Search results for "rase"
showing 10 items of 4343 documents
Cholinesterase variants: rapid characterisation by PCR/SSCP and evidence for molecular homogeneity.
1995
We have applied the technique of PCR-SSCP (polymerase chain reaction-single stranded conformation polymorphism) to characterise the molecular basis of cholinesterase deficiency and variants in a Jordanian family. PCR-SSCP proved to be a quick and sensitive method of screening cholinesterase variants in a clinical setting. An AG insertion at position 351 was found to cause a silent allele, for which the parents were heterozygous and three children homozygous. In addition, the father and two sons were heterozygous for an A to G transition at position 209, known to cause the dibucaine resistant variant. No linkage to the K variant was found, which has been reported previously in white populati…
The val158met polymorphism of human catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) affects anterior cingulate cortex activation in response to painful laser sti…
2010
Background: Pain is a complex experience with sensory, emotional and cognitive aspects. Genetic and environmental factors contribute to pain-related phenotypes such as chronic pain states. Genetic variations in the gene coding for catechol-O-methyltransferase ( COMT) have been suggested to affect clinical and experimental pain-related phenotypes including regional μ-opioid system responses to painful stimulation as measured by ligand-PET (positron emission tomography). The functional val158met single nucleotide polymorphism has been most widely studied. However, apart from its impact on pain-induced opioid release the effect of this genetic variation on cerebral pain processing has not been…
Variability in human hepatic MRP4 expression: influence of cholestasis and genotype
2007
The multidrug resistance protein 4 (MRP4) is an efflux transporter involved in the transport of endogenous substrates and xenobiotics. We measured MRP4 mRNA and protein expression in human livers and found a 38- and 45-fold variability, respectively. We sequenced 2 kb of the 5'-flanking region, all exons and intron/exon boundaries of the MRP4 gene in 95 patients and identified 74 genetic variants including 10 non-synonymous variations, seven of them being located in highly conserved regions. None of the detected polymorphisms was significantly associated with changes in the MRP4 mRNA or protein expression. Immunofluorescence microscopy indicated that none of the non-synonymous variations af…
Specific association of IL17A genetic variants with panuveitis.
2015
Background/aims A pathogenic role of Th17 cells in uveitis has become clear in recent years. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to evaluate the possible influence of the IL 17A locus on susceptibility to non-anterior uveitis and its main clinical subgroups. Methods Five IL17A polymorphisms (rs4711998, rs8193036, rs3819024, rs2275913 and rs7747909), selected by tagging, were genotyped using TagMan assays in 353 Spanish patients with non-anterior uveitis and 1851 ethnically matched controls. Results The case/control analysis yielded a consistent association between two of the analysed genetic variants, rs8193036 and rs2275913, and the presence of panuveitis under a dominant model (p(FD…
A study on occupational exposure of Sicilian farmers to Giardia and Cryptosporidium
2013
Introduction. A cross-sectional study was undertaken to deter- mine the prevalence of Giardia and Cryptosporidium in calves of Palermo area (Sicily) and to evaluate the occupational risk associated with occurrence of zoonotic genotypes. Methods. A total of 217 faecal samples, from 149 calves (between 2 and 240 days of age) and 68 farmers, were collected in 19 cattle- farms of Palermo area. A questionnaire regarding demographic characteristics and personal hygienic measures was submitted to all farmers. All faecal samples were analyzed by Immunoflu- orescence assay and Polimerase Chain Reaction (PCR); geno- types were determined by DNA sequencing of Triose Phosphate Isomerase gene for Giardi…
Can the serological status of anti-HBc alone be considered a sentinel marker for detection of occult HBV infection?
2008
Some individuals have “occult” infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV), defined as presence of HBV genome in the serum or liver tissue without HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) in the serum. The aim of this study was to investigate whether serum antibodies against HBV core antigen in isolation (“anti-HBc alone”) are a useful marker of “occult” HBV in patients with or without hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. “Anti-HBc alone” was detected in the sera of 119/6,544 (1.8%) asymptomatic outpatients referred to the diagnostic laboratory for routine testing for viral hepatitis, 62/607 (10.2%) drug users, and 42/195 (21.5%) patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Using three in-house nested-PCR amplifica…
Hepatitis B defective virus with rearrangements in the preS gene during chronic HBV infection.
1991
We have found a defective form of HBV2 in a HBsAg- and anti-HBe-positive patient with liver cancer. Viral deletions were identified in the preS coding region using PCR. The presence of deleted HBV forms was observed in serum, PBMC, and liver samples. After sequencing 12 clones were analyzed (subtype adr). In 9 out of 12 clones a 183-bp in-frame deletion was recorded in the preS1 region (2995 to 3177). Three out of 9 clones also yielded rearrangements of the preS2 N-terminal part. Four out of 9 showed numerous point mutations in the preS1 and preS2 sequence. In addition, 3 out of 12 clones, which did not show the 183-bp preS1 deletion were found to have small deletions and insertions in the …
HBV DNA suppression and HBsAg clearance in HBeAg negative chronic hepatitis B patients on lamivudine therapy for over 5 years
2012
Background & Aims In long-term responder patients, it is unclear whether lamivudine (LAM) monotherapy should be continued or switched to a high-genetic-barrier analogue. This study aims at assessing LAM efficacy over a 5-year period and the residual risk of drug resistance. The rate of HBsAg clearance and LAM long-term safety profile were also evaluated. Methods One hundred and ninety-one patients with chronic HBeAg-negative hepatitis B successfully treated with LAM monotherapy for at least 5years were included. Biochemical and virological tests were assessed every 3months in all patients and HBsAg quantification was performed in 45/191. Reverse-transcriptase (RT) region was directly sequen…
Prevalence of human papilloma virus infection in patients with male accessory gland infection
2015
The frequency of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in the semen of patients with male accessory gland infection (MAGI) was evaluated. One hundred infertile patients with MAGI were classified into group A: patients with an inflammatory MAGI (n = 48) and group B: patients with a microbial form (n = 52). Healthy age-matched fertile men (34.0 ± 4.0 years) made up the control group (n = 20). Amplification of HPV DNA was carried out by HPV-HS Bio nested polymerase chain reaction for the detection of HPV DNA sequences within the L1 ORF. Ten patients in group A (20.8%) and 15 patients in group B (28.8%) had a HPV infection; two controls (10.0%) had HPV infection. Patients with MAGI had a signifi…
Detection of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA and antigens in oral mucosa of renal transplant patients without clinical evidence of oral hairy leukoplaki…
1998
The use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect the presence of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA in oral mucosa in the absence of specific lesions gives rise to the problem of identifying the real viral replication sites. To verify whether the detection of EBV is due to salivary contamination or its true replicative capacity in oral mucosa, saliva samples and exfoliated cells from four different oral mucosa sites were taken from 40 renal transplant patients and 20 normal subjects for examination by PCR using two pairs of primers specific for the BamHI-L and BamHI-K genomic regions. EBV-specific sequences were detected in one or more of the oral mucosa samples from 29 transplant patient…