Gratitude has been associated with better physical health. Yet, surprisingly little research has experimentally investigated the capacity of gratitude to motivate individuals to eat more healthfully. ...In Study 1, among undergraduate students (N = 327) attempting to achieve a healthy eating goal, state gratitude following a writing activity significantly predicted healthier eating behavior 1 week later. In Study 2, across a 4-week intervention, 9th and 10th grade students (N = 1017) from four high schools were randomly assigned to either write weekly gratitude letters or to list their daily activities each week (control). Teens who expressed gratitude reported healthier eating behavior over time, relative to controls, and this effect was partially mediated by reductions in average negative affect across the intervention period. Thus, our findings suggest that gratitude-based interventions may facilitate improvements in healthy eating behavior in adolescents and young adults.
Background: Though childhood obesity and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have been well researched in isolation, the existing literature has yet to thoroughly examine the co-occurrence of the two ...conditions. It is not presently understood how likely the two conditions are to co-occur. lt is also unclear how environmental and behavioral risk factors for childhood obesity may contribute more significantly to likelihood for obesity in children with ASD compared to youth without autism. Additionally, the role of functional limitations and diagnostic severity in likelihood for obesity within children with ASD has not been examined. Objectives: First, this study aimed to identify whether children with ASD are more likely to be obese compared to youth without ASD. Second, the present study examined whether any identified discrepancy in likelihood for obesity between the two groups remained after controlling for sociodemographic factors. Third, the present study examined whether physical activity and screen-based behavior, individual health behaviors associated with childhood obesity and also particularly relevant to ASD, account for any identified discrepancy in likelihood for obesity between the two groups. Finally, this study examined the contribution of functional limitations and diagnostic severity to the likelihood for obesity in youth with ASD. Methods: A nationally representative sample from the National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) 2007 was used. Children age 10-17 (n = 41,902) were grouped based on presence of current ASD diagnosis (ASD n = 464; non-ASD n = 41 ,438). Chi-square analyses were used to examine prevalence for obesity between children with ASD and children without ASD. Binary logistic regression models were created to identify whether environmental and for behavioral factors account for significant discrepancy in likelihood for obesity between children with obesity and those not so diagnosed, and to address whether functional limitations or diagnostic severity account for differences in likelihood for obesity in children with ASD. Results: The prevalence of obesity among those with ASD (n = 464) is 25.40%, compared to 13.50% in the non-ASD group (n = 41,438, p < .000). Children with ASD are more than twice as likely to be obese than children without ASD (Unadjusted OR = 2.19; 95% CI= 1.78, 2.71 ). Among youth with ASD, children with a mode rate (OR = 1.26, 95% CI= 0.77, 2.05) or severe ASD diagnosis (OR= 2.37, 95% CI= 1.19, 4.71) were more likely to be obese compared to those with a mild diagnostic severity. Conclusions: Present findings indicate that children in the United States with ASD are twice as likely to be obese, compared to non-ASD peers. Furthermore, among youth with ASD, increased severity of diagnosis and functional limitations are significantly associated with increased likelihood for obesity. The present findings suggest that heightened efforts at early identification and intervention may be warranted to prevent and treat obesity in ASD.
Abstract Objective We sought to determine whether an ED pharmacist could aid in the monitoring and correction of inappropriate empiric antibiotic selection for urinary tract infections in an ...outpatient emergency department population. Methods Urine cultures with greater than 100,000 CFU/mL bacteria from the University of Utah Emergency Department over one year (October 2011-Sept 2012) were identified using our electronic medical record system. Per ED protocol, an ED pharmacist reviews all cultures and performs a chart review of patient symptoms, diagnosis, and discharge antibiotics to determine whether the treatment was appropriate. A retrospective review of this process was performed to identify how often inappropriate treatment was recognized and intervened on by an ED pharmacist. Results Of the 180 cultures included, a total of 42 (23%) of empiric discharge treatments were considered inappropriate and required intervention. In 35 of 42 patients (83%), the ED pharmacist was able to contact the patient and make appropriate changes; the remaining 7 patients were unable to be contacted and no change could be made in their treatment. Conclusion A chart review of all urine cultures with greater than 100,000 CFU/mL performed by an ED pharmacist helped identify inappropriate treatment in 23% of patients discharged to home with the diagnosis of UTI. Of these patients who had received inappropriate treatment, an ED pharmacist was able to intervene in 83% of cases. These data highlight the role of ED pharmacists in improving patient care after discharge.
