Predictors of Cardiometabolic Disease Risk Factors in Professional Firefighters

The leading cause of mortality (~50% of deaths) among on-duty firefighters is sudden cardiac death. Firefighters with adequate cardiorespiratory fitness levels (among other muscular fitness metrics) and lower body fat percentage (BF%) are likely to better combat on-duty cardiac events and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Individuals with higher VO2max values may be at lower risk noted by lower oxidative stress and inflammatory biomarkers, which may be more ideal predictors of CVD risk compared to traditional biomarkers (i.e., blood glucose and lipids) among the fire community; however, more research is needed to elucidate. PURPOSE: This study examined the relationship between fitness metrics, body fat percentage, and traditional and non-traditional biomarkers among professional firefighters. METHODS: Ninety-eight professional, male firefighters (age = 36.26 ± 9.08 yrs; height = 179.53 ± 7.06 cm; waist circumference = 37.99 ± 4.13 cm; BF% = 24.39 ± 5.21; years of experience = 11.81 ± 8.00 yrs) from a local fire department were studied VO2max was estimated from total treadmill exercise time using the Foster equation.. Fitness metrics including muscular strength, endurance, and power variables were also measured. Fasted blood samples were analyzed for concentrations of lipids, glucose, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), and ultra-sensitive C-reactive protein (CRP). To assess the relationship between fitness metrics and AOPP, CRP, and HOMA-IR, ordinary least square regression analyses were used. RESULTS: VO2max values were inversely (p \u3c 0.05) related to AOPP, HOMA-IR, and CRP. Waist circumference was positively correlated to AOPP concentrations and HOMA-IR, while increased BF% was significantly related to increased CRP concentrations. CONCLUSION: High VO2max values were significantly related to lower AOPP, CRP, and HOMA-IR. Additionally, high waist circumference and BF% values were related to increases in oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance. Firefighters are encouraged to maintain high cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2max) and lower BF% to reduce CVD and, ultimately, on-duty sudden cardiac death risk

Diet and Gastrointestinal Bypass–Induced Weight Loss: The Roles of Ghrelin and Peptide YY

OBJECTIVE-Bariatric surgery causes durable weight loss. Gut hormones are implicated in obesity pathogenesis, dietary failure, and mediating gastrointestinal bypass (GIBP) surgery weight loss. In mice, we determined the effects of diet-induced obesity (DIO), subsequent dieting, and GIBP surgery on ghrelin, peptide YY (PYY), and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). To evaluate PYY's role in mediating weight loss post-GIBP, we undertook GIBP surgery in PyyKO mice.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS-Male C57BL/6 mice randomized to a high-fat diet or control diet were killed at 4-week intervals. DIO mice underwent switch to ad libitum low-fat diet (DIO-switch) or caloric restriction (CR) for 4 weeks before being killed. PyyKO mice and their DIO wild-type (WT) littermates underwent GIBP or sham surgery and were culled 10 days post-operatively. Fasting acyl-ghrelin, total PYY, active GLP-1 concentrations, stomach ghrelin expression, and colonic Pyy and glucagon expression were determined. Fasting and postprandial PYY and GLP-1 concentrations were assessed 30 days postsurgery in GIBP and sham pair-fed (sham.PF) groups.RESULTS-DIO progressively reduced circulating fasting acyl-ghrelin, PYY, and GLP-1 levels. CR and DIO-switch caused weight loss but failed to restore circulating PYY to weight-appropriate levels. After GIBP, WT mice lost weight and exhibited increased circulating fasting PYY and colonic Pyy and glucagon expression. In contrast, the acute effects of GIBP on body weight were lost in PyyKO mice. Fasting PYY and postprandial PYY and GLP-1 levels were increased in GIBP mice compared with sham.PF mice.CONCLUSIONS-PYY plays a key role in mediating the early weight loss observed post-GIBP, whereas relative PYY deficiency during dieting may compromise weight-loss attempts. Diabetes 60:810-818, 201

Metabolic state alters economic decision making under risk in humans

Background: Animals' attitudes to risk are profoundly influenced by metabolic state (hunger and baseline energy stores). Specifically, animals often express a preference for risky (more variable) food sources when below a metabolic reference point (hungry), and safe (less variable) food sources when sated. Circulating hormones report the status of energy reserves and acute nutrient intake to widespread targets in the central nervous system that regulate feeding behaviour, including brain regions strongly implicated in risk and reward based decision-making in humans. Despite this, physiological influences per se have not been considered previously to influence economic decisions in humans. We hypothesised that baseline metabolic reserves and alterations in metabolic state would systematically modulate decision-making and financial risk-taking in humans. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used a controlled feeding manipulation and assayed decision-making preferences across different metabolic states following a meal. To elicit risk-preference, we presented a sequence of 200 paired lotteries, subjects' task being to select their preferred option from each pair. We also measured prandial suppression of circulating acyl-ghrelin (a centrally-acting orexigenic hormone signalling acute nutrient intake), and circulating leptin levels (providing an assay of energy reserves). We show both immediate and delayed effects on risky decision-making following a meal, and that these changes correlate with an individual's baseline leptin and changes in acyl-ghrelin levels respectively. Conclusions/Significance: We show that human risk preferences are exquisitely sensitive to current metabolic state, in a direction consistent with ecological models of feeding behaviour but not predicted by normative economic theory. These substantive effects of state changes on economic decisions perhaps reflect shared evolutionarily conserved neurobiological mechanisms. We suggest that this sensitivity in human risk-preference to current metabolic state has significant implications for both real-world economic transactions and for aberrant decision-making in eating disorders and obesity

