Uncertainty Estimation in a Remediation Process: A Case Study

A case study concerning the reclamation of a brownfield for residential purposes is presented. Because a high contamination of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) was detected in soil, a remediation process is necessary. Bench-scale treat-ability tests were carried out in order to evaluate performances of some remediation technologies on this specific matrix, and particularly for the removal of high-molecular-weight PAHs. Biodegradation studies allowed the evaluation of PAH abatement in a slurry phase treatment, the amount of abiotic losses and the effect of macronutri-ents and bioaugmentation on the removal efficiency. The experimental study was performed in compliance with a Quality System, based on ISO 9001:2000 and ISO/ EC 17025:1999; validation of the analytical method provided the expanded uncertainty of the removal efficiency, varying from nearly 13 to 21%, depending on the compound considered. Experimental results showed a high removal efficiency for all PAHs; the addition of nitrogen and phosphorous increased the removal rate and the efficiency for high-molecular-weight PAHs, whereas no remarkable differences were observed in total (abiotic + biotic) removal of light compounds.     

Response of Northern Elephant Seal platelets to pressure and temperature changes: a comparison with human platelets

Mammalian blood platelets are activated by physiological agonists such as collagen or thrombin, or by physical stimuli such as cold temperatures and rapid decompression. Marine mammals regularly experience cold temperatures, high pressures and rapid decompression while diving, yet do not appear to suffer from thrombotic events during routine dive activity. We evaluated the effects of cold temperature and high pressure excursions on Northern Elephant Seal (NES) platelets and compared NES platelet response to that of human platelets subjected to identical stimuli. NES platelets undergo cold-induced activation when chilled to 4 °C, and 3 distinct phase transitions can be measured using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. NES platelet membrane lipid composition was determined using thin layer chromatography and NES platelets were found to have three times the amount of cholesterol (21% by weight) as human platelets. When exposed to high pressure-rapid decompression excursion, NES platelets did not undergo morphological shape change nor bind increased amounts of fibrinogen, while human platelets were significantly activated by the same excursion. These results demonstrate that while NES platelets are activated by the physical stimulus of cold temperatures, they are resistant to decompression-induced activation. We suggest that the composition of NES platelet membranes may play an important role in preventing pressure-related activation.     

Blood Oxygen Depletion Is Independent of Dive Function in a Deep Diving Vertebrate,the Northern Elephant Seal

Although energetics is fundamental to animal ecology, traditional methods of determining metabolic rate are neither direct nor instantaneous. Recently, continuous blood oxygen (O₂) measurements were used to assess energy expenditure in diving elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), demonstrating that an exceptional hypoxemic tolerance and exquisite management of blood O₂ stores underlie the extraordinary diving capability of this consummate diver. As the detailed relationship of energy expenditure and dive behavior remains unknown, we integrated behavior, ecology, and physiology to characterize the costs of different types of dives of elephant seals. Elephant seal dive profiles were analyzed and O₂ utilization was classified according to dive type (overall function of dive: transit, foraging, food processing/rest). This is the first account linking behavior at this level with in vivo blood O₂ measurements in an animal freely diving at sea, allowing us to assess patterns of O₂ utilization and energy expenditure between various behaviors and activities in an animal in the wild. In routine dives of elephant seals, the blood O₂ store was significantly depleted to a similar range irrespective of dive function, suggesting that all dive types have equal costs in terms of blood O₂ depletion. Here, we present the first physiological evidence that all dive types have similarly high blood O₂ demands, supporting an energy balance strategy achieved by devoting one major task to a given dive, thereby separating dive functions into distinct dive types. This strategy may optimize O₂ store utilization and recovery, consequently maximizing time underwater and allowing these animals to take full advantage of their underwater resources. This approach may be important to optimizing energy expenditure throughout a dive bout or at-sea foraging trip and is well suited to the lifestyle of an elephant seal, which spends > 90% of its time at sea submerged making diving its most “natural” state.     

