Showing papers by "Tunis University published in 2009"
TL;DR: A new database, PhytAMP, is developed, which contains valuable information on antimicrobial plant peptides, including taxonomic, microbiological and physicochemical data, which allows rapid prediction of structure/function relationships and target organisms and hence better exploitation of plant peptide biological activities in both the pharmaceutical and agricultural sectors.
Abstract: Plants produce small cysteine-rich antimicrobial peptides as an innate defense against pathogens Based on amino acid sequence homology, these peptides were classified mostly as α-defensins, thionins, lipid transfer proteins, cyclotides, snakins and hevein-like Although many antimicrobial plant peptides are now well characterized, much information is still missing or is unavailable to potential users The compilation of such information in one centralized resource, such as a database would therefore facilitate the study of the potential these peptide structures represent, for example, as alternatives in response to increasing antibiotic resistance or for increasing plant resistance to pathogens by genetic engineering To achieve this goal, we developed a new database, PhytAMP, which contains valuable information on antimicrobial plant peptides, including taxonomic, microbiological and physicochemical data Information is very easy to extract from this database and allows rapid prediction of structure/function relationships and target organisms and hence better exploitation of plant peptide biological activities in both the pharmaceutical and agricultural sectors PhytAMP may be accessed free of charge at http://phytamppfba-laborg
256 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the cross-countries determinants of nonperforming loans (NPLs), the potential impact of supervisory devices, and institutional environment on credit risk exposure are analyzed.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to empirically analyse the cross‐countries determinants of nonperforming loans (NPLs), the potential impact of supervisory devices, and institutional environment on credit risk exposure.Design/methodology/approach – The paper employs aggregate banking, financial, economic, and legal environment data for a panel of 59 countries over the period 2002‐2006. It develops a comprehensive model to explain differences in the level of NPLs between countries. To assess the role of regulatory supervision on credit risk, the paper uses several interactions between institutional features and regulatory devices.Findings – The empirical results indicate that higher capital adequacy ratio (CAR) and prudent provisioning policy seems to reduce the level of problem loans. The paper also reports a desirable impact of private ownership, foreign participation, and bank concentration. However, the findings do not support the view that market discipline leads to better economic outcomes. All...
185 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an analytical results obtained in the hydrochemistry study were interpreted using ion correlations with chloride and SO42-/Cl− and Mg2+/Ca2+ ratios, in conjunction with calculations of the ionic deviations and the saturation indexes.
136 citations
TL;DR: Findings implied that bio-active compounds from the peel might be potential resources for the development of antioxidant function dietary food.
Abstract: Peels and fresh pomegranate extracts were used in the present study for the determination of the physic-chemical properties and DPPH-ABTS scavenging activities. Total sugars of juice are fructose (ca. 7 g/100 ml) and glucose (ca. 8 g/100 ml). Contents of soluble proteins in juice extracts are about 7 g/l (Bradford assays) and 22% (Kjeldhal assays) from dry pulp. Minerals in peel and juice are respectively 9.43+/-0.93 and 9.46+/-1.05 mg/100 ml for posphorus and 210.86+/-10.70 and 271.94+/-60.59 mg/100 g for potassium. The sodium contents are nearly 7 mg/100 ml in both peel and juice. Highly antioxidant contents in peels were confirmed. Free radical scavenging is about 3.58+/-0.38 microg/ml in peel. The antioxidant capacity value determined by ABTS was 7.364+/-0.403 mM Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity/100 g dry weight. These findings implied that bio-active compounds from the peel might be potential resources for the development of antioxidant function dietary food.
111 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a large dataset from different Early Jurassic plate margins from western Tethys was used to investigate the role of local versus regional patterns and controls on cyclicity within a Sinemurian time slice.
