Publications by authors named "Juha Kere"

Objective: The autosomal recessive disease congenital chloride diarrhea (CLD), caused by loss-of-function mutations in the solute carrier family 26 member 3 (SLC26A3) gene, shows association with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, it is unclear whether IBD risk is associated with genetic or immune signatures. SLC26A3 interacts with several ion transporters linked to intestinal inflammation, such as cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and solute carrier family 9 member 3 (SLC9A3) causing congenital sodium diarrhea.

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Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified thousands of variants associated with complex phenotypes, including neuropsychiatric disorders. To better understand their pathogenesis, it is necessary to identify the functional roles of these variants, which are largely located in non-coding DNA regions. Here, we employ a human mesencephalic neuronal cell differentiation model, LUHMES, with sensitive and high-resolution methods to discover enhancers (NET-CAGE), perform DNA conformation analysis (Capture Hi-C) to link enhancers to their target genes, and finally validate selected interactions.

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Introduction: Back pain is common in idiopathic scoliosis. The aim of this study was to study known genetic variants associated with pain in individuals with idiopathic scoliosis.

Methods: We included 1442 individuals with juvenile or adolescent idiopathic scoliosis from Sweden and Denmark.

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Article Synopsis
  • This study focuses on embryonic genome activation (EGA) in bovine embryonic development, highlighting the need to understand the role of PRD-like (PRDL) transcription factors that are crucial for this process but have evolved differently across species.
  • Molecular cloning was performed on several PRDL TFs in bovine oocytes and IVF preimplantation embryos, confirming their expression and revealing breed-related genetic variations through the identification of numerous single nucleotide variants (SNVs).
  • The research demonstrated that overexpressing the TPRX3 gene in bovine fibroblasts activates not only protein-coding genes but also small noncoding RNAs, supporting the notion of shared gene sets in early bovine
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The dog, Canis lupus familiaris, is an important model for studying human diseases. Unlike many model organisms, the dog genome has a comparatively poor functional annotation, which hampers gene discovery for development, morphology, disease, and behavior. To fill this gap, we established a comprehensive tissue biobank for both the dog and wolf samples.

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Objective: To study whether gynecologic or reproductive disorders show association with trisomic conceptions.

Methods: This nationwide cohort study utilized the Registry of Congenital Malformations to identify women who had a trisomic pregnancy (n = 5784), either with trisomy 13 (T13; n = 351), trisomy 18 (T18; n = 1065) or trisomy 21 (T21; n = 4369) from 1987 to 2018. We used the Finnish Maternity cohort to match the cases to population controls (n = 34 422) on the age, residence, and timing of pregnancy.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers used a 5' single-cell RNA sequencing method to identify where enhancer RNAs and other RNA types start in human CD4 T cells, uncovering variations in cell types and their development.
  • By combining these RNA datasets with single-cell chromatin profiles, they found that unique active enhancers and their RNA production are specific to certain cell types and are linked to disease risk.
  • The study created a detailed atlas of these enhancers that helps to understand how genetic variations are related to various immune-mediated diseases.
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A previous study suggested that fetal inheritance of chromosomally integrated human herpesvirus 6 (ici-HHV6) is associated with the hypertensive pregnancy disorder preeclampsia (PE). We aimed to study this question utilizing cord plasma samples (n = 1276) of the Finnish Genetics of Preeclampsia Consortium (FINNPEC) cohort: 539 from a pregnancy with PE and 737 without. We studied these samples and 30 placentas from PE pregnancies by a multiplex qPCR for the DNAs of all nine human herpesviruses.

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The HLA region, especially HLA class I and II genes, which encode molecules for antigen presentation to T cells, plays a major role in the predisposition to autoimmune disorders. To clarify the mechanisms behind this association, we examined genome-wide DNA methylation by microarrays to cover over 850,000 CpG sites in the CD4 T cells and CD19 B cells of healthy subjects homozygous either for DRB1*15-DQA1*01-DQB1*06:02 (DR2-DQ6, n = 14), associated with a strongly decreased T1D risk, DRB1*03-DQA1*05-DQB1*02 (DR3-DQ2, n = 19), or DRB1*04:01-DQA1*03-DQB1*03:02 (DR4-DQ8, n = 17), associated with a moderately increased T1D risk. In total, we discovered 14 differentially methylated CpG probes, of which 10 were located in the HLA region and six in the HLA-DRB1 locus.

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The human genome is pervasively transcribed and produces a wide variety of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), constituting the majority of transcripts across human cell types. Some specific nuclear lncRNAs have been shown to be important regulatory components acting locally. As RNA-chromatin interaction and Hi-C chromatin conformation data showed that chromatin interactions of nuclear lncRNAs are determined by the local chromatin 3D conformation, we used Hi-C data to identify potential target genes of lncRNAs.

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Reading skills and developmental dyslexia, characterized by difficulties in developing reading skills, have been associated with brain anomalies within the language network. Genetic factors contribute to developmental dyslexia risk, but the mechanisms by which these genes influence reading skills remain unclear. In this preregistered study (https://osf.