Neighborhood Safety and Adipose Tissue Distribution in African Americans: The Jackson Heart Study

Objective

Patterns of fat distribution are heavily influenced by psychological stress, sex, and among women, by menopause status. Emerging evidence suggests the lack of perceived neighborhood safety due to crime may contribute to psychological stress and obesity among exposed residents. Our objective is to determine if perceived neighborhood safety is associated with abdominal adiposity among African-American men and women, and among pre- and postmenopausal women in the Jackson Heart Study.

Design and Methods

We examined associations between perceived neighborhood safety, fat distribution, and other individual-level covariates among Jackson Heart Study participants (N = 2,881). Abdominal adiposity was measured via computed tomography scans measuring the volumes of visceral, subcutaneous and total adipose tissue. We also measured body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference. Multivariable regression models estimated associations between perceived neighborhood safety, adiposity, and covariates by sex and menopause status.

Results

Adjusting for all covariates, women who strongly disagreed their neighborhood was safe from crime had a higher BMI compared to women who felt safe [Std B 0.083 95% CI (0.010, 0.156)]. Premenopausal women who felt most unsafe had higher BMI, waist circumference, and volumes of visceral and total adipose tissue than those who felt safe [Std B 0.160 (0.021, 0.299), Std B 0.142 (0.003, 0.280), Std B 0.150 (0.014, 0.285), Std B 0.154 (0.019, 0.290), respectively]. We did not identify associations between neighborhood safety and adiposity among men and postmenopausal women.

Conclusions

Our data suggest that abdominal adipose tissue distribution patterns are associated with perceived neighborhood safety in some groups, and that patterns may differ by sex and menopause status, with most associations observed among pre-menopausal women. Further research is needed to elucidate whether there are causal mechanisms underlying sex and menopause-status differences that may mediate associations between perceived safety and abdominal adiposity and potential protective factors that may modify this risk.     

Data-Derived Uncertainty Factors: Boric Acid (BA) as a Case Study

There is growing support for the use of data-derived uncertainty factors. In recent years, risk assessments of boric acid have been performed by several well-respected organizations, including IEHR, ECETOC, IPCS, and WHO. For each, the pivotal study was a developmental toxicity study in rats with a no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) of 55 mg BA/kg/day. These risk assessments employed reduced uncertainty factors in the range of 25 to 60 for boric acid, because available pharmacokinetic data for boric acid reduced uncertainty in evaluating the overall data base with this compound. However, a limitation of previous risk assessments was the absence of specific data on the renal clearance of boric acid in pregnant rats and pregnant women. New data has demonstrated that when renal clearance was normalized to body weight (ml/min/kg), pregnant rats cleared boric acid at a rate roughly three times greater than pregnant women. In addition, the boric acid specific allometric relationship was determined from the log-log plot of clearance vs. body weight. Based on the new renal clearance data, it was estimated that pregnant women and rats would have the same AUC when pregnant women are given 30% of the boric acid dose given to pregnant rats. In addition, the renal clearance of boric acid among pregnant women varied by a factor of about 2. Therefore, boric acid-specific data on renal clearance in pregnant women and rats supports reduced interspecies and intraspecies pharmacokinetic uncertainty factors of approximately 3 and 2, respectively. Further, growing evidence of the essentiality in animals, combined with consistency of effects among species in toxicity studies, suggests a reduced pharmacodynamic uncertainty factor is appropriate for boric acid. Total uncertainty factors in the range of 22 to 44 are scientifically justified for this compound. An acceptable daily intake of 1.25 to 2.5 mg BA/kg/day is estimated by applying an uncertainty factor of 22 to 44 to the NOAEL of 55 mg BA/kg/day. Data-derived uncertainty factors should be used whenever possible, and they should be determined and applied in a consistent manner. Ultimately, estimates based on target tissue dose-adjusted relationships should offer a better approach to risk assessment.     

