Drivers and dynamics of a massive adaptive radiation in cichlid fishes.

Adaptive radiation is the likely source of much of the ecological and morphological diversity of life1-4. How adaptive radiations proceed and what determines their extent remains unclear in most cases1,4. Here we report the in-depth examination of the spectacular adaptive radiation of cichlid fishes in Lake Tanganyika. On the basis of whole-genome phylogenetic analyses, multivariate morphological measurements of three ecologically relevant trait complexes (body shape, upper oral jaw morphology and lower pharyngeal jaw shape), scoring of pigmentation patterns and approximations of the ecology of nearly all of the approximately 240 cichlid species endemic to Lake Tanganyika, we show that the radiation occurred within the confines of the lake and that morphological diversification proceeded in consecutive trait-specific pulses of rapid morphospace expansion. We provide empirical support for two theoretical predictions of how adaptive radiations proceed, the 'early-burst' scenario1,5 (for body shape) and the stages model1,6,7 (for all traits investigated). Through the analysis of two genomes per species and by taking advantage of the uneven distribution of species in subclades of the radiation, we further show that species richness scales positively with per-individual heterozygosity, but is not correlated with transposable element content, number of gene duplications or genome-wide levels of selection in coding sequences.

Sense of own body shapes neural processes of memory encoding and reinstatement.

How is the fundamental sense of one's body, a basic aspect of selfhood, incorporated into memories for events? Disrupting bodily self-awareness during encoding impairs functioning of the left posterior hippocampus during retrieval, which implies weakened encoding. However, how changes in bodily self-awareness influence neural encoding is unknown. We investigated how the sense of body ownership, a core aspect of the bodily self, impacts encoding in the left posterior hippocampus and additional core memory regions including the angular gyrus. Furthermore, we assessed the degree to which memories are reinstated according to body ownership during encoding and vividness during retrieval as a measure of memory strength. We immersed participants in naturalistic scenes where events unfolded while we manipulated feelings of body ownership with a full-body-illusion during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. One week later, participants retrieved memories for the videos during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. A whole brain analysis revealed that patterns of activity in regions including the right hippocampus and angular gyrus distinguished between events encoded with strong versus weak body ownership. A planned region-of-interest analysis showed that patterns of activity in the left posterior hippocampus specifically could predict body ownership during memory encoding. Using the wider network of regions sensitive to body ownership during encoding and the left posterior hippocampus as separate regions-of-interest, we observed that patterns of activity present at encoding were reinstated more during the retrieval of events encoded with strong body ownership and high memory vividness. Our results demonstrate how the sense of physical self is bound within an event during encoding, which facilitates reactivation of a memory trace during retrieval.

The rise of biting during the Cenozoic fueled reef fish body shape diversification.

Diversity of feeding mechanisms is a hallmark of reef fishes, but the history of this variation is not fully understood. Here, we explore the emergence and proliferation of a biting mode of feeding, which enables fishes to feed on attached benthic prey. We find that feeding modes other than suction, including biting, ram biting, and an intermediate group that uses both biting and suction, were nearly absent among the lineages of teleost fishes inhabiting reefs prior to the end-Cretaceous mass extinction, but benthic biting has rapidly increased in frequency since then, accounting for about 40% of reef species today. Further, we measured the impact of feeding mode on body shape diversification in reef fishes. We fit a model of multivariate character evolution to a dataset comprising three-dimensional body shape of 1,530 species of teleost reef fishes across 111 families. Dedicated biters have accumulated over half of the body shape variation that suction feeders have in just 18% of the evolutionary time by evolving body shape ∼1.7 times faster than suction feeders. As a possible response to the ecological and functional diversity of attached prey, biters have dynamically evolved both into shapes that resemble suction feeders as well as novel body forms characterized by lateral compression and small jaws. The ascendance of species that use biting mechanisms to feed on attached prey reshaped modern reef fish assemblages and has been a major contributor to their ecological and phenotypic diversification.

Genomic underpinnings of head and body shape in Arctic charr ecomorph pairs.

