Cox-2 gene variants in migraine

Purpose

Migraine is a multifactorial and complex disorder, and any clear diagnostic marker to assess the status of the migraineurs has not been established, yet. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs reduce production of prostanoids including PGE2 by inhibiting COX-1 and/or COX-2, and thereby suppress inflammatory pain in patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and migraine. Thus, COX-2 regulation is important in the pathogenesis and treatment of migraine. We prospectively investigated COX-2-765G → C and COX-2-1195A → G gene polymorphisms which may account for an increased risk of migraine.

Methods

The present analyses are based on 144 case subjects with migraine disease and 123 non-case subjects. Genotyping of COX-2 gene polymorphisms (COX-2-765G → C, COX-2-1195A → G) was detected by PCR-RFLP.

Results

We, for the first time, demonstrated positive association of COX-2 gene variants with an increased risk for development of migraine. Carriers of COX-2-765 C + genotype in controls were higher than in the patients (57.7% and 36.1% respectively; P < 0.0001) and the frequencies of G + genotype in patients were higher than in the controls (97.9% and 88.6% respectively; P: 0.002). In addition, frequencies of COX-2-765 GG and GC genotypes in patients were higher than in the controls (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001 respectively). It seems that COX-2-765 G + genotype had increased and COX-2-765 C + genotype had decreased risk for migraine. In COX-2-1195 polymorphism only AG genotype was statistically significantly different in patients than in the controls (P < 0.05).

Conclusions

Our findings have suggested that COX-2-765 G + genotype could facilitate the development of migraine disease.     

前列腺素内过氧化物合酶2基因的研究进展

前列腺素内过氧化物合酶2是前列腺素生物合成的限速酶。本文介绍了前列腺素内过氧化物合酶2基因的结构、表达、调控机理及其与繁殖性能的关系。     

叉头框P2(FoxP2)基因与鸟鸣

叉头框P2(FoxP2)基因是与人类语言相关的基因,在鸣禽脑中也存在,不仅参与胚胎时期的关键性发育,对鸣禽鸣曲学习也有影响.实验表明,FoxP2基因对神经回路发育和出生后的鸣唱学习,以及成鸟的鸣曲稳定都有重要作用.FoxP2基因主要在与人类同源的基底神经节--X区表达.本文介绍了FoxP2基因与鸟鸣的新近研究进展.     

Reovirus guanylyltransferase is L2 gene product lambda 2.

Reovirus guanylyltransferase, studied as a covalent enzyme-GMP intermediate, was used to guanylate appropriate acceptor molecules in vitro to produce authentic cap structures. Guanylyltransferase activity was associated with lambda 2, the 140-kilodalton product of the L2 gene segment of reovirus serotypes 1 and 3.     

Molecular characterization of the equine ATP2A2 gene

The mammalian ATP2A2 gene encodes a P-type cation pump located in the sarcoplasmic or endoplasmic reticula of muscle cells. We isolated one bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone containing the equine ATP2A2 gene and determined the complete coding sequence of this gene. Cloning and characterization of the equine ATP2A2 gene revealed that the equine ATP2A2 gene consists of 20 exons. In total, 32 horses out of 16 breeds were analyzed for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A mutation scan for SNPs included ten exons and their flanking introns. We detected in total 17 SNPs, 14 of which were located in introns, one in exon 9 and two in exon 20. In this report we provide the genomic organization and the equine ATP2A2 coding sequence and an association analysis for chronic pastern dermatitis using a sample of South German draft horses.     

Codon bias and gene expression of mitochondrial ND2 gene in chordates

Background: Mitochondrial ND gene, which encodes NADH dehydrogenase, is the first enzyme of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. Leigh syndrome, a neurodegenerative disease caused by mutation in the ND2 gene (T4681C), is associated with bilateral symmetric lesions in basal ganglia and subcortical brain regions. Therefore, it is of interest to analyze mitochondrial DNA to glean information for evolutionary relationship. This study highlights on the analysis of compositional dynamics and selection pressure in shaping the codon usage patterns in the coding sequence of MT-ND2 gene across pisces, aves and mammals by using bioinformatics tools like effective number of codons (ENC), codon adaptation index (CAI), relative synonymous codon usage (RSCU) etc. Results: We observed a low codon usage bias as reflected by high ENC values in MT-ND2 gene among pisces, aves and mammals. The most frequently used codons were ending with A/C at the 3^rd position of codon and the gene was AT rich in all the three classes. The codons TCA, CTA, CGA and TGA were over represented in all three classes. The F1 correspondence showed significant positive correlation with G, T3 and CAI while the F2 axis showed significant negative correlation with A and T but significant positive correlation with G, C, G3, C3, ENC, GC, GC1, GC2 and GC3. Conclusions: The codon usage bias in MTND2 gene is not associated with expression level. Mutation pressure and natural selection affect the codon usage pattern in MT-ND 2 gene.     

DPPA2基因的研究进展

DPPA2（Developmental pluripotency．associatedgene2）是近年来发现的一种在多能性细胞和某些癌组织中特意表达的基因。它与早期胚胎发育密切相关,参与维持胚胎干细胞的多能性及自我更新,还在体细胞重编程为多能性诱导干细胞的过程中发挥了作用。此外,它还是一种新的肿瘤抗原,有望成为某些恶性肿瘤的特异性免疫治疗新靶点。本文就DPPA2的结构、功能,以及它与胚胎发育、恶性肿瘤、体细胞重编程的关系等方面的研究进展做一综述。     

MIC2: a human pseudoautosomal gene

MIC2 and XGR are the only known pseudoautosomal genes in man. MIC2 encodes the 12E7 antigen, a human cell-surface molecule of unknown function. XGR regulates, in cis, the expression of the XG and MIC2 genes. DNA probes derived from the MIC2 locus have been used in the construction of a meiotic map of the pseudoautosomal region and a long range restriction map into the X- and Y-specific chromosome domains. MIC2 is the most proximal marker in the pseudoautosomal region and recombination between the sex chromsomes only rarely includes the MIC2 locus. Our long-range restriction maps and chromosome walking experiments have localized the pseudoautosomal boundary within 40 kilobases adjacent to the 3' end of the MIC2 gene. The same maps have been used to predict the chromosomal location of TDF.     

DPPA2 基因的研究进展

DPPA2(Developmental pluripotency-associated gene 2)是近年来发现的一种在多能性细胞和某些癌组织中特意表达的基因。它与早期胚胎发育密切相关,参与维持胚胎干细胞的多能性及自我更新,还在体细胞重编程为多能性诱导干细胞的过程中发挥了作用。此外,它还是一种新的肿瘤抗原,有望成为某些恶性肿瘤的特异性免疫治疗新靶点。本文就DPPA2的结构、功能,以及它与胚胎发育、恶性肿瘤、体细胞重编程的关系等方面的研究进展做一综述。