Analysis of genomic diversity in Mexican Mestizo populations to develop genomic medicine in Mexico. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009;106:8611-8616. [PMID: 19433783 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0903045106]

Genome-wide association studies in diverse populations

Genome-wide association (GWA) studies have identified a large number of SNPs associated with disease phenotypes. As most GWA studies have been performed in populations of European descent, this Review examines the issues involved in extending the consideration of GWA studies to diverse worldwide populations. Although challenges exist with issues such as imputation, admixture and replication, investigation of a greater diversity of populations could make substantial contributions to the goal of mapping the genetic determinants of complex diseases for the human population as a whole.

Polymorphisms of the gamma-glutamyl hydrolase gene and risk of relapse to acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Mexico

This study evaluated the association of -401C/T and +452C/T polymorphisms of gamma-glutamyl hydrolase and the risk of relapse to acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Genotyping was performed in 70 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and 140 healthy children. An association between the -401C/T polymorphism and the risk of relapse was found (p=0.028), patients with the -401T/T genotype have 10.83 (95% CI 1.30-90.14) more chance of a relapse of leukemia. No association was found between the +452C/T polymorphism and the risk of relapse. Therefore, our investigation suggests that the -401C/T polymorphism in the gamma-glutamyl hydrolase may be a factor involved in the generation of relapse to disease in patients with ALL.

[Anthropometric parameters as predictors of insulin resistance in overweight and obese adults]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate which of the anthropometric parameters that estimate overweight and obesity are the best predictors of insulin resistance (IR) in adults from Family Medicine Unit N degrees 80 of IMSS in Morelia, Michoacán, México.

DESIGN

Descriptive cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Family Medicine Unit N 80 of Mexican Social Security Institute in Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico.

PARTICIPANTS

A random sample of 147 adults with overweight or obesity.

MAIN MEASUREMENTS

Age and sex. Anthropometrics: weight, body mass index (BMI), waist and mid arm circumference, % corporal fat; Skin folds thickness: bicipital, tricipital, subscapularis, abdominal skin folds; analyses: glucose, lipid profile, insulin; clinical: diastolic and systolic pressure, cardiovascular risk and insulin resistance by HOMA > or =2.5.

RESULTS

IR was found in 41.49% of patients. ROC curves were made and the cut off point of bicipital skin fold > or =4.50mm, mid arm > or =27.50 cm were predictors of IR in 97.4%; BMI > or =25kg/m(2) was a predictor of IR in 92.3%, and by linear regression these parameters were the better predictors of IR.

CONCLUSIONS

A total of 41.49% of patients were identified with IR (HOMA > or =2.5). BMI, bicipital skins fold and mid arm were the better predictors of IR. Specific studies are needed to determine the optimum cut off point of different parameters for estimating overweight and obesity in each sector in México.

Identification and epidemiology of severe respiratory disease due to novel swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in Alberta

BACKGROUND

In March 2009, global surveillance started detecting cases of influenza-like illness in Mexico. By mid-April 2009, two pediatric patients were identified in the United States who were confirmed to be infected by a novel influenza A (H1N1) strain. The present article describes the first identified severe respiratory infection and the first death associated with pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) in Canada.

METHODS

Enhanced public health and laboratory surveillance for pH1N1 was implemented throughout Alberta on April 24, 2009. Respiratory specimens from all patients with a respiratory illness and travel history or those presenting with a severe respiratory infection requiring hospitalization underwent screening for respiratory viruses using molecular methods. For the first severe case identified and the first death due to pH1N1, histocompatibility leukocyte antigens were compared by molecular methods.

RESULTS

The first death (a 39-year-old woman) occurred on April 28, 2009, and on May 1, 2009, a 10-year-old child presented with severe respiratory distress due to pH1N1. Both patients had no travel or contact with anyone who had travelled to Mexico; the cases were not linked. Histocompatibility antigen comparison of both patients did not identify any notable similarity. pH1N1 strains identified in Alberta did not differ from the Mexican strain.

CONCLUSION

Rapid transmission of pH1N1 continued to occur in Alberta following the first death and the first severe respiratory infection in Canada, which were identified without any apparent connection to Mexico or the United States. Contact tracing follow-up suggested that oseltamivir may have prevented ongoing transmission of pH1N1.