than that of β-catenin.

[Long-term effect of anal fistula plug treatment on postoperative anal function in patients with trans-sphincteric perianal fistula and risk factors associated with anal function]

Objective: To evaluate the long-term effects of anal fistula plug treatment on postoperative anal function in patients with trans-sphincteric perianal fistula, and identify risk factors associated with anal function. Methods: A case-control study was conducted. Clinical and follow-up data of 123 patients with trans-sphincteric perianal fistula receiving anal fistula plug treatment in Beijing Chaoyang Hospital from August 2008 to September 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. The follow-up deadline was April 30, 2020. The Wexner score for incontinence was used to evaluate pre-and postoperative anal function (range from 0 to 20, with higher score representing worse function). The potential risk factors affecting postoperative anal function, including gender, age, fasting blood glucose, diabetes, smoking, alcoholism, location of external opening of anal fistula, surgeon expertise and operation time, were statistically analyzed. Results: Among the 123 patients, 114 were male and 9 were female, the median age was 39 (15-69) years, body mass index (BMI) was (26.2±3.9) kg/m(2), and the median distance between the external opening of anal fistula and the anal verge was 2.6 (1.0-5.0) cm. The median operation time was 30.4 (15.0-60.0) minutes. The median follow-up time was 120 (93-141) months. Sixty-nine patients (56.5%) were healed. The assessment of anal function by Wexner incontinence score showed that 33 (26.8%) patients had anal functional decline after surgery, and the postoperative median Wexner score was 1.34 (0-8), which was significantly higher than preoperative score of 0.17 (0-4) (Z=-5.057, P<0.001). Compared with preoperative levers, postoperative subscores of flatus incontinence, liquid incontinence, solid incontinence and alteration in lifestyle were increased significantly (all P<0.05). Subgroup analysis showed that both in the healed and unhealed groups, the postoperative Wexner scores were higher than those before surgery [healed group: 1.22 (0-8) vs. 0.17 (0-1), Z=-3.796, P<0.001; unhealed group: 1.5 (0-8) vs.0.17 (0-3), Z=-3.422, P=0.001]. Univariate analysis revealed that 33 patients with postoperative anal functional decline had higher BMI, higher fasting blood glucose, higher proportion of alcoholism, longer distance between external opening of anal fistula and the anal verge, and longer operation time (all P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis testified that higher BMI (OR=1.485, 95% CI: 1.220-1.807, P<0.001) and longer distance between external opening and anal verge (OR=2.207, 95% CI: 1.276-3.220, P=0.003) were independent risk factors for postoperative anal functional decline. Conclusions: The treatment for trans-sphincteric anal fistula with anal fistula plug leads to long-term postoperative anal function decline. For patients with obesity and longer distance between external opening of anal fistula and the anal verge, this procedure should be performed with particular caution, and the anal sphincter should be preserved as much as possible during the operation.

Radiation therapy on primary tumour of synchronous metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas

PURPOSE

Patients with synchronous metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas often present associated locoregional symptoms and a risk of life-threatening primary tumour progression. Few data have been published about the use of radiation therapy in the management of newly diagnosed metastatic disease associated with advanced locoregional disease. In this article, we aim to determine the role of radiation therapy of the primary tumour in the overall therapeutic strategy for these diseases. We further address radiation therapy modalities (technique, volumes, and fractionation) in such a context.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We conducted a literature survey on locoregional radiotherapy for newly diagnosed metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas.

RESULTS

Several retrospective studies have reported that locoregional radiotherapy is associated with improved overall survival of patients with synchronous metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. However, data about modalities such as timing of radiotherapy in the overall strategy, dose, fractionation and delineation volumes are scarce. Two schematic situations can be distinguished with respect to prognosis and treatment adaptations: polymetastatic/bulky or oligometastatic disease. In polymetastic/bulky disease associated with poor prognosis, standard-of-care is systemic therapy, but locoregional radiotherapy can be discussed either upfront, mainly for symptomatic palliation, or as consolidation after downsizing obtained by systemic therapy. As for oligometastatic disease, with the rise in use of efficacious and well-tolerated local ablative treatments of metastases, aggressive curative-intent locoregional radiotherapy can be considered with or without systemic therapy.

CONCLUSION

Because locoregional disease is a major cause of disease failure in patients with synchronous metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas, aggressive locoregional radiation therapy to the primary tumour may be discussed in the initial management of the disease where systemic therapy alone may not induce sufficient primary tumour reduction. With recent technological advances in radiotherapy, the delivery of radiotherapy is safe and feasible even in metastatic setting. Clinical trials assessing radiotherapy use for metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinomas are warranted.

