Tumor necrosis factor alpha promoter polymorphism studies in pregnant women

A plethora of laboratory protocols for vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene variants detection: a systematic review of associations with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

INTRODUCTION

Genetic variations in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene have been inconsistently linked to hypertensive disorder of pregnancy (HDP) across different populations. This systematic review aims to evaluate the laboratory protocols of VDR detection and association with HDP.

METHODS

We performed a systematic review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) guideline and conducted an article search using the Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, EBSCOhost (MEDLINE and CINAHL) databases. We included all studies involving one or more of the major VDR gene variants (FokI, BsmI, ApaI, and TaqI) and association with HDP.

RESULTS

Of the 9 studies evaluated, 6 (67%) studies were reported from Asia, 2 (22%) from Europe, and 1 (11%) from Latin America. Our analysis of VDR variant detection protocols revealed that approximately 6 (67%) studies used polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), of which 3 (33%) reported a significant association with FokI variant. Two (22%) of studies used TaqMan PCR and found an association with FokI variant. Only 1 (11%) study utilised allele-specific PCR (AS-PCR) for ApaI variant genotyping. For association analysis of the variants with HDP in populations, 4 studies (44%) reported an association with FokI variant in Asians. Two studies (22%) reported BsmI variant in Caucasians. TaqI variant was not associated with HDP in all the populations studied.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest an association between VDR genetic variation and HDP across different populations. To enhance consistency in these associations, future studies should use reliable detection methods and strict adherence to quality control measures. This could help in the identification of population-specific biomarkers, prevalent variants, and support personalized management strategies to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality related to HDP.

Anxiety, depression-like behaviors and biochemistry disorders induced by cannabis extract in female mice

Cannabis is an annual herbaceous plant sometimes grown for decoration and used as bird food that looks like flax. The study wanted to determine if a Cannabis extract may have an effect on how anxious and depressed the female mice behaved. forty healthy female mice were divided into four groups. Tap water was administered to the first group (control). Ethanol was administered to second group (positive control). The third and four groups were given 1 and 2 mg/kg cannabis extract respectively. Treatment continued for 14 days. After therapy, the light–dark chamber, forced swimming, tail suspension, plus lamb and open field tests were done to assess anxiety and depressive behavior. The results indicated that the anxiety and depression were increased in treated females significantly compared to control. Biochemical results showed that DA,5-HT, AChE, GSH, GST, CAT and SOD were decreased while TBARS, corticosterone and cortisol were increased. In conclusion, cannabis effects this kind of females’ behavior but the mechanisms are not clear yet. We need more researches on this trend.

Knowledge and awareness of folic acid usage in Saudi pregnant women in Riyadh city from 2019-2020

BACKGROUND

Folic acid (FA) supplementation is an important intervention to avoid nutritional deficiencies during pregnancy and later on will have an effect on mother and fetus. Inadequate dietary intake will lead to nutritional deficiency which further requires to depend on supplementation. FA is one of the vital nutrients which is mandatory for improving pregnancy outcomes. Previous studies have documented the pregnant women who know about supplementation of FA but not consuming during pregnancy will lead to complications in their neonates. This study aimed to inspect the knowledge and awareness about supplementation of FA in Saudi pregnant women and to compare present study results with other prior studies carried out in the Saudi population.

METHODS

In this study, we have opted 406 Saudi pregnant women with the age range of 18-65 years of age through questionnaire-based research, was further assessed for FA supplementation usage during the pregnancy. Involved pregnant women have filled questionnaire and signed the consent form.

RESULTS

The results of this study showed 38% of women were pregnant during 31-40 years of the age range. Almost 96% of pregnant women have awareness about FA supplementation during pregnancies, and 5.9% of women had histories for not using FA supplementation and had abnormal offspring. The current study questionnaire survey confirms 55.7% of pregnant women have information about FA supplementations. Nearly 89% of women have used FA in their previous pregnancies.

CONCLUSION

Saudi pregnant women has good knowledge and awareness about the usage of FA supplementation during pregnancy. Limited efforts should be implemented national wide in all the hospitals and clinics to improve the awareness about maternal nutrition during pregnancy. Nutritional counselling should be conducted in remote areas to get a perception in Saudi Arabia.

