Indicators of dietary patterns in Danish infants at 9 months of age

Background: It is important to increase the awareness of indicators associated with adverse infant dietary patterns to be able to prevent or to improve dietary patterns early on. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between a wide range of possible family and child indicators and adherence to dietary patterns for infants aged 9 months. Design: The two dietary patterns ‘Family Food’ and ‘Health-Conscious Food’ were displayed by principal component analysis, and associations with possible indicators were analysed by multiple linear regressions in a pooled sample (n=374) of two comparable observational cohorts, SKOT I and SKOT II. These cohorts comprised infants with mainly non-obese mothers versus infants with obese mothers, respectively. Results: A lower Family Food score indicates a higher intake of liquid baby food, as this pattern shows transition from baby food towards the family's food. Infants, who were younger at diet registration and had higher body mass index (BMI) z-scores at 9 months, had lower Family Food pattern scores. A lower Family Food pattern score was also observed for infants with immigrant/descendant parents, parents who shared cooking responsibilities and fathers in the labour market compared to being a student, A lower Health-Conscious Food pattern score indicates a less healthy diet. A lower infant Health-Conscious Food pattern score was associated with a higher maternal BMI, a greater number of children in the household, a higher BMI z-score at 9 months, and a higher infant age at diet registration. Conclusions: Associations between infant dietary patterns and maternal, paternal, household, and child characteristics were identified. This may improve the possibility of identifying infants with an increased risk of developing unfavourable dietary patterns and potentially enable an early targeted preventive support

Single-Cell Gene Expression Analysis of a Human ESC Model of Pancreatic Endocrine Development Reveals Different Paths to β-Cell Differentiation

The production of insulin-producing β cells from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in vitro represents a promising strategy for a cell-based therapy for type 1 diabetes mellitus. To explore the cellular heterogeneity and temporal progression of endocrine progenitors and their progeny, we performed single-cell qPCR on more than 500 cells across several stages of in vitro differentiation of hESCs and compared them with human islets. We reveal distinct subpopulations along the endocrine differentiation path and an early lineage bifurcation toward either polyhormonal cells or β-like cells. We uncover several similarities and differences with mouse development and reveal that cells can take multiple paths to the same differentiation state, a principle that could be relevant to other systems. Notably, activation of the key β-cell transcription factor NKX6.1 can be initiated before or after endocrine commitment. The single-cell temporal resolution we provide can be used to improve the production of functional β cells

Gene Expression in Skeletal Muscle Biopsies from People with Type 2 Diabetes and Relatives: Differential Regulation of Insulin Signaling Pathways

BACKGROUND:Gene expression alterations have previously been associated with type 2 diabetes, however whether these changes are primary causes or secondary effects of type 2 diabetes is not known. As healthy first degree relatives of people with type 2 diabetes have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, they provide a good model in the search for primary causes of the disease. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We determined gene expression profiles in skeletal muscle biopsies from Caucasian males with type 2 diabetes, healthy first degree relatives, and healthy controls. Gene expression was measured using Affymetrix Human Genome U133 Plus 2.0 Arrays covering the entire human genome. These arrays have not previously been used for this type of study. We show for the first time that genes involved in insulin signaling are significantly upregulated in first degree relatives and significantly downregulated in people with type 2 diabetes. On the individual gene level, 11 genes showed altered expression levels in first degree relatives compared to controls, among others KIF1B and GDF8 (myostatin). LDHB was found to have a decreased expression in both groups compared to controls. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:We hypothesize that increased expression of insulin signaling molecules in first degree relatives of people with type 2 diabetes, work in concert with increased levels of insulin as a compensatory mechanism, counter-acting otherwise reduced insulin signaling activity, protecting these individuals from severe insulin resistance. This compensation is lost in people with type 2 diabetes where expression of insulin signaling molecules is reduced

Biofuels and the role of space in sustainable innovation journeys

This paper aims to identify the lessons that should be learnt from how biofuels have been envisioned from the aftermath of the oil shocks of the 1970s to the present,and how these visions compare with biofuel production networks emerging in the 2000s. Working at the interface of sustainable innovation journey research and geographical theories on the spatial unevenness of sustainability transition projects,we show how the biofuels controversy is linked to characteristics of globalised industrial agricultural systems. The legitimacy problems of biofuels cannot be addressed by sustainability indicators or new technologies alone since they arise from the spatial ordering of biofuel production. In the 1970-80s, promoters of bioenergy anticipated current concerns about food security implications but envisioned bioenergy production to be territorially embedded at national or local scales where these issues would be managed. Where the territorial and scalar vision was breached, it was to imagine poorer countries exporting higher-value biofuel to the North rather than the raw material as in the controversial global biomass commodity chains of today. However, controversy now extends to the global impacts of national biofuel systems on food security and greenhouse gas emissions, and to their local impacts becoming more widely known. South/South and North/North trade conflicts are also emerging as are questions over biodegradable wastes and agricultural residues as global commodities. As assumptions of a food-versus-fuel conflict have come to be challenged, legitimacy questions over global agri-business and trade are spotlighted even further. In this context, visions of biofuel development that address these broader issues might be promising. These include large-scale biomass-for-fuel models in Europe that would transform global trade rules to allow small farmers in the global South to compete, and smallscale biofuel systems developed to address local energy needs in the South

Genetic insights into biological mechanisms governing human ovarian ageing

Reproductive longevity is essential for fertility and influences healthy ageing in women1,2, but insights into its underlying biological mechanisms and treatments to preserve it are limited. Here we identify 290 genetic determinants of ovarian ageing, assessed using normal variation in age at natural menopause (ANM) in about 200,000 women of European ancestry. These common alleles were associated with clinical extremes of ANM; women in the top 1% of genetic susceptibility have an equivalent risk of premature ovarian insufficiency to those carrying monogenic FMR1 premutations3. The identified loci implicate a broad range of DNA damage response (DDR) processes and include loss-of-function variants in key DDR-associated genes. Integration with experimental models demonstrates that these DDR processes act across the life-course to shape the ovarian reserve and its rate of depletion. Furthermore, we demonstrate that experimental manipulation of DDR pathways highlighted by human genetics increases fertility and extends reproductive life in mice. Causal inference analyses using the identified genetic variants indicate that extending reproductive life in women improves bone health and reduces risk of type 2 diabetes, but increases the risk of hormone-sensitive cancers. These findings provide insight into the mechanisms that govern ovarian ageing, when they act, and how they might be targeted by therapeutic approaches to extend fertility and prevent disease