Reciprocal Effects of Adipose Tissue Denervation and High Fat Diet on Serum Metabolic Parameters and Adipokine Levels in Rats: A Long Term Study

Journal of Evolutionary Biochemistry and Physiology - The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) plays an important role in regulating the metabolic and secretory functions of white adipose tissue. In...     

A Case Study: Fecal Corticosteroid and Behavior as Indicators of Welfare During Relocation of an Asian Elephant

This study was a preliminary investigation of an enzyme immunoassay for measuring fecal glucocorticoid metabolites in a male Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) by investigating changes in behavior and cortisol metabolite excretion associated with a putative stressful event. The study collected fecal samples for 10 days prior to, and 10 days after, 24-hr transport and relocation of the elephant to a new herd. The study measured cortisol metabolites using 2 enzyme immunoassays indicating a 389% and 340% increase in cortisol metabolite excretion following relocation. Maximal cortisol metabolite excretion occurred 2 days after relocation and remained elevated during establishment of the new herd. Stereotypic behavior increased approximately 400% after relocation. The relocation disturbed sleep patterns, the elephant spent less time sleeping during the night, and the elephant slept standing up. These results provide preliminary evidence that noninvasive monitoring of fecal cortisol metabolites can be used to investigate adrenal activity in Asian elephants and may be a safe, practical, and accurate welfare indicator.     

Three-Dimensional Adipose Tissue Imaging Reveals Regional Variation in Beige Fat Biogenesis and PRDM16-Dependent Sympathetic Neurite Density

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睾酮缺乏对高脂诱导小型猪内脏脂肪组织DNA甲基化的影响

为探讨DNA甲基化在睾酮缺乏促进高脂饮食诱导的小型猪肥胖中的作用,本研究采用甲基化DNA免疫共沉淀测序(MeDIP-Seq)技术分析高脂饲喂的不去势、去势和去势+睾酮3组小型猪内脏脂肪组织DNA甲基化差异,对筛选出的差异甲基化基因进行注释和功能富集分析,并运用RT-qPCR技术检测差异甲基化基因的表达.结果 表明,不去势、去势和去势+睾酮3组样本在基因组上的甲基化分布情况相似,即Genebody区的甲基化水平高于3'UTR和5'UTR区.另外,在去势Vs.不去势和去势Vs.去势+睾酮两组样本中分别筛选得到2839个和2510个差异甲基化基因,这些基因主要富集在脂肪细胞因子转导、抗原处理以及呈递、脂肪酸代谢和氨基酸代谢等通路.睾酮缺乏导致高脂饲喂小型猪内脏脂肪组织LEP以及NCF1内含子区甲基化和SLC-27A1启动子区甲基化水平升高,并且LEP和NCF1 mRNA表达与甲基化呈正相关,而SLC27A1 mR-NA表达与甲基化呈负相关.本研究推测,睾酮缺乏可能通过影响脂质代谢和炎症反应等多个途径基因DNA甲基化参与调控脂肪沉积和肥胖发生.     

Weed Diversity and Uses: a Case Study from Tea Plantations in Northern Thailand

Based on concerns that useful weed diversity in agroecosystems as well as associated traditional knowledge may be declining due to agricultural intensification and indiscriminate eradication of weeds, we studied weed diversity and use by local ethnic groups in tea plantations in northern Thailand under different agricultural intensities and landscape complexities, namely agroforestry, organic, and Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) based conventional system. In each system, we sampled five tea plantations using belt-transects of 25 m². Use data were collected through interviews with specialist informants. We recorded 214 weed species (gamma-diversity) of which 66 were useful. Agroforestry system had the highest alpha- and beta-weed diversity, suggesting that the low agricultural intensity and high landscape complexity in this system is associated with higher weed diversity in tea plantations. The common weed species were clearly different in the three systems and only a small fraction (22 species) of widespread weeds was shared among them, resulting in low weed similarity between systems. The 66 useful species of weeds were mostly for food and medicine. Uses of some weeds were shared between systems. Many of the useful weeds are invasive species, suggesting that they are prevalent and inexpensive plant resources for rural people and could represent alternative resources in the future. Because the occurrence of invasive weeds may affect the natural habitats of the native flora, integrating the exploitation of weeds into weed management strategies may reduce the weed population while sustaining agrobiodiversity and conserving associated traditional knowledge in the long term.     