Association between HindIII (rs320) variant in the lipoprotein lipase gene and the presence of coronary artery disease and stroke among the Saudi population

Lipoprotein Lipase (LPL) is known to be a key enzyme for lipid metabolism specifically in an enzymatic glycoprotein which provide tissues without fatty-acids and eliminates triglycerides (TG) by the circulation. Mutations in LPL were proven to cause alteration in fractions within lipoprotein, causing the development of atherosclerosis which predispose to weakening coronary artery disease (CAD) and stroke. We examined the linkage between genetic variant HindIII in LPL on lipoprotein fractions, stroke occurrences and CAD. In this case-control study, we have recruited 315 CAD cases and 205 age-matched controls. A total of 520 genomic DNA was digested with the purified PCR products for restriction fragment length polymorphism with HindIII restriction enzyme. The distribution of genotypes in a decreasing order were TT, 148 (47%), GT 135 (42.9%) and GG 32 (10.2%) in CAD groups of the study while the pattern in controls were GT 91 (44.4%), TT 86 (42%) and GG 28 (13.7%). None of all the allele or genotype frequencies were found to be significant in our study (p greater than 0.05), while the biochemical levels for both TG and LDL-c were shown to be prone in CAD patients when compare with the controls. Furthermore, the occurence of strokes were more in CAD groups vs. controls: 72 (22.9%) vs. 7 (3.4%) [p 0.000]. This could indicate the influence of HindIII variant on plasma lipid levels, and the possibility of considering it a risk factor for atherosclerosis leading to CAD and stroke occurrence.

Genetic confirmation of T2DM meta-analysis variants studied in gestational diabetes mellitus in an Indian population

BACKGROUND

Meta-analysis is useful for combining the results of different studies statistically to confirm genuine associations in genetics. Based on earlier reports, we aimed to investigate the association between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) genetic variants identified in a previous meta-analysis in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in an Indian woman.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

In this study, 137 pregnant women with GDM and 150 pregnant women were selected on the basis of their serum glucose levels. The six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of different genes studied had known involvement in pancreatic β-cell function, particular pathways linked to T2DM, and other biological functions. Genomic DNA was isolated from the 287 women for polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses.

RESULTS

The rs7903146, rs13266634, rs2283228, rs5210 and rs179881 SNPs were found to be positively associated with GDM when calculated for genotype and allele frequencies (p < 0.05), but rs680 (ApaI) variant did not show statistically significant association (p = 0.31). The rs7903146, rs2283228, rs5210 and rs680 variants showed a strong association with oral glucose tolerance test values.

CONCLUSION

The SNPs studied in this GDM had the same role as those identified in a previous T2DM meta-analysis, and showed positive association in the Indian women. Meta-analyses should be implemented to assess the IGF2 gene in GDM subjects.

Assessment of genetic diversity in Vigna unguiculata L. (Walp) accessions using inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) and start codon targeted (SCoT) polymorphic markers

BACKGROUND

Assessment of genetic diversity of Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp (cowpea) accessions using informative molecular markers is imperative for their genetic improvement and conservation. Use of efficacious molecular markers to obtain the required knowledge of the genetic diversity within the local and regional germplasm collections can enhance the overall effectiveness of cowpea improvement programs, hence, the comparative assessment of Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) and Start codon targeted (SCoT) markers in genetic diversity of V. unguiculata accessions from different regions in Nigeria. Comparative analysis of the genetic diversity of eighteen accessions from different locations in Nigeria was investigated using ISSR and SCoT markers. DNA extraction was done using Zymogen Kit according to its manufacturer's instructions followed by amplifications with ISSR and SCoT and agarose gel electrophoresis. The reproducible bands were scored for analyses of dendrograms, principal component analysis, genetic diversity, allele frequency, polymorphic information content, and population structure.

RESULTS

Both ISSR and SCoT markers resolved the accessions into five major clusters based on dendrogram and principal component analyses. Alleles of 32 and 52 were obtained with ISSR and SCoT, respectively. Numbers of alleles, gene diversity and polymorphic information content detected with ISSR were 9.4000, 0.7358 and 0.7192, while SCoT yielded 11.1667, 0.8158 and 0.8009, respectively. Polymorphic loci were 70 and 80 in ISSR and SCoT, respectively. Both markers produced high polymorphism (94.44-100%). The ranges of effective number of alleles (Ne) were 1.2887 ± 0.1797-1.7831 ± 0.2944 and 1.7416 ± 0.0776-1.9181 ± 0.2426 in ISSR and SCoT, respectively. The Nei's genetic diversity (H) ranged from 0.2112 ± 0.0600-0.4335 ± 0.1371 and 0.4111 ± 0.0226-0.4778 ± 0.1168 in ISSR and SCoT, respectively. Shannon's information index (I) from ISSR and SCoT were 0.3583 ± 0.0639-0.6237 ± 0.1759 and 0.5911 ± 0.0233-0.6706 ± 0.1604. Total gene diversity (Ht), gene diversity within population (Hs), coefficient of gene differentiation (Gst) and level of gene flow (Nm) revealed by ISSR were 0.4498, 0.3203, 0.2878 and 1.2371 respectively, while SCoT had 0.4808, 0.4522, 0.0594 and 7.9245.

