A significant, functional and replicable risk KTN1 variant block for schizophrenia.

Cortical and subcortical structural alteration has been extensively reported in schizophrenia, including the unusual expansion of gray matter volumes (GMVs) of basal ganglia (BG), especially putamen. Previous genome-wide association studies pinpointed kinectin 1 gene (KTN1) as the most significant gene regulating the GMV of putamen. In this study, the role of KTN1 variants in risk and pathogenesis of schizophrenia was explored. A dense set of SNPs (n = 849) covering entire KTN1 was analyzed in three independent European- or African-American samples (n = 6704) and one mixed European and Asian Psychiatric Genomics Consortium sample (n = 56,418 cases vs. 78,818 controls), to identify replicable SNP-schizophrenia associations. The regulatory effects of schizophrenia-associated variants on the KTN1 mRNA expression in 16 cortical or subcortical regions in two European cohorts (n = 138 and 210, respectively), the total intracranial volume (ICV) in 46 European cohorts (n = 18,713), the GMVs of seven subcortical structures in 50 European cohorts (n = 38,258), and the surface areas (SA) and thickness (TH) of whole cortex and 34 cortical regions in 50 European cohorts (n = 33,992) and eight non-European cohorts (n = 2944) were carefully explored. We found that across entire KTN1, only 26 SNPs within the same block (r2 > 0.85) were associated with schizophrenia across ≥ 2 independent samples (7.5 × 10-5 ≤ p ≤ 0.048). The schizophrenia-risk alleles, which increased significantly risk for schizophrenia in Europeans (q < 0.05), were all minor alleles (f < 0.5), consistently increased (1) the KTN1 mRNA expression in 12 brain regions significantly (5.9 × 10-12 ≤ p ≤ 0.050; q < 0.05), (2) the ICV significantly (6.1 × 10-4 ≤ p ≤ 0.008; q < 0.05), (3) the SA of whole (9.6 × 10-3 ≤ p ≤ 0.047) and two regional cortices potentially (2.5 × 10-3 ≤ p ≤ 0.042; q > 0.05), and (4) the TH of eight regional cortices potentially (0.006 ≤ p ≤ 0.050; q > 0.05), and consistently decreased (1) the BG GMVs significantly (1.8 × 10-19 ≤ p ≤ 0.050; q < 0.05), especially putamen GMV (1.8 × 10-19 ≤ p ≤ 1.0 × 10-4; q < 0.05, (2) the SA of four regional cortices potentially (0.010 ≤ p ≤ 0.048), and (3) the TH of four regional cortices potentially (0.015 ≤ p ≤ 0.049) in Europeans. We concluded that we identified a significant, functional, and robust risk variant block covering entire KTN1 that might play a critical role in the risk and pathogenesis of schizophrenia.

Effect of Corrosion on the Bond Behavior of Steel-Reinforced, Alkali-Activated Slag Concrete.

Alkali-activated slag concrete (ASC) is regarded as one of the most promising sustainable construction materials for replacing ordinary Portland cement concrete (OPC) due to its comparable strength and outstanding durability in challenging environments. In this study, the corrosion of steel bars embedded in ASC and OPC was studied by means of an electrically accelerated corrosion test of steel bars in concrete. Meanwhile, the bond performance of the corroded steel bars embedded in ASC was tested and compared with corresponding OPC groups. The results showed that ASC and OPC behaved differently in terms of bond deterioration. The high chemical resistance of ASC decreased the corrosion of steel bars and, thus, increased the residue bond strength and the bond stiffness.

Bond Performance of Steel Bar and Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete in Beam End Tests.

This paper presents a comprehensive investigation of the bond characteristics of steel bar reinforced geopolymer concrete (GPC). The ASTM A944 beam end tests were conducted on GPC beams reinforced with plain or ribbed bars. The bond-slip curves and the bond strength of GPC beams were obtained. The relationship between the bond stress and relative slip in plain and ribbed bar reinforced GPC has been represented by empirical formulae. The bond testing results were compared with those of corresponding ordinary Portland cement concrete (OPC) using statistical hypothesis tests. The results of hypothesis testing showed that GPC was significantly superior to OPC in terms of bond capability with plain bars and bond stiffness with ribbed bars. The statistical analysis indicated that the bond-slip relations derived for OPC are inapplicable to GPC; thus, new bond-slip relations are suggested to estimate the development of bond stress and relative slip between GPC and steel bars.

B cell activation factor (BAFF) induces inflammation in the human fallopian tube leading to tubal pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Tubal pregnancy is recognized as one of the most common ectopic pregnancy types. Salpingitis may result in tubal pregnancy by causing fallopian tube occlusion and hydrosalpinx. B cell activation factor (BAFF) is a proinflammatory cytokine that helps regulate both innate and adaptive immune responses. Our previous study firstly showed that BAFF immunostaining appeared on the cellular membrane and in the cytoplasm of tubal epithelial cells, and both BAFF protein and mRNA in human inflamed fallopian tubes had higher expression levels than those in normal fallopian tubes. This study aimed to elucidate the association between the expression of BAFF gene and the inflammation in the human fallopian tube leading to tubal pregnancy. METHODS: We examined 70 patients undergoing salpingectomy for salpingitis (n = 35) and tubal pregnancy (n = 35). Twenty patients with benign uterine diseases undergoing complete hysterectomy and salpingectomy were recruited into control group. BAFF mRNA and protein in tissue samples were detected by qPCR and Western blotting methods. Furthermore, serum levels of BAFF, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin (IL)-6 were measured using ELISA kits. RESULTS: We found statistically significantly elevated expressions of BAFF mRNA or protein in whole tissue samples, and serum levels of BAFF, TNF-α and IL-6 in whole blood samples from patients with salpingitis and tubal pregnancy, in comparison to the control group. CONCLUSION: Based on the results, high expression of BAFF gene might induce inflammation in the human fallopian tube, suggesting its possible role in the tubal pregnancy process.