Genome-wide analysis of BMI in adolescents and young adults reveals additional insight into the effects of genetic loci over the life course

Genetic loci for body mass index (BMI) in adolescence and young adulthood, a period of high risk for weight gain, are understudied, yet may yield important insight into the etiology of obesity and early intervention. To identify novel genetic loci and examine the influence of known loci on BMI during this critical time period in late adolescence and early adulthood, we performed a two-stage meta-analysis using 14 genome-wide association studies in populations of European ancestry with data on BMI between ages 16 and 25 in up to 29 880 individuals. We identified seven independent loci (P < 5.0 × 10−8) near FTO (P = 3.72 × 10−23), TMEM18 (P = 3.24 × 10−17), MC4R (P = 4.41 × 10−17), TNNI3K (P = 4.32 × 10−11), SEC16B (P = 6.24 × 10−9), GNPDA2 (P = 1.11 × 10−8) and POMC (P = 4.94 × 10−8) as well as a potential secondary signal at the POMC locus (rs2118404, P = 2.4 × 10−5 after conditioning on the established single-nucleotide polymorphism at this locus) in adolescents and young adults. To evaluate the impact of the established genetic loci on BMI at these young ages, we examined differences between the effect sizes of 32 published BMI loci in European adult populations (aged 18-90) and those observed in our adolescent and young adult meta-analysis. Four loci (near PRKD1, TNNI3K, SEC16B and CADM2) had larger effects and one locus (near SH2B1) had a smaller effect on BMI during adolescence and young adulthood compared with older adults (P < 0.05). These results suggest that genetic loci for BMI can vary in their effects across the life course, underlying the importance of evaluating BMI at different age

Effects of dietary supplementation with a laminarin-rich extract on the growth performance and gastrointestinal health in broilers

Restriction in antimicrobial use in broiler chicken production is driving the exploration of alternative feed additives that will support growth through the promotion of gastrointestinal health and development. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of dietary inclusion of laminarin on growth performance, the expression of nutrient transporters, markers of inflammation and intestinal integrity in the small intestine and composition of the caecal microbiota in broiler chickens. Two-hundred-and-forty day-old male Ross 308 broiler chicks (40.64 (3.43 SD) g) were randomly assigned to: (T1) basal diet (control); (T2) basal diet + 150 ppm laminarin; (T3) basal diet + 300 ppm laminarin (5 bird/pen; 16 pens/treatment). The basal diet was supplemented with a laminarin-rich Laminaria spp. extract (65% laminarin) to achieve the two laminarin inclusion levels (150 and 300 ppm). Chick weights and feed intake was recorded weekly. After 35 days of supplementation, one bird per pen from the control and best performing (300 ppm) laminarin groups were euthanized. Duodenal, jejunal and ileal tissues were collected for gene expression analysis. Caecal digesta was collected for microbiota analysis (high-throughput sequencing and QPCR). Dietary supplementation with 300 ppm laminarin increased both final body weight (2033 vs. 1906 ± 30.4, P < 0.05) and average daily gain (62.3 vs. 58.2 ± 0.95, P < 0.05) compared to the control group and average daily feed intake (114.1 vs. 106.0 and 104.5 ± 1.77, P < 0.05) compared to all other groups. Laminarin supplementation at 300 ppm increased the relative and absolute abundance of Bifidobacterium (P < 0.05) in the caecum. Laminarin supplementation increased the expression of interleukin 17A (IL17A) in the duodenum, claudin 1 (CLDN1) and toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) in the jejunum and IL17A, CLDN1 and SLC15A1/peptide transporter 1 (SLC15A1/PepT1) in the ileum (P < 0.05). In conclusion, supplementation with laminarin is a promising dietary strategy to enhance growth performance and 300 ppm was the optimal inclusion level with which to promote a beneficial profile of the gastrointestinal microbiota in broiler chickens

Genome-wide analysis of BMI in adolescents and young adults reveals additional insight into the effects of genetic loci over the life course

