Weight Bias among Health Professionals Specializing in Obesity

Purpose: To determine the level of anti‐fat bias in health professionals specializing in obesity and identify personal characteristics that correlate with both implicit and explicit bias. Research Methods and Procedures: The Implicit Associations Test (IAT) and a self‐report questionnaire assessing explicit attitudes, personal experiences with obesity, and demographic characteristics was administered to clinicians and researchers attending the opening session of an international obesity conference (N = 389). The IAT was used to assess overall implicit weight bias (associating “obese people” and “thin people” with “good” vs. “bad”) and three ranges of stereotypes: lazy‐motivated, smart‐stupid, and valuable‐worthless. The questionnaire assessed explicit bias on the same dimensions, along with personal and professional experiences with obesity. Results: Health professionals exhibited a significant pro‐thin, anti‐fat implicit bias on the IAT. In addition, the subjects significantly endorsed the implicit stereotypes of lazy, stupid, and worthless using the IAT. Level of bias was associated with several personal characteristics. Characteristics significantly predictive of lower levels of implicit anti‐fat bias include being male, older, having a positive emotional outlook on life, weighing more, having friends who are obese, and indicating an understanding of the experience of obesity. Discussion: Even professionals whose careers emphasize research or the clinical management of obesity show very strong weight bias, indicating pervasive and powerful stigma. Understanding the extent of anti‐fat bias and the personal characteristics associated with it will aid in developing intervention strategies to ameliorate these damaging attitudes.     

The Glass Half Empty: How Emotional Exhaustion Affects the State-Trait Discrepancy in Self-Reports of Teaching Emotions

Following from previous research on intensity bias and the accessibility model of emotional self-report, the present study examined the role of emotional exhaustion in explaining the discrepancy in teachers’ reports of their trait (habitual) versus state (momentary, “real”) emotions. Trait reports (habitual emotions, exhaustion) were assessed via trait questionnaires, and state reports (momentary emotions) were assessed in real time via the experience sampling method by using personal digital assistants (N = 69 high school teachers; 1,089 measures within teachers). In line with our assumptions, multi-level analyses showed that, as compared to the state assessment, teachers reported higher levels of habitual teaching-related emotions of anger, anxiety, shame, boredom, enjoyment, and pride. Additionally, the state-trait discrepancy in self-reports of negative emotions was accounted for by teachers’ emotional exhaustion, with high exhaustion levels corresponding with a greater state-trait discrepancy. Exhaustion levels did not moderate the state-trait discrepancy in positive emotions indicating that perceived emotional exhaustion may reflect identity-related cognitions specific to the negative belief system. Implications for research and educational practice are discussed.     

Combined Effect of TLR2 Gene Polymorphism and Early Life Stress on the Age at Onset of Bipolar Disorders

Gene-environment interactions may play an important role in modulating the impact of early-life stressful events on the clinical course of bipolar disorder (BD), particularly associated to early age at onset. Immune dysfunction is thought to be an important mechanism linking childhood trauma with early-onset BD, thus the genetic diversity of immune-related loci may account for an important part of the interindividual susceptibility to this severe subform. Here we investigated the potential interaction between genetic variants of Toll-like receptors 2 (TLR2) and 4 (TLR4), major innate immune response molecules to pathogens, and the childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ) in age at onset of BD. We recruited 531 BD patients (type I and II or not otherwise specified), genotyped for the TLR2 rs4696480 and rs3804099 and TLR4 rs1927914 and rs11536891 single-nucleotide polymorphisms and recorded for history of childhood trauma using the CTQ. TLR2 and TLR4 risk genotype carrier state and history of childhood emotional, physical and sexual abuses were evaluated in relation to age at onset as defined by the age at first manic or depressive episode. We observed a combined effect of TLR2 rs3804099 TT genotype and reported sexual abuse on determining an earlier age at onset of BD by means of a Kaplan-Meier survival curve (p = 0.002; corrected p = 0.02). Regression analysis, however, was non-significant for the TLR2-CTQ sexual abuse interaction term. The negative effects of childhood sexual abuse on age at onset of BD may be amplified in TLR2 rs3804099 risk genotype carriers through immune-mediated pathways. Clinical characteristics of illness severity, immune phenotypes and history of early life infectious insults should be included in future studies involving large patient cohorts.     

Identifying candidate genes for discrimination of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease

In this study we aimed to screen effective biomarkers for differential diagnosis of ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD). By using the gene expression profile dataset GSE24287 including 47 ileal CD, 27 UC and 25 non-inflammatory bowel diseases control downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database, we identified the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between UC patients and controls as well as between CD patients and controls (|log₂FC(fold change)| > 1 and p < 0.05). Then Gene Ontology (GO) functional enrichment analyses were performed for these DEGs in two groups, followed by the construction of weight PPI (protein–protein interaction) networks. Subnets enriched for the PPIs and differentially expressed genes were constructed based on the weight PPI networks. The overlapping genes between the genes in the top 10 subnets with smallest p value and the DEGs were selected as the candidate genes of disease. A total of 75 DEGs were identified in UC group and 87 ones in CD group. There were 69 and 57 specific DEGs in CD group and UC group, respectively. The DEGs in CD group were mainly enriched in “inflammatory response” and “defense response”, while the most significantly enriched GO terms in UC group were “anion transport” and “chemotaxis”. FOS and SOCS3 were identified as candidate genes for CD and other three genes HELB, ZBTB16 and FAM107A were candidate genes for UC. In conclusion, there were distinct genetic alterations between UC and CD. The candidate genes identified in current study may be used as biomarkers for differential diagnosis of CD and UC.     

Dectin-1 Polymorphism: A Genetic Disease Specifier in Autism Spectrum Disorders?

Introduction

In autism spectrum disorders (ASD), complex gene-environment interactions contribute to disease onset and progress. Given that gastro-intestinal dysfunctions are common in ASD, we postulated involvement of microbial dysbiosis in ASD and investigated, under a case-control design, the influence of DNA polymorphisms in the CLEC7A gene that encodes a pivotal fungal sensor, Dectin-1.

Material and methods

DNAs from 478 ASD patients and 351 healthy controls (HC) were analyzed for the CLEC7A rs16910631G/A and rs2078178 A/G single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Differences in the distribution of allele, genotype and haplotype by Chi-square testing and nonparametric analysis by Kruskal-Wallis/Mann–Whitney tests, where appropriate, were performed. The free statistical package R.2.13 software was used for the statistical analysis.

Results

We found that the CLEC7A rs2078178 G allele and GG genotype were more prevalent in HC as compared to ASD but failed to reach statistical significance for the latter (pc = 0.01, 0.06 respectively). However, after phenotype-based stratification, the CLEC7A rs2078178 G allele and GG genotype were found to be significantly more frequent in the Asperger group as compared to other ASD subsets (pc = 0.02, 0.01), a finding reinforced by haplotype analysis (rs2078178/rs16910631 G-G/G-G) (pc = 0.002). Further, intellectual quotient (IQ)-based stratification of ASD patients revealed that IQ values increase linearly along the CLEC7A rs2078178 AA, AG and GG genotypes (p = 0.05) and in a recessive manner (GG vs. AA+AG p = 0.02), further confirmed by haplotype distribution (CLEC7A rs2078178-16910631; A-G/A-G, A-G/G-G and G-G/G-G, p = 0.02, G-G/G-G vs. others, p = 0.01).

Conclusion

Our data suggest that the genetic diversity of CLEC7A gene influences the ASD phenotype by behaving as a disease specifier and imply that the genetic control of innate immune response could determine the ASD phenotype.     

Models of the evolution of altruism

There are two ways of calculating the spread of a gene for altruism. One, originally proposed by Hamilton, is to allow for the effects of the gene on the survival and reproduction of collateral relatives of the individual carrying it (i.e., “inclusive fitness”); this leads to the condition k > 1/r for the spread of the gene, where k is a benefit/cost ratio. The other is to count only the direct offspring of a carrier, but to allow for the altruistic acts performed toward the carrier by its relatives (“neighbour modulated fitness” or “personal fitness”). A recent personal fitness model (L. L. Cavalli Sforza and M. W. Feldman, 1978, Theor. Pop. Biol.14, 268–280) analyses parent-offspring and sib-sib altruism and concludes that k > 1/r is applicable only when fitness components are combined additively. The present paper analyses some simple models in which the phenotypic effects are carefully specified. It is concluded that it is sometimes, but not always, appropriate to combine fitness components additively. The relative roles of inclusive and personal fitness models are compared. The former have the virtue of being easier to think about in causal terms; and the latter of incorporating the evolution of altruism into the corpus of population genetics as an example of frequency-dependent selection.     

Sex and the fixation of single favourable mutations

Sexual populations will accumulate favourable mutations more rapidly than asexual populations. This is true if it is often the case that two different favourable mutations can be found to be spreading simultaneously through populations. It is argued here that sexual species will incorporate single favourable mutations more quickly than asexual “species”, if the latter are multi-clonal. Thus one mutation can spread to fixation within a sexual species but in an asexual “species” with N_c clones at least N_c mutations must occur if the mutation is to be subsequently found in every member of the “species”. Asexual “species” may minimise this disadvantage by evolving polyploidy or occasional episodes of hybridisation. Both are in fact common in asexual “species”.     

Lethal effects of ammonia and nitrite on Penaeus penicillatus juveniles at two salinity levels

1. The 24,48,96, 144-hr lc₅₀ (median lethal concentration) of ammonia on Penaeus penicillatus juveniles were 59.49, 38.72, 29.77, 25.03 mg/l and 50.28, 31.26, 24.88, 20.66 mg/l for ammonia-N (un-ionized plus ionized ammonia as nitrogen); and 2.22, 1.44, 1.11, 0.93 mg/l and 2.00, 1.25, 0.99, 0.82 mg/l for NH₃-N (un-ionized ammonia as nitrogen) in 34 and 25 ppt seawater, respectively.2. The 24, 48, 96, 144-hr lc₅₀ of nitrite-N on P. penicillatus juveniles were 92.88, 79.45, 40.86, 26.29 mg/l and 83.34, 52.93, 38.52, 25.55 mg/l in 34 and 25 ppt seawater, respectively.3. A decrease of salinity from 34 to 25 ppt increased by more than 20% toxicities of ammonia and nitrite to P. penicillatus juveniles.4. The “threshold” was found at 156 and 144 hr for ammonia, and 192 and 168 hr for nitrite in 34 and 25 ppt, respectively.5. The “safety level” for P. penicillatus juveniles was 2.37 and 1.97 mg/l for ammonia-N; 0.09 and 0.08 mg/l for NH₃-N and 2.04 and 2.28 mg/l for nitrite-N in 34 and 25 ppt, respectively.     

Comparative analysis of N-acetylation polymorphism in humans as determined by phenotyping and genotyping

The N-acetylation polymorphisms of volunteers from the Moscow population analyzed by phenotyping and genotyping have been compared. The ratios between the proportions of fast acetylators (FAs) and slow acetylators (SAs) estimated by phenotyping and genotyping do not differ significantly from each other (47 and 44%, respectively). The absolute acetylation rate widely varies in both FAs and SAs. The NAT2 genotype and allele frequencies in the population sample have been calculated. The most frequent alleles are NAT2*4 (a “fast” allele), NAT2*5, and NAT2*6 (“slow” alleles); the most frequent genotypes are NAT2*5/*5, NAT2*4/*6, and NAT2*4/*5. Comparative analysis of N-acetylation polymorphism estimated by phenotyping and genotyping in the same subjects has shown a complete concordance between the phenotype and genotype in only 62 out of 75 subjects (87%). Comparative characteristics and presumed applications of the two approaches (quantitative estimation of acetylation rate and qualitative determination of the acetylator genotype) to the identification of individual acetylation status are presented.     

Impact of protein diversification on morphometric behavior of Andrographis paniculata Nees

