Bariatric Surgery Outcomes in Appalachia Influenced by Surgery Type, Diabetes, and Depression

Background Most effective treatment for morbid obesity and its comorbidities is bariatric surgery. However, research is limited on weight loss and associated outcomes among patients in Appalachia. The objective of this study was to examine demographic and comorbidity influence on surgical outcomes of this population including age, sex, race, state of residence, education, marital status, body mass index (BMI kg/m2), excess body weight (EBW), percent excess weight loss (%EWL), blood pressure, diagnosed depression, diagnosed type 2 diabetes (T2D), Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), and laboratory values (i.e., hemoglobin A1c). Methods A retrospective electronic medical record (EMR) data extraction was performed on N = 582 patients receiving bariatric surgery (laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass [RYGB] and laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy [SG]) between 10/2013 and 2/2017. Results Patient population was 92.5% Caucasian, 79.3% female, 62.8% married, 45 ± 11.1 years, 75.8% received RYGB, and 24.2% received SG. Average %EWL from baseline to 1-year follow-up was 68.5 ± 18.4% (n = 224). In final descriptive models, surgery type, diagnosed T2D, HbA1c, and depressive symptoms were significant covariates associated with lower %EWL. Conclusions Findings suggest patients completing surgery within an Appalachian region have successful surgical outcomes at 1-year post-surgery, as indicated by significant reductions of \u3e 50% EWL, regardless of other covariates. Results suggest that bariatric programs should consider paying special consideration to patients with T2D or depressive symptoms to improve outcomes. Results have potential to inform future prospective studies and aid in guiding specific interventions tailored to address needs of this unique population

Involvement of institutions and local communities in turtles and cetacean monitoring and conservation in Maltese waters through networking

The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) and the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) are regularly found around Maltese waters, especially the former. However, until recently, information on the populations and conservation status of both species in the area was lacking. The EU LIFE+ project MIGRATE (LIFE11 NAT/MT/1070) was carried out to address these information gaps by aiming to obtain more biotic data on these species and to identify areas essential for the life cycle and reproduction of these protected species in Maltese waters. To achieve these aims, amongst others, a citizen science approach was chosen, with the involvement of a number of institutes like the Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) and that of the Civil Protection Department (CPD) as well as local non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other sea-user communities such as divers.peer-reviewe

5-methylcytosine in RNA: detection, enzymatic formation and biological functions

The nucleobase modification 5-methylcytosine (m5C) is widespread both in DNA and different cellular RNAs. The functions and enzymatic mechanisms of DNA m5C-methylation were extensively studied during the last decades. However, the location, the mechanism of formation and the cellular function(s) of the same modified nucleobase in RNA still remain to be elucidated. The recent development of a bisulfite sequencing approach for efficient m5C localization in various RNA molecules puts ribo-m5C in a highly privileged position as one of the few RNA modifications whose detection is amenable to PCR-based amplification and sequencing methods. Additional progress in the field also includes the characterization of several specific RNA methyltransferase enzymes in various organisms, and the discovery of a new and unexpected link between DNA and RNA m5C-methylation. Numerous putative RNA:m5C-MTases have now been identified and are awaiting characterization, including the identification of their RNA substrates and their related cellular functions. In order to bring these recent exciting developments into perspective, this review provides an ordered overview of the detection methods for RNA methylation, of the biochemistry, enzymology and molecular biology of the corresponding modification enzymes, and discusses perspectives for the emerging biological functions of these enzymes

PDRs4All III: JWST's NIR spectroscopic view of the Orion Bar

(Abridged) We investigate the impact of radiative feedback from massive stars on their natal cloud and focus on the transition from the HII region to the atomic PDR (crossing the ionisation front (IF)), and the subsequent transition to the molecular PDR (crossing the dissociation front (DF)). We use high-resolution near-IR integral field spectroscopic data from NIRSpec on JWST to observe the Orion Bar PDR as part of the PDRs4All JWST Early Release Science Program. The NIRSpec data reveal a forest of lines including, but not limited to, HeI, HI, and CI recombination lines, ionic lines, OI and NI fluorescence lines, Aromatic Infrared Bands (AIBs including aromatic CH, aliphatic CH, and their CD counterparts), CO2 ice, pure rotational and ro-vibrational lines from H2, and ro-vibrational lines HD, CO, and CH+, most of them detected for the first time towards a PDR. Their spatial distribution resolves the H and He ionisation structure in the Huygens region, gives insight into the geometry of the Bar, and confirms the large-scale stratification of PDRs. We observe numerous smaller scale structures whose typical size decreases with distance from Ori C and IR lines from CI, if solely arising from radiative recombination and cascade, reveal very high gas temperatures consistent with the hot irradiated surface of small-scale dense clumps deep inside the PDR. The H2 lines reveal multiple, prominent filaments which exhibit different characteristics. This leaves the impression of a "terraced" transition from the predominantly atomic surface region to the CO-rich molecular zone deeper in. This study showcases the discovery space created by JWST to further our understanding of the impact radiation from young stars has on their natal molecular cloud and proto-planetary disk, which touches on star- and planet formation as well as galaxy evolution.Comment: 52 pages, 30 figures, submitted to A&

PDRs4All II: JWST's NIR and MIR imaging view of the Orion Nebula

The JWST has captured the most detailed and sharpest infrared images ever taken of the inner region of the Orion Nebula, the nearest massive star formation region, and a prototypical highly irradiated dense photo-dissociation region (PDR). We investigate the fundamental interaction of far-ultraviolet photons with molecular clouds. The transitions across the ionization front (IF), dissociation front (DF), and the molecular cloud are studied at high-angular resolution. These transitions are relevant to understanding the effects of radiative feedback from massive stars and the dominant physical and chemical processes that lead to the IR emission that JWST will detect in many Galactic and extragalactic environments. Due to the proximity of the Orion Nebula and the unprecedented angular resolution of JWST, these data reveal that the molecular cloud borders are hyper structured at small angular scales of 0.1-1" (0.0002-0.002 pc or 40-400 au at 414 pc). A diverse set of features are observed such as ridges, waves, globules and photoevaporated protoplanetary disks. At the PDR atomic to molecular transition, several bright features are detected that are associated with the highly irradiated surroundings of the dense molecular condensations and embedded young star. Toward the Orion Bar PDR, a highly sculpted interface is detected with sharp edges and density increases near the IF and DF. This was predicted by previous modeling studies, but the fronts were unresolved in most tracers. A complex, structured, and folded DF surface was traced by the H2 lines. This dataset was used to revisit the commonly adopted 2D PDR structure of the Orion Bar. JWST provides us with a complete view of the PDR, all the way from the PDR edge to the substructured dense region, and this allowed us to determine, in detail, where the emission of the atomic and molecular lines, aromatic bands, and dust originate

A far-ultraviolet-driven photoevaporation flow observed in a protoplanetary disk

Most low-mass stars form in stellar clusters that also contain massive stars, which are sources of far-ultraviolet (FUV) radiation. Theoretical models predict that this FUV radiation produces photo-dissociation regions (PDRs) on the surfaces of protoplanetary disks around low-mass stars, impacting planet formation within the disks. We report JWST and Atacama Large Millimetere Array observations of a FUV-irradiated protoplanetary disk in the Orion Nebula. Emission lines are detected from the PDR; modelling their kinematics and excitation allows us to constrain the physical conditions within the gas. We quantify the mass-loss rate induced by the FUV irradiation, finding it is sufficient to remove gas from the disk in less than a million years. This is rapid enough to affect giant planet formation in the disk

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

Background Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI <18·5 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). For schoolaged children and adolescents, we report thinness (BMI <2 SD below the median of the WHO growth reference) and obesity (BMI >2 SD above the median). Findings From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining underweight or thinness. Interpretation The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesit

Politics and Phenomenology of Embodiment in Adrienne Kennedy, Claudia Rankine, and Nicole Brossard

This thesis explores embodiment, subjectivity, and social politics. It engages with certain philosophical ideas about what it entails to be a physical and social self in a world of other selves. Its philosophical perspective is grounded in the philosophy of French phenomenologist Maurice Merleau-Ponty, whose writings argue that who an individual is. is determined by the physical and cultural factors involved in her or his location in a particular human body. Merleau-Ponty also states that embodiment is a social phenomenon, and that the shared aspects of being a body are a means to interpersonal communication. The political implications of Merleau-Ponty\u27s philosophy, as they are presented in this thesis, are informed by contemporary feminist interpretations of his work. These interpretations advocate a return to the realities of physical matter, realities that they see, as did Merleau-Ponty, as ignored by conventional philosophy. Further, because of their focus on materiality, these interpretations view embodied selfhood, as Merleau-Ponty envisions it, as a potential source of sociopolitical transformation. After elaborating this particular philosophical standpoint, this thesis presents readings of literary texts by Adrienne Kennedy, Claudia Rankine, and Nicole Brossard that are informed by this interpretive framework. The texts selected for this thesis foreground embodiment, and the interpretations of these works offered herein focus on the potentially transformative sociopolitical implications of embodied subjectivity as it is mobilized in these texts. According to this thesis\u27 readings of these works, Kennedy\u27s play, Funnyhouse of a Negro, employs the body as a powerful tool of political resistance against racism. Rankine\u27s work, Don\u27t Let Me Be Lonely explores the relationship between the biological and cultural aspects of embodiment to reenvision the interrelationships between these phenomena. Brossard\u27s project of writing the female body is a political effort that aims to create solidarity among women who otherwise may be very different, and to transfigure women\u27s identity. This thesis includes readings of two of Brossard\u27s works of fiction, A Book, a portrait of an intersubjective community, and Picture Theory, a Utopian vision of women\u27s solidarity. Reading these texts in light of Merleau-Ponty\u27s philosophy of embodiment provides insight into how these texts rethink what it means to be a self in the world, as well as how such a rethinking might transform social politics. Further, this thesis argues that through their differential portrayal of embodied subjectivity, these texts do important political work in their own right