American Background Research Articles

Abstract 5070: LIN28A-mediated repression of Let-7a is involved in resistin-induced STAT3 upregulation in breast cancer cells and supports growth and stemness properties

Abstract Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed malignancy and continues to be the second leading cause of cancer-related death in women in the United States. Dysregulation of Let-7 family microRNAs is observed in BC and associated with disease pathogenesis. Previously, we reported a significant increase in serum levels of resistin in BC patients as compared to the healthy individuals. Moreover, this increase was significantly greater in BC patients of African American background as compared to those of European descent. We also demonstrated that treatment of BC cells with resistin promoted their growth, aggressiveness, stemness and chemoresistance by inducing the expression and activation of STAT3. Here we present data to show that resistin induces STAT3 expression in BC cells in a LIN28A and Let-7a-dependent manner. Treatment of BC cells with resistin led to the most significant decrease in the expression of Let-7a among other Let-7 family members. Furthermore, resistin treatment also induced the expression of LIN28A at both transcript and protein levels and its silencing abrogated resistin-mediated Let-7a suppression. Let-7a restoration or LIN28A silencing abolished the resistin-induced growth, clonogenicity and sphere-forming ability of BC cells. Restoration of Let-7a suppressed the expression of several genes associated with growth, survival and stemness. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis suggested STAT3 as a putative central node associated with Let-7a-mediated gene regulation. Immunoblot analysis confirmed that Let-7a restoration dramatically suppressed basal as well as resistin-induced STAT3 expression. STAT3 regulation by Let-7a was further confirmed 3'UTR-reporter assay. Taken together, our findings demonstrate a novel resistin/LIN28A/Let-7a/STAT3 signaling axis regulating the growth and stemness phenotypes of BC cells. Citation Format: Sachin Kumar Deshmukh, Sanjeev K. Srivastava, Haseeb Zubair, Ajay P. Singh, Seema Singh. LIN28A-mediated repression of Let-7a is involved in resistin-induced STAT3 upregulation in breast cancer cells and supports growth and stemness properties [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 5070.

Underrepresented in Surgery: (Lack of) Diversity in Academic Surgery Faculty

BackgroundA call to increase diversity among academic surgery faculty (ASF) was made in 2008, after recognizing the lack of surgeons considered underrepresented in medicine (URM). We aimed to quantify and assess trends among URM ASF in the interval since that call to action. MethodsPublicly available data on ASF were reviewed. We calculated the percentage of ASF in 2018 by URM group, then stratified by academic rank of assistant professor, associate professor, and full professor. We compared 2005-2018 ASF of Hispanic or Latino (HL) and African American (AA) background; 2005 data were unavailable for other URM groups. ResultsIn 2018, URM surgeons accounted for 7.06% (n = 1013/14,340) of ASF (AA: n = 492, 3.43%; HL: n = 485, 3.38%; American Indian or Alaskan Native: n = 23, 0.16%; and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: n = 13, 0.09%). When comparing 2005-2018, AA ASF remained stable across ranks (total: n = 298, 3.12% versus n = 492, 3.43%; P = 0.09), whereas HL ASF decreased across ranks (total: n = 415, 4.35% versus n = 485, 3.38%; P = 0.00007). ConclusionsSurgeons from URM backgrounds account for 7% of ASF. No increase in AA and a decrease in HL ASF occurred from 2005 to 2018. There is a paucity of data for other URM groups. Active strategies to increase diversity and inclusion in academic surgery are necessary.

Mothers’ distancing language relates to young children’s math and literacy skills

Parents’ distancing language—language that requires cognitive abstraction and moves beyond the “here and now”—relates to children’s literacy skills, but its association with mathematics remains unexamined. Participants were 242 mother–child dyads from African American, Chinese American, Dominican American, and Mexican American backgrounds. Mothers’ distancing language was examined while mothers shared a wordless book with their 5-year-olds; children’s math and literacy skills were assessed when children were 5.0 and 6.5 years of age. Mothers’ distancing language, but not amount of language (word tokens), related to children’s concurrent math and literacy skills. Mothers’ distancing language predicted growth in children’s literacy skills over time and related to later math indirectly through associations with early math. The importance of distancing language for cognitive growth may have implications for parenting and classroom practice.