HS1165, a 7-page fact sheet by Timothy M. Spann, Ryan A. Atwood, Megan M. Dewdney, Robert C. Ebel, Reza Ehsani, Gary England, Stephen H. Futch, Tim Gaver, Tim Hurner, Chris Oswalt, Michael E. Rogers, ...Fritz M. Roka, Mark A. Ritenour, Mongi Zekri, Brian J. Boman, Kuang-Ren Chung, Michelle D. Danyluk, Renee Goodrich-Schneider, Kelly T. Morgan, Robert A. Morris, Ronald P. Muraro, Pamela Roberts, Robert E. Rouse, Arnold W. Schumann, Philip A. Stansly, and Lukasz L. Stelinski, provides guidance to the Florida citrus industry in making management decisions regarding huanglongbing (HLB, citrus greening). Published by the UF Department of Horticultural Sciences, June 2010.
HS1165, a 7-page fact sheet by Timothy M. Spann, Ryan A. Atwood, Megan M. Dewdney, Robert C. Ebel, Reza Ehsani, Gary England, Stephen H. Futch, Tim Gaver, Tim Hurner, Chris Oswalt, Michael E. Rogers, ...Fritz M. Roka, Mark A. Ritenour, Mongi Zekri, Brian J. Boman, Kuang-Ren Chung, Michelle D. Danyluk, Renee Goodrich-Schneider, Kelly T. Morgan, Robert A. Morris, Ronald P. Muraro, Pamela Roberts, Robert E. Rouse, Arnold W. Schumann, Philip A. Stansly, and Lukasz L. Stelinski, provides guidance to the Florida citrus industry in making management decisions regarding huanglongbing (HLB, citrus greening). Published by the UF Department of Horticultural Sciences, June 2010.
Compared to its predecessors, the Telomere-to-Telomere CHM13 genome adds nearly 200 million base pairs of sequence, corrects thousands of structural errors, and unlocks the most complex regions of ...the human genome for clinical and functional study. We show how this reference universally improves read mapping and variant calling for 3202 and 17 globally diverse samples sequenced with short and long reads, respectively. We identify hundreds of thousands of variants per sample in previously unresolved regions, showcasing the promise of the T2T-CHM13 reference for evolutionary and biomedical discovery. Simultaneously, this reference eliminates tens of thousands of spurious variants per sample, including reduction of false positives in 269 medically relevant genes by up to a factor of 12. Because of these improvements in variant discovery coupled with population and functional genomic resources, T2T-CHM13 is positioned to replace GRCh38 as the prevailing reference for human genetics.
Mosquitoes transmit a wide variety of devastating pathogens when they bite vertebrate hosts and feed on their blood. However, three entire mosquito genera and many individual species in other genera ...have evolved a nonbiting life history in which blood is not required to produce eggs. Our long‐term goal is to develop novel interventions that reduce or eliminate the biting behavior in vector mosquitoes. A previous study used biting and nonbiting populations of a nonvector mosquito, Wyeomyia smithii, as a model to uncover the transcriptional basis of the evolutionary transition from a biting to a nonbiting life history. Herein, we ask whether the molecular pathways that were differentially expressed due to differences in biting behavior in W. smithii are also differentially expressed between subspecies of Culex pipiens that are obligate biting (Culex pipiens pipiens) and facultatively nonbiting (Culex pipiens molestus). Results from RNAseq of adult heads show dramatic upregulation of transcripts in the ribosomal protein pathway in biting C. pipiens, recapitulating the results in W. smithii, and implicating the ancient and highly conserved ribosome as the intersection to understanding the evolutionary and physiological basis of blood feeding in mosquitoes. Biting Culex also strongly upregulate energy production pathways, including oxidative phosphorylation and the citric acid (TCA) cycle relative to nonbiters, a distinction that was not observed in W. smithii. Amino acid metabolism pathways were enriched for differentially expressed genes in biting versus nonbiting Culex. Relative to biters, nonbiting Culex upregulated sugar metabolism and transcripts contributing to reproductive allocation (vitellogenin and cathepsins). These results provide a foundation for developing strategies to determine the natural evolutionary transition between a biting and nonbiting life history in vector mosquitoes.
Leukocytes and other amoeboid cells change shape as they move, forming highly dynamic, actin-filled pseudopods. Although we understand much about the architecture and dynamics of thin lamellipodia ...made by slow-moving cells on flat surfaces, conventional light microscopy lacks the spatial and temporal resolution required to track complex pseudopods of cells moving in three dimensions. We therefore employed lattice light sheet microscopy to perform three-dimensional, time-lapse imaging of neutrophil-like HL-60 cells crawling through collagen matrices. To analyze three-dimensional pseudopods we: (i) developed fluorescent probe combinations that distinguish cortical actin from dynamic, pseudopod-forming actin networks, and (ii) adapted molecular visualization tools from structural biology to render and analyze complex cell surfaces. Surprisingly, three-dimensional pseudopods turn out to be composed of thin (<0.75 µm), flat sheets that sometimes interleave to form rosettes. Their laminar nature is not templated by an external surface, but likely reflects a linear arrangement of regulatory molecules. Although we find that Arp2/3-dependent pseudopods are dispensable for three-dimensional locomotion, their elimination dramatically decreases the frequency of cell turning, and pseudopod dynamics increase when cells change direction, highlighting the important role pseudopods play in pathfinding.
Replacing synthetic insecticides with transgenic crops for pest management has been economically and environmentally beneficial, but these benefits erode as pests evolve resistance. It has been ...proposed that novel genomic approaches could track molecular signals of emerging resistance to aid in resistance management. To test this, we quantified patterns of genomic change in
, a major lepidopteran pest and target of transgenic
(Bt) crops, between 2002 and 2017 as both Bt crop adoption and resistance increased in North America. Genomic scans of wild
were paired with quantitative trait locus (QTL) analyses and showed the genomic architecture of field-evolved Cry1Ab resistance was polygenic, likely arising from standing genetic variation. Resistance to pyramided Cry1A.105 and Cry2Ab2 toxins was controlled by fewer loci. Of the 11 previously described Bt resistance genes, 9 showed no significant change over time or major effects on resistance. We were unable to rule out a contribution of aminopeptidases (
), as a cluster of
genes were found within a Cry-associated QTL. Molecular signals of emerging Bt resistance were detectable as early as 2012 in our samples, and we discuss the potential and pitfalls of whole-genome analysis for resistance monitoring based on our findings. This first study of Bt resistance evolution using whole-genome analysis of field-collected specimens demonstrates the need for a more holistic approach to examining rapid adaptation to novel selection pressures in agricultural ecosystems.
Within the Culex pipiens mosquito complex, there are six contemporarily recognized taxa: Cx. quinquefasciatus, Cx. pipiens f. pipiens, Cx. pipiens f. molestus, Cx. pipiens pallens, Cx. australicus ...and Cx. globocoxitus. Many phylogenetic aspects within this complex have eluded resolution, such as the relationship of the two Australian endemic taxa to the other four members, as well as the evolutionary origins and taxonomic status of Cx. pipiens pallens and Cx. pipiens f. molestus. Ultimately, insights into lineage relationships within the complex will facilitate a better understanding of differential disease transmission by these mosquitoes. To this end, we have combined publicly available data with our own sequencing efforts to examine these questions.
We found that the two Australian endemic complex members, Cx. australicus and Cx. globocoxitus, comprise a monophyletic group, are genetically distinct, and are most closely related to the cosmopolitan Cx. quinquefasciatus. Our results also show that Cx. pipiens pallens is genetically distinct, but may have arisen from past hybridization. Lastly, we observed complicated patterns of genetic differentiation within and between Cx. pipiens f. pipiens and Cx. pipiens f. molestus.
Two Australian endemic Culex taxa, Cx. australicus and Cx. globocoxitus, belong within the Cx. pipiens complex, but have a relatively older evolutionary origin. They likely diverged from Cx. quinquefasciatus after its colonization of Australia. The taxon Cx. pipiens pallens is a distinct evolutionary entity that likely arose from past hybridization between Cx. quinquefasciatus and Cx. pipiens f. pipiens/Cx. pipiens f. molestus. Our results do not suggest it derives from ongoing hybridization. Finally, genetic differentiation within the Cx. pipiens f. pipiens and Cx. pipiens f. molestus samples suggests that they collectively form two separate geographic clades, one in North America and one in Europe and the Mediterranean. This may indicate that the Cx. pipiens f. molestus form has two distinct origins, arising from Cx. pipiens f. pipiens in each region. However, ongoing genetic exchange within and between these taxa have obscured their evolutionary histories, and could also explain the absence of monophyly among our samples. Overall, this work suggests many avenues that warrant further investigation.
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