Project description:This study examined the functional response of a host (zebrafish) to implantation of a conspecific or allospecific (goldfish) gastrointestinal (GIT) microbiome followed by diet manipulation and the repercussions of these manipulations on host GIT physiology. Implantation of a native zebrafish biome successfully reintroduced wildtype (WT) communities with the exception of several rare, phylogenetically distant species. Implantation of a foreign goldfish biome created communities that were distinct from WT, suggesting that the seeding community created substantial differences from the native host communities. A mismatched ?natural? diet and an implanted allospecific biome enriched for rarer and more phylogenetically diverse bacteria. Transcriptional changes within the GIT clustered in relationship to biome treatments, mirroring clustering of biome implants. Implantation of an allospecific biome along with an altered diet markedly down-regulated approximately 70% of the transcripts involved in cholesterol biosynthesis, while tissue content analysis revealed an increase in total tissue cholesterol. Furthermore, transcripts involved in lipogenesis pathways were significantly downregulated and correlated with a striking decrease in intestinal lipase activity driven by both biome and diet. Glucose-6P dehydrogenase (G6PD) activities increased during dietary manipulations regardless of biome, while the allospecific biome down-regulated transcripts involved in gluconeogenesis and altered glucokinase (GK) and hexokinase (HK) activities regardless of diet. However, growth rates did not reveal an impact of these responses. Adult zebrafish are unable to reform proportional representation within bacterial communities following transplantation of an allospecific biome resulting in transcriptional and enzymatic alterations for lipid and carbohydrate metabolism that did not affect overall animal homeostasis.
Project description:Molecular profiling of childhood CNS tumors is critical for diagnosis and clinical management, yet tissue access is restricted due to the sensitive tumor location. We developed a targeted deep sequencing platform to detect tumor driver mutations, copy number variations, and heterogeneity in the liquid biome. Here, we present the sensitivity, specificity, and clinical relevance of our minimally invasive platform for tumor mutation profiling in children diagnosed with CNS cancer.
Project description:Background and aims: As genome sequencing technologies rapidly expand in capacity and availability, understanding how genetic background in different populations modifies IBD risk will be an important factor in disease prediction, prevention, and treatment. However, most of the datasets that are used to generate polygenic risk scores (PRS) contain predominantly European ancestry patients. To address this, we tested different models for prediction of IBD cases using PRS built using association data from multiple races and also assessed the penetrance of rare very early onset IBD (VEOIBD) SNPs. Methods: PRS were calculated using association data from European, African American, and Ashkenazi Jewish (AJ) studies, as well as a meta-GWAS run using all three association datasets. PRS were then combined using regression modelling to assess which combination of scores was best able to predict IBD status in European, AJ, Hispanic, and African American BioMe Biobank populations. Additionally, rare variants were assessed in genes associated with very early onset IBD, taking into account genetic penetrance in each BioMe population, deleteriousness, and evolutionary conservation. Results: Combining risk scores based on IBD association results from multiple racial populations resulted in improved IBD prediction for every population in BioMe. We also identified highly penetrant rare variants in previously established VEOIBD genes which were predicted to be deleterious, including SNPs in established risk genes such as NOD2 as well as novel variants, including some in LRBA which appear to be particularly relevant for risk of IBD in African Americans.