Common genetic architecture underlying young children's food fussiness and liking for vegetables and fruit

Background: Food fussiness (FF) is common in early childhood and is often associated with the rejection of nutrient-dense foods such as vegetables and fruit. FF and liking for vegetables and fruit are likely all heritable phenotypes; the genetic influence underlying FF may explain the observed genetic influence on liking for vegetables and fruit. Twin analyses make it possible to get a broad-based estimate of the extent of the shared genetic influence that underlies these traits. Objective: We quantified the extent of the shared genetic influence that underlies FF and liking for vegetables and fruit in early childhood with the use of a twin design. Design: Data were from the Gemini cohort, which is a populationbased sample of twins born in England and Wales in 2007. Parents of 3-y-old twins (n = 1330 pairs) completed questionnaire measures of their children's food preferences (liking for vegetables and fruit) and the FF scale from the Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Multivariate quantitative genetic modeling was used to estimate common genetic influences that underlie FF and liking for vegetables and fruit. Results: Genetic correlations were significant and moderate to large in size between FF and liking for both vegetables (20.65) and fruit (20.43), which indicated that a substantial proportion of the genes that influence FF also influence liking. Common genes that underlie FF and liking for vegetables and fruit largely explained the observed phenotypic correlations between them (68-70%). Conclusions: FF and liking for fruit and vegetables in young children share a large proportion of common genetic factors. The genetic influence on FF may determine why fussy children typically reject fruit and vegetables

The relationship between appetite and food preferences in British and Australian children

Background: Appetitive traits and food preferences are key determinants of children’s eating patterns but it is unclear how these behaviours relate to one another. This study explores relationships between appetitive traits and preferences for fruits and vegetables, and energy dense, nutrient poor (noncore) foods in two distinct samples of Australian and British preschool children. Methods: This study reports secondary analyses of data from families participating in the British GEMINI cohort study (n = 1044) and the control arm of the Australian NOURISH RCT (n = 167). Food preferences were assessed by parent-completed questionnaire when children were aged 3–4 years and grouped into three categories; vegetables, fruits and noncore foods. Appetitive traits; enjoyment of food, food responsiveness, satiety responsiveness, slowness in eating, and food fussiness were measured using the Children’s Eating Behaviour Questionnaire when children were 16 months (GEMINI) or 3–4 years (NOURISH). Relationships between appetitive traits and food preferences were explored using adjusted linear regression analyses that controlled for demographic and anthropometric covariates. Results: Vegetable liking was positively associated with enjoyment of food (GEMINI; β = 0.20 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.43 ± 0.07, p < 0.001) and negatively related to satiety responsiveness (GEMINI; β = -0.19 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = -0.34 ± 0.08, p < 0.001), slowness in eating (GEMINI; β = -0.10 ± 0.03, p = 0.002, NOURISH; β = -0.30 ± 0.08, p < 0.001) and food fussiness (GEMINI; β = −0.30 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = -0.60 ± 0.06, p < 0.001). Fruit liking was positively associated with enjoyment of food (GEMINI; β = 0.18 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.36 ± 0.08, p < 0.001), and negatively associated with satiety responsiveness (GEMINI; β = −0.13 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = −0.24 ± 0.08, p = 0.003), food fussiness (GEMINI; β = -0.26 ± 0.03, p < 0.001, NOURISH; β = −0.51 ± 0.07, p < 0.001) and slowness in eating (GEMINI only; β = -0.09 ± 0.03, p = 0.005). Food responsiveness was unrelated to liking for fruits or vegetables in either sample but was positively associated with noncore food preference (GEMINI; β = 0.10 ± 0.03, p = 0.001, NOURISH; β = 0.21 ± 0.08, p = 0.010). Conclusion: Appetitive traits linked with lower obesity risk were related to lower liking for fruits and vegetables, while food responsiveness, a trait linked with greater risk of overweight, was uniquely associated with higher liking for noncore foods

Resting CD4(+) T Lymphocytes but Not Thymocytes Provide a Latent Viral Reservoir in a Simian Immunodeficiency Virus-Macaca nemestrina Model of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1-Infected Patients on Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy

Despite suppression of viremia in patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), human immunodeficiency virus type 1 persists in a latent reservoir in the resting memory CD4(+) T lymphocytes and possibly in other reservoirs. To better understand the mechanisms of viral persistence, we established a simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)-macaque model to mimic the clinical situation of patients on suppressive HAART and developed assays to detect latently infected cells in the SIV-macaque system. In this model, treatment of SIV-infected pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) with the combination of 9-R-(2-phosphonomethoxypropyl)adenine (PMPA; tenofovir) and beta-2′,3′-dideoxy-3′-thia-5-fluorocytidine (FTC) suppressed the levels of plasma virus to below the limit of detection (100 copies of viral RNA per ml). In treated animals, levels of viremia remained close to or below the limit of detection for up to 6 months except for an isolated “blip” of detectable viremia in each animal. Latent virus was measured in blood, spleen, lymph nodes, and thymus by several different methods. Replication-competent virus was recovered after activation of a 99.5% pure population of resting CD4(+) T lymphocytes from a lymph node of a treated animal. Integrated SIV DNA was detected in resting CD4(+) T cells from spleen, peripheral blood, and various lymph nodes including those draining the gut, the head, and the limbs. In contrast to the wide distribution of latently infected cells in peripheral lymphoid tissues, neither replication-competent virus nor integrated SIV DNA was detected in thymocytes, suggesting that thymocytes are not a major reservoir for virus in pig-tailed macaques. The results provide the first evidence for a latent viral reservoir for SIV in macaques and the most extensive survey of the distribution of latently infected cells in the host