Protein and bone health across the lifespan

Bone health is determined by the rate of accrual in early life, followed by the rate of age associated bone loss. Dietary protein intake might have a role in bone health across both of these phases via pleiotropic mechanistic pathways. Herein we summarise the pathways through which protein may exert either a positive or negative influence on bone. In Section 1, we describe the acid-ash hypothesis, which states that a high protein intake may lead to an acidic residue that must be neutralised through the leaching of calcium and other minerals from the bone, subsequently leading to demineralisation and bone weakening. Conversely, and as described in Section 2, protein intake may act to strengthen bone by stimulating the activity of various anabolic hormones and growth factors, or by optimising muscle mass and functionality, which itself has an osteogenic influence. The net effect of these contrasting pathways is described in Section 3, where a number of meta-analyses have demonstrated that higher protein intakes have a small positive impact on bone mass and fracture risk. Sometimes higher than recommended protein intakes are advised, e.g., during the earlier and later phases of the lifespan or during reduced energy availability. We conclude that protein is an essential nutrient for bone health, although further research is required to clarify the mechanistic pathways through which it exerts its influence, along with clarification of the quantities, food sources and timing to allow for the optimisation of this protective influence and ultimately a reduction in fracture risk

Towards a complete 3D morphable model of the human head

Three-dimensional Morphable Models (3DMMs) are powerful statistical tools for representing the 3D shapes and textures of an object class. Here we present the most complete 3DMM of the human head to date that includes face, cranium, ears, eyes, teeth and tongue. To achieve this, we propose two methods for combining existing 3DMMs of different overlapping head parts: i. use a regressor to complete missing parts of one model using the other, ii. use the Gaussian Process framework to blend covariance matrices from multiple models. Thus we build a new combined face-and-head shape model that blends the variability and facial detail of an existing face model (the LSFM) with the full head modelling capability of an existing head model (the LYHM). Then we construct and fuse a highly-detailed ear model to extend the variation of the ear shape. Eye and eye region models are incorporated into the head model, along with basic models of the teeth, tongue and inner mouth cavity. The new model achieves state-of-the-art performance. We use our model to reconstruct full head representations from single, unconstrained images allowing us to parameterize craniofacial shape and texture, along with the ear shape, eye gaze and eye color.Comment: 18 pages, 18 figures, submitted to Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) on the 9th of October as an extension paper of the original oral CVPR paper : arXiv:1903.0378

Management and restoration of crayfish stocks- Phase 2

Crayfish or spiny lobster occur in physically complex reef habitat in shallow waters off the west coast of Ireland. These habitats provide shelter for larvae that are settling out from the overlying water column and for juvenile and adult lobsters that use these areas to shelter and forage. Fisheries for spiny lobster occur in these areas and remove lobsters from the reef. The consequence of this for the structure and function of reef habitat is unknown. In this study the distribution of reef habitat was estimated from multibeam acoustic data collected in previous campaigns by the INFOMAR programme. Sub-sets of this area were re-mapped at higher resolution to provide further detail of the topography of the reef from which terrain variables were derived. Underwater video and SCUBA methods were used to identify the flora and fauna in areas with different topographies. Weak correlations between the terrain variables and the biological data were found. This was used to model the distribution of areas of high and low biodiversity over broader areas where only terrain data were available. Capacity to model the distribution of biological communities and crayfish over broad areas using physical terrain data remains difficult. Other physical variables that may be important in regulating the biology of reef need to be included and the association of crayfish with particular types of reef terrain needs to be established by higher resolution sampling. The benefits of the work reported here include increased capacity to monitor the distribution of biodiversity in marine reef habitats, to detect change that may be brought about by sector activities such as fishing or climate change, to estimate the population size of exploited reef species for fisheries management and to identify positive changes to biodiversity and lobster abundance that may occur through spatial management of reef habitat.European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) Operational Programme 2014-2020. Project ref number: MB/2019/0

International Comparison of Vocational Rehabilitation for Persons With Spinal Cord Injury:Systems, Practices, and Barriers

Background: Employment rates among people with spinal cord injury or spinal cord disease (SCI/D) show considerable variation across countries. One factor to explain this variation is differences in vocational rehabilitation (VR) systems. International comparative studies on VR however are nonexistent. Objectives: To describe and compare VR systems and practices and barriers for return to work in the rehabilitation of persons with SCI/D in multiple countries. Methods: A survey including clinical case examples was developed and completed by medical and VR experts from SCI/D rehabilitation centers in seven countries between April and August 2017. Results: Location (rehabilitation center vs community), timing (around admission, toward discharge, or after discharge from clinical rehabilitation), and funding (eg, insurance, rehabilitation center, employer, or community) of VR practices differ. Social security services vary greatly. The age and preinjury occupation of the patient influences the content of VR in some countries. Barriers encountered during VR were similar. No participant mentioned lack of interest in VR among team members as a barrier, but all mentioned lack of education of the team on VR as a barrier. Other frequently mentioned barriers were fatigue of the patient (86%), lack of confidence of the patient in his/her ability to work (86%), a gap in the team's knowledge of business/legal aspects (86%), and inadequate transportation/accessibility (86%). Conclusion: VR systems and practices, but not barriers, differ among centers. The variability in VR systems and social security services should be considered when comparing VR study results

Increased power of mixed models facilitates association mapping of 10 loci for metabolic traits in an isolated population