Across its Holarctic range, Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) populations have diverged into distinct trophic specialists across independent replicate lakes. The major aspect of divergence between ecomorphs is in head shape and body shape, which are ecomorphological traits reflecting niche use. However, whether the genomic underpinnings of these parallel divergences are consistent across replicates was unknown but key for resolving the substrate of parallel evolution. We investigated the genomic basis of head shape and body shape morphology across four benthivore-planktivore ecomorph pairs of Arctic charr in Scotland. Through genome-wide association analyses, we found genomic regions associated with head shape (89 SNPs) or body shape (180 SNPs) separately and 50 of these SNPs were strongly associated with both body and head shape morphology. For each trait separately, only a small number of SNPs were shared across all ecomorph pairs (3 SNPs for head shape and 10 SNPs for body shape). Signs of selection on the associated genomic regions varied across pairs, consistent with evolutionary demography differing considerably across lakes. Using a comprehensive database of salmonid QTLs newly augmented and mapped to a charr genome, we found several of the head- and body-shape-associated SNPs were within or near morphology QTLs from other salmonid species, reflecting a shared genetic basis for these phenotypes across species. Overall, our results demonstrate how parallel ecotype divergences can have both population-specific and deeply shared genomic underpinnings across replicates, influenced by differences in their environments and demographic histories.

"Shape bias" goes social: Children categorize people by weight rather than race.

Children tend to categorize novel objects according to their shape rather than their color, texture, or other salient properties-known as "shape bias." We investigated whether this bias also extends to the social domain, where it should lead children to categorize people according to their weight (their body shape) rather than their race (their skin color). In Study 1, participants (n = 50 US 4- and 5-year-olds) were asked to extend a novel label from a target object/person to either an object/person who shared the target's shape/weight, color/race, or neither. Children selected the shape-/weight-matched individual over the color-/race-matched individual (dobjects  = 1.58, dpeople  = 0.99) and their shape biases were correlated across the two domains. In Study 2, participants (n = 20 US 4- and 5-year-olds) were asked to extend a novel internal property from a target person to either a person who shared the target's weight, race, or neither. Again, children selected the weight-matched individual (d = 1.98), suggesting they view an individual's weight as more predictive of their internal properties than their race. Overall, results suggest that children's early shape bias extends into the social domain. Implications for weight bias and early social cognition are discussed. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Preschoolers extend novel labels based on people's weight rather than their race. Preschoolers infer internal features based on people's weight rather than their race. Shape biases are present, and correlated, across the social and object domains.

Evaluating the effect of targeting body shape concerns on long-term weight change.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this follow-up to a randomized proof-of-concept study was to determine if targeting body shape concern (BSC) has a clinically significant impact on long-term weight change among adult women of higher body weight with BSC. A secondary aim was to observe the maintenance of body image improvements during follow-up. METHOD: In the original 4-week trial, women were randomized to behavioral weight loss recommendations alone (control; n = 15) or combined with the evidence-based body project intervention (n = 17). All participants were directed to continue monitoring diet and exercise through Week 8. The current analysis focused on follow-up data collected on weight, BSC, internalized weight bias, internalized thin ideal, and body appreciation at 8 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months. Percent weight change was calculated from baseline and compared against clinical milestones of -2.5% and -5%. An intent-to-treat approach was used for individuals lost to follow-up (n = 11). RESULTS: Body project participants achieved the clinically significant target of -2.5% weight loss by 12 months. Control participants did not reach the milestone and regained lost weight at 12 months. Neither condition reached the 5% clinical target. Both groups experienced improved body image, but body project participants maintained a greater magnitude of improvement in all measures except internalized thin ideal at 12 months. CONCLUSION: The current study provides preliminary evidence that targeting BSC among women with BSC who want to lose weight may improve long-term weight loss. Further intervention development and testing are warranted. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: The results of this study suggest that targeting negative body image among adult women with high BSC might be a pathway to improve long-term weight loss in behavioral weight management. This is aligned with precision medicine priorities to optimize weight-related health care.

