Is contextual-potentiated eating dependent on caloric density of food?

One experiment tested whether a specific context could elicit eating in rats as a result of Pavlovian conditioning and whether this effect depended on the caloric density of food. Thirty two deprived rats experienced two contexts. They had access to food in context A, but no food was available in context B. During conditioning, half of the animals received high density caloric food (HD groups) whereas the other half, low density caloric food (LD groups). Then, half of the rats in each type of food group was tested in context A and the other half in context B. The results demonstrated an effect of context conditioning only in HD groups. These findings suggest the relevance of both contextual conditioning and caloric density of food in eating behaviour. Implications for the aetiology of binge eating will be discussed

Binge eating in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome : Prevalence, causes, and management strategies

Emerging evidence suggests that disordered eating, particularly binge-eating symptomatology, is overrepresented within Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) populations. This comorbidity presents a clinical dilemma as current treatment approaches for PCOS emphasize the importance of weight management, diet, exercise, and the potential for harm of such treatment approaches in PCOS patients with comorbid disordered eating. However, limited research has assessed the occurrence of binge eating and disordered eating in PCOS patients. Consequently, little is known about the prevalence of binge eating in PCOS, and the possible etiological processes to explain this comorbidity remain poorly understood. Given the paucity of research on this topic, the aims of this narrative review are fourfold: 1) to outline the main symptoms of PCOS and binge eating; 2) to provide an overview of the prevalence of binge eating in PCOS; 3) to outline possible etiological factors for the comorbidity between PCOS and binge eating; and 4) to provide an overview of management strategies of binge eating in PCOS

Where does purging disorder lie on the symptomatologic and personality continuum when compared to other eating disorder subtypes? Implications for the DSM

Objectives: To assess the clinical significance and distinctiveness of purging disorder (PD) from other eating disorder (ED) diagnoses. Method: Participants included 3127 women consecutively admitted to an ED treatment centre (246 PD, 465 anorexia nervosa restrictive [AN‐R], 327 AN‐binge purging [AN‐BP], 1436 bulimia nervosa [BN], 360 binge eating disorder [BED], 177 atypical AN and 116 unspecified feeding or eating disorder [UFED]) who were diagnosed according to DSM‐5 criteria. Additionally, 822 control participants were recruited from the community. All participants completed measures assessing ED symptoms (EDI‐2), general psychopathology (SCL‐90‐R) and personality (TCI‐R). Results: Patients with PD, when compared to controls, scored significantly higher on the EDI‐2 and SCL‐90‐R, and most TCI‐R dimensions. Most of the significant differences between PD and the other ED diagnoses emerged between PD and AN‐R, followed by Atypical‐AN, UFED, AN‐BP and BED, with patients with PD typically reporting higher scores on the EDI‐2 and SCL‐90‐R subscales. Significant differences between PD and BN were also present, but to a lesser extent. The findings for personality varied amongst the different ED diagnoses. Conclusions: PD is a clinically significant disorder, which seems to be more similar to BN than it is to AN and the other ED subtypes

How to assess eating disorder severity in males?The DSM-5 severity index versus severity based on drive for thinness

Using a male eating disorder (ED) sample, this study assessed the clinical utility of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5) severity indices for males with anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) and compared it to an alternative transdiagnostic severity categorisation based on drive for thinness (DT). The participants included 143 males with an ED (60 [42.0%] AN and 83 [58.0%] BN) diagnosis, who were classified using these two severity classifications. The different severity categories were then compared based on ED symptoms, general psychopathology, and personality traits. Our results revealed that the DSM-5 “mild” and DT “low” severity categories were most prevalent in the AN and BN male patients. Clinically significant findings were strongest for the DT categorisation for both AN and BN. The current findings provide initial support for an alternative transdiagnostic DT severity classification for males that may be more clinically meaningful than the DSM-5 severity indices

Real de-escalation or escalation in disguise?

The past two decades have seen an unprecedented trend towards de-escalation of surgical therapy in the setting of early BC, the most prominent examples being the reduction of re-excision rates for close surgical margins after breast-conserving surgery and replacing axillary lymph node dissection by less radical procedures such as sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). Numerous studies confirmed that reducing the extent of surgery in the upfront surgery setting does not impact locoregional recurrences and overall outcome. In the setting of primary systemic treatment, there is an increased use of less invasive staging strategies reaching from SLNB and targeted lymph node biopsy (TLNB) to targeted axillary dissection (TAD). Omission of any axillary surgery in the presence of pathological complete response in the breast is currently being investigated in clinical trials. On the other hand, concerns have been raised that surgical de-escalation might induce an escalation of other treatment modalities such as radiation therapy. Since most trials on surgical de-escalation did not include standardized protocols for adjuvant radiotherapy, it remains unclear, whether the effect of surgical de-escalation was valid in itself or if radiotherapy compensated for the decreased surgical extent. Uncertainties in scientific evidence may therefore lead to escalation of radiotherapy in some settings of surgical de-escalation. Further, the increasing rate of mastectomies including contralateral procedures in patients without genetic risk is alarming. Future studies of locoregional treatment strategies need to include an interdisciplinary approach to integrate de-escalation approaches combining surgery and radiotherapy in a way that promotes optimal quality of life and shared decision-making

A longitudinal study of disordered eating in Australian adolescents: Modelling psychosocial and individual risk factors

