Comparison of soybean Cultivars enriching Cd and the application foreground of the low-accumulating Cultivar in production

Contaminated soil collected from an agricultural field was used to compare Cd enrichment among 20 soybean cultivars to explore their application foregrounds in safe production. The results showed that Cd concentration in beans of 20 soybean cultivars was from 0.23 mg kg-1 to 2.33 mg kg-1 when Cd concentration in soil was 1.98 mg kg-1. Cd enrichment factors of 19 cultivars were lower than 1. Cd translocation factors of all cultivars were lower than 1. As for background soil with 0.15 mg kg-1 Cd, the concentrations of Cd in beans of two soybean cultivars were higher than 0.10 mg kg-1 (an agricultural trade standard of non-pollution food for soybean of China, NY5310-2005). Thus, the use of a low-accumulation soybean cultivar in Cd-contaminated soil should be done carefully and with reserve. Keywords: Cd, soybean cultivar, enrichment factor, phytoremediation, safe productio

The emergence of cardiometabolic disease risk in Chinese children and adults: consequences of changes in diet, physical activity and obesity: Cardiometabolic disease risk in China

Strong secular declines in physical activity, increased fat and salt intake, and increased obesity, especially abdominal obesity, mark China's recent nutrition transition. The China Health and Nutrition 2009 Survey collected anthropometry, blood pressure, and fasting blood samples from more than 9,000 individuals ≥ seven years of age. We focus on elevated blood pressure and plasma markers of diabetes, inflammation, and dyslipidemia. We used international definitions of cardiometabolic risk and estimated age- and sex-specific prevalence ratios for each outcome for high waist circumference or overweight. We used logistic regression to assess each risk factor's association with diet, physical activity, overweight, and abdominal obesity. Cardiometabolic risk prevalence was high in all age groups Prevalence ratios for most risk factors were nearly doubled for overweight or high waist circumference groups. Prevalence ratios were higher in younger than older adults. Low physical activity consistently predicted higher cardiometabolic risk across most outcomes and age-sex groups. The co-occurrence of overweight and high waist circumference was highly predictive of dyslipidemia, elevated glycated hemoglobin, and diabetes. High prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors and their strong association with weight status and abdominal obesity in young adults portend increases in cardiometabolic morbidity and mortality. Early interventions will be required to reverse trends

In vitro Evidence That Combination Therapy With CD16-Bearing NK-92 Cells and FDA-Approved Alefacept Can Selectively Target the Latent HIV Reservoir in CD4+ CD2hi Memory T Cells

Elimination of the latent HIV reservoir remains the biggest hurdle to achieve HIV cure. In order to specifically eliminate HIV infected cells they must be distinguishable from uninfected cells. CD2 was recently identified as a potential marker enriched in the HIV-1 reservoir on CD4+ T cells, the largest, longest-lived and best-characterized constituent of the HIV reservoir. We previously proposed to repurpose FDA-approved alefacept, a humanized α-CD2 fusion protein, to reduce the HIV reservoir in CD2hi CD4+ memory T cells. Here, we show the first evidence that alefacept can specifically target and reduce CD2hi HIV infected cells in vitro. We explore a variety of natural killer (NK) cells as mediators of antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) including primary NK cells, expanded NK cells as well as the CD16 transduced NK-92 cell line which is currently under study in clinical trials as a treatment for cancer. We demonstrate that CD16.NK-92 has a natural preference to kill CD2hi CD45RA– memory T cells, specifically CD45RA– CD27+ central memory/transitional memory (TCM/TM) subset in both healthy and HIV+ patient samples as well as to reduce HIV DNA from HIV+ samples from donors well controlled on antiretroviral therapy. Lastly, alefacept can combine with CD16.NK-92 to decrease HIV DNA in some patient samples and thus may yield value as part of a strategy toward sustained HIV remission

Unravelling the effects of age, period and cohort on metabolic syndrome components in a Taiwanese population using partial least squares regression