Effect of CVAI on the incidence of MASLD compared to BMI in populations with different body types: A prospective cohort study in China.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To explore the relationship between body mass index (BMI), chinese visceral adiposity index (CVAI) and the risk of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in populations with different body types defined by BMI. METHODS AND RESULTS: 24 191 participants from the Jinchang cohort were involved in the prospective cohort study with a 2.3-year follow-up. Information from epidemiological investigations, comprehensive health examinations and biochemical examinations was collected. MASLD was assessed by abdominal ultrasonography. BMI and CVAI were calculated using recognized formulas. Cox regressions, Restricted cubic spline (RCS) and Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis were performed. The risk of MASLD increased with the increase in BMI and CVAI (Ptrend <0.001), and there was a nonlinear dose-response relationship. In the total population, BMI and CVAI increased the risk of MASLD with adjusted HR (95%CI) of 1.097 (1.091-1.104) and 1.024 (1.023-1.026), respectively. The results were similar in the lean and overweight/obese groups. There was also a nonlinear relationship between CVAI and MASLD (Pnon-linearity<0.001), no matter in which group. The area under the curve of CVAI was significantly higher than that of BMI in females with different body types, and the areas in the whole females were 0.802 (95%CI: 0.787-0.818) and 0.764 (95%CI: 0.747-0.780), respectively. There was no significant difference in the ability of BMI and CVAI to predict MASLD in all-sex and males, either in lean or overweight/obese groups. CONCLUSIONS: CVAI and BMI were independently associated with the risk of MASLD regardless of body types defined by BMI, and CVAI showed better diagnostic ability for MASLD in females.

Differentiation of the body build and posture in the population of people with intellectual disabilities and Down Syndrome: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to identify the variables of the internal compensatory mechanisms that differentiate the body build and posture of people with Down syndrome (DS) from the intellectual disability (ID) population. It was assumed that gaining knowledge in the abovementioned aspect will allow for a better understanding of the limitation of the kinesthetic abilities of people with ID and DS and simultaneously enable to optimize the process of planning and interventions to improve physical activity in this population with the adequate use of theirs strengths in the biomechanical and morphofunctional systems. METHODS: The methodology of this systematic review was developed according to the PRISMA guidelines. A search of PubMed, EBSCO, Scopus databases was conducted to identify all studies on DS/ID and the body build and posture from 2003 to 2023. RESULTS: 395 articles were assessed to determine eligibility, while 22 studies met the inclusion criteria and were subjected to detailed analysis and assessment of their methodological quality. The differentiation of the body build and posture in DS population can be induced by both internal and external compensatory mechanisms. It is difficult to confirm the direct effect of the intrinsic variables that impact the body build and posture in the ID population, excluding people with DS. CONCLUSIONS: Compared to other ID, the intrinsic differences in the body build and posture in DS individuals were induced by gender, age, and level of ID. The tendency for diversity between DS and other ID populations in body build and posture may be determined by the presence of the third copy of chromosome 21 in DS group. Internal compensatory processes may be induced mainly by abnormalities in the structure of the cervical vertebrae and feet. IQ should not be used as the only variable that identifies the population of people with ID.

Variability in Body Shape, Superficial Soft Tissue Geometry, and Seatbelt Fit Relative to the Pelvis in Automotive Postures-Methods for Volunteer Data Collection With Open Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Variability in body shape and soft tissue geometry have the potential to affect the body's interaction with automotive safety systems. In this study, we developed a methodology to capture information on body shape, superficial soft tissue geometry, skeletal geometry, and seatbelt fit relative to the skeleton-in automotive postures-using Open Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Volunteer posture and belt fit were first measured in a vehicle and then reproduced in a custom MRI-safe seat (with an MR-visible seatbelt) placed in an Open MR scanner. Overlapping scans were performed to create registered three-dimensional reconstructions spanning from the thigh to the clavicles. Data were collected with ten volunteers (5 female, 5 male), each in their self-selected driving posture and in a reclined posture. Examination of the MRIs showed that in the males with substantial anterior abdominal adipose tissue, the abdominal adipose tissue tended to overhang the pelvis, narrowing in the region of the Anterior Superior Iliac Spine (ASIS). For the females, the adipose tissue depth around the lower abdomen and pelvis was more uniform, with a more continuous layer superficial to the ASIS. Across the volunteers, the pelvis rotated rearward by an average of 62% of the change in seatback angle during recline. In some cases, the lap belt drew nearer to the pelvis as the volunteer reclined (as the overhanging folds of adipose tissue stretched). In others, the belt-to-pelvis distance increased as the volunteer reclined. These observations highlight the importance of considering both interdemographic and intrademographic variability when developing tools to assess safety system robustness.

Patterns of recent natural selection on genetic loci associated with sexually differentiated human body size and shape phenotypes.

