Albino rats get in on the ground floor

One year in the life of a rat is equal to 30 years of human life. Over 600 of these animals are spending their lifetime in the ground floor of the Home Economics Building

The Iowa Homemaker vol.26, no.7

Five-Pound Party Planning, Ruth Hackett, page 2 Homemaking Under the Round Roof, Shirliann Fortmann, page 3 Home Economists Look to New Horizons, Katherine Goeppinger, page 4 Graduate Studies Solve Research Questions, Marjorie Clampitt, page 5 Headlines Challenge Home Economists, Eloise Davison, page 6 Both Sides of the Pacific, Margaret Waterland, page 7 Wardrobe Accompaniments Chase Winter Blues, Jean Bunge, page 8 Home Economics Journeys from Iowa State to China, Jean Ory, page 9 What’s New, Marjorie Clampitt, page 10 Shoe Care Means Longer Wear, Charlene Stettler, page 11 Counselling Homemakers is Fun, Sue Marie Schreiber, page 12 Glamour is Her Business, Mary Margaret Ryan, page 13 Notions for Campus and Home, Margaret Buswell, page 14 ’46 Graduate Combines College and Career, Beverly Seig, page 15 Keeping Up With Today, Joyce Edgar, page 1

The Iowa Homemaker vol.26, no.2

Alma Mater, J. C. Harris, page 2 Travel With Poise, Mary Ann Hakes, page 3 Report From Athens, Joan Kelleher, page 4 Blanche Pederson Interviews an Aussie Bride, Blanche Pederson, page 5 Coeds are Veterans, Too, Mary Margaret Ryan, page 6 Future Home Economics Classroom, Helen Hochriem, page 7 Vicky Grins at the Sun, Breta Soldat, page 9 What’s New in Home Economics, Marjorie Clampitt, page 10 Wardrobe Worries? Here’s What We Wear, Textiles and Clothing Club, page 12 “I Have a Dozen Bosses”, Genevieve Callahan, page 14 Albino Rats Get in on the Ground Floor, Margaret Waterland, page 17 Alums Prove Chemistry can Pay, June Welch, page 18 Education Begins Egyptian Modernizing, Lois Bronson, page 19 Across Alumnae Desks, Mary Neff, page 21 Keeping Up With Today, Joyce Edgar, page 22 How Does Your Garden Grow?, Irene Meyer, page 23 Alums in the News, Goldie Rouse, page 2

Genetic associations with micronutrient levels identified in immune and gastrointestinal networks

The discovery of vitamins and clarification of their role in preventing frank essential nutrient deficiencies occurred in the early 1900s. Much vitamin research has understandably focused on public health and the effects of single nutrients to alleviate acute conditions. The physio- logical processes for maintaining health, however, are complex systems that depend upon interactions between multiple nutrients, environmental factors, and genetic makeup. To analyze the relationship between these factors and nutritional health, data were obtained from an observational, community-based participatory research program of children and teens (age 6–14) enrolled in a summer day camp in the Delta region of Arkansas. Assessments of erythrocyte S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH), plasma homocysteine (Hcy) and 6 organic micronutrients (retinol, 25-hydroxy vitamin D3, pyridoxal, thiamin, riboflavin, and vitamin E), and 1,129 plasma proteins were performed at 3 time points in each of 2 years. Genetic makeup was analyzed with 1 M SNP genotyping arrays, and nutrient status was assessed with 24-h dietary intake questionnaires. A pattern of metabolites (met_PC1) that included the ratio of erythro- cyte SAM/SAH, Hcy, and 5 vitamins were identified by principal component analysis. Met_PC1 levels were sig- nificantly associated with (1) single-nucleotide polymor- phisms, (2) levels of plasma proteins, and (3) multilocus genotypes coding for gastrointestinal and immune func- tions, as identified in a global network of metabolic/pro- tein–protein interactions. Subsequent mining of data from curated pathway, network, and genome-wide association studies identified genetic and functional relationships that may be explained by gene–nutrient interactions. The sys- tems nutrition strategy described here has thus associated a multivariate metabolite pattern in blood with genes involved in immune and gastrointestinal functions

Albino rats get in on the ground floor

One year in the life of a rat is equal to 30 years of human life. Over 600 of these animals are spending their lifetime in the ground floor of the Home Economics Building.</p

