Interaction between GSTM1 genotype and IL-6 on mortality in older adults: results from the ilSIRENTE study

Background and aimsThe inflammatory process is related to oxidative stress and inflammation was proven to be a strong determinant of the aging process and to ultimately lead to death. The aim of the present study was to assess if, in a population of older adults, the effect of antioxidant genes GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes on mortality may differ depending on levels of inflammation.MethodsData are from 353 older persons aged ?80 years enrolled in the ilSIRENTE study. Study population was divided into two groups computed based on the median value of serum IL-6 (low IL-6, n = 177 and high IL-6, n = 176). All participants were followed up for 48 months.ResultsMean age of study participants was 85.8 years (Standard Deviation 4.8), 235 (66.6%) were women. Overall 48/177 participant (27.1%) in the low IL-6 group died during the study period, compared with 97/176 (55.1%) in the high IL-6 group (p < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, GSTM1 wildtype had no effect on mortality in the low IL-6 group (RR = 1.07; 95% CI 0.46–2.47), but it was associated with a significant lower mortality rate in the high IL-6 level (RR = 0.33; 95% CI 0.15–0.69). Testing the interaction between IL-6 and GSTM1 genotype, we found a significant result (p = 0.02). No significant effect of GSTT1 genotype on mortality was shown in participants with low and high IL-6 level.ConclusionGSTM1 wildtype is associated with reduced mortality among older adults with high levels of inflammation, but not among those with low levels of inflammation.     

Shifts in patterns and consumption of beverages between 1965 and 2002

Background: Beverage patterning may play a role in partially explaining the rising rates of obesity in the United States, yet little work on overall trends and patterns exits. Our objective was to examine trends and patterns of beverage consumption among U.S. adults. Methods: We used data from the nationally representative Nationwide Food Consumption Surveys (1965, 1977 to 1978) and the National Health and Nutrition Surveys (1988 to 1994, 1999 to 2002). To examine trends we determined percent consuming and per capita and per consumer caloric intake from all beverages. We used cluster analysis to determine year‐specific beverage patterns in 1977 and 2002. Results: The percentage of calories from beverages significantly increased between 1965 (11.8%), 1977 (14.2%), 1988 (18.5%), and 2002 (21.0%); this represents an overall increase of 222 calories per person per day from beverages, resulting largely from increased intake of calorically sweetened beverages. Beverage patterns in 2002 were more complex than in 1977 and were dominated by a greater number of beverages, reflecting the increase in alcohol, soda, and diet beverages. Conclusion: Calories from beverages increased substantially from 1965 to 2002, providing a considerable source of daily calories. Given the upward trends in calorically sweetened, nutrient‐deficient beverages and the shifts in overall beverage patterns, addressing beverage intake is a salient issue for adults.     

Immunomodulating potential of supplementation with probiotics: a dose-response study in healthy young adults

Certain probiotic microorganisms have been found beneficial in the treatment of immune-related diseases and may also affect immune function in healthy people. Intervention studies of probiotics in healthy humans are urgently required. Here, the immunomodulating potential of Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis (BB-12) and Lactobacillus paracasei ssp. paracasei (CRL-431) was studied in a double-blind placebo-controlled parallel dose-response trial (n=71) based on five randomly assigned groups of young healthy adults supplemented for 3 weeks with 0, 10(8), 10(9), 10(10) and 10(11) CFU day(-1), respectively, of a mixture of BB-12 and CRL-431. No statistically significant dose-dependent effect was found for phagocytic activity in blood leukocytes, fecal immunoglobulin A (IgA) concentrations or production of interferon-gamma and interleukin-10 in blood cells. When evaluating data according to the amount of viable BB-12 recovered from faeces, the interferon-gamma production in blood cells was significantly reduced. In conclusion, no solid effect on the immune function of young healthy adults supplemented with even high doses of B. animalis ssp. lactis BB-12 and L. paracasei ssp. paracasei CRL-431 was demonstrated in this study.     

The influence of mechanical vibration on local and central balance control

Fall prevention has an indispensable role in enhancing life expectancy and quality of life among older adults. The first step to prevent falls is to devise reliable methods to identify individuals at high fall risk. The purpose of the current study was to assess alterations in local postural muscle and central sensory balance control mechanisms due to low-frequency externally applied vibration among elders at high fall risk, in comparison with healthy controls, as a potential tool for assessing fall risk. Three groups of participants were recruited: healthy young (n = 10; age = 23 ± 2 years), healthy elders (n = 10; age = 73 ± 3 years), and elders at high fall risk (n = 10; age = 84 ± 9 years). Eyes-open and eyes-closed upright standing balance performance was measured with no vibration, 30 Hz, and 40 Hz vibration of Gastrocnemius muscles. When vibratory stimulation was applied, changes in local-control performance manifested significant differences among the groups (p < 0.01). On average between conditions, we observed 97% and 92% less change among high fall risk participants when compared to healthy young and older adults, respectively. On the other hand, vibration-induced changes in the central-control performance were not significant between groups (p ≥ 0.19). Results suggest that local-control deficits are responsible for balance behavior alterations among elders at high fall risk and healthy individuals. This observation may be attributable to deterioration of short-latency reflexive loop in elders at high fall risk. On the other hand, we could not ascribe the balance alterations to problems related to central nervous system performance or long-latency responses.     

Susceptibility of various developmental stages of the maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky (Col., Curculionidae) to methyl iodide in brown rice

Abstract:  The efficacy of methyl iodide (MI) as a fumigant against all developmental stages of the maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais Motsch. was investigated. Tests were conducted with concentrations of 1.5, 1.8, 2.1, 2.4, 2.7 and 3.0 mg/l, for a 6-h exposure period. Values of LC₅₀, LC₉₅ and LC₉₉ of MI for immatures and adult stages were determined. The present laboratory tests showed that MI was toxic to various life stages of S. zeamais at relatively short exposure periods. At the LC₅₀ and LC₉₅ levels, the most susceptible stage was the egg stage followed by larvae, pupae and adults (1-day mortality). The egg was found to be most susceptible to MI, requiring 0.81 and 2.16 mg/l for 50 and 99% mortality, respectively, while the adult was most tolerant, requiring 2.30 and 3.02 mg/l for 50 and 99% mortality, respectively, based on 1-day mortality count. Pupae were less susceptible to MI than egg and larvae, requiring 1.47 and 3.19 mg/l for 50 and 99% mortality, respectively. Based on the present toxicity tests, MI has the potential for use as a fumigant to control all developmental stages of the maize weevil, S. zeamais .     

New potent antimicrobial peptides from the venom of Polistinae wasps and their analogs

Four new peptides of the mastoparan family, characterized recently in the venom of three neotropical social wasps collected in the Dominican Republic, Polistes major major, Polistes dorsalis dorsalis and Mischocyttarus phthisicus were synthesized and tested for antimicrobial potency against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli (E.c.) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and for hemolytic and mast cells degranulation activities. As these peptides posses strong antimicrobial activity (minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values against Bacillus subtillis and E.c. in the range of 5–40 μM), we prepared 40 of their analogs to correlate biological activities, especially antimicrobial, with the net positive charge, hydrophobicity, amphipathicity, peptide length, amino acid substitutions at different positions of the peptide chain, N-terminal acylation and C-terminal deamidation. Circular dichroism spectra of the peptides measured in the presence of trifluoroethanol or SDS showed that the peptides might adopt -helical conformation in such anisotropic environments.     

