The Prevalence and Influence Factors of Inter-Ankle Systolic Blood Pressure Difference in Community Population

Aim

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of interankle systolic blood pressure difference (sIAND) and its influencing factors in community population.

Methods

This study included 2849 (65.1±9.4 y) subjects. Blood pressure (BPs) of four limbs was simultaneously measured with 4 electronic sphygmomanometers after 10 min rest in supine position. The difference of systolic BP (SBP) between two ankles was calculated as DETASBP. The criterion for abnormal sIAND was ≥10 mmHg of absolute DeltaSBP, in which the criterion for 1o sIAND was 10–19 mmHg and for 2o sIAND was ≥20 mmHg. Age, gender, smoking, hypertension, family histories of hypertension and diabetes were recorded. Fasting blood glucose and lipids, circumference of hip and waist, and body mass index (BMI) were measured.

Results

The SBP was higher in the right ankle than in the left ankle (158.9±21.8 vs 157.3±21.6 mmHg, P<0.05) and mean DeltaSBP was 6.08±6.26 mmHg. Similar difference was found in both genders. The prevalence of abnormal was 18.5%, in which, the prevalence 1o sIAND was 15.3% and that of 2o sIAND was 3.1%. Multivariate regression analysis showed that age, waist circumference and blood glucose level were the positive factors for DeltaSBP. The normal upper limit for DeltaSBP was 16.7 mmHg in this population, the prevalence of sIAND by≥16 mmHg was 5.8%.

Conclusion

Aging, hypertension, obesity and abnormal glucose metabolism are positive factors for inter-ankle SBP difference.     

Cellulosomics, a gene-centric approach to investigating the intraspecific diversity and adaptation of Ruminococcus flavefaciens within the rumen

Background

The bovine rumen maintains a diverse microbial community that serves to break down indigestible plant substrates. However, those bacteria specifically adapted to degrade cellulose, the major structural component of plant biomass, represent a fraction of the rumen microbiome. Previously, we proposed scaC as a candidate for phylotyping Ruminococcus flavefaciens, one of three major cellulolytic bacterial species isolated from the rumen. In the present report we examine the dynamics and diversity of scaC-types both within and between cattle temporally, following a dietary switch from corn-silage to grass-legume hay. These results were placed in the context of the overall bacterial population dynamics measured using the 16S rRNA.

Principal Findings

As many as 117 scaC-types were estimated, although just nineteen were detected in each of three rumens tested, and these collectively accounted for the majority of all types present. Variation in scaC populations was observed between cattle, between planktonic and fiber-associated fractions and temporally over the six-week survey, and appeared related to scaC phylogeny. However, by the sixth week no significant separation of scaC populations was seen between animals, suggesting enrichment of a constrained set of scaC-types. Comparing the amino-acid translation of each scaC-type revealed sequence variation within part of the predicted dockerin module but strong conservation in the N-terminus, where the cohesin module is located.

Conclusions

The R. flavefaciens species comprises a multiplicity of scaC-types in-vivo. Enrichment of particular scaC-types temporally, following a dietary switch, and between fractions along with the phylogenetic congruence suggests that functional differences exist between types. Observed differences in dockerin modules suggest at least part of the functional heterogeneity may be conferred by scaC. The polymorphic nature of scaC enables the relative distribution of R. flavefaciens strains to be examined and represents a gene-centric approach to investigating the intraspecific adaptation of an important specialist population.     

Relationships between Training Load,Salivary Cortisol Responses and Performance during Season Training in Middle and Long Distance Runners

Purpose

Monitoring training from a multifactorial point of view is of great importance in elite endurance athletes. This study aims to analyze the relationships between indicators of training load, hormonal status and neuromuscular performance, and to compare these values with competition performance, in elite middle and long-distance runners.

Method

Fifteen elite middle and long-distance runners (12 men, 3 women; age = 26.3±5.1 yrs) were measured for training volume, training zone and session rate of perceived exertion (RPE) (daily), countermovement jump (CMJ) and salivary free cortisol (weekly) for 39 weeks (i.e., the whole season). Competition performance was also observed throughout the study, registering the season best and worst competitions.

Results

Season average salivary free cortisol concentrations correlate significantly with CMJ (r = −0.777) and RPE (r = 0.551). Also, weekly averages of CMJ significantly correlates with RPE (r = −0.426), distance run (r = −0.593, p<0.001) and training zone (r = 0.437, p<0.05). Finally, it was found that the CMJ (+8.5%, g = 0.65) and the RPE (−17.6%, g = 0.94) measured the week before the best competition performance of the season were significantly different compared with the measurement conducted the week before the season’s worst competition performance.

Conclusions

Monitoring weekly measurements of CMJ and RPE could be recommended to control training process of such athletes in a non-invasive, field-based, systematic way.     

Plastome phylogeny and lineage diversification of Salicaceae with focus on poplars and willows

Phylogenetic relationships and lineage diversification of the family Salicaceae sensu lato (s.l.) remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined phylogenetic relationships between 42 species from six genera based on the complete plastomes. Phylogenetic analyses of 77 protein coding genes of the plastomes produced good resolution of the interrelationships among most sampled species and the recovered clades. Of the sampled genera from the family, Flacourtia was identified as the most basal and the successive clades comprised both Itoa and Poliothyrsis, Idesia, two genera of the Salicaceae sensu stricto (s.s.) (Populus and Salix). Five major subclades were recovered within the Populus clade. These subclades and their interrelationships are largely inconsistent with morphological classifications and molecular phylogeny based on nuclear internal transcribed spacer sequence variations. Two major subclades were identified for the Salix clade. Molecular dating suggested that species diversification of the major subclades in the Populus and Salix clades occurred mainly within the recent Pliocene. In addition, we found that the rpl32 gene was lost and the rps7 gene evolved into a pseudogene multiple times in the sampled genera of the Salicaceae s.l. Compared with previous studies, our results provide a well‐resolved phylogeny from the perspective of the plastomes.     

A Meta-Analysis of the Association between ESR1 Genetic Variants and the Risk of Breast Cancer

BackgroundSingle nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the estrogen receptor gene (ESR1) play critical roles in breast cancer (BC) susceptibility. Genome-wide association studies have reported that SNPs in ESR1 are associated with BC susceptibility; however, the results of recent studies have been inconsistent. Therefore, we performed this meta-analysis to obtain more accurate and credible results.MethodsWe pooled published literature from PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science and calculated odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to assess the strength of associations using fixed effects models and random effects models. Twenty relevant case-control and cohort studies of the 3 related SNPs were identified.ResultsThree SNPs of the ESR1 gene, rs2077647:T>C, rs2228480:G>A and rs3798577:T>C, were not associated with increased BC risk in our overall meta-analysis. Stratified analysis by ethnicity showed that in Caucasians, the rs2228480 AA genotype was associated with a 26% decreased risk of BC compared with the GG genotype (OR = 0.740, 95% CI: 0.555–0.987). The C allele of the rs3798577:T>C variant was associated with decreased BC risk in Asians (OR = 0.828, 95% CI: 0.730–0.939), while Caucasians with this allele were found to experience significantly increased BC risk (OR = 1.551, 95% CI: 1.037–2.321). A non-significant association between rs2077647 and BC risk was identified in all of the evaluated ethnic populations.ConclusionRs3798577 was associated with an increased risk of BC in Caucasian populations but a decreased risk in Asians. Rs2228480 had a large protective effect in Caucasians, while rs2077647 was not associated with BC risk.