Antimalarial agent artesunate induces G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis via increasing intracellular ROS levels in normal liver cells

Artesunate (ARS) has been shown to be highly effective against chloroquine-resistant malaria. In vitro studies reported that ARS has anticancer effects; however, its detrimental action on cancer cells may also play a role in its toxicity toward normal cells and its potential toxicity has not been sufficiently researched. In this study, we investigated the possible cytotoxic effects using normal BRL-3A and AML12 liver cells. The results showed that ARS dose-dependently inhibited cell proliferation and arrested the G0/G1 phase cell cycle in both BRL-3A and AML12 liver cells. Western blotting demonstrated that ARS induced a significant downregulation of cyclin-dependent kinase-2 (CDK2), CDK4, cyclin D1, and cyclin E1 in various levels and then caused apoptosis when the Bcl-2/Bax ratio decreased. Conversely, the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) were increased. The ROS scavenger N-acetylcysteine can significantly inhibit cell cycle arrest and apoptosis induced by ARS. Thus, the data confirmed that ARS exposure impairs normal liver cell proliferation by inducing G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, and this detrimental action may be associated with intracellular ROS accumulation. Collectively, the possible side effects of ARS on healthy normal cells cannot be neglected when developing therapies.

Association of genetic and environmental factors with dental caries among adolescents in south China: A cross-sectional study

AIM

The objective of this study was to investigative genetic and environmental factors that contribute to caries susceptibility among adolescents in south China.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1055 adolescents aged 13-14 years old in south China. The International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) was used to identify caries. Environmental variables were analysed by regression models. Twenty-three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 14 genes were identified from saliva samples. Regression analysis was used for the evaluation of effects of SNP markers using the minor allele as the effect allele.

RESULTS

Our results suggest that gender, Cariostat score and Plaque Index were associated with dental caries. After the adjustment by age and gender, the G allele in AMBN (rs13115627) nominally was a protective factor for caries under additive model (P=0.028; OR=0.782; 95% CI, 0.627-0.974). However, the association did not meet the Bonferroni correction significance cut-off for multiple testing.

CONCLUSION

Gender, Cariostat score and Plaque Index were associated with dental caries in this population. No selected SNPs showed a significant association with dental caries under either additive model or dominance model.

Long-term outcomes and safety after reirradiation in locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma in a non-endemic area

PURPOSE

To determine outcomes and toxicities after reirradiation for locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (rNPC) and to apply a prognostic index in a non-endemic region.

METHODS

We retrospectively reported progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and treatment-related toxicities in patients treated with curative intent for locally rNPC. We applied the prognostic model for OS and grade 5 radiotherapy (RT)-related toxicities published by Li et al. and evaluated its prognostic accuracy by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.

RESULTS

Between 2005 and 2018, 33 patients were treated for rNPC in our institution. Median follow-up was 60 months. The mean time to local recurrence was 75 months. Six (18%) patients had a persistent grade 3 toxicity from a previous RT course. The median re-RT dose was 66 Gy. After re-RT, 13 patients had local failure and 3 patients had metastatic recurrence. Median PFS was 18 months with a 5-year PFS rate of 29%. Median OS was 35 months with a 5-year OS rate of 37%. Grade 3 or higher toxicities rate was 74%. There were 21% grade 5 toxicities. The median time to a grade 5 toxicity was less than 6 months following re-RT. The prognostic nomogram was not predictive for OS or grade 5 toxicities.

CONCLUSION

Reirradiation of rNPC is an effective treatment but is associated with a high rate of life-threatening toxicity. Stratification of patients based on their risk of developing severe toxicity is needed to select patients who will most likely benefit from re-RT.

Louis E. 0817 Abnormal REM Sleep Atonia Control In Patients With Chronic Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Introduction

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by persistent mental and emotional stress following one or more significant physical or psychological traumatic incidents earlier in life. Vivid recall of the events, including traumatic nightmares, and prominent sleep disturbance are usual in PTSD. Previous studies have suggested that PTSD may share some clinical features with idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD) including altered REM sleep without atonia (RSWA) levels. Our group has previously found evidence for altered RSWA control in patients with psychiatric disease, including a pilot sample of PTSD patients with iRBD. We aimed to comparatively analyze RSWA levels between patients with PTSD, PTSD and RBD (PTSD+RBD), iRBD, and controls.

Methods

We selected 18 PTSD, 18 PTSD+RBD, 15 iRBD, and 51 healthy control patients matched for age and sex from the Mayo Clinic Center for Sleep Medicine’s polysomnography database for RSWA quantification. RSWA amounts in the submentalis (SM) and anterior tibialis (AT) were quantitatively analyzed as a percentage of REM sleep duration, in accordance with previously published methods. Non-parametric analyses were performed to compare RSWA, patient demographics, and PSG data across groups. Significance was set at p &lt; 0.016.

