Plasma concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D among Jordanians: Effect of biological and habitual factors on vitamin D status

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Vitamin D is cutaneously synthesized following sun exposure (vitamin D₃) as well as it is derived from dietary intake (vitamin D₃and D₂). Vitamin D₂and D₃are metabolized in the liver to 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D). This metabolite is considered the functional indicator of vitamin D stores in humans. Since Jordan latitude is 31°N, cutaneous synthesis of vitamin D₃should be sufficient all year round. However, many indications reveal that it is not the case. Thus, this study was conducted to determine the 25(OH)D status among Jordanians.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Three hundred healthy volunteers were enrolled in a cross sectional study; 201 females and 99 males. 25(OH)D and calcium concentrations were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay and spectroscopy techniques, respectively. All participants filled a study questionnaire that covered age, sex, height, weight, diet, and dress style for females. Females were divided according to their dress style: Western style, Hijab (all body parts are covered except the face and hands), and Niqab (all body parts are covered including face and hands).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The average plasma 25(OH)D levels in males and females were 44.5 ± 10.0 nmol/l and 31.1 ± 12.0 nmol/l, respectively. However, when female 25(OH)D levels were categorized according to dress styles, the averages became 40.3, 31.3 and 28.5 nmol/l for the Western style, Hijab and Niqab groups, respectively. These 25(OH)D levels were significantly less than those of males (p < 0.05, 0.001, 0.001, respectively). In addition, the plasma 25(OH)D levels of the Western style group was significantly higher than those of Hijab and Niqab groups (p < 0.001). Furthermore, dairy consumption in males was a positive significant factor in vitamin D status. Even though calcium concentrations were within the reference range, the Hijab and Niqab-dressed females have significantly less plasma calcium levels than males (p < 0.01).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Very low plasma 25(OH)D levels in females wearing Hijab or Niqab are highly attributed to low sunlight or UVB exposure. In addition, most of males (76%) and Western style dressed females (90%) have 25(OH)D concentrations below the international recommended values (50 nmol/l), suggesting that although sun exposure should be enough, other factors do play a role in these low concentrations. These findings emphasize the importance of vitamin D supplementation especially among conservatively dressed females, and determining if single nucleotide polymorphisms of the genes involved in vitamin D metabolism do exist among Jordanians.</p

In Vivo Activation of the Intracrine Vitamin D Pathway in Innate Immune Cells and Mammary Tissue during a Bacterial Infection

Numerous in vitro studies have shown that toll-like receptor signaling induces 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 1α-hydroxylase (1α-OHase; CYP27B1) expression in macrophages from various species. 1α-OHase is the primary enzyme that converts 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3). Subsequently, synthesis of 1,25(OH)2D3 by 1α-OHase in macrophages has been shown to modulate innate immune responses of macrophages. Despite the numerous in vitro studies that have shown 1α-OHase expression is induced in macrophages, however, evidence that 1α-OHase expression is induced by pathogens in vivo is limited. The objective of this study was to evaluate 1α-OHase gene expression in macrophages and mammary tissue during an in vivo bacterial infection with Streptococcus uberis. In tissue and secreted cells from the infected mammary glands, 1α-OHase gene expression was significantly increased compared to expression in tissue and cells from the healthy mammary tissue. Separation of the cells by FACS9 revealed that 1α-OHase was predominantly expressed in the CD14+ cells isolated from the infected mammary tissue. The 24-hydroxylase gene, a gene that is highly upregulated by 1,25(OH)2D3, was significantly more expressed in tissue and cells from the infected mammary tissue than from the healthy uninfected mammary tissue thus indicating significant local 1,25(OH)2D3 production at the infection site. In conclusion, this study provides the first in vivo evidence that 1α-OHase expression is upregulated in macrophages in response to bacterial infection and that 1α-OHase at the site of infection provides 1,25(OH)2D3 for local regulation of vitamin D responsive genes

An Efficient Rule-Based Distributed Reasoning Framework for Resource-bounded Systems