Low prevalence red blood cell antigens: transfusions, babies, and changing demographics

See article on page 870–874, in this issue

Examining the Treatment of African American Female Students in Urban Schools

This research project examined whether African American female students are being targeted with unfair treatment, disciplinary actions, and cultural misunderstandings. We explored the social, cultural, and emotional factors associated with being from an African American background and how it impacts their feelings and thoughts about school. The study involved African American female students in grades 9-12 in an urban Early College high school and a Traditional high school. The results indicated that African American female students believed they were treated as older and sexually more mature than Caucasian female students. The suspension and disciplinary rates of the African American female students were abnormally higher than the Caucasian female students in the Traditional High School as compared to students in the Early College.

Abstract MP37: Association of Acculturation With Six-year Change in Systolic Blood Pressure Across Diverse Hispanic/Latino Background Groups, the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos, 2008-2017

Introduction: Among US Hispanics/Latinos, greater acculturation to US society is associated with higher blood pressure. However, the extent to which this relationship varies across diverse Hispanic/Latino groups is unclear. Objectives: To determine whether acculturation is differentially associated with six-year change in systolic blood pressure (SBP) across Hispanic/Latino groups. Methods: The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos is a prospective population-based study of diverse Hispanics/Latinos aged 18-74 years from four US communities. Acculturation at baseline (2008-2011) was defined by the Short Acculturation Scale for Hispanics (SASH) social and language scales (low, medium, or high acculturation) and nativity/duration of US residence (foreign-born with < 10 or ≥ 10 years of US residence, or US born-not including Puerto Rico). The average of three seated SBP measurements was used; difference in SBP from baseline to follow-up (2014-2017) was calculated in 7,836 adults free from hypertension at baseline (SBP < 140 mmHg; diastolic blood pressure < 90 mmHg; and not taking hypertension medication). Using linear regression models accounting for the complex survey design and adjusted for baseline age, sex, education, income, body mass index, years of follow-up, and hypertension medication at follow-up, we estimated the association of each measure of acculturation with change in SBP. Significant interactions between Hispanic/Latino group and measures of acculturation led to stratified models (SASH interaction p=0.01 for social; p=0.28 for language; and nativity/duration of US residence US interaction, p=0.05). Results: Mean baseline age was 36.7 years (SE: 0.23) and 51.7% were women (SE: 0.77). After an average follow-up of 6.2 years (SE: 0.02), mean change in SBP was 2.01 mmHg (SE: 0.20). Among individuals of Central American background, high vs. low SASH language was associated with +3.21 mmHg SBP increase (95% CI: 0.19, 6.24) and being US born vs. foreign-born < 10 years in US was associated with +5.31 mmHg SBP increase (95% CI: 2.10, 8.53). Among individuals of Puerto Rican background, those with ≥ 10 vs. < 10 years in the US 50 states had a 5.67 mmHg lower increase in SBP (95% CI: -9.85, -1.50). Associations between measures of acculturation and changes in SBP were not significant in other groups (i.e. Cubans, Dominicans, and South Americans), but did suggest a greater SBP increase with greater acculturation among Mexican background individuals (e.g. high vs. low SASH social β=1.67, 95% CI: -0.19, 3.52, p=0.08). Conclusions: Greater acculturation was associated with a greater SBP increase among those of Central American background but a lower SBP increase among individuals of Puerto Rican background. These findings show that consideration of Hispanic/Latino group is warranted when assessing potential health effects of acculturation.

