| 1. |
- Elsik, Christine G., et al.
(författare)
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The Genome Sequence of Taurine Cattle : A Window to Ruminant Biology and Evolution
- 2009
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Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 324:5926, s. 522-528
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To understand the biology and evolution of ruminants, the cattle genome was sequenced to about sevenfold coverage. The cattle genome contains a minimum of 22,000 genes, with a core set of 14,345 orthologs shared among seven mammalian species of which 1217 are absent or undetected in noneutherian (marsupial or monotreme) genomes. Cattle-specific evolutionary breakpoint regions in chromosomes have a higher density of segmental duplications, enrichment of repetitive elements, and species-specific variations in genes associated with lactation and immune responsiveness. Genes involved in metabolism are generally highly conserved, although five metabolic genes are deleted or extensively diverged from their human orthologs. The cattle genome sequence thus provides a resource for understanding mammalian evolution and accelerating livestock genetic improvement for milk and meat production.
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| 2. |
- Schael, S, et al.
(författare)
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Precision electroweak measurements on the Z resonance
- 2006
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Ingår i: Physics Reports. - : Elsevier BV. - 0370-1573 .- 1873-6270. ; 427:5-6, s. 257-454
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the final electroweak measurements performed with data taken at the Z resonance by the experiments operating at the electron-positron colliders SLC and LEP. The data consist of 17 million Z decays accumulated by the ALEPH, DELPHI, L3 and OPAL experiments at LEP, and 600 thousand Z decays by the SLID experiment using a polarised beam at SLC. The measurements include cross-sections, forward-backward asymmetries and polarised asymmetries. The mass and width of the Z boson, m(Z) and Gamma(Z), and its couplings to fermions, for example the p parameter and the effective electroweak mixing angle for leptons, are precisely measured: m(Z) = 91.1875 +/- 0.0021 GeV, Gamma(Z) = 2.4952 +/- 0.0023 GeV, rho(l) = 1.0050 +/- 0.0010, sin(2)theta(eff)(lept) = 0.23153 +/- 0.00016. The number of light neutrino species is determined to be 2.9840 +/- 0.0082, in agreement with the three observed generations of fundamental fermions. The results are compared to the predictions of the Standard Model (SM). At the Z-pole, electroweak radiative corrections beyond the running of the QED and QCD coupling constants are observed with a significance of five standard deviations, and in agreement with the Standard Model. Of the many Z-pole measurements, the forward-backward asymmetry in b-quark production shows the largest difference with respect to its SM expectation, at the level of 2.8 standard deviations. Through radiative corrections evaluated in the framework of the Standard Model, the Z-pole data are also used to predict the mass of the top quark, m(t) = 173(+10)(+13) GeV, and the mass of the W boson, m(W) = 80.363 +/- 0.032 GeV. These indirect constraints are compared to the direct measurements, providing a stringent test of the SM. Using in addition the direct measurements of m(t) and m(W), the mass of the as yet unobserved SM Higgs boson is predicted with a relative uncertainty of about 50% and found to be less than 285 GeV at 95% confidence level. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 3. |
- Richards, Stephen, et al.
(författare)
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The genome of the model beetle and pest Tribolium castaneum.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Nature. - 1476-4687. ; 452:7190, s. 949-55
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Tribolium castaneum is a representative of earth’s most numerous eukaryotic order, a powerful model organism for the study of generalized insect development, and also an important pest of stored agricultural products. We describe its genome sequence here. This omnivorous beetle has evolved an ability to interact with a diverse chemical environment as evidenced by large expansions in odorant and gustatory receptors, as well as p450 and other detoxification enzymes. Developmental patterns in Tribolium are more representative of other arthropods than those found in Drosophila, a fact represented in gene content and function. For one, Tribolium has retained more ancestral genes involved in cell-cell communication than Drosophila, and some are expressed in the growth zone crucial for axial elongation in short germ development. Systemic RNAi in T. castaneum appears to use mechanisms distinct from those found in C. elegans, but nevertheless offers similar power for the elucidation of gene function and identification of targets for selective insect control.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Jensen, Karin B, et al.