Proteins are important biochemical parameters in genetic diversity and controlling morphological characteristics in plants. In this study, the proteomic and morphometric data of an important medicinal herb “Aci Pa?a” (Andrographis paniculata) were combined together to illustrate their impacts on genetic variation of the plant’s population and to realize the connection between protein patterns and phenotypic behavior of the species. We used three protein extraction buffers including Tris, potassium phosphate, and sodium citrate. The Tris buffer was significantly different (p ≤ 0.01) than other two in terms of the quality and quantity of protein bands by producing 15 types of proteins ranged from 13 to 105 kDa of which two of them were polymorphic. Consequently, a total of 12 accessions of A. paniculata were subjected to morpho-proteomic analyses. The unweighted pair group method with arithmetic average cluster analysis of the accessions based on the protein data and morphological characteristics generated three and four clusters, respectively, at a Euclidean distance of 2.53 for the morphological traits. Moreover, seed proteins analysis revealed that the two polymorphic protein bands sized 20.5 (protein “b”) and 30 kDa (protein “a”) effectively diversified the morphological characteristics and phylogenetic relationships among the 12 accessions of A. paniculata. Interestingly, the protein “b” acted as an activator agent for the number of branches, leaves and total dry weight, while the protein “a” performed a suppressive role for the same traits. Additionally, the two high-weighted faint bands “c” (75 kDa) and “d” (100 kDa) with a very low expression in accession 11228 proved their suppressive role along with the “a” band, while these bands were strongly expressed in the rest of the accessions. These findings suggest that these four proteins should be sequenced and perfectly established for further proteomic analyses. Ultimately, the mentioned proteins can be developed for any prospective breeding program or gene identification.     

Domain-specific determinants of catalysis/substrate binding and the oligomerization status of barley UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase

UDP-glucose (UDPG) pyrophosphorylase (UGPase) produces UDPG for sucrose and polysaccharide synthesis and glycosylation reactions. In this study, several barley UGPase mutants were produced, either single amino acid mutants or involving deletions of N- and C-terminal domains (Ncut and Ccut mutants, respectively) and of active site region (“NB loop”). The Del-NB mutant yielded no activity, whereas Ncut deletions and most of Ccut mutants, including short deletions at the so called “I-loop” region of C-terminal domain, as well as a single K260A mutant resulted in very low activity. For wt and the mutants, kinetics with UDPG were linear on reciprocal plots, whereas PPi at concentrations above 1 mM exerted strong substrate inhibition. Both K260A and most of the Ccut mutants had very high K_m with PPi (up to 33 mM), whereas Ncut deletions had greatly increased K_m with UDPG (up to 57 mM). Surprisingly, an 8 amino acid deletion from end of the C-terminus resulted in an enzyme (Ccut-8 mutant) with 44% higher activity when compared to wt, but with similar K_m values. Whereas Ccut-8 existed solely as a monomer, other deletion mutants had a more oligomerized status, e.g. Ncut mutants existing primarily as dimers. Overall, the data confirmed the essential role of NB loop in catalysis, but also pointed out to the role of both N- and C-termini for activity, substrate binding and oligomerization. The importance of oligomerization status for enzymatic activity of UGPase is discussed.     

The role of DNA polymerases in DNA repair in Escherichia coli: DNA polymerase I-dependent repair following chemical alkylation of permeabilized bacteria.

Many mutagens and carcinogens damage DNA and elicit repair synthesis in cells. In the present study we report that alkylation of the DNA of Escherichia coli that have been made permeable to nucleotides by toluene treatment results in the expression of a DNA polymerase I-directed repair synthesis. The advantage of the system described here is that it permits measurement of only DNA polymerase I-directed repair synthesis and serves as a simple, rapid method for determining the ability of a given chemical to elicit “excision-repair” in bacteria.DNA ligation is intentionally prevented in our system by addition of the inhibitor nicotinamide mononucleotide. In the absence of DNA ligase activity, nick translation is extensive and an “exaggerated” repair synthesis occurs. This amplification of repair synthesis is unique for DNA polymerase I since it is not observed in mutant cells deficient in this polymerase. DNA ligase apparently controls the extent of nucleotide replacement by this repair enzyme through its ability to rejoin “nicks” thereby terminating the DNA elongation process.The nitrosoamides N-methyl-N-nitrosourea and N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea, as well as the nitrosoamidines N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine and N-ethyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine, elicit DNA polymerase I-directed repair synthesis. Methyl methanesulphonate is especially potent in this regard, while its ethyl derivative, ethyl methanesulphonate, is a poor inducer of DNA polymerase I activity in permeabilized cells.     

