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Approximately 80% of kidney stone diseases contain calcium. Inherited genetic factors are among the variables that influence the development of calcium-containing kidney stone diseases (CKSD). Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on stone diseases have been reported worldwide; however, these are not focused on calcium-containing stones. We conducted a GWAS to identify germline genetic polymorphisms associated with CKSD in a Medical Center in Taiwan; hence, this study was based primarily on a hospital-based database. CKSD was diagnosed using the chart records. Patients infected with urea-splitting-microorganisms and those with at least two urinary pH value below 5.5 were excluded. None of the patients had cystic stones based on stone analysis. Those over 40 years of age with no history of CKSD and no microscopic hematuria on urinalysis were considered as controls. The DNA isolated from the blood of 14,934 patients (63.7% male and 36.3% female) with CKSD and 29,868 controls (10,830 men and 19,038 women) at a medical center was genotyped for approximately 714,457 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with minor allele frequency of ≥ 0.05. We used PLINK 1.9 to calculate the polygenic risk score (PRS) to investigate the association between CKSD and controls. The accuracy of the PRS was verified by dividing it into the training and testing groups. The statistical analyses were calculated with the area under the curve (AUC) using IBM SPSS version 22. We identified 432 susceptibility loci that reached a genome-wide threshold of P < 1.0 × 10− 5. A total of 132 SNPs reached a threshold of P < 5 × 10− 8 using a stricter definition of significance on chromosomes 4, 13, 16, 17, and 18. At the top locus of our study, SNPs in DGKH, PDILT, BCAS3, and ABCG2 have been previously reported. RN7SKP27, HDAC4, PCDH15, AP003068.2, and NFATC1 were novel findings in this study. PRS was adjusted for sex and age, resulting in an AUC of 0.65. The number of patients in the top quartile of PRS was 1.39 folds in the risk of CKSD than patients in the bottom quartile. Our data identified the significance of GWAS for patients with CKSD in a hospital-based study. The PRS also had a high AUC for discriminating patients with CKSD from controls. A total of 132 SNP loci of SNPs significantly associated with the development of CKSD. This first survey, which focused on patients with CKSD, will provide novel insights specific to CKSD and its potential clinical biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wealth management services for high-net-worth individuals in Taiwan have grown rapidly over the last decade. This study used a decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory approach to identify the criteria affecting the performance of Taiwan wealth management banks during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) period. This research surveyed 17 executives from Taiwanese banks using 13 criteria covering three dimensions: bank performance, professionalism, and customer relationship. The results indicated that customer relationship and professionalism have an influence on key performance. Customer involvement (in customer relationship), innovative products and services (in professionalism), and customer satisfaction (in key performance) are the most influential criteria. The results suggest that banks can attract and retain customers by increasing their uses of products and services, developing innovative products, and improving customer satisfaction despite the negative effect of COVID-19. The findings of this study benefit wealth management bank managers in sustaining fee and commission income from high-net-worth customers in the midst of adverse social and economic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the genetic characteristics of idiopathic centr al precocious puberty (ICPP) and validate its polygenic risk for early puberty. Design and methods: A bootstrap subsampling and genome-wide association study were performed on Taiwanese Han Chinese girls comprising 321 ICPP patients and 148 controls. Using previous GWAS data on pubertal timing, a replication study was performed. A validation group was also in vestigated for the weighted polygenic risk score (wPRS) of the risk of early puberty. Results: A total of 105 SNPs for the risk of ICPP were identified, of whi ch 22 yielded an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.713 for the risk of early p uberty in the validation group. A replication study showed that 33 SNPs from previous GWAS data of pubertal timing were as sociated with the risk of ICPP (training group: P-value < 0.05). In the validation group, a cumulative effect was observe d between the wPRS and the risk of early puberty in a dose-dependent manner (validation group: Cochran-Armitage trend test: P-value < 1.00E-04; wPRS quartile 2 (Q2) (odds ratio (OR) = 5.00, 95% CI: 1.55-16.16), and wPRS Q3 (OR = 11.67, 95% CI: 2.44-55.83)). Conclusions: This study reveals the ICPP genetic characteristics with 22 in dependent and 33 reported SNPs in the Han Chinese population from Taiwan. This study may contribute to understand the genetic features and underlying biological pathways that control pubertal timing and pathogenes is of ICPP and also to the identification of individuals with a potential genetic risk of early