Levels of sex differences for human body size and shape phenotypes are hypothesized to have adaptively reduced following the agricultural transition as part of an evolutionary response to relatively more equal divisions of labor and new technology adoption. In this study, we tested this hypothesis by studying genetic variants associated with five sexually differentiated human phenotypes: height, body mass, hip circumference, body fat percentage, and waist circumference. We first analyzed genome-wide association (GWAS) results for UK Biobank individuals (~194,000 females and ~167,000 males) to identify a total of 114,199 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) significantly associated with at least one of the studied phenotypes in females, males, or both sexes (P<5x10-8). From these loci we then identified 3,016 SNPs (2.6%) with significant differences in the strength of association between the female- and male-specific GWAS results at a low false-discovery rate (FDR<0.001). Genes with known roles in sexual differentiation are significantly enriched for co-localization with one or more of these SNPs versus SNPs associated with the phenotypes generally but not with sex differences (2.73-fold enrichment; permutation test; P = 0.0041). We also confirmed that the identified variants are disproportionately associated with greater phenotype effect sizes in the sex with the stronger association value. We then used the singleton density score statistic, which quantifies recent (within the last ~3,000 years; post-agriculture adoption in Britain) changes in the frequencies of alleles underlying polygenic traits, to identify a signature of recent positive selection on alleles associated with greater body fat percentage in females (permutation test; P = 0.0038; FDR = 0.0380), directionally opposite to that predicted by the sex differences reduction hypothesis. Otherwise, we found no evidence of positive selection for sex difference-associated alleles for any other trait. Overall, our results challenge the longstanding hypothesis that sex differences adaptively decreased following subsistence transitions from hunting and gathering to agriculture.

Development of a Non-Contact Sensor System for Converting 2D Images into 3D Body Data: A Deep Learning Approach to Monitor Obesity and Body Shape in Individuals in Their 20s and 30s.

This study demonstrates how to generate a three-dimensional (3D) body model through a small number of images and derive body values similar to the actual values using generated 3D body data. In this study, a 3D body model that can be used for body type diagnosis was developed using two full-body pictures of the front and side taken with a mobile phone. For data training, 400 3D body datasets (male: 200, female: 200) provided by Size Korea were used, and four models, i.e., 3D recurrent reconstruction neural network, point cloud generative adversarial network, skinned multi-person linear model, and pixel-aligned impact function for high-resolution 3D human digitization, were used. The models proposed in this study were analyzed and compared. A total of 10 men and women were analyzed, and their corresponding 3D models were verified by comparing 3D body data derived from 2D image inputs with those obtained using a body scanner. The model was verified through the difference between 3D data derived from the 2D image and those derived using an actual body scanner. Unlike the 3D generation models that could not be used to derive the body values in this study, the proposed model was successfully used to derive various body values, indicating that this model can be implemented to identify various body types and monitor obesity in the future.

[Metabolic features of the inflammatory syndrome of chronic pelvic pain (category IIIA of chronic non-bacterial prostatitis) in young men, depending on the somatotype].

PURPOSE: dentification of bioimpedance and clinical features in young men with chronic pelvic pain inflammatory syndrome (CP/CPPS NIH IIIa) depending on the somatotype. METHOD: s. 150 men of the first period of adulthood from 22 to 35 years old with CP/CPPS NIH IIIa were examined from 2018 to 2022 years. The average age was 31 [28; 34] year. Somatotypes were computed according to Carter and Heath. Body composition was assessed anthropometry and bioimpedance analysis. RESULTS: Ectomorphs had the least clinical, laboratory and instrumental manifestations of CP/CPPS NIH IIIa, the levels of total and free testosterone were the highest. The active cell mass predominated in the component composition of the body. Manifestations in mesomorphs had a moderate degree of severity. Endomorphs had the most severe manifestations of CP/CPPS NIH IIIa, the largest amount of fat mass was noted in the body composition than in men of other somatotypes, the hormonal status was characterized by the lowest levels of free and total testosterone, and the highest level of estradiol. DISCUSSION: Based on the literature data and our own results, it can be assumed that the identified changes in the body component composition and hormonal status of men contribute to the maintenance of chronic inflammation in the prostate, organ ischemia, impaired intracranial metabolism, recurrent course of CP/CPPS NIH IIIa, which significantly reduces the patients quality of life and increases the risk of prostate inflammation with age. CONCLUSION: Determining the somatotype and conducting a component analysis of body composition allows patients to be divided into groups according to the severity of manifestations of CP/CPPS NIH IIIa. The revealed patterns allow us to classify male endomorphs into the group with the most severe manifestations of CP/CPPS NIH IIIa.