Results

Patients with PTSD had significantly higher RSWA than controls in all RSWA density measures (p &lt; 0.016 for all). All measures of RSWA, excluding average SM duration, were significantly greater in PTSD+RBD patients compared with controls (p &lt; 0.016 for all). Within the PTSD group, patients on antidepressants did not have significantly higher RSWA in any of the measures. PTSD+RBD patients had significantly higher SM Phasic, AT Any, SM+AT Any, and Tonic RSWA measures than PTSD patients (p &lt; 0.016 for all).

Conclusion

PTSD patients have significantly higher RSWA than controls, with PTSD+RBD patients having higher RSWA levels than PTSD patients. These data provide the first evidence for abnormal RSWA control in patients with chronic PTSD. This provides evidence of a unique biology in PTSD that could imply a future risk for neurodegenerative disease in PTSD similar to RBD patients. Further prospective studying will need to be performed on patients with PTSD to understand the unique biology.

Support

 

[Comparative study on the EPLAD of profoundly deaf children with hearing aid fittings or cochlear implantations at the same age]

Objective:The purpose of the current study was to provide good clinical values for rehabilitation exercises and counseling of hearing impaired children by comparing the early prelingual auditory development（EPLAD） of children with hearing aid fittings or cochlear implantations at the same age. Method:Longitudinal evaluation of EPLAD, profoundly deaf children, who received hearing aid fittings or cochlear implantations at 2 years of age, were recruited in this study, and would be tested with Infant-toddler meaningful auditory integration scale（IT-MAIS） at 3, 6 and 12 months after intervention. One hundred and four children were recruited in this study and divided into two groups based on the types of devices: Cochlear implant group（CI group） and Hearing aid group（HA group）. Each child could be permitted to miss follow-up one time. Result:The IT-MAIS scores of children in both groups improved with increasing wear time. The scores in CI group showed a statistically significant improvement between each interval after switch-on（P=0.000）. However, there was just a statistical difference between overall scores at 3 and 12 months after fitting in HA group（P=0.042）. In addition, the IT-MAIS scores of the two groups were statistically significant at 6 and 12 months after switch-on/fitting（P=0.026, P=0.005）. Simultaneously, the mean overall score of children in CI group at 12 months after switch-on approached the average level of unaided peers with mild hearing loss. However, the mean score at 12 months after fitting was close to the average level of unaided peers with moderate hearing loss. Conclusion:Both of CI and HA could improve EPLAD of profoundly deaf children. However, the EPLAD of CI children could improve faster in the first year after switch-on. And the results would also provide more comprehensive clinical values for rehabilitation and counseling of hearing impaired children by comparing to normal and unaided hearing impaired children.

[Long-term efficacy of bioprosthetic anal fistula plug in the treatment of transsphincteric anal fistula]

Objective: To evaluate the long-term healing rate of transsphincteric anal fistula treated with anal fistula plug procedure and the risk factors affecting the healing of anal fistula. Methods: A retrospective case-control study was conducted to analyze the clinical data of 207 patients with transsphincteric anal fistulas who received anal fistula plug procedure at the Department of General Surgery, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital of Capital Medical University from August 2008 to September 2012. Inclusion criteria: (1) consistent with the diagnosis of transsphincteric anal fistula: the anal fistula passed through the internal and external sphincter; (2) complete data; (3) initial treatment with anal fistula plug procedure. Exclusion criteria: (1) acute rectal or perianal infection or poorly controlled focal infection; (2) recent incision and drainage of perianal abscess or spontaneous rupture of abscess; (3) patients with malignant tumor; (4) patients with Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis; (5) patients with heart, liver, brain, lung or renal insufficiency; (6) cachexia due to various chronic wasting diseases; (7) patients could not tolerate surgery. Patients were followed up for anal fistula healing. The cumulative healing rate of patients with transsphincteric anal fistula was plotted using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the factors affecting anal fistula healing were explored by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: There were 186 males and 21 females with age of 15 to 69 (mean 38) years. The duration of anal fistula was 3-60 (mean 15) months. Three patients had a history of previous episodes of perianal abscess and underwent incision and drainage of perianal abscess (all more than 3 months). During follow-up ending on October 31, 2018, 72 patients (34.8%) were lost to follow-up. Among 135 patients who were successfully followed up, the average follow-up period was 96 (75-124) months. Seventy-five patients had anal fistula healing, with healing rate of 55.6%. Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that the healing time of anal fistula was prolonged and finally stabilized at 55.6%. In the patients who failed initial treatment with anal fistula plug packing, there were 6 cases whose anal fistula healed spontaneously without other treatment. Among them, 3 cases healed spontaneously 2 years and 3 cases 3 years after operation without recurrence. From 2008 to 2012, the annual healing rates of anal fistula plug treatment were 3/6, 61.5% (24/39), 42.1% (24/57), 12/15 and 12/18, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the duration of anal fistula≥6 months (OR=3.187, 95% CI: 1.361-7.466, P=0.008) was an independent risk factor for anal fistula healing after treatment with anal fistula plug. Conclusion: The long-term efficacy of anal fistula plug procedure in the treatment of transsphincteric anal fistula is positive, and this procedure should be implemented as soon as possible.

