Changes in health risk behaviors of elementary school students in northern Taiwan from 2001 to 2003: results from the child and adolescent behaviors in long-term evolution study

[[abstract]]Background: Previous research has indicated that children's behaviors have long-term effects on later life. Hence it is important to monitor the development of health risk behaviors in childhood. This study examined the changes in health risk behaviors in fourth- to sixth-grade students in northern Taiwan from 2001 to 2003. Methods: The Child and Adolescent Behaviors in Long-Term Evolution (CABLE) study collected data from 1,820 students from 2001 to 2003 (students were 9 or 10 years old in 2001). Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the aggregation of health risk behaviors. A linear growth curve model was used to determine whether health risk behaviors changed over time. Results: Of the 13 behaviors, staying up late and eating snacks late at night were the most prevalent (82.3% of subjects in 2001, 81.8% in 2002, 88.5% in 2003) and second most prevalent (68.7%, 67.4%, 71.6%) behaviors, respectively, from 2001 to 2003. The three least prevalent health risk behaviors were chewing betel nut (1.0%, 0.4%, 0.2%), smoking (1.4%, 1.0%, 0.8%), and drinking alcohol (8.5%, 6.0%, 5.2%). The frequencies of swearing and staying up late showed the greatest significant increases with time. On the other hand, suppressing urination and drinking alcohol decreased over time. Using exploratory factor analysis, we aggregated the health risk behaviors into three categories: unhealthy habits, aggressive behaviors, and substance use. Although students did not display high levels of aggressive behavior or experimentation with substances, the development of these behaviors in a small proportion of students should not be ignored. The results of the linear growth curve model indicated that unhealthy habits and aggressive behaviors increased over time. However, substance use slightly decreased over time. Conclusion: We found that some health risk behaviors increased with time while others did not. Unhealthy habits and aggressive behaviors increased, whereas substance use slightly decreased during this period. Educational professionals should pay attention to the different patterns of change in these behaviors in elementary school students

Contribution to the understanding of tribological properties of graphite intercalation compounds with metal chloride

Intrinsic tribological properties of lamellar compounds are usually attributed to the presence of van der Waals gaps in their structure through which interlayer interactions are weak. The controlled variation of the distances and interactions between graphene layers by intercalation of electrophilic species in graphite is used in order to explore more deeply the friction reduction properties of low-dimensional compounds. Three graphite intercalation compounds with antimony pentachloride, iron trichloride and aluminium trichloride are studied. Their tribological properties are correlated to their structural parameters, and the interlayer interactions are deduced from ab initio bands structure calculations

Phylogeny and Historical Biogeography of Asian Pterourus Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae): A Case of Intercontinental Dispersal from North America to East Asia

The phylogenetic status of the well-known Asian butterflies often known as Agehana (a species group, often treated as a genus or a subgenus, within Papilio sensu lato) has long remained unresolved. Only two species are included, and one of them especially, Papilio maraho, is not only rare but near-threatened, being monophagous on its vulnerable hostplant, Sassafras randaiense (Lauraceae). Although the natural history and population conservation of “Agehana” has received much attention, the biogeographic origin of this group still remains enigmatic. To clarify these two questions, a total of 86 species representatives within Papilionidae were sampled, and four genes (concatenated length 3842 bp) were used to reconstruct their phylogenetic relationships and historical scenarios. Surprisingly, “Agehana” fell within the American Papilio subgenus Pterourus and not as previously suggested, phylogenetically close to the Asian Papilio subgenus Chilasa. We therefore formally synonymize Agehana with Pterourus. Dating and biogeographic analysis allow us to infer an intercontinental dispersal of an American ancestor of Asian Pterourus in the early Miocene, which was coincident with historical paleo-land bridge connections, resulting in the present “East Asia-America” disjunction distribution. We emphasize that species exchange between East Asia and America seems to be a quite frequent occurrence in butterflies during the Oligocene to Miocene climatic optima.© 2015 Wu et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Deconstructing the DGAT1 enzyme: membrane interactions at substrate binding sites

Diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) is a key enzyme in the triacylglyceride synthesis pathway. Bovine DGAT1 is an endoplasmic reticulum membrane-bound protein associated with the regulation of fat content in milk and meat. The aim of this study was to evaluate the interaction of DGAT1 peptides corresponding to putative substrate binding sites with different types of model membranes. Whilst these peptides are predicted to be located in an extramembranous loop of the membrane-bound protein, their hydrophobic substrates are membrane-bound molecules. In this study, peptides corresponding to the binding sites of the two substrates involved in the reaction were examined in the presence of model membranes in order to probe potential interactions between them that might influence the subsequent binding of the substrates. Whilst the conformation of one of the peptides changed upon binding several types of micelles regardless of their surface charge, suggesting binding to hydrophobic domains, the other peptide bound strongly to negatively-charged model membranes. This binding was accompanied by a change in conformation, and produced leakage of the liposome-entrapped dye calcein. The different hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions observed suggest the peptides may be involved in the interactions of the enzyme with membrane surfaces, facilitating access of the catalytic histidine to the triacylglycerol substrates

Gene-enhanced tissue engineering for dental hard tissue regeneration: (1) overview and practical considerations

Gene-based therapies for tissue regeneration involve delivering a specific gene to a target tissue with the goal of changing the phenotype or protein expression profile of the recipient cell; the ultimate goal being to form specific tissues required for regeneration. One of the principal advantages of this approach is that it provides for a sustained delivery of physiologic levels of the growth factor of interest. This manuscript will review the principals of gene-enhanced tissue engineering and the techniques of introducing DNA into cells. Part 2 will review recent advances in gene-based therapies for dental hard tissue regeneration, specifically as it pertains to dentin regeneration/pulp capping and periodontal regeneration