To test whether a sociocultural pathway model was predictive of a) disordered eating (DE) behaviour concurrently (Time 1[T1];age 12-13) and b) DE behaviour longitudinally (Time 2[T2];age 15-16). A further aim was to assess whether the risk factors included in the final model were moderated by negative emotionality. Method Participants included 508 adolescent girls assessed through the Australian Temperament Project (ATP). Predictor variables comprised sociocultural pressure, thin-ideal internalisation, negative comparisons and body dissatisfaction. DE was assessed through the EDI-2 subscales drive for thinness and bulimia. Results The model fit for the final Structural Equation Model (SEM) provided an acceptable fit, [2(28)=105.88,p<.001, RMSEA,= .07,CFI=95, SRMR =05]. Path analysis revealed sociocultural pressures to diet increased concurrent body dissatisfaction (=70;p<0.05) and DE at T1 (=56;p<.05). Internalisation of the thin-ideal and negative appearance comparisons partially mediated the effect of sociocultural pressures on body dissatisfaction (=06, p<.05). There was however still a significant direct path between sociocultural pressure and body dissatisfaction. Prospectively, none of these risk factors predicted later adolescent DE at T2. Moderation analyses revealed that negative emotionality did not moderate the effect of any of the risk factors assessed in the SEM. Conclusions The results highlight the importance of longitudinal and multiple risk factor research for informing the development of prevention programs for DEs

ABELHAS VISITANTES DE FLORES DE Cucurbita (CUCURBITACEAE), COM ÊNFASE SOBRE A PRESENÇA DE Peponapis fervens SMITH (EUCERINI -- APIDAE) - SANTA CATARINA, SUL DO BRASIL

Cucurbita flowers are monoecious, the male and female flowers requiring a pollinator to transfer pollen. Bees were systematically collected as they visited flowers of three cultivated Cucurbita species grown at seven separate localities of Santa Catarina state in southern Brazil. Additionally, pantraps were used to estimate the general bee diversity at three of these locations. In total, 3.270 bees were sampled representing 50 species, with 3.153 bees (24 species) counted during censuses on the flowers and 117 individuals of 30 species in the pantraps. The most abundant bee species was Apis mellifera (32%) followed by the squash specialist, Peponapis fervens (25%). This latter species was present at five of the seven study localities. It was the most abundant bee at Cucurbita in three of these places. Nests of P. fervens were found in two localities. Each vertical nest was excavated in clay soil and occupied by a single female. Pollen analyses of the larval provision revealed that the females collect pollen only on squash flowers (100% Cucurbita pollen grains) confirming its specialization. The presence of this bee species in the study area seems to be related to the good environmental condition and stewardship by the farmers, especially their careful use of insecticides.Flores de Cucurbita são monóicas, as flores masculinas e femininas necessitam de polinizador para transferir pólen. Abelhas foram sistematicamente amostradas enquanto visitavam flores de três espécies de Cucurbita cultivadas em sete localidades do estado de Santa Catarina no sul do Brasil. Adicionalmente, pratos-armadilhas foram utilizados para estimar a diversidade geral de abelhas destes locais. No total, 3.270 abelhas foram registradas representando 50 espécies, sendo 3.153 abelhas (de 24 espécies) amostradas durante os censos em flores e 117 indivíduos (de 30 espécies) nos pratos-armadilhas. A espécie de abelha mais abundante foi Apis mellifera (32%) seguida pela especialista em abóbora, Peponapis fervens (25%). Esta espécie esteve presente em cinco das sete localidades estudadas. Foi a abelha mais abundante em Cucurbita em três destes locais. Ninhos de P. fervens foram encontrados em duas localidades. Cada ninho vertical foi escavado em solo argiloso e ocupado por uma única fêmea. A análise de pólen da provisão da larva revelou que as fêmeas coletam pólen somente em flores de abóbora (100% grãos pólen de Cucurbita) confirmando sua especialização. A presença desta espécie de abelha nas áreas estudadas parece estar associada às boas condições ambientais e ao manejo dos agricultores, especialmente seu cuidado com o uso de inseticidas químicos

Variants in the inflammatory IL6 and MPO genes modulate stroke susceptibility through main effects and gene-gene interactions

A complex interplay between genetic background, clinical and life-style factors and the environment is expected to ultimately regulate the onset, acute phase and outcome of stroke. There is substantial evidence that inflammation within the Central Nervous System contributes to stroke risk, and known clinical risk factors for stroke, like atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and peripheral infection, are associated with an elevated systemic inflammatory profile. The inflammatory response is equally of major importance in recovery and healing processes after stroke. In this study we tested the genetic association of major inflammatory players IL1B (2q14), IL6 (7p21), TNF (6p21.3) and MPO (17q23.1) with stroke susceptibility and with stroke outcome at three months, in a population sample of 672 patients and 530 controls, adjusting for demographic, clinical and life-style risk factors and/or stroke severity parameters. The apparent complexity of the inflammatory mechanisms in stroke, and the multiplicity of players involved suggest a concerted process, in which implicated molecules interact to tightly regulate each other. We therefore examined both independent gene effects and the occurrence of gene-gene interactions among the tested inflammatory genes in stroke risk and stroke recovery. Two IL6 and one MPO SNP were significantly associated with stroke risk after multiple testing correction (0.022 correctedP 0.042), highlighting gene variants of low to moderate effect in stroke risk. An epistatic interaction between the IL6 and MPO genes was also identified in association with stroke susceptibility (P=0.031 after 1000 permutations). In the subset of 546 patients assessed for stroke outcome at three months using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), we found one IL6 haplotype associated with stroke outcome (correctedP=0.024). In the present study we present supporting evidence for a role of the IL6 and MPO inflammatory genes in stroke susceptibility, and show that stroke risk is modulated by main gene effects together with clinical and life-style factors as well as by gene-gene interactions. Our findings are compatible and strengthen previous genetic and biological observations, highlighting the need of further functional studies, particularly in view of the possible utility of IL-6 as a diagnostic and/or prognostic biomarker for stroke