One year soy protein supplementation has positive effects on bone formation markers but not bone density in postmenopausal women

BACKGROUND: Although soy protein and its isoflavones have been reported to reduce the risk of osteoporosis in peri- and post-menopausal women, most of these studies are of short duration (i.e. six months). The objective of this study was to examine if one year consumption of soy-containing foods (providing 25 g protein and 60 mg isoflavones) exerts beneficial effects on bone in postmenopausal women. METHODS: Eighty-seven eligible postmenopausal women were randomly assigned to consume soy or control foods daily for one year. Bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) of the whole body, lumbar (L1-L4), and total hip were measured using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry at baseline and after one year. Blood and urine markers of bone metabolism were also assessed. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Sixty-two subjects completed the one-year long study. Whole body and lumbar BMD and BMC were significantly decreased in both the soy and control groups. However, there were no significant changes in total hip BMD and BMC irrespective of treatment. Both treatments positively affected markers of bone formation as indicated by increased serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSAP) activity, insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), and osteocalcin (BSAP: 27.8 and 25.8%, IGF-I: 12.8 and 26.3%, osteocalcin: 95.2 and 103.4% for control and soy groups, respectively). Neither of the protein supplements had any effect on urinary deoxypyridinoline excretion, a marker of bone resorption. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that although one year supplementation of 25 g protein per se positively modulated markers of bone formation, this amount of protein was unable to prevent lumbar and whole body bone loss in postmenopausal women

The importance of the altricial – precocial spectrum for social complexity in mammals and birds:A review

Various types of long-term stable relationships that individuals uphold, including cooperation and competition between group members, define social complexity in vertebrates. Numerous life history, physiological and cognitive traits have been shown to affect, or to be affected by, such social relationships. As such, differences in developmental modes, i.e. the ‘altricial-precocial’ spectrum, may play an important role in understanding the interspecific variation in occurrence of social interactions, but to what extent this is the case is unclear because the role of the developmental mode has not been studied directly in across-species studies of sociality. In other words, although there are studies on the effects of developmental mode on brain size, on the effects of brain size on cognition, and on the effects of cognition on social complexity, there are no studies directly investigating the link between developmental mode and social complexity. This is surprising because developmental differences play a significant role in the evolution of, for example, brain size, which is in turn considered an essential building block with respect to social complexity. Here, we compiled an overview of studies on various aspects of the complexity of social systems in altricial and precocial mammals and birds. Although systematic studies are scarce and do not allow for a quantitative comparison, we show that several forms of social relationships and cognitive abilities occur in species along the entire developmental spectrum. Based on the existing evidence it seems that differences in developmental modes play a minor role in whether or not individuals or species are able to meet the cognitive capabilities and requirements for maintaining complex social relationships. Given the scarcity of comparative studies and potential subtle differences, however, we suggest that future studies should consider developmental differences to determine whether our finding is general or whether some of the vast variation in social complexity across species can be explained by developmental mode. This would allow a more detailed assessment of the relative importance of developmental mode in the evolution of vertebrate social systems

The Geology of Switzerland

The general picture of the physiographic map of Switzerland reflects the tectonic structure rather directly. Local relief in the Jura Mountains is a direct consequence of folding of the detached Mesozoic strata. The Swiss Plateau mimics the Molasse Basin with flat lying sediments while thrusting and tilting of these strata in the Subalpine Molasse amalgamated these units with the Alps. The Alps exhibit nappe stacks of very different origin. Most of them evolved from pre-Triassic crystalline basement rocks and their sedimentary cover. In many cases the cover was detached from its basement and now forms a nappe stack of its own. The Helvetic nappe system derived from the European continental margin contains nappes of cover rocks displaced over 30–50 km; crystalline basement rocks form large-scale domes. The Penninic nappe system is derived from basins that formed in Mesozoic times between the European and Adriatic continents. They contain far travelled nappes of cover rocks, as well as nappes of basement rocks that were transported over considerable distances, too. In addition, nappes of oceanic rocks outcrop as thin slivers at the top. Post-nappe folding within the Penninic nappe stack is reminiscent of their complex formation history. The Austroalpine nappe system was derived from the Adriatic margin and now forms a horizontal layer as the highest unit in eastern and central Switzerland. This nappe system contains crystalline basement as well as Mesozoic cover rocks and was emplaced early in the Alpine history in a ENE direction. The Southalpine nappe system was derived from the Adriatic margin as well. Here thrusting of crystalline basement with its Mesozoic cover was south-directed. The various Alpine nappe piles led to the amalgamation of very different rock types: continental and oceanic basement rocks, shallow marine carbonates, deep marine clastics and radiolarian chert to name the most important. Landforms and landscapes reflect these differences, in addition to the landforms created by fluvial and glacial erosion