Factors Associated with Fathers’ Attendance in a Latino Family Obesity Prevention Program

Community-based programs may contribute to Latino pediatric obesity prevention; however, attendance remains low. This study aimed to identify factors associated with Latino father/male caregiver attendance in family-based adolescent obesity prevention programs conducted as part of a randomized controlled trial. The study used cross-sectional data from 137 fathers in the program, involving eight weekly sessions to improve their children’s energy balance-related behaviors. Evaluation data were collected at baseline and post-intervention. Fathers in a waitlisted control group attended sessions after post-intervention data collection. Attendance patterns were identified using cluster analysis: consistently high attendance (50% of fathers), declining attendance (19%), and non-attendance (31%) clusters. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine associations between attendance patterns and variables. Compared to consistently high attendance, fathers in the non-attendance cluster were more likely to have been assigned to the control group (odds ratio [OR] = 7.86, p \u3c 0.001), tended to have lower household income (OR = 2.50, p = 0.098), and attended the program at a site where the program occurred weekdays (OR = 0.35, p = 0.094). Maintaining contact during waiting periods and providing sessions online or during weekends could reduce non-attendance by enhancing convenience for low-income fathers working multiple jobs

Differences in reporting food insecurity and factors associated with differences among Latino fathers and mothers

Food security status has been assessed as a representative score for households; however, different members in the same household may perceive and report food insecurity differently. A high prevalence of food insecurity has been reported among Latino households, therefore understanding differences in reporting food insecurity by Latino father-mother dyads may improve accuracy of assessment and plans to address food insecurity. This study aimed to 1) determine demographic characteristics and/or food-related factors associated with perceptions of food security status among Latino father-mother dyads, and 2) identify factors associated with discordance in perceptions of food insecurity between dyads. Baseline data were used from a community-based, youth obesity prevention program among Latino families (n = 106 father-mother dyads). Food security was assessed with a 2-item food insecurity screen. Logistic regression models were used to evaluate associations between reporting food security status and predictor variables for fathers, mothers, and dyad-discordant responses. Food insecurity was reported by 39% of fathers and 55% of mothers. Adjusted odds of reporting food insecurity were significantly higher for fathers perceiving their neighborhood was unsafe vs. safe (OR: 3.7, p < 0.05) and reporting lower vs. higher household income (OR: 3.2, p < 0.05). Adjusted odds of reporting food insecurity were significantly higher for mothers perceiving their neighborhood was unsafe vs. safe (OR: 4.1, p < 0.01) and reporting lower vs. higher home availability of fruit and vegetable (OR: 5.5, p < 0.01). Dyad discordance in reporting food security status occurred in 24% of the dyads. Adjusted odds of dyad discordant reports of food insecurity status were significantly higher for dyads reporting discordant responses regarding previous nutrition education (OR: 3.4, p < 0.05) and higher home fruit and vegetable accessibility (OR: 3.1, p < 0.05) compared to dyads reporting concordant responses. Among the 28 dyads who reported discordant nutrition education participation, 21 reported that fathers had never participated but mothers had participated more than once. Differential factors were associated with reporting food security among Latino father-mother dyads. Nutrition education for fathers that improves awareness of home food supplies and a better understanding of how food accessibility influences maternal perceptions may improve dyad discordance in reporting household food security.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10971-

Automated Workflow for Preparation of cDNA for Cap Analysis of Gene Expression on a Single Molecule Sequencer

Background: Cap analysis of gene expression (CAGE) is a 59 sequence tag technology to globally determine transcriptional starting sites in the genome and their expression levels and has most recently been adapted to the HeliScope single molecule sequencer. Despite significant simplifications in the CAGE protocol, it has until now been a labour intensive protocol. Methodology: In this study we set out to adapt the protocol to a robotic workflow, which would increase throughput and reduce handling. The automated CAGE cDNA preparation system we present here can prepare 96 ‘HeliScope ready ’ CAGE cDNA libraries in 8 days, as opposed to 6 weeks by a manual operator.We compare the results obtained using the same RNA in manual libraries and across multiple automation batches to assess reproducibility. Conclusions: We show that the sequencing was highly reproducible and comparable to manual libraries with an 8 fold increase in productivity. The automated CAGE cDNA preparation system can prepare 96 CAGE sequencing samples simultaneously. Finally we discuss how the system could be used for CAGE on Illumina/SOLiD platforms, RNA-seq and fulllengt

The Constrained Maximal Expression Level Owing to Haploidy Shapes Gene Content on the Mammalian X Chromosome.

