| 1. |
- Lawrenson, Kate, et al.
(author)
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Functional mechanisms underlying pleiotropic risk alleles at the 19p13.1 breast-ovarian cancer susceptibility locus
- 2016
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A locus at 19p13 is associated with breast cancer (BC) and ovarian cancer (OC) risk. Here we analyse 438 SNPs in this region in 46,451 BC and 15,438 OC cases, 15,252 BRCA1 mutation carriers and 73,444 controls and identify 13 candidate causal SNPs associated with serous OC (P=9.2 × 10-20), ER-negative BC (P=1.1 × 10-13), BRCA1-associated BC (P=7.7 × 10-16) and triple negative BC (P-diff=2 × 10-5). Genotype-gene expression associations are identified for candidate target genes ANKLE1 (P=2 × 10-3) and ABHD8 (P<2 × 10-3). Chromosome conformation capture identifies interactions between four candidate SNPs and ABHD8, and luciferase assays indicate six risk alleles increased transactivation of the ADHD8 promoter. Targeted deletion of a region containing risk SNP rs56069439 in a putative enhancer induces ANKLE1 downregulation; and mRNA stability assays indicate functional effects for an ANKLE1 3′-UTR SNP. Altogether, these data suggest that multiple SNPs at 19p13 regulate ABHD8 and perhaps ANKLE1 expression, and indicate common mechanisms underlying breast and ovarian cancer risk.
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| 2. |
- Dennis, Martin, et al.
(author)
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Effects of fluoxetine on functional outcomes after acute stroke (FOCUS) : a pragmatic, double-blind, randomised, controlled trial
- 2019
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In: The Lancet. - 0140-6736 .- 1474-547X. ; 393:10168, s. 265-274
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background Results of small trials indicate that fluoxetine might improve functional outcomes after stroke. The FOCUS trial aimed to provide a precise estimate of these effects.Methods FOCUS was a pragmatic, multicentre, parallel group, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial done at 103 hospitals in the UK. Patients were eligible if they were aged 18 years or older, had a clinical stroke diagnosis, were enrolled and randomly assigned between 2 days and 15 days after onset, and had focal neurological deficits. Patients were randomly allocated fluoxetine 20 mg or matching placebo orally once daily for 6 months via a web-based system by use of a minimisation algorithm. The primary outcome was functional status, measured with the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), at 6 months. Patients, carers, health-care staff, and the trial team were masked to treatment allocation. Functional status was assessed at 6 months and 12 months after randomisation. Patients were analysed according to their treatment allocation. This trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, number ISRCTN83290762.Findings Between Sept 10,2012, and March 31,2017,3127 patients were recruited. 1564 patients were allocated fluoxetine and 1563 allocated placebo. mRS data at 6 months were available for 1553 (99.3%) patients in each treatment group. The distribution across mRS categories at 6 months was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (common odds ratio adjusted for minimisation variables 0.951 [95% CI 0.839-1.079]; p=0.439). Patients allocated fluoxetine were less likely than those allocated placebo to develop new depression by 6 months (210 [13.43%] patients vs 269 [17.21%]; difference 3.78% [95% CI 1.26-6.30]; p=0.0033), but they had more bone fractures (45 [2.88%] vs 23 [1.47%]; difference 1.41% [95% CI 0.38-2.43]; p=0.0070). There were no significant differences in any other event at 6 or 12 months.Interpretation Fluoxetine 20 mg given daily for 6 months after acute stroke does not seem to improve functional outcomes. Although the treatment reduced the occurrence of depression, it increased the frequency of bone fractures. These results do not support the routine use of fluoxetine either for the prevention of post-stroke depression or to promote recovery of function.
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| 3. |
- Fang, Hanwei, et al.
(author)
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Epistasis studies reveal redundancy among calcium-dependent protein kinases in motility and invasion of malaria parasites
- 2018
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In: Nature Communications. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 2041-1723. ; 9
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In malaria parasites, evolution of parasitism has been linked to functional optimisation. Despite this optimisation, most members of a calcium-dependent protein kinase (CDPK) family show genetic redundancy during erythrocytic proliferation. To identify relationships between phospho-signalling pathways, we here screen 294 genetic interactions among protein kinases in Plasmodium berghei. This reveals a synthetic negative interaction between a hypomorphic allele of the protein kinase G (PKG) and CDPK4 to control erythrocyte invasion which is conserved in P. falciparum. CDPK4 becomes critical when PKG-dependent calcium signals are attenuated to phosphorylate proteins important for the stability of the inner membrane complex, which serves as an anchor for the acto-myosin motor required for motility and invasion. Finally, we show that multiple kinases functionally complement CDPK4 during erythrocytic proliferation and transmission to the mosquito. This study reveals how CDPKs are wired within a stage-transcending signalling network to control motility and host cell invasion in malaria parasites.
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| 4. |
- Francis, Nader K., et al.
