BACKGROUNDAlcohol dependence (AD) is a complex disorder characterized by impaired control over drinking. It is determined by both genetic and environmental factors. The recent approach of genome-wide association study (GWAS) is a powerful tool for identifying complex disease-associated susceptibility alleles, however, a few GWASs have been conducted for AD, and their results are largely inconsistent. The present study aimed to screen the loci associated with alcohol-related phenotypes using GWAS technology.

METHODSA genome-wide association study with the behavior of regular alcohol drinking and alcohol consumption was performed to identify susceptibility genes associated with AD, using the Affymetrix 500K SNP array in an initial sample consisting of 904 unrelated Caucasian subjects. Then, the initial results in GWAS were replicated in three independent samples: 1972 Caucasians in 593 nuclear families, 761 unrelated Caucasian subjects, and 2955 unrelated Chinese Hans.

RESULTSSeveral genes were associated with the alcohol-related phenotypes at the genome-wide significance level, with the ankyrin repeat domain 7 gene (ANKRD7) showing the strongest statistical evidence for regular alcohol drinking and suggestive statistical evidence for alcohol consumption. In addition, certain haplotypes within the ANKRD7 and cytokine-like1 (CYTL1) genes were significantly associated with regular drinking behavior, such as one ANKRD7 block composed of the SNPs rs6466686-rs4295599-rs12531086 (P = 6.51 × 10(-8)). The association of alcohol consumption was successfully replicated with rs4295599 in ANKRD7 gene in independent Caucasian nuclear families and independent unrelated Chinese Hans, and with rs16836497 in CYTL1 gene in independent unrelated Caucasians. Meta-analyses based on both the GWAS and replication samples further supported the observed significant associations between the ANKRD7 or CYTL1 gene and alcohol consumption.

CONCLUSIONThe evidence suggests that ANKRD7 and CYTL1 genes may play an important role in the variance in AD risk.

Adult ; Aged ; Alcohol Drinking ; genetics ; Blood Proteins ; Cytokines ; Female ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Haplotypes ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Proteins ; genetics ; Receptors, Cytokine ; genetics

Background: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study assessed the efficacy and safety of tofacitinib in Chinese patients with RA enrolled in Phase 3 and long-term extension (LTE) studies. Methods: ORAL Sync was a 1-year, randomized, placebo-controlled, Phase 3 trial. Patients received tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily (BID) or placebo advanced to tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg BID at 3 or 6 months. All patients remained on ≥1 background conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug. ORAL Sequel is an open-label LTE study (data-cut: March 2015; data collection and analyses were ongoing, and study database was not locked at the time of analysis; study was closed in 2017). Efficacy outcomes: American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20/50/70 response rates and Disease Activity Score in 28 joints using erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-4 [ESR]). Patient- and physician-reported outcomes: Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index (HAQ-DI), Patient and Physician Global Assessment of Arthritis, and pain (visual analog scale). Safety was assessed throughout. Results: ORAL Sync included 218 patients; 192 were subsequently enrolled into ORAL Sequel. In ORAL Sync, more patients achieved ACR20 (tofacitinib 5 mg BID, 67.4%; 10 mg BID, 70.6%; placebo, 34.1%) and DAS28-4 (ESR) <2.6 (tofacitinib 5 mg BID, 7.1%; 10 mg BID, 13.1%; placebo, 2.3%) with tofacitinib versus placebo at Month 6. Mean changes from baseline in HAQ-DI were greater with tofacitinib versus placebo at Month 6. In ORAL Sequel, efficacy was consistent to Month 48. Incidence rates for adverse events of special interest in tofacitinib-treated patients were similar to the global population. Conclusions: Tofacitinib significantly reduced signs/symptoms and improved physical function and quality of life in Chinese patients with moderate-to-severely active RA up to Month 48. The safety profile was consistent with the global population. Clinical Trial Identifier NCT00856544 and NCT00413699.
Administration, Oral ; Adult ; Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; drug therapy ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Piperidines ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Pyrimidines ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Pyrroles ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Young Adult

In this study we examined the suitability of the-imidazo[4,5-]pyridine ring system in developing novel anticancer and anti-inflammatory agents incorporating a diaryl pharmacophore. Eight 2,3-diaryl-3-imidazo[4,5-]pyridine derivatives retrieved from our in-house database were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against nine cancer cell lines. The results indicated that the compounds showed moderate cytotoxic activity against MCF-7, MDA-MB-468, K562 and SaOS2 cells, with K562 being the most sensitive among the four cancer cell lines. The eight 2,3-diaryl-3-imidazo[4,5-]pyridine derivatives were also evaluated for their COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitory activity. The results showed that compoundexhibited 2-fold selectivity with ICvalues of 9.2 and 21.8 µmol/L against COX-2 and COX-1, respectively. Molecular docking studies on the most active compoundrevealed a binding mode similar to that of celecoxib in the active site of the COX-2 enzyme.