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We investigate whether the changing environment caused by rapid economic growth yielded differential effects for successive Taiwanese generations on 8 components of metabolic syndrome (MetS): body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), Low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and uric acid (UA).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To assess the impact of age, birth year and year of examination on MetS components, we used partial least squares regression to analyze data collected by Mei-Jaw clinics in Taiwan in years 1996 and 2006. Confounders, such as the number of years in formal education, alcohol intake, smoking history status, and betel-nut chewing were adjusted for.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>As the age of individuals increased, the values of components generally increased except for UA. Men born after 1970 had lower FPG, lower BMI, lower DBP, lower TG, Lower LDL and greater HDL; women born after 1970 had lower BMI, lower DBP, lower TG, Lower LDL and greater HDL and UA. There is a similar pattern between the trend in levels of metabolic syndrome components against birth year of birth and economic growth in Taiwan.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We found cohort effects in some MetS components, suggesting associations between the changing environment and health outcomes in later life. This ecological association is worthy of further investigation.</p

Changes in the amount of nutrient of packaged foods and beverages after the initial implementation of the Chilean Law of Food Labelling and Advertising: A nonexperimental prospective study

BACKGROUND: In June 2016, the first phase of the Chilean Food Labelling and Advertising Law that mandated front-of-package warning labels and marketing restrictions for unhealthy foods and beverages was implemented. We assess foods and beverages reformulation after this initial implementation. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A data set with the 2015 to 2017 nutritional information was developed collecting the information at 2 time periods: preimplementation (T0: January-February 2015 or 2016; n = 4,055) and postimplementation (T1: January-February 2017; n = 3,025). Quartiles of energy and nutrients of concern (total sugars, saturated fats, and sodium, per 100 g/100 mL) and the proportion of products with energy and nutrients exceeding the cutoffs of the law (i.e., products "high in") were compared pre- and postimplementation of the law in cross-sectional samples of products with sales >1% of their specific food or beverage groups, according to the Euromonitor International Database; a longitudinal subsample (i.e., products collected in both the pre- and postimplementation periods, n = 1,915) was also analyzed. Chi-squared, McNemar tests, and quantile regressions (simple and multilevel) were used for comparing T0 and T1. Cross-sectional analysis showed a significant decrease (T0 versus T1) in the proportion of product with any "high in" (from 51% [95% confidence interval (CI) 49-52] to 44% [95% CI 42-45]), mostly in food and beverage groups in which regulatory cutoffs were below the 75th percentile of the nutrient or energy distribution. Most frequent reductions were in the proportion of "high in" sugars products (in beverages, milks and milk-based drinks, breakfast cereals, sweet baked products, and sweet and savory spreads; from 80% [95% CI 73-86] to 60% [95% CI 51-69]) and in "high in sodium" products (in savory spreads, cheeses, ready-to-eat meals, soups, and sausages; from 74% [95% CI 69-78] to 27% [95% CI 20-35]). Conversely, the proportion of products "high in" saturated fats only decreased in savory spreads (p < 0.01), and the proportion of "high in" energy products significantly decreased among breakfast cereals and savory spreads (both p < 0.01). Quantile analyses showed that most of the changes took place close to the cutoff values, with only few exceptions of overall left shifts in distribution. Longitudinal analyses showed similar results. However, it is important to note that the nonexperimental nature of this study does not allow to imply causality of these findings. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that, after initial implementation of the Chilean Law of Food Labelling and Advertising, there was a significant decrease in the amount of sugars and sodium in several groups of packaged foods and beverages. Further studies should clarify how food reformulation will impact dietary quality of the population

Longitudinal associations of away-from-home eating, snacking, screen time, and physical activity behaviors with cardiometabolic risk factors among Chinese children and their parents

Background: Little is known about intergenerational differences in associations of urbanization-related lifestyle behaviors with cardiometabolic risk factors in children and their parents in rapidly urbanizing China

The expanding burden of cardiometabolic risk in China: the China Health and Nutrition Survey: Cardiometabolic risk in China

