Recent 3-dimensional optical (3DO) imaging advancements have provided more accessible, affordable, and self-operating opportunities for assessing body composition. 3DO is accurate and precise in ...clinical measures made by DXA. However, the sensitivity for monitoring body composition change over time with 3DO body shape imaging is unknown.
This study aimed to evaluate the ability of 3DO in monitoring body composition changes across multiple intervention studies.
A retrospective analysis was performed using intervention studies on healthy adults that were complimentary to the cross-sectional study, Shape Up! Adults. Each participant received a DXA (Hologic Discovery/A system) and 3DO (Fit3D ProScanner) scan at the baseline and follow-up. 3DO meshes were digitally registered and reposed using Meshcapade to standardize the vertices and pose. Using an established statistical shape model, each 3DO mesh was transformed into principal components, which were used to predict whole-body and regional body composition values using published equations. Body composition changes (follow-up minus the baseline) were compared with those of DXA using a linear regression analysis.
The analysis included 133 participants (45 females) in 6 studies. The mean (SD) length of follow-up was 13 (5) wk (range: 3–23 wk). Agreement between 3DO and DXA (R2) for changes in total FM, total FFM, and appendicular lean mass were 0.86, 0.73, and 0.70, with root mean squared errors (RMSEs) of 1.98 kg, 1.58 kg, and 0.37 kg, in females and 0.75, 0.75, and 0.52 with RMSEs of 2.31 kg, 1.77 kg, and 0.52 kg, in males, respectively. Further adjustment with demographic descriptors improved the 3DO change agreement to changes observed with DXA.
Compared with DXA, 3DO was highly sensitive in detecting body shape changes over time. The 3DO method was sensitive enough to detect even small changes in body composition during intervention studies. The safety and accessibility of 3DO allows users to self-monitor on a frequent basis throughout interventions.
This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03637855 (Shape Up! Adults; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03637855); NCT03394664 (Macronutrients and Body Fat Accumulation: A Mechanistic Feeding Study; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03394664); NCT03771417 (Resistance Exercise and Low-Intensity Physical Activity Breaks in Sedentary Time to Improve Muscle and Cardiometabolic Health; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03771417); NCT03393195 (Time Restricted Eating on Weight Loss; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03393195), and NCT04120363 (Trial of Testosterone Undecanoate for Optimizing Performance During Military Operations; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04120363).
Small ponds often survive the transition from forested to suburban land cover and provide habitat for many species, yet little is known about how suburbanization affects pond ecosystems. We surveyed ...18 small ponds across a forest-to-suburban land cover gradient and compared how physical and chemical changes altered biological and ecosystem properties, such as nutrient and food web dynamics. Suburbanization decreased canopy cover, increased water temperatures, and increased periphyton chlorophyll a, but was associated with only weak increases in total nutrients. Yet, stable isotope analysis indicated that suburbanization altered nitrogen dynamics and resource use in the food web. We observed increases in δ
15
N in algae, biofilm, and frog larvae across the suburban gradient, indicative of wastewater intrusion. Suburbanization also shifted the energy and nutrient source of a dominant consumer (Rana sylvatica; = Lithobates sylvaticus) from leaf litter to algae. Overall, we identified cryptic changes to suburban pond ecosystems, highlighting that suburbanization can profoundly impact nutrients and food web resources. As residential land use increases globally, we may expect substantial shifts in nutrient dynamics and food web pathways.
Objective
The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors for perioperative complications and long‐term morbidity in infants from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) presenting for a ...tracheostomy.
Methods
This single‐center retrospective cohort study included infants in the NICU presenting for a tracheostomy from August 2011 to December 2019. Primary outcomes were categorized as either a perioperative complication or long‐term morbidity. A severe perioperative complication was defined as having either (1) an intraoperative cardiopulmonary arrest, (2) an intraoperative death, (3) a postoperative cardiopulmonary arrest within 30 days of the procedure, or (4) a postoperative death within 30 days of the procedure. Long‐term morbidities included (1) the need for gastrostomy tube placement within the tracheostomy hospitalization and (2) the need for diuretic therapy, pulmonary hypertensive therapy, oxygen, or mechanical ventilation at 12 and 24 months following the tracheostomy.
Results
One‐hundred eighty‐three children underwent a tracheostomy. The mean age at tracheostomy was 16.9 weeks while the mean post‐conceptual age at tracheostomy was 49.7 weeks. The incidence of severe perioperative complications was 4.4% (n = 8) with the number of pulmonary hypertension medication classes preoperatively (OR: 3.64, 95% CI: (1.44–8.94), p = 0.005) as a significant risk factor. Approximately 81% of children additionally had a gastrostomy tube placed at the time of the tracheostomy, and 62% were ventilator‐dependent 2 years following their tracheostomy.