Abstract: Meter-scale, peritidal carbonate cycles are a common feature of the geological record but debate continues about what processes lead to their formation Three conceptual models, or a combination thereof, are commonly invoked to explain cycle formation; eustasy, tectonics, or autocyclicity These three models are tested with a large new dataset from different Early Jurassic plate margins from western Tethys Study of seven logged sections from Spain, Italy, Greece, Tunisia, Morocco, and Gibraltar enables an analysis of the possible roles of local versus regional patterns and controls on cyclicity within a Sinemurian time slice Cycle types are diverse and include shallowing-upward cycles (parasequences) but also deepening-upward and diagenetic cycles (high-frequency sequences) and subtidal cycles Numbers of cycles per section and cycle stacking patterns within this time slice vary from section to section Statistical tests (runs tests, time series, and bundling) all indicate random stacking of cycles within sections and an absence of any bundling of thicknesses or of facies trends Assessment of cycle types by their occurrence and stacking patterns indicates little support for either eustasy or autocyclicity being the dominant cycle-forming mechanism However, the variability in numbers of cycles per section, thickness variations of the sections, cycle type variability, and randomness of stacking patterns all favor a pulsed, tectonic control for the creation and filling of accommodation space This conclusion is further supported by evidence that has largely arisen during the course of this study of syndepositional extensional tectonics in the Sinemurian on these rifted Tethyan margins Although tectonics appears to be the dominant control, superimposed eustasy and/or autocyclic processes cannot be discounted
102 citations
TL;DR: The aim of this study was to select effective halophilic bacteria from hypersaline ecosystems and evaluate the abilities of antifungal bacteria to secrete extracellular hydrolytic enzymes, anti‐Botrytis metabolites and volatiles.
Abstract: Aims: Grey mould caused by Botrytis cinerea is an economically important disease of strawberries in Tunisia and worldwide. The aim of this study was to select effective halophilic bacteria from hypersaline ecosystems and evaluate the abilities of antifungal bacteria to secrete extracellular hydrolytic enzymes, anti-Botrytis metabolites and volatiles.
Methods and Results: Grey mould was reduced in strawberry fruits treated with halophilic antagonists and artificially inoculated with B. cinerea. Thirty strains (20·2%) were active against the pathogen and reduced the percentage of fruits infected after 3 days of storage at 20°C, from 50% to 91·66%. The antagonists were characterized by phenotypic tests and 16S rDNA sequencing. They were identified as belonging to one of the species: Virgibacillus marismortui, B. subtilis, B. pumilus, B. licheniformis, Terribacillus halophilus, Halomonas elongata, Planococcus rifietoensis, Staphylococcus equorum and Staphylococcus sp. The effective isolates were tested for antifungal secondary metabolites.
Conclusions: Moderately halophilic bacteria may be useful in biological control against this pathogen during postharvest storage of strawberries.
Significance and Impact of the study: The use of such bacteria may constitute an important alternative to synthetic fungicides. These moderate halophiles can be exploited in commercial production and application of the effective strains under storage and greenhouse conditions.
101 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, structural interpretation of surface and subsurface data in the Eastern foreland basins of Tunisia, allows us to recognize positive inversion structures, i.e. related to compressional events, expressed and recorded in the Paleogene sedimentary pile of the Atlas domain.
86 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of a strong magnetic field on the properties of neutron stars with a quark-hadron phase transition was studied and two parametrizations of a density-dependent static magnetic field, increasing, respectively, fast and slowly with the density and reaching 2-4 × 1018 G in the centre of the star, were considered.
Abstract: We study the effect of a strong magnetic field on the properties of neutron stars with a quark–hadron phase transition. It is shown that the magnetic field prevents the appearance of a quark phase, enhances the leptonic fraction, decreases the baryonic density extension of the mixed phase and stiffens the total equation of state, including both the stellar matter and the magnetic field contributions. Two parametrizations of a density-dependent static magnetic field, increasing, respectively, fast and slowly with the density and reaching 2–4 × 1018 G in the centre of the star, are considered. The compact stars with strong magnetic fields have maximum mass configurations with larger masses and radii and smaller quark fractions. The parametrization of the magnetic field with density has a strong influence on the star properties.
79 citations
TL;DR: The subdivision of the mtDNA haplogroup H in North Africa has confirmed that the genetic differentiation found among Western and Eastern populations is mainly due to geographical rather than cultural barriers and shows that the historical Arabian role on the region had more a cultural than a demic effect.
Abstract: The Strait of Gibraltar separating the Iberian Peninsula from North Africa is thought to be a stronger barrier to gene flow for male than for female lineages. However, the recent subdivision of the haplogroup H at mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) level has revealed greater genetic differentiation among geographic regions than previously detected. The dissection of the mtDNA haplogroup H in North Africa, and its comparison with the Iberian Peninsula and Near-East profiles would help clarify the relative affinities among these regions. Like the Iberian Peninsula, the dominant mtDNA haplogroup H subgroups in North Africa are H1 (42%) and H3 (13%). The similarity between these regions is stronger in the North-West edge affecting mainly Moroccan Arabs, West Saharans and Mauritanians, and decreases eastwards probably due to gene flow from Near East as attested for the higher frequencies of H4, H5, H7, H8 and H11 subgroups. Moroccan Berbers show stronger affinities with Tunisian and Tunisian Berbers than with Moroccan Arabs. Coalescence ages for H1 (11 ± 2 ky) and H3 (11 ± 4 ky) in North Africa point to the possibility of a late Palaeolithic settlement for these lineages similar to those found for other mtDNA haplogroups. Total and partial mtDNA genomic sequencing unveiled stronger mtDNA differentiation among regions than previously found using HVSI mtDNA based analysis. The subdivision of the mtDNA haplogroup H in North Africa has confirmed that the genetic differentiation found among Western and Eastern populations is mainly due to geographical rather than cultural barriers. It also shows that the historical Arabian role on the region had more a cultural than a demic effect. Whole mtDNA sequencing of identical H haplotypes based on HVSI and RFLP information has unveiled additional mtDNA differences between North African and Iberian Peninsula lineages, pointing to an older mtDNA genetic flow between regions than previously thought. Based on this new information, it seems that the Strait of Gibraltar barrier affected both male and female gene flow in a similar fashion.
77 citations
TL;DR: It is indicated that malathion in acute exposure leads to a disruption of lipid metabolism with an enhancement in LDL and triglyceride contents and may play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.
76 citations
TL;DR: This work introduces BiMine, a new enumeration algorithm for biclustering of DNA microarray data that relies on a new evaluation function called Average Spearman's rho (ASR) and introduces a parametric rule that allows the enumeration process to cut tree branches that cannot lead to good biclusters.
Abstract: In a number of domains, like in DNA microarray data analysis, we need to cluster simultaneously rows (genes) and columns (conditions) of a data matrix to identify groups of rows coherent with groups of columns. This kind of clustering is called biclustering. Biclustering algorithms are extensively used in DNA microarray data analysis. More effective biclustering algorithms are highly desirable and needed. We introduce BiMine, a new enumeration algorithm for biclustering of DNA microarray data. The proposed algorithm is based on three original features. First, BiMine relies on a new evaluation function called Average Spearman's rho (ASR). Second, BiMine uses a new tree structure, called Bicluster Enumeration Tree (BET), to represent the different biclusters discovered during the enumeration process. Third, to avoid the combinatorial explosion of the search tree, BiMine introduces a parametric rule that allows the enumeration process to cut tree branches that cannot lead to good biclusters. The performance of the proposed algorithm is assessed using both synthetic and real DNA microarray data. The experimental results show that BiMine competes well with several other biclustering methods. Moreover, we test the biological significance using a gene annotation web-tool to show that our proposed method is able to produce biologically relevant biclusters. The software is available upon request from the authors to academic users.
TL;DR: The combined content of pro-vitamin A and vitamin E in capers encourages researchers to more explore and find developments for this plant.
Abstract: High-performance liquid chromatography was used to determine carotenoids (beta-carotene, lutein, neoxanthin, and violaxanthin) and tocopherols of leaves, buds, and flowers of Tunisian Capparis spinosa. This plant shows strong resistance to hard environmental conditions, and it is one of the most commonly found aromatics in the Mediterranean kitchen. In this study, the means of the total carotenoids were 3452.5 +/- 1639.4, 1002 +/- 518.5, and 342.7 +/- 187.9 microg/g fresh weight (FW) in leaves, buds, and flowers, respectively. Lutein accounts for the high content. Violaxanthin provided the lowest portion of the total carotenoids. The principal form of tocopherol detected in leaves was alpha-tocopherol (20.19 +/- 10 mg/100 g FW). In buds and flowers, there were both alpha- (49.12 +/- 17.48 and 28.68 +/- 9.13 mg/100 g FW, respectively) and gamma-tocopherol (48.13 +/- 15.08 and 27.8 +/- 16.01 mg/100 g FW, respectively). The combined content of pro-vitamin A and vitamin E in capers encourages researchers to more explore and find developments for this plant.
TL;DR: It is suggested that pathogenic mutations in DCTN1 are rare and do not play a common role in the development of Parkinson disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Abstract: Objective: Recently, mutations in DCTN1 were found to cause Perry syndrome, a parkinsonian disorder with TDP-43-positive pathology. Previously, mutations in DCTN1 were identified in a family with lower motor neuron disease, in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and in a family with ALS/frontotemporal dementia (FTD), suggesting a central role for DCTN1 in neurodegeneration. Methods: In this study we sequenced all DCTN1 exons and exon-intron boundaries in 286 samples diagnosed with Parkinson disease (PD), frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), or ALS. Results: This analysis revealed 36 novel variants (9 missense, 5 silent, and 22 noncoding). Segregation analysis in families and association studies in PD, FTLD, and ALS case–control series did not identify any variants segregating with disease or associated with increased disease risk. Conclusions: This study suggests that pathogenic mutations in DCTN1 are rare and do not play a common role in the development of Parkinson disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explain that the Islamic bank services represent an example of ethically and socially responsible investment and that the most important objectives of the Islamic finance in general and particularly the Islamic banks, is the establishment of justice and elimination of exploitation in business transaction.
Abstract: While ethics and financial investments seem to be mutually exclusive, ethics have recently become an important issue in the financial field. There is an increased emphasis on the role of faith and religious beliefs on ethical business practices for some investors who not only seek profits through their investments but they also require the achievement of a moral duty beside the quest of wealth accumulation.Since investors become more aware of the benefits of Ethics and socially responsible investment, the interest in Islamic investing and ethically based banking is also increasing.Among the most important objectives of the Islamic finance in general and particularly the Islamic banks, is the establishment of justice and elimination of exploitation in business transaction. This can be done by the prohibition in of all sources of illegal “unjustified” enrichment and the prohibition of dealing in transactions that contain excessive risk or speculation. The paper seeks to explain that the Islamic bank services represent an example of ethically and socially responsible investment.
TL;DR: The results of this study are discussed in terms of the ecological significance of these microorganisms in the breakdown of organic matter in Lake El-Djerid and their potential for industry applications.
Abstract: Bacterial and archaeal aerobic communities were recovered from sediments from the shallow El-Djerid salt lake in Tunisia, and their salinity gradient distribution was established. Six samples for physicochemical and microbiological analyses were obtained from 6 saline sites in the lake for physico-chemical and microbiological analyses. All samples studied were considered hypersaline with NaCl concentration ranging from 150 to 260 g/L. A specific halophilic microbial community was recovered from each site, and characterization of isolated microorganisms was performed via both phenotypic and phylogenetic approaches. Only one extreme halophilic organism, domain Archaea, was isolated from site 4 only, whereas organisms in the domain Bacteria were recovered from the five remaining sampling sites that contained up to 250 g/L NaCl. Members of the domain Bacteria belonged to genera Salicola, Pontibacillus, Halomonas, Marinococcus, and Halobacillus, whereas the only member of domain Archaea isolated belonged to the genus Halorubrum. The results of this study are discussed in terms of the ecological significance of these microorganisms in the breakdown of organic matter in Lake El-Djerid and their potential for industry applications.
TL;DR: Multiple nanobodies of sub-nanomolar affinity to AahII, the most toxic polypeptide within the Androctonus australis hector venom, were isolated from a dromedary immunized with Aah II, and neutralizes 7 LD50 of this toxin in mice, which has never been reached before by any other monoclonal antibody fragment.
Abstract: Scorpion venom, containing highly toxic, small polypeptides that diffuse rapidly within the patient, causes serious medical problems. Nanobodies, single-domain antigen-binding fragments derived from dromedary heavy-chain antibodies, have a size that closely matches that of scorpion toxins. Therefore these nanobodies might be developed into potent immunotherapeutics to treat scorpion envenoming. Multiple nanobodies of sub-nanomolar affinity to AahII, the most toxic polypeptide within the Androctonus australis hector venom, were isolated from a dromedary immunized with AahII. These nanobodies neutralize the lethal effect of AahII to various extents without clear correlation with the kinetic rate constants kon or koff, or the equilibrium dissociation constant, KD. One particular nanobody, referred to as NbAahII10, which targets a unique epitope on AahII, neutralizes 7 LD50 of this toxin in mice, corresponding to a neutralizing capacity of approx. 37000 LD50 of AahII/mg of nanobody. Such high neutralizing potency has never been reached before by any other monoclonal antibody fragment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the interaction of one of the most reactive flavonoid quercetin with two ROS: hydroxyl radical ( · OH ) and superoxide radical ( O 2 - ) using B3LYP/6-31++G* level of theory was studied.
