Relationship between primary nodal generalized osteoarthritis with tissue antigens HLA-A and HLA-B in the western Black Sea region of Turkey.
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OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between patients diagnosed with nodal generalized osteoarthritis (NGOA) and tissue antigens HLA-A and HLA-B in the Western Black Sea Region of Turkey. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Forty-six patients with NGOA (64.74+/-8.46) and 60 controls (62.32+/-6.8) were included in the study. Inclusion criteria were: (i) stage 2 and higher OA of the hand and knee based on the Kellgren-Lawrence classification, and (ii) stage 2 and higher lumbar disc degeneration according to Lawrence classification. Family histories were taken from patients. HLA-A and HLA-B were typed by PCR using sequence specific primer. RESULTS: The frequencies of HLA-A(*)02 and HLA-B(*)38 were 58.7% and 15.2%, respectively, in patients with NGOA, and there was a statistically significant relationship between the disease and HLA-A(*)02 and HLA-B(*)38. The relationship between positive family history and HLA-B(*)44 allele was also statistically significant. In the control group, the frequency of HLA-A(*)29 was 11.7% and it was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge this is the first study to demonstrate the epidemiologic association between HLA-A(*)02 and HLA-B(*)38 with NGOA in our population. We conclude that, HLA-B(*)44 positivity may be associated with familial NGOA and HLA-A(*)29 may be a preventive factor against NGOA. (+info)
The evaluation of Pat-Pat related injuries in the Western Black Sea region of Turkey.
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History of expansion and anthropogenic collapse in a top marine predator of the Black Sea estimated from genetic data.
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Two major ecological transitions marked the history of the Black Sea after the last Ice Age. The first was the postglacial transition from a brackish-water to a marine ecosystem dominated by porpoises and dolphins once this basin was reconnected back to the Mediterranean Sea (ca. 8,000 y B.P.). The second occurred during the past decades, when overfishing and hunting activities brought these predators close to extinction, having a deep impact on the structure and dynamics of the ecosystem. Estimating the extent of this decimation is essential for characterizing this ecosystem's dynamics and for formulating restoration plans. However, this extent is poorly documented in historical records. We addressed this issue for one of the main Black Sea predators, the harbor porpoise, using a population genetics approach. Analyzing its genetic diversity using an approximate Bayesian computation approach, we show that only a demographic expansion (at most 5,000 y ago) followed by a contemporaneous population collapse can explain the observed genetic data. We demonstrate that both the postglacial settlement of harbor porpoises in the Black Sea and the recent anthropogenic activities have left a clear footprint on their genetic diversity. Specifically, we infer a strong population reduction (~90%) that occurred within the past 5 decades, which can therefore clearly be related to the recent massive killing of small cetaceans and to the continuing incidental catches in commercial fisheries. Our study thus provides a quantitative assessment of these demographically catastrophic events, also showing that two separate historical events can be inferred from contemporary genetic data. (+info)
Genomes of surface isolates of Alteromonas macleodii: the life of a widespread marine opportunistic copiotroph.
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Alteromonas macleodii is a marine gammaproteobacterium with widespread distribution in temperate or tropical waters. We describe three genomes of isolates from surface waters around Europe (Atlantic, Mediterranean and Black Sea) and compare them with a previously described deep Mediterranean isolate (AltDE) that belongs to a widely divergent clade. The surface isolates are quite similar, the most divergent being the Black Sea (BS11) isolate. The genomes contain several genomic islands with different gene content. The recruitment of very similar genomic fragments from metagenomes in different locations indicates that the surface clade is globally abundant with little effect of geography, even the AltDE and the BS11 genomes recruiting from surface samples in open ocean locations. The finding of CRISPR protospacers of AltDE in a lysogenic phage in the Atlantic (English Channel) isolate illustrates a flow of genetic material among these clades and a remarkably wide distribution of this phage. (+info)