Casual Associations Research Articles

ST2 and CSF-1 as potential druggable targets of inflammatory bowel diseases: Results from two-sample Mendelian randomization study.

Novel druggable targets are warranted for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treatment. We aimed to identify novel circulating proteins with causal associations with the risk of IBDs and provide potential therapeutic targets for IBD treatment. We performed a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) study to explore the associations of 55 circulating biomarkers on the risk of IBD, Crohn's disease (CD), and ulcerative colitis (UC) by leveraging the summary statistics from large genomewide association studies and protein quantitative trait loci studies. The individual estimate was pooled together by meta-analyses to estimate the causal effects of each outcome. In univariable MR, we identified several circulating proteins showed potential correlation with IBD, UC, and CD. Of note, we observed that a genetically proxied increased level of suppression of tumorigenicity 2 (ST2) was associated with an elevated risk of IBD (odds ratios [ORs] 1.133, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.091-1.176, p < 0.0001), CD (ORs 1.188, 95% CI 1.103-1.281, p < 0.0001), and UC cohorts (ORs 1.087, 95% CI 1.050-1.125, p < 0.0001). Additionally, we observed a consistent positive correlation between the level of CSF-1 and the increased risk of IBD in individual MR, with statistically significant causal associations in the meta-analyses with ORs equal to 1.217 (IBD, 95% CI 1.115-1.328, p < 0.0001), 1.223 (CD, 95% CI 1.082-1.382, p=0.0013), and 1.179 (UC, 95% CI 1.055-1.317, p=0.0037). This study provided evidence for potential casual associations between circulating ST2 and CSF-1 levels, and increased risks of IBD, UC, and CD, implicating potential treatment targets for IBD and subtypes.

Impact of lifetime concentration of mannose on renal function: insights from Mendelian randomization

Abstract Background Mannose is a sugar monomer of the aldohexose series of carbohydrates, important in human metabolism, especially in the glycosylation of certain proteins. There is a handful of controversial data from observational studies on the serum levels of mannose and risks of renal disease. Purpose We performed a Mendelian Randomization (MR) analysis to obtain unconfounded estimates of the casual associations between genetically instrumented serum mannose, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and the risk for chronic kidney disease (CKD defined as eGFR &amp;lt;60 ml/min/1.73 m2). Methods MR was implemented by using summary-level data from the largest ever genome-wide association studies (GWAS) conducted on serum mannose and renal function. Inverse variance weighted method (IVW), weighted median (WM)-based method, MR-Egger, MR-Robust Adjusted Profile Score (RAPS), MR-Pleiotropy RESidual Sum and Outlier (PRESSO) were also applied. Sensitivity analysis was conducted using the leave-one-out method. The analyses were performed in the total population, in non-diabetics and in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Results Serum mannose concentrations were not significantly associated with CKD risk (IVW: beta=1.018, p=0.273), but they were negatively related to eGFR in the total population (IVW: beta=−0.137, p=0.003), the non-diabetics (IVW: beta=−0.126, p=0.018) and the T2DM patients (IVW: beta=−0.344, p=0.004). None of the MR-Egger estimates showed heterogeneity, and the MR-PRESSO analysis did not find any possibility of outliers for all of the estimates. The pleiotropy test also indicated a low chance of pleiotropy for all estimations (p&amp;gt;0.242), as did the MR-RAPS analysis. Leave-one-out method demonstrated that the observed associations were not driven by single-nucleotide polymorphisms. Conclusions Our results highlighted that individuals with genetically higher serum mannose levels have a significantly lower eGFR, regardless of the presence or absence of T2DM. However, no association between serum mannose concentrations and the risk of CKD was observed. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

Do green innovation and financial globalization contribute to the ecological sustainability and energy transition in the United Kingdom? Policy insights from a bootstrap rolling window approach

AbstractEnvironmental sustainability and energy transition, especially the renewable energy transition, have become critical concerns of nations throughout the world in recent decades. The sustainable and eco‐friendly technologies have led to more sustainable methodologies, substantial stewardship of our natural resources, and the conversion to renewable energy sources, all of which have been demonstrated to benefit the environment significantly. However, prior studies have overlooked the ecological sustainability and energy transition effects of green technology innovation. Therefore, this study endeavored to investigate the role of green innovation (lnGRN) and financial globalization (lnFIG) on the sustainability of the environment (lnEFT) and energy transition (lnENT) in the United Kingdom using quarterly data for the period from 1995 to 2020. The study applied the time‐varying (bootstrapping) rolling window technique, which can retrieve casual associations among variables at different periods of sub‐samples. Besides this, the method is advantageous for addressing the non‐consistency of parameters and eliminating the pre‐test distortion. The novel Bootstrap Rolling‐Window full‐sample causality technique results demonstrate that lnGRN and lnFIG have unidirectional causality toward lnEFT and lnENT. Furthermore, the bootstrap rolling‐window subsamples in the final stage indicate that lnGRN and lnFIG mitigate lnEFT, whereas lnGRN and lnGDP enhance energy transition. On the other hand, lnGDP and lnETX contribute to environmental deterioration, while lnFIG hinders the energy transition. Several important policy implications are derived from the results to encourage financial globalization, green innovation technologies, renewable energy resources consumption, and environmental taxes.

Exposure to Chloramine and Chloroform in Tap Water and Adverse Perinatal Outcomes in Shanghai.

Chloramine and chloroform are widespread in tap water due to water disinfection processes. This study was designed to explore the associations between trimester-specific exposure to chloramine and chloroform in tap water and adverse outcomes. This retrospective cohort study included 109,182 mother–infant singleton pairs in Shanghai. A logistic regression model was used to evaluate the associations of chloramine and chloroform concentrations averaged over the whole pregnancy and in each trimester with adverse outcomes, including gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), gestational hypertensive disorders (GHD), low birthweight (LBW), small for gestational age (SGA), preterm birth (PTB) and prelabor rupture of membranes (PROM). The use of tap water with elevated chloramine levels in the first trimester was associated with GDM (OR = 1.06, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.09), while that in the second trimester was related to GHD (OR = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.17). Chloroform levels in the third trimester were associated with LBW (OR = 1.13, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.16), PTB (OR = 1.05, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.08) and PROM (OR = 1.01, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.01). However, tap water chloroform exposure in the second trimester was negatively associated with LBW (OR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.93, 0.98) and PTB (OR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.94, 0.99). In conclusion, there are probably no casual associations between current tap water chloroform and chloramine levels and perinatal outcomes. However, more research focusing on the effect of chloramine and chloroform on perinatal outcomes are still warranted.

Casual Associations and Shape Between Prepuberty Body Mass Index and Early Onset of Puberty: A Mendelian Randomization and Dose-Response Relationship Analysis.

BackgroundThere is an ongoing controversial issue regarding whether onset of puberty is related to childhood BMI.ObjectivesThis study aims at investigating the causal association and its shape between prepuberty BMI and early puberty onset.MethodsBreast development and testicular volume were assessed annually from a population-based prospective cohort of 997 children for consecutive years by professional endocrinologists. Seventeen puberty- and BMI-related SNPs were selected to calculate the polygenic risk score. The two-stage least square method was used to assess and confirm causal effects. A dose–response association between prepuberty BMI and early puberty onset was conducted by using restricted cubic spline Cox regression.ResultsAfter adjusting for covariates, prepuberty BMI was positively associated with early thelarche among girls (coefficients = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.29). A non-linear model suggested an inverted U-shaped relationship between prepuberty BMI and risk for early thelarche (χ2 = 276.3, p < 0.001). The risk for early thelarche increased rapidly from prepuberty BMI at 15.70 kg/m2 (P25) to 20.75 kg/m2 (P85) and gradually decreased afterward. Compared with the P25 of prepuberty BMI, the HRs (95% CI) for early thelarche were 5.08 (1.15, 8.55), 4.48 (1.02, 7.74), 10.15 (3.93, 17.50), and 8.43 (1.91, 13.71) for percentiles P25–P50, P50–P75, P75–P85, and ≥P85 of BMI categories, respectively. In boys, compared with the P25 of prepuberty BMI, boys with BMI between P25 and P50 showed an increased risk of early puberty (HR: 3.94, 95% CI: 1.44, 6.80).ConclusionsPrepuberty BMI may serve the purpose of identifying the girls at higher risk of early thelarche, which could assist in the adaptation of prevention and intervention strategies targeting childhood obesity. The findings emphasize a non-linear correlation between prepuberty BMI and early puberty onset.

