ACCULTURATION AND POST-IMMIGRATION CHANGES IN OBESITY, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, AND NUTRITION: COMPARING HISPANICS AND ASIANS IN THE WATERLOO REGION, ONTARIO, CANADA.

OBJECTIVES: The acculturation hypothesis speculates that as new immigrants get exposed to more obesogenic environments, they progressively acquire the unhealthy lifestyles of the host society, and their obesity risk gradually increases since time of arrival. However, the consistency of the presumed acculturation effect across immigrant groups and gender, and the reasons behind individual changes in lifestyle behaviors remain unclear. Thus, this study investigated the acculturation hypothesis in the Canadian context by comparing two foreign groups, Hispanics and East/Southeast Asians, which present contrasting post-settlement obesity patterns and behavioral trends. Methods: A 41-item questionnaire (including open-ended questions) was administered with 100 first-generation immigrants in the K-W Region to gather information on weight-relatedmeasures, acculturation levels, psychological stress, lifestyle behaviors, and perceived causes of changes in diet and physical activity. A logistic regression analysis was performed to estimate the likelihood of being overweight-obese, while interview transcripts were analyzed to identify response themes and explore causal relationships. RESULTS: Hispanics exhibited considerably higher body mass index levels and larger weight gains, and a nearly nine times higher overweight risk than East/Southeast Asians. Overweight risk was also higher for males and less-educated immigrants. Data collected shows that weight gains were larger for newcomers with high average psychological stress scores, and 38% of Hispanic participants mentioned either stress or depression as causes for their weight gains. The acculturation analysis revealed that East/Southeast Asians were significantly less integrated into Canadian society and more likely to maintain their traditional diets, while both groups reportedperceived-increased levels of recreational physical activity, which contradicts the belief of a linear uniform adoption of unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. DISCUSSION: Results support the notion that the impact of duration of residence does vary by ethnicity and gender. Future prevention efforts should focus on the foreign groups most likely to develop obesity, and pay particular attention to less-educated immigrants, who may be more likely to acquire unhealthy habits after settlement. Results also highlight the emergence of acculturative stress as a significant obesity-risk factor, and support the implementation of obesity preventive efforts that help immigrants manage post-settlement-related feelings of anxiety and depression through the inclusion of social integration strategies. In an increasingly diverse and multiethnic Canada, we expect the dissemination of the research findings to help recent and long-term immigrants to become more aware of obesity-relatedissues, and thus facilitate the adoption of healthier lifestyles after settlement in Canada

Predictions of Indentation Stiffness of Musculoskeletal Regions Using Ultrasound

Tissue indentation response is an important metric for understanding how different musculoskeletal regions respond to loading and is a function of the tissue’s form. Modem imaging techniques provide information about the internal structures of human tissue. Ultrasound remains one of the most common imaging techniques performed, given its portability and low costs. Prior work and data collection on 100 patients involved the collection of ultrasound images at eight different locations across the musculoskeletal extremities. Given the tissue structure information that the medical imaging provided, it was hypothesized that the mechanical properties of the tissue could be predicted from this data. This work aimed to incorporate various forms of patient data into different machine learning models for the prediction of tissue indentation response. These surrogate models would be capable of prediction of tissue compliance once input features are provided, potentially making them relevant in the clinical domain. Eight different surrogate models were developed, with four statistics models built and four deep learning models built to assess which method and which input factors were most suitable for accurately predicting indentation mechanics. The first four models were informed by tissue thicknesses and indentation region. The statistics surrogate models consist of two pure statistical models, while the other two models were based on a physics-based interpretation of two springs in series. The statistical models showed reasonable capability of predicting tissue surface stiffness, with the mean absolute percent difference ranging from 25.4% to 29.7% across the four models. The deep learning approach was divided between two separate forms of deep learning. The first model was fed only demographic features, while a second model of demographics and manually extracted tissue thicknesses. These models also showed reasonable capability of predicting tissue indentation stiffness, with a mean absolute percent difference of 25.5% and 26.3%, respectively. A final modeling approach involved using convolutional neural networks, which utilized the raw ultrasound images. One model was only given the ultrasound image and gave a mean absolute percent difference of 31.5%. A final model consisted of the raw image, image metadata, and demographics and returned a mean absolute percent difference of 25.9%

Apoplastic proteins, enzymes and radicals

The soluble and readily extractable part of the plant extracellular matrix has been termed, the apoplast and contains a wide range of components such as, complex carbohydrates, structural proteins, enzymes and radicals that are known to be responsive to stress and developmental pressures. This thesis describes the development of a technique for the selective enrichment of apoplastic components for a range of subsequent analyses. Using this technique a number of apoplastic proteins were N-terminally sequenced and revealed 2 cell wall related enzymes, an antifungal protein and 3 auxin-binding/germin-like proteins. This technique also provided a novel approach to the further study of auxin-binding proteins via the use of affinity chromatography at their putative site of action, the apoplast. Three potential auxin-binding protiens were identified. Many attempts were made to subject the material extracted from the apoplast to the highly resolving technique of 2-dimensional electrophoresis, and during the process two unusual 2D systems were developed. These systems could be run in a small format that permitted very rapid analysis and/or using an in-gel loading strategy to subject up to 500µg of protein to 2D separation therefore permitting N-terminal sequencing from single 2D gels. Unfortunately 2D separation of apoplastic proteins was never fully achieved within the time frame of this study due to the vast degree of heterogenity present in the sample material. It did however demonstrate the very complex nature of apoplastic components. A series of experiments revealed that the tobacco leaf apoplast contained compartment specific antioxidant enzymes, some of which share physical characteristics with similar enzymes from other species. The activity of these enzymes altered in response to stress and according to the developmental age of the tissue. The reduced activity of these enzymes directly correlated to the degree of oxidative modification of apoplastic proteins illustrating that these enzymes are important in the detoxification of apoplastic radicals. Follow on experiments following the apoplastic generation of the superoxide anion and nitric oxide from impact stressed potato tuber tissue showed that radicals play important roles in the responses of plant tissue to stress, and show the first involvement of nitric oxide in plants in response to abiotic stress

Type 2 Innate Lymphoid Cells in Allergic Disease.

Type II innate lymphoid cells (ILC2) are a novel population of lineage-negative cells that produce high levels of Th2 cytokines IL-5 and IL-13. ILC2 are found in human respiratory and gastrointestinal tissue as well as in skin. Studies from mouse models of asthma and atopic dermatitis suggest a role for ILC2 in promoting allergic inflammation. The epithelial cytokines IL-25, IL-33, and TSLP, as well as the lipid mediator leukotriene D4, have been shown to potently activate ILC2 under specific conditions and supporting the notion that many separate pathways in allergic disease may result in stimulation of ILC2. Ongoing investigations are required to better characterize the relative contribution of ILC2 in allergic inflammation as well as mechanisms by which other cell types including conventional T cells regulate ILC2 survival, proliferation, and cytokine production. Importantly, therapeutic strategies to target ILC2 may reduce allergic inflammation in afflicted individuals. This review summarizes the development, surface marker profile, cytokine production, and upstream regulation of ILC2, and focuses on the role of ILC2 in common allergic diseases

Control problem classification for a plasma process

The use of first-principles based models of plasma processes is discussed in this paper. Such processes are essentially highly nonlinear, feature complex interactions and are difficult to analyse. As an illustration of the nature of firstprinciple based models, a characterisation of a simple plasma process is presented in this work. Quantification of the nonlinearity, in terms of steady-state and dynamics behavior, is carried out for the studied process. The use of Hammerstein model and its applicability to the plasma process is also investigated. A basic stabilising controller for the simple plasma process is designed and its performance is analysed

Nonlinear Control Design for a Plasma Process

This paper presents a nonlinear control design for a first-principles based model of an argon plasma process. In this study, a Hammerstein-type structure was employed as a basis for a feedback control design. Artificial neural networks were used to accurately model the static nonlinearity. In the developed Hammerstein model, variations in the process dynamics were accounted for by considering parametric uncertainty. A control design strategy based on μ-synthesis was applied to deliver good tracking performance and disturbance rejection

Control problem classification for a plasma process

The use of first-principles based models of plasma processes is discussed in this paper. Such processes are essentially highly nonlinear, feature complex interactions and are difficult to analyse. As an illustration of the nature of firstprinciple based models, a characterisation of a simple plasma process is presented in this work. Quantification of the nonlinearity, in terms of steady-state and dynamics behavior, is carried out for the studied process. The use of Hammerstein model and its applicability to the plasma process is also investigated. A basic stabilising controller for the simple plasma process is designed and its performance is analysed

Determinants for table tennis performance in Elite Scottish Youth players using a multidimensional approach:A pilot study

International audienceThe purpose of the study is to explore whether a multidimensional profiling approach can be useful in predicting a table tennis player's actual and future (one year later) performance. Data on anthropometrics, age from peak height velocity, motor-skills, psychological skills and training histories were gathered among Scottish elite youth male table tennis players (n = 14). Significant correlations emerged between: (a) actual performance rating and age from peak height velocity (r = .71), sprint test (r = -.69), number of years of practice (r = .84), positive refocusing (r = -.58), and self-regulation in learning - self-monitoring (r = -.60), and evaluation (r = .57); (b) performance rating one year later and positive refocusing (r = -.58), self-monitoring (r = -.50), and number of years of practice (r = .80). Results also showed significant correlations between progression scores (2017 rating score minus 2016 rating score) and age from peak height velocity (r = -0.77), sprint test (r = .63), number of years of practice (r = -.52), self-monitoring (r = .69), and evaluation (r = -.58). These results provided preliminary evidence for the usefulness of a multidimensional profiling approach for predicting performance and progression in youth table tennis players

The social disorganization of intimate partner violence

Recently, scholars have begun to recognize new theoretical connections between geography and intimate partner violence (IPV). One such theory is social disorganization theory (SDT). According to SDT, crime in communities can primarily be explained as a consequence of economic disadvantage, insufficient informal social control, lack of collective efficacy, and family breakdown. SDT is typically used in the context of property crime and public violence. This article reviews this evolving literature, proposing a unique and comprehensive concept map offering insights into how neighbourhood dynamics influence IPV