Artificially sweetened beverages and the response to the global obesity crisis

In March 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) published revised guidelines on sugar intake that call on national governments to institute policies to reduce sugar intake and increase the scope for regulation of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). • In face of the growing threat of regulatory action on SSBs, transnational beverage companies are responding in multiple ways, including investing in the formulation and sales of artificially sweetened beverages (ASBs), promoted as healthier alternatives to SSBs. • The absence of consistent evidence to support the role of ASBs in preventing weight gain and the lack of studies on other long-term effects on health strengthen the position that ASBs should not be promoted as part of a healthy diet. • The promotion of ASBs must be discussed in a broader context of the additional potential impacts on health and the environment. In addition, a more robust evidence base, free of conflicts of interest, is needed

Paracentral acute middle maculopathy after uneventful ocular surgery with local anaesthetic blocks

OBJECTIVE: To describe the role of local anaesthetic blocks as a potential cause of paracentral acute middle maculopathy (PAMM) after uneventful ocular surgery. METHODS: Retrospective, observational, international, multicentre case series. Nine cases of PAMM with associated visual loss following uneventful ocular surgery with local anaesthetic blocks were observed in a 9-year period (2011-2020). Demographic, ocular and systemic data, anaesthetic data and surgical details were collected. Visual acuity (VA), fundus photography, fluorescein angiography, optical coherence tomography (OCT) and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images were reviewed. RESULTS: All nine cases were associated with decreased VA at 24 h postoperative check (ranging from hand movement to 20/200). A hyperreflective band within the middle retinal layers was observed in the structural OCT in the acute phase, evolving to thinning and atrophy of the inner retinal layers in sequential follow-up scans performed. Fluorescein angiography showed delayed perfusion in early arterial phase with normal perfusion in late venous phases. OCTA showed decreased perfusion in the deep capillary plexus. Visual recovery was variable between cases during follow-up (ranging from count fingers to 20/20). CONCLUSIONS: A combination of a vasoconstrictive effect of the anaesthetic agent, an intraocular pressure spike and a mechanical effect of the volume of anaesthetic injected may result in decreased retinal artery perfusion and be evidenced as PAMM in OCT scans. PAMM may present as a potential complication of local anaesthetic blocks in cases of unexpected visual loss after uneventful ocular surgery

Mesenteric panniculitis with pedal edema in a 33-year-old Pakistani man: a case report and literature review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Mesenteric panniculitis is a rare pathology of unknown etiology characterized by inflammation and fibrosis in the mesentery. Its protean clinical and radiological manifestations make it a diagnostic challenge. There is no established treatment available for its management. The clinical outcome is inconsistent, with the prognosis ranging from complete resolution without any treatment to rapid progression culminating in death.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 33-year-old Pakistani man presented with vague abdominal pain, an ill-defined epigastric mass and bilateral pedal edema. A detailed review of his history and laboratory investigations did not point to any diagnosis. The patient underwent an exploratory laparotomy based on the finding of mesenteric soft-tissue density on computed tomography. The laparotomy did not prove to be of any diagnostic or therapeutic value. Upon review of the pre-operative computed tomographic scan at our institution, a diagnosis of mesenteric panniculitis was made. An acceptable resolution of abdominal pain and pedal edema was attained after a 4-week trial of immunosuppressive therapy. This is the first reported case of mesenteric panniculitis with pedal edema as part of its presentation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>An increased awareness may lead to the development of a less invasive diagnostic approach and optimal treatment for this rarely recognized condition.</p

Problematic smartphone use and academic achievement: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background and aims: The present study aimed to synthesize existing quantitative evidence on the relationship between problematic smartphone use (PSU) and academic achievement with a focus on quantifying its magnitude and examining its potential moderators. Methods: Eligible studies were searched for up to February 10, 2023 in six different databases (i.e., MEDLINE, Current Contents Connect, PsycINFO, Web of Science, SciELO, and Dissertations & Theses Global). Studies were considered eligible if they provided information derived from self-report instruments that allowed statistical calculation of the relationship between PSU and academic achievement. Pooled effect sizes (r) were computed using a random-effects model. Meta-regressions were conducted to test the influence of study-level moderators on the relationship of interest. Influence analyses and a three-parameter selection model (3PSM) were conducted to examine the robustness of the results and publication bias, respectively. Results: A total of 33 effect sizes from 29 studies (n = 48,490) were retrieved. Results showed a small effect size (r = −0.110), which tended to be larger in samples consisting of students from elementary and middle schools. Discussion and Conclusions: Findings from the present study contribute to the understanding of a potential determinant of decreased academic achievement by providing evidence that PSU may be one of them

Induction of androgenesis and production of haploid embryos in anther cultures of borage (Borago officinalis L.)

