It is common sense that it needs social and economic perspectives to understand structural changes in agriculture. The current study asserts that, likewise, the integration of the farm level (micro), ...the sectoral level (meso), and the societal level (macro) are needed to gain insight into the system of agricultural structures. Following a review of the literature, these three levels were integrated in a cycle in which the interdependencies between different units of analysis were evaluated. The study concludes that it enhances the understanding of structural change on each level if the other levels are also taken into account. It therefore contributes not only to the literature on agriculture, but also to the discussion about the rationale of an analytical meso-level between the analysis on micro- and macro-levels.
The human ether-a-go-go related gene (hERG) encodes the pore-forming subunit of the rapid component of the delayed rectifier K(+) channel, Kv11.1, which are expressed in the heart, various brain ...regions, smooth muscle cells, endocrine cells, and a wide range of tumor cell lines. However, it is the role that Kv11.1 channels play in the heart that has been best characterized, for two main reasons. First, it is the gene product involved in chromosome 7-associated long QT syndrome (LQTS), an inherited disorder associated with a markedly increased risk of ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. Second, blockade of Kv11.1, by a wide range of prescription medications, causes drug-induced QT prolongation with an increase in risk of sudden cardiac arrest. In the first part of this review, the properties of Kv11.1 channels, including biogenesis, trafficking, gating, and pharmacology are discussed, while the second part focuses on the pathophysiology of Kv11.1 channels.
PurposeWhile it is incontestable that eating in restaurants leads to a higher energy intake than eating at home, this paper explores the even more environmentally relevant connection between meat ...intake and the location of eating.Design/methodology/approachBased on secondary data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), the authors apply a latent class model (LCM), combining latent profile analysis (LPA) and regression analysis. Different (latent) consumer classes are modeled based (1) on share of meat consumption and (2) share of eating out by means of LPA, while class-specific socio-demographic characteristics are estimated by means of ordered logistic regression.FindingsResults of the LPA reveal four (latent) consumer classes with regard to the share of meat consumption and the share of eating out. One class consists mostly of male meat lovers with a high share of eating out, which, however, only represents 7% of the sample. A much larger class represents an affluent social group that consumes the majority of food outside of the home but does not consume significantly more meat than the large group of moderates who mostly eat at home. The fourth class mostly consists of children with a very low intake of meat.Originality/valueBy applying a LCM, the authors shed some light on the relation between meat consumption and eating out. The authors demonstrated that commonly assumed relations, such as men eating more meat than women, do not necessarily apply. Similar findings apply to factors potentially influencing meat consumption, such as education, marital status and income.
Covering: 1996-December 2016The human Ether-à-go-go Related Gene (hERG) channel is a voltage-gated potassium channel playing an essential role in the normal electrical activity in the heart. It is ...involved in the repolarization and termination of action potentials in excitable cardiac cells. Mutations in the hERG gene and hERG channel blockage by small molecules are associated with increased risk of fatal arrhythmias. Several drugs have been withdrawn from the market due to hERG channel-related cardiotoxicity. Moreover, as a result of its notorious ligand promiscuity, this ion channel has emerged as an important antitarget in early drug discovery and development. Surprisingly, the hERG channel blocking profile of natural compounds present in frequently consumed botanicals (i.e. dietary supplements, spices, and herbal medicinal products) is not routinely assessed. This comprehensive review will address these issues and provide a critical compilation of hERG channel data for isolated natural products and extracts over the past two decades (1996-2016). In addition, the review will provide (i) a solid basis for the molecular understanding of the physiological functions of the hERG channel, (ii) the translational potential of in vitro/in vivo results to cardiotoxicity in humans, (iii) approaches for the identification of hERG channel blockers from natural sources, (iv) future perspectives for cardiac safety guidelines and their applications within phytopharmaceuticals and dietary supplements, and (v) novel applications of hERG channel modulation (e.g. as a drug target).
Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been proposed recently as therapy for SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, but during 3 months of extensive use concerns were raised related to their clinical ...effectiveness and arrhythmogenic risk. Therefore, we estimated for these compounds several proarrhythmogenic risk predictors according to the Comprehensive in vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) paradigm. Experiments were performed with either CytoPatch™2 automated or manual patch-clamp setups on HEK293T cells stably or transiently transfected with hERG1, hNav1.5, hKir2.1, hKv7.1+hMinK, and on Pluricyte® cardiomyocytes (Ncardia), using physiological solutions. Dose-response plots of hERG1 inhibition fitted with Hill functions yielded IC50 values in the low micromolar range for both compounds. We found hyperpolarizing shifts of tens of mV, larger for chloroquine, in the voltage-dependent activation but not inactivation, as well as a voltage-dependent block of hERG current, larger at positive potentials. We also found inhibitory effects on peak and late INa and on IK1, with IC50 of tens of μM and larger for chloroquine. The two compounds, tested on Pluricyte® cardiomyocytes using the β-escin-perforated method, inhibited IKr, ICaL, INa peak, but had no effect on If. In current-clamp they caused action potential prolongation. Our data and those from literature for Ito were used to compute proarrhythmogenic risk predictors Bnet (Mistry HB, 2018) and Qnet (Dutta S et al., 2017), with hERG1 blocking/unblocking rates estimated from time constants of fractional block. Although the two antimalarials are successfully used in autoimmune diseases, and chloroquine may be effective in atrial fibrillation, assays place these drugs in the intermediate proarrhythmogenic risk group.
Display omitted
•Chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine are arrhythmogenic at low micromolar concentrations.•Both compounds inhibit mainly hERG1 and inward rectifier K+ channels Kir2.1.•They also produce large hyperpolarizing shifts in hERG voltage-dependent activation.•Proarrhythmogenic risk predictors Qnet and Bnet are correlated for the two drugs.
Abstract By analysing big data collected from 1990 to 2017 on the consumption behaviours of men and women living alone and in heterosexual couples in Switzerland, we classified 75 food items in terms ...of their consumption within couple versus single households. We defined and quantified the gender dominance exhibited in the food purchasing activities of couples. Our results showed that to form consumption of couples, the average consumption of single women weighted 0.6, while that of men weighted 0.38. In addition, couples were found to consume more drinks and pricier foods than singles. Our findings span various areas, including the socioeconomics of food, food choice, social eating, gender power, eating behaviour and population and consumer studies. The robustness of the findings may be validated for other countries and cultures, and the findings may be of interest to researchers from various fields.
While food trends are usually described over an entire population, this paper suggests distinguishing between inter- and pangenerational food trends. To classify the food trends for the total ...population as inter- or pangenerational, we used disaggregated household-based consumption data on 60 food categories over the period from 1990 to 2020 in Switzerland. We followed six different cohorts with a range of 10 birth years each and estimated robust trends for each generation and each product. Our results show that especially for meat, different generations follow different trends and form ‘intergenerational’ trends for the total population, whereas beans and peas would be an example of products with an increasing consumption for every single generation and a ‘pangenerational’ trend. Our study is the first to suggest distinguishing inter- and pangenerational food trends and to cover the most disaggregated available food consumption data in Switzerland for the period from 1990 to 2020. Managers and policymakers should consider the mentioned differences in food consumption to mitigate errors in consumption projections, target consumers more effectively, and promote healthier food consumption.
Advanced computational techniques and mathematical modeling have become more and more important to the study of cardiac electrophysiology. In this review, we provide a brief history of the evolution ...of cardiomyocyte electrophysiology models and highlight some of the most important ones that had a major impact on our understanding of the electrical activity of the myocardium and associated transmembrane ion fluxes in normal and pathological states. We also present the use of these models in the study of various arrhythmogenesis mechanisms, particularly the integration of experimental pharmacology data into advanced humanized models for in silico proarrhythmogenic risk prediction as an essential component of the Comprehensive in vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) drug safety paradigm.
•Modern cardiomyocyte models use realistic Ca2+ dynamics in diffusion-limited spaces.•Population-of-models approaches are increasingly popular and widely used.•They allow parameter variability and uncertainty analysis and quantification.•iPSC-cardiomyocyte experiments and models are useful in cardiac safety drug testing.•Diverse arrhythmogenesis mechanisms are explored by cell or tissue-level models.
It is not a radically new insight that men eat more meat than women do. However, one piece of the puzzle was previously missing: the development of a gender bias in total and red meat consumption ...across stages of human life. To identify the gender bias across stages of human life, we apply a multiple-group regression across seven age classes. Data for the empirical analysis stem from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Regression results reveal that gender differences in meat consumption start only after the age of four and then move in some parallel with the development of biological differences, reaching a maximum between 51 and 65 years. The effect of both household income and education on meat consumption is negative and per-capita consumption of meat rises with household size.
PDF