Characteristics of discharge disruptions in the T-10 tokamak

The results of experimental studies of discharge disruptions in the T-10 tokamak at the limiting plasma density are presented. On the basis of measurements of the generated soft X-ray emission, for a group of “slow” disruptions, the dynamics of the magnetic configuration of the central part of the plasma column is studied and the possible role of the m/n = 1/1 mode in the excitation of predisruptions or the final stage of disruption is analyzed. It is shown that the characteristics of plasma electron cooling in predisruptions correspond to those of electron cooling upon pellet injection into T-10 and in discharge predisruptions occurring in regimes with the “quiet mode.” It is found that, in the latter case, the reason for predisruptions and fast electron cooling in the plasma core is the instability of the m/n = 2/1 mode, its spontaneous spatial reconstruction, and the generation of a “cooling wave” during this process. Measurements of the electron temperature (determined from the plasma radiation intensity at the second electron cyclotron harmonic) in the zone of the m/n = 2/1 mode have shown that the transformation of the m/n = 2/1 mode leads to the excitation of predisruptions and the final phase of disruption not only in regimes with the “quiet mode,” but also in disruptions of ordinary ohmic discharges. The experimental results obtained in this work make it possible to determine the scenario of the development of “slow” discharge disruptions in the T-10 tokamak at the limiting plasma density.     

Personal orientations towards Australian national identity among British-born residents

An area of long-standing interest in sociological studies of nationality and ethnicity has been the implications of widespread cross-border movements of peoples for cultural identity. One important stream of research has been concerned with peoples who have moved to a new country that is culturally different from their “homeland”. Yet, far less attention has typically been given to those who shift to a country that is culturally alike. The study examines how peoples who have relocated from Great Britain to Australia feel about various ideas at the heart of contemporary debates about Australian national identity. Drawing on data from a 2001 survey of Australian national identity, analysis indicated that (i) British-born residents differ from the Australian-born in how their attitudes to key ideas about Australian national identity are “packaged” together, and (ii) among the British-born, views about Australian national identity vary across subgroups with different configurations of national pride.     

Male social status and its predictors among Garisakang forager-horticulturalists of lowland Papua New Guinea

Social hierarchy exists in all human societies, yet the characteristics important for achieving high social status may differ cross-culturally. Studies among Western industrialized populations often use indices of socioeconomic status (SES) to determine individual social position. Conversely, studies among small-scale societies typically use locally relevant traits. Cross-cultural applicability and the relationships between these two strategies have rarely been investigated. Studies limited to industrialized societies demonstrate that low social status is associated with poor health and elevated levels of chronic stress. It remains unclear, however, if and to what extent this relationship is a recent phenomenon in industrialized Western society or a universal human characteristic that has likely been present throughout much of our recent evolutionary history. In this study, we investigate relationships between various SES and locally relevant measures of male social status, age, body-mass index (BMI), and levels of waking salivary cortisol among relatively egalitarian Garisakang forager-horticulturalists of lowland Papua New Guinea. We employ a photo-ranking method using 32 raters (16 women, 16 men) to evaluate 15 measures of social hierarchy in men (N = 32). These measures target locally relevant traits considered important for male social status (e.g., sociability, hunting skills, fighting ability, and community influence). Using principal component analysis (PCA), we extracted two components labeled as Dominance-Respect and Prosociality-Skills. Models investigating predictors of social status demonstrate that age was significantly and positively related to both Dominance-Respect and Prosociality-Skills while BMI was positively related to only Dominance-Respect. Neither Dominance-Respect nor Prosociality-Skills predicted salivary cortisol levels. However, the SES measure of Income was significantly and positively related to cortisol levels, suggesting that men with higher income experience higher levels of stress. This finding may be explained by increased psychological stress accompanying market integration among the Garisakang or, alternatively, by culturally specific expectations for resource sharing and fear of conflict. These findings emphasize the usefulness of diverse social status measures in anthropological research and stress the need for broadened perspectives regarding the causes and consequences of social status among small-scale populations.     

B-Chromosomen bei der GattungLeucanthemum (Asteraceae) in der Tschechoslowakei

The taxonomic arrangement and the karyological analysis of 166 populations ofLeucanthemum demonstrates the existence of 5 taxa for Czechoslovakia; they are grouped provisionally intoL. rotundifolium (W. K.) DC. (2n = 18) and the polyploid complexL. vulgare Lam. with “subsp.vulgare” (2n = 18), “subsp.alpicola” (2n = 18), “subsp.ircutianum” (2n = ± 36) and “subsp.pannonicum” (2n = ± 54). B-chromosomes have not been traced in diploids but have turned up in great numbers in tetraploid (21%) and hexaploid populations (20%). Their presence is not apparent from external characters. Diploids and polyploids evidently are selfsterile.