Ashford University

About: Ashford University is a education organization based out in San Diego, California, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Stroke. The organization has 1838 authors who have published 1814 publications receiving 39299 citations.

Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain

Abstract: Disorders of the brain can exhibit considerable epidemiological comorbidity and often share symptoms, provoking debate about their etiologic overlap. We quantified the genetic sharing of 25 brain disorders from genome-wide association studies of 265,218 patients and 784,643 control participants and assessed their relationship to 17 phenotypes from 1,191,588 individuals. Psychiatric disorders share common variant risk, whereas neurological disorders appear more distinct from one another and from the psychiatric disorders. We also identified significant sharing between disorders and a number of brain phenotypes, including cognitive measures. Further, we conducted simulations to explore how statistical power, diagnostic misclassification, and phenotypic heterogeneity affect genetic correlations. These results highlight the importance of common genetic variation as a risk factor for brain disorders and the value of heritability-based methods in understanding their etiology.

Phylogenetic ctDNA analysis depicts early-stage lung cancer evolution

Abstract: The early detection of relapse following primary surgery for non-small-cell lung cancer and the characterization of emerging subclones, which seed metastatic sites, might offer new therapeutic approaches for limiting tumour recurrence. The ability to track the evolutionary dynamics of early-stage lung cancer non-invasively in circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) has not yet been demonstrated. Here we use a tumour-specific phylogenetic approach to profile the ctDNA of the first 100 TRACERx (Tracking Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer Evolution Through Therapy (Rx)) study participants, including one patient who was also recruited to the PEACE (Posthumous Evaluation of Advanced Cancer Environment) post-mortem study. We identify independent predictors of ctDNA release and analyse the tumour-volume detection limit. Through blinded profiling of postoperative plasma, we observe evidence of adjuvant chemotherapy resistance and identify patients who are very likely to experience recurrence of their lung cancer. Finally, we show that phylogenetic ctDNA profiling tracks the subclonal nature of lung cancer relapse and metastasis, providing a new approach for ctDNA-driven therapeutic studies.

Alendronate for the treatment of osteoporosis in men

Abstract: Background Despite its association with disability, death, and increased medical costs, osteoporosis in men has been relatively neglected as a subject of study There have been no large, controlled trials of treatment in men Methods In a two-year double-blind trial, we studied the effect of 10 mg of alendronate or placebo, given daily, on bone mineral density in 241 men (age, 31 to 87 years; mean, 63) with osteoporosis Approximately one third had low serum free testosterone concentrations at base line; the rest had normal concentrations Men with other secondary causes of osteoporosis were excluded All the men received calcium and vitamin D supplements The main outcome measures were the percent changes in lumbar-spine, hip, and total-body bone mineral density Results The men who received alendronate had a mean (±SE) increase in bone mineral density of 71±03 percent at the lumbar spine, 25±04 percent at the femoral neck, and 20±02 percent for the total body (P<0001 for all comparisons with base