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Objectives: To comprehensively analyze the epidemiological features of human papillomavirus (HPV) and HPV-related cervical diseases in females aged 35-64 years. Methods: A total of 149,559 samples of exfoliated cervical cells screened for HPV and related cervical lesions from January 2018 to December 2023 were enrolled. The prevalence of 15 high-risk and 6 low-risk HPV genotypes were detected, and the cervical cytology were analyzed. The impact of single and multiple HPV infections was characterized, and the effect of age was studied. Results: The cervix cytology was normal in 86.60% of the females, while 7.13% of the females were diagnosed with cervix inflammation, 0.60% with ASCUS, 0.22% with ASC-H, 0.72% with LSIL, 0.49% with HSIL, 0.03% with ICC. The highest median age was observed in ASC-H group with 54 years old. Females with primary school education or lower have the highest positive rates. The overall HPV prevalence was 8.60%. The relatively prevalent HPV types were HPV52, 58, 16, 39, 51. HPV16, HPV18, HPV58, HPV33 and HPV52 were the top5 predominant types in ICC patients. 17.41% females suffered from multiple HPV infection with the most frequently co-infection subtypes being HPV52, HPV58 and HPV16. The prevalence of all HPV subtypes increased with age. Multiple HPV infections accounted for a larger proportion in those aged above 55 years. The peak HPV16 prevalence was observed in ICC group in cases aged 45-49 and 55-59. The peak HPV33 prevalence was observed in younger individuals aged 40-44 who developed ICC. Conclusion: More action should be taken against HPV33 infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When host nests are scarce, avian brood parasites would benefit from behaviours that increase the availability of suitable nests. Several studies reported ejection of host nestlings from nests by brood parasites; however, whether brood parasites do so to induce the host to re‐nest and thus increase opportunities for future parasitism (i.e. 'farming' behaviour) remains unclear. Here, we report observational evidence of farming behaviour by a common cuckoo Cuculus canorus female in a Daurian redstart Phoenicurus auroreus population: (1) the cuckoo destroyed a host nest by ejecting all nestlings, (2) the host then produced a new nest and (3) the cuckoo successfully parasitized the replacement nest. We suggest that farming behaviour may be more common, but often goes undetected because it requires intense nest monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The alarm calls of vervet monkeys (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) have been the subject of considerable focus by researchers, owing primarily to the purported referential qualities of different alarm call types. With this focus on reference, acoustic variation among calls elicited by the same range of predators has typically been overlooked. Specifically, at least one type of alarm call-the terrestrial alarm-was described over 50 years ago as being acoustically distinct between males and females-a description that has largely eluded more systematic scrutiny. Here, we provide a quantitative acoustic analysis and comparison of terrestrial alarm calls produced by adult male and female vervet monkeys. We use a random forest model to determine which acoustic variables best distinguish between the calls of males and females, and use an unsupervised clustering technique to objectively determine whether alarms produced by each sex fall into discrete types. We found that the calls of males and females differed most in frequency-based parameters, with male alarms containing more energy at lower frequencies relative to females. Calls produced by males were also of longer duration, and consisted of longer individual call elements relative to female calls. While calls generally fell into clusters associated with either male or female alarms, we found that some fell into atypical clusters given the caller's sex, and that the clusters themselves showed evidence of intergradation. We discuss these results in terms of potential differences in the function of, and motivation for, calling by males and females. We emphasize the need for a more holistic approach to the classification of vocal signals that considers contextual, functional, and structural variation., (© 2024 The Author(s). American Journal of Primatology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have increased oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, which may escalate the production of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). High soluble receptor for AGE (sRAGE) and low estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) levels are associated with CKD and aging. We evaluated whether eGFR calculated from creatinine and cystatin C share pleiotropic genetic factors with sRAGE. We employed whole-genome sequencing and correlated meta-analyses on combined genome-wide association study (GWAS) p-values in 4182 individuals (age range: 24-110) from the Long Life Family Study (LLFS). We also conducted transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS) on whole blood in a subset of 1209 individuals. We identified 59 pleiotropic GWAS loci (p < 5 × 10 -8 ) and 17 TWAS genes (Bonferroni-p < 2.73 × 10 -6 ) for eGFR traits and sRAGE. TWAS genes, LSP1 and MIR23AHG, were associated with eGFR and sRAGE located within GWAS loci, lncRNA-KCNQ1OT1 and CACNA1A/CCDC130, respectively. GWAS variants were eQTLs in the kidney glomeruli and tubules, and GWAS genes predicted kidney carcinoma. TWAS genes harbored eQTLs in the kidney, predicted kidney carcinoma, and connected enhancer-promoter variants with kidney function-related phenotypes at p < 5 × 10 -8 . Additionally, higher allele frequencies of protective variants for eGFR traits were detected in LLFS than in ALFA-Europeans and TOPMed, suggesting better kidney function in healthy-aging LLFS than in general populations. Integrating genomic annotation and transcriptional gene activity revealed the enrichment of genetic elements in kidney function and aging-related processes. The identified pleiotropic loci and gene expressions for eGFR and sRAGE suggest their underlying shared genetic effects and highlight their roles in kidney- and aging-related signaling pathways., (© 2024 The Author(s). Aging Cell published by Anatomical Society and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)