Scientists in Dubai have identified genetic factors that may put certain children at greater risk of having a potentially fatal reaction when infected with Covid-19.

Researchers used data from dozens of youngsters in Dubai and Jordan to determine what genetic variants increased the likelihood of them developing multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).

Previous studies have highlighted the role genes play in causing MIS-C, but this new research is unusual in that it included many Arab children, who are often not included in large numbers in studies of this kind.

The work was led by scientists at Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences and Al Jalila Childrens Hospital, both in Dubai, and published in JAMA Network Open.

This is an important study not only because the findings show comprehensive genetic profiling of children with MIS-C, which is essential to characterise the genetic contribution to the disease, but also because patients of an Arab background have long been under-represented in genetic studies, Dr Walid Abuhammour, head of the paediatric infectious diseases department at Al Jalila Childrens Specialty Hospital, and study investigator, said.

In the US, children under 5 can now receive the Pfizer vaccine. AP

The study involved analysing the genes, clinical symptoms and other factors of 45 Arab and Asian children who developed MIS-C, and comparing them to 25 children who also had Covid-19 but did not develop MIS-C.

The children were treated at Al Jalila Childrens Specialty Hospital and the Jordan University Hospital between September 2020 and August 2021.

MIS-C involves a type of over-reaction of the immune system, known as a cytokine storm, that can affect multiple organs and result in death. The cytokine storm has also been associated with deaths from Covid-19 in adults.

Among the other institutions to have researched MIS-C is Boston Childrens Hospital, which released a study in September that identified genetic risk factors that all pointed to, the hospital said, underlying problems with immune regulation.

These variants caused the children to have what was described as an exaggerated response to viral infections, something that before the coronavirus emerged actually helped these individuals fight off infections. Particular chemical messengers in the body that stimulate the immune system were blamed for the over-reaction associated with MIS-C, as they could cause inflammation if released at the wrong time.

Like the Boston study last year, and others, the new research found that children who developed MIS-C were more likely to have particular rare genetic variants linked to the immune system.

Although clinical presentations and laboratory markers in this cohort were consistent with recently described MIS-C cohorts elsewhere, our analysis revealed significant enrichment of rare, likely deleterious [harmful] [genetic] variants, the study said.

These variants affect particular biochemical processes, the paper stated, that overlap with the currently characterised immunologic profile in patients with MIS-C.

The onset of the disease and resistance to treatment were also associated with genetic factors identified by the scientists.

The results of this research suggest that rare genetic factors play a role in MIS-C disease and highlight immune-related pathways which might become targets for intervention, Dr Ahmad Abou Tayoun, director of Al Jalila Children's Genomics Centre and associate professor of genetics at MBRU, said.

Hopefully, this will now prompt additional studies to functionally characterise some of the identified genes, and to expand genomic sequencing to more diverse populations to fully characterise the genetic landscape of this new disease entity.

The research was funded by the Al Jalila Foundation, which was founded by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.

As well as researchers at MBRU and Al Jalila Childrens Hospital, the study involved scientists at Dubai Health Authority, the University of Jordan and The Specialty Hospital in Amman.

Updated: July 10, 2022, 5:03 AM

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Rare study involving Arab children finds genetic factors linked to severe Covid-19 illness - The National

YOUNG red meat industry stakeholders were told to treat tradition as an opportunity, during the 2022 Intercollegiate Meat Judging Association Conference in New South Wales last week.

At Charles Sturt Universitys Wagga Wagga campus, NSW prime lamb seedstock producer Tom Bull described how he moved on from industry tradition to succeed. He said the sheep industry in the 1990s was subjective: The show was king.

Tom Bull addressing the ICMJ conference in Wagga this week

The key for most breeders was trying to win a bit of felt and the whole industry was trying to win this bit of felt at a show and thats how it went.

It was all purebred, very wool-focused, lamb was a by-product and at that time lamb was declining in popularity, it was too fat, eye muscles were too small and consumption per capita was really declining.

Mr Bull said one of the most influential people on his career was a former Inghams Chicken employee who explained how the Inghams business was based on producing a meal for two at two different price points.

And then they would work back and find out what genetics and what feed they would need. Everything we have done since is trying to do that, he said.

He said he look at the sheep stud industry and thought: The best thing about the stud industry is they wont change. They are still going to show sheep, the average stud breeder is about 70 years of age, he said.

So then all of a sudden, really our business was based about looking at opportunities.

The first was use of objective data, performance recording data, he said.

We were one of the first people in Lambplan in 1994 and using data, and that was not the done thing, its all about the eye, 50 years trying to train your eye how to pick a sheep.

The other one that really came up was to use composite sheep, again not the done thing purebred sheep, you cant taint the breed, you cant register them with your breed society, he said.

Mr Bull said he applied Apple thinking people dont know what they need, I didnt know I needed an iPhone.

It was really that Apple thinking, trying to think ahead, trying to work out what people need and I think thats really where our opportunities (are) performance recording, self-replacing flocks.

You could see the whole Australian lamb industry was based on Merino sheep, because we were wool-focused, wool is king, he said.

So really all we tried to do was go, why not have specialist meat flocks? We used to say, why not have the Angus cow of the Australian lamb industry.

Mr Bull said seven breeds were put together to develop the Primeline Maternal.

Every agent, every buyer was saying No, you cant do that. Within five years we broke the Australian ram sales record selling composite rams, and as lambs, half the age of the other fellows, he said.

