Glycosylated nordihydroguaiaretic acids as anti-cancer agents

Three perglycosylated nordihydroguaiaretic acids (NDGA) were synthesized through the Huiseng 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction. These sugar-NDGA conjugates containing triazole-linkages possessed good solubility in water. NDGA-(triazol-galactose)₄ (12b) and NDGA-(triazol-glucose)₄ (12c) were found to act as inhibitors against human hepatocellular carcinoma Hep3B cells in culture.     

Accuracies of genomic breeding values in American Angus beef cattle using K-means clustering for cross-validation

Background

Genomic selection is a recently developed technology that is beginning to revolutionize animal breeding. The objective of this study was to estimate marker effects to derive prediction equations for direct genomic values for 16 routinely recorded traits of American Angus beef cattle and quantify corresponding accuracies of prediction.

Methods

Deregressed estimated breeding values were used as observations in a weighted analysis to derive direct genomic values for 3570 sires genotyped using the Illumina BovineSNP50 BeadChip. These bulls were clustered into five groups using K-means clustering on pedigree estimates of additive genetic relationships between animals, with the aim of increasing within-group and decreasing between-group relationships. All five combinations of four groups were used for model training, with cross-validation performed in the group not used in training. Bivariate animal models were used for each trait to estimate the genetic correlation between deregressed estimated breeding values and direct genomic values.

Results

Accuracies of direct genomic values ranged from 0.22 to 0.69 for the studied traits, with an average of 0.44. Predictions were more accurate when animals within the validation group were more closely related to animals in the training set. When training and validation sets were formed by random allocation, the accuracies of direct genomic values ranged from 0.38 to 0.85, with an average of 0.65, reflecting the greater relationship between animals in training and validation. The accuracies of direct genomic values obtained from training on older animals and validating in younger animals were intermediate to the accuracies obtained from K-means clustering and random clustering for most traits. The genetic correlation between deregressed estimated breeding values and direct genomic values ranged from 0.15 to 0.80 for the traits studied.

Conclusions

These results suggest that genomic estimates of genetic merit can be produced in beef cattle at a young age but the recurrent inclusion of genotyped sires in retraining analyses will be necessary to routinely produce for the industry the direct genomic values with the highest accuracy.     

Breeding value prediction for production traits in layer chickens using pedigree or genomic relationships in a reduced animal model

Background

Genomic selection involves breeding value estimation of selection candidates based on high-density SNP genotypes. To quantify the potential benefit of genomic selection, accuracies of estimated breeding values (EBV) obtained with different methods using pedigree or high-density SNP genotypes were evaluated and compared in a commercial layer chicken breeding line.

Methods

The following traits were analyzed: egg production, egg weight, egg color, shell strength, age at sexual maturity, body weight, albumen height, and yolk weight. Predictions appropriate for early or late selection were compared. A total of 2,708 birds were genotyped for 23,356 segregating SNP, including 1,563 females with records. Phenotypes on relatives without genotypes were incorporated in the analysis (in total 13,049 production records).The data were analyzed with a Reduced Animal Model using a relationship matrix based on pedigree data or on marker genotypes and with a Bayesian method using model averaging. Using a validation set that consisted of individuals from the generation following training, these methods were compared by correlating EBV with phenotypes corrected for fixed effects, selecting the top 30 individuals based on EBV and evaluating their mean phenotype, and by regressing phenotypes on EBV.

Results

Using high-density SNP genotypes increased accuracies of EBV up to two-fold for selection at an early age and by up to 88% for selection at a later age. Accuracy increases at an early age can be mostly attributed to improved estimates of parental EBV for shell quality and egg production, while for other egg quality traits it is mostly due to improved estimates of Mendelian sampling effects. A relatively small number of markers was sufficient to explain most of the genetic variation for egg weight and body weight.     