(author)
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Consensus on Training and Implementation of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery : A Delphi Study
- 2018
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In: World Journal of Surgery. - : Springer. - 0364-2313 .- 1432-2323. ; 42:7, s. 1919-1928
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) is widely accepted in current surgical practice due to its positive impact on patient outcomes. The successful implementation of ERAS is challenging and compliance with protocols varies widely. Continual staff education is essential for successful ERAS programmes. Teaching modalities exist, but there remains no agreement regarding the optimal training curriculum or how its effectiveness is assessed. We aimed to draw consensus from an expert panel regarding the successful training and implementation of ERAS.METHODS: A modified Delphi technique was used; three rounds of questionnaires were sent to 58 selected international experts from 11 countries across multiple ERAS specialities and multidisciplinary teams (MDT) between January 2016 and February 2017. We interrogated opinion regarding four topics: (1) the components of a training curriculum and the structure of training courses; (2) the optimal framework for successful implementation and audit of ERAS including a guide for data collection; (3) a framework to assess the effectiveness of training; (4) criteria to define ERAS training centres of excellence.RESULTS: An ERAS training course must cover the evidence-based principles of ERAS with team-oriented training. Successful implementation requires strong leadership, an ERAS facilitator and an effective MDT. Effectiveness of training can be measured by improved compliance. A training centre of excellence should show a willingness to teach and demonstrable team working.CONCLUSIONS: We propose an international expert consensus providing an ERAS training curriculum, a framework for successful implementation, methods for assessing effectiveness of training and a definition of ERAS training centres of excellence.
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| 5. |
- Hastie, Roxanne, et al.
(author)
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Predictive Value of the Signs and Symptoms Preceding Eclampsia : A Systematic Review
- 2019
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In: Obstetrics and Gynecology. - 0029-7844 .- 1873-233X. ; 134:4, s. 677-684
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: To estimate the predictive value of signs and symptoms that occur before onset of eclampsia among pregnant women.DATA SOURCES: Electronic databases, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, and ClinicalTrials.gov were searched from inception to 2018. Search terms included eclampsia, predict, likelihood ratio, predictive value, and risk.METHODS OF STUDY SELECTION: Abstracts and later full texts were selected for review if a diagnosis of eclampsia was made, a comparator arm included (women without a diagnosis of eclampsia), and predictors of imminent eclampsia reported. Of 2,791 retrieved records, 11 were selected. Significant heterogeneity existed between studies, with differing designs, settings, participants, and signs or symptoms. In total, 28 signs or symptoms were reported, with visual disturbances and epigastric pain most common (six studies), followed by headache (five studies), and any edema (four studies).TABULATION, INTEGRATION, AND RESULTS: Data on study characteristics and predictive value of signs or symptoms were extracted, and, where appropriate, bivariate mixed-effect meta-analysis was applied to raw data. None of the pooled estimates were able to accurately predict eclampsia nor rule out eclampsia in their absence, with moderate specificity (83-94%) and poor sensitivity (29-56%).CONCLUSION: There is a dearth of high-quality studies investigating the predictive value of imminent signs and symptoms of eclampsia. Owing to the small number of studies, heterogeneity, and inconsistent reporting, it is difficult to provide accurate estimates of the predictive value of prodromal symptoms of eclampsia. Of the most commonly reported symptoms-visual disturbances, epigastric pain, and headache-none were able to accurately predict, nor rule out, imminent eclampsia.
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| 6. |
- Mitchell, Jonathan S., et al.
(author)
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Genome-wide association study identifies multiple susceptibility loci for multiple myeloma
- 2016
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell malignancy with a significant heritable basis. Genome-wide association studies have transformed our understanding of MM predisposition, but individual studies have had limited power to discover risk loci. Here we perform a meta-analysis of these GWAS, add a new GWAS and perform replication analyses resulting in 9,866 cases and 239,188 controls. We confirm all nine known risk loci and discover eight new loci at 6p22.3 (rs34229995, P = 1.31 x 10(-8)), 6q21 (rs9372120, P = 9.09 x 10(-15)), 7q36.1 (rs7781265, P = 9.71 x 10(-9)), 8q24.21 (rs1948915, P = 4.20 x 10(-11)), 9p21.3 (rs2811710, P = 1.72 x 10(-13)), 10p12.1 (rs2790457, P = 1.77 x 10(-8)), 16q23.1 (rs7193541, P = 5.00 x 10(-12)) and 20q13.13 (rs6066835, P = 1.36 x 10(-13)), which localize in or near to JARID2, ATG5, SMARCD3, CCAT1, CDKN2A, WAC, RFWD3 and PREX1. These findings provide additional support for a polygenic model of MM and insight into the biological basis of tumour development.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Zillikens, M. C., et al.
(author)
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Large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies five loci for lean body mass
- 2017
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 8:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Lean body mass, consisting mostly of skeletal muscle, is important for healthy aging. We performed a genome-wide association study for whole body (20 cohorts of European ancestry with n = 38,292) and appendicular (arms and legs) lean body mass (n = 28,330) measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry or bioelectrical impedance analysis, adjusted for sex, age, height, and fat mass. Twenty-one single-nucleotide polymorphisms were significantly associated with lean body mass either genome wide (p < 5 x 10(-8)) or suggestively genome wide (p < 2.3 x 10(-6)). Replication in 63,475 (47,227 of European ancestry) individuals from 33 cohorts for whole body lean body mass and in 45,090 (42,360 of European ancestry) subjects from 25 cohorts for appendicular lean body mass was successful for five single-nucleotide polymorphisms in/ near HSD17B11, VCAN, ADAMTSL3, IRS1, and FTO for total lean body mass and for three single-nucleotide polymorphisms in/ near VCAN, ADAMTSL3, and IRS1 for appendicular lean body mass. Our findings provide new insight into the genetics of lean body mass.
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| 9. |
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- 2019
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)
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