Genetically predicted selenium is negatively associated with serum TC, LDL-C and positively associated with HbA1C levels

Background & AimsPervious epidemiological evidence on the associations of selenium, zinc with lipid profile and glycemic indices was contradictory. The aim of this study was to investigate whether selenium and zinc were casually associated with lipid profile and glycemic indices using mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. MethodA two-sample MR was used to evaluate the causal-effect estimations. Summary statistics for selenium, zinc, lipids and glycemic indices were retrieved from previous large-scale genome-wide association study (GWAS). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that independently and strongly associated with the selenium and zinc were selected as the instrumental variables. The casual estimates were calculated using inverse variance weighted method (IVW), with weighted median, MR-Egger, and MR-PRESSO test as sensitivity analysis, respectively. ResultsIn the standard IVW analysis, per SD increment in selenium was associated with an 0.077 mmol/L decrease of TC (95 %CI: −0.102,−0.052) and 0.074 mmol/L of LDL-C (95 %CI: −0.1,−0.048). Suggestive casual associations were found between selenium and insulin or HbA1c. With IVW method, per SD increase in selenium was associated with an 0.023 mmol/L increase of insulin (95 %CI: 0.001,0.045), and an 0.013 mmol/L increase of HbA1c (95 %CI: 0.003,0.023). The results were robust in the sensitivity analysis. Zinc was not casually associated with any of lipid and glycemic markers. ConclusionOur MR analysis provides evidence of the potential causal effect of Se on beneficial lipid profile, including decreased TC and LDL-C. Furthermore, suggestive casual evidence was suggested between Se and increased serum HbA1c levels. Careful consideration is required for the protective effects of Se supplementation. No casual-effect association was found between Zn and any indices of the lipid and glucose parameters.

Plant Holobiont Theory: The Phytomicrobiome Plays a Central Role in Evolution and Success.

Under natural conditions, plants are always associated with a well-orchestrated community of microbes—the phytomicrobiome. The nature and degree of microbial effect on the plant host can be positive, neutral, or negative, and depends largely on the environment. The phytomicrobiome is integral for plant growth and function; microbes play a key role in plant nutrient acquisition, biotic and abiotic stress management, physiology regulation through microbe-to-plant signals, and growth regulation via the production of phytohormones. Relationships between the plant and phytomicrobiome members vary in intimacy, ranging from casual associations between roots and the rhizosphere microbial community, to endophytes that live between plant cells, to the endosymbiosis of microbes by the plant cell resulting in mitochondria and chloroplasts. If we consider these key organelles to also be members of the phytomicrobiome, how do we distinguish between the two? If we accept the mitochondria and chloroplasts as both members of the phytomicrobiome and the plant (entrained microbes), the influence of microbes on the evolution of plants becomes so profound that without microbes, the concept of the “plant” is not viable. This paper argues that the holobiont concept should take greater precedence in the plant sciences when referring to a host and its associated microbial community. The inclusivity of this concept accounts for the ambiguous nature of the entrained microbes and the wide range of functions played by the phytomicrobiome in plant holobiont homeostasis.

Best Available Evidence on Communicative First Aid Interventions by Laypeople for Preventing and Relieving Posttraumatic Stress Disorder-Related Symptomatology Following Traumatic Events.

Trauma-exposed individuals are at risk of developing mental health problems, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As an exposed individual's friend or family member may be the first person to provide posttrauma relief, informing and training laypeople in psychosocial first aid may benefit mental health outcomes of trauma-exposed individuals. We aimed to (a) collect the best available evidence on communication as a first aid intervention in assisting individuals following traumatic events and (b) formulate practical recommendations. Systematic literature searches were conducted in three databases (March 2019). Following study selection, the extracted data were tabulated and synthesized narratively. The evidence was appraised according to the GRADE methodology and evaluated by a multidisciplinary expert panel to formulate recommendations for practice. Out of 1,724 articles, no experimental studies were identified, showing a complete lack of high-quality controlled studies on the efficacy of communicative practices. However, when lower-quality study designs were included, nine cross-sectional studies constituted the best available evidence. The studies suggested that positive communication by family members, r = -.38, aOR = 0.26, β = -.22, p < .001-p < .05, and expressive coping by the victim, β = -.62, p < .001, were associated with PTSD diagnosis and/or symptom severity; however, the evidence was of very low certainty. The expert panel took the methodological limitations into account when formulating weak practical recommendations. Cross-sectional studies currently provide the best possible evidence for developing guidelines on psychosocial first aid. High-quality controlled studies are needed to establish casual associations and identify the most effective interventions.

A Mendelian randomization study of the causal association between anxiety phenotypes and schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia shows a genetic correlation with both anxiety disorder and neuroticism, a trait strongly associated with anxiety. However, genetic correlations do not discern causality from genetic confounding. We therefore aimed to investigate whether anxiety-related phenotypes lie on the causal pathway to schizophrenia using Mendelian randomization (MR). Four MR methods, each with different assumptions regarding instrument validity, were used to investigate casual associations of anxiety and neuroticism related phenotypes on schizophrenia, and vice versa: inverse variance weighted (IVW), weighted median, weighted mode, and, when appropriate, MR Egger regression. MR provided evidence of a causal effect of neuroticism on schizophrenia (IVW odds ratio [OR]: 1.33, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.12-1.59), but only weak evidence of a causal effect of anxiety on schizophrenia (IVW OR: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.01-1.19). There was also evidence of a causal association from schizophrenia liability to anxiety disorder (IVW OR: 1.28, 95% CI: 1.18-1.39) and worry (IVW beta: 0.05, 95% CI: 0.03-0.07), but effect estimates from schizophrenia to neuroticism were inconsistent in the main analysis. The evidence of neuroticism increasing schizophrenia risk provided by our results supports future efforts to evaluate neuroticism- or anxiety-based therapies to prevent onset of psychotic disorders.

Causal associations of body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio with cardiometabolic traits among Chinese children: A Mendelian randomization study

Background and aimsBody mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) have been reported to be causally associated with cardiometabolic diseases in adults in European populations. However, this causality was less explored in East Asian populations and in children. Our study aimed to explore and compare the causal associations of general obesity (measured by BMI) and central obesity (measured by WHR) with cardiometabolic traits. Methods and resultsWe performed a Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis in 2030 unrelated children from two independent case–control studies in Beijing, China. BMI-associated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and WHR-SNPs identified by previous genome-wide association studies were used as genetic instruments to examine the casual associations of BMI and WHR with cardiometabolic traits, including glycemic traits, blood lipids, and blood pressure. Each 1-SD increase in BMI and WHR were significantly associated with 0.111 mmol/L and 0.110 mmol/L increase in log-transformed fasting insulin (FINS), 0.049 and 0.060 increase in log-transformed HOMA-β, 0.112 and 0.108 increase in log-transformed HOMA-IR, 0.009 mmol/L and 0.015 mmol/L increase in log-transformed triglyceride, and 15.527 mmHg and 7.277 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure, respectively (all P < 0.05). The receiver operating characteristic curves showed that WHR had a stronger effect on FINS, HOMA-β, HOMA-IR, and triglyceride than BMI (all P < 0.05). ConclusionsUsing the MR method, we found that the genetic predisposition to higher BMI or WHR was associated with altered cardiometabolic traits in Chinese children. When compared with general obesity, central obesity might have stronger effects on glycemic traits and blood lipids among children.

Etymologie nienaukowe nazw miejscowości w Podaniach i legendach pomorskich Romualda Frydrychowicza

The article describes thirteen folk (unscientific) etymologies of eleven place names included in Romuald Fryderowicz’s 2013 book Podania i legendy pomorskie zebrane w latach 1914–1922 [Pomeranian legends collected in the years 1914–1922]. A folk etymology is defined as ‘scientifically incorrect explanation of the origins of a word based on the similarity of its form to other words or other casual associations’.The analysed pseudo‑etymologies concern the following place names: Borkowo, Górzno, Osie, Przechowo, Rudki, Tleń, Tuchola, Warzno, Wysin, Zawory and Zblewo; the book devotes two pseudo-etymologies to Tuchola and Wysin each. Some of these pseudo etymologies come from a field exploration, but as much as seven of them occur to be pseudo-scientific. The author uses this term for unprofessional (contrary to onomastic methodology) explanations of the structure and meaning of a word using the research results of various scientific disciplines, especially history.

Associations Between Motives for Casual Sex, Depression, Self-Esteem, and Sexual Victimization.

