The Impact of Opuntia ficus-indica and Other Vegetables on Serum Cholesterol and Triglycerides: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

Background: Cholesterol is primarily synthesized in the liver. Treatment with statins and diet regulation are commonly prescribed for people with hypercholesterolemia. Previous claims suggest that the consumption of nopal and other vegetables may have a significant effect on diabetes but scarce is known about its relationship with cholesterol and triglycerides. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of nopal and other vegetables on serum cholesterol and triglyceride level in population not related with hypercholesterolemia. Methods: We analyzed a dataset comprising of students from UMAN and their relatives totaling 198 participants. Participants completed an informed consent, filled out questionnaires, anthropometric and serum lipid measurements. A semi-quantitative food questionnaire assessed the frequency and amount of consumption for 56-specific foods. We did a factor analysis with varimax rotation using 7 specific foods we were interested. We conducted linear regression analyses with total cholesterol, LDL-c, and triglycerides as dependent variables. Age, sex, BMI, body fat percentage, and consumption factors (fruits, vegetables, and grains) were included as predictors. Collinearity was assessed using VIF calculations. Results: Approximately 48% of participants consumed nopal on a weekly basis, with most considering their intake to be of median to large amounts, while only 11% reported never consuming nopal. Participants with diabetes showed higher nopal consumption [3.1 (s.e.m. 0.24) vs non-diabetic 2.7 (0.22) vs unknown 1.7 (0.28), p\u3c0.04]. A slight correlation was observed between high self-efficacy in diet and nopal ingestion (rho 0.15, p=0.02), but no significant correlations were found for fruits or grains. Regression analysis revealed that LDL-c was associated with obesity (b=-20, p=0.04) and marginally with body fat percentage (adjusted b=0.83, p=0.069), but not with any of the consumption factors. Total cholesterol was explained by age (adjusted b=0.5, p=0.002) and body fat percentage (b=1.05, p=0.024). HDL-c was marginally associated with sex (Male b=-8.3, p=0.08), while triglycerides were associated with age and obesity (overweight and Class-I, b=0.04, p=0.001 and b=0.04, p=0.04, respectively). No collinearity was found in the analyzed regressions (VIF between 0.1 and 3.4). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that cholesterol and other lipid traits are primarily influenced by genetic factors, with diet playing a minor role. Nopal, vegetables, and fruit showed no significant effects on serum lipid levels in our study. A limitation of our study is its cross-sectional design, and future research could benefit from longitudinal studies with controlled amounts of nopal and other foods

Serum lipid responses to psyllium fiber: differences between pre- and post-menopausal, hypercholesterolemic women

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in women and men. Psyllium, a soluble fiber has been known to reduce serum lipids. In this pilot study, we evaluated whether menopausal status would affect the serum lipid responses to psyllium fiber in women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Eleven post-menopausal and eight pre-menopausal women with serum total cholesterol >200 mg/dL were included in the study. Subjects consumed their habitual diet and 15 g psyllium/d for 6 weeks. Psyllium was incorporated into cookies. Each cookie contained ≈5 g of psyllium fiber. Subjects ate one cookie in each meal.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>With psyllium fiber, total cholesterol concentration was significantly lower (≈5.2%, P < 0.05) in post-menopausal women but not in pre-menopausal women (≈1.3%). Also, there was a significant decrease in HDL-cholesterol in post-menopausal women (≈10.2%, P < 0.05). There were no significant changes observed in concentrations of LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, apolipoprotein A1, and apolipoprotein B in both pre- and post-menopausal women with psyllium.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this pilot study, post- and pre-menopausal, hypercholesterolemic women responded differently to psyllium fiber supplementation. Post-menopausal women would benefit from addition of psyllium to their diets in reducing the risk for heart diseases. The results of this study should be used with caution because the study was based on a small sample size.</p

Latest developments in data analysis tools for disruption prediction and for the exploration of multimachine operational spaces.

In the last years significant efforts have been devoted to the development of advanced data analysis tools to both predict the occurrence of disruptions and to investigate the operational spaces of devices, with the long term goal of advancing the understanding of the physics of these events and to prepare for ITER. On JET the latest generation of the disruption predictor called APODIS has been deployed in the real time network during the last campaigns with the new metallic wall. Even if it was trained only with discharges with the carbon wall, it has reached very good performance, with both missed alarms and false alarms in the order of a few percent (and strategies to improve the performance have already been identified). Since for the optimisation of the mitigation measures, predicting also the type of disruption is considered to be also very important, a new clustering method, based on the geodesic distance on a probabilistic manifold, has been developed. This technique allows automatic classification of an incoming disruption with a success rate of better than 85%. Various other manifold learning tools, particularly Principal Component Analysis and Self Organised Maps, are also producing very interesting results in the comparative analysis of JET and ASDEX Upgrade (AUG) operational spaces, on the route to developing predictors capable of extrapolating from one device to another

