Past exposure to fruit and vegetable variety moderates the link between fungiform papillae density and current variety of FV consumed by children

Higher fungiform papillae density (FPD) has been associated with lower taste sensitivity thresholds and greater perceived taste intensity along with consumption of fewer fruit and vegetables (FV). Children exposed to greater variety of FV tend to habitually consume more FV, however, it is unknown whether exposure effects are attenuated by individual differences in FPD or whether these effects vary according to sensory properties of FV. This study examined the links between children's FPD, current variety of FV consumed, and past experiences with variety of fruit and vegetables. FPD counts were obtained from 61 children between 5 and 9 years old, in schools from affluent areas of Birmingham (UK). Parents completed food frequency questionnaires indicating the variety of FV consumed by children in the last 7 days. Parents also indicated the number of different FV types the children had tasted in their lifetime. FV were subdivided to reflect differences in their sensory properties. The results showed that children with higher FPD who in their lifetime had tasted a greater variety of FV ate a larger variety of FV compared to children with higher FPD, but with lower past exposure. When examining effects within specific subcategories of fruits and vegetables, this pattern held for non-astringent fruit and showed a trend for non-bitter vegetables. Children with lower FPD consumed similar variety of FV irrespective of past experiences with variety of FV. The results suggest that when strong or irritant sensory food properties are not a barrier to intake, higher FPD in the presence of supportive home food environment may be beneficial for FV intake. Individual phenotypic differences may affect responsiveness to environmental factors in children's intake of FV

Internal and external predictors of fruit and vegetable consumption in children

This thesis explored internal and external predictors of fruit and vegetable intake in children of different age groups. The first sample were toddlers between 2-3 years old and the second sample were children between 5-9 years old. Intake of fruit was analysed separately from intake of vegetables, and subgroups of fruit and vegetables with strong sensory properties were also analysed separately. The results showed that in the older sample lifetime exposure to variety of different fruit and vegetables was positively associated with quantity and diversity of fruit and vegetables consumed. In toddlers, liking of fruit and vegetables was not directly linked to their intake. In children of less controlling mothers fruit liking was positively associated with fruit intake and children of the more controlling mothers ate fruit independent of fruit liking. Past history of middle ear infections may affect adiposity and fruit and vegetable intake. Finally, individual levels of sensitivity to sweet taste may affect adiposity and intake of cruciferous vegetables and non-astringent fruit in school-age children. Parental intake was the strongest predictor of intake in both age groups. The results of this thesis show that fruit and vegetables have different predictors of intake and need to be considered separately

Candidate Screening of the TRPC3 Gene in Cerebellar Ataxia

The hereditary cerebellar ataxias are a diverse group of neurodegenerative disorders primarily characterised by loss of balance and coordination due to dysfunction of the cerebellum and its associated pathways. Although many genetic mutations causing inherited cerebellar ataxia have been identified, a significant percentage of patients remain whose cause is unknown. The transient receptor potential (TRP) family member TRPC3 is a non-selective cation channel linked to key signalling pathways that are affected in cerebellar ataxia. Furthermore, genetic mouse models of TRPC3 dysfunction display cerebellar ataxia, making the TRPC3 gene an excellent candidate for screening ataxic patients with unknown genetic aetiology. Here, we report a genetic screen for TRPC3 mutations in a cohort of 98 patients with genetically undefined late-onset cerebellar ataxia and further ten patients with undefined episodic ataxia. We identified a number of variants but no causative mutations in TRPC3. Our findings suggest that mutations in TRPC3 do not significantly contribute to the cause of late-onset and episodic human cerebellar ataxias

Investigation of metabolomic biomarkers for childhood executive function and the role of genetic and dietary factors : The GUSTO cohort

Background Few studies have investigated molecular biomarkers of specific executive function (EF) skills in children. We aimed to characterise the prospective associations between metabolome and multiple domains of EF using a bidirectional design. Methods This study was conducted within a longitudinal birth cohort, the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes (GUSTO). Circulating levels of 165 metabolites were quantified using a nuclear magnetic resonance based metabolomics platform (n = 457 (~6yrs) and n = 524 (~8yrs)). Parent-reported EF was available for 495 children (~7yrs). Multivariate linear regression was used to assess the metabolite-EF relationships. We examined the role of body composition, dietary factors, and genetics in the metabolite-EF associations. Findings Higher leucine level (~6yrs) was associated with poorer EF (~7yrs, Initiate (P = 0.003) and Working Memory (P = 0.004)). EF (~7yrs) was not associated with leucine (~8yrs). Importantly, we found weak evidence for associations of dietary factors (~5yrs) with leucine (~6yrs) and EF (~7yrs). Each copy of C allele in rs1260326 (a leucine-related polymorphism) was associated with higher leucine level and poorer Initiate and Working Memory (P < 0.05). Amongst those with less strongly genetically influenced leucine, inverse association between leucine and cognitive regulation were weaker among those with higher BMI. Interpretation The observed association between higher leucine level and poorer EF may be determined by genetics and may not be easily amenable to dietary interventions. Further research is needed for validation and to understand mechanisms. Copyright (c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)Peer reviewe