People's motives for casual sex moderate associations between their sexual behavior and the outcomes they experience. Derived from self-determination theory, autonomous motives for casual sex (e.g., I wanted the fun and enjoyment) and non-autonomous motives (e.g., I wanted to please someone else) correlated in previous research differentially with measures of well-being and incidence of casual sex. In a sample of American college students (N = 284), we replicated these prior findings and extended them as follows: autonomous and non-autonomous motives for sex were correlated with two measures of casual sex (i.e., the three behavior questions from the Sociosexual Orientation Inventory; the number of partners with whom participants had penetrative sex but did not wish to become emotionally involved); two measures of well-being (i.e., self-esteem, depression), and a measure of overall sexual victimization (i.e., a combined score from the Sexual Experiences Survey). We found that autonomous motives were more strongly associated with casual sexual behavior than were non-autonomous motives in both sexes. Autonomous motives were positively associated with sexual victimization in women but not in men. Compared to autonomous motives, sex for non-autonomous motives was linked to less self-esteem in both sexes, and with more depression and sexual victimization in women. Sex differences in associations between motives and victimization persisted even when the general effects of participant's sex and casual sex were controlled in hierarchical regressions. Our findings further revealed the importance of agency (or lack thereof) in predicting sexual behavior and psychological health.

Detecting Malicious Users and Remove Rumors from Social Network

Perceiving tattle sources in casual associations expect an essential part in obliging the damage caused by them through the timely disengage of the sources. In any case, the short lived assortment in the topology of casual associations and the advancing dynamic processes challenge our standard source recognizing confirmation strategies that are considered in static frameworks. We diminish the time-varying networks to a movement of static frameworks by introducing a period consolidating window. By then instead of looking at each individual in standard techniques, we grasp a rearrange dispersing framework to demonstrate a game plan of suspects of the certified talk source.

Eastern water dragons use alternative social tactics at different local densities

Animals’ affiliative behaviour is, in many species, driven by population density. Although the causes of such an effect are probably varied, affiliative social behaviour can sometimes be used to minimise conflict and competition when conspecific density is high. However, individuals might instead use multiple different social tactics (e.g. social avoidance or social preference) in order to optimally minimise competition and social conflict at different local densities. Here, we investigated whether eastern water dragons (Intellegama lesueurii) use alternative social tactics at different local densities. Interestingly, we found that whilst the number of casual associations per individual increased linearly with density, as predicted by our null expectation, the relationship with density differed between social avoidance and social preference. In particular, individuals had more preferential associations at intermediate density but more avoidances at high density. This suggests that both male and female dragons use alternative social tactics according to the density of their social environment, possibly to optimally reduce social conflict. This study investigated the relationship between local density and social tactics (e.g. social preference and social avoidance) in eastern water dragons. We demonstrate that dragons use different social tactics according to local density. We therefore present evidence that dragons may use alternative social tactics to optimally reduce competition and conflict in their local environment.

A Moon for the Miscellaneous

A Moon for the Miscellaneous Drew Maciag (bio) Neil M. Maher. Apollo in the Age of Aquarius. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2017. 360 pp. Notes, acknowledgements, illustrations, and index. $29.95. Neil M. Maher's Apollo in the Age of Aquarius raises the prospect of adjusting our understanding of the tumultuous 1960s by approaching the era from a novel perspective. Coincidentally, Americans who lived through that decade experienced the impact of two apparently disjunctive forces. The first was the climax (and eventual collapse) of widespread faith in technocracy and its component parts: science, technology, professional expertise, and top-down planning. The second was the rapid (and mostly unforeseen) rise of new social movements that were driven by an instinct to humanize institutions, laws, organizations, and individual states of consciousness. Historians have commonly noted the similarities and distinctions among the various bottom-up movements, the tensions, cross-pollinations, and casual associations that loosely united—and occasionally divided—the subversive constituencies. Yet, with the exception of the counterculture, scholars have generally avoided examining any relationships between 1960s reform movements and technocracy. Now Maher is attempting to fill this investigative gap by revisiting criticisms of NASA's moon landing program by selected movement representatives. He is also attempting to construct an alternative historical synthesis for the legendary 1960s, in which yesterday's Age of Aquarius resembles today's Age of Fracture. Still, the nagging question is this: How can a study that is so resourceful and industrious in gathering enticing facts and anecdotes also be so thematically confusing in its disjointed narrative? The answer is that the book's mission is muddled from the start. Not only does Maher try to accomplish too many things, but his approach lacks precision and his claims are often not borne out by the evidence. His opening argument that the "space race and the social and political movements of the 1960s era … were mutually dependent on each other for popular and political support" is unconvincing (p. 2). Surely the civil rights and antiwar movements did not require NASA's presence to make their points, build their followings, or draw attention to their crusades; the same can be said about second-wave feminism and the counterculture. [End Page 314] Conversely, NASA's funding—and its political charter—actually suffered when these movements challenged the space agency's values and its purpose. Any slight symbiosis between NASA and environmentalism hardly salvages Maher's umbrella theory of mutual dependency. Ironically, most of the space technology that Maher discusses in relation to concerns about the environment and natural resources belonged to unmanned satellite systems (for example, Landsat and Nimbus-7) that had nothing to do with the Apollo program. Ultimately, the myriad case studies, vignettes, and observations that Maher provides fall well short of proving his corollary claim that "shared opposition to space exploration nurtured" social movements in the 1960s (p. 3). On the contrary, anyone familiar with the structures, dynamics, issues, events, personalities, or passions (in other words, the detailed histories) of those movements, must conclude that any opposition to space exploration—which varied in its nature, both across and within movements—was never more than incidental to the social histories of the 1960s. Maher's boldest assertion is less about mutual dependency or "shared histories" than about societal disintegration. He divides the "space race" and the "social and political movements" into representations of "two factions in a national debate regarding the present and the future course of the United States," which he uses to argue that: "Apollo not only encouraged the identity politics of the 1960s, but also the perception, widely accepted during the following decade, that American society was becoming disaggregated, fragmented, and fractured" (pp. 2–3). This sweeping charge not only exaggerates the space program's role in fomenting discord back in the day, but gives it unwarranted credit for fostering the culture wars and the fractious politics that infected the nation's psyche in future years. It would be more accurate, if more mundane, to note that the biggest objections to the Apollo program centered on its $24 billion price tag, which many citizens and groups believed might be better spent elsewhere. Indeed, this was...