Search for pair-produced long-lived neutral particles decaying to jets in the ATLAS hadronic calorimeter in ppcollisions at √s=8TeV

The ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN is used to search for the decay of a scalar boson to a pair of long-lived particles, neutral under the Standard Model gauge group, in 20.3fb−1of data collected in proton–proton collisions at √s=8TeV. This search is sensitive to long-lived particles that decay to Standard Model particles producing jets at the outer edge of the ATLAS electromagnetic calorimeter or inside the hadronic calorimeter. No significant excess of events is observed. Limits are reported on the product of the scalar boson production cross section times branching ratio into long-lived neutral particles as a function of the proper lifetime of the particles. Limits are reported for boson masses from 100 GeVto 900 GeV, and a long-lived neutral particle mass from 10 GeVto 150 GeV

Human difference in the genomic era: Facilitating a socially responsible dialogue

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The study of human genetic variation has been advanced by research such as genome-wide association studies, which aim to identify variants associated with common, complex diseases and traits. Significant strides have already been made in gleaning information on susceptibility, treatment, and prevention of a number of disorders. However, as genetic researchers continue to uncover underlying differences between individuals, there is growing concern that observed population-level differences will be inappropriately generalized as inherent to particular racial or ethnic groups and potentially perpetuate negative stereotypes.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>We caution that imprecision of language when conveying research conclusions, compounded by the potential distortion of findings by the media, can lead to the stigmatization of racial and ethnic groups.</p> <p>Summary</p> <p>It is essential that the scientific community and with those reporting and disseminating research findings continue to foster a socially responsible dialogue about genetic variation and human difference.</p

Safety and Immunogenicity of an HIV Adenoviral Vector Boost after DNA Plasmid Vaccine Prime by Route of Administration: A Randomized Clinical Trial

In the development of HIV vaccines, improving immunogenicity while maintaining safety is critical. Route of administration can be an important factor.This multicenter, open-label, randomized trial, HVTN 069, compared routes of administration on safety and immunogenicity of a DNA vaccine prime given intramuscularly at 0, 1 and 2 months and a recombinant replication-defective adenovirus type 5 (rAd5) vaccine boost given at 6 months by intramuscular (IM), intradermal (ID), or subcutaneous (SC) route. Randomization was computer-generated by a central data management center; participants and staff were not blinded to group assignment. The outcomes were vaccine reactogenicity and humoral and cellular immunogenicity. Ninety healthy, HIV-1 uninfected adults in the US and Peru, aged 18-50 were enrolled and randomized. Due to the results of the Step Study, injections with rAd5 vaccine were halted; thus 61 received the booster dose of rAd5 vaccine (IM: 20; ID:21; SC:20). After the rAd5 boost, significant differences by study arm were found in severity of headache, pain and erythema/induration. Immune responses (binding and neutralizing antibodies, IFN-γ ELISpot HIV-specific responses and CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses by ICS) at four weeks after the rAd5 booster were not significantly different by administration route of the rAd5 vaccine boost (Binding antibody responses: IM: 66.7%; ID: 70.0%; SC: 77.8%; neutralizing antibody responses: IM: 11.1%; ID: 0.0%; SC 16.7%; ELISpot responses: IM: 46.7%; ID: 35.3%; SC: 44.4%; CD4+ T-cell responses: IM: 29.4%; ID: 20.0%; SC: 35.3%; CD8+ T-cell responses: IM: 29.4%; ID: 16.7%; SC: 50.0%.)This study was limited by the reduced sample size. The higher frequency of local reactions after ID and SC administration and the lack of sufficient evidence to show that there were any differences in immunogenicity by route of administration do not support changing route of administration for the rAd5 boost.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00384787

Nonvirally Modified Autologous Primary Hepatocytes Correct Diabetes and Prevent Target Organ Injury in a Large Preclinical Model

BACKGROUND: Current gene- and cell-based therapies have significant limitations which impede widespread clinical application. Taking diabetes mellitus as a paradigm, we have sought to overcome these limitations by ex vivo electrotransfer of a nonviral insulin expression vector into primary hepatocytes followed by immediate autologous reimplantation in a preclinical model of diabetes. METHODS AND RESULTS: In a single 3-hour procedure, hepatocytes were isolated from a surgically resected liver wedge, electroporated with an insulin expression plasmid ex vivo and reimplanted intraparenchymally under ultrasonic guidance into the liver in each of 10 streptozotocin-induced diabetic Yorkshire pigs. The vector was comprised of a bifunctional, glucose-responsive promoter linked to human insulin cDNA. Ambient glucose concentrations appropriately altered human insulin mRNA expression and C-peptide secretion within minutes in vitro and in vivo. Treated swine showed correction of hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance, dyslipidemia and other metabolic abnormalities for > or = 47 weeks. Metabolic correction correlated significantly with the number of hepatocytes implanted. Importantly, we observed no hypoglycemia even under fasting conditions. Direct intrahepatic implantation of hepatocytes did not alter biochemical indices of liver function or induce abnormal hepatic lobular architecture. About 70% of implanted hepatocytes functionally engrafted, appeared histologically normal, retained vector DNA and expressed human insulin for > or = 47 weeks. Based on structural tissue analyses and transcriptome data, we showed that early correction of diabetes attenuated and even prevented pathological changes in the eye, kidney, liver and aorta. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that autologous hepatocytes can be efficiently, simply and safely modified by electroporation of a nonviral vector to express, process and secrete insulin durably. This strategy, which achieved significant and sustained therapeutic efficacy in a large preclinical model without adverse effects, warrants consideration for clinical development especially as it could have broader future applications for the treatment of other acquired and inherited diseases for which systemic reconstitution of a specific protein deficiency is critical