puberty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to understand the impact of market power and competition on earnings management, particularly discretionary accruals, in the Chinese and Taiwanese tourism industries. China and Taiwan differ not only in their political and social systems but also in their economic systems. The research aims to provide managers and investors with stock selection strategy in the decision-making process. Design/methodology/approach: Accounting data consisted of 60 publicly traded travel companies in China and Taiwan from 2000 to 2014. Methodology included correlation matrix for the variables, univariate and multivariate regression and competition analysis. Findings: Based on empirical results, the authors found a significant negative correlation between market power and discretionary accruals and market concentration (or lower market competition) and discretionary accruals in both the Chinese or Taiwanese markets. Although the Chinese travel companies enjoyed higher market power and market concentration, they engaged in less earnings manipulation than their Taiwanese counterparts as a result of the Chinese Government regulation. Research limitations/implications: Based on listed travel companies, generalization of the research results to entire tourism industry is limited. This study compares the travel companies' practices of smoothing out earnings between China and Taiwan, thus helping managers and investors in making their financing, investment decisions. Originality/value: This research contributes to the earnings management literature by examining a specific industry of tourism. This paper is original in two ways. The authors linked market power and market competition with earnings management simultaneously and then compared the Chinese and Taiwanese tourism industries in manipulating earnings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Height is an important anthropometric measurement and is associated with many health-related outcomes. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified hundreds of genetic loci associated with height, mainly in individuals of European ancestry., Methods: We performed genome-wide association analyses and replicated previously reported GWAS-determined single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the Taiwanese Han population (Taiwan Biobank; n = 67,452). A genetic instrument composed of 251 SNPs was selected from our GWAS, based on height and replication results as the best-fit polygenic risk score (PRS), in accordance with the clumping and p-value threshold method. We also examined the association between genetically determined height (PRS 251 ) and measured height (phenotype). We performed observational (phenotype) and genetic PRS 251 association analyses of height and health-related outcomes., Results: GWAS identified 6843 SNPs in 89 genomic regions with genome-wide significance, including 18 novel loci. These were the most strongly associated genetic loci (EFEMP1, DIS3L2, ZBTB38, LCORL, HMGA1, CS, and GDF5) previously reported to play a role in height. There was a positive association between PRS 251 and measured height (p < 0.001). Of the 14 traits and 49 diseases analyzed, we observed significant associations of measured and genetically determined height with only eight traits (p < 0.05/[14 + 49]). Height was positively associated with body weight, waist circumference, and hip circumference but negatively associated with body mass index, waist-hip ratio, body fat, total cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p < 0.05/[14 + 49])., Conclusions: This study contributes to the understanding of the genetic features of height and health-related outcomes in individuals of Han Chinese ancestry in Taiwan., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objective,: To investigate the genetic characteristics of idiopathic central precocious puberty (ICPP) and validate its polygenic risk for early puberty., Design and Methods: A bootstrap subsampling and genome-wide association study were performed on Taiwanese Han Chinese girls comprising 321 ICPP patients and 148 controls. Using previous GWAS data on pubertal timing, a replication study was performed. A validation group was also investigated for the weighted polygenic risk score (wPRS) of the risk of early puberty., Results: A total of 105 SNPs for the risk of ICPP were identified, of which 22 yielded an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.713 for the risk of early puberty in the validation group. A replication study showed that 33 SNPs from previous GWAS data of pubertal timing were associated with the risk of ICPP (training group: P-value < 0.05). In the validation group, a cumulative effect was observed between the wPRS and the risk of early puberty in a dose-dependent manner (validation group: Cochran-Armitage trend test: P-value < 1.00E-04; wPRS quartile 2 (Q2) (odds ratio (OR) = 5.00, 95% CI: 1.55-16.16), and wPRS Q3 (OR = 11.67, 95% CI: 2.44-55.83))., Conclusions: This study reveals the ICPP genetic characteristics with 22 independent and 33 reported SNPs in the Han Chinese population from Taiwan. This study may contribute to understand the genetic features and underlying biological pathways that control pubertal timing and pathogenesis of ICPP and also to the identification of individuals with a potential genetic risk of early puberty.

