Multiple regions within 8q24 independently affect risk for prostate cancer

After the recent discovery that common genetic variation in 8q24 influences inherited risk of prostate cancer, we genotyped 2,973 SNPs in up to 7,518 men with and without prostate cancer from five populations. We identified seven risk variants, five of them previously undescribed, spanning 430 kb and each independently predicting risk for prostate cancer (P = 7.9 x 10(-19) for the strongest association, and P < 1.5 x 10(-4) for five of the variants, after controlling for each of the others). The variants define common genotypes that span a more than fivefold range of susceptibility to cancer in some populations. None of the prostate cancer risk variants aligns to a known gene or alters the coding sequence of an encoded protein.     

New occurrence of Ba-REE fluorcarbonate minerals at Bayan Obo, Inner Mongolia, North China, and their mineralogical features

Ba-REE fluorcarbonate minerals from a carbonatite dyke at Bayan Obo, Inner Mongolia, North China, are first reported in this contribution, in which chemical composition, rare earth element (REE) patterns, and intergrowth relationships for these minerals have been investigated. Syntactic intergrowth or syntaxy between cebaite and cordylite, as well as cordylite and huanghoite were observed. This syntactic texture resulted from the variation of chemical composition of crystallizing agents for those minerals that crystallized directly from carbonatite magmas. It is worth noting that REE patterns of the Ba-REE fluorcarbonate minerals in the dyke are similar to those of the corresponding minerals from the ore hosted dolomite marble of the Bayan Obo giant REE-Nb-Fe mineral deposit, which implies their relation in origin.     

Genome-wide association study identifies novel breast cancer susceptibility loci

Breast cancer exhibits familial aggregation, consistent with variation in genetic susceptibility to the disease. Known susceptibility genes account for less than 25% of the familial risk of breast cancer, and the residual genetic variance is likely to be due to variants conferring more moderate risks. To identify further susceptibility alleles, we conducted a two-stage genome-wide association study in 4,398 breast cancer cases and 4,316 controls, followed by a third stage in which 30 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were tested for confirmation in 21,860 cases and 22,578 controls from 22 studies. We used 227,876 SNPs that were estimated to correlate with 77% of known common SNPs in Europeans at r2 > 0.5. SNPs in five novel independent loci exhibited strong and consistent evidence of association with breast cancer (P < 10(-7)). Four of these contain plausible causative genes (FGFR2, TNRC9, MAP3K1 and LSP1). At the second stage, 1,792 SNPs were significant at the P < 0.05 level compared with an estimated 1,343 that would be expected by chance, indicating that many additional common susceptibility alleles may be identifiable by this approach.     

Is the maximum carbon number of long-chain <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-alkanes an indicator of grassland or forest? Evidence from surface soils and modern plants

The molecular distribution of long-chain n-alkanes in 62 soil samples collected from diverse locations across eastern China was analyzed.The long-chain n-alkanes were mostly dominated by n-C29 or n-C31,regardless of the overlying vegetation type at each site.The results were compared with those summarized from the literature,covering more than 100 soil samples within China and more than 300 genera of modern plants distributed worldwide.There were similar n-alkane distribution patterns for most genera, with no clear differences among grasses,shrubs,and trees.The evidence from analyses of surface soils and modern plants indicates that the relationship between the molecular distribution of long-chain n-alkanes of surface soils and source vegetation is highly complex,and is influenced by many factors.Further,it is suggested that source vegetation types should not be simply inferred from distribution patterns of long-chain n-alkanes in sediments.     

A survey and assessment of the rare vascular plants of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory site

A two-year study of the rare vascular plants of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory generated new data on the abundance, distribution, and habitat features of eight taxa presently under review at either the federal or state level, or recently proposed for such review. Astragalus ceramicus Sheld. var. apus Barneby is common on the INEL and adjacent areas and will be recommended for removal from further consideration at the federal level and placed on Idaho's Federal Watch List. Coryphanta missouriensis (Sweet) Britt. & Rose is common throughout east central Idaho, but will be recommended for retainment on the State Watch List. Gymnosteris nudicaulis (H. & A.) Greene and Oxytheca dendroidea Nutt. are also recommended for retention on the State Watch List. Four taxa not previously known to occur in Idaho or not known from the southeastern part of the state ( Astragalus gilviflorus Sheld., Astragalus kentrophyta Gray var. jessiae (Peck) Barneby, Gilia polycladon Torr., and Lesquerella kingii S. Wats. var. cobrensis Roll. & Shaw) were encountered and evaluated with reference to current or potential threats, and are recommended for placement on Idaho's State Watch List. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;     

Holocene vegetation and historic grazing impacts at Capitol Reef National Park reconstructed using packrat middens

Mid- to late-Holocene vegetation change from a remote high-desert site was reconstructed using plant macrofossils and pollen from 9 packrat middens ranging from 0 to 5400 yr in age. Presettlement middens consistently contained abundant macrofossils of plant species palatable to large herbivores that are now absent or reduced, such as winterfat ( Ceratoides lanata ) and ricegrass ( Stipa hymenoides ). Macrofossils and pollen of pinyon pine ( Pinus edulis ), sagebrush ( Artemisia spp.), and roundleaf buffaloberry ( Shepherdia rotundifolia ) were recently reduced to their lowest levels for the 5400-yr record. Conversely, species typical of overgrazed range, such as snakeweed ( Gutierrezia sarothrae ), viscid rabbitbrush ( Chrysothamnus visidiflorus ), and Russian thistle ( Salsola sp.), were not recorded prior to the historic introduction of grazing animals. Pollens of Utah juniper ( Juniperus osteosperma ) also increased during the last 200 yr. These records demonstrate that the most sever vegetation changes of the last 5400 yr occurred during the past 200 yr. The nature and timing of these changes suggest that they were primarily caused by the 19th-century open-land sheep and cattle ranching. The reduction of pinyon and sagebrush concurrent with other grazing impacts suggests that effects of cattle grazing at modern stocking levels may be a poor analog for the effects of intense sheep grazing during drought.     

Classes of Copenhagen interpretations: Mechanisms of collapse as typologically determinative

The Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics is the dominant view of the theory among working physicists, if not philosophers. There are, however, several strains of Copenhagenism extant, each largely accepting Born's assessment of the wave function as the most complete possible specification of a system and the notion of collapse as a completely random event. This paper outlines three of these sub-interpretations, typing them by what the author of each names as the trigger of quantum-mechanical collapse. Visions of the theory from von Neumann, Heisenberg, and Wheeler offer different mechanisms to break the continuous, deterministic, superposition-laden quantum chain and yield discrete, probabilistic, classical results in response to von Neumann's catastrophe of infinite regress.     

A common genetic risk factor for colorectal and prostate cancer

Variants on chromosome 8q24 contribute risk for prostate cancer; here, we tested whether they also modulate risk for colorectal cancer. We studied 1,807 affected individuals and 5,511 controls and found that one variant, rs6983267, is also significantly associated with colorectal cancer (odds ratio = 1.22; P = 4.4 x 10(-6)) and that the apportionment of risk among the variants differs significantly between the two cancers. Comprehensive testing in the region uncovered variants capturing significant additional risk. Our results show that variants at 8q24 have different effects on cancer development that depend on the tissue type.