Cognitive ability and physical health: a Mendelian randomization study

Causes of the association between cognitive ability and health remain unknown, but may reflect a shared genetic aetiology. This study examines the causal genetic associations between cognitive ability and physical health. We carried out two-sample Mendelian randomization analyses using the inverse-variance weighted method to test for causality between later life cognitive ability, educational attainment (as a proxy for cognitive ability in youth), BMI, height, systolic blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and type 2 diabetes using data from six independent GWAS consortia and the UK Biobank sample (N = 112 151). BMI, systolic blood pressure, coronary artery disease and type 2 diabetes showed negative associations with cognitive ability; height was positively associated with cognitive ability. The analyses provided no evidence for casual associations from health to cognitive ability. In the other direction, higher educational attainment predicted lower BMI, systolic blood pressure, coronary artery disease, type 2 diabetes, and taller stature. The analyses indicated no causal association from educational attainment to physical health. The lack of evidence for causal associations between cognitive ability, educational attainment, and physical health could be explained by weak instrumental variables, poorly measured outcomes, or the small number of disease cases.

Drinking water contamination from perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS): an ecological mortality study in the Veneto Region, Italy.

Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a heterogeneous group of highly stable man-made chemicals, have been widely used since 1960s and can be detected almost ubiquitously in all environmental matrices. In Italy, on January 2014, drinking water contamination in an area of the Veneto Region was detected mainly due to the drain of fluorinated chemicals by a manufacturing company operating since 1964. The present ecological mortality study was aimed at comparing mortality for some causes of death selected on the basis of previous reported associations, during the period 1980-2013, in municipalities with PFAS contaminated and uncontaminated drinking water on the basis of the levels indicated by the Italian National Health Institute (ISS). Sex-specific number, standardized mortality rates and rate ratios (RR) for PFAS contaminated and uncontaminated areas were computed for each cause of death through the ENEA epidemiological database. In both sexes, statistically significant RRs were detected for all causes mortality, diabetes, cerebrovascular diseases, myocardial infarction and Alzheimer's disease. In females, RRs significantly higher than 1.0 were also observed for kidney and breast cancer, and Parkinson's disease. Increased risk, although not statistically significant, was observed for bladder cancer in both sexes, and for testicular cancer, pancreatic cancer and leukemia in males only. Higher mortality levels for some causes of death, possibly associated with PFAS exposure, were detected in contaminated municipalities in comparison with uncontaminated ones with similar socioeconomic status and smoking habits. These results warrant further individual level analytic studies to delineate casual associations.

Molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 in Iceland: Early introductions, transmission dynamics and recent outbreaks among injection drug users

The molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 in Iceland has not been described so far. Detailed analyses of the dynamics of HIV-1 can give insights for prevention of virus spread. The objective of the current study was to characterize the genetic diversity and transmission dynamics of HIV-1 in Iceland. Partial HIV-1 pol (1020bp) sequences were generated from 230 Icelandic samples, representing 77% of all HIV-1 infected individuals reported in the country 1985–2012. Maximum likelihood phylogenies were reconstructed for subtype/CRF assignment and determination of transmission clusters. Timing and demographic growth patterns were determined in BEAST. HIV-1 infection in Iceland was dominated by subtype B (63%, n=145) followed by subtype C (10%, n=23), CRF01_AE (10%, n=22), sub-subtype A1 (7%, n=15) and CRF02_AG (7%, n=15). Trend analysis showed an increase in non-B subtypes/CRFs in Iceland over the study period (p=0.003). The highest proportion of phylogenetic clustering was found among injection drug users (IDUs; 89%), followed by heterosexuals (70%) and men who have sex with men (35%). The time to the most recent common ancestor of the oldest subtype B cluster dated back to 1978 (median estimate, 95% highest posterior density interval: 1974–1981) suggesting an early introduction of HIV-1 into Iceland. A previously reported increase in HIV-1 incidence among IDUs 2009–2011 was revealed to be due to two separate outbreaks. Our study showed that a variety of HIV-1 subtypes and CRFs were prevalent in Iceland 1985–2012, with subtype B being the dominant form both in terms of prevalence and domestic spread. The rapid increase of HIV-1 infections among IDUs following a major economic crisis in Iceland raises questions about casual associations between economic factors, drug use and public health.

Winter Social Organisation of Marsh TitsPoecile palustrisin Britain

Abstract. We investigated the winter social organisation of a population of British Marsh Tits, using radio-tracking, colour-ringing, and analysis of spatial and social relationships. The observed social structure was defined by adults and juveniles occupying individual but partially-overlapping home-ranges, with typical groups of 2–3 birds (maximum of 9 birds) having a changeable composition. There was no evidence of exclusive territoriality among individuals or groups during the winter, and no evidence of stable social groups with a consistent membership. Instead, the major social units detected were male-female pairs, with mostly casual associations between other individuals. Individual home-ranges averaged 31 ha (10-63 ha, n = 9) and their core areas overlapped with each other by an average 14% (0-65%), indicating that Marsh Tits in this population had very large spatial habitat requirements during winter. Our results have relevance for Marsh Tit conservation, and also the understanding of the drivers...

Longitudinal Associations Between BMI, Physical Activity, and Healthy Diet

An excessive body mass index (BMI) is a growing public health concern resulting from unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. Particularly, a vast body of literature supports significant roles of physical activity (PA) and healthy dietary behaviors (HDB) in reducing BMI. However, a majority of evidence has been accumulated from a cross-sectional data viewpoint which limits our ability to draw causal inferences, and thus, requiring more research efforts to elucidate underlying casual associations based on a longitudinal study design. PURPOSE: This study examined the 7-year longitudinal associations between changes in BMI, PA, and HDB among adults using a parallel latent growth curve model (LGM). METHODS: Prospective, open cohort data collected from 22,885 adults enrolled in workplace wellness programs across over 100 organizations during 2004 through 2013 were used. A healthy cohort between 2004 and 2007 (n=2,579) who provided valid data on BMI, PA, and HDB measures for at least 5 out of 7 follow-up years from the entry was analyzed. Principal component scores (higher indicates better) of PA and HDB were calculated using three questionnaire items, respectively, for each analytic year. Changes in BMI, PA, and HDB across 7 follow-up years were fitted in the conditional parallel LGM after controlling for time invariant covariates using Mplus v7.3. RESULTS: On average, significant increases in BMI and PA were observed across years (SlopeBMI = 0.129, P<.001; SlopePA = 0.008, P=.010), while no significant change in HDB was observed (SlopeHDB = 0.005, P=.124). After controlling for covariates, increases in PA and HDB across years significantly slower the rate of increase in BMI (SlopePA -> SlopeBMI = -1.273, P<.001; SlopeH.Diet -> SlopeBMI = -1.734, P<.001). CONCLUSION: The findings from this study confirm significant roles of PA and HDB to reduce the risk of excessive BMI in later years. Considering that BMI is generally increased as age increases, more systematic efforts to promote PA and HDB among young adults should be made to slow the growth rate of BMI. Further study is also warranted to identify a high risk population who maintains unhealthy lifestyle behaviors across years for developing future intervention strategies.