Ischemia-Induced Taurine Release Is Modified by Nitric Oxide-Generating Compounds in Slices from the Developing and Adult Mouse Hippocampus

The novel neurotransmitter/neuromodulator nitric oxide (NO), which is linked to the activation of the N-methyl-D-aspartate class of glutamate receptors, has been shown to modify transmitter release in brain tissue. Release of the inhibitory amino acid taurine is also markedly enhanced by N-methyl-D-aspartate and NO-producing agents under normal conditions in the mouse hippocampus. The release of preloaded [³H]taurine from hippocampal slices from adult (3-month-old) and developing (7-day-old) mice was characterized under ischemic conditions in the presence of different NO-generating compounds, hydroxylamine, sodium nitroprusside, and S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), using a superfusion system. The ischemia-induced taurine release at both ages was markedly enhanced by 1.0 mM nitroprusside and 1.0 mM SNAP, whereas 5.0 mM hydroxylamine was effective only in adults. The nitroprusside- and SNAP-induced releases were reduced by the inhibitors of NO synthase (nitroarginine and 7-nitroindazole) and NO-sensitive soluble guanylyl cyclase [1H-(1,2,4)oxadiazolo(4,3-a)quinoxalin-1-one], suggesting involvement of the NO/cGMP pathway. The release in ischemia in the absence of Na⁺ was modified by NO compounds only in adults; the 0.1 mM N-methyl-D-aspartate stimulated taurine release at both ages. The enhanced release of taurine associated with NO production could be beneficial to brain tissue under cell-damaging conditions and corroborates the neuroprotective role of this amino acid, particularly in the immature brain.     

Alkanes of four related moth species,Helicoverpa and Heliothis

Comparison of the presence and quantities of cuticular hydrocarbons has been used successfully for identifying sibling species and races of several groups of insects. This approach has been extended to four species of moths previously regarded as belonging to the same genus, Heliothis. Gas chromatography was used to quantify the numerous high-molecular weight alkanes found on the cuticle of two pairs of closely related species: Helicoverpa zea and Helicoverpa armigera, and Heliothis virescens and Heliothis subflexa. Both sexes of H. zea and H. armigera contained different quantities of several alkanes that could be used for unambiguous identification. Similar comparisons of H. subflexa and H. virescens showed four peak ratios that were different for each species. Sexual dimorphism was minor in H. subflexa and H. virescens.     

Association between clinical and subjective indicators of oral health status in an older adult population

Since the mid–1970s a number of investigators have developed measures of the extent to which oral disorders compromise functional, social and psychological well-being. They have also examined the associations between clinical indicators of oral health status and these subjective indicators. In general, these associations have been inconsistent and weak. One reason for this might be that the subjective indicators employed were rudimentary and insensitive to the health outcomes of oral disorders. The development of the Oral Health Impact Profile, a more sophisticated measure of the health outcomes of oral disorders, provided a method to examine this hypothesis. Using data from an oral health survey of older adults, we examined the associations between OHIP scores and a variety of clinical indicators of tooth loss, caries and periodontal disease. Even with this measure the associations were predominantly weak, the strongest of the correlations being 0.53. We also examined the influence of personal and sociodemographic characteristics on the relationship between tooth loss and its psychosocial outcomes. Five variables reflecting expectations and resources explained as much variance in OHIP scores as did the number of missing teeth. This analysis illustrates the essential distinction between disease and health and the way in which measures of oral health can be used to pursue fundamental issues in behavioural science and health services research.     

Foraging for patchily-distributed leaf miners by the parasitic wasp,Dacnusa sibirica

We studied the rules used by the female parasitoid, Dacnusa sibirica Telenga (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), for deciding when to leave a tomato leaflet on which she is searching for larvae of the leafminer, Liriomyza bryoniae Kalt. (Diptera: Agromyzidae). Females would deposit a marking pheromone on the leaflet and would leave the leaflet when the amount of the pheromone accumulated to the threshold L, which is proportional to the amount of search effort on the leaflet. L appears to increase with host density since it rises after every encounter with a host (or mine).D. sibirica would employ an area-concentrated search, which is advantageous in foraging for hosts showing a clumped distribution.