A

In Argentina, the SARS-CoV2 pandemic led the Government to take preventive social distancing measures on March 20, 2021. During this period, the population was forced to stay in their households, experiencing changes in their routines and social meetings. This had an emotional impact on people\u27s lifestyle, affecting their eating behavior and physical activity. Analyze the influence of the lockdown on eating habits, physical exercise and its impact on the Body Mass Index (BMI) of the Health Insurance company DASPU population between May-November 2020. Quantitative, cross-sectional, observational, descriptive study. Variable: BMI, Frequency of food intake, Frequency and Intensity of Physical Activity Instrument: Self-administered questionnaire, short&nbsp; IPAQ questionnaire The sample consisted of 336 people, over 18 years old, that are covered by DASPU health insurance, who were asked to take a survey with prior informed consent, on habits before and during the lockdown. Univariate and multivariate descriptive analysis were performed before and during the quarantine, constructing a variable that indicated whether people changed their weight, relating it to consumption patterns and physical activity. Significant differences (p &lt;0.001) were found between BMI before and during quarantine. Regarding the differences in weight, 60% of the population increased on average 4.2 Kg, during the social distancing measures. There were significant differences in the frequency of moderate physical activity (p &lt;0.05 generalized linear model), showing a decrease in the weekly frequency. Weight gain cases were related to those who did not exercise or only did it once per week, during the social distancing measures. According to the multivariate analysis, a weight gain was observed in those who ate little or no fruit (1-2 days per week) and more refined grains (from 2-3 days per week to every day) and those who consumed vegetables daily decreased, during the social distancing measures. We can conclude that the lockdown had a negative impact on the level of physical activity and food consumption patterns of the population, causing weight gain in the majority of cases. Recognizing this association enables us to think of strategies from the health sector to address and prevent the negative impact that lockdown has had on our population, with special emphasis on physical activity.En Argentina, la pandemia por SARS-CoV2 llevó al Gobierno a tomar medidas de aislamiento social preventivo y obligatorio el 20 de marzo de 20201. Durante el mismo, las personas debieron realizar desplazamientos mínimos y permanecer en sus domicilios, vivenciando cambios en sus rutinas y encuentros sociales. Esto tuvo impacto emocional y en el estilo de vida de las personas, repercutiendo en las conductas alimenticias y actividad física Analizar la influencia del confinamiento en los hábitos alimentarios, ejercicio físico y su impacto en el Indice de Masa Coporal (IMC)&nbsp;de la población Obra Social DASPU entre mayo-noviembre 2020. Estudio cuantitativo, transversal, observacional, descriptivo. Variable: IMC, Frecuencia de consumo alimentario, Frecuencia e Intensidad de Actividad Fisica Instrumento: Cuestionario autoadministrado, Cuenstionario corto IPAQ La muestra fue de 336 personas,&nbsp; mayores de 18 años afiliadas a&nbsp; DASPU, realizándose una encuesta previo consentimiento informado, sobre hábitos antes y durante el confinamiento. Se realizaron análisis descriptivos uni y multivariados antes y durante la cuarentena, construyéndose una variable que indicó si las personas modificaron su peso, relacionándola con patrones de consumo y actividad física. Se encontraron diferencias significativas (p&lt;0.001) entre el IMC antes y durante la cuarentena. En cuanto a las diferencias de peso el 60% aumentó en promedio 4,2 Kg, durante el ASPO Hubo diferencias significativas en la frecuencia de actividad física moderada (p&lt;0.05 modelo lineal generalizado), mostrandose disminución en la frecuencia semanal y relacionándose aumento de peso con quienes no realizaron actividad o sólo lo hicieron 1/semana, durante el ASPO De acuerdo al análisis multivariado, se observó un aumento de peso en quienes ingieren poca o ninguna fruta(1-2 días/semana) y más harinas refinadas (de 2-3 días/semana a todos los días) y descendieron quienes consumen&nbsp; verduras diariamente, durante el ASPO. Podemos concluir que el confinamiento impactó negativamente en el nivel de actividad física y los patrones de consumo alimentarios de las personas, provocando un aumento de peso en la mayoría. Reconocer esta asociación, nos habilita a pensar en estrategias desde el sector salud para abordar y prevenir el impacto negativo que ha tenido el confinamiento en nuestra población, haciendo especial hincapie en la actividad fisica

Impact of Fiber-Rich Foods on Glucose Levels in Relation to Liver Fat Infiltration: Preliminary results.

