Population history of the Red Sea--genetic exchanges between the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa signaled in the mitochondrial DNA HV1 haplogroup

Archaeological studies have revealed cultural connections between the two sides of the Red Sea dating to prehistory. The issue has still not been properly addressed, however, by archaeogenetics. We focus our attention here on the mitochondrial haplogroup HV1 that is present in both the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa. The internal variation of 38 complete mitochondrial DNA sequences (20 of them presented here for the first time) affiliated into this haplogroup testify to its emergence during the late glacial maximum, most probably in the Near East, with subsequent dispersion via population expansions when climatic conditions improved. Detailed phylogeography of HV1 sequences shows that more recent demographic upheavals likely contributed to their spread from West Arabia to East Africa, a finding concordant with archaeological records suggesting intensive maritime trade in the Red Sea from the sixth millennium BC onwards. Closer genetic exchanges are apparent between the Horn of Africa and Yemen, while Egyptian HV1 haplotypes seem to be more similar to the Near Eastern ones.     

A Non-Synonymous Single Nucleotide Polymorphism in an OPRM1 Splice Variant Is Associated with Fentanyl-Induced Emesis in Women Undergoing Minor Gynaecological Surgery

Background

Fentanyl-induced emesis (FIE) is a distressing adverse effect in the postoperative setting. The genetic basis of FIE remains largely unknown, therefore, we examined whether it was associated with specific genetic variants of OPRM1, the gene encoding the main receptor target of fentanyl.

Methods

In this prospective case-control study, 193 women undergoing gynaecological surgery under a standardized anaesthetic with a low emetogenic risk were enrolled. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were designed to select extreme phenotypes as well as to ensure that most major confounders for FIE were either excluded or present in all patients. To control for unforeseen intra- and postoperative confounders for FIE, only 161 patients were further analysed, out of which 10 were categorized as having FIE, defined by the presence of at least one of three symptoms: nausea, vomiting or retching that was likely to be fentanyl-related. To identify SNPs relevant to FIE in our population, DNA from 40 controls and 10 cases was sequenced at the following OPRM1 regions: 3 kbp of the promoter, main and alternative exons as well as 2 kbp of the 3′ downstream region. The genotype of the significant SNP was further determined in the remaining 111 controls.

Results

The incidence of FIE was 6.2%. Initial sequencing of 10 cases and 40 controls identified 25 SNPs. Only rs540825, a non-synonymous SNP in the splice variant, MOR1X, showed a significant association with FIE post-Bonferroni correction. This SNP was further examined in the remaining 111 controls which confirmed its significant association with FIE (p = 0.019 post-Bonferroni, OR: 5.6, 95% CI: 1.42–21.91).

Conclusions

This is the first report of an association between the occurrence of FIE in Chinese women undergoing gynaecological surgery and an OPRM1 splice variant SNP, rs540825.     

Mineralocorticoid hormone action in plant cells.

The multiplication of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii wild type cells can be arrested by the spirolactone RU 26752 and this is fully reversible by the natural mineralocorticoid aldosterone. Evidence is presented for a 52 kDa protein that possesses functional DNA and ligand binding domains and tests positive for mineralocorticoid receptor-like activity by immuneprecipitation, macroaggregation, and photoaffinity. The regulation of trans-activation by steroid hormones in the animal world would therefore appear to be just as valid for the plant kingdom, thereby providing a new model for genetic analysis.     

Rapid Diagnosis of Diarrhea Caused by Shigella sonnei Using Dipsticks; Comparison of Rectal Swabs,Direct Stool and Stool Culture

Background

We evaluated a dipstick test for rapid detection of Shigella sonnei on bacterial colonies, directly on stools and from rectal swabs because in actual field situations, most pathologic specimens for diagnosis correspond to stool samples or rectal swabs.

Methodology/Principal Findings

The test is based on the detection of S. sonnei lipopolysaccharide (LPS) O-side chains using phase I-specific monoclonal antibodies coupled to gold particles, and displayed on a one-step immunochromatographic dipstick. A concentration as low as 5 ng/ml of LPS was detected in distilled water and in reconstituted stools in 6 minutes. This is the optimal time for lecture to avoid errors of interpretation. In distilled water and in reconstituted stools, an unequivocal positive reaction was obtained with 4 x 10⁶ CFU/ml of S. sonnei. The specificity was 100% when tested with a battery of Shigella and different unrelated strains. When tested on 342 rectal swabs in Chile, specificity (281/295) was 95.3% (95% CI: 92.9% - 97.7%) and sensitivity (47/47) was 100%. Stool cultures and the immunochromatographic test showed concordant results in 95.5 % of cases (328/342) in comparative studies. Positive and negative predictive values were 77% (95% CI: 65% - 86.5%) and 100% respectively. When tested on 219 stools in Chile, Vietnam, India and France, specificity (190/198) was 96% (95% CI 92%–98%) and sensitivity (21/21) was 100%. Stool cultures and the immunochromatographic test showed concordant results in 96.3 % of cases (211/219) in comparative studies. Positive and negative predictive values were 72.4% (95% CI 56.1%–88.6%) and 100 %, respectively.

