Past dieting is related to rigid control and disinhibition in adolescents from the Québec Family Study

Eating behaviour traits of rigid control and disinhibition have been associated with body weight in both adults and adolescents. Moreover, adults reporting a dieting history have increased levels of unhealthy eating behaviours. Against this background, the present study aimed to examine the relationship between dieting history and eating behaviour traits in adolescents. For the purpose of this research, a total of sixty adolescents (aged 15 (sem 2·4) years) from the Québec Family Study completed the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ) and a questionnaire regarding eating habits. Self-reported current and past dieting were analysed against eating behaviour traits measured by the TFEQ, including all subscales. As the results revealed, few adolescents reported currently dieting (n 3). Adolescents who reported a dieting history (23·3 %) were older (16·9 v. 14·4 years, P < 0·001), were more likely to be female (78·6 v. 41·3 %, P < 0·05) but did not have a significantly higher BMI z-score (1·5 v. 0·9, P = 0·10), although they were more likely to be either overweight or obese (P < 0·01). After correcting for sex, BMI and age, adolescents who reported a dieting history had higher levels of rigid control and disinhibition (P < 0·05–0·0001) than those reporting no dieting history. A greater proportion of adolescents characterised by high rigid control and high disinhibition were past dieters, compared to those characterised by low levels of both behaviour traits (53 v. 4 %). The study arrived at the following conclusions: as observed in adults, adolescents with a history of dieting present unfavourable eating behaviour traits. These behavioural traits may represent an additional challenge to the long-term regulation of body weight

Familial resemblance in eating behaviors in men and women from the Quebec Family Study

Objective: It is commonly recognized that genetic, environmental, behavioral, and social factors are involved in the development of obesity. The family environment may play a key role in shaping children's eating behaviors. The purpose of this study was to estimate the degree of familial resemblance in eating behavioral traits (cognitive dietary restraint, disinhibition, and susceptibility to hunger). Research Methods and Procedures: Eating behavioral traits were assessed with the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire in 282 men and 402 women (202 families) from the Quebec Family Study. Familial resemblance for each trait (adjusted for age, sex, and BMI) was investigated using a familial correlation model. Results: The pattern of familial correlation showed significant spouse correlation for the three eating behavior phenotypes, as well as significant parent-offspring and sibling correlations for disinhibition and susceptibility to hunger. According to the most parsimonious model, generalized heritability estimates (including genetic and shared familial environmental effects) reached 6%, 18%, and 28% for cognitive dietary restraint, disinhibition, and susceptibility to hunger, respectively. Discussion: These results suggest that there is a significant familial component to eating behavioral traits but that the additive genetic component appears to be small, with generalized heritability estimates ranging from 6% to 28%. Thus, non-familial environmental factors and gene-gene and gene-environmental interactions seem to be the major determinants of the eating/behavioral traits

The T111I mutation in the EL gene modulates the impact of dietary fat on the HDL profile in women

The objective of the present study was to examine the impact of the T111I missense mutation in exon 3 of the endothelial lipase (EL) gene on HDL and its potential interaction effect with dietary fat. The study sample included 281 women and 216 men aged between 17 and 76 years from the Québec Family Study. Plasma HDL3-C levels of I111I homozygote women were higher compared with those of women carrying the wild-type allele (P 0.03). These differences were not attenuated when adjusted for levels of obesity and were not observed among men. Dietary PUFA interacted with the T111I mutation to modulate apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) and HDL3-C levels among women. Specifically, a diet rich in PUFA was associated with increased apoA-I levels among women carriers of the I111 allele and with decreased apoA-I among women homozygotes for the wild-type allele (P 0.002). A similar interaction was observed with plasma HDL3-C levels (P 0.003). These interactions were not observed among men. In conclusion, the EL T111I mutation appears to have a modest effect on plasma HDL levels. The gene-diet interaction among women, however, suggests that the T111I missense mutation may confer protection against the lowering effect of a high dietary PUFA intake on plasma apoA-I and HDL3-C levels.—Paradis, M-E., P. Couture, Y. Bossé, J-P. Després, L. Pérusse, C. Bouchard, M-C. Vohl, and B. Lamarche. The T111I mutation in the EL gene modulates the impact of dietary fat on the HDL profile in women

Genome-wide linkage scan reveals multiple susceptibility loci influencing lipid and lipoprotein levels in the Québec Family Study

A genome-wide linkage study was performed to identify chromosomal regions harboring genes influencing lipid and lipoprotein levels. Linkage analyses were conducted for four quantitative lipoprotein/lipid traits, i.e., total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), and LDL-C concentrations, in 930 subjects enrolled in the Québec Family Study. A maximum of 534 pairs of siblings from 292 nuclear families were available. Linkage was tested using both allele-sharing and variance-component linkage methods. The strongest evidence of linkage was found on chromosome 12q14.1 at marker D12S334 for HDL-C, with a logarithm of the odds (LOD) score of 4.06. Chromosomal regions harboring quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for LDL-C included 1q43 (LOD = 2.50), 11q23.2 (LOD = 3.22), 15q26.1 (LOD = 3.11), and 19q13.32 (LOD = 3.59). In the case of triglycerides, three markers located on 2p14, 11p13, and 11q24.1 provided suggestive evidence of linkage (LOD > 1.75). Tests for total cholesterol levels yielded significant evidence of linkage at 15q26.1 and 18q22.3 with the allele-sharing linkage method, but the results were nonsignificant with the variance-component method. In conclusion, this genome scan provides evidence for several QTLs influencing lipid and lipoprotein levels. Promising candidate genes were located in the vicinity of the genomic regions showing evidence of linkage