HLA-A0201 positive pancreatic cell lines: new findings and discrepancies

Pancreatic cancer is being pursued as an immunotherapy target using antigen-specific vaccine approaches activating CD8(+) CTL and CD4(+) T-helper cells. CD8(+) CTL exert their anti-tumor effects in an HLA-restricted manner and only tumor cells carrying a matched HLA class I sub-type are targets for antigen-specific CTL. In the process of characterizing CD8(+) T cell responses against pancreatic cancer, we screened a number of human pancreatic tumor cell lines for HLA-A0201 positive (HLA-A2(+)) cell lines to be used in the evaluation of CTL function. This analysis revealed some new findings and discrepancies in the literature on the HLA sub-type of some commonly used pancreatic cell lines. We found that Capan-1 cells, originally reported to be HLA-A0201(+), actually only express HLA-A010101 and HLA-A300101 and were targets for HLA-A0201-restricted CTL only after transduction with an HLA-A0201-expressing lentivirus. Panc-1 cells were found to be HLA-A0201 positive, in agreement with published reports, while CF-Pac-1 cells were found to express both HLA-A020101 and HLA-A030101. We also found a normal human pancreatic ductal epithelial cell line, HPDE, to be HLA-A0201 positive. Our findings were verified with two different sequence-based typing methods, antibody staining followed by flow cytometry analysis, and functional analysis using an HLA-A0201-restricted peptide-specific T cell response.     

Genetic factors responsible for eating and cooking qualities of rice grains in a recombinant inbred population of an inter-subspecific cross

The eating and cooking qualities of rice grains are the major determinants of consumer preference and, consequently, the economic value of a specific rice variety. These two qualities are largely determined by the physicochemical properties of the starch, i.e. the starch composition, of the rice grain. In our study, we determined the genetic factors responsible for the physicochemical properties of starch in recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of japonica cv. Tainung 78 × indica cv. Taichung Sen 17 (TCS 17) cultivated over two crop seasons by examining palatability characteristics and several Rapid Viscosity Analyzer (RVA) parameters. Thirty-four quantitative trait loci (QTLs), each explaining between 1.2 and 78.1 % phenotypic variation, were mapped in clusters on eight chromosomes in 190 RILs genotyped with 139 markers. Ten pairs of QTLs were detected in the two environments, of which seven were in agreement with previous findings, suggesting that these QTLs may express stable experimental populations across various environments. Waxy (Wx), which controls amylose synthesis, was determined to be a primary gene regulating the physicochemical properties of cooked rice grains, as indicated by the presence of a major QTL cluster on chromosome 6 and by marker regression analysis. Six starch synthesis-related genes (SSRGs) which were located in the QTL intervals significantly differed in terms of gene expression between the two parents during grain-filling and were important genetic factors affecting physicochemical properties. The expression of four genes, PUL, ISA2, GBSSI, and SSII-3, was significantly upregulated in TCS 17, and this expression was positively correlated with six traits. The effects of the six SSRGs and gene interaction depended on genetic background and environment; grain quality may be fine tuned by selecting for SBE4 for japonica and PUL for indica. We provide valuable information for application in the breeding of new rice varieties as daily staple food and for use in industrial manufacturing by marker-assisted selection.     

Evaluation of coagulation activation after Rhinovirus infection in patients with asthma and healthy control subjects: an observational study

Background

Asthma exacerbations are frequently triggered by rhinovirus infections. Both asthma and respiratory tract infection can activate haemostasis. Therefore we hypothesized that experimental rhinovirus-16 infection and asthmatic airway inflammation act in synergy on the haemostatic balance.

Methods

28 patients (14 patients with mild allergic asthma and 14 healthy non-allergic controls) were infected with low-dose rhinovirus type 16. Venous plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL fluid) were obtained before and 6 days after infection to evaluate markers of coagulation activation, thrombin-antithrombin complexes, von Willebrand factor, plasmin-antiplasmin complexes, plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1, endogenous thrombin potential and tissue factor-exposing microparticles by fibrin generation test, in plasma and/or BAL fluid. Data were analysed by nonparametric tests (Wilcoxon, Mann Whitney and Spearman correlation).

Results

13 patients with mild asthma (6 females, 19-29 y) and 11 healthy controls (10 females, 19-31 y) had a documented Rhinovirus-16 infection. Rhinovirus-16 challenge resulted in a shortening of the fibrin generation test in BAL fluid of asthma patients (t = -1: 706 s vs. t = 6: 498 s; p = 0.02), but not of controls (t = -1: 693 s vs. t = 6: 636 s; p = 0.65). The fold change in tissue factor-exposing microparticles in BAL fluid inversely correlated with the fold changes in eosinophil cationic protein and myeloperoxidase in BAL fluid after virus infection (r = -0.517 and -0.528 resp., both p = 0.01).Rhinovirus-16 challenge led to increased plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 levels in plasma in patients with asthma (26.0 ng/mL vs. 11.5 ng/mL in healthy controls, p = 0.04). Rhinovirus-16 load in BAL showed a linear correlation with the fold change in endogenous thrombin potential, plasmin-antiplasmin complexes and plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1.