Abstract: Free radical oxygen species act on biological constituents like lipid, cell membrane and deoxyribonucleic acids by changing their biological functions These effects are associated with the appearance of anomalies like allergies, cancer, viral infections, inflammations, etc Antioxidants like flavonoids are abundant in plants and are good scavengers of reactive oxygen species (ROS) Their antioxidant activities are measured through hydrogen atom transfer or charge transfer These mechanisms depend on the structure of the flavonoid or the nature of the free radical In this paper, we study the interaction of one of the most reactive flavonoid quercetin with two ROS: hydroxyl radical ( · OH ) and superoxide radical ( · O 2 - ) using B3LYP/6-31++G*level of theory Correlations between structural changes and antioxidant activity are shown The potential energy surfaces (PES) are calculated in both cases and indicate a transition state (TS) only for the reaction of quercetin with the hydroxyl radical This transition state is only localized at the B3LYP/3-21G level of theory This comparison between the reactants, the TS and the products of the reaction with the · OH radical indicate the nature of the transfer As far as the reaction of quercetin with the superoxide anion radical is concerned, the PES shows the inexistence of one transition state The nature of the charge transfer is thus determined using the natural bond orbital (NBO) and the singlet occupied molecular orbital (SOMO) analysis
TL;DR: In this paper, a regional 2.5D gravity model constrained by seismic reflection and borehole data was constructed along a NE-SW trending profile to explain the positive gravity signature over the Jeffara sedimentary basin and obtain a more quantitative representation of the subsurface structure.
TL;DR: In this article, carbon stable isotope data permit recognition of the OAE 1a event in the Djebel Serdj section in the Tunisian lower Aptian section.
TL;DR: Vanadium supported on unsulfated and sulfated Ti-pillared clays are developed for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of nitrogen oxide (NO) by ammonia.
TL;DR: In this article, the initial value problem for a defocusing nonlinear Schrodinger equation with exponential nonlinearity was investigated and global well-posedness was established in the subcritical and critical regimes.
Abstract: We investigate the initial value problem for a defocusing nonlinear Schrodinger equation with exponential nonlinearity $$i\partial_t u+\Delta u=u (e^{4\pi|u|^2}-1)\quad\mbox{in}\ \mathbb{R}_t\times\mathbb{R}_x^2.$$ We identify subcritical, critical, and supercritical regimes in the energy space. We establish global well-posedness in the subcritical and critical regimes. Well-posedness fails to hold in the supercritical case.
TL;DR: Identification of PC molecular species suggests the possibility that corn oil can have therapeutics effects, as well as suggesting the content of phospholipids in the oils varied from 5.2% to 8.7%.
TL;DR: In this paper, large-scale VO 2 (B) nanobelts have been synthesized by hydrothermal strategy via one-step method using V 2 O 5 as vanadium source and C 6 H 5 -(CH 2 ) n -NH 2 with n ǫ = 2 and 4 (2-phenylethylamine and 4-phenylbutylamine) as structure-directing templates.
TL;DR: A high-resolution biostratigraphic analysis of planktic foraminifers in the Bidart section at the eastern margin of the Atlantic Ocean exhibits a continuous and complete Cretaceous/Paleogene transition interval.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors give a brief description of how an Islamic bank performs and then try to clarify the risks that the Islamic banks are exposed to, and attempt after that to identify the practices of these banks for mitigating it with an emphasize on the liquidity risk and its challenges.
Abstract: Risk and liquidity management are not just an interesting topic in Islamic Banking, it is a huge issue for all banks whether Islamic or not and for those who supervise these banks. Good risk management practices and processes do not have a religion or a colour or a country. There are plenty of good risk takers in Islamic Banks and some bad ones. It is the same in the conventional banking sector. Islamic banks have brought a new innovation in the banking industry whereby transactions must pass through owning real physical assets. Risk and liquidity management are of crucial importance in the overall banking environment, and they have clear relevance also to the specific environment of Islamic banking. In itself, Islamic banks are growing rapidly and have their own particular techniques on these issues, as elaborated on in this article. The use of profit-sharing modes in Islamic banks changes the nature of risks faced by these institutions.In this paper we give a brief description of how an Islamic bank performs. We then try to clarify the risks that the Islamic banks are exposed to. We attempt after that to identify the practices of these banks for mitigating it with an emphasize on the liquidity risk and its challenges.
TL;DR: In this paper, the results of multi-field studies supported by the compilation of the literature, enable sensible discussion of the proposed ages, analyze the depositional environments, and concomitantly support correlations between the Miocene Formations recognized to the South-East of the Eastern Dorsale of Tunisia.
