| 1. |
- Ahola, Virpi, et al.
(författare)
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The Glanville fritillary genome retains an ancient karyotype and reveals selective chromosomal fusions in Lepidoptera
- 2014
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 5, s. 4737-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Previous studies have reported that chromosome synteny in Lepidoptera has been well conserved, yet the number of haploid chromosomes varies widely from 5 to 223. Here we report the genome (393 Mb) of the Glanville fritillary butterfly (Melitaea cinxia; Nymphalidae), a widely recognized model species in metapopulation biology and eco-evolutionary research, which has the putative ancestral karyotype of n = 31. Using a phylogenetic analyses of Nymphalidae and of other Lepidoptera, combined with orthologue-level comparisons of chromosomes, we conclude that the ancestral lepidopteran karyotype has been n = 31 for at least 140 My. We show that fusion chromosomes have retained the ancestral chromosome segments and very few rearrangements have occurred across the fusion sites. The same, shortest ancestral chromosomes have independently participated in fusion events in species with smaller karyotypes. The short chromosomes have higher rearrangement rate than long ones. These characteristics highlight distinctive features of the evolutionary dynamics of butterflies and moths.
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| 2. |
- Björkgren, Ida, et al.
(författare)
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Imbalanced lipid homeostasis in the conditional Dicer1 knockout mouse epididymis causes instability of the sperm membrane.
- 2015
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Ingår i: FASEB journal : official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. - : Wiley. - 1530-6860. ; 29:2, s. 433-442
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During epididymal sperm maturation, the lipid content of the sperm membrane is modified, which facilitates sperm motility and fertility. However, little is known about the mechanisms regulating the maturation process. By generating a conditional knockout (cKO) of Dicer1 in the proximal part of the mouse epididymis, we studied the role of RNA interference in epididymal functions. The Dicer1 cKO epididymis displayed an altered lipid homeostasis associated with a 0.6-fold reduction in the expression of the gene elongation of very long chain fatty acids-like 2, an enzyme needed for production of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Furthermore, the expression of several factors involved in cholesterol synthesis was up-regulated. Accordingly, the Dicer1 cKO sperm membrane showed a 0.7-fold decrease in long-chain PUFAs, whereas the amount of cholesterol in acrosome-reacted sperm displayed a 1.7-fold increase. The increased cholesterol:PUFA ratio of the sperm membrane caused breakage of the neck and acrosome region and immotility of sperm. Dicer1 cKO mice sperm also displayed reduced ability to bind to and fertilize the oocyte in vitro. This study thus shows that Dicer1 is critical for lipid synthesis in the epididymis, which directly affects sperm membrane integrity and male fertility.-Björkgren, I., Gylling, H., Turunen, H., Huhtaniemi, I., Strauss, L., Poutanen, M., Sipilä, P. Imbalanced lipid homeostasis in the conditional Dicer1 knockout mouse epididymis causes instability of the sperm membrane.
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| 3. |
- Einarsdottir, Elisabet, et al.
(författare)
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IL23R in the Swedish, Finnish, Hungarian and Italian populations : association with IBD and psoriasis, and linkage to celiac disease
- 2009
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Ingår i: BMC Medical Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2350. ; 10:8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Association of the interleukin-23 receptor (IL23R) with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been confirmed in several populations. IL23R also associates with psoriasis, suggesting that the gene may be an important candidate for many chronic inflammatory diseases.METHODS: We studied association of single-nucleotide variants in IL23R with IBD in Swedish patients, in both Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) subsets. The same genetic variants were also studied in Finnish patients with psoriasis or celiac disease, and in Hungarian and Italian patients with celiac disease.RESULTS: Association of IL23R with IBD was replicated in our Swedish patients, and linkage and association of the IL23R region with psoriasis was found in the Finnish population. The IL23R region was also linked to celiac disease in Finnish families, but no association of IL23R variants with celiac disease was found in the Finnish, Hungarian or Italian samples.CONCLUSION: Our study is the first to demonstrate association of IL23R with CD and UC in Swedish patients with IBD. It is also the first study to report linkage and association of the IL23R region with psoriasis in the Finnish population. Importantly, this is the first report of linkage of the IL23R region to celiac disease, a chronic inflammatory condition in which IL23R has not been previously implicated.
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| 4. |
- Lohmander, Anette, et al.
(författare)
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Validity of auditory perceptual assessment of velopharyngeal function and dysfunction - the VPC-Sum and the VPC-Rate
- 2017
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Ingår i: Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics. - : TAYLOR & FRANCIS INC. - 0269-9206 .- 1464-5076. ; 31:7-9, s. 589-597
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Overall weighted or composite variables for perceptual auditory estimation of velopharyngeal closure or competence have been used in several studies for evaluation of velopharyngeal function during speech. The aim of the present study was to investigate the validity of a composite score (VPC-Sum) and of auditory perceptual ratings of velopharyngeal competence (VPC-Rate). Available VPC-Sum scores and judgments of associated variables (hypernasality, audible nasal air leakage, weak pressure consonants, and non-oral articulation) from 391 5-year olds with repaired cleft palate (the Scandcleft project) were used to investigate content validity, and 339 of these were compared with an overall judgment of velopharyngeal competence (VPC-Rate) on the same patients by the same listeners. Significant positive correlations were found between the VPC-Sum and each of the associated variables (Cronbachs alpha 0.55-0.87, P amp;lt; 0.001), and a moderately significant positive correlation between VPC-Sum and VPC-Rate (Rho 0.698, P amp;lt; 0.01). The latter classified cases well when VPC-Sum was dichotomized with 67% predicted velopharyngeal competence and 90% velopharyngeal incompetence. The validity of the VPC-Sum was good and the VPC-Rate a good predictor, suggesting possible use of both measures depending on the objective.