Abstract P551: Public Sentiment Toward Immigrants and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Among Hispanics/Latinos in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos

Background: News reports and hate crime data suggest that anti-Hispanic/Latino immigrant sentiment was expressed by some sectors of the U.S. public during the 2016 Presidential campaign and election. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between this period and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors thought to be responsive to acute stress exposure among Hispanic/Latino adults in the US. Methods: Data were from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), a prospective cohort study of Hispanic/Latino adults living in the US. The analytic sample was limited to non-pregnant adults, 35 to 74 years old, who participated in Visit 1 (2008-2011) and Visit 2 (2014-2017). The exposed were defined as participants who completed Visit 2 in 2016 and the unexposed were defined as participants who completed Visit 2 in 2014 or 2015. Cardiovascular disease risk factors included elevated depressive symptoms (CESD-10 score: 10+), current smoking, and at-risk levels of alcohol consumption (women: 7+ drinks/week; men: 14+ drinks/week). Current alcohol use (i.e., any current alcohol use) was also examined as a potential stress-related outcome. Predicted marginal risk ratio models were used to estimate incident Visit 2 outcomes as a function of exposure to the year 2016 among individuals who did not have those outcomes at Visit 1. Models were adjusted for age and insurance status at Visit 1. A priori interactions with nativity status, duration of residence in the US, and Hispanic/Latino background group were examined. Results: No statistically significant association between 2016 exposure and elevated depressive symptoms was observed in the main model, but additive interaction by Hispanic/Latino background group was observed ( p = 0.03) (Mexican and Central American background: RR adjusted : 1.28 (0.94, 1.76); Hispanics/Latinos of other background groups: RR adjusted : 0.85 (0.66, 1.09)). No association between 2016 exposure and incident smoking or incident at-risk alcohol consumption was observed and tests for interaction were not statistically significant. For incident current alcohol use, borderline trends in the main model suggested an association with the exposure (RR adjusted : 1.11 (0.99, 1.26)). Further, statistically significant additive interaction by nativity status was observed (Foreign-born: RR adjusted : 1.20 (1.06, 1.37); US/Puerto Rico-born: RR adjusted : 0.78 (0.55, 1.09)). Conclusions: Trends from study findings suggest an association between exposure to anti-Hispanic/Latino immigrant sentiment in 2016 and current alcohol use among foreign-born Hispanic/Latino adults. Given limitations of using time as a proxy for exposure to anti-Hispanic/Latino immigrant sentiment, future studies should explore more specific measurements of sentiment during this time and explore short and long-term effects of this sentiment.

Ensuring HLA-matched platelet support requires an ethnic diverse donor population.

BACKGROUNDPatients refractory for platelet transfusions benefit from human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐matched platelet transfusions. Differences in ethnic background of patients and donors could hamper the availability of sufficient numbers of HLA‐matched donors for all patients. We evaluated our HLA‐matched donor program and explored the role of ethnic background of patients related to the number of available donors.METHODSWe performed a cohort study among consecutive patients who received HLA‐matched platelet concentrates in the Netherlands between 1994 and 2017. The number of available matched donors was determined per patient. Haplotypes were constructed from genotypes with computer software (PyPop). Based on haplotypes, HaploStats, an algorithm from the National Marrow Donor Program, was used to assess the most likely ethnic background for patients with 5 or fewer and 30 or more donors.RESULTSHLA typing was available for 19,478 donors in September 2017. A total of 1206 patients received 12,350 HLA‐matched transfusions. A median of 83 (interquartile range, 18‐266) donors were available per patient. For 95 (10.3%) patients, 5 or fewer donors were available. These patients were more likely to have an African American background, whereas patients with 30 or more donors were more often from Caucasian origin, compared with Caucasian origin for patients with 30 donors.CONCLUSIONAdequate transfusion support could be guaranteed for most but not all refractory patients. More non‐Caucasian donors are required to ensure the availability of HLA‐matched donors for all patients in the Netherlands.