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Background: Primary cilia emanate from most human cell types, including neurons. Cilia are important for communicating with the cell's immediate environment: signal reception and transduction to/from the ciliated cell. Deregulation of ciliary signaling can lead to ciliopathies and certain neurodevelopmental disorders.

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Aim: Clinical risk scores for coronary artery disease (CAD) are used in clinical practice to select patients for diagnostic testing and therapy. Several studies have proposed that polygenic risk scores (PRSs) can improve the prediction of CAD, but the scores need to be validated in clinical populations with accurately characterized phenotypes. We assessed the predictive power of the three most promising PRSs for the prediction of coronary atherosclerosis and obstructive CAD.

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Embryonic genome activation (EGA) occurs during preimplantation development and is characterized by the initiation of de novo transcription from the embryonic genome. Despite its importance, the regulation of EGA and the transcription factors involved in this process are poorly understood. Paired-like homeobox (PRDL) family proteins are implicated as potential transcriptional regulators of EGA, yet the PRDL-mediated gene regulatory networks remain uncharacterized.

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The nuclear receptor subfamily 5 group A member 1 (NR5A1), encoding steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1), has been identified as a critical factor in gonadal development in animal studies. A previous study of ours suggested that upregulation of NR5A1 during early gonadal differentiation in male (46,XY) human pluripotent stem cells steers the cells into a more mature gonadal cell type. However, the detailed role of NR5A1 in female gonadal differentiation has yet to be determined.

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Background: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a life-threatening heart disease and a common cause of heart failure due to systolic dysfunction and subsequent left or biventricular dilatation. A significant number of cases have a genetic etiology; however, as a complex disease, the exact genetic risk factors are largely unknown, and many patients remain without a molecular diagnosis.

Methods: We performed GWAS followed by whole-genome, transcriptome, and immunohistochemical analyses in a spontaneously occurring canine model of DCM.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates how a 20-week exercise program affects gene expression related to health in children with overweight or obesity, utilizing whole-blood transcriptome analysis.
  • - Twenty-four children were divided into an exercise group and a control group, with significant gene expression changes noted in boys (161 genes) and girls (121 genes), though these differences disappeared after statistical corrections.
  • - The findings indicate that the exercise intervention influences immune-related molecular pathways differently in boys and girls, highlighting the need to consider gender differences in health interventions for children.
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Objective: To identify the combination of maternal characteristics in women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) associated with hypertensive and other cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) within ten years following delivery. The aim is to understand who should receive the most intensive primary cardiovascular disease prevention.

Study Design: A prospective cohort study.

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Embryonic genome activation (EGA) is a critical step in embryonic development. However, while EGA has been studied in mice using mouse 2-cell-like cells, human EGA remains incompletely elucidated due to the lack of an in vitro cell model recapitulating the early blastomere stage in humans. Recently, five groups independently reported human 8-cell-like cells (8CLCs, also called induced blastomere-like cells) developed from pluripotent stem cells and used single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to specify their cellular identities.

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Here, we present a modification of single-cell tagged reverse transcription protocol to study gene expression on a single-cell level or with limited RNA input. We describe different enzymes for reverse transcription and cDNA amplification, modified lysis buffer, and additional clean-up steps before cDNA amplification. We also detail an optimized single-cell RNA sequencing method for handpicked single cells, or tens to hundreds of cells, as input material to study mammalian preimplantation development.

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Importance: A genetic contribution to preeclampsia susceptibility has been established but is still incompletely understood.

Objective: To disentangle the underlying genetic architecture of preeclampsia and preeclampsia or other maternal hypertension during pregnancy with a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This GWAS included meta-analyses in maternal preeclampsia and a combination phenotype encompassing maternal preeclampsia and preeclampsia or other maternal hypertensive disorders.

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Article Synopsis
  • DYX1C1 and DCDC2 are important genes linked to dyslexia, affecting how brain cells grow and move.
  • Researchers found that these two genes connect and work together in different types of brain cells and in zebrafish.
  • Their interactions help scientists learn more about how these genes function and could lead to new discoveries in understanding dyslexia.
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Inorganic polyphosphates are evolutionarily conserved bioactive phosphate polymers found as various chain lengths in all living organisms. In mammals, polyphosphates play a vital role in the regulation of cellular metabolism, coagulation, and inflammation. Long-chain polyphosphates are found along with endotoxins in pathogenic gram-negative bacteria and can participate in bacterial virulence.

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Primary cilia are antenna-like organelles emanating from the cell surface. They are involved in cell-to-cell communication and bidirectional signal transduction to/from the extracellular environment. During brain formation, cilia critically aid in neurogenesis and maturation of neuronal structures such as axons, dendrites and synapses.

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The paired-like homeobox transcription factor LEUTX is expressed in human preimplantation embryos between the 4- and 8-cell stages, and then silenced in somatic tissues. To characterize the function of LEUTX, we performed a multiomic characterization of LEUTX using two proteomics methods and three genome-wide sequencing approaches. Our results show that LEUTX stably interacts with the EP300 and CBP histone acetyltransferases through its 9 amino acid transactivation domain (9aaTAD), as mutation of this domain abolishes the interactions.

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