CONCLUSIONS

Both markers showed highest genetic diversity in accessions from Ebonyi. Our study demonstrated that SCoT markers were more efficient than ISSR for genetic diversity studies in V. unguiculata and can be integrated in the exploration of their genetic diversity for improvement and germplasm utilization.

Importance of glucokinase -258G/A polymorphism in Asian Indians with post-transplant and type 2 diabetes mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) are non-synonymous forms of diabetes. Glucokinase (GCK) plays a key role in glucose metabolism. The relationship between the GCK promoter and specific types of diabetes, such as PTDM and T2DM, in the Asian Indian population is unknown. We examined the occurrence of a specific GCK promoter variant (-258G/A) in patients with T2DM and PTDM. The case-control study enrolled 640 Asian Indian subjects, including controls (n = 250) and T2DM (n = 250), PTDM (n = 42), and non-post-transplant diabetes mellitus (non-PTDM) (n = 98) patients. Purified Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was genotyped with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis. The digested PCR products were analyzed on 12% polyacrylamide gels. The anthropometric, biochemical, and clinical details of each group were documented. GCK -258G/A alleles and genotypes were not associated with T2DM. However, among PTDM subjects, we detected a higher frequency of heterozygotes (52.4%) and a positive association with alleles/genotypes. The results suggest that the promoter region (-258G/A) of GCK plays an important role in PTDM in Asian Indians.

Correlation between KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 gene polymorphisms and type 2 and post-transplant diabetes mellitus in the Asian Indian population

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) share a common pathophysiology. However, diabetes mellitus is a complex disease, and T2DM and PTDM have different etiologies. T2DM is a metabolic disorder, characterized by persistent hyperglycemia, whereas PTDM is a condition of abnormal glucose tolerance, with variable onset after organ transplant. The KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 gene encode potassium channels, which mediate insulin secretion from pancreatic β-cells, and KCN gene mutations are correlated with the development of diabetes. However, no studies have been carried out to establish an association between KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 gene polymorphisms and T2DM and PTDM. Therefore, our study was aimed at the identification of the role of KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 gene polymorphisms associated with T2DM and the risk of developing PTDM in the Asian Indian population. We have carried out a case-control study including 250 patients with T2DM, 250 control subjects, 42 patients with PTDM and 98 subjects with non-PTDM. PCR-RFLP analysis was carried out following the isolation of genomic DNA from EDTA-blood samples. The results of the present study reveal that two single nucleotide polymorphisms (rs2283228 and rs5210, of the KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 genes, respectively) are associated with both T2DM and PTDM. The results of our study suggest a role of KCNQ1 and KCNJ11 gene variants in the increased risk of T2DM and PTDM in the Asian Indian population.

Validation of the association of TCF7L2 and SLC30A8 gene polymorphisms with post-transplant diabetes mellitus in Asian Indian population

The rs7903146 and rs13266634 polymorphisms in the TCF7L2 and SLC30A8 genes, respectively, have been reported to be associated with type 2 diabetes. However, little is known about the association of these polymorphisms with post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM). To study this linkage, we determined a distribution of allele and genotype frequencies in Asian Indians. 42 PTDM and 98 non-PTDM subjects were recruited. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis was performed to detect for rs7903146 and rs13266634 polymorphisms. The clinical details and statistical analysis for PTDM and non-PTDM subjects were recorded. Our results observed higher frequencies of the minor alleles in rs7903146 and rs13266634 polymorphisms in the PTDM group compared to the non-PTDM subjects. The allele frequencies also found to be significantly associated with PTDM (rs7903146: T vs C: OR-2.6; (95%CI: 1.2-5.6); p = 0.01; rs13266634: T vs C: OR-2.0; (95%CI: 1.1-3.4); p = 0.01). These findings suggest that rs7903146 and rs13266634 polymorphisms are associated with PTDM in the Asian Indian population despite a relatively small study group.

Screening of mitochondrial mutations and insertion-deletion polymorphism in gestational diabetes mellitus in the Asian Indian population

In this study we scrutinized the association between the A8344G/A3243G mutations and a 9-bp deletion polymorphism with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in an Asian Indian population. The A3243G mutation in the mitochondrial tRNA(Leu(UUR)) causes mitochondrial encephalopathy myopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes (MELAS), while the A8344G mutation in tRNA(Lys) causes myoclonus epilepsy with ragged red fibers (MERRF). We screened 140 pregnant women diagnosed with GDM and 140 non-GDM participants for these mutations by PCR-RFLP analysis. Both A3243G and A8344G were associated with GDM (A3243: OR-3.667, 95% CI = 1.001-13.43, p = 0.03; A8344G: OR-11.00, 95% CI = 0.6026-200.8, p = 0.04). Mitochondrial DNA mutations contribute to the development of GDM. Our results conclude that mitochondrial mutations are associated with the GDM women in our population. Thus it is important to screen other mitochondrial mutations in the GDM women.