Teammates and social influence affect weight loss outcomes in a team-based weight loss competition

Team-based internet interventions are increasing in popularity as a way of promoting weight loss in large numbers of individuals. Given that social networks influence health behavior change, this study investigated the effects of teammates and social influence on individual weight loss during a team-based weight loss competition. Shape Up Rhode Island (SURI) 2009 was a 12-week online program open to adult residents of Rhode Island. Participants joined with a team and competed with other teams on weight loss and/or physical activity. Overweight/obese (OW/OB) individuals (N = 3,330; 76% female; age = 46.1 ± 10.8; BMI = 31.2 ± 5.3 kg/m(2)), representing 987 teams, completed the weight loss program. Multilevel modeling was used to examine whether weight loss clustered among teammates and whether percentage of teammates in the weight loss division and reported teammate influence on weight loss were associated with individual weight outcomes. OW/OB completers reported losing 4.2 ± 3.4% of initial body weight. Weight loss was similar among teammates (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.10, P < 0.001). Moreover, having a greater percentage of teammates in the weight loss division and reporting higher social influence for weight loss were associated with greater percent weight loss (P's ≤ 0.002). Similarly, achieving a clinically significant (5%) weight loss tended to cluster within teams (ICC = 0.09; P < 0.001) and having more teammates in the weight loss division and higher social influence for weight loss were associated with increased likelihood of achieving a 5% weight loss (odds ratio (OR) = 1.06; OR = 1.20, respectively). These results suggest that teammates affect weight loss outcomes during a team-based intervention. Harnessing and maximizing teammate influence for weight loss may enhance weight outcomes in large-scale team-based programs.     

Olfactory function in Australian aboriginal children and chronic otitis media

Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM), a severe form of middle ear infection, affects most Australian Aboriginal children with up to 50% in some communities suffering hearing loss as a consequence. To date, there is no information on whether repeated exposure to the pathogens that characterize CSOM and that are present in the upper respiratory airway affect olfactory function. Accordingly, this study aimed to determine whether 1) there was a high prevalence of olfactory loss in Aboriginal children and 2) hearing loss is a predictor of olfactory loss. Two hundred and sixty one 9- to 12-year-old Aboriginal children from 16 rural communities reported to have high prevalences of CSOM and hearing loss were assessed for olfactory loss using a 16-odor identification test and hearing loss. One child was found to be anosmic, 4 were slightly hyposmic, and 42 had hearing loss. No relationship was found between olfactory loss and hearing loss. The test-retest reliability of the 16-odor identification test was 0.98. It was concluded that CSOM does not appear to affect olfactory function in the long term and that hearing loss in Aboriginal children is not a predictor of olfactory loss.     

Innovation from reduction: gene loss, domain loss and sequence divergence in genome evolution

Analyses of genome sequences have revealed a surprisingly variable distribution of genes, reflecting the generation of novel genes, lateral gene transfer and gene loss. The impact of gene loss on organisms has been difficult to examine, but the loss of protein coding genes, the loss of domains within proteins and the divergence of genes have made surprising contributions to the differences among organisms. This paper reviews surveys of gene loss and divergence in fungal and archaeal genomes that indicate suites of functionally related genes tend to undergo loss and divergence. Instances of fungal gene loss highlighted here suggest that specific cellular systems have changed, such as Ca 2+ biology in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and peroxisome function in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Analyses of loss and divergence can provide specific predictions regarding protein-protein interactions, and the relationship between networks of protein interactions and loss may form a part of a parametric model of genome evolution.     

川西低山区土壤侵蚀经济损失及其评估模式——以名山县蒙山为例

借助中国坡面土壤流失预报方程（CSLE）估算研究区的土壤侵蚀量,并重点对该区土壤侵蚀生态经济损失进行计算和分析,结果表明研究区土壤侵蚀的直接经济总损失为1776．387万元,占同期当地第一产业总产值的5．001％,其中经济损失最严重的是林地和坡耕地,其次探讨了水土流失生态．经济面积边际损失比的概念,通过分析得出侵蚀所造成的直接经济边际损失每增加1万元,在此基础上,其生态价值的边际损失将增加76—91元。     

整合空间信息在生物多样性丧失等研究中的重要性

无数证据表明,地球可能正经历着有史以来的第六次物种大灭绝。在这一背景下,研究生物多样性丧失机制及其对生态系统功能的影响具有重要意义。从先前的相关研究中,已逐渐清晰地认识到造成多样性丧失的几大机制,并对这些机制发生的空间尺度有了一定了解。然而,空间本身对多样性丧失研究的影响仍被该领域的很多研究所忽视。因为生物多样性丧失过程发生在不同空间尺度中,所造成的多样性丧失格局也具有不同的空间尺度特征。忽略空间信息很可能会对多样性丧失等相关研究造成很大干扰,甚至得出错误的结论,其结果也很难正确地运用于不同空间尺度的多样性保护当中。整合空间信息已成为当前生物多样性丧失研究,乃至整个生态学研究的前沿和热点之一。为促进这一趋势在国内的发展,将结合多样性丧失的估计与监测、几大多样性丧失机制(全球环境变化与生境片段化、生物入侵等)来阐述空间信息对当前及今后多样性丧失机制研究的重要性,并用实例展示未充分考虑空间信息而可能造成的后果。最后探讨我国当前科技条件下进行整合空间信息的生物多样性丧失等研究的可行性。     

Weight loss goals among African-American women with type 2 diabetes in a behavioral weight control program

African‐American women with type 2 diabetes experience limited weight loss in behavioral weight control programs. Some research suggests that overly ambitious weight loss expectations may negatively affect weight losses achieved but it is unknown whether they affect weight loss among African‐American women. The current study examined personal weight loss goals and expected satisfaction with a reasonable weight loss among African‐American women with type 2 diabetes starting a behavioral obesity treatment. We also explored associations among these factors and weight loss treatment outcomes. Self‐identified African‐American women (N = 84) in a 24‐session group program were assessed at baseline and 6‐month follow‐up. At baseline, women indicated weight loss goals of 14.1 ± 6.6 kg (14% of initial weight). They also reported relatively high expected satisfaction with a reasonable weight loss (7–10%). On average, participants lost 3.0 ± 3.9 kg (3% of initial weight) and attended 73 ± 21% of group sessions. Neither weight loss goals nor expected satisfaction with a reasonable weight loss was correlated with either actual weight loss outcome or attendance. Having higher personal weight loss goals was associated with lower expectations of satisfaction with a reasonable weight loss. This suggests that African‐American women with type 2 diabetes enter treatment hoping to lose far more weight than they are likely to achieve. It is important to understand the psychosocial sequelae of failing to reach these goals on subsequent weight maintenance and future weight loss attempts within this population.     

Thermal inactivation of oral polio vaccine: contribution of RNA and protein inactivation.

Heating the Sabin strains of poliovirus at 42 to 45 degrees C caused inactivation, loss of native antigen, and release of the viral RNA (vRNA). The loss of virion infectivity exceeded the loss of vRNA infectivity (as measured by transfection) by roughly 2 log10. Pirodavir inhibited the loss of native antigen and RNA release and reduced the loss of virion infectivity to the same level as the loss of vRNA infectivity. Thermoinactivation thus involves an RNA and a protein component, and pirodavir protected only against the latter.     

Differential responses and mechanisms of productivity following experimental species loss scenarios

Experiments that simulate nonrandom species loss from natural communities can offer a fundamentally different understanding of the impacts of species loss on ecosystem function and their underlying mechanisms compared to seeding experiments where species are randomly assembled from a local species pool. We examined the mechanisms underlying changes in primary productivity following experimental species loss scenarios in Mongolian grassland. The range of species loss scenarios was based on natural patterns of species abundance that reflect the species’ contributions to ecosystem processes. We found a clear reduction in productivity due to species loss only when species were lost randomly. Grassland productivity was relatively robust following nonrandom species loss scenarios. Even in the context of density compensation, the decrease in dominant trait values for leaf height would explain the reduction in productivity with random species loss. In contrast, the maintenance of dominant trait values of key productivity traits such as leaf dry matter content and leaf height might contribute to the maintenance of productivity in response to nonrandom species loss. Our experiment demonstrated that the responses and mechanisms of primary productivity to species loss differ according to the scenarios of species loss in natural grassland communities. The effects of diversity on productivity might be weak in mature natural systems when species loss is nonrandom. Understanding the consequences of realistic species loss on ecosystem functioning based on field-based removal experiments will give insights into real conservation strategies in the face of global biodiversity change.     