© 2018, The Author(s). Over the last few years, context-aware computing has received a growing amount of attention among the researchers in the IoT and ubiquitous computing community. In principle, context-aware computing transforms a physical environment into a smart space by sensing the surrounding environment and interpreting the situation of the user. This process involves three major steps: context acquisition, context modelling, and context-aware reasoning. Among other approaches, ontology-based context modelling and rule-based context reasoning are widely used techniques to enable semantic interoperability and interpreting user situations. However, implementing rich context-aware applications that perform reasoning on resource-bounded mobile devices is quite challenging. In this paper, we present a context-aware systems development framework for smart spaces, which includes a lightweight efficient rule engine and a wide range of user preferences to reduce the number of rules while inferring personalized contexts. This shows rules can be reduced in order to optimize the inference engine execution speed, and ultimately to reduce total execution time and execution cost

Measuring perceived exercise capability and investigating its relationship with childhood obesity: a feasibility study.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: According to the COM-B ('Capability', 'Opportunity', 'Motivation' and 'Behaviour') model of behaviour, three factors are essential for behaviour to occur: capability, opportunity and motivation. Obese children are less likely to feel capable of exercising. The implementation of a new methodological approach to investigate the relationship between perceived exercise capability (PEC) and childhood obesity was conducted, which involved creating a new instrument, and demonstrating how it can be used to measure obesity intervention outcomes. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A questionnaire aiming to measure perceived exercise capability, opportunity and motivation was systematically constructed using the COM-B model and administered to 71 obese children (aged 9-17 years (12.24±0.2.01), body mass index (BMI) standard deviation scores (SDS) 2.80±0.660) at a weight-management camp in northern England. Scale validity and reliability was assessed. Relationships between PEC, as measured by the questionnaire, and BMI SDS were investigated for the children at the weight-management camp, and for 45 Spanish schoolchildren (aged 9-13 years, (10.52±1.23), BMI SDS 0.80±0.99). A pilot study, demonstrating how the questionnaire can be used to measure the effectiveness of an intervention aiming to bring about improved PEC for weight-management camp attendees, was conducted. No participants withdrew from these studies. RESULTS: The questionnaire domain (exercise capability, opportunity and motivation) composite scales were found to have adequate internal consistency (a=0.712-0.796) and construct validity (χ(2)/degrees of freedom=1.55, root mean square error of approximation=0.072, comparative fit index=0.92). Linear regression revealed that low PEC was associated with higher baseline BMI SDS for both UK (b=-0.289, P=0.010) and Spanish (b=-0.446, P=0.047) participants. Pilot study findings provide preliminary evidence for PEC improvements through intervention being achievable, and measurable using the questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence is presented for reliability and validity of the questionnaire, and for feasibility of its use in the context of a childhood obesity intervention. Future research could investigate the link between PEC and childhood obesity further

Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Risk of Lung Cancer in Male Smokers: A Nested Case-Control Study

A role for vitamin D in cancer risk reduction has been hypothesized, but few data exist for lung cancer. We investigated the relationship between vitamin D status, using circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], and lung cancer risk in a nested case-control study within the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study of Finnish male smokers.Lung cancer cases (n = 500) were randomly selected based on month of blood collection, and 500 controls were matched to them based on age and blood collection date. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using multivariate-adjusted conditional logistic regression. To account for seasonal variation in 25(OH)D concentrations, season-specific and season-standardized quintiles of 25(OH)D were examined, and models were also stratified on season of blood collection (darker season = November-April and sunnier season = May-October). Pre-determined, clinically-defined cutpoints for 25(OH)D and 25(OH)D as a continuous measure were also examined.Overall, 25(OH)D was not associated with lung cancer. Risks were 1.08 (95% CI 0.67-1.75) and 0.83 (95% CI 0.53-1.31) in the highest vs. lowest season-specific and season-standardized quintiles of 25(OH)D, respectively, and 0.91 (95% CI 0.48-1.72) for the ≥75 vs. <25 nmol/L clinical categories. Inverse associations were, however, suggested for subjects with blood collections from November-April, with ORs of 0.77 (95% CI 0.41-1.45, p-trend = 0.05) and 0.65 (95% CI 0.37-1.14, p-trend = 0.07) in the highest vs. lowest season-specific and season-standardized quintiles of 25(OH)D, respectively, and 0.61 (95% CI 0.24-1.52, p-trend = 0.01) for ≥75 vs. <25 nmol/L. We also found 11% lower risk for a 10 nmol/L increase in 25(OH)D in the darker season based on the continuous measure (OR = 0.89, 95% CI 0.81-0.98, p = 0.02).In this prospective study of male smokers, circulating 25(OH)D was not associated with lung cancer risk overall, although inverse associations were suggested among those whose blood was drawn during darker months