(författare)
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Evidence of dysfunctional pain inhibition in Fibromyalgia reflected in rACC during provoked pain.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Pain. - : Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health). - 0304-3959 .- 1872-6623. ; 144:1-2, s. 95-100
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Over the years, many have viewed Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) as a so-called "functional disorder" and patients have experienced a concomitant lack of interest and legitimacy from the medical profession. The symptoms have not been explained by peripheral mechanisms alone nor by specific central nervous system mechanisms. In this study, we objectively evaluated the cerebral response to individually calibrated pain provocations of a pain-free body region (thumbnail). The study comprised 16 female FMS patients and 16 individually age-matched controls. Brain activity was measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during individually calibrated painful pressures representing 50 mm on a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from 0 to 100 mm. Patients exhibited higher sensitivity to pain provocation than controls as they required less pressure to evoke equal pain magnitudes (U(A)=48, p<.002). Despite lower pressures applied in patients at VAS 50 mm, the fMRI-analysis revealed no difference in activity in brain regions relating to attention and affect or regions with sensory projections from the stimulated body area. However, in the primary link in the descending pain regulating system (the rostral anterior cingulate cortex) the patients failed to respond to pain provocation. The attenuated response to pain in this brain region is the first demonstration of a specific brain region where the impairment of pain inhibition in FMS patients is expressed. These results validate previous reports of dysfunctional endogenous pain inhibition in FMS and advance the understanding of the central pathophysiologic mechanisms, providing a new direction for the development of successful treatments in FMS.
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| 6. |
- Musunuru, Kiran, et al.
(författare)
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Ion Mobility Analysis of Lipoprotein Subfractions Identifies Three Independent Axes of Cardiovascular Risk.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology. - 1524-4636. ; 29, s. 628-1975
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: Whereas epidemiological studies show that levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) predict incident cardiovascular disease (CVD), there is limited evidence relating lipoprotein subfractions and composite measures of subfractions to risk for CVD in prospective cohort studies. METHODS AND RESULTS: We tested whether combinations of lipoprotein subfractions independently predict CVD in a prospective cohort of 4594 initially healthy men and women (the Malmö Diet and Cancer Study, mean follow-up 12.2 years, 377 incident cardiovascular events). Plasma lipoproteins and lipoprotein subfractions were measured at baseline with a novel high-resolution ion mobility technique. Principal component analysis (PCA) of subfraction concentrations identified 3 major independent (ie, zero correlation) components of CVD risk, one representing LDL-associated risk, a second representing HDL-associated protection, and the third representing a pattern of decreased large HDL, increased small/medium LDL, and increased triglycerides. The last corresponds to the previously described "atherogenic lipoprotein phenotype." Several genes that may underlie this phenotype-CETP, LIPC, GALNT2, MLXIPL, APOA1/A5, LPL-are suggested by SNPs associated with the combination of small/medium LDL and large HDL. CONCLUSIONS: PCA on lipoprotein subfractions yielded three independent components of CVD risk. Genetic analyses suggest these components represent independent mechanistic pathways for development of CVD.
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| 7. |
- Newton-Cheh, Christopher, et al.
(författare)
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Genome-wide association study identifies eight loci associated with blood pressure
- 2009
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1546-1718 .- 1061-4036. ; 41:6, s. 666-676
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Elevated blood pressure is a common, heritable cause of cardiovascular disease worldwide. To date, identification of common genetic variants influencing blood pressure has proven challenging. We tested 2.5 million genotyped and imputed SNPs for association with systolic and diastolic blood pressure in 34,433 subjects of European ancestry from the Global BPgen consortium and followed up findings with direct genotyping (N <= 71,225 European ancestry, N <= 12,889 Indian Asian ancestry) and in silico comparison (CHARGE consortium, N 29,136). We identified association between systolic or diastolic blood pressure and common variants in eight regions near the CYP17A1 (P = 7 x 10(-24)), CYP1A2 (P = 1 x 10(-23)), FGF5 (P = 1 x 10(-21)), SH2B3 (P = 3 x 10(-18)), MTHFR (P = 2 x 10(-13)), c10orf107 (P = 1 x 10(-9)), ZNF652 (P = 5 x 10(-9)) and PLCD3 (P = 1 x 10(-8)) genes. All variants associated with continuous blood pressure were associated with dichotomous hypertension. These associations between common variants and blood pressure and hypertension offer mechanistic insights into the regulation of blood pressure and may point to novel targets for interventions to prevent cardiovascular disease.
