Strength, jumping, and change of direction speed asymmetries are not associated with athletic performance in elite academy soccer players

The aims of the present study were twofold: 1) to measure inter-limb asymmetries from a battery of fitness tests in youth soccer players and, 2) determine the association between asymmetry and measures of athletic performance. Sixteen elite youth soccer players (14.7 ± 0.2 years) performed a single leg Abalakov test (ABK), change of direction (COD) test over 10 m (5 + 5) and 20 m (10 + 10), and an iso-inertial power test. Subjects also performed 10 m, 20 m and 30 m sprints and a bilateral countermovement jump (CMJ), which were correlated with all ABK, COD and iso-inertial asymmetry scores. A one-way repeated measures ANOVA showed significant differences between inter-limb asymmetry scores across multiple tests (p 0.05) between the different inter-limb asymmetry scores, and between asymmetry scores and athletic performance. These findings show the test-specific nature of asymmetries in youth soccer players, with the iso-inertial power test being the most sensitive in detecting asymmetry. Moreover, the results obtained suggest that inherent asymmetry in young soccer players did not negatively impact their performance

Role of Mitochondrial Complex IV in Age-Dependent Obesity

Aging is associated with progressive white adipose tissue (WAT) enlargement initiated early in life, but the molecular mechanisms involved remain unknown. Here we show that mitochondrial complex IV (CIV) activity and assembly are already repressed in white adipocytes of middle-aged mice and involve a HIF1A-dependent decline of essential CIV components such as COX5B. At the molecular level, HIF1A binds to the Cox5b proximal promoter and represses its expression. Silencing of Cox5b decreased fatty acid oxidation and promoted intracellular lipid accumulation. Moreover, local in vivo Cox5b silencing in WAT of young mice increased the size of adipocytes, whereas restoration of COX5B expression in aging mice counteracted adipocyte enlargement. An age-dependent reduction in COX5B gene expression was also found in human visceral adipose tissue. Collectively, our findings establish a pivotal role for CIV dysfunction in progressive white adipocyte enlargement during aging, which can be restored to alleviate age-dependent WAT expansion

Rarity of monodominance in hyperdiverse Amazonian forests.

Tropical forests are known for their high diversity. Yet, forest patches do occur in the tropics where a single tree species is dominant. Such "monodominant" forests are known from all of the main tropical regions. For Amazonia, we sampled the occurrence of monodominance in a massive, basin-wide database of forest-inventory plots from the Amazon Tree Diversity Network (ATDN). Utilizing a simple defining metric of at least half of the trees ≥ 10 cm diameter belonging to one species, we found only a few occurrences of monodominance in Amazonia, and the phenomenon was not significantly linked to previously hypothesized life history traits such wood density, seed mass, ectomycorrhizal associations, or Rhizobium nodulation. In our analysis, coppicing (the formation of sprouts at the base of the tree or on roots) was the only trait significantly linked to monodominance. While at specific locales coppicing or ectomycorrhizal associations may confer a considerable advantage to a tree species and lead to its monodominance, very few species have these traits. Mining of the ATDN dataset suggests that monodominance is quite rare in Amazonia, and may be linked primarily to edaphic factors

Distinct expression patterns of the E3 ligase SIAH-1 and its partner Kid/KIF22 in normal tissues and in the breast tumoral processes

SIAH proteins are the human members of an highly conserved family of E3 ubiquitin ligases. Several data suggest that SIAH proteins may have a role in tumor suppression and apoptosis. Previously, we reported that SIAH-1 induces the degradation of Kid (KIF22), a chromokinesin protein implicated in the normal progression of mitosis and meiosis, by the ubiquitin proteasome pathway. In human breast cancer cells stably transfected with SIAH-1, Kid/KIF22 protein level was markedly reduced whereas, the Kid/KIF22 mRNA level was increased. This interaction has been further elucidated through analyzing SIAH and Kid/KIF22 expression in both paired normal and tumor tissues and cell lines. It was observed that SIAH-1 protein is widely expressed in different normal tissues, and in cells lines but showing some differences in western blotting profiles. Immunofluorescence microscopy shows that the intracellular distribution of SIAH-1 and Kid/KIF22 appears to be modified in human tumor tissues compared to normal controls. When mRNA expression of SIAH-1 and Kid/KIF22 was analyzed by real-time PCR in normal and cancer breast tissues from the same patient, a large variation in the number of mRNA copies was detected between the different samples. In most cases, SIAH-1 mRNA is decreased in tumor tissues compared to their normal counterparts. Interestingly, in all breast tumor tissues analyzed, variations in the Kid/KIF22 mRNA levels mirrored those seen with SIAH-1 mRNAs. This concerted variation of SIAH-1 and Kid/KIF22 messengers suggests the existence of an additional level of control than the previously described protein-protein interaction and protein stability regulation. Our observations also underline the need to re-evaluate the results of gene expression obtained by qRT-PCR and relate it to the protein expression and cellular localization when matched normal and tumoral tissues are analyzed

Analysis of the Peptidoglycan Hydrolase Complement of Lactobacillus casei and Characterization of the Major γ-D-Glutamyl-L-Lysyl-Endopeptidase

Peptidoglycan (PG) is the major component of Gram positive bacteria cell wall and is essential for bacterial integrity and shape. Bacteria synthesize PG hydrolases (PGHs) which are able to cleave bonds in their own PG and play major roles in PG remodelling required for bacterial growth and division. Our aim was to identify the main PGHs in Lactobacillus casei BL23, a lactic acid bacterium with probiotic properties

Geographic patterns of tree dispersal modes in Amazonia and their ecological correlates

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-MAim: To investigate the geographic patterns and ecological correlates in the geographic distribution of the most common tree dispersal modes in Amazonia (endozoochory, synzoochory, anemochory and hydrochory). We examined if the proportional abundance of these dispersal modes could be explained by the availability of dispersal agents (disperser-availability hypothesis) and/or the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits (resource-availability hypothesis). Time period: Tree-inventory plots established between 1934 and 2019. Major taxa studied: Trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 9.55 cm. Location: Amazonia, here defined as the lowland rain forests of the Amazon River basin and the Guiana Shield. Methods: We assigned dispersal modes to a total of 5433 species and morphospecies within 1877 tree-inventory plots across terra-firme, seasonally flooded, and permanently flooded forests. We investigated geographic patterns in the proportional abundance of dispersal modes. We performed an abundance-weighted mean pairwise distance (MPD) test and fit generalized linear models (GLMs) to explain the geographic distribution of dispersal modes. Results: Anemochory was significantly, positively associated with mean annual wind speed, and hydrochory was significantly higher in flooded forests. Dispersal modes did not consistently show significant associations with the availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits. A lower dissimilarity in dispersal modes, resulting from a higher dominance of endozoochory, occurred in terra-firme forests (excluding podzols) compared to flooded forests. Main conclusions: The disperser-availability hypothesis was well supported for abiotic dispersal modes (anemochory and hydrochory). The availability of resources for constructing zoochorous fruits seems an unlikely explanation for the distribution of dispersal modes in Amazonia. The association between frugivores and the proportional abundance of zoochory requires further research, as tree recruitment not only depends on dispersal vectors but also on conditions that favour or limit seedling recruitment across forest types

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

Background Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide.Methods A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study-a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital.Findings Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3.85 [95% CI 2.58-5.75]; p<0.0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63.0% vs 82.7%; OR 0.35 [0.23-0.53]; p<0.0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer.Interpretation Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised