Summary Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is assuming a prominent role as a risk factor because of the double metabolic burden derived from low muscle mass (sarcopenia) and excess adiposity (obesity). The ...increase in obesity prevalence rates in older subjects is of concern given the associated disease risks and more limited therapeutic options available in this age group. This review has two main objectives. The primary objective is to collate results from studies investigating the effects of SO on physical and cardio-metabolic functions. The secondary objective is to evaluate published studies for consistency in methodology, diagnostic criteria, exposure and outcome selection. Large between-study heterogeneity was observed in the application of diagnostic criteria and choice of body composition components for the assessment of SO, which contributes to the inconsistent associations of SO with cardio-metabolic outcomes. We propose a metabolic load:capacity model of SO given by the ratio between fat mass and fat free mass, and discuss how this could be operationalised. The concept of regional fat distribution could be incorporated into the model and tested in future studies to advance our understanding of SO as a predictor of risk for cardio-metabolic diseases and physical disability.
Neuroticism is a personality trait of fundamental importance for psychological well-being and public health. It is strongly associated with major depressive disorder (MDD) and several other ...psychiatric conditions. Although neuroticism is heritable, attempts to identify the alleles involved in previous studies have been limited by relatively small sample sizes. Here we report a combined meta-analysis of genome-wide association study (GWAS) of neuroticism that includes 91 370 participants from the UK Biobank cohort, 6659 participants from the Generation Scotland: Scottish Family Health Study (GS:SFHS) and 8687 participants from a QIMR (Queensland Institute of Medical Research) Berghofer Medical Research Institute (QIMR) cohort. All participants were assessed using the same neuroticism instrument, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised (EPQ-R-S) Short Form's Neuroticism scale. We found a single-nucleotide polymorphism-based heritability estimate for neuroticism of ∼15% (s.e.=0.7%). Meta-analysis identified nine novel loci associated with neuroticism. The strongest evidence for association was at a locus on chromosome 8 (P=1.5 × 10(-15)) spanning 4 Mb and containing at least 36 genes. Other associated loci included interesting candidate genes on chromosome 1 (GRIK3 (glutamate receptor ionotropic kainate 3)), chromosome 4 (KLHL2 (Kelch-like protein 2)), chromosome 17 (CRHR1 (corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor 1) and MAPT (microtubule-associated protein Tau)) and on chromosome 18 (CELF4 (CUGBP elav-like family member 4)). We found no evidence for genetic differences in the common allelic architecture of neuroticism by sex. By comparing our findings with those of the Psychiatric Genetics Consortia, we identified a strong genetic correlation between neuroticism and MDD and a less strong but significant genetic correlation with schizophrenia, although not with bipolar disorder. Polygenic risk scores derived from the primary UK Biobank sample captured ∼1% of the variance in neuroticism in the GS:SFHS and QIMR samples, although most of the genome-wide significant alleles identified within a UK Biobank-only GWAS of neuroticism were not independently replicated within these cohorts. The identification of nine novel neuroticism-associated loci will drive forward future work on the neurobiology of neuroticism and related phenotypes.
Monolayer graphene exhibits exceptional electronic and mechanical properties, making it a very promising material for nanoelectromechanical devices. Here, we conclusively demonstrate the ...piezoresistive effect in graphene in a nanoelectromechanical membrane configuration that provides direct electrical readout of pressure to strain transduction. This makes it highly relevant for an important class of nanoelectromechanical system (NEMS) transducers. This demonstration is consistent with our simulations and previously reported gauge factors and simulation values. The membrane in our experiment acts as a strain gauge independent of crystallographic orientation and allows for aggressive size scalability. When compared with conventional pressure sensors, the sensors have orders of magnitude higher sensitivity per unit area.
HELP: the Herschel Extragalactic Legacy Project Shirley, R; Duncan, K; Campos Varillas, M C ...
Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society,
10/2021, Volume:
507, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
ABSTRACT
We present the Herschel Extragalactic Legacy Project (HELP). This project collates, curates, homogenizes, and creates derived data products for most of the premium multiwavelength ...extragalactic data sets. The sky boundaries for the first data release cover 1270 deg2 defined by the Herschel SPIRE extragalactic survey fields; notably the Herschel Multi-tiered Extragalactic Survey (HerMES) and the Herschel Atlas survey (H-ATLAS). Here, we describe the motivation and principal elements in the design of the project. Guiding principles are transparent or ‘open’ methodologies with care for reproducibility and identification of provenance. A key element of the design focuses around the homogenization of calibration, meta data, and the provision of information required to define the selection of the data for statistical analysis. We apply probabilistic methods that extract information directly from the images at long wavelengths, exploiting the prior information available at shorter wavelengths and providing full posterior distributions rather than maximum-likelihood estimates and associated uncertainties as in traditional catalogues. With this project definition paper, we provide full access to the first data release of HELP; Data Release 1 (DR1), including a monolithic map of the largest SPIRE extragalactic field at 385 deg2 and 18 million measurements of PACS and SPIRE fluxes. We also provide tools to access and analyse the full HELP data base. This new data set includes far-infrared photometry, photometric redshifts, and derived physical properties estimated from modelling the spectral energy distributions over the full HELP sky. All the software and data presented is publicly available.
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a heterogeneous group of diseases, comprising seven categories. Genetic data could potentially be used to help redefine JIA categories and improve the current ...classification system. The human leucocyte antigen (HLA) region is strongly associated with JIA. Fine-mapping of the region was performed to look for similarities and differences in HLA associations between the JIA categories and define correspondences with adult inflammatory arthritides.
Dense genotype data from the HLA region, from the Immunochip array for 5043 JIA cases and 14 390 controls, were used to impute single-nucleotide polymorphisms, HLA classical alleles and amino acids. Bivariate analysis was performed to investigate genetic correlation between the JIA categories. Conditional analysis was used to identify additional effects within the region. Comparison of the findings with those in adult inflammatory arthritic diseases was performed.
We identified category-specific associations and have demonstrated for the first time that rheumatoid factor (RF)-negative polyarticular JIA and oligoarticular JIA are genetically similar in their HLA associations. We also observe that each JIA category potentially has an adult counterpart. The RF-positive polyarthritis association at HLA-DRB1 amino acid at position 13 mirrors the association in adult seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Interestingly, the combined oligoarthritis and RF-negative polyarthritis dataset shares the same association with adult seronegative RA.
The findings suggest the value of using genetic data in helping to classify the categories of this heterogeneous disease. Mapping JIA categories to adult counterparts could enable shared knowledge of disease pathogenesis and aetiology and facilitate transition from paediatric to adult services.
The Ross Sea polynya is among the most productive regions in the Southern Ocean and may constitute a significant oceanic CO2 sink. Based on results from several field studies, this region has been ...considered seasonally iron limited, whereby a “winter reserve” of dissolved iron (dFe) is progressively depleted during the growing season to low concentrations (∼0.1 nM) that limit phytoplankton growth in the austral summer (December–February). Here we report new iron data for the Ross Sea polynya during austral summer 2005–2006 (27 December–22 January) and the following austral spring 2006 (16 November–3 December). The summer 2005–2006 data show generally low dFe concentrations in polynya surface waters (0.10 ± 0.05 nM in upper 40 m, n = 175), consistent with previous observations. Surprisingly, our spring 2006 data reveal similar low surface dFe concentrations in the polynya (0.06 ± 0.04 nM in upper 40 m, n = 69), in association with relatively high rates of primary production (∼170–260 mmol C m−2 d−1). These results indicate that the winter reserve dFe may be consumed relatively early in the growing season, such that polynya surface waters can become “iron limited” as early as November; i.e., the seasonal depletion of dFe is not necessarily gradual. Satellite observations reveal significant biomass accumulation in the polynya during summer 2006–2007, implying significant sources of “new” dFe to surface waters during this period. Possible sources of this new dFe include episodic vertical exchange, lateral advection, aerosol input, and reductive dissolution of particulate iron.