褐色脂肪组织研究的最新进展和科学意义

哺乳动物体内存在着褐色脂肪组织。有别于白色脂肪组织储存能量的功能,褐色脂肪组织的主要功能是通过产热作用来维持机体的能量代谢平衡。陆续有研究阐明调控褐色脂肪组织分化与能量代谢过程的分子机制,逐渐揭示了褐色脂肪组织分化与能量代谢过程中涉及的信号通路与转录调控。这不仅让我们更好地理解褐色脂肪组织在能量代谢调控中的重要作用,而且为基于褐色脂肪组织的肥胖治疗提供了理论依据。本文阐述了近年来研究发现的褐色脂肪组织分化与代谢过程中发挥重要作用的信号通路与转录调控,并讨论了多种基于针对褐色脂肪组织的肥胖治疗手段的有效性与可行性。     

Deletion of Serum Amyloid A3 Improves High Fat High Sucrose Diet-Induced Adipose Tissue Inflammation and Hyperlipidemia in Female Mice

Serum amyloid A (SAA) increases in response to acute inflammatory stimuli and is modestly and chronically elevated in obesity. SAA3, an inducible form of SAA, is highly expressed in adipose tissue in obese mice where it promotes monocyte chemotaxis, providing a mechanism for the macrophage accumulation that occurs with adipose tissue expansion in obesity. Humans do not express functional SAA3 protein, but instead express SAA1 and SAA2 in hepatic as well as extrahepatic tissues, making it difficult to distinguish between liver and adipose tissue-specific SAA effects. SAA3 does not circulate in plasma, but may exert local effects that impact systemic inflammation. We tested the hypothesis that SAA3 contributes to chronic systemic inflammation and adipose tissue macrophage accumulation in obesity using mice deficient for Saa3 (Saa3 ^−/−). Mice were rendered obese by feeding a pro-inflammatory high fat, high sucrose diet with added cholesterol (HFHSC). Both male and female Saa3 ^−/− mice gained less weight on the HFHSC diet compared to Saa3^+/+ littermate controls, with no differences in body composition or resting metabolism. Female Saa3 ^−/− mice, but not males, had reduced HFHSC diet-induced adipose tissue inflammation and macrophage content. Both male and female Saa3 ^−/− mice had reduced liver Saa1 and Saa2 expression in association with reduced plasma SAA. Additionally, female Saa3 ^−/− mice, but not males, showed improved plasma cholesterol, triglycerides, and lipoprotein profiles, with no changes in glucose metabolism. Taken together, these results suggest that the absence of Saa3 attenuates liver-specific SAA (i.e., SAA1/2) secretion into plasma and blunts weight gain induced by an obesogenic diet. Furthermore, adipose tissue-specific inflammation and macrophage accumulation are attenuated in female Saa3 ^−/− mice, suggesting a novel sexually dimorphic role for this protein. These results also suggest that Saa3 influences liver-specific SAA1/2 expression, and that SAA3 could play a larger role in the acute phase response than previously thought.     

The Problem with Paradigms: Bateman's Worldview as a Case Study

Bateman's principles, their corollaries and predictions constitutea paradigm for the study of sexual selection theory, evolutionof mating systems, parental investment theory, and sexual dimorphismin male and female behavior. Some aspects of this paradigm havebeen challenged in recent years, while others have been supportedby empirical and theoretical research. We re-examine Bateman's1948 paper in detail, including some methodological problems.Additionally, we review three areas in which an over-relianceon Bateman's predictions about sexual dynamics hindered ourability to understand the potential importance of certain behaviors:1) male mate choice and sperm allocation; 2) the role of femalesin initiating and soliciting extra-pair copulations and fertilizations;and 3) the role of females in lekking systems, in which recentevidence suggests that copulations with multiple males (polyandrousbehavior) may be common. We conclude this introduction to thesymposium by emphasizing the heuristic value of Bateman's contributions,as well as the problems that arise when Bateman's paradigm isviewed through the lens of modern behavioral ecology and evolutionarytheory.     

TRPV1 Agonist Monoacylglycerol Increases UCP1 Content in Brown Adipose Tissue and Suppresses Accumulation of Visceral Fat in Mice Fed a High-Fat and High-Sucrose Diet

The administration of such a transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) agonist as capsaicin, which is a pungent ingredient of red pepper, promotes energy metabolism and suppresses visceral fat accumulation. We have recently identified monoacylglycerols (MGs) having an unsaturated long-chain fatty acid as the novel TRPV1 agonist in foods. We investigated in this present study the effects of dietary MGs on uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) expression in interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT) and on fat accumulation in mice fed with a high-fat, high-sucrose diet. The MG30 diet that substituted 30% of all lipids for MGs (a mixture of 1-oleoylglycerol, 1-linoleoylglycerol and 1-linolenoylglycerol) significantly increased the UCP1 content of IBAT and decreased the weight of epididymal white adipose tissue, and the serum glucose, total cholesterol and free fatty acid levels. The diet containing only 1-oleoylglycerol as MG also increased UCP1 expression in IBAT. MGs that activated TRPV1 also therefore induced the expression of UCP 1 and prevented visceral fat accumulation as well as capsaicin.     

12/15-Lipoxygenase Is Required for the Early Onset of High Fat Diet-Induced Adipose Tissue Inflammation and Insulin Resistance in Mice

Background

Recent understanding that insulin resistance is an inflammatory condition necessitates searching for genes that regulate inflammation in insulin sensitive tissues. 12/15-lipoxygenase (12/15LO) regulates the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines and is implicated in the early development of diet-induced atherosclerosis. Thus, we tested the hypothesis that 12/15LO is involved in the onset of high fat diet (HFD)-induced insulin resistance.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Cells over-expressing 12/15LO secreted two potent chemokines, MCP-1 and osteopontin, implicated in the development of insulin resistance. We assessed adipose tissue inflammation and whole body insulin resistance in wild type (WT) and 12/15LO knockout (KO) mice after 2–4 weeks on HFD. In adipose tissue from WT mice, HFD resulted in recruitment of CD11b⁺, F4/80⁺ macrophages and elevated protein levels of the inflammatory markers IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IFNγ, Cxcl1 and TNFα. Remarkably, adipose tissue from HFD-fed 12/15LO KO mice was not infiltrated by macrophages and did not display any increase in the inflammatory markers compared to adipose tissue from normal chow-fed mice. WT mice developed severe whole body (hepatic and skeletal muscle) insulin resistance after HFD, as measured by hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp. In contrast, 12/15LO KO mice exhibited no HFD-induced change in insulin-stimulated glucose disposal rate or hepatic glucose output during clamp studies. Insulin-stimulated Akt phosphorylation in muscle tissue from HFD-fed mice was significantly greater in 12/15LO KO mice than in WT mice.

Conclusions

These results demonstrate that 12/15LO mediates early stages of adipose tissue inflammation and whole body insulin resistance induced by high fat feeding.     

Genealogies as Culture and Biology: a Tokelau Case Study

It has become dogma among cultural anthropologists that genealogies are primarily political documents which do not necessarily give reliable accounts of actual biological relationships. This paper examines this assertion in the light of social and serological evidence from one small Polynesian society. It is shown that, within certain limits, Tokelau genealogies do give accurate accounts of biological relationships, and provide a sound basis for interdisciplinary studies which cross the interface between biological and social systems.