Obesity Stigma in Sexual Relationships

Objective: Obese children are stigmatized in same‐sex relationships. This study examines whether, in adulthood, obesity stigma exists in adults when they are asked to rank order preferences for a sexual partner. Research Methods and Procedures: Following the methods of Richardson et al. (Richardson SA, Goodman N, Hastorf AH, Dornbusch SM. Cultural uniformity in reaction to physical disabilities. Am Sociol Rev. 1961;26:241–247) and Latner and Stunkard (Latner J, Stunkard AJ, Wilson GT. Age, ethnic and gender differences in stigmatization of obesity. Orlando, FL: International Conference on Eating Disorders; 2004), 449 college students were asked to rank order six drawings of potential sexual partners. The drawings included an obese partner, partners with various other disabilities, and a healthy partner. Results: The least‐preferred partners were obese. Men, compared with women, provided significantly lower ranks for obese partners (U = 20, 180.00, z = ?2.84, p = 0.01). Discussion: Despite the fact that the majority of adults in the U.S. are overweight, discrimination on the basis of weight occurs in making a choice of a sexual partner. Males particularly make choices of partner based on their weight. Obesity stigma may specifically affect women in sexual relationships. Weight‐related stigma needs to be addressed in the treatment of binge eating disorder or weight management. Finding ways to change attitudes and behavior toward the overweight is a goal for future research in the area.     

Accuracy of body mass estimates of formalin-preserved fish – a review

This paper highlights possible effects of physical and chemical mechanisms of formalin fixation and preservation on biological tissue and reviews the consequent potential inaccuracies on estimates of body mass of small fishes fixed and preserved in formalin. Twenty-six papers including 65 independent experiments with 35 species which examine effects of formalin on body mass estimates on small fishes are included. The effect of the formalin on the specimens depends on the salinity of the water used to dilute the commercial formalin (usually 1:9 formalin: water) before being used to fixate and preserve fish. Mean wet body mass of the specimens from the studies using seawater or fresh water diluted formalin deceases by 13% and increases by 7%, respectively, from before to after being immersed in formalin. The same trend is found with condition factor in the few papers that report this parameter. Body length decreases on average by c. 2% in fixated and preserved fish regardless of whether the formalin is diluted in seawater or fresh water.     

Early life socioeconomic factors and genomic DNA methylation in mid-life

Epigenetic modifications may be one mechanism linking early life factors, including parental socioeconomic status (SES), to adult onset disease risk. However, SES influences on DNA methylation patterns remain largely unknown. In a US birth cohort of women, we examined whether indicators of early life and adult SES were associated with white blood cell methylation of repetitive elements (Sat2, Alu and LINE-1) in adulthood. Low family income at birth was associated with higher Sat2 methylation (β = 19.7, 95% CI: 0.4, 39.0 for lowest vs. highest income quartile) and single parent family was associated with higher Alu methylation (β = 23.5, 95% CI: 2.6, 44.4), after adjusting for other early life factors. Lower adult education was associated with lower Sat2 methylation (β = -16.7, 95% CI: -29.0, -4.5). There were no associations between early life SES and LINE-1 methylation. Overall, our preliminary results suggest possible influences of SES across the life-course on genomic DNA methylation in adult women. However, these preliminary associations need to be replicated in larger prospective studies.     

Internal organ weights of the blue penguin Eudyptula minor

Abstract

This work presents a database of weights of normal internal organs for the blue penguin, Eudyptula minor. During a necropsy study of 213 adult and fledged immature blue penguins, external body measurements and internal organ weights were recorded. The relationship between organ weights and body weights shows that the liver and abdominal fat pad are most closely correlated with the body mass index, a quantitative indication of adequacy of condition.     

Utilization of Polyphenyl and Polyphenyl-related Compounds by Microorganisms. Part I

Two hundreds and fifty eight strains of microorganisms have been isolated from 526 samples (soil, leaf and river water gathered from 17 prefectures) by repeating liquid enrichment culture techniques in the medium containing biphenyl, diphenylmethane, diphenylethane or terphenyl, as the sole source of carbon.

In the course of investigation, several strains were found to produce a large amount of γ-benzoylbutyric acid from biphenyl. Furthermore these strains utilized p-Cl-biphenyl and produced p-Cl-benzoic acid in good yield.

Microorganisms obtained were almost short rod, motile bacteria, and fungi were also found from the screening medium of diphenylethane.     