23 May 2009
TL;DR: BonjourGrid is a software which aims to link a discovery service based on publish/subscribe protocol with the upper layer of a Desktop Grid middleware bridging the gap to meta-grid, and is robust and able to orchestrate more than 400 instances of XtremWeb middleware in a concurrent fashion on a 1000 host cluster.
Abstract: While the rapidly increasing number of users and applications running on Desktop Grid (DG) systems does demonstrate its inherent potential, current DG implementations follow the traditional masterworker paradigm and DG middlewares do not cooperate. To extend the DG architecture, we propose a novel system, called BonjourGrid, capable of 1) creating, for each user, a specific execution environment in a decentralized fashion and 2) contrarily to classical DG, of orchestrating multiple and various instances of Desktop Grid middlewares. This will enable us to construct, on demand, specific execution environments (combinations of XtremWeb, Condor, Boinc middlewares). BonjourGrid is a software which aims to link a discovery service based on publish/subscribe protocol with the upper layer of a Desktop Grid middleware bridging the gap to meta-grid. Our experimental evaluation proves that BonjourGrid is robust and able to orchestrate more than 400 instances of XtremWeb middleware in a concurrent fashion on a 1000 host cluster. This experiment demonstrates the concept of BonjourGrid as well as its potential and shows that, comparing to a classical Desktop Grid with one central master, BonjourGrid suffers from an acceptable overhead that can be explained.
TL;DR: The phylogenetic diversity of a collection of 96 Bacilli, isolated from 17 distinct stations of 5 oceanographic campaigns, points out the need of more extensive studies to understand their distribution and ecology in deep‐sea environments.
Abstract: Members of the genus Bacillus and related genera are ubiquitous in nature. However, Bacillus species isolated from marine sediments have attracted less interest respect to their terrestrial relatives. Here, we report the phylogenetic diversity of a collection of 96 Bacilli, isolated from 17 distinct stations of 5 oceanographic campaigns. The diversity was analysed by phenotypic and molecular approaches based on the amplified rDNA restriction analysis (ARDRA), amplification of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS-PCR) and on 16S rRNA sequencing. Intra-specific polymorphism was efficiently detected by biochemical analysis and ARDRA while results of ITS-PCR were in agreement with 16S rRNA sequencing. The identification results assigned 68% of the isolates to the species B. subtilis, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus and B. cereus. Phylogenetic analysis allowed the separation of 9 isolates in a clade that may represent a group of obligate marine Bacillus since they clustered with B. firmus, B. foraminis and marine isolates with metal oxidation and bioaccumulation capabilities. The remaining isolates showed a close affiliation to the genera Virgibacillus, Gracilibacillus and Paenibacillus. The widespread of Bacilli and their high diversity level observed in this work point out the need of more extensive studies to understand their distribution and ecology in deep-sea environments.
TL;DR: In this paper, structural interpretations of seismic sections crossing the Tell area in Tunisia, allow us to outline the structural style of the subsurface along the thrust front of the Numidian nappe and its relationships with the substratum north of the Middle Mejerda valley.
TL;DR: Neither ATP13A2 genetic variability nor quantitative gene expression in brain appears to contribute to familial parkinsonism or nonfamilial PD.
Abstract: Recessively inherited mutations in ATP13A2 result in Kufor-Rakeb syndrome, whereas genetic variability and elevated ATP13A2 expression have been implicated in Parkinson disease (PD). Given this background, ATP13A2 was comprehensively assessed to support or refute its contribution to PD. Sequencing of ATP13A2 exons and intron-exon boundaries was performed in 89 probands with familial parkinsonism from Tunisia. The segregation of mutations with parkinsonism was subsequently assessed within pedigrees. The frequency of genetic variants and evidence for association was also examined in 240 patients with non-familial PD and 372 healthy controls. ATP13A2 mRNA expression was also quantified in brain tissues from 38 patients with non-familial PD and 38 healthy subjects from the US. Sequencing analysis revealed 37 new variants; seven missense, six silent and 24 that were noncoding. However, no single ATP13A2 mutation segregated with familial parkinsonism in either a dominant or recessive manner. Four markers showed marginal association with non-familial PD, prior to correction for multiple testing. ATP13A2 mRNA expression was marginally decreased in PD brains compared with tissue from control subjects. In conclusion, neither ATP13A2 genetic variability nor quantitative gene expression in brain appears to contribute to familial parkinsonism or non-familial PD.