Arsenic concentrations in seagrass around the Mediterranean coast and seasonal variations

Arsenic’s occurrence in the environment could be due to human activities as well as to natural sources. In this study, Posidonia oceanica and Cymodocea nodosa are collected in 84 sites around the Mediterranean basin. In addition, both seagrass are collected monthly, in two sites (Calvi in Corsica and Salammbô in Tunisia). Arsenic concentrations in C. nodosa present seasonal variations in relation with spring phytoplankton blooms. For both species arsenic concentration is higher in the vicinity of geological sources (mining), lagoon outlets and industrial activities. Moreover, Mediterranean islands (Balearic, Sardinia, Corsica, Malta, Crete and Cyprus) and the Southern basin coastline exhibit lower concentrations in Arsenic than the rest of the Mediterranean basin. The wide spread distribution of these two species would encourage their use in a global monitoring network devoted to Arsenic contamination.peer-reviewe

Feel4Diabetes healthy diet score: Development and evaluation of clinical validity

Background: The aim of this paper is to present the development of the Feel4Diabetes Healthy Diet Score and to evaluate its clinical validity. Methods: Study population consisted of 3268 adults (63% women) from high diabetes risk families living in 6 European countries. Participants filled in questionnaires at baseline and after 1 year, reflecting the dietary goals of the Feel4Diabetes intervention. Based on these questions the Healthy Diet Score was constructed, consisting of the following components: breakfast, vegetables, fruit and berries, sugary drinks, whole-grain cereals, nuts and seeds, low-fat dairy products, oils and fats, red meat, sweet snacks, salty snacks, and family meals. Maximum score for each component was set based on its estimated relative importance regarding T2DM risk, higher score indicating better quality of diet. Clinical measurements included height, weight, waist circumference, heart rate, blood pressure, and fasting blood sampling, with analyses of glucose, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglycerides. Analysis of (co) variance was used to compare the Healthy Diet Score and its components between countries and sexes using baseline data, and to test differences in clinical characteristics between score categories, adjusted for age, sex and country. Pearson''s correlations were used to study the association between changes from baseline to year 1 in the Healthy Diet Score and clinical markers. To estimate reproducibility, Pearson''s correlations were studied between baseline and 1 year score, within the control group only. Results: The mean total score was 52.8 ± 12.8 among women and 46.6 ± 12.8 among men (p < 0.001). The total score and its components differed between countries. The change in the Healthy Diet Score was significantly correlated with changes in BMI, waist circumference, and total and LDL cholesterol. The Healthy Diet Score as well as its components at baseline were significantly correlated with the values at year 1, in the control group participants. Conclusion: The Feel4Diabetes Healthy Diet Score is a reproducible method to capture the dietary information collected with the Feel4Diabetes questionnaire and measure the level of and changes in the adherence to the dietary goals of the intervention. It gives a simple parameter that associates with clinical risk factors in a meaningful manner

Genetically guided mediterranean diet for the personalized nutritional management of type 2 diabetes mellitus

The current consensus for the prevention and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is that high-quality diets and adherence to a healthy lifestyle provide significant health benefits. Remarkably, however, there is little agreement on the proportions of macronutrients in the diet that should be recommended to people suffering from pre-diabetes or T2DM. We herein discuss emerging evidence that underscores the importance of gene-diet interactions in the improvement of glycemic biomarkers in T2DM. We propose that we can achieve better glycemic control in T2DM patients by coupling Mediterranean diets to genetic information as a predictor for optimal diet macronutrient composition in a personalized manner. We provide evidence to support this concept by presenting a case study of a T2DM patient who achieved rapid glycemic control when adhered to a personalized, genetically-guided Mediterranean Diet. © 2021 by the authors

Culturomics: a new kid on the block of OMICS to enable personalized medicine

This innovation analysis highlights the underestimated and versatile potential of the new field of culturomics and examines its relation to other OMICS system sciences such as infectiomics, metabolomics, phenomics, and pharmacomicrobiomics. The advent of molecular biology, followed by the emergence of various disciplines of the genomics, and most importantly metagenomics, brought about the sharp decline of conventional microbiology methods. Emergence of culturomics has a natural synergy with therapeutic and clinical genomic approaches so as to realize personalized medicine. Notably, the concept of culturomics expands on that of phenomics and allows a reintroduction of the culture-based phenotypic characterization into the 21st century research repertoire, bolstered by robust technology for automated and massive execution, but its potential is largely unappreciated at present; the few available references show unenthusiastic pursuit and in narrow applications. This has not to be so: depending on the specific brand of culturomics, the scope of applications may extend to medicine, agriculture, environmental sciences, pharmacomicrobiomics, and biotechnology innovation. Moreover, culturomics may produce Big Data. This calls for a new generation of data scientists and innovative ways of harnessing and valorizing Big Data beyond classical genomics. Much more detailed and objective classification and identification of microbiota may soon be at hand through culturomics, thus enabling precision diagnosis toward truly personalized medicine. Culturomics may both widen the scope of microbiology and improve its contributions to diagnostics and personalized medicine, characterizing microbes and determining their associations with health and disease dynamics

