We describe the genetic diversity of sapovirus (SaV) in children in Nicaragua and investigate the role of host genetic factors and susceptibility to SaV infections. Our results indicate that neither ABO blood group, Lewis phenotype, nor secretor status affects susceptibility to SaV infection in Nicaragua.

Stress has long been known to increase susceptibility to health disorders. In 2009, American Psychological Association further established association of stress to serious health problems. However, a quantitative and accurate way to evaluate and estimate stress status of individuals is still a big challenge. It has been shown, in large animal models using cattle, that psychological stress can b...

OBJECTIVES To study the association between birth weight and blood pressure in children from multiple pregnancies (multiplets), mostly twins, to determine whether maternal or genetic factors are responsible for the association. DESIGN Cohort study. SETTING Southern Tasmania. SUBJECTS 888 children including 104 multiplets (32 monozygotic, 72 dizygotic). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Systolic bloo...

Multiple sclerosis (MS) disease is carried through inflammatory and degenerative stages. Based on clinical feaures, it can be subdivided into three groups: relapsing-remitting MS, secondary progressive MS, and primary progressive MS. Multiple sclerosis has a multifactorial etiology with an interplay of genetic predisposition, environmental factors, and autoimmune inflammatory mechanism in which...

Factor VII levels have been studied in hemophilia A and B plasmas and normal controls in a controlled, prospective study. Three assay methods were used: a standard clotting assay (FVIIc-A); a modified clotting assay (FVIIc-B) (Seligsohn et al, Blood 52:978-988, 1978); and a coupled amidolytic assay. By the FVIIc-B assay, the hemophilic plasmas were significantly lower than in the normal group (...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the causative pathogens of bovine mastitis. Most P. aeruginosa strains possess the type III secretion system (TTSS), which may increase somatic cell counts (SCCs) in milk from mastitis-affected cows. Moreover, most of P. aeruginosa cells can form biofilms, thereby reducing antibiotic efficacy. In this study, the presence and effect of TTSS-related genotypes on i...

Evidence has shown that miR-146a is involved in carcinogenesis, and a common G/C variant (rs2910164) in the pre-miR-146a gene has been associated with various types of cancer. We summarized the data from 22 published case-control studies on the association between rs2910164 and cancer risk and performed subgroup analyses by ethnicity, gender and smoking status. We found a significant asso...

From an early age, musicians learn complex motor and auditory skills (e.g., the translation of visually perceived musical symbols into motor commands with simultaneous auditory monitoring of output), which they practice extensively from childhood throughout their entire careers. Using a voxel-by-voxel morphometric technique, we found gray matter volume differences in motor, auditory, and visual...

Continuous spike and wave during slow wave sleep (CSWS) is an epileptic encephalopathy that presents with neurocognitive regression and clinical seizures, and that demonstrates an electroencephalogram (EEG) pattern of electrical status epilepticus during sleep, as defined by the Commission on Classification and Terminology of the International League Against Epilepsy 1989. CSWS is an age-relate...

The study considered individual differences in children's ability to adjust to hospitalization and found the length of hospitalization to be related to adaptive psychological functioning for some children. Applying the theoretical framework of three competing models of gene-X-environment interactions (diathesis-stress, differential susceptibility, and vantage sensitivity), the study examined th...