Conclusion
Our study provides critical perioperative complications and long‐term morbidity data to neonatologists, pediatricians, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and families in the expected course of infants from the NICU presenting for a tracheostomy.
Level of Evidence
3 Laryngoscope, 134:1945–1954, 2024
The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors for perioperative complications and long‐term morbidity in infants from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) presenting for a tracheostomy. This single‐center retrospective cohort study found an incidence of severe perioperative complications of 4.4%, including perioperative cardiac arrest and death, with the number of pulmonary hypertension medication classes preoperatively as a significant risk factor. Furthermore, approximately 81% of patients had a gastrostomy tube placement at the time of the tracheostomy and 62% of patients were ventilator dependent 2 years following the tracheostomy. Our study provides critical perioperative and long‐term data to neonatologists, pediatricians, surgeons, anesthesiologists, and families about the expected course of infants from the NICU presenting for a tracheostomy.
We report an experimental and theoretical study of the single-molecule conductance of two separate families of regioisomeric phthalocyanine derivatives in which the binding groups are connected at ...opposite or at contiguous positions about the phthalocyanine moiety. We observe that compounds with the longest distance between the anchoring groups yield molecular junctions with a higher conductance compared to those with a shorter distance. We performed both density functional theory (DFT) and tight binding calculations to understand how interference effects explain the experimental results including the role of constructive and destructive quantum interference in five phthalocyanine derivatives.
The circadian clock mechanism in the mouse is composed of interlocking transcriptional feedback loops. Two transcription factors, CLOCK and BMAL1, are believed to be essential components of the ...circadian clock. We have used the Cre-LoxP system to generate whole-animal knockouts of CLOCK and evaluated the resultant circadian phenotypes. Surprisingly, CLOCK-deficient mice continue to express robust circadian rhythms in locomotor activity, although they do have altered responses to light. At the molecular and biochemical levels, clock gene mRNA and protein levels in both the master clock in the suprachiasmatic nuclei and a peripheral clock in the liver show alterations in the CLOCK-deficient animals, although the molecular feedback loops continue to function. Our data challenge a central feature of the current mammalian circadian clock model regarding the necessity of CLOCK:BMAL1 heterodimers for clock function.
Activation of the MAPK signaling pathway has been shown to be a unifying molecular feature in pilocytic astrocytoma (PA). Genetically, tandem duplications at chromosome 7q34 resulting in
KIAA1549
–
...BRAF
fusion genes constitute the most common mechanism identified to date. To elucidate alternative mechanisms of aberrant MAPK activation in PA, we screened 125 primary tumors for
RAF
fusion genes and mutations in
KRAS
,
NRAS
,
HRAS
,
PTPN11
,
BRAF
and
RAF1
. Using microarray-based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH), we identified in three cases an interstitial deletion of ~2.5 Mb as a novel recurrent mechanism forming
BRAF
gene fusions with
FAM131B
, a currently uncharacterized gene on chromosome 7q34. This deletion removes the BRAF N-terminal inhibitory domains, giving a constitutively active BRAF kinase. Functional characterization of the novel FAM131B–BRAF fusion demonstrated constitutive MEK phosphorylation potential and transforming activity in vitro. In addition, our study confirmed previously reported
BRAF
and
RAF1
fusion variants in 72% (90/125) of PA. Mutations in
BRAF
(8/125),
KRAS
(2/125) and
NF1
(4/125) and the rare
RAF1
gene fusions (2/125) were mutually exclusive with
BRAF
rearrangements, with the exception of two cases in our series that concomitantly harbored more than one hit in the MAPK pathway. In summary, our findings further underline the fundamental role of RAF kinase fusion products as a tumor-specific marker and an ideally suited drug target for PA.
The Chicago Consensus Working Group provides multidisciplinary recommendations for the management of peritoneal surface malignancies of various causes. These guidelines are developed with input from ...leading experts including surgical oncologists, medical oncologists, pathologists, radiologists, palliative care physicians, and pharmacists. These guidelines recognize and address the emerging need for increased awareness of the appropriate management of peritoneal surface disease. They are not intended to replace the quest for higher levels of evidence. This article serves as an introduction to this effort.
The TrkC neurotrophin receptor belongs to the functional dependence receptor family, members of which share the ability to induce apoptosis in the absence of their ligands. Such a trait has been ...hypothesized to confer tumor-suppressor activity. Indeed, cells that express these receptors are thought to be dependent on ligand availability for their survival, a mechanism that inhibits uncontrolled tumor cell proliferation and migration. TrkC is a classic tyrosine kinase receptor and therefore generally considered to be a protooncogene. We show here that TrkC expression is down-regulated in a large fraction of human colorectal cancers, mainly through promoter methylation. Moreover, we show that TrkC silencing by promoter methylation is a selective advantage for colorectal cell lines to limit tumor cell death. Furthermore, reestablished TrkC expression in colorectal cancer cell lines is associated with tumor cell death and inhibition of in vitro characteristics of cell transformation, as well as in vivo tumor growth. Finally, we provide evidence that a mutation of TrkC detected in a sporadic cancer is a loss-ofproapoptotic function mutation. Together, these data support the conclusion that TrkC is a colorectal cancer tumor suppressor.
Aims/hypothesis
We aimed to examine the effect of interrupting 7 h prolonged sitting with brief bouts of walking or resistance activities on 22 h glucose homeostasis (including nocturnal-to-following ...morning hyperglycaemia) in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Methods
This study is an extension of a previously published randomised crossover trial, which included 24 inactive overweight/obese adults with type 2 diabetes (14 men; 62 ± 6 years) who completed three 7 h laboratory conditions, separated by 6–14 day washout periods: SIT: (1) prolonged sitting (control); (2) light-intensity walking (LW): sitting plus 3 min bouts of light-intensity walking at 3.2 km/h every 30 min; (3) simple resistance activities (SRA): sitting plus 3 min bouts of simple resistance activities (alternating half-squats, calf raises, brief gluteal contractions and knee raises) every 30 min. In the present study, continuous glucose monitoring was performed for 22 h, encompassing the 7 h laboratory trial, the evening free-living period after leaving the laboratory and sleeping periods. Meals and meal times were standardised across conditions for all participants.
Results
Compared with SIT, both LW and SRA reduced 22 h glucose SIT: 11.6 ± 0.3 mmol/l, LW: 8.9 ± 0.3 mmol/l, SRA: 8.7 ± 0.3 mmol/l;
p
< 0.001 and nocturnal mean glucose concentrations SIT: 10.6 ± 0.4 mmol/l, LW: 8.1 ± 0.4 mmol/l, SRA: 8.3 ± 0.4 mmol/l;
p
< 0.001. Furthermore, mean glucose concentrations were sustained nocturnally at a lower level until the morning following the intervention for both LW and SRA (waking glucose both −2.7 ± 0.4 mmol/l compared with SIT;
p
< 0.001).
Conclusions/interpretation
Interrupting 7 h prolonged sitting time with either LW or SRA reduced 22 h hyperglycaemia. The glycaemic improvements persisted after these laboratory conditions and nocturnally, until waking the following morning. These findings may have implications for adults with relatively well-controlled type 2 diabetes who engage in prolonged periods of sitting, for example, highly desk-bound workers.
Trial registration:
anzctr.org.au ACTRN12613000576729
Funding:
This research was supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) project grant (no. 1081734) and the Victorian Government Operational Infrastructure Support scheme.
A lifetime of change
Measurements of total and basal energy in a large cohort of subjects at ages spanning from before birth to old age document distinct changes that occur during a human lifetime. ...Pontzer
et al
. report that energy expenditure (adjusted for weight) in neonates was like that of adults but increased substantially in the first year of life (see the Perspective by Rhoads and Anderson). It then gradually declined until young individuals reached adult characteristics, which were maintained from age 20 to 60 years. Older individuals showed reduced energy expenditure. Tissue metabolism thus appears not to be constant but rather to undergo transitions at critical junctures. —LBR
How metabolism and energy expenditure change over the human life span.
Total daily energy expenditure (“total expenditure”) reflects daily energy needs and is a critical variable in human health and physiology, but its trajectory over the life course is poorly studied. We analyzed a large, diverse database of total expenditure measured by the doubly labeled water method for males and females aged 8 days to 95 years. Total expenditure increased with fat-free mass in a power-law manner, with four distinct life stages. Fat-free mass–adjusted expenditure accelerates rapidly in neonates to ~50% above adult values at ~1 year; declines slowly to adult levels by ~20 years; remains stable in adulthood (20 to 60 years), even during pregnancy; then declines in older adults. These changes shed light on human development and aging and should help shape nutrition and health strategies across the life span.
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