Introduction: Previous studies have indicated the consumption of fiber-rich food rich can decrease glucose levels. Additionally, fat infiltration is a common finding in people with type 2 diabetes Mellitus (T2D) and may contribute to metabolic imbalances. However, there needs to be more research investigating the combined effects of fiber intake and liver fat infiltration on glucose levels. In this study, we aimed to analyze the impact of fiber-rich foods on glucose levels, considering the scores of liver fat infiltration. Methods: After obtaining written consent was approved by the UAT IRB, the participants (relatives of students) were invited at 7 am for anthropometry, blood was drawn for biochemistry measurements, complete fill questionnaires of food preferences and perform elastography (Fibroscan®, ELF). Factor analysis for five groups of food preferences questionnaire was computed with a Varimax rotation. Two factors were obtained: F1 vegetables, F2 pulsars, integral bread, and F3 fruits. A non-parametric kernel regression was performed to analyze the glucose levels (dependent variable) by food rich in fiber adjusted by stages of liver fat infiltration. The 95%CI of the coefficients was calculated with 100 bootstrap repetitions. Results: We included 234 participants (females 68%) with lipid panel and ELF. The CAP score 0 was 65% (152/234), score 1 was 9% (n=22), score 2 was 12% (n=28), and score 3 was 14% (n=32). The kernel regression supported the presence of score class associated to an increase in levels of glucose: For the levels of fat infiltration, the coefficients were S0= 100.9 (95%CI 94.8, 109.4), S1= 105.2 (96.9, 112.9), S2= 113.4 (101.8, 124.8), and S3= 116.6 (107.6, 128.3) mg/dL. When we added the F2, had observed better glucose control for people with diabetes despite the CAP score. The final model suggested the high ingestion of fiver beneficially affects glucose levels despite the CAP score. The model explained about 15% of the variance of glucose concentration. Conclusions: These preliminary findings provide valuable insights into the effects of fatty liver and metabolic conditions. The amount of fiber in food (factor 2) interacts with the degree of fatty liver infiltration, affecting glucose excursions. As liver fat increases, glucose levels also rise, but there is a significant decrease in glucose levels in the presence of high fiber intake. This study represents a crossover design, and future research incorporating controlled diets and longitudinal follow-ups will further elucidate these relationships

Two Loop Scalar Self-Mass during Inflation

We work in the locally de Sitter background of an inflating universe and consider a massless, minimally coupled scalar with a quartic self-interaction. We use dimensional regularization to compute the fully renormalized scalar self-mass-squared at one and two loop order for a state which is released in Bunch-Davies vacuum at t=0. Although the field strength and coupling constant renormalizations are identical to those of lfat space, the geometry induces a non-zero mass renormalization. The finite part also shows a sort of growing mass that competes with the classical force in eventually turning off this system's super-acceleration.Comment: 31 pages, 5 figures, revtex4, revised for publication with extended list of reference

Phenotypic, transcriptomic, and genomic features of clonal plasma cells in light-chain amyloidosis

Immunoglobulin light-chain amyloidosis (AL) and multiple myeloma (MM) are 2 distinct monoclonal gammopathies that involve the same cellular compartment: clonal plasma cells (PCs). Despite the fact that knowledge about MM PC biology has significantly increased in the last decade, the same does not apply for AL. Here, we used an integrative phenotypic, molecular, and genomic approach to study clonal PCs from 24 newly diagnosed patients with AL. Through principal-component-analysis, we demonstrated highly overlapping phenotypic profiles between AL and both monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance and MM PCs. However, in contrast to MM, highly purified fluorescence-activated cell-sorted clonal PCs from AL (n = 9) showed almost normal transcriptome, with only 38 deregulated genes vs normal PCs; these included a few tumor-suppressor (CDH1, RCAN) and proapoptotic (GLIPR1, FAS) genes. Notwithstanding, clonal PCs in AL (n=11) were genomically unstable, with a median of 9 copy number alterations (CNAs) per case, many of such CNAs being similar to those found in MM. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) performed in 5 AL patients revealed a median of 15 nonrecurrent mutations per case. Altogether, our results show that in the absence of a unifying mutation by WES, clonal PCs in AL display phenotypic and CNA profiles similar to MM, but their transcriptome is remarkably similar to that of normal PCs

Nivolumab and sunitinib combination in advanced soft tissue sarcomas : A multicenter, single-arm, phase Ib/II trial

Sarcomas exhibit low expression of factors related to immune response, which could explain the modest activity of PD-1 inhibitors. A potential strategy to convert a cold into an inflamed microenvironment lies on a combination therapy. As tumor angiogenesis promotes immunosuppression, we designed a phase Ib/II trial to test the double inhibition of angiogenesis (sunitinib) and PD-1/PD-L1 axis (nivolumab). This single-arm, phase Ib/II trial enrolled adult patients with selected subtypes of sarcoma. Phase Ib established two dose levels: level 0 with sunitinib 37.5 mg daily from day 1, plus nivolumab 3 mg/kg intravenously on day 15, and then every 2 weeks; and level-1 with sunitinib 37.5 mg on the first 14 days (induction) and then 25 mg per day plus nivolumab on the same schedule. The primary endpoint was to determine the recommended dose for phase II (phase I) and the 6-month progression-free survival rate, according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors 1.1 (phase II). From May 2017 to April 2019, 68 patients were enrolled: 16 in phase Ib and 52 in phase II. The recommended dose of sunitinib for phase II was 37.5 mg as induction and then 25 mg in combination with nivolumab. After a median follow-up of 17 months (4-26), the 6-month progression-free survival rate was 48% (95% CI 41% to 55%). The most common grade 3-4 adverse events included transaminitis (17.3%) and neutropenia (11.5%). Sunitinib plus nivolumab is an active scheme with manageable toxicity in the treatment of selected patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma, with almost half of patients free of progression at 6 months