Maternal age, gravidity, and pregnancy spacing effects on spontaneous fetal mortality

Differentials in the probability of pregnancy loss are examined using pregnancy history data from eight WFS surveys in developing countries. Multiple logistic regression equations are estimated. The probability of loss varies substantially over the reproductive career. Both higher-order pregnancies and those conceived at older ages are more likely to terminate in loss. maternal age differentials are more pronounced for lower-order pregnancies. First and second pregnancies conceived over age thirty suffer especially high levels of loss. Pregnancies conceived relatively soon after the termination of the previous pregnancy are more likely to be lost, as are pregnancies conceived after long intervals. Risk of loss is higher for women previously experiencing loss, and the effect persists beyond the pregnancy following the loss.     

Somatostatin receptors in the senescent rat brain: a quantitative autoradiographic study.

To examine the effects of aging on the density and distribution of somatostatin receptors (SS-R) in the rat brain, receptor autoradiography for SS-R was carried out in rats aged 3 and 24 months using 125I-labeled Tyr11-SS-14. Autoradiograms were quantitatively assessed by an image analyzer to evaluate changes in the expression of SS-R due to senescence. Statistically significant decreases in SS-R binding were found in specific regions of the brains of senescent rats as compared to young adult rats. The regions affected included the periaqueductal gray matter (73% loss versus young adult rats), the interpeduncular nucleus (73% loss), the pontine nucleus (63% loss), the superior colliculus (46% loss), the ventral tegmental area (46% loss), the temporal cortex (39% loss), the frontal cortex (34% loss), the hippocampus (33% loss), the amygdala (27% loss) and the claustrum (26% loss). There was no significant change in SS-R expression in the spinal cord with aging. Significant reductions in SS-R binding in these brain regions may be involved in the impairment of sensory and cognitive function that can occur with aging.     

西南喀斯特区域水土流失敏感性评价及其空间分异特征

西南喀斯特地区碳酸盐岩酸不溶物含量很低,成土速率慢、土壤允许流失量小,加上地形起伏大、植被破坏严重,导致该地区水土流失敏感性及其空间分异的独特特征。选取降雨侵蚀力、地形起伏度、土壤类型、植被类型及土壤允许流失量等5个指标,应用GIS技术对西南喀斯特区水土流失敏感性进行单因子和多因子综合分析评价,结果表明西南喀斯特区水土流失敏感性普遍很高,中度敏感以上区域占西南喀斯特区总面积的82.8%,不敏感区域所占面积比例为6.4%;水土流失中度敏感以上区域主要分布于贵州全境、广西峰丛洼地区、云南东南部、重庆东北部、东南部、湖北西南部及湖南西北部等区域;随着岩石中酸不溶物含量的增加,水土流失极敏感和高度敏感区面积比例减少,中度敏感区比例增加。研究结果有助于指导西南喀斯特地区水土流失防治及退化喀斯特生态系统的恢复与重建。     

水体污染经济损失估算模型及其应用

运用湖泊水污染经济损失与湖泊水质之间的关系模型,分析了某一湖泊B不同年段各种主要使用功能的经济损害效果。研究结果表明,无论水体中哪一种污染物的升高,都必然造成各种使用功能经济损害的增加;该湖仅在1990年其各种主要使用功能的污染损害较为显著,并以旅游和生活饮水两项功能损害突出,因污染所蒙受的经济损失也较大。总体上,各种使用功能在整个监测期间（1990－1999）经济损害率呈减轻趋势,但经济损失量有所增加。     

门诊西药房药品报损率的调查与分析

目的:调查分析西药房药品报损情况和原因,加强西药房药品的管理,规范药品报损制度.方法:通过调阅2007年至2011年我院西药房药品报损记录以及2010年与2011年医院与医药公司的退药登记本进行分析统计.结果:我院2007年至2011年药品报损率均小于0.002％,且药品报损率呈递减趋势.药品报损的主要原因为药品破损,2007年至2011年药品报损总金额为1549.78元,破损药品金额占63.30％,过期药品金额占20.06％,其他药品金额占16.64％.滞销药品退货金额占退货总金额的80％以上,成为了药房管理的隐患.结论:完善药品报损制度,加强对药品的养护,能有效地降低了药品报损率以及医院资金损失.     