Genetic loci for body mass index (BMI) in adolescence and young adulthood, a period of high risk for weight gain, are understudied, yet may yield important insight into the etiology of obesity and early intervention. To identify novel genetic loci and examine the influence of known loci on BMI during this critical time period in late adolescence and early adulthood, we performed a two-stage meta-analysis using 14 genome-wide association studies in populations of European ancestry with data on BMI between ages 16 and 25 in up to 29 880 individuals. We identified seven independent loci (P < 5.0 × 10−8) near FTO (P = 3.72 × 10−23), TMEM18 (P = 3.24 × 10−17), MC4R (P = 4.41 × 10−17), TNNI3K (P = 4.32 × 10−11), SEC16B (P = 6.24 × 10−9), GNPDA2 (P = 1.11 × 10−8) and POMC (P = 4.94 × 10−8) as well as a potential secondary signal at the POMC locus (rs2118404, P = 2.4 × 10−5 after conditioning on the established single-nucleotide polymorphism at this locus) in adolescents and young adults. To evaluate the impact of the established genetic loci on BMI at these young ages, we examined differences between the effect sizes of 32 published BMI loci in European adult populations (aged 18–90) and those observed in our adolescent and young adult meta-analysis. Four loci (near PRKD1, TNNI3K, SEC16B and CADM2) had larger effects and one locus (near SH2B1) had a smaller effect on BMI during adolescence and young adulthood compared with older adults (P < 0.05). These results suggest that genetic loci for BMI can vary in their effects across the life course, underlying the importance of evaluating BMI at different ages

Thermal Stability of Aluminum Alloys

Thermal stability, determining the material ability of retaining its properties at required temperatures over extended service time, is becoming the next frontier for aluminum alloys. Its improvement would substantially expand their range of structural applications, especially in automotive and aerospace industries. This report explains the fundamentals of thermal stability; definitions, the properties involved; and the deterioration indicators during thermal/thermomechanical exposures, including an impact of accidental fire, and testing techniques. For individual classes of alloys, efforts aimed at identifying factors stabilizing their microstructure at service temperatures are described. Particular attention is paid to attempts of increasing the current upper service limit of high-temperature grades. In addition to alloying aluminum with a variety of elements to create the thermally stable microstructure, in particular, transition and rare-earth metals, parallel efforts are explored through applying novel routes of alloy processing, such as rapid solidification, powder metallurgy and additive manufacturing, engineering alloys in a liquid state prior to casting, and post-casting treatments. The goal is to overcome the present barriers and to develop novel aluminum alloys with superior properties that are stable across the temperature and time space, required by modern designs

Critical Minerals for Zero-Emission Transportation

Fundamentals of critical minerals and their paramount role in the successful deployment of clean energy technologies in future transportation are assessed along with current global efforts to satisfy the needs of automotive supply chains and environmental concerns. An implementation of large quantities of minerals, in particular metals, into the manufacturing of strategic components of zero-emission vehicles will bring new challenges to energy security. As a result, a reduced dependency on conventional hydrocarbon resources may lead to new and unexpected interdependencies, including dependencies on raw materials. It is concluded that to minimize the impact of a metal-intensive transition to clean transportation, in addition to overcoming challenges with minerals mining and processing, further progress in understanding the properties of critical materials will be required to better correlate them with intended applications, to identify potential substitutions and to optimize their use through the sustainable exploration of their resources and a circular economy

Magnesium Alloys - Design, Processing and Properties

Scientists and engineers for decades searched to utilize magnesium, known of its low density, for light-weighting in many industrial sectors. This book provides a broad review of recent global developments in theory and practice of modern magnesium alloys. It covers fundamental aspects of alloy strengthening, recrystallization, details of microstructure and a unique role of grain refinement. The theory is linked with elements of alloy design and specific properties, including fatigue and creep resistance. Also technologies of alloy formation and processing, such as sheet rolling, semi-solid forming, welding and joining are considered. An opportunity of creation the metal matrix composite based on magnesium matrix is described along with carbon nanotubes as an effective reinforcement. A mixture of science and technology makes this book very useful for professionals from academia and industry

Magnesium Alloys - Corrosion and Surface Treatments

A resistance of magnesium alloys to surface degradation is paramount for their applications in automotive, aerospace, consumer electronics and general-purpose markets. An emphasis of this book is on oxidation, corrosion and surface modifications, designed to enhance the alloy surface stability. It covers a nature of oxides grown at elevated temperatures and oxidation characteristics of selected alloys along with elements of general and electrochemical corrosion. Medical applications are considered that explore bio-compatibility of magnesium alloys. Also techniques of surface modifications, designed to improve not only corrosion resistance but also corrosion fatigue, wear and other behaviors, are described. The book represents a valuable resource for scientists and engineers from academia and industry