Body mass index and body shape before treatment and nasopharyngeal carcinoma prognosis: A population-based patient cohort study in southern China.

A concern of reverse causation exists about the association between nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) prognosis and body mass index (BMI) at diagnosis, while the prognostic impact of BMI measured years before diagnosis is unknown. Therefore, we investigated associations of prediagnosis and pretreatment BMI and body shape on NPC mortality. From a population-based patient cohort in southern China between 2010 and 2013, we included 2526 incident NPC cases with prospective follow-up through 2018. We assessed the associations of BMI and body shape at age 20 years, 10 years before diagnosis, and at diagnosis with NPC mortality, combining strategies of stratification and statistical adjustment to minimize reverse causation. We observed 25% lower all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 0.75, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.64-0.89) and 25% lower NPC-specific mortality (HR 0.75, 95% CI: 0.61-0.91) among overweight vs normal-weight NPC cases at diagnosis. Lean body shapes 1 and 2 at diagnosis were associated with 68% and 23% higher all-cause mortality, respectively, compared to normal body shape 3. No effect modification by cancer stage was detected for associations with all-cause or NPC-specific mortality. Associations with BMI and body shape 10 years before diagnosis were similar but attenuated, while body size and shape at age 20 were not associated with mortality. Being overweight at diagnosis decreased mortality, and thinner body shape increased mortality, compared to normal weight/body shape. These associations may be due to poorer nutrition and treatment intolerance, resulting in treatment discontinuation and worse survival outcomes.

Body shape phenotypes of multiple anthropometric traits and cancer risk: a multi-national cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Classical anthropometric traits may fail to fully represent the relationship of weight, adiposity, and height with cancer risk. We investigated the associations of body shape phenotypes with the risk of overall and site-specific cancers. METHODS: We derived four distinct body shape phenotypes from principal component (PC) analysis on height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist (WC) and hip circumferences (HC), and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). The study included 340,152 men and women from 9 European countries, aged mostly 35-65 years at recruitment (1990-2000) in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to estimate multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 15.3 years, 47,110 incident cancer cases were recorded. PC1 (overall adiposity) was positively associated with the risk of overall cancer, with a HR per 1 standard deviation (SD) increment equal to 1.07 (95% confidence interval 1.05 to 1.08). Positive associations were observed with 10 cancer types, with HRs (per 1 SD) ranging from 1.36 (1.30-1.42) for endometrial cancer to 1.08 (1.03-1.13) for rectal cancer. PC2 (tall stature with low WHR) was positively associated with the risk of overall cancer (1.03; 1.02-1.04) and five cancer types which were not associated with PC1. PC3 (tall stature with high WHR) was positively associated with the risk of overall cancer (1.04; 1.03-1.05) and 12 cancer types. PC4 (high BMI and weight with low WC and HC) was not associated with overall risk of cancer (1.00; 0.99-1.01). CONCLUSIONS: In this multi-national study, distinct body shape phenotypes were positively associated with the incidence of 17 different cancers and overall cancer.

Dose response relationship between breast cancer and somatotypes during childhood: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to evaluate the relationship between breast cancer and somatotypes during early life by meta-analysis and give the corresponding advice. METHODS: Observational studies till April 5, 2021, which explore women with/without breast cancer who used the Stunkard Figure Rating Scale/Sørensen Somatotypes to evaluate their somatotype before 18 years of age and distant breast cancer risk were included. Using random/fixed-effect models, the pooled relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated. Then a nonlinear dose-response meta-analysis was conducted using restricted cubic spline analysis. RESULTS: Six articles involving 15,211 breast cancer patients from 341,905 individuals were included for performing a meta-analysis of early somatotype and breast cancer risk. The pooled results showed that the protection became stronger with the increase of somatotype until it reached 6. The restricted cubic spline model indicated a linear relationship between somatotypes and breast cancer (P-nonlinearity = 0.533). Subgroup analysis of menopausal status showed that increasing somatotype during childhood was increasingly protective against postmenopausal breast cancer from somatotype 3 to somatotype 6, with a 0.887-fold (RR = 0.887, 95% CI: 0.842, 0.934) to 0.759-fold (RR = 0.759, 95% CI: 0.631, 0.913) decreased risk of breast cancer (P-nonlinearity = 0.880), but this association was not found in the population with premenopausal breast cancer (P-nonlinearity = 0.757). When stratified by age, among people younger than 10 years of age, an increase in somatotype was associated with a statistically significant reduction in breast cancer risk. From somatotype 3 to somatotype 6, the risk of breast cancer was reduced by 9.7-27.7% (P-nonlinearity = 0.175). CONCLUSIONS: With early-life adiposity, our data support an inverse association with breast cancer risk, especially age less than 10 years and in postmenopausal women. Since girls with overweight likely remain overweight or even develop obesity in adulthood. While adults with overweight and obese are at increased risk of breast cancer and other types of cancer and various chronic diseases. Hence, we recommend that children should maintain a normal or slightly fat somatotype throughout all periods of life.