Red, Black, White: The Alabama Communist Party, 1930–1950 by Mary Stanton

Reviewed by: Red, Black, White: The Alabama Communist Party, 1930–1950 by Mary Stanton Meredith L. Roman Red, Black, White: The Alabama Communist Party, 1930–1950. By Mary Stanton. (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2019. Pp. xiv, 215. Paper, $29.95, ISBN 978-0-8203-5617-4; cloth, $99.95, ISBN 978-0-8203-5616-7.) Mary Stanton has conducted ten years of research to chronicle the twenty-year history of District 17 of the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), which was based in Birmingham, Alabama, and tasked with organizing steel workers, miners, and sharecroppers across racial lines in Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia. Much of Stanton's detailed history focuses on the early 1930s—years that are the focus of sixteen of the study's nineteen chapters—when the Communist Party was consumed with championing workers' rights as well as seeking justice for the victims of massacres, lynching, judicial violence, and other forms of racial terrorism. This CPUSA activism was exemplified in the Scottsboro Boys' case of 1931. Stanton was inspired to write this collective biography of District 17's organizers because of the research she first conducted to mark Scottsboro's eightieth anniversary, which led her to the pages of the CPUSA newspaper the Southern Worker. The impassioned commitment to social justice of the Southern Worker's contributors (many of whom were from New York City) reminded Stanton of her Brooklyn high school newspaper colleagues of African American, Jewish, and Latinx backgrounds, who encouraged her to abandon her self-described "proto-conservative" positions to advocate the causes of the progressive Left (p. 3). Although the monograph's endnotes are minimal, Stanton has consulted an array of primary sources that include newspaper articles, oral history interviews, memoirs, and the archival papers of some of her protagonists, such as James S. Allen, Harry Haywood, and Angelo Herndon. [End Page 746] In this narrative history, Stanton rejects the traditional Cold War historiographical interpretation that casts the CPUSA as a puppet of Moscow. Instead, she draws on the critically important work of historians like Robin D. G. Kelley, Mark Solomon, and Michael Kazin to demonstrate that the party operated as a dynamic organization throughout much of the 1930s, since members creatively adapted the party's internationalist demands to the local prerogatives, interests, and needs of the people whom they served. Indeed, Stanton's work reminds readers that many black southerners expressed indifference toward the Comintern's policy of national self-determination for African Americans in the black belt, which included the right to secede from the United States. Black people found appealing, however, southern communist organizers' dedication to the everyday struggle against racial violence, unemployment, hunger, evictions, and exorbitant utility bills, even as they faced fierce resistance from law enforcement officials, Ku Klux Klan members, local politicians, and industrialists who condemned the communists as a major threat to the southern way of life. To be sure, antiblack racism, anti-Semitism, and anticommunism converged in this story and fueled the various security measures that the white southern establishment employed to thwart real change. Stanton, like many of the aforementioned historians on whose work she draws, insists that black southerners were not mere pawns of the Communist Party but rather that they exploited the organization to advance their own interests. She concludes that, even though the CPUSA was of course not without its many faults, it occupies an important yet underappreciated place in U.S. history, not only because of its on-the-ground efforts to ameliorate the hardships of those who bore the brunt of the Great Depression, but also because of its challenges to mainstream organizations to pay greater attention to workers' rights, social justice, and racial equality. Stanton takes this argument further to contend that organizations like the Congress of Racial Equality and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee that emerged during and after World War II bear the indelible mark of the CPUSA's political, economic, and social activist legacy. Meredith L. Roman The College at Brockport, SUNY Copyright © 2020 The Southern Historical Association

Operationalisation of gender and migration in epidemiological research – a systematic review

Abstract Background Gender as a social construct contributes to determine who migrates and which migration-related risks and opportunities emerge in all phases of the migration trajectory. Simultaneously, migration influences the individual as well as societal definition and perception of gender roles. An explicit gender perspective beyond biological sex in migration-related epidemiological research would contribute to adequately analyse, assess and interpret the health situation of migrants. Methods The systematic review synthesises how gender is conceptualised, operationalised and used for interpretation in migration-related epidemiological research. We search PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, the Cochrane Library, EconLit and PsycINFO as well as the reference lists of the included studies. Eligible studies actively aim to understand, identify or explain the influence of gender on health. Results 20 cross-sectional studies met the eligibility criteria. The majority of studies analysed gender effects on mental health (e.g. depression) and sexual health (e.g. risk behaviour). The majority of the study population is made up of male sexual minorities with Latin American background living in the USA. Gender is mainly operationalised through gender roles, attitudes and gender-based discrimination. These dimensions are mostly conceptualised at the individual level, only a minority of studies applies meso- or macro-level indicators to measure structural gender effects. Discussion We identified research gaps with regard to macro-level mechanisms of gender, immigrant populations in Europe and interactions of migration and gender in epidemiological research. The majority is restricted to sex- or sexual orientation related issues, but this systematic review helps to identify good practice examples that may contribute to the development of a guideline on how to integrate a gender perspective in migration-related epidemiological research. Systematic Review Registration: PROSPERO CRD42019124698