Association of dietary intake underreporting with body image perception

Background and aims: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine whether underreporting of dietary intake is associated with individual physical and lifestyle parameters, and body image perception. Methods: Dietary intake was assessed using 24h recalls in 490 individuals. Underreporters were compared to normal reporters regarding age, body fat, years of education, number of cigarettes, physical activity level (PAL) and body image self-belief, body image wish and body image wish minus belief according to Stunkard Figure Rating Scale (FRS). Odds ratio of underreporting in relation to negative perception of body image was performed. Results: Underreporting was positively associated with older age in total sample (p=0.004), higher body fat percentage in both genders (p&lt;0.001), and negative body image in both genders (p&lt;0.001). The regression model showed that negative body image increased the odds of underreporting approximately 2.1 times in females (OR=2.056, p=0.040), after adjusting for age, body fat percentage, and PAL. Conclusions: Underreporters were older, had higher body fat percentage, higher body image self-belief on Stunkard FRS, and higher body image dissatisfaction compared to normal reporters. However, negative body image perception made females more susceptible to underreporting compared to males. © 202

Culturomics: A new kid on the block of OMICS to enable personalized medicine

This innovation analysis highlights the underestimated and versatile potential of the new field of culturomics and examines its relation to other OMICS system sciences such as infectiomics, metabolomics, phenomics, and pharmacomicrobiomics. The advent of molecular biology, followed by the emergence of various disciplines of the genomics, and most importantly metagenomics, brought about the sharp decline of conventional microbiology methods. Emergence of culturomics has a natural synergy with therapeutic and clinical genomic approaches so as to realize personalized medicine. Notably, the concept of culturomics expands on that of phenomics and allows a reintroduction of the culture-based phenotypic characterization into the 21st century research repertoire, bolstered by robust technology for automated and massive execution, but its potential is largely unappreciated at present; the few available references show unenthusiastic pursuit and in narrow applications. This has not to be so: depending on the specific brand of culturomics, the scope of applications may extend to medicine, agriculture, environmental sciences, pharmacomicrobiomics, and biotechnology innovation. Moreover, culturomics may produce Big Data. This calls for a new generation of data scientists and innovative ways of harnessing and valorizing Big Data beyond classical genomics. Much more detailed and objective classification and identification of microbiota may soon be at hand through culturomics, thus enabling precision diagnosis toward truly personalized medicine. Culturomics may both widen the scope of microbiology and improve its contributions to diagnostics and personalized medicine, characterizing microbes and determining their associations with health and disease dynamics. © Copyright 2018, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. 2018

Earlier Age at Menarche Is Associated with Body Fat and Negative Body Image in Adult Life

Earlier age at menarche is one of the well-documented antecedents of a range of adverse health effects in adulthood including obesity and psychopathological effects. Yet, few researchers have examined the potential association of menarcheal age with body fat distribution, self-perception, and body image. We retrospectively tested a sample (N = 392) of adult women (18–80 years) to examine the associations of age at menarche with body composition and body image indices. Analyses of covariance and multivariable logistic and linear regression were fitted adjusting for age, physical activity level, smoking, and alcohol consumption. Further adjustment was made for body mass index (BMI) and percentage of fat mass. Earlier age at menarche was associated with slightly increased odds of higher BMI and abdominal fat percentage; of note is the positive correlation with lower body composition indices including hip and calf circumferences/skinfolds. Additionally, earlier age at menarche was associated with higher scores in the negative body image scales, namely overweight preoccupation and self-classified weight, whereas lower risks were found for higher scores in the positive body image scales, namely appearance evaluation and body area satisfaction scales. These findings remained significant after correcting for body fat percentage. The present results showed positive associations for earlier age at menarche with gross indices of obesity with the associations mainly confined to distribution of body fat in the lower part of the body, whereas an increased risk of negative body image was also found. Future research could refine our understanding of the biological and psychological mechanisms underlying these associations. © 2022 Taylor &amp; Francis Group, LLC

The Prognostic Significance of Serum Glucose Levels After the Onset of Ventricular Arrhythmia on In-Hospital Mortality of Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome

BACKGROUND: Several studies have illustrated the role played by serum glucose levels in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in general and, more particularly, after an acute coronary event. AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of serum potassium and glucose levels on in-hospital mortality in patients with ischemic heart disease, who exhibited severe ventricular arrhythmia. METHODS: We enrolled 162 consecutive patients who were referred to our institution for an acute coronary event and presented with sustained ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation during the first 24 hours of hospitalization. Serum potassium and glucose levels were measured in all patients at the onset of tachycardia and after 2, 4, 6, 12, 36, 48 hours. RESULTS: During hospitalization, 23 out of 162 patients died (61% males). Serum glucose levels at the onset of the arrhythmia, as well as after 2, 12, 36 and 48 hours, were higher in the deceased (onset: 228.8 ± 108 vs. 158 ± 68 mg/dl, p = 0.0001, 2 h: 182 ± 109 vs. 149 ± 59 mg/dl, p = 0.03, 12 h: 155.5 ± 72 vs. 128 ± 48 mg/dl, p = 0.025, 36 h: 163.8 ± 63 vs.116 ± 42 mg/dl, p = 0.002, and 48 h: 138 ± 64 vs. 122 ± 42 mg/dl, p = 0.05, respectively), even after adjustment for age, sex, diabetes, left ventricular ejection fraction, type of acute coronary syndrome and site of infarction and medication intake. There was no difference in serum potassium levels between the deceased and survivors. CONCLUSION: Serum glucose levels at the onset of arrhythmia and 2, 36 and 48 hours later seem to have prognostic significance for in-hospital mortality in patients hospitalized for an acute coronary event, who exhibit severe ventricular arrhythmia