Oxylipins in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins of dyslipidemic subjects promote endothelial inflammation following a high fat meal.

Elevated triglyceride-rich lipoproteins (TGRL) in circulation is a risk factor for atherosclerosis. TGRL from subjects consuming a high saturated fat test meal elicited a variable inflammatory response in TNFα-stimulated endothelial cells (EC) that correlated strongly with the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content. This study investigates how the relative abundance of oxygenated metabolites of PUFA, oxylipins, is altered in TGRL postprandially, and how these changes promote endothelial inflammation. Human aortic EC were stimulated with TNFα and treated with TGRL, isolated from subjects' plasma at fasting and 3.5 hrs postprandial to a test meal high in saturated fat. Endothelial VCAM-1 surface expression stimulated by TNFα provided a readout for atherogenic inflammation. Concentrations of esterified and non-esterified fatty acids and oxylipins in TGRL were quantified by mass spectrometry. Dyslipidemic subjects produced TGRL that increased endothelial VCAM-1 expression by ≥35%, and exhibited impaired fasting lipogenesis activity and a shift in soluble epoxide hydrolase and lipoxygenase activity. Pro-atherogenic TGRL were enriched in eicosapentaenoic acid metabolites and depleted in esterified C18-PUFA-derived diols. Abundance of these metabolites was strongly predictive of VCAM-1 expression. We conclude the altered metabolism in dyslipidemic subjects produces TGRL with a unique oxylipin signature that promotes a pro-atherogenic endothelial phenotype

Bifidobacterial Dominance of the Gut in Early Life and Acquisition of Antimicrobial Resistance.

Bifidobacterium species are important commensals capable of dominating the infant gut microbiome, in part by producing acids that suppress growth of other taxa. Bifidobacterium species are less prone to possessing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes (ARGs) than other taxa that may colonize infants. Given that AMR is a growing public health crisis and ARGs are present in the gut microbiome of humans from early life, this study examines the correlation between a Bifidobacterium-dominated infant gut microbiome and AMR levels, measured by a culture-independent metagenomic approach both in early life and as infants become toddlers. In general, Bifidobacterium dominance is associated with a significant reduction in AMR in a Bangladeshi cohort, both in the number of acquired AMR genes present and in the abundance of AMR genes. However, by year 2, Bangladeshi infants had no significant differences in AMR related to their early-life Bifidobacterium levels. A generalized linear model including all infants in a previously published Swedish cohort found a significant negative association between log-transformed total AMR and Bifidobacterium levels, thus confirming the relationship between Bifidobacterium levels and AMR. In both cohorts, there was no change between early-life and later-life AMR abundance in high-Bifidobacterium infants but a significant reduction in AMR abundance in low-Bifidobacterium infants. These results support the hypothesis that early Bifidobacterium dominance of the infant gut microbiome may help reduce colonization by taxa containing ARGs.IMPORTANCE Infants are vulnerable to an array of infectious diseases, and as the gut microbiome may serve as a reservoir of AMR for pathogens, reducing the levels of AMR in infants is important to infant health. This study demonstrates that high levels of Bifidobacterium are associated with reduced levels of AMR in early life and suggests that probiotic interventions to increase infant Bifidobacterium levels have the potential to reduce AMR in infants. However, this effect is not sustained at year 2 of age in Bangladeshi infants, underscoring the need for more detailed studies of the biogeography and timing of infant AMR acquisition

Resident microbes of lactation rooms and daycares.

Dedicated lactation rooms are a modern development as mothers return to work while still providing breastmilk to their absent infants. This study describes the built environment microbiome of lactation rooms and daycares, and explores the influence of temperature and humidity on the microbiome of lactation rooms. Sterile swabs were used to collect samples from five different sites in lactation rooms at University of California, Davis and from five different sites in daycares located in Davis, California. DNA from the swabs was extracted and the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was sequenced using Illumina MiSeq. Temperature and relative humidity data were collected on a subset of the lactation rooms. Sampled lactation rooms could be either dedicated lactation rooms or could also serve other functions (e.g., combined lactation room and restroom lounge). The majority of sequence reads were identified as belonging to family Moraxellaceae, with 73% of all reads included in analysis identified as an unknown species of Acinetobacter. Alpha diversity was analyzed using the Shannon index, while beta diversity was analyzed using unweighted and weighted UniFrac distance. The Jaccard distance was used to measure amount of change at sampling locations between time points for analysis of the impact of temperature and humidity on the microbiome. There were significant differences in the beta diversity of the microbiome of lactation rooms by room type. There were also significant differences in the beta diversity of the microbiome by sample collection location. There were no significant differences in either alpha or beta diversity associated with room temperature or humidity. Additional studies are needed to understand if the differences in lactation room type may result in differences in the breastmilk microbiome of milk collected in those rooms, and to what extent any such differences may influence the infant microbiome

Resident microbes of lactation rooms and daycares.

Dedicated lactation rooms are a modern development as mothers return to work while still providing breastmilk to their absent infants. This study describes the built environment microbiome of lactation rooms and daycares, and explores the influence of temperature and humidity on the microbiome of lactation rooms. Sterile swabs were used to collect samples from five different sites in lactation rooms at University of California, Davis and from five different sites in daycares located in Davis, California. DNA from the swabs was extracted and the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was sequenced using Illumina MiSeq. Temperature and relative humidity data were collected on a subset of the lactation rooms. Sampled lactation rooms could be either dedicated lactation rooms or could also serve other functions (e.g., combined lactation room and restroom lounge). The majority of sequence reads were identified as belonging to family Moraxellaceae, with 73% of all reads included in analysis identified as an unknown species of Acinetobacter. Alpha diversity was analyzed using the Shannon index, while beta diversity was analyzed using unweighted and weighted UniFrac distance. The Jaccard distance was used to measure amount of change at sampling locations between time points for analysis of the impact of temperature and humidity on the microbiome. There were significant differences in the beta diversity of the microbiome of lactation rooms by room type. There were also significant differences in the beta diversity of the microbiome by sample collection location. There were no significant differences in either alpha or beta diversity associated with room temperature or humidity. Additional studies are needed to understand if the differences in lactation room type may result in differences in the breastmilk microbiome of milk collected in those rooms, and to what extent any such differences may influence the infant microbiome

Oxylipins in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins of dyslipidemic subjects promote endothelial inflammation following a high fat meal.

Elevated triglyceride-rich lipoproteins (TGRL) in circulation is a risk factor for atherosclerosis. TGRL from subjects consuming a high saturated fat test meal elicited a variable inflammatory response in TNFα-stimulated endothelial cells (EC) that correlated strongly with the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content. This study investigates how the relative abundance of oxygenated metabolites of PUFA, oxylipins, is altered in TGRL postprandially, and how these changes promote endothelial inflammation. Human aortic EC were stimulated with TNFα and treated with TGRL, isolated from subjects' plasma at fasting and 3.5 hrs postprandial to a test meal high in saturated fat. Endothelial VCAM-1 surface expression stimulated by TNFα provided a readout for atherogenic inflammation. Concentrations of esterified and non-esterified fatty acids and oxylipins in TGRL were quantified by mass spectrometry. Dyslipidemic subjects produced TGRL that increased endothelial VCAM-1 expression by ≥35%, and exhibited impaired fasting lipogenesis activity and a shift in soluble epoxide hydrolase and lipoxygenase activity. Pro-atherogenic TGRL were enriched in eicosapentaenoic acid metabolites and depleted in esterified C18-PUFA-derived diols. Abundance of these metabolites was strongly predictive of VCAM-1 expression. We conclude the altered metabolism in dyslipidemic subjects produces TGRL with a unique oxylipin signature that promotes a pro-atherogenic endothelial phenotype

A Template and Tutorial for Preregistering Studies Using Passive Smartphone Measures

Passive smartphone measures hold significant potential and are increasingly employed in psychological and biomedical research to capture an individual's behavior. However, utilizing passive smartphone measures presents methodological challenges during data collection and analysis. Researchers are faced with multiple decisions when working with such measures, which can result in different conclusions. Unfortunately, the transparency of these decision-making processes is often lacking. Although there have been some attempts to preregister digital phenotyping studies, a template for registering such studies is currently missing. This could be problematic due to the high level of complexity that requires a well-structured template. Here we propose a preregistration template that is easy to use and understandable for researchers

A Template and Tutorial for Preregistering Studies Using Passive Smartphone Measures

Passive smartphone measures hold significant potential and are increasingly employed in psychological and biomedical research to capture an individual's behavior. These measures involve the near-continuous and unobtrusive collection of data from smartphones without requiring active input from participants. For example, GPS sensors are used to determine the (social) context of a person, and accelerometers to measure movement. However, utilizing passive smartphone measures presents methodological challenges during data collection and analysis. Researchers must make multiple decisions when working with such measures, which can result in different conclusions. Unfortunately, the transparency of these decision-making processes is often lacking. The implementation of open science practices is only beginning to emerge in digital phenotyping studies and varies widely across studies. Well-intentioned researchers may fail to report on some decisions due to the variety of choices that must be made. To address this issue and enhance reproducibility in digital phenotyping studies, we propose the adoption of preregistration as a way forward. Although there have been some attempts to preregister digital phenotyping studies, a template for registering such studies is currently missing. This could be problematic due to the high level of complexity that requires a well-structured template. Therefore, our objective was to develop a preregistration template that is easy to use and understandable for researchers. Additionally, we explain this template and provide resources to assist researchers in making informed decisions regarding data collection, cleaning, and analysis. Overall, we aim to make researchers' choices explicit, enhance transparency, and elevate the standards for studies utilizing passive smartphone measures