Context: Human height is an inheritable, polygenic trait under complex and multilocus genetic regulation. Familial short stature (FSS; also called genetic short stature) is the most common type of short stature and is insufficiently known., Objective: To investigate the FSS genetic profile and develop a polygenic risk predisposition score for FSS risk prediction., Design and Setting: The FSS participant group of Han Chinese ancestry was diagnosed by pediatric endocrinologists in Taiwan., Patients and Interventions: The genetic profiles of 1163 participants with FSS were identified by using a bootstrapping subsampling and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) method., Main Outcome Measures: Genetic profile, polygenic risk predisposition score for risk prediction., Results: Ten novel genetic single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 9 reported GWAS human height-related SNPs were identified for FSS risk. These 10 novel SNPs served as a polygenic risk predisposition score for FSS risk prediction (area under the curve: 0.940 in the testing group). This FSS polygenic risk predisposition score was also associated with the height reduction regression tendency in the general population., Conclusion: A polygenic risk predisposition score composed of 10 genetic SNPs is useful for FSS risk prediction and the height reduction tendency. Thus, it might contribute to FSS risk in the Han Chinese population from Taiwan., (© Endocrine Society 2020. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Aim: The present study evaluated the contribution of genotype of X-ray repair cross-complementing group 3 (XRCC3), age, gender, and smoking to lung cancer risk in Taiwan., Materials and Methods: A total of 358 patients with lung cancer and 716 controls were investigated for their XRCC3 rs1799794, rs45603942, rs861530, rs3212057, rs1799796, rs861539, rs28903081 genotype, epidemiological and clinical data for association and gene-Iifestyle interactions., Results: The results showed that CT and TT genotypes of XRCC3 rs861539 were associated with increased lung cancer risk (odds ratio=1.81, 95% confidence interval=1.18-2.78; odds ratio=3.43, 95% confidence interval=1.12-10.60, respectively). This polymorphism also influenced lung cancer susceptibility in males and smokers (p=0.0017 and 0.0045, respectively)., Conclusion: The T allele of XRCC3 rs861539 contributes to increased risk of lung cancer in Taiwanese, particularly those who are male and smokers., (Copyright© 2015 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)

Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is an immunosuppressive cytokine involved in carcinogenesis via immune escape. The present study aimed at evaluating the contribution of IL-10 promoter A-1082G (rs1800896), T-819C (rs3021097), A-592C (rs1800872) genetic polymorphisms to the risk of lung cancer in Taiwan. Associations of three IL-10 polymorphic genotypes with lung cancer risk were investigated among 358 lung cancer patients and 716 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. In addition, the genetic-lifestyle interaction was also examined. The results showed that the percentages of TT, TC and CC for IL-10 T-819C genotypes were differentially represented as 59.2%, 35.8% and 5.0% in the lung-cancer patient group and 52.0%, 37.0% and 11.0% in the non-cancer control group, respectively (p for trend=0.0025). The CC genotype carriers were of lower risk for lung cancer (OR=0.4, 95% CI=0.23-0.69, p=0.0005). Further stratification of the population by gender and smoking behavior showed that the IL-10 T-819C genotype conducted a protective effect on lung cancer susceptibility, which was obvious among males and smokers (p=0.0003 and 0.0004, respectively). The CC and TC genotypes of IL-10 T-819C compared to the TT genotype may have a protective effect on lung cancer risk in Taiwan, particularly among males and smokers., (Copyright© 2014 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The present study aimed to evaluate the contribution of X-ray repair cross-complementing group 7 (XRCC7) G6721T (rs7003908) genetic polymorphism and smoking habit on the risk of lung cancer in Taiwanese., Materials and Methods: In this hospital-based case-control study, association of single nucleotide polymorphism XRCC7 G6721T with lung cancer risk were examined among 358 patients with lung cancer and 716 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. The genetic-lifestyle interaction was also investigated., Results: The results showed that the percentages of TT, GT and GG genotypes for XRCC7 G6721T were differentially distributed as 60.9%, 34.9% and 4.2% in the group of patients with lung cancer and 48.7%, 43.3% and 8.0% in the non-cancer control group, respectively (p=3.6*10(-7)). We further stratified the populations by gender and smoking behavior to investigate their combinatorial effects with XRCC7 G6721T genotype on lung cancer risk. The results showed that the GG genotype of XRCC7 G6721T had a protective effect on lung cancer susceptibility which was obvious among males and smokers (p=2.2×10(-4) and 3.1×10(-4), respectively)., Conclusion: The GG and GT genotypes of XRCC7 rs7003908 compared to the TT genotype had a protective effect on lung cancer risk in Taiwan, particularly among males and smokers., (Copyright© 2014 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)

Overexpression of cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) has been suggested to be associated with breast carcinogenesis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the contribution of genotypic polymorphisms in COX-2 to breast cancer risk of Taiwanese females. In total, 1,232 breast cancer patients and 1,232 healthy controls were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) methodology. Six polymorphic variants of COX-2, including G-1195A (rs689466), G-765C (rs20417), T8473C (rs5275), intron 1 (rs2745557), intron 5 (rs16825748) and intron 6 (rs2066826) were examined. The results showed that the GC genotype of COX-2, G-765C was associated with a lower risk compared to the wild-type GG genotype (odds ratio(OR)=0.66, 95% confidence interval(CI)=0.53-0.83, p=0.0005). The C allele of COX-2 G-765C was significantly more frequently found in controls than in cancer patients (p=0.0006). In addition, the OR of the GG/AG+AA, GC/GG and GC/AG+AA at G-765C/Intron 1 combined genotypes compared to wild-type GG/GG genotype were 0.79 (95%CI=0.66-0.96; p=0.0166), 0.61 (95%CI=0.48-0.78; p=0.0001), and 0.71 (95%CI=0.36-1.37; p=0.3040), respectively. As for the combination of G-765C and intron 6, the OR of the GG/AG+AA, GC/GG and GC/AG+AA combined genotypes compared with wild-type GG/GG reference genotype were 0.79 (95%CI=0.62-1.01; p=0.0561), 0.63 (95%CI=0.50-0.81; p=0.0003), and 0.68 (95%CI=0.38-1.21; p=0.1897), respectively. Our results indicate that the C allele of COX-2, G-765C was associated with a decreased risk of breast cancer in Taiwan, and could serve as an early detection and predictive marker for breast cancer risk., (Copyright© 2014 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)