Calanus finmarchicus basin scale life history traits and role in community carbon turnover during spring

The copepod Calanus finmarchicus was investigated in four Subpolar Basins, Labrador, Irminger, Iceland, and Norwegian Seas, during spring, covering the time of ascent, grazing, and initiation of reproduction in the area. Lipid content, spawning activity, and stage composition and vital rates, such as egg and faecal pellet production were measured and linked to environmental parameters. Specific egg- and faecal pellet production rates varied with diatom biomass and were negatively correlated with temperature. Comparison of the various biological indicators revealed different life history traits C. finmarchicus has adopted in the different basins. In Labrador Sea, the females have invested in large eggs compared to the remaining basins. Labrador and Irminger Sea C. finmarchicus invest in size that we propose to be adaptation to cope with warmer overwintering habitats resulting in larger potential lipid storage capacity, while the Iceland and Norwegian Sea females can invest their remaining lipid storage in spring to fuel lipid-driven egg production. Grazing pressure on the phytoplankton community was estimated and compared between copepod and two dominating groups of protozooplankton; ciliates and heterotrophic dinoflagellates. Despite approximately the same biomass in the upper 100 m, the grazing impact of the protozoan grazers was an order of magnitude higher than the C. finmarchicus dominated mesozooplankton. This illustrates the importance to also include the smallest grazers when studying the spring bloom in high latitude marine ecosystems if the fate of the primary production should be fully understood.publishedVersio

Source-specific nitrate and nitrite intakes and associations with sociodemographic factors in the Danish diet cancer and health cohort

Background: The dietary source and intake levels of nitrate and nitrite may govern its deleterious versus beneficial effects on human health. Existing evidence on detailed source-specific intake is limited. The objectives of this study were to assess nitrate and nitrite intakes from different dietary sources (plant-based foods, animal-based foods, and water), characterize the background diets of participants with low and high intakes, and investigate how sociodemographic and lifestyle factors associate with intake levels. Methods: In the Danish Diet, Cancer and Health Cohort, sociodemographic and lifestyle information was obtained from participants at enrolment (1993–1997). Source-dependent nitrate and nitrite intakes were calculated using comprehensive food composition databases, with tap water nitrate intakes estimated via the national drinking water quality monitoring database linked with participants’ residential addresses from 1978 to 2016. Underlying dietary patterns were examined using radar plots comparing high to low consumers while sociodemographic predictors of source-dependent nitrate intakes were investigated using linear regression models. Results: In a Danish cohort of 55,754 participants aged 50–65 at enrolment, the median [IQR] intakes of dietary nitrate and nitrite were 58.13 [44.27–74.90] mg/d and 1.79 [1.43–2.21] mg/d, respectively. Plant-based foods accounted for ~76% of nitrate intake, animal-based foods ~10%, and water ~5%. Nitrite intake was sourced roughly equally from plants and animals. Higher plant-sourced nitrate intake was associated with healthier lifestyles, better dietary patterns, more physical activity, higher education, lower age and lower BMI. Females and participants who had never smoked also had significantly higher plant-sourced nitrate intakes. Higher water-sourced nitrate intake was linked to sociodemographic risk factors (smoking, obesity, lower education). Patterns for animal-sourced nitrate were less clear. Conclusion: Participants with higher plant-sourced nitrate intakes tend to be healthier while participants with higher water-sourced nitrate intakes tended to be unhealthier than their low consuming counterparts. Future research in this cohort should account for the sociodemographic and dietary predictors of source-specific nitrate intake we have identified

Higher habitual flavonoid intakes are associated with a lower risk of peripheral artery disease hospitalizations

Background The role of nutrition in the primary prevention of peripheral artery disease (PAD), the third leading cause of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, is undetermined. Flavonoids may attenuate atherosclerosis and therefore persons who consume flavonoid-rich foods may have a lower risk of developing PAD. Objectives We aimed to examine the association between flavonoid intake and PAD hospitalizations and investigate if the association differs according to established risk factors for PAD. Methods Baseline data from 55,647 participants of the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health Study without PAD, recruited from 1993 to 1997, were cross-linked with Danish nationwide registries. Flavonoid intake was calculated from FFQs using the Phenol-Explorer database. Associations were examined using multivariable-adjusted restricted cubic splines based on Cox proportional hazards models. Results After a median [IQR] follow-up time of 21 [20–22] y, 2131 participants had been hospitalized for any PAD. The association between total flavonoid intake and total PAD hospitalizations was nonlinear, reaching a plateau at ∼750–1000 mg/d. Compared with the median flavonoid intake in quintile 1 (174 mg/d), an intake of 1000 mg/d was associated with a 32% lower risk of any PAD hospitalization (HR: 0.68; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.77), a 26% lower risk of atherosclerosis (HR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.62, 0.88), a 28% lower risk of an aneurysm (HR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.59, 0.88), and a 47% lower risk of a hospitalization for other peripheral vascular disease (HR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.42, 0.67). A higher total flavonoid intake was also significantly associated with a lower incidence of revascularization or endovascular surgery and lower extremity amputation. The association between total flavonoid intake and PAD hospitalizations differed according to baseline smoking status, alcohol intake, BMI, and diabetes status. Conclusions Ensuring the adequate consumption of flavonoid-rich foods, particularly in subpopulations prone to the development of atherosclerosis, may be a key strategy to lower the risk of PAD

Associations between habitual flavonoid intake and hospital admissions for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease: A prospective cohort study

Background: Flavonoids, compounds found in plant-based foods and beverages, might ameliorate vascular damage and atherosclerosis. Therefore, our aim was to assess the association between flavonoid intake and hospital admissions due to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Methods: In this prospective cohort study, participants from the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health Study were cross-linked with Danish nationwide registries. Eligible participants were aged 50–65 years, had no previous history of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, and had completed a food-frequency questionnaire at baseline. We examined associations between flavonoid intake (calculated from food-frequency questionnaires with use of the Phenol-Explorer database) and hospital admissions for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, ischaemic heart disease, ischaemic stroke, or peripheral arterial disease. We obtained hazard ratios (HRs) using restricted cubic splines based on Cox proportional hazards models. Findings: Of the participants recruited to the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health study between 1993 and 1997, our study population was comprised of 53 552 participants, with a median follow-up of 21 years (IQR 15–22). During follow-up, 8773 participants were admitted to hospital for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. We observed non-linear associations between flavonoid intake and hospital admissions, plateauing at total flavonoid intakes of approximately 1000 mg per day. Compared with an intake of 175 mg per day, an intake of 1000 mg per day was associated with a 14% lower risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (HR 0·86, 95% CI 0·81–0·91). For disease subtypes, we observed a 9% lower risk of ischaemic heart disease (0·91, 0·85–0·98), a non-significant 9% lower risk of ischaemic stroke (0·91, 0·82–1·01), and a 32% lower risk of peripheral artery disease (0·68, 0·60–0·78). The overall associations were stronger in smokers than in non-smokers, as well as stronger in consumers of high (\u3e20 g per day) quantities of alcohol than in those consuming low-to-moderate (≤20 g per day) quantities. Interpretation: Our results suggest that ensuring an adequate consumption of flavonoid-rich foods, particularly in subpopulations at risk of atherosclerosis such as smokers and consumers of high quantities of alcohol might mitigate some of the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. More studies are needed to support and validate these data