Dietary fat intake as a risk factor for the development of diabetes. Multinational, multicenter study of the Mediterranean Group for the Study of Diabetes (MGDS)

In the context of the Multinational MGSD Nutrition Study, three groups of subjects were studied: 204 subjects with recently diagnosed diabetes(RDM),42subjectswithundiagnoseddiabetes(UDM)(AmericanDiabetesAssociation criteria—fasting plasma glucose [FPG] 126 mg/dl), and 55 subjects with impaired fasting glucose(IFG)(FPG 110and126mg/dl).Eachgroupwascomparedwithacontrolgroupof nondiabetic subjects, matched one by one for center, sex, age, and BMI. Nutritional habits were evaluated by a dietary history method, validated against the 3-day diet diary. In RDM, the questionnaire referred to the nutritional habits before the diagnosis of diabetes. Demographic data were collected, and anthropometrical and biochemical measurements were taken. RESULTS— Compared with control subjects, RDM more frequently had a family history of diabetes(49.0vs.14.2%;P0.001),exercisedless(exerciseindex53.5vs.64.4;P0.01),and more frequently had sedentary professions (47.5 vs. 27.4%; P 0.001). Carbohydrates contributed less to their energy intake (53.5 vs. 55.1%; P 0.05), whereas total fat (30.2 0.5 vs. 27.8 0.5%; P 0.001) and animal fat (12.2 0.3 vs. 10.8 0.3%; P 0.01) contributed moreandtheplant-to-animalfatratiowaslower(1.50.1vs.1.80.1;P0.01).UDMmore frequentlyhadafamilyhistoryofdiabetes(38.1vs.19.0%;P0.05)andsedentaryprofessions (58.5vs.34.1%;P0.05),carbohydratescontributedlesstotheirenergyintake(47.61.7vs. 52.81.4%;P0.05),totalfat(34.71.5vs.30.41.2%;P0.05)andanimalfat(14.2 0.9 vs. 10.6 0.7%; P 0.05) contributed more, and the plant-to-animal fat ratio was lower (1.6 0.2 vs. 2.3 0.4; P 0.05). IFG differed only in the prevalence of family history of diabetes (32.7 vs. 16.4%; P 0.05). CONCLUSIONS— Our data support the view that increased animal fat intake is associated with the presence of diabetes

Function of von Willebrand factor after crossed bone marrow transplantation between normal and von Willebrand disease pigs: effect on arterial thrombosis in chimeras.

von Willebrand factor (vWF) is essential for the induction of occlusive thrombosis in stenosed and injured pig arteries and for normal hemostasis. To separate the relative contribution of plasma and platelet vWF to arterial thrombosis, we produced chimeric normal and von Willebrand disease pigs by crossed bone marrow transplantation; von Willebrand disease (vWD) pigs were engrafted with normal pig bone marrow and normal pigs were engrafted with vWD bone marrow. Thrombosis developed in the chimeric normal pigs that showed normal levels of plasma vWF and an absence of platelet vWF; but no thrombosis occurred in the chimeric vWD pigs that demonstrated normal platelet vWF and an absence of plasma vWF. The ear bleeding times of the chimeric pigs were partially corrected by endogenous plasma vWF but not by platelet vWF. Our animal model demonstrated that vWF in the plasma compartment is essential for the development of arterial thrombosis and that it also contributes to the maintenance of bleeding time and hemostasis

The Na+/H+ Exchanger Controls Deoxycholic Acid-Induced Apoptosis by a H+-Activated, Na+-Dependent Ionic Shift in Esophageal Cells

Apoptosis resistance is a hallmark of cancer cells. Typically, bile acids induce apoptosis. However during gastrointestinal (GI) tumorigenesis the cancer cells develop resistance to bile acid-induced cell death. To understand how bile acids induce apoptosis resistance we first need to identify the molecular pathways that initiate apoptosis in response to bile acid exposure. In this study we examined the mechanism of deoxycholic acid (DCA)-induced apoptosis, specifically the role of Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE) and Na+ influx in esophageal cells. In vitro studies revealed that the exposure of esophageal cells (JH-EsoAd1, CP-A) to DCA (0.2 mM -0.5 mM) caused lysosomal membrane perturbation and transient cytoplasmic acidification. Fluorescence microscopy in conjunction with atomic absorption spectrophotometry demonstrated that this effect on lysosomes correlated with influx of Na+, subsequent loss of intracellular K+, an increase of Ca2+ and apoptosis. However, ethylisopropyl-amiloride (EIPA), a selective inhibitor of NHE, prevented Na+, K+ and Ca2+ changes and caspase 3/7 activation induced by DCA. Ouabain and amphotericin B, two drugs that increase intracellular Na+ levels, induced similar changes as DCA (ion imbalance, caspase3/7 activation). On the contrary, DCA-induced cell death was inhibited by medium with low a Na+ concentrations. In the same experiments, we exposed rat ileum ex-vivo to DCA with or without EIPA. Severe tissue damage and caspase-3 activation was observed after DCA treatment, but EIPA almost fully prevented this response. In summary, NHE-mediated Na+ influx is a critical step leading to DCA-induced apoptosis. Cells tolerate acidification but evade DCA-induced apoptosis if NHE is inhibited. Our data suggests that suppression of NHE by endogenous or exogenous inhibitors may lead to apoptosis resistance during GI tumorigenesis