Sleep and neurocognitive decline in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos

IntroductionTo determine if sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), daytime sleepiness, insomnia, and sleep duration predict seven-year neurocognitive decline in US Hispanics/Latinos (N = 5247). MethodsThe exposures were baseline SDB, daytime sleepiness, insomnia, and sleep duration. The outcomes were change in episodic learning and memory (B-SEVLT-Sum and SEVLT-Recall), language (word fluency [WF]), processing speed (Digit Symbol Substitution), and a cognitive impairment screener (Six-item Screener [SIS]). ResultsMean age was 63 ± 8 years, with 55% of the population being female with 7.0% Central American, 24.5% Cuban, 9.3% Dominican, 35.9% Mexican, 14.4% Puerto Rican, and 5.1% South American background. Long sleep (>9 hours), but not short sleep (<6 hours), was associated with decline (standard deviation units) in episodic learning and memory (βSEVLT-Sum = −0.22 [se = 0.06]; P < .001; βSEVLT-Recall = −0.13 [se = 0.06]; P < .05), WF (βWF = −0.20 [se = 0.06]; P < .01), and SIS (βSIS = −0.16 [se = 0.06]; P < .01), but not processing speed, after adjusting for covariates. SDB, sleepiness, and insomnia were not associated with neurocognitive decline. ConclusionLong sleep duration predicted seven-year cognitive decline.

Comparison of mammographic breast density of women from China with women from Australia using percentage density: a comparative study

BackgroundMammographic breast density (MBD) has been reported to be one of the strongest risk factors of breast cancer in western countries. However, the MBD profile in China is unclear. We aimed to compare the MBD of women in China with the MBD of women in Australia using percentage density. MethodsThis study included 3250 Chinese women (Han origin only) aged 45–69 years who participated in the Cancer Screening Program in Urban China (CSPUC) and 1384 age-matched Australian women (including women with background of Australian, New Zealander, British, Irish, European, and American) from the Lifepool project. Mammograms for each woman were collected and data on women's age, height, weight, level of education, age at menarche, breastfeeding history, breastfeeding duration, menopause status, and age at menopause were obtained. We assessed MBD using an automatic algorithm AutoDensity that produces MBD percentage values. We used a Student's t-test to compare the mean MBDs between Chinese and Australian women, for all women, pre-menopausal women, and post-menopausal women groups. Two-way ANOVA was performed to examine if there was an interaction between country and each of the above factors on MBD. This study was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Sydney (Project number: 2014/768) and Institutional Review Board of Cancer Institute and Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (Project number 15-062/989), and consent form was obtained from each participant through CSPUC and Lifepool programmes. FindingsChinese women had 9·61% (95% CI 8·84–10·37), 8·20% (6·60–9·79) and 9·28% (8·42–10·15) higher MBD than did their Australian counterparts in all, pre-menopausal, and post-menopausal women, respectively (all p<0·0001). The MBD in Chinese women was higher than that in Australian women in each age group (45–49 years, p<0·0001; 50–54 years, p<0·0001; 55–59 years, p<0·0001; 60–64 years, p<0·0001; 65–69 years, p=0·0003) and each body-mass index (BMI) category (<18·50 kg/m2, p=0·0208; 18·50–24·99 kg/m2, p<0·0001; ≥25·00 kg/m2, p<0·0001). There were significant interactions between country (China or Australia) and age groups (F(4,4624)=4·12, p=0·0025), BMI classifications (F(2,4628)=3·92, p=0·0198), breastfeeding history (F(1,4479)=17·79, p<0·0001), and duration of breastfeeding (F(1,3526)=66·90, p<0·0001). Interaction was not found for education (F(2,4628)=0·14, p=0·8666), age at menarche (F(1,4630)=0·72, p=0·3979), menopause status (F(1,4605)=1·45, p=0·2293), and age at menopause (F(1,3172)=3·04, p=0·0812). InterpretationThis study compared MBD between Chinese and Australian women and significant differences were found between the two populations. Our reported discrepancies around percentage density between two populations and the different effects on MBD from demographic and reproductive factors provide a better understanding of the optimal breast cancer screening approaches in China and challenge the one-size-fit-all strategy. FundingNone.