Conclusion

This one-step dipstick test performed well for diagnosis of S. sonnei both on stools and on rectal swabs. These data confirm a preliminary study done in Chile.     

Purification and Characterization of a Major Cell Surface Glycoprotein in Zajdela Ascites Hepatoma Cells Which Displays a Potent Concanavalin A Receptor Activity

A major cell surface sialoglycoprotein with Concanavalin A receptor activity has been isolated from rat Zajdela ascites hepatoma cells. The sialic acid residues of the plasma membrane glycoproteins were specifically labeled by oxidation with NaIO₄ followed by reduction with NaB³H₄. Surface-labeled glycoproteins were released by short incubations with TPCK-trypsin at 37°C and then separated by gel filtration on Sepharose 6B column. The predominantly labeled fraction, GP II₂, was then purified by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose equilibrated with 0.05 M phosphate buffer, pH 7.5, and eluted with increasing molarities of NaCl. It was shown to be homogeneous by protein and carbohydrate staining on SDS-polyacrylamide gels, isoelectric focusing, rechromatography on DEAE-cellulose and immunoelectrophoresis. It has an apparent molecular weight of 110,000 daltons. The location of GP II₂on the cell surface was confirmed by the fact that it could be labeled metabolically with, D-(³H) glucosamine and externally through the nonpenetrating periodate-NaB³H₄ system. GP II₂could not be removed from the cell surface by high salt concentrations, chelator, or chaotropic agents but was released from the membrane by detergents. This suggests that GP II₂could be an integral protein. Analysis of the carbohydrate composition of GP II₂ revealed galactose, N-acetylglucosamine, N-acetylgalactosamine, and sialic acid as major constituents and mannose as a minor one. This suggests that it contains carbohydrate chains both O- and N-linked to the polypeptide chain, most of them being O-linked. Finally, GP II₂has a potent Concanavalin A receptor activity. It inhibits the interaction between Concanavalin A and hepatoma cells and suppresses its effects on hepatoma cell proliferation.     

Molecular Nature of Spontaneous Mutations in Mouse Lactate Dehydrogenase-a Processed Pseudogenes

The presence of at least ten mouse LDH-A pseudogenes was demonstrated in the genomic blot analysis, and four different processed pseudogenes have thus far been isolated and characterized. In this report, the nucleotide sequences to two different mouse lactate dehydrogenase-A processed pseudogenes, M11 and M14, were determined and compared with the protein-coding sequences of the mouse and rat LDH-A functional genes. In the pseudogene M11, the sequence of 64 nucleotides from codon no. 257 to 278 was tandemly duplicated. In the pseudogene M14, the sequence of 22 nucleotides from codon no. 68 to 75 was replaced by an inserted repetitive sequence of 242 nucleotides homologous to a mouse truncated R element. The pattern of nucleotide substitutions accumulated in mouse LDH-A pseudogenes M11 and M14, as well as that of pseudogene M10 identified previously, was analyzed, and the substitution frequencies of the C or G at the CG dinucleotide were found to be high.     

Field Scale Variations in Soil Properties for Spatially Variable Control: A Review

This article reviews the widely scattered information on spatial variability of field-scale properties. It mainly addresses the variations in properties that influence nitrate accumulation and movement resulting from the agricultural activities in the root zone. The drive for this research comes from the perception and evidence of widespread contamination arising from production agriculture. The information is useful in the spatial management of soil for prevention of non-point source groundwater contamination from production practices. The review includes most of the static soil properties, one water transport property, some soil fertility variables, and crop yield. It examines various investigations and parameters identifying the magnitude of variability, and spatial correlation values for a given property are provided in a tabular form. Various sources of spatial variability, as well as methods of evaluating soil variability, are also discussed. For static soil properties, the range of coefficient of variation (CV) value was found to be small given the diversity of soils and field sizes on which the observations were conducted. The selected soil fertility variables and crop yield exhibited intermediate variations. However, CVs were considerably higher for the investigated transport property than those of static soil properties. The static soil properties and fertility variables were found to be correlated over a much larger distance than the transport property. If there was no variability, production through traditional practice with proper adjustment for field conditions would be the most appropriate choice. However, variations in soil and crop growth properties have led to attempts to understand these variations and application of spatially variable control in production agriculture.