The potential benefits of using population isolates in genetic mapping, such as reduced genetic, phenotypic and environmental heterogeneity, are offset by the challenges posed by the large amounts of direct and cryptic relatedness in these populations confounding basic assumptions of independence. We have evaluated four representative specialized methods for association testing in the presence of relatedness; (i) within-family (ii) within- and between-family and (iii) mixed-models methods, using simulated traits for 2906 subjects with known genome-wide genotype data from an extremely isolated population, the Island of Kosrae, Federated States of Micronesia. We report that mixed models optimally extract association information from such samples, demonstrating 88% power to rank the true variant as among the top 10 genome-wide with 56% achieving genome-wide significance, a >80% improvement over the other methods, and demonstrate that population isolates have similar power to non-isolate populations for observing variants of known effects. We then used the mixed-model method to reanalyze data for 17 published phenotypes relating to metabolic traits and electrocardiographic measures, along with another 8 previously unreported. We replicate nine genome-wide significant associations with known loci of plasma cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, triglycerides, thyroid stimulating hormone, homocysteine, C-reactive protein and uric acid, with only one detected in the previous analysis of the same traits. Further, we leveraged shared identity-by-descent genetic segments in the region of the uric acid locus to fine-map the signal, refining the known locus by a factor of 4. Finally, we report a novel associations for height (rs17629022, P< 2.1 × 10−8

ATLAS Run 2 searches for electroweak production of supersymmetric particles interpreted within the pMSSM

A summary of the constraints from searches performed by the ATLAS collaboration for the electroweak production of charginos and neutralinos is presented. Results from eight separate ATLAS searches are considered, each using 140 fb−1 of proton-proton data at a centre-of-mass energy of √ = 13 TeV collected at the Large Hadron Collider during its second data-taking run. The results are interpreted in the context of the 19-parameter phenomenological minimal supersymmetric standard model, where R-parity conservation is assumed and the lightest supersymmetric particle is assumed to be the lightest neutralino. Constraints from previous electroweak, flavour and dark matter related measurements are also considered. The results are presented in terms of constraints on supersymmetric particle masses and are compared with limits from simplified models. Also shown is the impact of ATLAS searches on parameters such as the dark matter relic density and the spin-dependent and spin-independent scattering cross-sections targeted by direct dark matter detection experiments. The Higgs boson and Z boson ‘funnel regions’, where a low-mass neutralino would not oversaturate the dark matter relic abundance, are almost completely excluded by the considered constraints. Example spectra for non-excluded supersymmetric models with light charginos and neutralinos are also presented

Constraints on the Higgs boson self-coupling from single- and double-Higgs production with the ATLAS detector using pp collisions at √s=13 TeV

Constraints on the Higgs boson self-coupling are set by combining double-Higgs boson analyses in the bb̅bb̅, bb̅τ+τ− and bb̅γγ decay channels with single-Higgs boson analyses targeting the γγ, ZZ∗, WW∗, τ+τ− and bb̅ decay channels. The data used in these analyses were recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC in proton–proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 126–139 fb−1. The combination of the double-Higgs analyses sets an upper limit of μHH <2.4 at 95% confidence level on the double-Higgs production cross-section normalised to its Standard Model prediction. Combining the single-Higgs and double-Higgs analyses, with the assumption that new physics affects only the Higgs boson self-coupling (λHHH ), values outside the interval −0.4 < κλ = (λHHH /λSMHHH) < 6.3 are excluded at 95% confidence level. The combined single-Higgs and double-Higgs analyses provide results with fewer assumptions, by adding in the fit more coupling modifiers introduced to account for the Higgs boson interactions with the other Standard Model particles. In this relaxed scenario, the constraint becomes −1.4 < κλ < 6.1 at 95% CL

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

Experimental particle formation rates spanning tropospheric sulfuric acid and ammonia abundances, ion production rates, and temperatures

Binary nucleation of sulfuric acid and water as well as ternary nucleation involving ammonia are thought to be the dominant processes responsible for new particle formation (NPF) in the cold temperatures of the middle and upper troposphere. Ions are also thought to be important for particle nucleation in these regions. However, global models presently lack experimentally measured NPF rates under controlled laboratory conditions and so at present must rely on theoretical or empirical parameterizations. Here with data obtained in the European Organization for Nuclear Research CLOUD (Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets) chamber, we present the first experimental survey of NPF rates spanning free tropospheric conditions. The conditions during nucleation cover a temperature range from 208 to 298K, sulfuric acid concentrations between 5x10(5) and 1x10(9)cm(-3), and ammonia mixing ratios from zero added ammonia, i.e., nominally pure binary, to a maximum of -1400 parts per trillion by volume (pptv). We performed nucleation studies under pure neutral conditions with zero ions being present in the chamber and at ionization rates of up to 75ion pairs cm(-3)s(-1) to study neutral and ion-induced nucleation. We found that the contribution from ion-induced nucleation is small at temperatures between 208 and 248K when ammonia is present at several pptv or higher. However, the presence of charges significantly enhances the nucleation rates, especially at 248K with zero added ammonia, and for higher temperatures independent of NH3 levels. We compare these experimental data with calculated cluster formation rates from the Atmospheric Cluster Dynamics Code with cluster evaporation rates obtained from quantum chemistry.Peer reviewe