Foreigner objectification, English proficiency, and adjustment among youth and mothers from Latinx American backgrounds.

Understanding the experience of foreigner objectification is relevant given the possibility of ethnocentrism, xenophobia, and mistrust of immigrants in the United States. The present study examines main and interactive effects of objectification and English proficiency on developmental outcomes among immigrant mothers and children. Our study includes 173 youth from Latinx backgrounds (52% female, Mage = 12.86 years, SD = .68; 87% United States-born) and their mothers (Mage = 38.26 SD = 5.65; all foreign-born) from emerging immigrant contexts. Bivariate and regression analyses suggest that lower English proficiency was associated with more objectification for youth; whereas higher English proficiency was associated with more objectification for mothers. For youth only, English proficiency was positively correlated with American identity. For both parents and youth, foreigner objectification was linked with negative psychological outcomes (e.g., mothers' depressive symptoms, youths' low self-esteem). Being subjected to assumptions that challenge individuals' social status can be psychologically harmful. Nuanced developmental variation, and implications regarding the dual role of objectification and English proficiency are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Demographic and Pharmaceutical Predictors of Unfavorable Prostate Cancer

Both prospective and retrospective series have explored risk factors for developing aggressive prostate cancer. Predictors of higher grade disease include 5-alpha reductase inhibitor use, older age, and African American background. There is a paucity of literature that has applied similar risk factors to the current model of unfavorable intermediate and high risk disease. This study reports demographic and pharmacologic predictors of being treated for unfavorable intermediate and high risk prostate cancer at a busy academic center. A total of 3445 patients were treated for prostate cancer where baseline demographics, pharmacologic history, and clinicopathologic features were available. The mean age was 67.8 years (41, 93) with a mean PSA of 9.23ng/ml (0.3, 205). 34.2%, 31.7%, 19.1%, and 15.0% of patients were diagnosed with Gleason 6 (3+3), Gleason 7 (3+4), Gleason 7 (4+3), and Gleason 8-10 prostate cancer. The Zumsteg Classification System was applied to categorize patients into low (28.6%), favorable intermediate (22.6%), unfavorable intermediate (30.8%), and high risk (18.0%) disease groups. Unfavorable Prostate Cancer (UPC) was defined as being diagnosed with unfavorable intermediate or high risk disease (48.8%). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was used to determine those factors that portended for UPC. 64.5% of patients taking 5-alpha reductase medication were diagnosed with UPC, compared to 53.6% of those who did not take this class of medication (p<.0001). This finding was also seen in men who took metformin compared to those who did not (62.4% vs. 53.4%, p<.0001). Men older than age 65 had a higher risk of presenting with UPC compared to younger men (47.8% vs. 34.6%, p<.0001), as did those with a first degree relative who had been diagnosed with prostate cancer (52% vs. 48.1%, p<.0001). Asian men had a higher risk of aggressive disease than men who self-identified as white or African American (72.4% vs. 51.2% and 52.3%, respectively, p<.0001). Men with a comorbidity of HIV were also more likely to exhibit UPC (68.8% vs. 54.4%, p<.0001). On multivariate analysis, older age (OR 2.021, CI 1.735-2.354, p<.0001), the use of 5-alpha reductase inhibitors (OR 2.508, CI 1.228-5.122, p=.012) or metformin (OR 1.334, CI 1.033-1.722, p=.037), and Asian American background (OR 2.481, CI 1.001-6.146, p=.05) predicted for being treated for UPC. In a large hospital series, nearly half of those treated for prostate cancer were diagnosed with UPC. Consistent with previous phase 3 data correlated with higher grade disease, 5-alpha reductase inhibitor use was associated with UPC in this cohort. In keeping with retrospective published series, older men had a higher risk of being treated with more aggressive disease. While prostate cancer is less common in Asian Americans and metformin’s role in prostate cancer therapeutics remains investigational, diagnosis with either classification was associated with UPC in this series.