The relationship of reproductive factors with adiposity and body shape indices changes overtime: findings from a community-based study.

BACKGROUND: Studies focusing on the relationships of adiposity and body shape indices with reproductive factors have reported conflicting results. This study aimed to investigate the influence of reproductive factors on adiposity and body shape indices changes overtime. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this community-based prospective study, 1636 postmenopausal women were selected from Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS). The unadjusted and adjusted Generalized Estimating Equation models (GEE) were applied to investigate secular longitudinal trends of adiposity and body shape indices. RESULTS: According to the adjusted GEE models, mean changes in body mass index (BMI) in women with early menarche was 1.18 kg/m2 higher than those with normal menarche age (P = 0.030). Moreover, the mean changes in BMI overtime were 0.11 kg/m2 higher in women with premature/early menopausal age than those with normal menopausal age (P = 0.012). Mean changes of waist circumference (WC) in women with late menopause were 2.27 cm higher than those with normal menopausal age (P = 0.036). We also observed higher mean changes in a body shape index (ABSI) in women with late menopause (P = 0.037), compared to those with normal menopausal age. We found a marginal effect of parity on BMI and WC as well. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated higher BMI in females with earlier menarche age. We also showed higher values of BMI overtime in women with premature/ early menopause, whereas women with late menopausal age had higher WC and ABSI values. However, more longitudinal studies investigating body composition indices by adjusting all potential confounders are still required to confirm our study findings.

Genetic basis of ecologically relevant body shape variation among four genera of cichlid fishes.

Divergence in body shape is one of the most widespread and repeated patterns of morphological variation in fishes and is associated with habitat specification and swimming mechanics. Such ecological diversification is the first stage of the explosive adaptive radiation of cichlid fishes in the East African Rift Lakes. We use two hybrid crosses of cichlids (Metriaclima sp. × Aulonocara sp. and Labidochromis sp. × Labeotropheus sp., >975 animals total) to determine the genetic basis of body shape diversification that is similar to benthic-pelagic divergence across fishes. Using a series of both linear and geometric shape measurements, we identified 34 quantitative trait loci (QTL) that underlie various aspects of body shape variation. These QTL are spread throughout the genome, each explaining 3.2-8.6% of phenotypic variation, and are largely modular. Further, QTL are distinct both between these two crosses of Lake Malawi cichlids and compared to previously identified QTL for body shape in fishes such as sticklebacks. We find that body shape is controlled by many genes of small effect. In all, we find that convergent body shape phenotypes commonly observed across fish clades are most likely due to distinct genetic and molecular mechanisms.

A body shape index (ABSI) is associated inversely with post-menopausal progesterone-receptor-negative breast cancer risk in a large European cohort.