Weight loss maintenance in severely obese adults after an intensive lifestyle intervention: 2- to 4-year follow-up

Objective: To evaluate the long‐term weight loss maintenance after 2 to 4 years in severely obese subjects after a lifestyle intervention at a weight loss camp in Denmark. Research Methods and Procedures: In a retrospective follow‐up study, we assessed weight loss after 21 weeks of treatment at a weight loss camp, weight loss maintenance after 2 to 4 years, and numbers of subjects with a weight loss maintenance of ≥10% of a total number of 435 severely obese adults participating in an intensive lifestyle intervention with a primary focus on physical activity. Results: We obtained follow‐up data of 249 subjects (180 women and 69 men) with an initial body weight of 142 ± 32 kg. After 21 weeks at the camp, the subjects had reduced their body weight with a mean of 21.9 ± 13 kg (corresponding to a 15% weight loss). The average weight loss maintenance was 5.3% at a follow‐up after 2 to 4 years, and 28.3% had maintained a weight loss above 10% after 4 years of follow‐up. Discussion: Weight loss camps are a relatively new commercial approach in treating severely obese subjects. However, the results demonstrate that even with a multidisciplinary intensive setting with focus on diet, exercise, and psychological counseling, only 28% had maintained a weight loss above 10% after 4 years. This emphasizes that obesity is a chronic condition that needs additional strategies after a weight loss intervention in the efforts to maintain a sufficient weight loss.     

Murine CMV-Induced Hearing Loss Is Associated with Inner Ear Inflammation and Loss of Spiral Ganglia Neurons

Congenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) occurs in 0.5–1% of live births and approximately 10% of infected infants develop hearing loss. The mechanism(s) of hearing loss remain unknown. We developed a murine model of CMV induced hearing loss in which murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) infection of newborn mice leads to hematogenous spread of virus to the inner ear, induction of inflammatory responses, and hearing loss. Characteristics of the hearing loss described in infants with congenital HCMV infection were observed including, delayed onset, progressive hearing loss, and unilateral hearing loss in this model and, these characteristics were viral inoculum dependent. Viral antigens were present in the inner ear as were CD3+ mononuclear cells in the spiral ganglion and stria vascularis. Spiral ganglion neuron density was decreased after infection, thus providing a mechanism for hearing loss. The lack of significant inner ear histopathology and persistence of inflammation in cochlea of mice with hearing loss raised the possibility that inflammation was a major component of the mechanism(s) of hearing loss in MCMV infected mice.     

空间直观景观模型在呼中林区土壤侵蚀预测研究中的初步应用

土壤通用流失方程(USLE)已被广泛应用于大尺度的土壤侵蚀预测．在以往的土壤侵蚀研究中,由于只能获得静态的植被图,土壤通用流失方程只能用于土壤侵蚀的静态估算．空间直观景观模型能在大尺度上模拟植被动态,为土壤通用流失方程提供动态的植被因子,从而使土壤侵蚀的动态模拟成为可能．本研究结合空间直观景观模型LANDIS和土壤通用流失修正方程,以大兴安岭呼中林区为研究区。动态地模拟未来650年内有采伐和无采伐预案下的土壤侵蚀量;同时以无火无采伐预案下的土壤侵蚀为对比值．结果表明,土壤侵蚀量随时间变化呈周期性的波动,其波动程度在无火无采伐预案下最小,而在有火无采伐预案下最大;采伐对土壤侵蚀的影响没有火对土壤侵蚀的影响在空间上表现得明显,但是其累积效果则比火的影响强;降低采伐所产生的裸露土能有效降低年平均土壤侵蚀量,但是对土壤侵蚀动态变化的影响不明显;虽然采伐增加使平均土壤侵蚀量增加,但是也同时使土壤侵蚀的年际变化更趋于平稳．     

Weight loss expectations and goals in a population sample of overweight and obese US adults