At risk alcohol consumption with smoking by national background: Results from the Hispanic community health study/study of Latinos

IntroductionTobacco smoking and binge or excess drinking are unhealthy behaviors that frequently co-occur. Studies of Hispanics/Latinos have mostly been of Mexican Americans although there are substantial differences in smoking and drinking by heritage background. Associated with co-use by 5 subpopulations. MethodsCross-sectional data of 16,412 Hispanics/Latinos from Miami, the Bronx, Chicago and San Diego collected between 2008 and 2011 as part of the HCHS/SOL were analyzed. Smoking and alcohol consumption and demographic data were measured by self-report. Prevalence of smoking and alcohol consumption and co-use were reported. Logistic regression models examined the odds of co-use of smoking and binge or excess alcohol use by Hispanic/Latino background group. ResultsMen of Cuban (10.3%), Puerto Rican (8.9%), and Mexican (8.9%) background had the highest prevalence of co-use of smoking and binge drinking compared to men of Central American (6.1%) and Dominican (6.6%) background. Women of Dominican (16.4%) and Puerto Rican (19.7%) background had the highest prevalence of binge drinking compared to women of Central American (10%) and Cuban (8%) background and Puerto Rican (34.1%) and Cuban (21.8%) women were the most likely to report current smoking compared to women of Central American (8.3%) and Mexican (10.4%) background. Acculturation was not associated with co-use among men and women. Elevated depressive symptoms were positively associated with smoking and binge drinking among men, OR = 1.5 [1.2–2.0], and women, OR = 1.5 [1.1–2.2]. Puerto Rican women had increased odds of co-use of smoking and binge or excess drinking compared to Mexican American women, OR = 3.2 [1.5–6.6]. ConclusionsPuerto Rican and Dominican Latinas and Central American and South American men have a higher prevalence of co-use.

Genetic comparison of sickle cell anaemia cohorts from Brazil and\xa0the United States reveals high levels of divergence

Genetic analysis of admixed populations raises special concerns with regard to study design and data processing, particularly to avoid population stratification biases. The point mutation responsible for sickle cell anaemia codes for a variant hemoglobin, sickle hemoglobin or HbS, whose presence drives the pathophysiology of disease. Here we propose to explore ancestry and population structure in a genome-wide study with particular emphasis on chromosome 11 in two SCA admixed cohorts obtained from urban populations of Brazil (Pernambuco and São Paulo) and the United States (Pennsylvania). Ancestry inference showed different proportions of European, African and American backgrounds in the composition of our samples. Brazilians were more admixed, had a lower African background (43% vs. 78% on the genomic level and 44% vs. 76% on chromosome 11) and presented a signature of positive selection and Iberian introgression in the HbS region, driving a high differentiation of this locus between the two cohorts. The genetic structures of the SCA cohorts from Brazil and US differ considerably on the genome-wide, chromosome 11 and HbS mutation locus levels.

Gut microbiota composition explains more variance in the host cardiometabolic risk than genetic ancestry

ABSTRACTCardiometabolic affections greatly contribute to the global burden of disease. The susceptibility to obesity, cardiovascular disease, and type-2 diabetes, conditions that add to the cardiometabolic syndrome (CMS), was associated with the ancestral genetic composition and gut microbiota. Studies explicitly testing associations between genetic ancestry and gut microbes are growing. We here examined whether the host genetic ancestry was associated with gut microbiota composition, and distinguished the effects of genetic ancestry and non-genetic factors on human cardiometabolic health. We performed a cross-sectional study with 441 community-dwelling Colombian mestizos from five cities spanning the Andes, Pacific, and Caribbean coasts. We characterized the host genetic ancestry by genotyping 40 ancestry informative markers; characterized gut microbiota through 16S rRNA gene sequencing; assessed diet intake, physical activity, cigarette, and medicament consumption; and measured cardiometabolic outcomes that allowed calculating a CMS risk scale. On average, each individual of our cohort was 67 ± 6% European, 21 ± 5% Native American and 12 ± 5% African. Multivariable-adjusted generalized linear models showed that individuals with higher Native American and African ancestries had increased fasting insulin, body mass index and CMS risk, as assessed by the CMS risk scale. Furthermore, we identified 21 OTUs associated to the host genetic ancestry and 20 to cardiometabolic health. While we highlight novel associations between genetic ancestry and gut microbiota, we found that the effect of intestinal microbes was more likely to explain the variance in CMS risk scale than the contributions of European, Native American and African genetic backgrounds.