[EN] Borage (Borago officinalis L.) is an important medicinal plant with different culinary, pharmaceutical and industrial properties. Unfortunately, there are no published reports on the establishment of protocols to produce DHs in this species up to now. In this work, we show for the first time the induction of borage microspores to become embryogenic calli, from which haploid embryos are produced. In addition, we evaluated the effect of using different flower bud sizes, carbon sources, concentrations of 2,4-D and BAP, cold (4 A degrees C) pretreatments and heat shock treatments. Production of total calli, embryogenic calli and callus-derived embryos was differently affected by the different parameters studied. Our results showed that the use of 5-7 mm-long flower buds, a cold (4 A degrees C) pretreatment during 4 days, a 32 A degrees C heat shock for 3 days, and the addition of 3 % maltose and 2 mgl(-1) 2,4-D and 1 mgl(-1) BAP to the culture medium, was beneficial for embryo production. Overall, this work demonstrates that DH technology is possible in borage, and opens the door for future improvements needed to finally obtain borage DH plants.Eshaghi, ZC.; Abdollahi, MR.; Moosavi, SS.; Deljou, A.; Seguí-Simarro, JM. (2015). Induction of androgenesis and production of haploid embryos in anther cultures of borage (Borago officinalis L.). Plant Cell, Tissue and Organ Culture. 122:321-329. doi:10.1007/s11240-015-0768-5S321329122Abdollahi MR, Moieni A, Javaran MJ (2004) Interactive effects of shock and culture density on embryo induction in isolated microspore culture of Brassica napus L. cv. 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Influence of climatic variables on crown condition in pine forests of Northern Spain

Producción CientíficaThe aim of this study was to find relationships between crown condition and some climatic parameters to identify which are those having a main influence on crown condition, and how this influence is shown in the tree (crown transparency), and to contribute to the understanding of how these parameters will affect under future climate change scenarios

Molecular crowding defines a common origin for the Warburg effect in proliferating cells and the lactate threshold in muscle physiology

Aerobic glycolysis is a seemingly wasteful mode of ATP production that is seen both in rapidly proliferating mammalian cells and highly active contracting muscles, but whether there is a common origin for its presence in these widely different systems is unknown. To study this issue, here we develop a model of human central metabolism that incorporates a solvent capacity constraint of metabolic enzymes and mitochondria, accounting for their occupied volume densities, while assuming glucose and/or fatty acid utilization. The model demonstrates that activation of aerobic glycolysis is favored above a threshold metabolic rate in both rapidly proliferating cells and heavily contracting muscles, because it provides higher ATP yield per volume density than mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. In the case of muscle physiology, the model also predicts that before the lactate switch, fatty acid oxidation increases, reaches a maximum, and then decreases to zero with concomitant increase in glucose utilization, in agreement with the empirical evidence. These results are further corroborated by a larger scale model, including biosynthesis of major cell biomass components. The larger scale model also predicts that in proliferating cells the lactate switch is accompanied by activation of glutaminolysis, another distinctive feature of the Warburg effect. In conclusion, intracellular molecular crowding is a fundamental constraint for cell metabolism in both rapidly proliferating- and non-proliferating cells with high metabolic demand. Addition of this constraint to metabolic flux balance models can explain several observations of mammalian cell metabolism under steady state conditions

Scale-invariant avalanche dynamics in the temperature-driven martensitic transition of a Cu-Al-Be single crystal

We have combined high sensitivity, extra-low differential temperature scanning rate calorimetry, and acoustic emission (AE) measurements to study avalanches during the cubic ↔ 18R martensitic transition of a Cu-Al-Be single crystalline shape memory alloy. Both AE and calorimetry corroborate a good power-law behavior for cooling with an exponent ɛ ≃ 1.6 . For heating, a slope is observed in the maximum likelihood curves, which confirms that our data are affected by an exponential cutoff. An effective energy exponent, ɛ ∼ 1.85 , and a cutoff, λ − 1 = 0.115 ( 38 ) × 10 − 3 aJ , were determined by fits of power-laws with exponential damping. The long tail observed in the low-temperature region by calorimetric measurements suggests the existence of significant elastic effects that constrain the progress of the transformation at low temperatures. While thermodynamic features such as transformation enthalpy and entropy are those expected for Cu-based shape-memory alloys undergoing a cubic ↔ 18R transition, the critical behavior deviates from the corresponding behavior expected from this symmetry change. These deviations are a consequence of the elastic hardening induced by the interplay of the transformation with dislocation jamming, which has the effect of effectively reducing the number of pathways connecting the parent and martensitic phase.EPSR

Molecular evolution of HoxA13 and the multiple origins of limbless morphologies in amphibians and reptiles

Developmental processes and their results, morphological characters, are inherited through transmission of genes regulating development. While there is ample evidence that cis-regulatory elements tend to be modular, with sequence segments dedicated to different roles, the situation for proteins is less clear, being particularly complex for transcription factors with multiple functions. Some motifs mediating protein-protein interactions may be exclusive to particular developmental roles, but it is also possible that motifs are mostly shared among different processes. Here we focus on HoxA13, a protein essential for limb development. We asked whether the HoxA13 amino acid sequence evolved similarly in three limbless clades: Gymnophiona, Amphisbaenia and Serpentes. We explored variation in ω (dN/dS) using a maximum-likelihood framework and HoxA13sequences from 47 species. Comparisons of evolutionary models provided low ω global values and no evidence that HoxA13 experienced relaxed selection in limbless clades. Branch-site models failed to detect evidence for positive selection acting on any site along branches of Amphisbaena and Gymnophiona, while three sites were identified in Serpentes. Examination of alignments did not reveal consistent sequence differences between limbed and limbless species. We conclude that HoxA13 has no modules exclusive to limb development, which may be explained by its involvement in multiple developmental processes