Discussion Of Research Areas Research Articles

Dissecting genome-wide studies for microbiome-related metabolic diseases.

Despite the meteoric rise in genome-wide association studies for metabolic diseases (MetD) over the last few years, our understanding of the pathogenesis of these diseases is still far from complete. Recent developments have established that MetD arises from complex interactions between host genetics, the gut microbiome and the environment. However, our knowledge of the genetic and microbiome components involved and the underlying molecular mechanisms remains limited. Here, we review and summarize recent studies investigating the genetic and microbiome basis of MetD. Then, given the critical importance of study-individual's ancestry in these studies, we leverage 4932 whole-genome sequence samples from 18 worldwide ethnic groups to examine genetic diversity in currently reported variants associated with MetD. The analyses show marked differences in gene-specific proportion of pathogenic single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and gene-specific SNPs MAFs across ethnic groups, highlighting the importance of population- and ethnic-specific investigations in pinpointing the causative factors for MetD. We conclude with a discussion of research areas where further investigation on interactions between host genetics, microbiome and the environment is needed.

From the individual to the collective: The emergence of a psychological approach to collective memory

SummaryThroughout much of the 20th century, psychologists have largely examined mnemonic processes through an individualistic lens at the expense of social influences. However, this perspective began to change toward the end of the 20th century and beginning of the 21st century, when psychologists began to better appreciate the social nature of remembering. In the present paper, we focus on a relatively recent and important evolution of this line of research: the emergence of a psychological approach to collective memory. Using an epidemiological approach to collective memory, we attempt to distil the extant and relevant psychological research and focus on how (collective) memories transmit, converge, and remain stable over time while considering the bidirectional relationship between collective memory and a mnemonic community's identity. We conclude with a discussion of research areas that psychologists should examine moving forward, which will ultimately provide a more holistic understanding of how collective memories emerge, remain stable, and/or change over time.

Dating admixture events is unsolved problem in multi-way admixed populations.

Advances in human sequencing technologies, coupled with statistical and computational tools, have fostered the development of methods for dating admixture events. These methods have merits and drawbacks in estimating admixture events in multi-way admixed populations. Here, we first provide a comprehensive review and comparison of current methods pertinent to dating admixture events. Second, we assess various admixture dating tools. We do so by performing various simulations. Third, we apply the top two assessed methods to real data of a uniquely admixed population from South Africa. Results reveal that current dating admixture models are not sufficiently equipped to estimate ancient admixtures events and to identify multi-faceted admixture events in complex multi-way admixed populations. We conclude with a discussion of research areas where further work on dating admixture-based methods is needed.

Post genome-wide association analysis: dissecting computational pathway/network-based approaches.

Over thousands of genetic associations to diseases have been identified by genome-wide association studies (GWASs), which conceptually is a single-marker-based approach. There are potentially many uses of these identified variants, including a better understanding of the pathogenesis of diseases, new leads for studying underlying risk prediction and clinical prediction of treatment. However, because of inadequate power, GWAS might miss disease genes and/or pathways with weak genetic or strong epistatic effects. Driven by the need to extract useful information from GWAS summary statistics, post-GWAS approaches (PGAs) were introduced. Here, we dissect and discuss advances made in pathway/network-based PGAs, with a particular focus on protein-protein interaction networks that leverage GWAS summary statistics by combining effects of multiple loci, subnetworks or pathways to detect genetic signals associated with complex diseases. We conclude with a discussion of research areas where further work on summary statistic-based methods is needed.

A review of thin film media for magnetic recording

Thin film materials and deposition techniques used for the manufacturing of high density magnetic recording disks are reviewed. Novel metal alloys and oxide thin films developed for high density horizontal and vertical recording technologies are listed, and their manufacturing processes are compared. Electroless and electrolytic plating, and sputter deposition techniques are briefly described with emphasis on the advantages and limitations of each technology. A discussion of research areas with potential for future developments in materials for storage applications is also presented.