In this study, the human secondary sex ratio (described as the number of males per 100 female births) in Ondo, a town in South -West Nigeria was analyzed using birth record between 2001 and 2008, obtained at State Specialist Hospital. The analysis of the 11,426 births recorded during the period revealed a secondary sex ratio of 1.14, that is, 114 boys for every 100 girls born. There was a strong correlation (0.236**) between sex ratio and birth outcome indicating that gender has strong influence on child survival. There is however no significant relationship between the sex of baby and the season of birth as the ratio of male to female babies remains unchanged through the seasons. This study reports the first information on secondary sex ratio in Ondo town and gives impetus for further investigations into factors affecting secondary sex ratio among the populations at the study area.

Gestational trophoblastic neoplasia is a rare disease of female reproductive system occurs due to aggressiveness of trophoblastic cells start of invade into endometrium or myometrium results profusely bleeding with pain, if fail to cure early the “risk” for mortality may enhanced. The etiology of gestational trophoblastic neoplasia is still unknown but believes to be the interaction between gene and environment. RFLP analysis of MTHFR (C677T) gene showing 28.00% in CT (heterozygous) genotype in patients or cases as comparison to controls (10.00%), suggesting increase “risk factor” in such patients. However, the TNF-α gene showing variable frequency mutation i.e. over expression (57.00%) and down regulation (28.00%) were observed in cases. The odd ratio was also calculated at 95% C.I. for TNF-α gene which reveals highly significant (p=0.009) difference between cases and controls, suggest confirmation of gene-gene interaction in the patients of gestational trophoblastic neoplasia reporting first time in India.

Intellectual disability (ID), a phenomenon characterized by significantly subaverage intellectual functioning with deficits in adaptive behavior, such as daily-living skills, social skills and communication, is of common occurrence throughout the world. Depending on the diagnostic methods used, 2-85 individuals per 1000 are diagnosed with ID. Extraordinarily heterogeneous causes like environmental, chromosomal and/or genetic defects have been found to be associated with ID. Among these, genetic abnormalities are frequently encountered in connection with ID and therefore, unraveling the genetic causes of ID is one of the greatest challenges for molecular geneticists. Recent advances in high resolution comparative genomic hybridization and annotation of genomic sequence have helped in identifying cryptic changes and different syndromes not known earlier. Further, several novel X-linked and autosomal genes, that may lead to ID, have been identified by molecular genetic approaches and the process is still going on. In this review, an attempt has been made to compile recent advances in the molecular genetics of ID and in discovering new genetic conditions that may give rise to nonsyndromic ID or idiopathic ID (IID). From the evidences obtained, genetics of IID turned out to be remarkably complex. It may be inferred that the molecular mechanism behind IID is far from understanding till date and is likely to remain a challenge for clinicians and scientists for years to come.

Researchers on human body heat conductivity variability in population have given some reasons to believe that probably dark skin pigmentation of early humans in Africa occurred not only as a means of organism protection against ultraviolet radiation, but as a means able to provide supplementary energy (solar heat) for maintenance of temperature homeostasis in a body. Dark pigmentation has acquired such value also due to the fact that by that time our remote ancestors’ skin was deprived of hair. Early non hairy hominids being homoeothermic organisms should somehow maintain relatively constant level of core temperature. However, early humans not always were able to find sufficient food in order to fully provide organism’s energy demands, including thermoregulation needs. In such conditions organism could compensate energy deficiency through solar radiation. Though thermal energy penetrated into a body through skin is not used for useful physiological work performance in organism (for instance, does not participate in cellular metabolism), solar energy, by heating blood circulating in skin, could promote maintenance of temperature homeostasis in bodies of first people in Africa.