Key Points
Dissolved iron can be depleted to low levels (~0.1 nM) in the Ross Sea in spring
Despite dissolved iron depletion, algal production continues during summer
Sources of “new” dissolved iron are required to fuel summer production in the Ross Sea
The global extent and distribution of forest trees is central to our understanding of the terrestrial biosphere. We provide the first spatially continuous map of forest tree density at a global ...scale. This map reveals that the global number of trees is approximately 3.04 trillion, an order of magnitude higher than the previous estimate. Of these trees, approximately 1.39 trillion exist in tropical and subtropical forests, with 0.74 trillion in boreal regions and 0.61 trillion in temperate regions. Biome-level trends in tree density demonstrate the importance of climate and topography in controlling local tree densities at finer scales, as well as the overwhelming effect of humans across most of the world. Based on our projected tree densities, we estimate that over 15 billion trees are cut down each year, and the global number of trees has fallen by approximately 46% since the start of human civilization.
Objective: This study assessed longitudinal changes in body composition, fat distribution and energy balance in perimenopausal women. We hypothesized that total fat and abdominal body fat would ...increase at menopause due to decreased energy expenditure (EE) and declining estrogen, respectively. Design: observational, longitudinal study with annual measurements for 4 years. Subjects: Healthy women (103 Caucasian; 53 African-American), initially premenopausal. During follow-up, lack of menstruation for 1 year and follicle-stimulating hormone >30 mIU ml- 1 defined a subject as postmenopausal. Measurements: Fat and lean mass (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous abdominal fat (SAT) (computed tomography), dietary intake (4-day food record), serum sex hormones and physical activity (tri-axial accelerometry). Twenty-four hour EE was measured by whole-room calorimeter in a subset of 34 women at baseline and at year 4. Results: Body fat and weight increased significantly over time only in those women who became postmenopausal by year 4 (n=51). All women gained SAT over time; however, only those who became postmenopausal had a significant increase in VAT. The postmenopausal group also exhibited a significant decrease in serum estradiol. Physical activity decreased significantly 2 years before menopause and remained low. Dietary energy, protein, carbohydrate and fiber intake were significantly higher 3-4 years before the onset of menopause compared with menopause onset. Twenty-four hour EE and sleeping EE decreased significantly with age; however, the decrease in sleeping EE was 1.5-fold greater in women who became postmenopausal compared with premenopausal controls (- 7.9 vs - 5.3% ). Fat oxidation decreased by 32% in women who became postmenopausal (P<0.05), but did not change in those who remained premenopausal. Conclusion: Middle-aged women gained SAT with age, whereas menopause per se was associated with an increase in total body fat and VAT. Menopause onset is associated with decreased EE and fat oxidation that can predispose to obesity if lifestyle changes are not made.
The neutron-rich nucleus Ba-144 (t(1/2) = 11.5 s) is expected to exhibit some of the strongest octupole correlations among nuclei with mass numbers A less than 200. Until now, indirect evidence for ...such strong correlations has been inferred from observations such as enhanced E1 transitions and interleaving positive- and negative-parity levels in the ground-state band. In this experiment, the octupole strength was measured directly by sub-barrier, multistep Coulomb excitation of a post-accelerated 650-MeV Ba-144 beam on a 1.0-mg/cm(2) Pb-208 target. The measured value of the matrix element, < 3(1)(-)parallel to M(E3)parallel to 0(1)(+)> = 0.65((+17)(-23)) eb(3/2,) corresponds to a reduced Bd(E3) transition probability of 48((+25)(-34)) W.u. This result represents an unambiguous determination of the octupole collectivity, is larger than any available theoretical prediction, and is consistent with octupole deformation.
PDF
