Y-Chromosome Variation in Southern African Khoe-San Populations Based on Whole-Genome Sequences.

Although the human Y chromosome has effectively shown utility in uncovering facets of human evolution and population histories, the ascertainment bias present in early Y-chromosome variant data sets limited the accuracy of diversity and TMRCA estimates obtained from them. The advent of next-generation sequencing, however, has removed this bias and allowed for the discovery of thousands of new variants for use in improving the Y-chromosome phylogeny and computing estimates that are more accurate. Here, we describe the high-coverage sequencing of the whole Y chromosome in a data set of 19 male Khoe-San individuals in comparison with existing whole Y-chromosome sequence data. Due to the increased resolution, we potentially resolve the source of haplogroup B-P70 in the Khoe-San, and reconcile recently published haplogroup A-M51 data with the most recent version of the ISOGG Y-chromosome phylogeny. Our results also improve the positioning of tentatively placed new branches of the ISOGG Y-chromosome phylogeny. The distribution of major Y-chromosome haplogroups in the Khoe-San and other African groups coincide with the emerging picture of African demographic history; with E-M2 linked to the agriculturalist Bantu expansion, E-M35 linked to pastoralist eastern African migrations, B-M112 linked to earlier east-south gene flow, A-M14 linked to shared ancestry with central African rainforest hunter-gatherers, and A-M51 potentially unique to the Khoe-San.

Khoe-San Genomes Reveal Unique Variation and Confirm the Deepest Population Divergence in Homo sapiens.

The southern African indigenous Khoe-San populations harbor the most divergent lineages of all living peoples. Exploring their genomes is key to understanding deep human history. We sequenced 25 full genomes from five Khoe-San populations, revealing many novel variants, that 25% of variants are unique to the Khoe-San, and that the Khoe-San group harbors the greatest level of diversity across the globe. In line with previous studies, we found several gene regions with extreme values in genome-wide scans for selection, potentially caused by natural selection in the lineage leading to Homo sapiens and more recent in time. These gene regions included immunity-, sperm-, brain-, diet-, and muscle-related genes. When accounting for recent admixture, all Khoe-San groups display genetic diversity approaching the levels in other African groups and a reduction in effective population size starting around 100,000 years ago. Hence, all human groups show a reduction in effective population size commencing around the time of the Out-of-Africa migrations, which coincides with changes in the paleoclimate records, changes that potentially impacted all humans at the time.

Enantiomeric resolution, thermodynamic parameters, and modeling of clausenamidone and neoclausenamidone on polysaccharide-based chiral stationary phases.

The aim of the paper is to describe a new synthesis route to obtain synthetic optically active clausenamidone and neoclausenamidone and then use high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine the optical purities of these isomers. In the process, we investigated the different chromatographic conditions so as to provide the best separation method. At the same time, a thermodynamic study and molecular simulations were also carried out to validate the experimental results; a brief probe into the separation mechanism was also performed. Two chiral stationary phases (CSPs) were compared with separate the enantiomers. Elution was conducted in the organic mode with n-hexane and iso-propanol (IPA) (80/20 v/v) as the mobile phases; the enantiomeric excess (ee) values of the synthetic R-clausenamidone and S-clausenamidone and R-neoclausenamidone and S- neoclausenamidone were higher than 99.9%, and the enantiomeric ratio (er) values of these isomers were 100:0. Enantioselectivity and resolution (α and Rs, respectively) levels with values ranging from 1.03 to 1.99 and from 1.54 to 17.51, respectively, were achieved. The limits of detection and quantitation were 3.6 to 12.0 and 12.0 to 40.0 ug/mL, respectively. In addition, the thermodynamics study showed that the result of the mechanism of chiral separation was enthalpically controlled at a temperature ranging from 288.15 to 308.15 K. Furthermore, docking modeling showed that the hydrogen bonds and π-π interactions were the major forces for chiral separation. The present chiral HPLC method will be used for the enantiomeric resolution of the clausenamidone derivatives.

Ethical Reflections on the Equity of the Current Basic Health Insurance System Reform in China: A Case Study in Hunan Province.

China's current basic health insurance reform aims at promoting equity in the economic accessibility of health services for all citizens, to better ensure healthcare justice. Therefore, it is important to assess equity not only from a socioeconomic perspective but also from an ethical angle. This article investigates the basic health insurance system of Hunan Province in China by focusing on insurance types as well as their classification standards, mechanisms, and utilization according to local policy documents and data. This study demonstrates the reforming achievements and the inequity of institutional design according to two interrelated dimensions: equal opportunity of access to healthcare insurance and reducing inequality in insurance benefits. The article concludes that to achieve opportunity equity and outcome fairness, the reform should focus on designing the system to promote equity with respect to procedures and rules and to be more attentive to the interests of vulnerable groups and especially to rural residents.

Balasubramide derivative 3C modulates microglia activation via CaMKKß-dependent AMPK/PGC-1α pathway in neuroinflammatory conditions.

Neuroinflammation plays a vital role in the pathological process of cerebral ischemic stroke, but currently there is no effective treatment. After ischemia, microglia-produced proinflammatory mediator expression contributes to the aggravation of neuroinflammation, while anti-inflammatory activation of microglia develops an anti-neuroinflammatory effect via secretion of anti-inflammatory factor. Promoting the anti-inflammatory activation of microglia might be an effective treatment of stroke. Previously, we discovered one derivative of the natural product (+)-balasubramide, compound 3C, that exhibits a remarkably anti-neuroinflammatory effect in vitro with unknown mechanisms. Thus in this study, we aimed to clarify its molecular mechanisms and determine whether compound 3C has a neuroprotective effect after ischemia via regulation on microglial inflammation. We found that compound 3C promoted the anti-inflammatory mediator expression and reduced the proinflammatory mediator expression in LPS-stimulated BV2 cells and mouse primary microglia cells, which were reversed by AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) inhibition or AMPK upstream calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase beta (CaMKKß) inhibition. Compound 3C also prevented LPS-stimulated JNK activation and enhanced PGC-1α activation in microglia, which was attenuated by AMPK inhibition. Additionally, compound 3C ameliorated depressive behaviors in LPS-induced neuroinflammatory mice by promoting the anti-inflammatory activation of microglia. Furthermore, we found that compound 3C markedly reduced brain infarct volume, improved the neurological deficit in rats with ischemia and reduced the activated microglia/macrophage cells in the ischemic area, which concomitantly enhanced the anti-inflammatory mediator expression. A mechanistic study showed that the compound 3C-mediated activation of CaMKKß, AMPK and PGC-1α is involved in the anti-neuroinflammatory and neuroprotective effects of 3C in the brain of LPS-treated mice and ischemic rats. Taken together, our results show that compound 3C could suppress neuroinflammation in vitro and in vivo by modulating microglial activation state through the CaMKKß-dependent AMPK/PGC-1α signaling pathway, and maybe further be developed as a promising new drug candidate for the treatment of brain disorders such as stroke associated with brain inflammation.

Predictive factors of type 2 diabetes mellitus remission following bariatric surgery: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Although a few studies have been reported on predictive factors of postoperative diabetes remission, the conclusions remain inconsistent. This meta-analysis aimed to assess the preoperative clinical factors for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remission after bariatric surgery. METHODS: The Cochrane Library, PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, and CINAHL databases were searched. All human studies published in English between 1 January 1992 and 1 September 2013 reporting on the parameters of interest were included. RESULTS: In total, 15 studies involving 1,753 bariatric surgery patients were selected. Analyses were performed separately for the parameters of interest. T2DM remission was observed to be negatively correlated with age, diabetes duration, insulin use, and HbA1c levels. Baseline body mass index (BMI) and C-peptide levels were positively associated with the remission rate in Asian patients. However, there was no significant association between gender and remission rate. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with younger age, short diabetes duration, better glucose control, and better ß cell function were more likely to achieve T2DM remission after bariatric surgery. However, further randomized controlled trials with uniform remission criteria should be conducted to provide more reliable evidence.