Identification of a Bacterial-Like HslVU Protease in the Mitochondria of Trypanosoma brucei and Its Role in Mitochondrial DNA Replication

ATP-dependent protease complexes are present in all living organisms, including the 26S proteasome in eukaryotes, Archaea, and Actinomycetales, and the HslVU protease in eubacteria. The structure of HslVU protease resembles that of the 26S proteasome, and the simultaneous presence of both proteases in one organism was deemed unlikely. However, HslVU homologs have been identified recently in some primordial eukaryotes, though their potential function remains elusive. We characterized the HslVU homolog from Trypanosoma brucei, a eukaryotic protozoan parasite and the causative agent of human sleeping sickness. TbHslVU has ATP-dependent peptidase activity and, like its bacterial counterpart, has essential lysine and N-terminal threonines in the catalytic subunit. By epitope tagging, TbHslVU localizes to mitochondria and is associated with the mitochondrial genome, kinetoplast DNA (kDNA). RNAi of TbHslVU dramatically affects the kDNA by causing over-replication of the minicircle DNA. This leads to defects in kDNA segregation and, subsequently, to continuous network growth to an enormous size. Multiple discrete foci of nicked/gapped minicircles are formed on the periphery of kDNA disc, suggesting a failure in repairing the gaps in the minicircles for kDNA segregation. TbHslVU is a eubacterial protease identified in the mitochondria of a eukaryote. It has a novel function in regulating mitochondrial DNA replication that has never been observed in other organisms

Evidence in the learning organization

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Organizational leaders in business and medicine have been experiencing a similar dilemma: how to ensure that their organizational members are adopting work innovations in a timely fashion. Organizational leaders in healthcare have attempted to resolve this dilemma by offering specific solutions, such as evidence-based medicine (EBM), but organizations are still not systematically adopting evidence-based practice innovations as rapidly as expected by policy-makers (the knowing-doing gap problem). Some business leaders have adopted a systems-based perspective, called the learning organization (LO), to address a similar dilemma. Three years ago, the Society of General Internal Medicine's Evidence-based Medicine Task Force began an inquiry to integrate the EBM and LO concepts into one model to address the knowing-doing gap problem.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>During the model development process, the authors searched several databases for relevant LO frameworks and their related concepts by using a broad search strategy. To identify the key LO frameworks and consolidate them into one model, the authors used consensus-based decision-making and a narrative thematic synthesis guided by several qualitative criteria. The authors subjected the model to external, independent review and improved upon its design with this feedback.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The authors found seven LO frameworks particularly relevant to evidence-based practice innovations in organizations. The authors describe their interpretations of these frameworks for healthcare organizations, the process they used to integrate the LO frameworks with EBM principles, and the resulting Evidence in the Learning Organization (ELO) model. They also provide a health organization scenario to illustrate ELO concepts in application.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The authors intend, by sharing the LO frameworks and the ELO model, to help organizations identify their capacities to learn and share knowledge about evidence-based practice innovations. The ELO model will need further validation and improvement through its use in organizational settings and applied health services research.</p

Landscape of somatic single nucleotide variants and indels in colorectal cancer and impact on survival

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a biologically heterogeneous disease. To characterize its mutational profile, we conduct targeted sequencing of 205 genes for 2,105 CRC cases with survival data. Our data shows several findings in addition to enhancing the existing knowledge of CRC. We identify PRKCI, SPZ1, MUTYH, MAP2K4, FETUB, and TGFBR2 as additional genes significantly mutated in CRC. We find that among hypermutated tumors, an increased mutation burden is associated with improved CRC-specific survival (HR=0.42, 95% CI: 0.21-0.82). Mutations in TP53 are associated with poorer CRC-specific survival, which is most pronounced in cases carrying TP53 mutations with predicted 0% transcriptional activity (HR=1.53, 95% CI: 1.21-1.94). Furthermore, we observe differences in mutational frequency of several genes and pathways by tumor location, stage, and sex. Overall, this large study provides deep insights into somatic mutations in CRC, and their potential relationships with survival and tumor features. Large scale sequencing study is of paramount importance to unravel the heterogeneity of colorectal cancer. Here, the authors sequenced 205 cancer genes in more than 2000 tumours and identified additional mutated driver genes, determined that mutational burden and specific mutations in TP53 are associated with survival odds

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species. Elasmobranchs displayed high intra- and interspecific variability in vertical movement patterns. Substantial vertical overlap was observed for many epipelagic elasmobranchs, indicating an increased likelihood to display spatial overlap, biologically interact, and share similar risk to anthropogenic threats that vary on a vertical gradient. We highlight the critical next steps toward incorporating vertical movement into global management and monitoring strategies for elasmobranchs, emphasizing the need to address geographic and taxonomic biases in deployments and to concurrently consider both horizontal and vertical movements

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead