Higher dietary magnesium and potassium intake are associated with lower body fat in people with impaired glucose tolerance

IntroductionObesity and diabetes are public health concerns worldwide, but few studies have examined the habitual intake of minerals on body composition in people with prediabetes.MethodsIn this prospective cross-sectional study, 155 Chinese subjects with IGT [median age: 59 (53–62) years, 58% female] had an assessment of body composition including body fat percentage, oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT), Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) and 3-day food records from nutritional programme analysis.ResultsDietary intake of minerals was negatively correlated with body fat. People with obesity had the lowest daily consumption of iron median (IQR) 10.3 (6.9–13.3) mg, magnesium 224 (181–282) mg, and potassium 1973 (1563–2,357) mg when compared to overweight [10.5 (8.0–14.5) mg, 273 (221–335) mg, and 2,204 (1720–2,650) mg] and normal weight individuals [13.2 (10.0–18.6) mg, 313 (243–368) mg, and 2,295 (1833–3,037) mg] (p = 0.008, <0.0001, and 0.013 respectively). Amongst targeted minerals, higher dietary magnesium and potassium intake remained significantly associated with lower body fat after the adjustment of age, gender, macronutrients, fibre, and physical activity.ConclusionDietary magnesium and potassium intake may be associated with lower body fat in people with impaired glucose tolerance. Inadequate dietary mineral intake may play contribute to obesity and metabolic disorders independent of macronutrients and fibre consumption

Immunoassays Based on Penicillium marneffei Mp1p Derived from Pichia pastoris Expression System for Diagnosis of Penicilliosis

BACKGROUND: Penicillium marneffei is a dimorphic fungus endemic in Southeast Asia. It can cause fatal penicilliosis in humans, particularly in HIV-infected people. Diagnosis of this infection is difficult because its clinical manifestations are not distinctive. Specialized laboratory tests are necessary to establish a definitive diagnosis for successful management. We have demonstrated previously that a cell wall mannoprotein Mp1p, abundant in P. marneffei, is a potential biomarker for diagnosis of P. marneffei infections. In the present study, we describe immunoassays based on Mp1p derived from the yeast Pichia pastoris expression system. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We generated monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and rabbit polyclonal antibodies (PAbs) against Mp1p expressed in P. pastoris. Subsequently, we developed two Mp1p antigen capture ELISAs which employed MAbs for both the capture and detecting antibodies (MAb-MAb pair) or PAbs and MAbs as the capture and detecting antibodies (PAbs-MAb pair) respectively. The two Mp1p antigen ELISAs detected Mp1p specifically in cultures of P. marneffei yeast phase at 37-40 degrees C and had no cross-reaction with other tested pathogenic fungi. The sensitivities and specificities of the two antigen assays were found to be 55% (11/20) and 99.6% (538/540) for MAb-MAb Mp1p ELISA, and 75% (15/20) and 99.4% (537/540) for PAbs-MAb Mp1p ELISA performed using 20 sera with culture-confirmed penicilliosis, and 540 control sera from 15 other mycosis patients and 525 healthy donors. Meanwhile, we also developed an anti-Mp1p IgG antibody ELISA with an evaluated sensitivity of 30% (6/20) and a specificity of 98.5% (532/540) using the same sera. Furthermore, combining the results of Mp1p antigen and antibody detection improved the sensitivity of diagnosis to 100% (20/20). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Simultaneous detection of antigen and antibody using the immunoassays based on Mp1p derived from P. pastoris greatly improves detection sensitivity. The procedures should be useful for the routine diagnosis of penicilliosis.published_or_final_versio

Id-1 and Id-2 are markers for metastasis and prognosis in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Id protein family consists of four members namely Id-1 to Id-4. Different from other basic helix–loop–helix transcription factors, they lack the DNA binding domain. Id proteins have been shown to be dysregulated in many different cancer types and their prognostic value has also been demonstrated. Recently, Id-1 has been shown to be upregulated in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, the prognostic implications of Id proteins in ESCC have not been reported. We examined the expression of the Id proteins in ESCC cell lines and clinical ESCC specimens and found that Id protein expressions were dysregulated in both the ESCC cell lines and specimens. By correlating the expression levels of Id proteins and the clinicopathological data of our patient cohort, we found that M1 stage tumours had significantly higher nuclear Id-1 expression (P=0.012) while high nuclear Id-1 expression could predict development of distant metastasis within 1 year of oesophagectomy (P=0.005). In addition, high levels of Id-2 expression in both cytoplasmic and nuclear regions predicted longer patient survival (P=0.041). Multivariate analysis showed that high-level expression of Id-2 in both cytoplasmic and nuclear regions and lower level of nuclear Id-1 expression were independent favourable predictors of survival in our ESCC patients. Our results suggest that Id-1 may promote distant metastasis in ESCC, and both Id-1 and Id-2 may be used for prognostication for ESCC patients

