Effectiveness of an mHealth intervention combining a smartphone app and smart band on body composition in an overweight and obese population: Randomized controlled trial (EVIDENT 3 study)

Background: Mobile health (mHealth) is currently among the supporting elements that may contribute to an improvement in health markers by helping people adopt healthier lifestyles. mHealth interventions have been widely reported to achieve greater weight loss than other approaches, but their effect on body composition remains unclear. Objective: This study aimed to assess the short-term (3 months) effectiveness of a mobile app and a smart band for losing weight and changing body composition in sedentary Spanish adults who are overweight or obese. Methods: A randomized controlled, multicenter clinical trial was conducted involving the participation of 440 subjects from primary care centers, with 231 subjects in the intervention group (IG; counselling with smartphone app and smart band) and 209 in the control group (CG; counselling only). Both groups were counselled about healthy diet and physical activity. For the 3-month intervention period, the IG was trained to use a smartphone app that involved self-monitoring and tailored feedback, as well as a smart band that recorded daily physical activity (Mi Band 2, Xiaomi). Body composition was measured using the InBody 230 bioimpedance device (InBody Co., Ltd), and physical activity was measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Results: The mHealth intervention produced a greater loss of body weight (–1.97 kg, 95% CI –2.39 to –1.54) relative to standard counselling at 3 months (–1.13 kg, 95% CI –1.56 to –0.69). Comparing groups, the IG achieved a weight loss of 0.84 kg more than the CG at 3 months. The IG showed a decrease in body fat mass (BFM; –1.84 kg, 95% CI –2.48 to –1.20), percentage of body fat (PBF; –1.22%, 95% CI –1.82% to 0.62%), and BMI (–0.77 kg/m2, 95% CI –0.96 to 0.57). No significant changes were observed in any of these parameters in men; among women, there was a significant decrease in BMI in the IG compared with the CG. When subjects were grouped according to baseline BMI, the overweight group experienced a change in BFM of –1.18 kg (95% CI –2.30 to –0.06) and BMI of –0.47 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.80 to –0.13), whereas the obese group only experienced a change in BMI of –0.53 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.86 to –0.19). When the data were analyzed according to physical activity, the moderate-vigorous physical activity group showed significant changes in BFM of –1.03 kg (95% CI –1.74 to –0.33), PBF of –0.76% (95% CI –1.32% to –0.20%), and BMI of –0.5 kg/m2 (95% CI –0.83 to –0.19). Conclusions: The results from this multicenter, randomized controlled clinical trial study show that compared with standard counselling alone, adding a self-reported app and a smart band obtained beneficial results in terms of weight loss and a reduction in BFM and PBF in female subjects with a BMI less than 30 kg/m2 and a moderate-vigorous physical activity level. Nevertheless, further studies are needed to ensure that this profile benefits more than others from this intervention and to investigate modifications of this intervention to achieve a global effect

X chromosome inactivation does not necessarily determine the severity of the phenotype in Rett syndrome patients

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurological disorder usually caused by mutations in the MECP2 gene. Since the MECP2 gene is located on the X chromosome, X chromosome inactivation (XCI) could play a role in the wide range of phenotypic variation of RTT patients; however, classical methylation-based protocols to evaluate XCI could not determine whether the preferentially inactivated X chromosome carried the mutant or the wild-type allele. Therefore, we developed an allele-specific methylation-based assay to evaluate methylation at the loci of several recurrent MECP2 mutations. We analyzed the XCI patterns in the blood of 174 RTT patients, but we did not find a clear correlation between XCI and the clinical presentation. We also compared XCI in blood and brain cortex samples of two patients and found differences between XCI patterns in these tissues. However, RTT mainly being a neurological disease complicates the establishment of a correlation between the XCI in blood and the clinical presentation of the patients. Furthermore, we analyzed MECP2 transcript levels and found differences from the expected levels according to XCI. Many factors other than XCI could affect the RTT phenotype, which in combination could influence the clinical presentation of RTT patients to a greater extent than slight variations in the XCI pattern

