Two putative novel serotypes of Tibet orbivirus isolated from Culicoides spp.in Yunnan, China

Tibet orbivirus (TIBOV) was identified as a novel orbivirus in 2014. Antibodies against TIBOV were detected in cattle, Asian buffalo, and goats, while all the sequenced TIBOV strains were isolated from mosquitos and Culicoides. The known TIBOV strains have been classified into four putative serotypes. In this study, two TIBOV strains isolated from Culicoides spp. in Shizong County of Yunnan Province, China, were fully sequenced. The phylogenetic analysis of outer capsid protein 2 (VP2) indicated that these two viral strains belong to two novel putative serotypes of TIBOV. The updated putative serotypes may help in an investigation of the distribution and virulence of TIBOV.

Genome-wide linkage scan for an ethnic Han Chinese pedigree affected with schizophrenia / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To perform genome-wide linkage analysis for an ethnic Han Chinese pedigree with schizophrenia in order to locate the susceptibility genes.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Genomic DNA was extracted from 4 mL of peripheral blood using conventional phenol-chloroform method. Illumina Infinium Linkage 24 BeadChips chip was used for determining the genotypes through detection of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). After processing the raw data using Illumina BeadStudio software, two-point nonparametric linkage analysis and two-point parametric linkage analysis were performed with Merlin software.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>By two-point nonparametric linkage analysis, 27 sites with high LOD scores (LOD=0.63-0.75, P U+003C 0.05) were identified. Among these, 3 SNPs(rs993694, rs992690 rs1861577) were located in 12p12.3 region, whilst the remainders were located in 4p12-q22 region. Two-point parametric linkage analysis under a dominant model has yielded almost identical results.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Chromosomal regions 4p12-q22 and 12p12.3 probably contain susceptibility genes for schizophrenia.</p>

The value of 5-HTT gene polymorphism for the assessment and prediction of male adolescence violence / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To establish an adolescent violence crime prediction model, and to assess the value of serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene polymorphism for the assessment and prediction of violent crime.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Investigative tools were used to analyze the difference in personality dimensions, social support, coping styles, aggressiveness, impulsivity, and family condition scale between 223 adolescents with violence behavior and 148 adolescents without violence behavior. The distribution of 5-HTT gene polymorphisms (5-HTTLPR and 5-HTTVNTR) was compared between the two groups. The role of 5-HTT gene polymorphism on adolescent personality, impulsion and aggression scale also was also analyzed. Stepwise logistic regression was used to establish a predictive model for adolescent violent crime.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Significant difference was found between the violence group and the control group on multiple dimensions of psychology and environment scales. However, no statistical difference was found with regard to the 5-HTT genotypes and alleles between adolescents with violent behaviors and normal controls. The rate of prediction accuracy was not significantly improved when 5-HTT gene polymorphism was taken into the model.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The violent crime of adolescents was closely related with social and environmental factors. No association was found between 5-HTT polymorphisms and adolescent violence criminal behavior.</p>