BACKGROUND: Associations of body shape with breast cancer risk, independent of body size, are unclear because waist and hip circumferences are correlated strongly positively with body mass index (BMI). METHODS: We evaluated body shape with the allometric "a body shape index" (ABSI) and hip index (HI), which compare waist and hip circumferences, correspondingly, among individuals with the same weight and height. We examined associations of ABSI, HI, and BMI (per one standard deviation increment) with breast cancer overall, and according to menopausal status at baseline, age at diagnosis, and oestrogen and progesterone receptor status (ER+/-PR+/-) in multivariable Cox proportional hazards models using data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. RESULTS: During a mean follow-up of 14.0 years, 9011 incident breast cancers were diagnosed among 218,276 women. Although there was little evidence for association of ABSI with breast cancer overall (hazard ratio HR = 0.984; 95% confidence interval: 0.961-1.007), we found borderline inverse associations for post-menopausal women (HR = 0.971; 0.942-1.000; n = 5268 cases) and breast cancers diagnosed at age ≥ 55 years (HR = 0.976; 0.951-1.002; n = 7043) and clear inverse associations for ER + PR- subtypes (HR = 0.894; 0.822-0.971; n = 726) and ER-PR- subtypes (HR = 0.906; 0.835-0.983 n = 759). There were no material associations with HI. BMI was associated strongly positively with breast cancer overall (HR = 1.074; 1.049-1.098), for post-menopausal women (HR = 1.117; 1.085-1.150), for cancers diagnosed at age ≥ 55 years (HR = 1.104; 1.076-1.132), and for ER + PR + subtypes (HR = 1.122; 1.080-1.165; n = 3101), but not for PR- subtypes. CONCLUSIONS: In the EPIC cohort, abdominal obesity evaluated with ABSI was not associated with breast cancer risk overall but was associated inversely with the risk of post-menopausal PR- breast cancer. Our findings require validation in other cohorts and with a larger number of PR- breast cancer cases.

Different Evolutionary Pathways Lead to Incomplete Convergence of Elongate Body Shapes in Carnivoran Mammals.

Although convergence is often recognized as a ubiquitous feature across the Tree of Life, whether the underlying traits also exhibit similar evolutionary pathways towards convergent forms puzzles biologists. In carnivoran mammals, "elongate," "slender," and "long" are often used to describe and even to categorize mustelids (martens, polecats, and weasels), herpestids (mongooses), viverrids (civets and genets), and other carnivorans together. But just how similar these carnivorans are and whether there is convergence in the morphological component that contribute to elongation has never been assessed. Here, I found that these qualitatively described elongate carnivorans exhibited incomplete convergence towards elongate bodies compared to other terrestrial carnivorans. In contrast, the morphological components underlying body shape variation do not exhibit convergence despite evidence that these components are more elongate in elongate carnivorans compared to nonelongate carnivorans. Furthermore, these components also exhibited shorter but different phylogenetic half-lives towards more elongate adaptive peaks, indicating that different selective pressures can create multiple pathways to elongation. Incorporating the fossil record will facilitate further investigation of whether body elongation evolved adaptively or if it is simply a retained ancestral trait.[Axial skeleton; body elongation; convergent evolution; macroevolution; phylogenetic comparative methods; thoracolumbar vertebrae.].

Allometric body shape indices, type 2 diabetes and kidney function: A two-sample Mendelian randomization study.

AIM: To examine the association between body mass index (BMI)-independent allometric body shape indices and kidney function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis, using summary statistics from UK Biobank, CKDGen and DIAGRAM. BMI-independent allometric body shape indices were: A Body Shape Index (ABSI), Waist-Hip Index (WHI) and Hip Index (HI). Kidney function outcomes were: urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR), estimated glomerular filtration rate and blood urea nitrogen. Furthermore, we investigated type 2 diabetes (T2D) as a potential mediator on the pathway to albuminuria. The main analysis was inverse variance-weighted random-effects MR in participants of European ancestry. We also performed several sensitivity MR analyses. RESULTS: A 1-standard deviation (SD) increase in genetically predicted ABSI and WHI levels was associated with higher UACR (ß = 0.039 [95% confidence interval: 0.016, 0.063] log [UACR], P = 0.001 for ABSI, and ß = 0.028 [0.012, 0.044] log [UACR], P = 6 x 10-4 for WHI) in women, but not in men. Meanwhile, a 1-SD increase in genetically predicted HI was associated with lower UACR in women (ß = -0.021 [-0.041, 0.000] log [UACR], P = 0.05) and in men (ß = -0.026 [-0.058, 0.005] log [UACR], P = 0.10). Corresponding estimates in individuals with diabetes were substantially augmented. Risk of T2D increased for genetically high ABSI and WHI in women (P < 6 x 10-19 ) only, but decreased for genetically high HI in both sexes (P < 9 x 10-3 ). No other associations were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Genetically high HI was associated with decreased risk of albuminuria, mediated through decreased T2D risk in both sexes. Opposite associations applied to genetically high ABSI and WHI in women only.