Epithelial Cells Derived from Swine Bone Marrow Express Stem Cell Markers and Support Influenza Virus Replication In Vitro

The bone marrow contains heterogeneous population of cells that are involved in the regeneration and repair of diseased organs, including the lungs. In this study, we isolated and characterized progenitor epithelial cells from the bone marrow of 4- to 5-week old germ-free pigs. Microscopically, the cultured cells showed epithelial-like morphology. Phenotypically, these cells expressed the stem cell markers octamer-binding transcription factor (Oct4) and stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 (SSEA-1), the alveolar stem cell marker Clara cell secretory protein (Ccsp), and the epithelial cell markers pan-cytokeratin (Pan-K), cytokeratin-18 (K-18), and occludin. When cultured in epithelial cell growth medium, the progenitor epithelial cells expressed type I and type II pneumocyte markers. Next, we examined the susceptibility of these cells to influenza virus. Progenitor epithelial cells expressed sialic acid receptors utilized by avian and mammalian influenza viruses and were targets for influenza virus replication. Additionally, differentiated type II but not type I pneumocytes supported the replication of influenza virus. Our data indicate that we have identified a unique population of progenitor epithelial cells in the bone marrow that might have airway reconstitution potential and may be a useful model for cell-based therapies for infectious and non-infectious lung diseases

Rime length, stress, and association domains

Every regular Chinese syllable has a syllable tone (the tone we get when the syllable is read in isolation). In some Chinese languages, the tonal pattern of a multisyllabic expression is basically a concatenation of the syllable tones. In other Chinese languages, the tonal pattern of a multisyllabic expression is determined solely by the initial syllable. I call the former M -languages (represented by Mandarin) and the latter S -languages (represented by Shanghai). I argue that there is an additional difference in rime structures between the two language groups. In S-languages, all rimes are simple, i.e., there are no underlying diphthongs or codas. In M-languages, all regular rimes are heavy. I further argue that a syllable keeps its underlying tones only if it has stress. Independent metrical evidence tells us that heavy rimes may carry inherent stress. Thus, in M-languages, all regular syllables are stressed and retain their underlying tones (which may or may not undergo further changes). In contrast, in S-languages, regular rimes do not carry inherent stress; instead, only those syllables that are assigned stress by rule can keep their underlying tones and hence head a multisyllabic tonal domain.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42998/1/10831_2005_Article_BF01440582.pd

Synergism between particle-based multiplexing and microfluidics technologies may bring diagnostics closer to the patient

In the field of medical diagnostics there is a growing need for inexpensive, accurate, and quick high-throughput assays. On the one hand, recent progress in microfluidics technologies is expected to strongly support the development of miniaturized analytical devices, which will speed up (bio)analytical assays. On the other hand, a higher throughput can be obtained by the simultaneous screening of one sample for multiple targets (multiplexing) by means of encoded particle-based assays. Multiplexing at the macro level is now common in research labs and is expected to become part of clinical diagnostics. This review aims to debate on the “added value” we can expect from (bio)analysis with particles in microfluidic devices. Technologies to (a) decode, (b) analyze, and (c) manipulate the particles are described. Special emphasis is placed on the challenges of integrating currently existing detection platforms for encoded microparticles into microdevices and on promising microtechnologies that could be used to down-scale the detection units in order to obtain compact miniaturized particle-based multiplexing platforms