Conclusions

Experimental rhinovirus infection induces procoagulant changes in the airways of patients with asthma through increased activity of tissue factor-exposing microparticles. These microparticle-associated procoagulant changes are associated with both neutrophilic and eosinophilic inflammation. Systemic activation of haemostasis increases with Rhinoviral load.

Trial registration

This trial was registered at the Dutch trial registry (http://www.trialregister.nl): NTR1677.     

Total cost estimation for implementing genome-enabled selection in a multi-level swine production system

Background

Determining an animal’s genetic merit using genomic information can improve estimated breeding value (EBV) accuracy; however, the magnitude of the accuracy improvement must be large enough to recover the costs associated with implementing genome-enabled selection. One way to reduce costs is to genotype nucleus herd selection candidates using a low-density chip and to use high-density chip genotyping for animals that are used as parents in the nucleus breeding herd. The objective of this study was to develop a tool to estimate the cost structure associated with incorporating genome-enabled selection into multi-level commercial breeding programs.

Results

For the purpose of this deterministic study, it was assumed that a commercial pig is created from a terminal line sire and a dam that is a cross between two maternal lines. It was also assumed that all male and female selection candidates from the 1000 sow maternal line nucleus herds were genotyped at low density and all animals used for breeding at high density. With the assumptions used in this analysis, it was estimated that genome-enabled selection costs for a maternal line would be approximately US$0.082 per weaned pig in the commercial production system. A total of US$0.164 per weaned pig is needed to incorporate genome-enabled selection into the two maternal lines. Similarly, for a 600 sow terminal line nucleus herd and genotyping only male selection candidates with the low-density panel, the cost per weaned pig in the commercial herd was estimated to be US$0.044. This means that US$0.21 per weaned pig produced at the commercial level and sired by boars obtained from the nucleus herd breeding program needs to be added to the genetic merit value in order to break even on the additional cost required when genome-enabled selection is used in both maternal lines and the terminal line.

Conclusions

By modifying the input values, such as herd size and genotyping strategy, a flexible spreadsheet tool developed from this work can be used to estimate the additional costs associated with genome-enabled selection. This tool will aid breeders in estimating the economic viability of incorporating genome-enabled selection into their specific breeding program.     

Multidisciplinary transmural rehabilitation for older persons with a stroke: the design of a randomised controlled trial

Background

Stroke is one of the major causes of loss of independence, decreased quality of life and mortality among elderly people. About half of the elderly stroke patients discharged after rehabilitation in a nursing home still experience serious impairments in daily functioning one year post stroke, which can lead to difficulties in picking up and managing their social life. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of a new multidisciplinary transmural rehabilitation programme for older stroke patients.

Methods

A two group multicentre randomised controlled trial is used to evaluate the effects of the rehabilitation programme. The programme consists of three care modules: 1) neurorehabilitation treatment for elderly stroke patients; 2) empowerment training for patient and informal caregiver; and 3) stroke education for patient and informal caregiver. The total programme has a duration of between two and six months, depending on the individual problems of the patient and informal caregiver. The control group receives usual care in the nursing home and after discharge.Patients aged 65 years and over are eligible for study participation when they are admitted to a geriatric rehabilitation unit in a nursing home due to a recent stroke and are expected to be able to return to their original home environment after discharge. Data are gathered by face-to-face interviews, self-administered questionnaires, focus groups and registration forms. Primary outcomes for patients are activity level after stroke, functional dependence, perceived quality of life and social participation. Outcomes for informal caregivers are perceived care burden, objective care burden, quality of life and perceived health. Outcome measures of the process evaluation are implementation fidelity, programme deliverance and the opinion of the stroke professionals, patients and informal caregivers about the programme. Outcome measures of the economic evaluation are the healthcare utilisation and associated costs. Data are collected at baseline, and after six and 12 months. The first results of the study will be expected in 2014.

Trial registration

International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Register Number ISRCTN62286281, The Dutch Trial Register NTR2412