So I think when I look at the industry, tradition is what got me ahead.

As young people, see that as an opportunity, dont see that as a threat, he said. The tradition of the industry is what enabled us to actually grow.

Mr Bull said the beef sector had applied IBISWorld founder Phil Ruthvens message at a Holbrook Meat Profit day in 2000 that the meat industry needed to become a wine industry.

You need provenance, you need point of difference. What actually happened we saw the beef industry take that up brands emerged, certified Angus beef, the Wagyu juggernaut was just starting to roll and then you look at whats happened since that time, he said.

The whole (southern) industrys been painted black based on one thing eating quality.

The beef industry is about brands now.

His favourite beef brand is Rangers Valley WX5. I know how it will eat it eats the same every time.

But Mr Bull said lamb is still just lamb.

Were where beef was 20-something years ago, but lamb is just lamb, there is no point of difference, some eats good, some eats bad. But what do you reckon my next opportunity is? Eating quality.

Mr Bull said looking at intramuscular fat, with an Australian average of 4.2pc,

The 46 year-old Lampro principal who said he still thinks he is 20, advised his audience to use their time wisely.

One minute you are thinking, you know, worrying about bar night and the next minutes youve got kids and farms and everything else.

His first job after his University of Sydney degree was working in the boning room of an American company Superior Farms trying to substitute US lamb with Australian product.

It was great because I actually understood about meat, it was probably one of the best things I ever did.

After Superior Farms left Australia, he stayed in the processing sector and was involved with the Viascan technology that measured the meat yield of carcases. He eventually became the marketing manager for Australia and New Zealand.

As it happened, New Zealand took it up and Australia to a limited degree.

He then headed home and briefly had a business processing his own wool into doonas, eventually marketing them nationwide through Grace Bros. (now Myers).

It was really good experience, learnt a lot, lost a lot of money, learned a lot about Underbelly One because all the people I had to deal with I felt were Mafia in Melbourne.

Mr Bull said he started Lambpro with five stud ewes in 1991 and now ran 10,500 sheep and will sell 400 rams this year.

And 1.1 million or nearly 5 percent of Australias lambs are now sired by our rams that come off our farm.

See more here:
Apply 'Apple thinking' to genetic selection, ICMJ conference students told - Beef Central

Millions of people waiting for hip and knee surgery could soon be told whether their operation is likely to fail after scientists discovered a link between genetics and early failure of joint replacements.

In a world first, British researchers have found that DNA signals in saliva and blood samples are linked to an adverse reaction to the cobalt chrome materials in most joint implants.

It is thought a test to identify those patients who will have an adverse reaction to cobalt chrome will take at least two years before it can be rolled out but once in place should reduce the number of failed operations drastically.

About 15 per cent of Britons have these genetic characteristics, which make the immune system attack tissue around the material, causing pain and swelling, in a process similar to how a patient rejects an organ transplant.

Until now experts did not know what was causing the problem, which meant doctors had no way of telling if a patient would react badly to their new joint or not.

The research could lead to patients having more choice about what type of joint implant they decide on to boost their chance of success, which would transform the way orthopaedic surgery is carried out around the world.

In a trial, more than 600 patients who underwent joint-replacement surgery in the past 10 years were tested using saliva swabs and blood tests.

A computer analysed the data and revealed those patients who suffered complications carried specific genes. The team believe they can use this testing system to spot who would be at risk.

Currently, around 10 per cent of the population in the UK will have a joint surgically replaced in their lifetime, as a proven way to treat joint ailments such as arthritis. But as populations around the world grow older and heavier, this is leading to more joint replacement being performed, with some five million surgeries carried out across the world each year a number which is forecast to double over the next two decades.

The majority of patients are satisfied with the results of their surgery if joint replacements are successful they last between 15 and 25 years but a significant number of joint replacements fail early following adverse immune responses, leading to potentially dangerous and costly repeat surgery.

Patients with a genetic sensitivity to cobalt chrome usually have a second procedure within months of the first, using alternative materials.

The international study led by Newcastle University and published in Nature Communications Medicine, is the culmination of 14 years research by Dr David Langton, managing director at ExplantLab, a Newcastle-based organisation that investigates the links between genetics and the performance of medical devices which took part in the study.

Dr Langton said: Through our research we have been able to demonstrate that a significant percentage of patients carry a genotype that makes it more likely for them to have a reaction to a joint replacement made of a cobalt chrome component.

Our findings are a big step towards offering patients more choice about what type of joint implant they decide on, and helping them to make informed decisions about the risks involved.

Of the 6.4 million people currently on the waiting list for treatment on the NHS in England, more than 730,000 require orthopaedic surgery. Cobalt chrome is used in over 95 per cent of knee replacements, but alloys such as titanium and ceramic metals can be used as alternative, according to surgeons.

Tony Nargol, consultant orthopaedic surgeon at North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust, whose surgical team worked closely with Dr Langton, said: This exciting discovery comes as a result of the close working relationship our fantastic staff have had with Mr Langton and his team, as well as health staff from organisations across the world.

This work will help provide a practical way for health professionals to help patients in selecting the best type of implants for their individual bodies. It will mean better outcomes for our patients and could transform the quality of care we provide to our patients.

See more here:
Genetic test could tell millions of NHS patients if their hip or knee surgery will fail - iNews