Biomedical subjects

Jahangir Khan

Publications and source records attributed to Jahangir Khan.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2026

CRISPR-Cas technologies for precision genome editing in plants: advances, applications, and future perspectives.

Developing climate-smart crops with enhanced crop productivity, nutritional quality, resistance to biological and environmental stressors is vital for global food security. While hybrid breeding forms the cornerstone of modern crop improvement, conventional breeding approaches are limited by genetic barriers and prolonged breeding cycles. CRISPR-Cas based genome editing has revolutionized plant biology by allowing precise, efficient, and multiplex genetic modifications. This review provides a comprehensive synthesis of a recent advances in CRISPR-Cas technologies and their strategic applications in crop genetics and hybrid breeding. We summarize major genome-editing strategies, including gene knock-out, base editing (BE), knock-in, gene replacement, epigenome editing, and transcriptional regulation. Furthermore, we contrast stable, transient, and DNA-free delivery systems, highlighting ribonucleoprotein (RNP)-mediated delivery for minimizing off-target effects and avoiding transgene integration. We showcase how these technologies accelerate hybrid breeding by engineering male sterility systems, fixing heterosis, and generating high-throughput mutant libraries for trait discovery. Finally, we synthesize major bottlenecks in tissue culture-independent transformation and delivery systems, while outlining how emerging paradigms like de novo domestication and synthetic biology will shape the future of climate-resilient agriculture.

CRISPR/Cas↗

PubMed2026

Determinants of private health insurance uptake and its association with healthcare utilization in Gulf Cooperation Council countries: a systematic review.

All Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have a multi-payer healthcare system that comprises governmental health coverage (GHC), funded by the government, and private health insurance (PHI), mainly sponsored by employers and purchased by individuals. Both are expected to influence healthcare utilization and contribute to system efficiency and patient well-being. This systematic review explored the determinants of PHI uptake and its association with healthcare service utilization in the presence of GHC in GCC countries. We systematically searched CINAHL, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library for peer-reviewed studies published between January 2012 and October 2022. Study quality was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklists for both quantitative and qualitative studies, following PRISMA guidelines. Twenty-six studies met the inclusion criteria. Determinants of PHI uptake were mapped to Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Services Use (BMHSU) and categorized into (1) predisposing factors (sex, age, marital status, and education), (2) enabling factors (employment/income and health system-related factors such as access and perceived service quality), and (3) need factors (health status, including chronic noncommunicable diseases). PHI uptake was positively associated with being male, married, highly educated, employed with a high income, and having chronic diseases. PHI was positively associated with healthcare utilization, particularly routine check-ups, preventive services, and the use of prescribed medicines. In GCC countries, PHI uptake is influenced by sociodemographic and socioeconomic characteristics, health status, and perceived service quality. PHI is also associated with higher healthcare utilization, underlining the need for evidence-informed policies that enhance equity and expand coverage.

Humans↗

PubMed2024

Elucidating the clinical and genetic spectrum of inositol polyphosphate phosphatase INPP4A-related neurodevelopmental disorder.

PURPOSE: Biallelic INPP4A variants have recently been associated with severe neurodevelopmental disease in single-case reports. Here, we expand and elucidate the clinical-genetic spectrum and provide a pathomechanistic explanation for genotype-phenotype correlations. METHODS: Clinical and genomic investigations of 30 individuals were undertaken alongside molecular and in silico modelling and translation reinitiation studies. RESULTS: We characterize a clinically variable disorder with cardinal features, including global developmental delay, severe-profound intellectual disability, microcephaly, limb weakness, cerebellar signs, and short stature. A more severe presentation associated with biallelic INPP4A variants downstream of exon 4 has additional features of (ponto)cerebellar hypoplasia, reduced cerebral volume, peripheral spasticity, contractures, intractable seizures, and cortical visual impairment. Our studies identify the likely pathomechanism of this genotype-phenotype correlation entailing translational reinitiation in exon 4 resulting in an N-terminal truncated INPP4A protein retaining partial functionality, associated with less severe disease. We also identified identical reinitiation site conservation in Inpp4a-/- mouse models displaying similar genotype-phenotype correlation. Additionally, we show fibroblasts from a single affected individual exhibit disrupted endocytic trafficking pathways, indicating the potential biological basis of the condition. CONCLUSION: Our studies comprehensively characterize INPP4A-related neurodevelopmental disorder and suggest genotype-specific clinical assessment guidelines. We propose that the potential mechanistic basis of observed genotype-phenotype correlations entails exon 4 translation reinitiation.

Humans↗