Yard vegetation is associated with gut microbiota composition

Gut microbes play an essential role in the development and functioning of the human immune system. A disturbed gut microbiota composition is often associated with a number of health disorders including immune-mediated diseases. Differences in host characteristics such as ethnicity, living habit and diet have been used to explain differences in the gut microbiota composition in inter-continental comparison studies. As our previous studies imply that daily skin contact with organic gardening materials modify gut microflora, here we investigated the association between living environment and gut microbiota in a homogenous western population along an urban-rural gradient. We obtained stool samples from 48 native elderly Finns in province Hame in August and November 2015 and identified the bacterial phylotypes using 16S rRNA Illumina MiSeq sequencing. We assumed that yard vegetation and land cover classes surrounding homes explain the stool bacterial community in generalized linear mixed models. Diverse yard vegetation was associated with a reduced abundance of Clostridium sensu stricto and an increased abundance of Faecalibacterium and Prevotellaceae. The abundance of Bacteroides was positively and strongly associated with the built environment. Exclusion of animal owners did not alter the main associations. These results suggest that diverse vegetation around homes is associated with health-related changes in gut microbiota composition. Manipulation of the garden diversity, possibly jointly with urban planning, is a promising candidate for future intervention studies that aim to maintain gut homeostasis. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.Peer reviewe

Genetic association study of QT interval highlights role for calcium signaling pathways in myocardial repolarization.

The QT interval, an electrocardiographic measure reflecting myocardial repolarization, is a heritable trait. QT prolongation is a risk factor for ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death (SCD) and could indicate the presence of the potentially lethal mendelian long-QT syndrome (LQTS). Using a genome-wide association and replication study in up to 100,000 individuals, we identified 35 common variant loci associated with QT interval that collectively explain ∼8-10% of QT-interval variation and highlight the importance of calcium regulation in myocardial repolarization. Rare variant analysis of 6 new QT interval-associated loci in 298 unrelated probands with LQTS identified coding variants not found in controls but of uncertain causality and therefore requiring validation. Several newly identified loci encode proteins that physically interact with other recognized repolarization proteins. Our integration of common variant association, expression and orthogonal protein-protein interaction screens provides new insights into cardiac electrophysiology and identifies new candidate genes for ventricular arrhythmias, LQTS and SCD

Omaopettajaohjauksen merkityksiä ja kyseenalaistamisia kiinnittymisen viitekehyksessä

Tiivistelmä Yliopisto-opiskelijoiden omaopettajaohjaus on oppiaineen asiantuntijan ohjauksellista, kiinnittymiseen tähtäävää vuorovaikutusta opiskelijan kanssa. Tämänkaltaisen ohjauksen merkitysten tutkimuksessa opiskelijoiden näkökulma on vallitseva ja merkitysten kyseenalaistaminen vähän tutkittu aihe. Ohjauksessa syntyvät merkitykset konstruoidaan yhteisesti, jolloin myös ohjaajan näkökulma on tärkeä. Artikkeli esittelee tutkimuksen omaopettajien näkökulmasta omaopettajaohjauksen merkityksiin, niiden kyseenalaistamisiin sekä kyseenalaistamisten lähteisiin holistisessa kiinnittymisen mallissa. Kahdeksan fysiikan omaopettajan puolistrukturoidun haastattelun aineisto- ja teorialähteisen analyysin yhdistelmänä syntyi kaksitoista omaopettajaohjauksen merkitystä ja viisi kyseenalaistamista. Valitussa kiinnittymisen mallissa ne liittyivät pääasiassa yliopiston rakenteellisiin vaikutteisiin, yliopiston ja opiskelijan sosiopsykologisiin vaikutteisiin, sekä opiskelijan behavioristiseen kiinnittymiseen. Tulosten mukaiset omaopettajaohjauksen merkitykset rajautuvat alueille, joilla valitun mallin mukaan on vaikutusta opiskelijan kiinnittymiseen. Kiinnittymiseen mahdollisesti vaikuttavia osa-alueita jäi myös merkitysten ulkopuolelle, mikä nostetaan esiin pohdinnassa. Kyseenalaistamisia tutkimalla löydettiin merkitysten ristiriitoja, joiden kautta päästään kiinni omaopettajaohjauksen kehittämiseen kiinnittymistä tukevaksi, kiinnittymisen kritiikki huomioiden.Abstract Tutor teaching of university students is an engagement aiming counceling interaction between a professional of a discipline and a student. In previous studies about the meanings of similar counceling the perspective of the student seems dominant and the questioning of the meanings seems lacking. As the meanings of counceling are constructed together, the perspective of the councelor is important as well. In this article, the meanings of tutor teaching, the questioning of these meanings and the sources of the questionings are being examined, from the perspective of tutor teachers within a holistic model of engagement. Semistructured interviews of eight university physics tutor teachers were analyzed with inductive and deductive content analysis, resulting in twelve categories of meanings and five of questionings. Within the chosen model of engagement, they were mostly connected to structural influences of university, the sociopsychological influences of university and student, and the behavioral engagement of the student. The resulting meanings of tutor teaching were limited to sections, which according to the chosen model affect student engagement. Some engagement effective sections were left outside the meanings, which is brought up in the discussion. By examining the questionings, conflicts of meanings were found, through which the development of tutor teaching towards better supporting engagement is commented, acknowledging the critique of engagement

Early probiotic supplementation and the risk of celiac disease in children at genetic risk

Abstract Probiotics are linked to positive regulatory effects on the immune system. The aim of the study was to examine the association between the exposure of probiotics via dietary supplements or via infant formula by the age of 1 year and the development of celiac disease autoimmunity (CDA) and celiac disease among a cohort of 6520 genetically susceptible children. Use of probiotics during the first year of life was reported by 1460 children. Time-to-event analysis was used to examine the associations. Overall exposure of probiotics during the first year of life was not associated with either CDA (n = 1212) (HR 1.15; 95%CI 0.99, 1.35; p = 0.07) or celiac disease (n = 455) (HR 1.11; 95%CI 0.86, 1.43; p = 0.43) when adjusting for known risk factors. Intake of probiotic dietary supplements, however, was associated with a slightly increased risk of CDA (HR 1.18; 95%CI 1.00, 1.40; p = 0.043) compared to children who did not get probiotics. It was concluded that the overall exposure of probiotics during the first year of life was not associated with CDA or celiac disease in children at genetic risk