The purpose of this study was to investigate weight loss expectations and goals in a population sample of US adults who planned to make a weight loss attempt, and to examine predictors of those expectations and goals. Participants were 658 overweight and obese adults (55% women, mean age = 47.9 years, BMI = 31.8 kg/m(2)) who responded to a telephone survey about weight loss. Respondents reported weight loss expectations (i.e., reductions they realistically expected) and goals (i.e., reductions they ideally desired) for an upcoming "serious and deliberate" weight loss attempt. They also reported the expectations they had, and the reductions they actually achieved, in a previous attempt. Respondents' weight loss expectations for their upcoming attempt (8.0% reduction in initial weight) were significantly more modest than their goals for that attempt (16.8%), and smaller than the losses that they expected (12.0%), and achieved (8.9%) in their most recent past attempt (Ps 相似文献   

Conservation of endangered species and the patterns and propensities of biodiversity

It is commonly asserted in the ecological and economic literature that habitat loss is the main cause of loss of imperiled species. The evidence clearly shows that habitat loss is a common contributing factor, but there is little evidence that it is the most important factor. Studies that have focused on the mechanisms of species loss have failed to produce models capable of predicting patterns of loss as a function of human activities. I propose that this is because ecologists have employed an unrealistic conceptual model of the functioning of natural systems. Karl Popper's construct of the propensities of natural systems provides a more realistic view, and better potential to yield predictive models. I provide two examples of patterns of biodiversity and species loss in Canada where mechanistic reasoning is inconsistent with the observed propensities of species loss.     

Assessment of Alveolar Bone Status in Middle Aged Chinese (40-59 Years) with Chronic Periodontitis — Using CBCT

ObjectiveThis study used con-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to investigate the prevalence and severity of alveolar bone loss in middle-aged (40–59 years) Chinese with chronic periodontitis.ResultsThe study revealed that 40–59 year old patients with chronic periodontitis had severe bone loss. At 5,286 sites (34.7%), alveolar bone loss was mild; severe alveolar bone loss was found at 5,978 sites (39.2%). A comparison of bone loss in different jaws revealed that the area with the highest degree of bone loss was on the lingual side of the maxillary molar (56.3 ± 7.2%), and that the area with the lowest degree was primarily on the lingual side of the mandibular canine (27.5 ± 6.3%). There was a lower degree of alveolar bone loss in males than females. Differences were observed when comparing the incidence of bone loss between males and females (P < 0.05). Menopause in females and smoking in both genders may affect the level of bone loss. Male smokers experienced a greater degree of bone loss (41.67 ± 5.76%) than male non-smokers (32.95 ± 4.31%). A 42.23 ± 6.34% bone loss was found in menopausal females versus 31.35 ± 3.62% in non-menopausal females.ConclusionsThe study revealed that different sites and teeth exhibited a diverse degree of bone loss. In middle-aged patients with chronic periodontitis, the highest degrees of bone loss in the incisors, premolars, and molars were on the lingual side, mesial side and lingual side, respectively. Menopause in females and smoking may affect the level of bone loss.     

Assessing Patterns of Human-Wildlife Conflicts and Compensation around a Central Indian Protected Area

Mitigating crop and livestock loss to wildlife and improving compensation distribution are important for conservation efforts in landscapes where people and wildlife co-occur outside protected areas. The lack of rigorously collected spatial data poses a challenge to management efforts to minimize loss and mitigate conflicts. We surveyed 735 households from 347 villages in a 5154 km² area surrounding Kanha Tiger Reserve in India. We modeled self-reported household crop and livestock loss as a function of agricultural, demographic and environmental factors, and mitigation measures. We also modeled self-reported compensation received by households as a function of demographic factors, conflict type, reporting to authorities, and wildlife species involved. Seventy-three percent of households reported crop loss and 33% livestock loss in the previous year, but less than 8% reported human injury or death. Crop loss was associated with greater number of cropping months per year and proximity to the park. Livestock loss was associated with grazing animals inside the park and proximity to the park. Among mitigation measures only use of protective physical structures were associated with reduced livestock loss. Compensation distribution was more likely for tiger related incidents, and households reporting loss and located in the buffer. Average estimated probability of crop loss was 0.93 and livestock loss was 0.60 for surveyed households. Estimated crop and livestock loss and compensation distribution were higher for households located inside the buffer. Our approach modeled conflict data to aid managers in identifying potential conflict hotspots, influential factors, and spatially maps risk probability of crop and livestock loss. This approach could help focus allocation of conservation efforts and funds directed at conflict prevention and mitigation where high densities of people and wildlife co-occur.