Comparative Evaluation of the Proximate Composition, Anti-Nutrients and Functional Properties of Some Underutilized Pulses

Comparative evaluation of nutritional, functional and anti-nutritional composition of black-eyed beans, black- turtle beans (akidi oji) and brown turtle beans (akidi uhie). The moisture content of the samples ranged from 7.86% for black beans sample to 8.66% for black-eyed beans sample. Crude protein content of the samples ranged from 19.54% for black-eyed beans to 22.62% for black beans. The protein content of the beans samples were significantly different (p≤0.05). The black beans sample had the highest protein content. Fat content of the beans samples ranged from 9.71% for black-eyed beans to 12.62% for black beans, while brown beans flour was 10.26%.The fat content of the samples were significantly different (p≤ 0.05). The swelling index of the samples was significantly different at (P>0.05). Saponin content of beans flour samples were 0.67mg/100g for black-eyed beans, 1.62mg/100g for black beans and 1.47mg/100g, for brown beans. The oven drying employed during processing led to the reduction of trypsin inhibitors. The alkaloid content of the beans flour samples were 0.27mg/100g for black-eyed beans, 0.34mg/100g for black beans and 0.22mg/100g for brown beans. The tannin content of the samples evaluated of the beans flour samples were 1.24mg/100g for black-eyed beans, 1.65mg/100g for black beans 1.47mg/100g for brown bean. The black beans sample had the highest value of proximate composition among the beans samples measured in terms of; protein, fat, ash and crude fiber contents. The research recommends increase in propagation and consumption of the black eyed beans. Keywords: Black eyed beans, Black and Brown turtle beans, anti-nutrient DOI: 10.7176/FSQM/95-08 Publication date:March 31st 202

Inflammatory proteins are associated with mortality in a middle‐aged diverse cohort

Abstract Background Recent data indicate a decline in overall longevity in the United States. Even prior to the COVID‐19 pandemic, an increase in midlife mortality rates had been reported. Life expectancy disparities have persisted in the United States for racial and ethnic groups and for individuals living at low socioeconomic status. These continued trends in mortality indicate the importance of examining biomarkers of mortality at midlife in at‐risk populations. Circulating levels of cytokines and inflammatory markers reflect systemic chronic inflammation, which is a well‐known driver of many age‐related diseases. Methods In this study, we examined the relationship of nine different inflammatory proteins with mortality in a middle‐aged socioeconomically diverse cohort of African–American and White men and women (n = 1122; mean age = 47.8 years). Results We found significant differences in inflammatory‐related protein serum levels between African–American and White middle‐aged adults. E‐selectin and fibrinogen were significantly higher in African–American adults. IFN‐γ, TNF‐α trimer, monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1 (MCP‐1), soluble receptor for advanced glycation end‐products (sRAGE) and P‐selectin were significantly higher in White participants compared to African–American participants. Higher levels of E‐selectin, MCP‐1 and P‐selectin were associated with a higher mortality risk. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction between sex and IL‐6 with mortality. IL‐6 levels were associated with an increased risk of mortality, an association that was significantly greater in women than men. In addition, White participants with high levels of sRAGE had significantly higher survival probability than White participants with low levels of sRAGE, while African–American participants had similar survival probabilities across sRAGE levels. Conclusions These results suggest that circulating inflammatory markers can be utilized as indicators of midlife mortality risk in a socioeconomically diverse cohort of African–American and White individuals

Race-specific alterations in DNA methylation among middle-aged African Americans and Whites with metabolic syndrome

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of cardiometabolic risk factors for all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Identifying epigenetic alterations associated with MetS in African Americans (AAs) and Whites may provide insight into genes that influence its differential health outcomes. We examined DNA methylation (DNAm) and performed an epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) of MetS among AAs and Whites with and without MetS. We assessed age, race and poverty status associated DNAm among AAs (n = 225) and White (n = 233) adults using NCEP-ATP III guidelines. Genome-wide DNAm measurement was assessed using Illumina Infinium Methylation EPIC BeadChip. Differentially methylated positions (DMPs) and differentially methylated regions (DMRs) were identified using dmpFinder and bumphunter. EWAS was performed using CpGassoc. We found significant DMPs associated with age, poverty status and MetS in each race. GSTT1(Glutathione S-Transferase Theta 1) was one of the top-hypermethylated genes and MIPEP (Mitochondrial Intermediate Peptidase) was one of the most hypomethylated genes when comparing AAs with and without MetS. PPP1R13L (Protein Phosphatase 1 Regulatory Subunit 13 Like) was the top hypermethylated and SCD (stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1) was one of the most hypomethylated genes for Whites with and without MetS. EWAS results showed that DNAm differences might contribute to MetS risk among Whites and AAs since different genes were identified in AAs and Whites. We replicated previously identified MetS associated genes and found that Thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXN1P) was statistically significantly differentially expressed only in Whites. Our results may be useful in further studies of genes underlying differences in MetS among AAs and Whites

Pregnancy Complications Among Resettled Refugees in Illinois

Newly resettled refugee populations often have significant health care needs including pregnancy complications; yet research is lacking on pregnancy complications among refugees in Illinois. This was a retrospective analysis of the 2016-2017 hospital discharge data of refugee women of childbearing age (15-44 years) in Illinois. There were 3,355 hospital encounters by refugee women in our analysis, and 19.1% (n = 640) were associated with complications mainly related to pregnancy. The majority of hospital encounters associated with complications mainly related to pregnancy occurred after the first 8 months of US arrival (85.2%) and were among women who had Medicaid insurance (90.3%), ≥ 5 hospital encounters (60.2%), and who were most commonly from Iraq (23.3%) or Burma (19.4%). Refugee women may benefit from increased awareness and education about prenatal care, support in access, and prompt referrals

Extracellular vesicle mitochondrial DNA levels are associated with race and mitochondrial DNA haplogroup

Summary: Circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA (ccf-mtDNA) acts as a damage-associated molecular pattern molecule and may be cargo within extracellular vesicles (EVs). ccf-mtDNA and select mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroups are associated with cardiovascular disease. We hypothesized that ccf-mtDNA and plasma EV mtDNA would be associated with hypertension, sex, self-identified race, and mtDNA haplogroup ancestry. Participants were normotensive (n = 107) and hypertensive (n = 108) African American and White adults from the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span study. ccf-mtDNA levels were higher in African American participants compared with White participants in both plasma and EVs, but ccf-mtDNA levels were not related to hypertension. EV mtDNA levels were highest in African American participants with African mtDNA haplogroup. Circulating inflammatory protein levels were altered with mtDNA haplogroup, race, and EV mtDNA. Our findings highlight that race is a social construct and that ancestry is crucial when examining health and biomarker differences between groups

Geographic and demographic heterogeneity of SARS-CoV-2 diagnostic testing in Illinois, USA, March to December 2020

Abstract Background Availability of SARS-CoV-2 testing in the United States (U.S.) has fluctuated through the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, including in the U.S. state of Illinois. Despite substantial ramp-up in test volume, access to SARS-CoV-2 testing remains limited, heterogeneous, and insufficient to control spread. Methods We compared SARS-CoV-2 testing rates across geographic regions, over time, and by demographic characteristics (i.e., age and racial/ethnic groups) in Illinois during March through December 2020. We compared age-matched case fatality ratios and infection fatality ratios through time to estimate the fraction of SARS-CoV-2 infections that have been detected through diagnostic testing. Results By the end of 2020, initial geographic differences in testing rates had closed substantially. Case fatality ratios were higher in non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic/Latino populations in Illinois relative to non-Hispanic White populations, suggesting that tests were insufficient to accurately capture the true burden of COVID-19 disease in the minority populations during the initial epidemic wave. While testing disparities decreased during 2020, Hispanic/Latino populations consistently remained the least tested at 1.87 tests per 1000 population per day compared with 2.58 and 2.87 for non-Hispanic Black and non-Hispanic White populations, respectively, at the end of 2020. Despite a large expansion in testing since the beginning of the first wave of the epidemic, we estimated that over half (50–80%) of all SARS-CoV-2 infections were not detected by diagnostic testing and continued to evade surveillance. Conclusions Systematic methods for identifying relatively under-tested geographic regions and demographic groups may enable policymakers to regularly monitor and evaluate the shifting landscape of diagnostic testing, allowing officials to prioritize allocation of testing resources to reduce disparities in COVID-19 burden and eventually reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission

2021 Healthy Illinois State Health Improvement Plan Update: Implementation Plan

In 2020, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) partnered with the Illinois Public Health Institute and the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health to create the Healthy Illinois 2021 Plan Update: An Addendum to the Illinois 2016-2021 State Health Assessment and State Health Improvement Plan. After collecting and analyzing focus groups and surveys of IDPH and local health department staff, data were shared, and discussions were held with the State Health Assessment and State Health Improvement Plan team to create a vision for the state moving forward.</p

Summary of Findings From the Healthy Illinois 2021 Plan Update

  The Healthy Illinois 2021 Plan update is a two-year plan that includes updated data, priorities, and plans from the 2016–2021 State Health Assessment (SHA) and State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP). This update was created in 2020 when a full update was not possible due to the demands of the COVID-19 pandemic and sought to answer five questions. The update was created by the SHIP Team, including representatives from the state public health system and community partners, and a Planning Team, including the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), the University of Illinois Chicago Policy, Practice and Prevention Research Center (P3RC) and its subcontractor, the Illinois Public Health Institute (IPHI).</p

Modeling robust COVID-19 intensive care unit occupancy thresholds for imposing mitigation to prevent exceeding capacities.

In non-pharmaceutical management of COVID-19, occupancy of intensive care units (ICU) is often used as an indicator to inform when to intensify mitigation and thus reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission, strain on ICUs, and deaths. However, ICU occupancy thresholds at which action should be taken are often selected arbitrarily. We propose a quantitative approach using mathematical modeling to identify ICU occupancy thresholds at which mitigation should be triggered to avoid exceeding the ICU capacity available for COVID-19 patients and demonstrate this approach for the United States city of Chicago. We used a stochastic compartmental model to simulate SARS-CoV-2 transmission and disease progression, including critical cases that would require intensive care. We calibrated the model using daily COVID-19 ICU and hospital census data between March and August 2020. We projected various possible ICU occupancy trajectories from September 2020 to May 2021 with two possible levels of transmission increase and uncertainty in core model parameters. The effect of combined mitigation measures was modeled as a decrease in the transmission rate that took effect when projected ICU occupancy reached a specified threshold. We found that mitigation did not immediately eliminate the risk of exceeding ICU capacity. Delaying action by 7 days increased the probability of exceeding ICU capacity by 10-60% and this increase could not be counteracted by stronger mitigation. Even under modest transmission increase, a threshold occupancy no higher than 60% was required when mitigation reduced the reproductive number Rt to just below 1. At higher transmission increase, a threshold of at most 40% was required with mitigation that reduced Rt below 0.75 within the first two weeks after mitigation. Our analysis demonstrates a quantitative approach for the selection of ICU occupancy thresholds that considers parameter uncertainty and compares relevant mitigation and transmission scenarios. An appropriate threshold will depend on the location, number of ICU beds available for COVID-19, available mitigation options, feasible mitigation strengths, and tolerated durations of intensified mitigation