The Iowa Homemaker vol.26, no.7

Five-Pound Party Planning, Ruth Hackett, page 2 Homemaking Under the Round Roof, Shirliann Fortmann, page 3 Home Economists Look to New Horizons, Katherine Goeppinger, page 4 Graduate Studies Solve Research Questions, Marjorie Clampitt, page 5 Headlines Challenge Home Economists, Eloise Davison, page 6 Both Sides of the Pacific, Margaret Waterland, page 7 Wardrobe Accompaniments Chase Winter Blues, Jean Bunge, page 8 Home Economics Journeys from Iowa State to China, Jean Ory, page 9 What’s New, Marjorie Clampitt, page 10 Shoe Care Means Longer Wear, Charlene Stettler, page 11 Counselling Homemakers is Fun, Sue Marie Schreiber, page 12 Glamour is Her Business, Mary Margaret Ryan, page 13 Notions for Campus and Home, Margaret Buswell, page 14 ’46 Graduate Combines College and Career, Beverly Seig, page 15 Keeping Up With Today, Joyce Edgar, page 16</p

The Iowa Homemaker vol.26, no.2

Alma Mater, J. C. Harris, page 2 Travel With Poise, Mary Ann Hakes, page 3 Report From Athens, Joan Kelleher, page 4 Blanche Pederson Interviews an Aussie Bride, Blanche Pederson, page 5 Coeds are Veterans, Too, Mary Margaret Ryan, page 6 Future Home Economics Classroom, Helen Hochriem, page 7 Vicky Grins at the Sun, Breta Soldat, page 9 What’s New in Home Economics, Marjorie Clampitt, page 10 Wardrobe Worries? Here’s What We Wear, Textiles and Clothing Club, page 12 “I Have a Dozen Bosses”, Genevieve Callahan, page 14 Albino Rats Get in on the Ground Floor, Margaret Waterland, page 17 Alums Prove Chemistry can Pay, June Welch, page 18 Education Begins Egyptian Modernizing, Lois Bronson, page 19 Across Alumnae Desks, Mary Neff, page 21 Keeping Up With Today, Joyce Edgar, page 22 How Does Your Garden Grow?, Irene Meyer, page 23 Alums in the News, Goldie Rouse, page 24</p

Twin and family studies reveal strong environmental and weaker genetic cues explaining heritability of eosinophilic esophagitis

BACKGROUND: Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic antigen-driven allergic inflammatory disease, likely involving the interplay of genetic and environmental factors, yet their respective contributions to heritability are unknown. OBJECTIVE: To quantify risk associated with genes and environment on familial clustering of EoE. METHODS: Family history was obtained from a hospital-based cohort of 914 EoE probands, (n=2192 first-degree “Nuclear-Family” relatives) and the new international registry of monozygotic and dizygotic twins/triplets (n=63 EoE “Twins” probands). Frequencies, recurrence risk ratios (RRRs), heritability and twin concordance were estimated. Environmental exposures were preliminarily examined. RESULTS: Analysis of the Nuclear-Family–based cohort revealed that the rate of EoE, in first-degree relatives of a proband, was 1.8% (unadjusted) and 2.3% (sex-adjusted). RRRs ranged from 10–64, depending on the family relationship, and were higher in brothers (64.0; p=0.04), fathers (42.9; p=0.004) and males (50.7; p<0.001) compared to sisters, mothers and females, respectively. Risk of EoE for other siblings was 2.4%. In the Nuclear-Families, combined gene and common environment heritability (h(gc)(2)) was 72.0±2.7% (p<0.001). In the Twins cohort, genetic heritability was 14.5±4.0% (p<0.001), and common family environment contributed 81.0±4% (p<0.001) to phenotypic variance. Proband-wise concordance in MZ co-twins was 57.9±9.5% compared to 36.4±9.3% in DZ (p=0.11). Greater birth-weight difference between twins (p=0.01), breastfeeding (p=0.15) and Fall birth season (p=0.02) were associated with twin discordance in disease status. CONCLUSIONS: EoE recurrence risk ratios are increased 10–64-fold compared with the general population. EoE in relatives is 1.8–2.4%, depending upon relationship and sex. Nuclear-Family heritability appeared to be high (72.0%). However, Twins cohort analysis revealed a powerful role for common environment (81.0%) compared with additive genetic heritability (14.5%)