Tutoring in adult-child-interaction: On the loop of the tutor's action modification and the recipient's gaze

Pitsch K, Vollmer A-L, Rohlfing K, Fritsch J, Wrede B. Tutoring in adult-child-interaction: On the loop of the tutor's action modification and the recipient's gaze. Interaction Studies. 2014;15(1):55-98.Research of tutoring in parent-infant interaction has shown that tutors - when presenting some action - modify both their verbal and manual performance for the learner (‘motherese’, ‘motionese’). Investigating the sources and effects of the tutors’ action modifications, we suggest an interactional account of ‘motionese’. Using video-data from a semi-experimental study in which parents taught their 8 to 11 month old infants how to nest a set of differently sized cups, we found that the tutors’ action modifications (in particular: high arches) functioned as an orienting device to guide the infant’s visual attention (gaze). Action modification and the recipient’s gaze can be seen to have a reciprocal sequential relationship and to constitute a constant loop of mutual adjustments. Implications are discussed for developmental research and for robotic ‘Social Learning’. We argue that a robot system could use on-line feedback strategies (e.g. gaze) to pro-actively shape a tutor’s action presentation as it emerges

The Detailed Optical light Curve of GRB 030329

We present densely sampled BVRI light curves of the optical transient associated with the gamma-ray burst (GRB) 030329, the result of a coordinated observing campaign conducted at five observatories. Augmented with published observations of this GRB, theY. M. Lipkin and E. O. Ofek are grateful to the Dan-David prize foundation for financial support. A. Gal-Yam acknowledges a Colton Fellowship. Y. M. Lipkin, E. O. Ofek, A. Gal-Yam, D. Poznanski, and D. Polishook were supported in part by grants from the Israel Science Foundation

The Lantern, 2012-2013

• How They Run • What Was Said in Boston • On the Last Day of the Month • An Angel Tries to Surprise Humans • I Wonder if God Modeled Boys After Books • Marred with Modern Scars • Feather Bed • Ode to a Pen • Objet Petit A • Breaking News: Grownups Fear Return of Disco • Neuroscience • New Document • We Were Stars, and the Sky was Our Grass • About a Man • Trojan • An Ode • Yr Body Sour • That Lake in Jamaica • Live While Chiefs are Still Fighting • Lament for Mathematics • The Robert Frost House • People Fell in Love on Me • Sunday Review • Looks Silly in Tiny Desk Chairs • Two Years Later • Better Than Nothing • Istanbul • Packs of Cigarettes • Sonnet • Outside King of Steaks • Obstinance • Coffee Grinds • Autumn Equinox • Homecoming • Oh, San Francisco • Slide: A Beginning • Slowly Last Summer • Of Dogs and Men • Letters Not Sent • Before the Race • The Little Things • Tarpon Springs • Payment for Rebellion • Wednesday • When is President\u27s Day? • Heartless Parallels and Perpendiculars • Railway • Presto Agitato • Easier Said Than Done • Waves • Four White Women • Rope • Alter Ego Self Portrait • Pebbles • Coney Island • Guanjuanto • Growth • Evolve • Winter Blackout • Honeybee • Frames • Wanderlust • Guiding Light 1 • Frick\u27s Lock • The Ones That Never Leave • In Memoriam: Rachel Blunthttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/lantern/1179/thumbnail.jp

Bioinformatics-Based Identification of Expanded Repeats: A Non-reference Intronic Pentamer Expansion in RFC1 Causes CANVAS

Genomic technologies such as next-generation sequencing (NGS) are revolutionizing molecular diagnostics and clinical medicine. However, these approaches have proven inefficient at identifying pathogenic repeat expansions. Here, we apply a collection of bioinformatics tools that can be utilized to identify either known or novel expanded repeat sequences in NGS data. We performed genetic studies of a cohort of 35 individuals from 22 families with a clinical diagnosis of cerebellar ataxia with neuropathy and bilateral vestibular areflexia syndrome (CANVAS). Analysis of whole-genome sequence (WGS) data with five independent algorithms identified a recessively inherited intronic repeat expansion [(AAGGG)exp] in the gene encoding Replication Factor C1 (RFC1). This motif, not reported in the reference sequence, localized to an Alu element and replaced the reference (AAAAG)11 short tandem repeat. Genetic analyses confirmed the pathogenic expansion in 18 of 22 CANVAS-affected families and identified a core ancestral haplotype, estimated to have arisen in Europe more than twenty-five thousand years ago. WGS of the four RFC1-negative CANVAS-affected families identified plausible variants in three, with genomic re-diagnosis of SCA3, spastic ataxia of the Charlevoix-Saguenay type, and SCA45. This study identified the genetic basis of CANVAS and demonstrated that these improved bioinformatics tools increase the diagnostic utility of WGS to determine the genetic basis of a heterogeneous group of clinically overlapping neurogenetic disorders