Genome-wide association study for growth and fatness traits in Chinese Sujiang pigs

Growth and fatness traits are complex and economically important traits in the pig industry. The molecular basis underlying porcine growth and fatness traits remains largely unknown. To uncover genetic loci and candidate genes for these traits, we explored the GeneSeek GGP Porcine 80K SNP chip to perform a GWAS for seven growth and fatness traits in 365 individuals from the Sujiang pig, a recently developed breed in China. We identified two, 17, one and 11 SNPs surpassing the suggestively significant threshold (P < 1.86 × 10^-5 ) for body weight, chest circumference, chest width and backfat thickness respectively. Of these SNPs, 20 represent novel genetic loci, and five and four SNPs were respectively associated with chest circumference and backfat thickness at a genome-wide significant threshold (P < 9.31 × 10^-7 ). Eight SNPs had a pleiotropic effect on both chest circumference and backfat thickness. The most remarkable locus resided in a region between 72.95 and 76.27 Mb on pig chromosome 4, harboring a number of previously reported quantitative trait loci related to backfat deposition. In addition to two reported genes (PLAG1 and TAS2R38), we identified four genes including GABRB3, ZNF106, XKR4 and MGAM as novel candidates for body weight and backfat thickness at the mapped loci. Our findings provide insights into the genetic architecture of porcine growth and fatness traits and potential markers for selective breeding of Chinese Sujiang pigs.

Roles of UGT2B7 C802T gene polymorphism on the efficacy of morphine treatment on cancer pain among the Chinese han population

Background

Morphine is a common analgesic often used to manage chronic pain, especially for patients with pain due to malignancies. Since UGT2B7 plays an important role in the metabolism of morphine, UGT2B7 gene mutation may influence the efficacy of morphine in patients with cancer being treated by this medication.

Aims

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between the polymorphisms of UGT2B7 and the efficacy of morphine treatment on cancer pain among the Chinese Han population.

Materials and Methods

A total of 120 patients with cancer pain were enrolled in this study. Morphine was administrated through patient-controlled analgesia infusion pump, and the visual analog score (VAS) was used for pain assessment at 0.5, 4, 6, 12, 24, 48, and 72-h post morphine treatment, respectively. The plasma concentration of morphine and genetic polymorphism of UGT2B7 C802T and G221T was analyzed, respectively.

Results

The frequencies of UGT2B7 C802T were CC: 13.33%, CT: 45% and TT: 41.67%, and the frequencies of UGT2B7 G221T were GG: 76.67%, GT: 22.5% and TT: 0.83%. Moreover, the VAS score of patients with either C802T CT or TT was significantly higher than that in patients with C802T CC. However, no difference of VAS scores was observed between patients carrying G221T GG and patients carrying G221T GT. The plasma concentration of morphine for patients with the C802T CC was significantly lower than that in patients carrying C802T CT or TT, while there was no significant difference in the level of morphine between patients with G221T GG and G221T GT.

Conclusion

The polymorphism of UGT2B7 C802T, but not UGT2B7 G221T, has been associated with the efficacy of morphine treatment on cancer pain among Chinese Han population.

Antimicrobial Bacillus velezensis HC6: production of three kinds of lipopeptides and biocontrol potential in maize

AIMS

To study the antimicrobial agents of the Bacillus velezensis strain HC6 and assess the application potential of B. velezensis HC6 in maize.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We applied a dual culture technique to test the antimicrobial activity of B. velezensis HC6 against bacteria and fungi of common contaminated crops. Bacillus velezensis HC6 showed antagonistic action on pathogenic fungi, including Aspergillus and Fusarium, as well as pathogenic bacteria (especially Listeria monocytogenes). When applied in maize, B. velezensis HC6 could also inhibit the growth of multiple pathogenic fungi and reduce their production of aflatoxin and ochratoxin. Three kinds of antimicrobial lipopeptides, including iturin, fengycin and surfactin were identified in B. velezensis HC6 culture supernatant by high-performance liquid chromatography and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Iturin and fengycin showed obvious antimicrobial activity to the tested fungal strains.

CONCLUSIONS

Bacillus velezensis HC6 produces three kinds of lipopeptides which showed antimicrobial activity against several common pathogenic fungi and bacteria. Bacillus velezensis HC6 is potential to be biocontrol bacteria in maize.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

Bacillus velezensis HC6 shows obvious antimicrobial activity to important crops pathogenic fungi which usually produce mycotoxins that are harmful to animal and human health. We demonstrate that three different types of lipopeptides produced by B. velezensis contributed to the antimicrobial activity. Bacillus velezensis HC6 has the potential to be effective biocontrol agent in crops.