China faces a major increase in cardiovascular disease, yet there is limited population-based data on risk factors, particularly in children

Pitfalls of the self-regulation of advertisements directed at children on Mexican television

Background: There are no academic studies that characterize advertisements directed at children from the companies that signed the self-regulation. Objective: The aim of this paper was to assess the extent and nature of food advertisements and the persuasive techniques used to market unhealthy food and beverages (UFB) to children, by signatory companies of self-regulation. Methods: From December 2012 to April 2013, 600 h of programming were recorded on the four broadcast public television channels in Mexico with the highest rating nationwide. Marketing aimed at children directly (broadcast on children's programmes or advertisements with a specific appeal to children) or indirectly (aimed at other target audiences with messages or scenes that link children to the product) were considered. Results: About 74.9% (2148) of the total food and beverage advertisements tried to influence children directly and indirectly. Companies, which had signed the self-regulation, focused 92.7% of their advertisements on UFB. Of the total number, 23.9% were aimed at children, 7.1% at adolescents, 12.5% at parents and 56.2% at the general public. Most of these advertisements were broadcast on movies (29.8%), cartoons (18%), soap operas (17.6%), entertainment shows (17.2%) and sports programs (6.4%). Conclusion: Despite the self-regulation of television marketing, children were surrounded by UFB advertisements. Signatory companies influence children indirectly by targeting other audiences and by marketing during family television programs, which are also watched by children

Obesity and nutrition behaviours in Western and Palestinian outpatients with severe mental illness

Extent: 7p.Background: While people with severe mental illness have been found to be more overweight and obese in Western nations, it is unknown to what extent this occurs in Middle Eastern nations and which eating behaviours contribute to obesity in Middle Eastern nations. Method: A total of 665 responses were obtained from patients with serious mental illness attending out-patient clinics in Western developed countries (Germany, UK and Australia; n = 518) and Palestine (n = 147). Patients were evaluated by ICD-10 clinical diagnosis, anthropometric measurements and completed a self-report measure of frequencies of consuming different food items and reasons for eating. Nutritional habits were compared against a Western normative group. Results: More participants from Palestine were overweight or obese (62%) compared to Western countries (47%). In the Western sample, obese patients reported consuming more low-fat products (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.02-6.33) but also greater eating due to negative emotions (OR 1.84, 95% CI 1.31-2.60) than patients with a healthy body-mass index. In contrast, obese patients from Palestine reported increased consumption of unhealthy snacks (OR 3.73 95% CI 1.16-12.00). Conclusion: Patients with mental illness have poorer nutritional habits than the general population, particularly in Western nations. Separate interventions to improve nutritional habits and reduce obesity are warranted between Western nations and Palestine.David Jakabek, Frances Quirk, Martin Driessen, Yousef Aljeesh and Bernhard T Baun

Infant BMI trajectories are associated with young adult body composition

The dynamic aspect of early life growth is not fully captured by typical analyses, which focus on one specific time period. To better understand how infant and young child growth relate to the development of adult body composition, the authors characterized body mass index (BMI) trajectories using latent class growth analysis (LCGA) and evaluated their association with adult body composition. Data are from the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Survey, which followed a birth cohort to age 22 years (n=1749). In both males and females, LCGA identified seven subgroups of respondents with similar BMI trajectories from 0 to 24 months (assessed with bimonthly anthropometrics). Trajectory groups were compared with conventional approaches: (1) accelerated growth between two time points (0–4 months), (2) continuous BMI gain between two points (0–4 months and 0–24 months) and (3) BMI measured at one time point (24 months) as predictors of young adult body composition measures. The seven trajectory groups were distinguished by age-specific differences in tempo and timing of BMI gain in infancy. Infant BMI trajectories were better than accelerated BMI gain between 0 and 4 months at predicting young adult body composition. After controlling for BMI at age 2 years, infant BMI trajectories still explained variation in adult body composition. Using unique longitudinal data and methods, we find that distinct infant BMI trajectories have long-term implications for the development of body composition