Children's Block-Building Skills and Mother-Child Block-Building Interactions Across Four U.S. Ethnic Groups.

Play offers an unparalleled opportunity for young children to gain cognitive skills in informal settings. Block play in particular—including interactions with parents around block constructions—teaches children about intrinsic spatial features of objects (size, shape) and extrinsic spatial relations. In turn, early spatial cognition paves the way for later competencies in math and science. We assessed 4- and 5-year-old children’s spatial skill on a set of block-building constructions and examined mother-child block building interactions in 167 U.S. dyads from African American, Dominican, Mexican, and Chinese backgrounds. At both ages, children were instructed to copy several 3D block constructions, followed by a “break” during which mothers and children were left alone with the blocks. A form that contained pictures of test items was left on the table. Video-recordings of mother-child interactions during the break were coded for two types of building behaviors – test-specific construction (building structures on the test form) or free-form construction (building structures not on the test form). Chinese children outperformed Mexican, African American, and Dominican children on the block-building assessment. Further, Chinese and Mexican mother-child dyads spent more time building test-specific constructions than did African American and Dominican dyads. At an individual level, mothers’ time spent building test-specific constructions at the 4-year (but not 5-year) assessment, but not mothers’ initiation of block building interactions or verbal instructions, related to children’s performance, when controlling for ethnicity. Ethnic differences in children’s block-building performance and experiences emerge prior to formal schooling and provide a valuable window into sources of individual differences in early spatial cognition.

Public Face and Private Life: Identity through Ceramics at the Boston-Higginbotham House on Nantucket

ABSTRACTAs an African American-Native American family living on Nantucket in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the household of Seneca Boston and Thankful Micah faced many challenges of race, class, and gender. A minimal number of vessels analysis of their ceramic assemblage illustrates how the Boston-Micah family adopted both a public and private persona in order to successfully navigate their diverse identities in a predominantly White society. The presence of European manufactured ceramics, two inkbottles, and a tin-glazed punch bowl hint at the family’s literacy and awareness of Euro-American genteel practices. However, several sherds of earthenware ceramics combining European production techniques with Native decorative traditions reinforce the family’s Native American background. The presence of these ceramic vessels suggests the existence of both a private and public identity that today can only be recognized in the Boston-Micah family’s consumption practices.

Cardiovascular disease risk factor burden and cognition: Implications of ethnic diversity within the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos.

ObjectiveHispanics/Latinos have some of the highest prevalence rates for cardiovascular disease risk factors, but stark differences exist by self-reported background. Cardiovascular disease risk factors negatively impact cognition in Hispanics/Latinos; less is known about these relationships by Hispanic/Latino backgrounds. We investigated cognitive associations with cardiovascular disease risk factor burden in a diverse cohort, the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos.MethodsBaseline data from this observational study of cardiovascular disease and its antecedents was collected from 2008–2011. We included 7,121 participants 45–74 years old from Central American, Cuban, Dominican, Mexican, Puerto Rican, or South American backgrounds. Dichotomous indicators for hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, obesity, and smoking were evaluated and totaled, with participants grouped by lowest (0–2), middle (3) or highest (4–5) burden. Cognitive testing included the Brief Spanish English Verbal Learning Test, letter fluency, and digit symbol substitution.ResultsIn separate fully-adjusted linear regression models, lower fluency and digit symbol substitution performance were restricted to the highest compared to the lowest burden group; whereas the middle burden group displayed impaired memory performance compared to the lowest burden group (p-values≤0.05). Background interacted with burden for learning and memory performance. That is, the association of burden level (i.e., lowest, middle, or highest) with cognitive performance was modified by background (e.g., Mexicans vs Cuban).ConclusionsHispanics/Latinos with higher levels of cardiovascular disease risk factor burden displayed lower levels of cognitive performance, with learning and memory performance modified by background.