An open vibration platform to evaluate postural control using a simple reinforcement learning agent

In this paper, our research team proposes an inexpensive open vibration platform built from easily available electronic components to be used as a tool by physiotherapists in order to help them in their evaluation of the postural control of individuals at risk of postural imbalance which could lead to falls. The platform has been thought to be easily reproducible and all the code necessary to make it work is made available on the researchers’ websites. In addition, a simple reinforcement learning agent has been developed and tested to automatically calibrate the vibration motors for optimal stimulation. Finally, we present in this paper pilot experiments done on 7 healthy participants (40.8 years old) to validate the proper functioning of the platform

Trends in SAVR with biological vs. mechanical valves in middle-aged patients: results from a French large multi-centric survey

Background/introductionCurrently, despite continued issues with durability ( 1), biological prosthetic valves are increasingly chosen over mechanical valves for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in adult patients of all ages, at least in Western countries. For younger patients, this choice means assuming the risks associated with a redo SAVR or valve-in-valve procedure.PurposeTo assess the use of mechanical vs. biological valve prostheses for SAVR relative to patient's age and implant time in a large population extracted from the French National Database EPICARD.MethodsPatients in EPICARD undergoing SAVR from 2007 to 2022 were included from 22 participating public or private centers chosen to represent a balanced representation of centre sizes and geographical discrepancies. Patients with associated pathology of the aorta (aneurysm or dissection) and requiring a vascular aortic prosthesis were excluded. Comparisons were made amongst centers, valve choice, implant date range, and patient age.ResultsWe considered 101,070 valvular heart disease patients and included 72,375 SAVR (mean age 71.4 ± 12.2 years). We observed a mechanical vs. biological prosthesis ratio (MBPR) of 0.14 for the overall population. Before 50 years old (y-o), MBPR was &gt;1.3 (p &lt; 0.001) while patients above 60 years-old received principally biological SAVR (p &lt; 0.0001). Concerning patients between 50 and 60 years-old patients, MPVR was 1.04 (p = 0.03). Patients 50–60 years-old from the first and second study duration quartile (before August 2015) received preferentially mechanical SAVR (p &lt; 0.001). We observed a shift towards more biological SAVR (p &lt; 0.001) for patients from the third and fourth quartile to reach a MBPR at 0.43 during the last years of the series. Incidentally, simultaneous mitral valve replacement were more common in case of mechanical SAVR (p &lt; 0.0001), while associated CABGs were more frequent in case of biological SAVR (p &lt; 0.0001).ConclusionIn a large contemporary French patient population, real world practice showed a recent shift towards a lower age-threshold for biological SAVR as compared to what would suggest contemporary guidelines

Sport, genetics and the `natural athlete': The resurgence of racial science

This article explores the ethical implications of recent discussions that naturalize the relationship between race, the body and sport within the frame of genetic science. Many suggestions of a racially distributed genetic basis for athletic ability and performance are strategically posited as a resounding critique of the `politically correct' meta-narratives of established sociological and anthropological forms of explanation that emphasize the social and cultural construction of race. I argue that this use of genetic science in order to describe and explain common-sense impressions of racial physiology and sporting ability is founded on erroneous premises of objectivity and disinterest, and inflates the analytical efficacy of scientific truth claims. I suggest that assertions of a value-free science of racial athletic ability reify race as inherited permanent biological characteristics that produce social hierarchies and are more characteristic of a longer history of `racial science'

Seabird Modulations of Isotopic Nitrogen on Islands

The transport of nutrients by migratory animals across ecosystem boundaries can significantly enrich recipient food webs, thereby shaping the ecosystems’ structure and function. To illustrate the potential role of islands in enabling the transfer of matter across ecosystem boundaries to be gauged, we investigated the influence of seabirds on nitrogen input on islands. Basing our study on four widely differing islands in terms of their biogeography and ecological characteristics, sampled at different spatial and temporal intervals, we analyzed the nitrogen isotopic values of the main terrestrial ecosystem compartments (vascular plants, arthropods, lizards and rodents) and their relationship to seabird values. For each island, the isotopic values of the ecosystem were driven by those of seabirds, which ultimately corresponded to changes in their marine prey. First, terrestrial compartments sampled within seabird colonies were the most enriched in δ15N compared with those collected at various distances outside colonies. Second, isotopic values of the whole terrestrial ecosystems changed over time, reflecting the values of seabirds and their prey, showing a fast turnover throughout the ecosystems. Our results demonstrate that seabird-derived nutrients not only spread across the terrestrial ecosystems and trophic webs, but also modulate their isotopic values locally and temporally on these islands. The wealth of experimental possibilities in insular ecosystems justifies greater use of these model systems to further our understanding of the modalities of trans-boundary nutrient transfers