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| 8. |
- Owen, Christopher G, et al.
(författare)
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Does initial breastfeeding lead to lower blood cholesterol in adult life? A quantitative review of the evidence.
- 2008
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Ingår i: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. - 0002-9165 .- 1938-3207. ; 88:2, s. 305-14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Earlier studies have suggested that infant feeding may program long-term changes in cholesterol metabolism. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to examine whether breastfeeding is associated with lower blood cholesterol concentrations in adulthood. DESIGN: The study consisted of a systematic review of published observational studies relating initial infant feeding status to blood cholesterol concentrations in adulthood (ie, aged >16 y). Data were available from 17 studies (17 498 subjects; 12 890 breastfed, 4608 formula-fed). Mean differences in total cholesterol concentrations (breastfed minus formula-fed) were pooled by using fixed-effect models. Effects of adjustment (for age at outcome, socioeconomic position, body mass index, and smoking status) and exclusion (of nonexclusive breast feeders) were examined. RESULTS: Mean total blood cholesterol was lower (P = 0.037) among those ever breastfed than among those fed formula milk (mean difference: -0.04 mmol/L; 95% CI: -0.08, 0.00 mmol/L). The difference in cholesterol between infant feeding groups was larger (P = 0.005) and more consistent in 7 studies that analyzed "exclusive" feeding patterns (-0.15 mmol/L; -0.23, -0.06 mmol/L) than in 10 studies that analyzed nonexclusive feeding patterns (-0.01 mmol/L; -0.06, 0.03 mmol/L). Adjustment for potential confounders including socioeconomic position, body mass index, and smoking status in adult life had minimal effect on these estimates. CONCLUSIONS: Initial breastfeeding (particularly when exclusive) may be associated with lower blood cholesterol concentrations in later life. Moves to reduce the cholesterol content of formula feeds below those of breast milk should be treated with caution.
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| 9. |
- Power, M. J., et al.
(författare)
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Changes in fire regimes since the Last Glacial Maximum : an assessment based on a global synthesis and analysis of charcoal data
- 2008
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Ingår i: Climate Dynamics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0930-7575 .- 1432-0894. ; 30:7-8, s. 887-907
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Fire activity has varied globally and continuously since the last glacial maximum (LGM) in response to long-term changes in global climate and shorter-term regional changes in climate, vegetation, and human land use. We have synthesized sedimentary charcoal records of biomass burning since the LGM and present global maps showing changes in fire activity for time slices during the past 21,000 years (as differences in charcoal accumulation values compared to pre-industrial). There is strong broad-scale coherence in fire activity after the LGM, but spatial heterogeneity in the signals increases thereafter. In North America, Europe and southern South America, charcoal records indicate less-than-present fire activity during the deglacial period, from 21,000 to ∼11,000 cal yr BP. In contrast, the tropical latitudes of South America and Africa show greater-than-present fire activity from ∼19,000 to ∼17,000 cal yr BP and most sites from Indochina and Australia show greater-than-present fire activity from 16,000 to ∼13,000 cal yr BP. Many sites indicate greater-than-present or near-present activity during the Holocene with the exception of eastern North America and eastern Asia from 8,000 to ∼3,000 cal yr BP, Indonesia and Australia from 11,000 to 4,000 cal yr BP, and southern South America from 6,000 to 3,000 cal yr BP where fire activity was less than present. Regional coherence in the patterns of change in fire activity was evident throughout the post-glacial period. These complex patterns can largely be explained in terms of large-scale climate controls modulated by local changes in vegetation and fuel load.
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