A note on the diet of the Tasmanian Aborigines

The Tasmanian Aboriginal diet was drawn from marine and non-marine environments, in which food resources varied according to habitat. Alpine and rain forest environments provided a limited supply of plant food, whereas the wet and dry schlerophyll forests provided an abundant supply of plant and animal foods. The coastal zones, despite a deceptively barren appearance, supplied a consistently rich plant and marsupial food resource that was supplemented by large shellfish grounds and a seasonal abundance of birds and certain mammals

Validation of the Activity Preference Assessment: a tool for quantifying children’s implicit preferences for sedentary and physical activities

Background High levels of sedentary behavior and low physical activity are associated with poor health, and the cognitive determinants of these behaviors in children and adolescents are not well understood. To address this gap, we developed a novel, non-verbal, computer-based assessment to quantify the degree to which youth prefer to be sedentary relative to physically active in their leisure time. Methods The Activity Preference Assessment (APA) uses a forced-choice paradigm to understand implicit decision-making processes when presented with common sedentary and physical activities. The APA bias score ranges from − 100 to + 100, with positive scores indicating a relative preference for sedentary activities, and negative scores representing a preference for physical activities. In 60 children ages 8–17 years, we assessed the validity of this behavioral task against a free-choice play observation, accelerometry-measured activity, anthropometrics and body composition, and cardiorespiratory fitness. We explored neighborhood, family, and individual-level factors that may influence implicit activity preferences. Test-retest reliability was assessed over one week. Results The majority of children (67%) preferred sedentary relative to physical activities. APA bias scores were positively associated with sedentary time during free-choice play. In girls, bias scores were negatively associated with average daily MVPA. APA bias scores were positively associated with body fat and negatively associated with cardiorespiratory fitness. These findings were independent of age, sex, and race/ethnicity. Neighborhood access to physical activity spaces, the number of people in the home, perceived physical self-competence (e.g., coordination, strength), and self-reported depressive symptoms were associated with activity preferences. The intra-class correlation for test-retest reliability was r = 0.59. Conclusions The APA shows promise as a novel tool for quantifying children’s relative preference for sedentary versus physical activities. Implicit bias scores from the APA are clinically meaningful, as shown by significant associations with adiposity and cardiorespiratory fitness. Future longitudinal studies should examine the directionality of the association between preferences and health markers, and the degree to which implicit activity preferences are modifiable. Importantly, the task only takes an average of 10 min to complete, highlighting a potential role as an efficient screening tool for the propensity to be sedentary versus physically active

Induction of transcripts derived from promoter III of the acetyl-CoA carboxylase-alpha gene in mammary gland is associated with recruitment of SREBP-1 to a region of the proximal promoter defined by a DNase I hypersensitive site.

ACC-alpha (acetyl-CoA carboxylase-alpha), a key regulator of fatty-acid metabolism, is encoded by mRNAs transcribed from three promoters, PI, PII and PIII, in the ovine genome. Enhanced expression of transcripts encoded by PIII in mammary gland during lactation is associated with alterations in chromatin structure that result in the detection of two DNase I hypersensitive sites, upstream of the start site. The most proximal site, located between -190 and -10, is characterized by the presence of an inverted-CCAAT box, C2 at -167, and E-boxes, E1 and E2, at -151 and -46. Deletion of these motifs, which bind nuclear factor-Y and upstream stimulatory factors respectively in gel-shift assays, attenuates the activity of luciferase reporter constructs in transfected cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation demonstrated that these transcription factors were associated with PIII in vivo in both lactating and non-lactating mammary tissues. The basic helix-loop-helix-leucine zipper transcription factor, SREBP-1 (sterol-regulated-element-binding protein-1), transactivated PIII reporter constructs in transfected HC11 mammary cells, and this was dependent on the presence of E1, but not on C2 or E2. SREBP-1 was only associated with PIII in chromatin from lactating animals, which was coincident with a 4-fold increase in the precursor (125 kDa) form of SREBP-1 in microsomes and the appearance of the mature form (68 kDa) in the nucleus. SREBP-1 motifs are also present in the proximal region of PII, which is also induced in lactation. This indicates that SREBP-1 is a major developmental regulator of the programme of lipid synthesis de novo in the lactating mammary gland

The Kinetic Energy of PAH Dication and Trication Dissociation Determined by Recoil-Frame Covariance Map Imaging

We investigated the dissociation of dications and trications of three polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), fluorene, phenanthrene, and pyrene. PAHs are a family of molecules ubiquitous in space and involved in much of the chemistry of the interstellar medium. In our experiments, ions are formed by interaction with 30.3 nm extreme ultraviolet (XUV) photons, and their velocity map images are recorded using a PImMS2 multi-mass imaging sensor. Application of recoil-frame covariance analysis allows the total kinetic energy release (TKER) associated with multiple fragmentation channels to be determined to high precision, ranging 1.94-2.60 eV and 2.95-5.29 eV for the dications and trications, respectively. Experimental measurements are supported by Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics (BOMD) simulations

The Kinetic Energy of PAH Dication and Trication Dissociation Determined by Recoil-Frame Covariance Map Imaging

We investigated the dissociation of dications and trications of three polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), fluorene, phenanthrene, and pyrene. PAHs are a family of molecules ubiquitous in space and involved in much of the chemistry of the interstellar medium. Ions are formed by ionization with 30.3 nm extreme ultraviolet (XUV) photons, and their velocity map images are recorded using a PImMS multi-mass imaging sensor. Application of recoil-frame covariance analysis allows the total kinetic energy release (TKER) associated with multiple fragmentation channels to be determined to high precision. Experimental measurements are supported by Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics (BOMD) molecular dynamics simulations

Correlates of resistance training in post-treatment breast cancer survivors

© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014. Purpose To explore demographic, health, social-cognitive and behavioural correlates of resistance training among post treatment breast cancer survivors. Methods A sample of 330 post-treatment breast cancer survivors recruited from across Australia completed a mailed questionnaire. A multivariate logistical regression model was used to test associations between independent variables and meeting the resistance training guidelines. Results Less than a quarter of the participants were meeting the resistance training guidelines of at least two sessions of resistance training per week. Higher task self-efficacy for resistance training (p<0.01) and greater goal-setting behaviour (p<0.05) were identified as significant predictors of meeting the resistance training guidelines, with a one unit increase in task self-efficacy and goal setting, increasing the odds of meeting the resistance training guidelines by a factor of approximately 1.2 (odds ratio (OR) task self-efficacy=1.23, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.05–1.43; goal-setting OR= 1.20, 95% CI=1.04–1.38). No other variables significantly predicted meeting the resistance training guidelines in the multivariate analysis. Conclusions Strategies targeting task self-efficacy and goal-setting behaviours are likely to be important intervention components in resistance training interventions for breast cancer survivors. Implications for cancer survivors The findings of this study will be useful for informing the development of evidence-based interventions aiming to promote resistance training among this group