The SNPs of Melanocortin 4 Receptor (MC4R) Associated with Body Weight in Beagle Dogs

Melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R), which is associated with inherited human obesity, is involoved in food intake and body weight of mammals. To study the relationships between MC4R gene polymorphism and body weight in Beagle dogs, we detected and compared the nucleotide sequence of the whole coding region and 3′- and 5′- flanking regions of the dog MC4R gene (1214 bp). In 120 Beagle dogs, two SNPs (A420C, C895T) were identified and their relation with body weight was analyzed with RFLP-PCR method. The results showed that the SNP at A420C was significantly associated with canine body weight trait when it changed amino acid 101 of the MC4R protein from asparagine to threonine,while canine body weight variations were significant in female dogs when MC4R nonsense mutation at C895T. It suggested that the two SNPs might affect the MC4R gene’s function which was relative to body weight in Beagle dogs. Therefore, MC4R was a candidate gene for selecting different size dogs with the MC4R SNPs (A420C, C895T) being potentially valuable as a genetic marker.     

The Weight of Evidence Does Not Support the Listing of Styrene as “Reasonably Anticipated to be a Human Carcinogen” in NTP's Twelfth Report on Carcinogens

Styrene was listed as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen” in the twelfth edition of the National Toxicology Program's Report on Carcinogens based on what we contend are erroneous findings of limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans, sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals, and supporting mechanistic data. The epidemiology studies show no consistent increased incidence of, or mortality from, any type of cancer. In animal studies, increased incidence rates of mostly benign tumors have been observed only in certain strains of one species (mice) and at one tissue site (lung). The lack of concordance of tumor incidence and tumor type among animals (even within the same species) and humans indicates that there has been no particular cancer consistently observed among all available studies. The only plausible mechanism for styrene-induced carcinogenesis—a non-genotoxic mode of action that is specific to the mouse lung—is not relevant to humans. As a whole, the evidence does not support the characterization of styrene as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen,” and styrene should not be listed in the Report on Carcinogens.     

β-N-Acetylhexosaminidase involvement in α-conglutin mobilization in Lupinus albus

Glycosylation is an important post-translational modification involved in the modulation of a wide variety of cellular processes. Because glycosydases are central, the aim of this study was to investigate the glycosyl activity present in the cotyledons of the seeds of an important crop legume, Lupinus albus, as well as potential natural substrates of the detected enzymes.     

Barley γ3-hordein: Glycosylation at an atypical site,disulfide bridge analysis,and reactivity with IgE from patients allergic to wheat

Post translational modifications of a seed storage protein, barley γ3-hordein, were determined using immunochemical and mass spectrometry methods. IgE reactivity towards this protein was measured using sera from patients diagnosed with allergies to wheat. N-glycosylation was found at an atypical Asn-Leu-Cys site. The observed glycan contains xylose. This indicates that at least some γ3-hordein molecules trafficked through the Golgi apparatus. Disulfide bridges in native γ3-hordein were almost the same as those found in wheat γ46-gliadin, except the bridge involving the cysteine included in the glycosylation site. IgE reacted more strongly towards the recombinant than the natural γ3-hordein protein. IgE binding to γ3-hordein increased when the protein sample was reduced. Glycosylation and disulfide bridges therefore decrease epitope accessibility. Thus the IgE from patients sensitized to wheat cross-react with γ3-hordein due to sequence homology with wheat allergens rather than through shared carbohydrate determinants.     

Statistical Analyses of Twins Birth Data from a Nigerian Sample

In this paper, both the linear logistic model and its analogous linear model (weighted least squares) are fitted to twin birth data from a Nigerian sample. The logits of the observed perinatal mortality rates are fitted against the birthweight of breech infants for both first born and second born twins. Results show that a quadratic response model fits the data very well, and that the WLS procedure gives a better fit. The results further show that breech births necessarily result in 7.7% and 11.2% mortality rates respectively for first born and second born twins. The results of a log-linear model analysis on the 2×2×4 contingency table formed by the factors, ‘mode of birth’, and twins with the response variable ‘Apgar Scores’-an index of morbidity-also show that both factors play significant roles in explaining the variation of the response variable. It was found that the most important factor effecting the ability of a twin infant to survive as measured by the Apgar scores is the variable ‘mode of birth’ (vertex or breech). In other words, a vertex first twin infant has the best survival chance.