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- Cole, Michelle J., et al.
(author)
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Ten years of external quality assessment (EQA) of Neisseria gonorrhoeae antimicrobial susceptibility testing in Europe elucidate high reliability of data
- 2019
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In: BMC Infectious Diseases. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-2334. ; 19:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Confidence in any diagnostic and antimicrobial susceptibility testing data is provided by appropriate and regular quality assurance (QA) procedures. In Europe, the European Gonococcal Antimicrobial Susceptibility Programme (Euro-GASP) has been monitoring the antimicrobial susceptibility in Neisseria gonorrhoeae since 2004. Euro-GASP includes an external quality assessment (EQA) scheme as an essential component for a quality-assured laboratory-based surveillance programme. Participation in the EQA scheme enables any problems with the performed antimicrobial susceptibility testing to be identified and addressed, feeds into the curricula of laboratory training organised by the Euro-GASP network, and assesses the capacity of individual laboratories to detect emerging new, rare and increasing antimicrobial resistance phenotypes. Participant performance in the Euro-GASP EQA scheme over a 10 year period (2007 to 2016, no EQA in 2013) was evaluated.METHODS: Antimicrobial susceptibility category and MIC results from the first 5 years (2007-2011) of the Euro-GASP EQA were compared with the latter 5 years (2012-2016). These time periods were selected to assess the impact of the 2012 European Union case definitions for the reporting of antimicrobial susceptibility.RESULTS: dilutions of the modal MIC, respectively. The most common method used was Etest on GC agar base. There was a shift to using breakpoints published by the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) in the latter 5 years, however overall impact on the validity of results was limited, as the percentage categorical agreement and MIC concordance changed very little between the two five-year periods.CONCLUSIONS: The high level of comparability of results in this EQA scheme indicates that high quality data are produced by the Euro-GASP participants and gives confidence in susceptibility and resistance data generated by laboratories performing decentralised testing.
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- Hibar, Derrek P., et al.
(author)
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Novel genetic loci associated with hippocampal volume
- 2017
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The hippocampal formation is a brain structure integrally involved in episodic memory, spatial navigation, cognition and stress responsiveness. Structural abnormalities in hippocampal volume and shape are found in several common neuropsychiatric disorders. To identify the genetic underpinnings of hippocampal structure here we perform a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 33,536 individuals and discover six independent loci significantly associated with hippocampal volume, four of them novel. Of the novel loci, three lie within genes (ASTN2, DPP4 and MAST4) and one is found 200 kb upstream of SHH. A hippocampal subfield analysis shows that a locus within the MSRB3 gene shows evidence of a localized effect along the dentate gyrus, subiculum, CA1 and fissure. Further, we show that genetic variants associated with decreased hippocampal volume are also associated with increased risk for Alzheimer's disease (r(g) = -0.155). Our findings suggest novel biological pathways through which human genetic variation influences hippocampal volume and risk for neuropsychiatric illness.
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- Jacobsson, Susanne, 1974-, et al.
(author)
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WGS analysis and molecular resistance mechanisms of azithromycin-resistant (MIC >2 mg/L) Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates in Europe from 2009 to 2014
- 2016
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In: Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. - Oxford, United Kingdom : Oxford University Press. - 0305-7453 .- 1460-2091. ; 71:11, s. 3109-3116
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objectives: To elucidate the genome-based epidemiology and phylogenomics of azithromycin-resistant (MIC >2 mg/L) Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains collected in 2009-14 in Europe and clarify the azithromycin resistance mechanisms.Methods: Seventy-five azithromycin-resistant (MIC 4 to >256 mg/L) N. gonorrhoeae isolates collected in 17 European countries during 2009-14 were examined using antimicrobial susceptibility testing and WGS.Results: Thirty-six N. gonorrhoeae multi-antigen sequence typing STs and five phylogenomic clades, including 4-22 isolates from several countries per clade, were identified. The azithromycin target mutation A2059G (Escherichia coli numbering) was found in all four alleles of the 23S rRNA gene in all isolates with high-level azithromycin resistance (n = 4; MIC ≥256 mg/L). The C2611T mutation was identified in two to four alleles of the 23S rRNA gene in the remaining 71 isolates. Mutations in mtrR and its promoter were identified in 43 isolates, comprising isolates within the whole azithromycin MIC range. No mutations associated with azithromycin resistance were found in the rplD gene or the rplV gene and none of the macrolide resistance-associated genes [mef(A/E), ere(A), ere(B), erm(A), erm(B), erm(C) and erm(F)] were identified in any isolate.Conclusions: Clonal spread of relatively few N. gonorrhoeae strains accounts for the majority of the azithromycin resistance (MIC >2 mg/L) in Europe. The four isolates with high-level resistance to azithromycin (MIC ≥256 mg/L) were widely separated in the phylogenomic tree and did not belong to any of the main clades. The main azithromycin resistance mechanisms were the A2059G mutation (high-level resistance) and the C2611T mutation (low- and moderate-level resistance) in the 23S rRNA gene.
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- Satizabal, Claudia L., et al.
(author)
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Genetic architecture of subcortical brain structures in 38,851 individuals
- 2019
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In: Nature Genetics. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 1061-4036 .- 1546-1718. ; 51:11, s. 1624-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Subcortical brain structures are integral to motion, consciousness, emotions and learning. We identified common genetic variation related to the volumes of the nucleus accumbens, amygdala, brainstem, caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, putamen and thalamus, using genome-wide association analyses in almost 40,000 individuals from CHARGE, ENIGMA and UK Biobank. We show that variability in subcortical volumes is heritable, and identify 48 significantly associated loci (40 novel at the time of analysis). Annotation of these loci by utilizing gene expression, methylation and neuropathological data identified 199 genes putatively implicated in neurodevelopment, synaptic signaling, axonal transport, apoptosis, inflammation/infection and susceptibility to neurological disorders. This set of genes is significantly enriched for Drosophila orthologs associated with neurodevelopmental phenotypes, suggesting evolutionarily conserved mechanisms. Our findings uncover novel biology and potential drug targets underlying brain development and disease.
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