Spatial and temporal investigations of reported movements, births and deaths of cattle and pigs in Sweden

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Livestock movements can affect the spread and control of contagious diseases and new data recording systems enable analysis of these movements. The results can be used for contingency planning, modelling of disease spread and design of disease control programs.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data on the Swedish cattle and pig populations during the period July 2005 until June 2006 were obtained from databases held by the Swedish Board of Agriculture. Movements of cattle and pigs were investigated from geographical and temporal perspectives, births and deaths of cattle were investigated from a temporal perspective and the geographical distribution of holdings was also investigated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Most movements of cattle and pigs were to holdings within 100 km, but movements up to 1200 km occurred. Consequently, the majority of movements occurred within the same county or to adjacent counties. Approximately 54% of the cattle holdings and 45% of the pig holdings did not purchase any live animals. Seasonal variations in births and deaths of cattle were identified, with peaks in spring. Cattle movements peaked in spring and autumn. The maximum number of holdings within a 3 km radius of one holding was 45 for cattle and 23 for pigs, with large variations among counties. Missing data and reporting bias (digit preference) were detected in the data.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The databases are valuable tools in contact tracing. However since movements can be reported up to a week after the event and some data are missing they cannot replace other methods in the acute phase of an outbreak. We identified long distance transports of cattle and pigs, and these findings support an implementation of a total standstill in the country in the case of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. The databases contain valuable information and improvements in data quality would make them even more useful.</p

Pre-Diagnostic Circulating Vitamin D and Risk of Melanoma in Men

PURPOSE: Various studies have examined the association between serum vitamin D levels and different cancers; however, this is the first prospective study of this association with melanoma risk. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between serum vitamin D [25(OH)D] levels and melanoma in a cohort of older, middle-aged Finnish male smokers. METHODS: We conducted a nested case-control study within the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Study. From the ATBC cohort, 368 subjects were chosen for our study; 92 participants that developed melanoma and 276 matched control subjects. At study baseline, lifestyle questionnaires and blood samples were collected. Serum 25(OH)D was modeled as three sets of categorical variables: clinically-defined categories, season-specific quartiles and season-adjusted residual quartiles. Conditional logistic regression was used to obtain odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) to estimate the association between circulating vitamin D and melanoma risk. RESULTS: Overall no association of serum 25(OH)D and melanoma risk was observed. A decreased risk of developing melanoma was observed in the middle categories compared to the lowest category, albeit not significant. CONCLUSION: Results indicate no association between serum 25(OH)D levels and melanoma. Additional studies, including possibly consortium efforts, are needed to investigate the association between serum 25(OH)D levels and risk of melanoma in larger, more diverse study populations

The role of insulin therapy and glucose normalisation in patients with acute coronary syndrome

Patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and diabetes mellitus, as well as patients admitted with elevated blood glucose without known diabetes, have impaired outcome. Therefore intensive glucose-lowering therapy with insulin (IGL) has been proposed in diabetic or hyperglycaemic patients and has been shown to improve survival and reduce incidence of adverse events. The current manuscript provides an overview of randomised controlled trials investigating the effect of IGL. Furthermore, systematic glucose–insulin–potassium infusion (GIK) has been studied to improve outcome after AMI. In spite of positive findings in some early studies, GIK did not show any beneficial effects in recent clinical trials and thus this concept has been abandoned. While IGL targeted to achieve normoglycaemia improves outcome in patients with AMI, achievement of glucose regulation is difficult and carries the risk of hypoglycaemia. More research is needed to determine the optimal glucose target levels in AMI and to investigate whether computerised glucose protocols and continuous glucose sensors can improve safety and efficacy of IGL