A greenhouse method to screen brachiariagrass genotypes for aluminum resistance and root vigor

Brachiaria species are widely sown on the infertile and Al-toxic soils of neotropical savannas. Breeding programs seek to combine edaphic adaptation with other traits in interspecific hybrids. Edaphic adaptation is difficult to assess because it is only manifest in pasture persistence across several growing seasons. We developed and validated a solution-culture technique that uses rooted vegetative propagules from mature plants to assess two key components of edaphic adaptation: root vigor and Al resistance. Root vigor was assessed by measuring growth of adventitious root systems in 200 ?M CaCl2 (pH 4.2). Aluminum resistance was assessed by comparing root growth in this solution vs. root growth in an identical solution that also contained 200 ?M AlCl3 The well-adapted parent (Brachiaria decumbens Stapf cv. Basilisk) was superior to the less-adapted parent (B. ruziziensis Germain & Evrad clone 44-02), and both traits segregated as expected in a set of 44-02 × Basilisk hybrids. A simplified version of this technique, which exclusively relies on visual inspection, has been implemented in our breeding program to facilitate progress toward edaphic adaptation

Specificity of Class II Hsp40 Sis1 in Maintenance of Yeast Prion [RNQ(+)]

Sis1 and Ydj1, functionally distinct heat shock protein (Hsp)40 molecular chaperones of the yeast cytosol, are homologs of Hdj1 and Hdj2 of mammalian cells, respectively. Sis1 is necessary for propagation of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae prion [RNQ(+)]; Ydj1 is not. The ability to function in [RNQ(+)] maintenance has been conserved, because Hdj1 can function to maintain Rnq1 in an aggregated form in place of Sis1, but Hdj2 cannot. An extended glycine-rich region of Sis1, composed of a region rich in phenylalanine residues (G/F) and another rich in methionine residues (G/M), is critical for prion maintenance. Single amino acid alterations in a short stretch of amino acids of the G/F region of Sis1 that are absent in the otherwise highly conserved G/F region of Ydj1 cause defects in prion maintenance. However, there is some functional redundancy within the glycine-rich regions of Sis1, because a deletion of the adjacent glycine/methionine (G/M) region was somewhat defective in propagation of [RNQ(+)] as well. These results are consistent with a model in which the glycine-rich regions of Hsp40s contain specific determinants of function manifested through interaction with Hsp70s

R&D studies of a RICH detector using pressurized C4F8O radiator gas and a CsI-based gaseous photon detector

We report on studies of layout and performance of a new Ring Imaging Cherenkov detector using for the fi rst time pressurized C 4 F 8 O radiator gas and a photon detector consisting of a MWPC equipped with a CsI photocathode. In particular, we present here the results of beam tests of a MWPC having an adjustable anode – cathode gap, aiming at the optimization of single photoelectron detection and Cherenkov angle resolution. This system was proposed as a Very High Momentum Particle Identi fi cation (VHMPID) upgrade for the ALICE experiment at LHC to provide charged hadron track-by-track identi fi cation in the momentum range 5 – 25 GeV/c

R&D studies of a RICH detector using pressurized C4_{4}F8_{8}O radiator gas and a CsI-based gaseous photon detector

We report on studies of layout and performance of a new Ring Imaging Cherenkov detector using for the fi rst time pressurized C 4 F 8 O radiator gas and a photon detector consisting of a MWPC equipped with a CsI photocathode. In particular, we present here the results of beam tests of a MWPC having an adjustable anode – cathode gap, aiming at the optimization of single photoelectron detection and Cherenkov angle resolution. This system was proposed as a Very High Momentum Particle Identi fi cation (VHMPID) upgrade for the ALICE experiment at LHC to provide charged hadron track-by-track identi fi cation in the momentum range 5 – 25 GeV/c