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| 5. |
- Matthies, Aila-Leena, et al.
(författare)
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An eco-social approach to tackling social exclusion in European cities : a new comparative research project in progress
- 2000
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Ingår i: European Journal of Social Work. - : Oxford University Press. - 1369-1457 .- 1468-2664. ; 3:1, s. 43-52
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this article we would like to introduce a three-year Research Project called 'New Local Policies against Social Exclusion in European Cities', financed by the Targeted Socio-Economic Research Program (TSER) of the European Union. We will briefly highlight the entire research project that aims to make a contribution to European debate about social exclusion within social work (see also Washington and Paylor 1998), as well as social work's theoretical knowledge and field projects. The specific emphasis is on analysing the significance of the eco-social environment and citizen participation in disadvantaged residential areas, but related work aims to develop new kinds of action models and research methods. The project started in January 1998 in Finland, Germany, and Great Britain, and it will be completed by the end of 2000. Our research is a unique kind of cross-national comparative case-context research, based on classic ideas of action research and comparative research. Overall, the project aims through a European exchange to develop innovative models of local policies, particularly within community-based social work.
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| 6. |
- Semb, Gunvor, et al.
(författare)
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A Scandcleft randomised trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and palate: 1. Planning and management.
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Plastic Surgery and Hand Surgery. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2000-656X .- 2000-6764. ; 51:1, s. 2-13
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Longstanding uncertainty surrounds the selection of surgical protocols for the closure of unilateral cleft lip and palate, and randomised trials have only rarely been performed. This paper is an introduction to three randomised trials of primary surgery for children born with complete unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP). It presents the protocol developed for the trials in CONSORT format, and describes the management structure that was developed to achieve the long-term engagement and commitment required to complete the project.METHOD: Ten established national or regional cleft centres participated. Lip and soft palate closure at 3-4 months, and hard palate closure at 12 months served as a common method in each trial. Trial 1 compared this with hard palate closure at 36 months. Trial 2 compared it with lip closure at 3-4 months and hard and soft palate closure at 12 months. Trial 3 compared it with lip and hard palate closure at 3-4 months and soft palate closure at 12 months. The primary outcomes were speech and dentofacial development, with a series of perioperative and longer-term secondary outcomes.RESULTS: Recruitment of 448 infants took place over a 9-year period, with 99.8% subsequent retention at 5 years.CONCLUSION: The series of reports that follow this introductory paper include comparisons at age 5 of surgical outcomes, speech outcomes, measures of dentofacial development and appearance, and parental satisfaction. The outcomes recorded and the numbers analysed for each outcome and time point are described in the series.TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN29932826.
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| 7. |
- Zucchelli, Marco, et al.
(författare)
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PepT1 oligopeptide transporter (SLC15A1) gene polymorphism in inflammatory bowel disease
- 2009
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Ingår i: Inflammatory Bowel Diseases. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1078-0998 .- 1536-4844. ; 15:10, s. 1562-1569
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Human polymorphisms affecting gut epithelial barrier and interactions with bacteria predispose to the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). The intestinal transporter PepT1, encoded by the SLC15A1 gene, mediates intracellular uptake of bacterial products that can induce inflammation and NF-kappaB activation upon binding to NOD2, a protein often mutated in CD. Hence, we tested SLC15A1 polymorphisms for association with IBD.METHODS: Twelve SLC15A1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped in 1783 individuals from 2 cohorts of Swedish and Finnish IBD patients and controls. An in vitro system was set up to evaluate the potential impact of SLC15A1 polymorphism on PepT1 transporter function by quantification of NOD2-mediated activation of NF-kappaB.RESULTS: The common allele (C) of a coding polymorphism (rs2297322, Ser117Asn) was associated with CD susceptibility both in Sweden and in Finland, but with genetic effects in opposite directions (risk and protection, respectively). The best evidence of association was found in both populations when the analysis was performed on individuals not carrying NOD2 common risk alleles (Sweden allelic P = 0.0007, OR 1.97, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.34-2.92; Finland genotype P = 0.0013, OR 0.63, 95% CI 0.44-0.90). The PepT1 variant encoded by the C allele (PepT1-Ser117) was associated with reduced signaling downstream of NOD2 (P < 0.0001 compared to Pept1-Asn117).CONCLUSIONS: A functional polymorphism in the SLC15A1 gene might be of relevance to inflammation and antibacterial responses in IBD. Whether this polymorphism truly contributes to disease susceptibility needs to be further addressed, and should stimulate additional studies in other populations.
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