Global incidence, prevalence, years lived with disability (YLDs), disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and healthy life expectancy (HALE) for 371 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background: Detailed, comprehensive, and timely reporting on population health by underlying causes of disability and premature death is crucial to understanding and responding to complex patterns of disease and injury burden over time and across age groups, sexes, and locations. The availability of disease burden estimates can promote evidence-based interventions that enable public health researchers, policy makers, and other professionals to implement strategies that can mitigate diseases. It can also facilitate more rigorous monitoring of progress towards national and international health targets, such as the Sustainable Development Goals. For three decades, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) has filled that need. A global network of collaborators contributed to the production of GBD 2021 by providing, reviewing, and analysing all available data. GBD estimates are updated routinely with additional data and refined analytical methods. GBD 2021 presents, for the first time, estimates of health loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The GBD 2021 disease and injury burden analysis estimated years lived with disability (YLDs), years of life lost (YLLs), disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), and healthy life expectancy (HALE) for 371 diseases and injuries using 100 983 data sources. Data were extracted from vital registration systems, verbal autopsies, censuses, household surveys, disease-specific registries, health service contact data, and other sources. YLDs were calculated by multiplying cause-age-sex-location-year-specific prevalence of sequelae by their respective disability weights, for each disease and injury. YLLs were calculated by multiplying cause-age-sex-location-year-specific deaths by the standard life expectancy at the age that death occurred. DALYs were calculated by summing YLDs and YLLs. HALE estimates were produced using YLDs per capita and age-specific mortality rates by location, age, sex, year, and cause. 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated for all final estimates as the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles values of 500 draws. Uncertainty was propagated at each step of the estimation process. Counts and age-standardised rates were calculated globally, for seven super-regions, 21 regions, 204 countries and territories (including 21 countries with subnational locations), and 811 subnational locations, from 1990 to 2021. Here we report data for 2010 to 2021 to highlight trends in disease burden over the past decade and through the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings: Global DALYs increased from 2·63 billion (95% UI 2·44–2·85) in 2010 to 2·88 billion (2·64–3·15) in 2021 for all causes combined. Much of this increase in the number of DALYs was due to population growth and ageing, as indicated by a decrease in global age-standardised all-cause DALY rates of 14·2% (95% UI 10·7–17·3) between 2010 and 2019. Notably, however, this decrease in rates reversed during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic, with increases in global age-standardised all-cause DALY rates since 2019 of 4·1% (1·8–6·3) in 2020 and 7·2% (4·7–10·0) in 2021. In 2021, COVID-19 was the leading cause of DALYs globally (212·0 million [198·0–234·5] DALYs), followed by ischaemic heart disease (188·3 million [176·7–198·3]), neonatal disorders (186·3 million [162·3–214·9]), and stroke (160·4 million [148·0–171·7]). However, notable health gains were seen among other leading communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional (CMNN) diseases. Globally between 2010 and 2021, the age-standardised DALY rates for HIV/AIDS decreased by 47·8% (43·3–51·7) and for diarrhoeal diseases decreased by 47·0% (39·9–52·9). Non-communicable diseases contributed 1·73 billion (95% UI 1·54–1·94) DALYs in 2021, with a decrease in age-standardised DALY rates since 2010 of 6·4% (95% UI 3·5–9·5). Between 2010 and 2021, among the 25 leading Level 3 causes, age-standardised DALY rates increased most substantially for anxiety disorders (16·7% [14·0–19·8]), depressive disorders (16·4% [11·9–21·3]), and diabetes (14·0% [10·0–17·4]). Age-standardised DALY rates due to injuries decreased globally by 24·0% (20·7–27·2) between 2010 and 2021, although improvements were not uniform across locations, ages, and sexes. Globally, HALE at birth improved slightly, from 61·3 years (58·6–63·6) in 2010 to 62·2 years (59·4–64·7) in 2021. However, despite this overall increase, HALE decreased by 2·2% (1·6–2·9) between 2019 and 2021. Interpretation: Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in the context of a mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive list of causes of health loss is crucial to understanding its impact and ensuring that health funding and policy address needs at both local and global levels through cost-effective and evidence-based interventions. A global epidemiological transition remains underway. Our findings suggest that prioritising non-communicable disease prevention and treatment policies, as well as strengthening health systems, continues to be crucially important. The progress on reducing the burden of CMNN diseases must not stall; although global trends are improving, the burden of CMNN diseases remains unacceptably high. Evidence-based interventions will help save the lives of young children and mothers and improve the overall health and economic conditions of societies across the world. Governments and multilateral organisations should prioritise pandemic preparedness planning alongside efforts to reduce the burden of diseases and injuries that will strain resources in the coming decades. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation