HLA-DQ and-DR alleles in patients with SLE:A tertiary hospital-based case–control study in Bangladesh

Background:Systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE)is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by the involvement of multiple organs and autoantibody production.This study aimed to determine the association of human leukocyte antigen(HLA)-DQ and-DR alleles with SLE at a tertiary hospital in Bangladesh.Methods:This case-control study was conducted in the Department of Rheumatology,Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University(BSMMU),Dhaka,Bangladesh.The patients who fulfilled the 1997 revised American College of Rheumatology classification criteria for SLE were considered cases(n=41).The controls(n=32)were selected from the hospital staff of BSMMU,including doctors and nurses who did not suffer from any known rheumatic diseases,and there was no such disease in their first-degree relatives.Polymerase chain reaction using a sequence-specific primer(PCRSSP)in a low-resolution typing method was carried out on blood samples collected for HLA-DQ and-DR allele typing.Results:The cases and controls had comparable mean ages(31 vs.32 years),and most cases were female(95.1%vs.34.4%).The most frequent clinical manifestations were mucocutaneous(85.4%),followed by musculoskeletal(70.7%)and constitutional symptoms(58.5%).The cases had a significantly higher frequency of HLA-DR2 allele compared with healthy controls(70.7%vs.43.8%;odds ratio:3.1;95%confidence interval:1.2-8.2).In addition,HLADQ6 allele was found to have a significant association with mucocutaneous manifestations of the cases(88.9%,P=0.03).Conclusions:Bangladeshi adults having HLA-DR2 may be more susceptible to SLE.HLA-DQ6 allele might be associated with mucocutaneous manifestations of SLE.

Complementary effect of zoo compost with mineral nitrogen fertilisation increases wheat yield and nutrition in a low-nutrient soil

Excess nitrogen(N) fertiliser use in agriculture is associated with water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.While practices and programs to reduce N fertiliser application continue to be developed,inefficient fertiliser use persists.Practices that reduce mineral N fertiliser application are needed in a sustainable agricultural ecosystem to control leaching and gaseous losses for environmental management.This study evaluated whether fully or partially replacing mineral N fertiliser with zoo compost(Perth Zoo) could be a good mitigation strategy to reduce mineral N fertiliser application without affecting wheat yield and nutrition.To achieve this,a glasshouse experiment was conducted to assess the complementary effect of zoo compost and mineral N fertiliser on wheat yield and nutrition in a sandy soil of southwestern Australia.Additionally,a chlorophyll meter was used to determine whether there was a correlation between chlorophyll content and soil mineral N content,grain N uptake,and grain protein content at the tillering(42 d after sowing(DAS)) and heading(63 DAS) growth stages.The standard practice for N application for this soil type in this area,100 kg ha^(-1),was used with a soil bulk density of 1.3 g cm^(-3) to calculate the amount of mineral N(urea,46% N) and Perth Zoo compost(ZC)(0.69% N) for each treatment.Treatments comprised a control(no nutrients added,T1),mineral N only(100 kg N ha^(-1),T2),ZC only(100 kg N ha^(-1),T7),and combinations of mineral N and ZC at different rates(mineral N at 100 kg N ha^(-1)+ ZC at 25 kg N ha^(-1)(T3),mineral N at 75 kg N ha^(-1)+ ZC at 25 kg N ha^(-1)(T4),mineral N at 75 kg N ha^(-1)+ ZC at 50 kg N ha^(-1)(T5),and mineral N at 50 kg N ha^(-1)+ ZC at 50 kg N ha^(-1)(T6)).The T6 treatment significantly increased grain yield(by 26%) relative to the T2 treatment.However,the T7 treatment did not affect grain yield when compared to the T2 treatment.All treatments with mineral N and ZC in combination significantly improved the 1 000-grain weight compared to the T2 treatment.Chlorophyll content was better correlated with soil mineral N content(r = 0.61),grain N uptake(r = 0.62),and grain protein content(r = 0.80) at heading(63 DAS) than at tillering(42 DAS).While ZC alone could not serve as an alternative to mineral N fertiliser,its complementary use could reduce the mineral N fertiliser requirement by up to 50% for wheat without compromising grain yield,which needs to be verified in the field.Chlorophyll content could be used to predict soil mineral N at the heading stage,and further studies are warranted to verify its accuracy in the field.Overall,the application of ZC as part of integrated nutrient management improved crop yield with reduced N fertiliser application.

Human leukocyte antigen B polymorphism and association between HLA-B27 and endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 rs30187 SNP in patients with ankylosing spondylitis in Bangladesh

Objectives:To determine the association of Human leukocyte antigen B(HLA‑B)alleles with ankylosing spondylitis and the allelic association of HLAB27 with endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1(ERAP1)single-nucleotide polymorphism(SNP)rs30187 in patients with ankylosing spondylitis(AS).Methods:We studied 48 consecutively enrolled well-defined AS patients and 48 healthy controls recruited from the outpatient clinic of the rheumatology department of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University(BSMMU),Dhaka,Bangladesh.To genotype HLA-B alleles from peripheral blood DNA,we designed sequence-specific primers for polymerase chain reaction.Sanger's sequencing method was used to detect the ERAP1 rs30187 SNP.The HLA-B allele distributions were compared between cases and controls.To infer an allelic association between HLA-B27 and ERAP1,allele distributions from both loci were compared using cross-tabulations.Chi-squared test or Fisher's exact test was used to quantify the association,and their strength of association was tested by odds ratio(OR)with 95%confidence interval(CI).Results:The frequency of HLA-B27 was found to be higher in AS patients(60.4%)than in healthy controls(8.3%).HLA-B27 allele had an OR of 16.8(95%CI=5.2–54.4)for the development of AS.Overall,4%of AS patients had both HLA-B27 and HLA-B40.No significant association was found between ERAP1 rs30187 SNP and HLA-B27 in patients with AS(OR=1.7,95%CI=0.5–5.6).Conclusions:HLA-B27 was significantly associated with AS in patients in Bangladesh.However,no association between ERAP1 rs30187 SNP and HLA-B27 was observed.