X chromosomes are unusual in many regards, not least of which is their nonrandom gene content. The causes of this bias are commonly discussed in the context of sexual antagonism and the avoidance of activity in the male germline. Here, we examine the notion that, at least in some taxa, functionally biased gene content may more profoundly be shaped by limits imposed on gene expression owing to haploid expression of the X chromosome. Notably, if the X, as in primates, is transcribed at rates comparable to the ancestral rate (per promoter) prior to the X chromosome formation, then the X is not a tolerable environment for genes with very high maximal net levels of expression, owing to transcriptional traffic jams. We test this hypothesis using The Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) and data from the Functional Annotation of the Mammalian Genome (FANTOM5) project. As predicted, the maximal expression of human X-linked genes is much lower than that of genes on autosomes: on average, maximal expression is three times lower on the X chromosome than on autosomes. Similarly, autosome-to-X retroposition events are associated with lower maximal expression of retrogenes on the X than seen for X-to-autosome retrogenes on autosomes. Also as expected, X-linked genes have a lesser degree of increase in gene expression than autosomal ones (compared to the human/Chimpanzee common ancestor) if highly expressed, but not if lowly expressed. The traffic jam model also explains the known lower breadth of expression for genes on the X (and the Z of birds), as genes with broad expression are, on average, those with high maximal expression. As then further predicted, highly expressed tissue-specific genes are also rare on the X and broadly expressed genes on the X tend to be lowly expressed, both indicating that the trend is shaped by the maximal expression level not the breadth of expression per se. Importantly, a limit to the maximal expression level explains biased tissue of expression profiles of X-linked genes. Tissues whose tissue-specific genes are very highly expressed (e.g., secretory tissues, tissues abundant in structural proteins) are also tissues in which gene expression is relatively rare on the X chromosome. These trends cannot be fully accounted for in terms of alternative models of biased expression. In conclusion, the notion that it is hard for genes on the Therian X to be highly expressed, owing to transcriptional traffic jams, provides a simple yet robustly supported rationale of many peculiar features of X's gene content, gene expression, and evolution

Food Away from Home Frequency, Diet Quality, and Health: Cross-Sectional Analysis of NHANES Data 2011&ndash;2018

The consumption of meals prepared away from home (FAFH) in the U.S. has been commonly linked to overall poorer diet quality; however, less is known about the relationship with health parameters. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to assess the diet quality and health parameters of adults who reported the frequency of obtaining or eating FAFH using a combination of four 2-year cycles of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES, 2011&ndash;2018) data. Data from 14,999 adults aged 20 to 65 years were used to examine the associations between diet and health outcomes and the weekly frequency of FAFH. Multivariable regression models were used to compare Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015) scores by FAFH frequency, adjusting for sociodemographic variables. Adults with more frequent FAFH meals were more likely to be younger, male, lower-income, and unmarried. Total HEI-2015 scores and component scores for greens and beans, total and whole fruits, whole grains, saturated fats, and added sugars were significantly lower in those consuming &gt;2 FAFH meals/week vs. &le;2 FAFH meals/week. BMI and waist circumference tended to be higher for women having more frequent FAFH meals. More frequent FAFH meals among adults were associated with poorer diet quality and weight outcomes, building on results from earlier studies

Nutrient and Food Group Intakes among U.S. Children (2–5 Years) Differ by Family Income to Poverty Ratio, NHANES 2011–2018

Family income may influence nutrient and food group intakes among preschool children, thus increasing risk of nutrient deficiencies. This study compared nutrient and food group intakes and diet quality among a U.S. sample of children 2–5 years of age by family income to poverty ratio (PIR) based on National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2011–2018) data (n = 2249). Regression analyses were used to compare dietary intakes based on proxy-reported 24-h dietary recalls and Healthy Eating Index-2015 total scores by low PIR versus mid-high PIR levels adjusted for covariates. PIR levels varied by child race/ethnicity and household reference person’s sex, marital status, and education. More than half of the children in the low PIR group (56%) were reported to have received WIC benefits in the past year. Marginally lower calcium (p = 0.008) and lower fiber intakes, lower total HEI-2015 scores, and lower intakes of fruits and whole grain foods (all p &lt; 0.007) were observed among children in low PIR households compared to mid-high PIR households. However, iron intakes were higher (p = 0.0003) among children in low PIR households compared to mid-high PIR households. Lack of other differences in nutrient and food group intakes may be attributable to WIC benefits

Frequency of Meals Prepared Away from Home and Nutrient Intakes among US Adolescents (NHANES 2011–2018)

Frequency of consuming foods prepared away from home has been associated with lower diet quality among adults and adolescents in several earlier studies. Nutrient and food group intake and Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2015 scores were compared among a U.S. nationally representative sample of adolescents (12–19 years, n = 3975) by frequency of consuming food prepared away from home ≤2 times/week (n = 2311) versus >2 times/week (n = 1664) using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data from 2011–2018. Regression analyses were used to compare intakes among adolescents by frequency of eating meals prepared away from home adjusting for covariates. Older (16–19 years) vs. younger (12–15 years) adolescents and those from homes with higher vs. lower family income to poverty ratios had greater frequency of eating meals prepared away from home. Intakes of nutrients of concern for adolescents including choline, vitamin D, potassium, magnesium, fiber, phosphorus, folate, iron, and total HEI-2015 scores and component scores for total vegetables, and greens and beans were lower among adolescents who consumed meals prepared away from home more vs. less often. However, no differences were noted among food group intakes considered good sources of nutrients of concern such as total fruit, total vegetables, whole grains, and total dairy, except for beans and peas by frequency of eating foods prepared away from home. Greater frequency of eating foods prepared away from home was associated with lower diet quality among adolescents in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adolescents