Teachers’ Self-Efficacy during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Greece: The Role of Risk Perception and Teachers’ Relationship with Technology

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a sudden and radical transition from face-to-face to online teaching across the globe. This shift has required teachers to quickly adapt their educational practices, which has had an impact on their perceived self-efficacy. The limited literature on the impact of COVID-19 on teachers’ self-efficacy (TSE) has focused mostly on online teaching. The purpose of this study was to investigate TSE in both face-to-face and distant learning environments amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It also aimed to explore the impact of teachers’ relationship with technology and COVID-19 risk perception on their TSE. The sample was composed of 290 pre-service and in-service teachers from Greece who completed an online self-report survey. Results showed that pre-service teachers reported higher levels of TSE than in-service teachers, especially in distance learning environments. COVID-19 risk perception was not a significant predictor of TSE. By contrast, higher scores in self-assessed skills of the pedagogical applications of technology predicted TSE in both instructional settings. The present findings confirm the importance of promoting technological skills to enhance the self-efficacy of schoolteachers in both traditional and virtual instructional settings, regardless of the crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 by the authors

(5R)-3-(2-Chloroacetyl)-4-methyl-5-phenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazinan-2-one

The 1,3,4-oxadiazinan-2-one ring in the title compound, C12H13ClN2O3, is in a distorted half-chair conformation. The phenyl and chloroacetyl groups occupy axial and equatorial positions, respectively, and lie to the opposite side of the molecule to the N-bound methyl substituent. Molecules are consolidated in the crystal structure by C—H...O interactions

Technology maturity assessment of micro and nano manufacturing processes and process chains

This article presents a systematic approach for assessing the maturity of manufacturing technologies. A methodology is proposed that is based on modelling the capability of the individual processes and technology interfaces between them. It is inspired by a capability maturity model which has been applied successfully in the field of software engineering. The methodology was developed to assess the maturity levels of individual processes and the combined maturity of pairs or chains of processes. To demonstrate its validity, it was applied for assessing the maturity of technologies in the micro and nano manufacturing domain. The results demonstrated its applicability as a tool for evaluating the maturity of micro and nano manufacturing pairs and their constituent processes. Also, it was shown that the methodology can be employed for identifying process pairs, suitable for integration in process chains, together with their potential weaknesses

Noise and perceived discomfort in Greek school children

The survey herein aims to record the types of noise that school children frequently encounter at school (both indoors and outdoors), to investigate the degree of distress and to record the views of school children as to whether background noises distract them. In total, 594 randomly chosen children who attended fifth and sixth grade in three different regions of Greece with various population densities (Larissa, Volos and Naxos) participated in the survey. The tool used was a questionnaire properly designed for the purpose of the study.The results revealed that children of the largest city (Larissa) were more exposed to internal and external noises and also reported higher levels of perceived annoyance. Moreover, according to the study, the most common perceivable external noises were those produced by vehicles and from the voices of children in the schoolyard. Regarding indoor school noises, children appeared to be chiefly disturbed by the noises in the corridors and the neighbouring classes. Finally, children did not report any particularly negative attitude towards indoor school noise since they did not consider it fully responsible for distracting them during the lessons

The stigmatization of obesity in children. A survey in Greek elementary schools

This study investigates elementary school children's prejudice towards obesity. A sample of 1861 underweight, normal, overweight and obese children from Central Greece were instructed to rank 6 drawings of same sex children with various physical disabilities, obesity or no disability at all ("healthy"), according to how much they liked each child. Results showed that all participants ranked the obese child last, showing that even obese individuals show negative attitudes towards obesity. Gender differences were recorded in almost all the drawings. Girls liked obese children and those with facial disfigurement less than boys did while boys disliked children with physical disabilities more than girls. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved