Pre-pregnancy obesity is associated with greater systemic inflammation and increased risk of antenatal depression.

BACKGROUND: Pre-pregnancy obesity is an emerging risk factor for perinatal depression. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We investigated the association between pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and perinatal depressive symptoms in a large population-based pre-birth cohort, the Barwon Infant Study. We also assessed whether the levels of circulating inflammatory markers during pregnancy mediated this relationship. METHODS: Depressive symptoms were assessed in 883 women using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and psychological stress using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) at 28 weeks gestation and 4 weeks postpartum. Glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and cytokines were assessed at 28 weeks gestation. We performed regression analyses, adjusted for potential confounders, and investigated mediation using nested counterfactual models. RESULTS: The estimated effect of pre-pregnancy obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) on antenatal EPDS scores was 1.05 points per kg/m2 increase in BMI (95% CI: 0.20, 1.90; p = 0.02). GlycA, hsCRP, interleukin (IL) -1ra and IL-6 were higher in women with obesity, compared to healthy weight women, while eotaxin and IL-4 were lower. Higher GlycA was associated with higher EPDS and PSS scores and partially mediated the association between pre-pregnancy obesity and EPDS/PSS scores in unadjusted models, but this association attenuated upon adjustment for socioeconomic adversity. IL-6 and eotaxin were negatively associated with EPDS/PSS scores, however there was no evidence for mediation. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-pregnancy obesity increases the risk of antenatal depressive symptoms and is also associated with systemic inflammation during pregnancy. While discrete inflammatory markers are associated with antenatal depressive symptoms and perceived stress, their role in mediating the effects of pre-pregnancy obesity on antenatal depression requires further investigation.

Generational differences in the prevalence of postpartum depression among young Australians: a comparison of two cohorts born 17 years apart.

Whether there has been an increase in postpartum depression (PPD) over the generation remains unknown. This study aimed to compare the prevalence in two cohorts of young Australian women born 17 years apart and identified the factors associated with any generational differences. Participants were from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health, who gave birth between ages 18 and 27 (born in 1973-78 and 1989-95). PPD prevalence was calculated as the percentage of births associated with PPD. Both the prevalence of PPD diagnoses (among 1,610 births) and PPD symptoms (among 953 births) were compared. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to report generational differences in the prevalence for PPD diagnoses; Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs used for PPD symptoms. Factors that differed between cohorts and were associated with PPD diagnoses or PPD symptoms were adjusted. The prevalence of both PPD diagnoses (21.4% vs 10.3%; crude RR: 2.03, 95% CI: 1.59-2.60) and symptoms (20.1% vs 13.3%; crude HR: 1.60, 95% CI: 1.15-2.34) were higher in the 1989-1995 cohort than the 1973-1978 cohort. Generational differences in PPD diagnoses persisted after controlling for potential contributors (RR: 1.53, 95% CI: 1.15-2.04), while generational differences in PPD symptoms were attenuated (HR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.64-1.49). Of all contributing factors, a history of depression explained most of the generational differences, especially in PPD symptoms (49%), to the extent that when the study sample was stratified by history of depression, no generational differences were detected (without prior depression, HR: 0.65, 95% CI: 0.20-2.08; with prior depression, HR: 1.18, 95% CI: 0.71-1.96). The higher prevalence of PPD in the recent generation was mainly due to the high prevalence of depression. Strategies that well manage pre-existing depression may benefit the prevention of PPD for the current young generation. Further research is warranted to inform detailed prevention approaches.

Ciculating miRNA-21 as a Biomarker Predicts Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) in Patients.

BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is characterized by hyperandrogenism, hyperinsulinemia, and infertility. In PCOS, abnormal regulation of relevant genes is required for follicular development. By binding to the 3' untranslated region (3'URT), microRNAs (miRNAs) are widely involved in posttranscriptional gene regulation. However, few studies have been conducted on circulating miRNA expression in PCOS. This study aims to describe altered expression of circulating miR-21 in PCOS. METHODS: The expression of serum miRNAs of PCOS patients were explored using the TaqMan Low Density Array followed by individual quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays. The protein level of LATS1 was determined using Western blot. To validate whether miR-21 targeted LATS1, the luciferase assay was applied. RESULTS: In comparison with normal subjects, the circulating level of miRNA-21 was significantly enhanced in PCOS patients. In PCOS patients, the expression levels of MST1/2, LATS1/2, TAZ were much lower than the control subjects. Luciferase reporter assay revealed that LATS1 was a downstream target of miR-21. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with normal subjects, serum miR-21 is obviously increased in PCOS patients. Through targeting LATS1, miR-21 could prompt PCOS progression and could act as a novel non-invasive biomarker for diagnosis of PCOS.

A compound enzyme as an additive to a continuous anaerobic dynamic membrane bioreactor for enhanced lignocellulose removal from codigestion: Performance, membrane characteristics and microorganisms.

To explore the enzyme-enhanced strategy of a continuous anaerobic dynamic membrane reactor (AnDMBR), the anaerobic codigestion system of food waste and corn straw was first operated stably, and then the best combination of compound enzymes (laccase, endo-ß-1,4-glucanase, xylanase) was determined via a series of batch trials. The results showed that the methane yield (186.8 ± 19.9 mL/g VS) with enzyme addition was 12.2 % higher than that without enzyme addition. Furthermore, the removal rates of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin increased by 31 %, 36 % and 78 %, respectively. In addition, dynamic membranes can form faster and more stably with enzyme addition. The addition of enzymes changed the structure of microbial communities while maintaining sufficient hydrolysis bacteria (Bacteroidetes), promoting the proliferation of Proteobacteria as a dominant strain and bringing stronger acetylation ability. In summary, the compound enzyme strengthening strategy successfully improved the methane production, dynamic membrane effect, and degradation rate of lignocellulose in AnDMBR.

Long-term in-situ starvation and reactivation of co-digestion with food waste and corn straw in a continuous AnDMBR: Performance, sludge characteristics, and microorganism community.

To explore the effects of in-situ starvation and reactivation in a continuous anaerobic dynamic membrane reactor (AnDMBR), the anaerobic co-digestion system of food waste and corn straw was firstly start-up and stability operated, and then stopped feeding substrate approximately 70 days. After long-term in-situ starvation, the continuous AnDMBR was reactivated using the same operation conditions and organic loading rate as the continuous AnDMBR used before in-situ starvation. Results shown that the anaerobic co-digestion of corn straw and food waste in the continuous AnDMBR can resume stable operation within 5 days, and the corresponding methane production of 1.38 ± 0.26 L/L/d was completely returned to the methane production before in-situ starvation (1.32 ± 0.10 L/L/d). Through analysis of the specific methanogenic activity and key enzyme activity of the digestate sludge, only the acetic acid degradation activity of methanogenic archaea can be partially recovered, however, the activities of lignocellulose enzyme (lignin peroxidase, laccase, and endoglucanase), hydrolase (α-glucosidase) and acidogenic enzyme (acetate kinas, butyrate kinase, and CoA-transferase) can be fully recovered. Analysis of microorganism community structure using metagenomic sequencing technology showed that starvation decreased the abundance of hydrolytic bacteria (Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes) and increased the abundance of small molecule-utilizing bacteria (Proteobacteria and Chloroflexi) due to lack of substrate during the long-term in-situ starvation stage. Furthermore, the microbial community structure and key functional microorganism still maintained and similar with that of starvation final stage even after long-term continuous reactivation. The reactor performance and sludge enzymes activity in the continuous AnDMBR co-digestion of food waste and corn straw can be well reactivated after long-term in-situ starvation, even though the microbial community structure can not be recovered to the initiating stage.

Comparative study of the effect of loading increments on the mesophilic codigestion of waste activated sludge and food waste: Reactor performance, stability analysis, and microbial community.

The performance and stability of mesophilic codigestion of waste activated sludge (WAS) and food waste (FW) were compared in two parallel, continuously stirred tank reactors using high- and low-magnitude loading increments for the loading regimes. The results indicated that a high methane (CH4) production of 6.98 L L-1·d-1 was realized without volatile fatty acid accumulation via low-magnitude loading increments at a high loading of 26.5 g-COD·L-1·d-1, and this system was more stable and achieved a higher efficiency than the codigestion system that used high-magnitude loading increments at similar loading and operating conditions. Furthermore, higher CH4 yields of 258-334 mL-CH4·g-COD-1, TCOD removal efficiencies of 64-79%, conversion ratios of 62-88%, and methanogenic activities of 0.37-0.40 g-CH4-COD·g-VS-1·d-1 were consistently maintained via the low-magnitude loading increments during the high-rate period. High abundances of the phyla Firmicutes (63.3%) and genus Methanosarcina (94.5%) contributed to the high rates and stable operating conditions of the mesophilic system for WAS and FW codigestion using low-magnitude loading increments.

Does premenstrual syndrome before pregnancy increase the risk of postpartum depression? Findings from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health.

BACKGROUND: Previous literature suggests a positive association between history of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and development of postpartum depression (PPD); however, limited evidence has come from prospective population-based studies and whether history of depression affects this association is unknown. METHODS: This study included 5479 women from the 1973-78 cohort of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health and estimated the association between pre-pregnancy PMS and PPD. Participants were followed from 22-27 years in 2000 to 37-42 years in 2015. PMS was collected from a 4-category Likert-scale reporting on frequency of PMS in the last 12 months (never, rarely, sometimes, or often) at the survey preceding an index birth. PPD was ascertained from reports of doctor diagnoses for each birth. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to estimate the association of interest. The role of history of depression was assessed by testing its interaction with pre-pregnancy PMS. RESULTS: During 15 years' follow-up, 15.4% of participating women reported PPD; and 55.1% reported PMS (rarely: 17.2%, sometimes: 25.7%, and often: 12.2%). Compared to women who had no PMS before pregnancy, those who rarely had PMS had similar risk of PPD (1.03, 0.82-1.30); whereas those who sometimes or often had PMS had significantly higher risk of PPD (1.31, 1.09-1.57 and 1.51, 1.22-1.87, respectively). History of depression did not affect the association. LIMITATIONS: PMS was self-reported. PMS severity was not collected. CONCLUSIONS: This large population-based study provides evidence of a dose-response relationship between PMS prior to pregnancy and PPD, independent of history of depression. Evidence to date suggests PMS has the potential to help identify women at increased risk of PPD before pregnancy.

Association between preconception cannabis use and risk of postpartum depression: Findings from an Australian longitudinal cohort.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Evidence suggests a positive association between cannabis use and depression however whether preconception cannabis use is associated with postpartum depression (PPD) remains unknown. This study examined the association using a longitudinal design. METHODS: Participants were from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (cohort born in 1989-95), a sample broadly representative of similarly aged Australian women. The association of past year cannabis use at 3-15 months prior to pregnancy with PPD at ages 19-24 to 22-27 was examined in 516 women with 570 singleton live births. The associations of chronicity, recency, and initiation of cannabis use before pregnancy with PPD at ages 21-26 to 24-29 were investigated in 538 women with 590 singleton live births. PPD was ascertained from self-report of doctor diagnosis for each birth. Relative risk (RR) and 95 % confidence interval (CI) were used to calculate the associations of interest. RESULTS: Compared with no cannabis use, any past-year cannabis use at 3-15 months before pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of PPD (1.50, 0.99-2.28). Compared with no cannabis use in the first three annual surveys before pregnancy, chronic use (a past year user in ≥ 2 surveys) was associated with an 80 % higher risk of incident PPD for births in the following 1-4 years (1.80, 1.22-2.68). Compared to never users at ages 20-25, former users who had no use within the past year had no increased risk; past year users had 73 % higher risk (1.73, 1.07-2.81); and past year users who initiated cannabis use at or after age 18 had twice the risk of incident PPD for births in the following 1-4 years (2.02, 1.17-3.49). CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that preconception cannabis use is associated with increased risk of PPD. More studies are warranted to confirm this finding before cannabis cessation policies can be reinforced on reducing the risk of PPD.

Effects of long-term acclimatization on the optimum substrate mixture ratio and substrate to inoculum ratio in anaerobic codigestion of food waste and cow manure.

The effects of long-term acclimatization on the optimum food waste to cow manure ratio (FW/CM) and substrate to inoculum ratio (S/I) in anaerobic codigestion with FW and CM were investigated by batch trials. For the unacclimated sludge, the highest CH4 yields of 646.6 and 653.4 mL/g VS were achieved under the optimum FW/CM (2.5 VS/VS) and S/I (0.07 VS/VS) ratios, respectively. After more than 550 days of acclimatization, the optimum FW/CM and S/I of the acclimated sludge were improved to 3.4 and 0.68 VS/VS with more anaerobic digestion enzymes and lignocellulose, respectively. Based on high-throughput sequencing analysis, the microbial community structures of bacteria, fungi, and archaea were changed, which was the main reason for the change in the optimum FW/CM and S/I. Therefore, the FW/CM and S/I should be periodically optimized during the long-term operation of codigestion to improve the codigestion efficiency for biogas production.

History of premenstrual syndrome and development of postpartum depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is thought to be a risk factor for postpartum depression (PPD), but results from studies examining the association have been mixed. OBJECTIVES: To estimate the association between pre-pregnancy history of PMS and development of PPD and evaluate the risk of bias of included evidence. SEARCH STRATEGY: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, CNKI, Wanfang Data, and reference lists of relevant papers were searched. SELECTION CRITERIA: Observational studies that collected pre-pregnancy history of PMS and measured PPD status between one week and one year after delivery were included. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: This study followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Random-effect models were used to calculate pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Small study effect was analysed by funnel plot. Risk of bias was assessed using the Risk of Bias Instrument for Non-Randomized Studies of Exposures (ROBINS-E). MAIN RESULTS: Our meta-analysis included 19 studies. Overall, women with a pre-pregnancy history of PMS had more than double the odds of PPD compared to those without PMS (OR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.81-2.68). However, the quality of evidence was low: five studies had moderate risk, eleven studies had serious risk, and three studies had critical risk of bias. CONCLUSIONS: Current evidence supports a significant association between history of PMS and development of PPD. Well-designed prospective studies are needed to further investigate this relationship.

A comparative study of artificial cow and sheep rumen fermentation of corn straw and food waste: Batch and continuous operation.

To optimize the artificial rumen microorganism sources and develop a stable artificial rumen system, batch and continuous operation were investigated with corn straw and food waste as substrates. The batch trials evaluated the volatile fatty acid (VFA) yield, biogas production, and lignocellulose degradation efficiency. The continuous test evaluated the performance of the artificial cow and sheep rumen systems using a dynamic membrane bioreactor (DMBR) with a stepwise organic loading rate at mesophilic temperature. The anaerobic digestion (AD) of the lignocellulose biomass after rumen fermentation pretreatment and of the permeate from the artificial rumen system were also evaluated for CH4 production. The results indicated that the cow rumen microorganisms were more suitable than sheep rumen microorganisms for lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment and maximized the CH4 yield through the AD process without inhibition. After approximately four months of continuous operation, a stable and continuous artificial rumen system for lignocellulosic biomass degradation was achieved with cow rumen fluid as inoculum. Based on analysis of the core lignocellulose-degrading enzyme levels and gel filtration chromatography, the cow rumen microorganisms could secrete more extracellular multienzyme complexes to hydrolyze lignocellulosic biomass than the sheep rumen microorganisms in vitro. During the batch and continuous operations, a high diversity and similar richness of bacteria and fungi demonstrated that the cow rumen microorganisms can be used as a preferred inoculum for the artificial rumen system. The use of an artificial cow rumen system with a DMBR is a promising way to construct a stable and continuous artificial rumen system to biodegrade lignocellulosic biomass for biogas production.

Stable and high-rate anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and cow manure: Optimisation of start-up conditions.

Food waste (FW) and cow manure (CM) were co-digested to achieve a stable and high-rate of methane production. The start-up conditions (substrate mixing (FW/CM) ratio, substrate to inoculum ratio, and initial pH) were optimised, and the optimised parameters were experimentally confirmed by batch operation under mesophilic temperatures. To further verify the effects of start-up conditions on the long-term co-digestion process, a semi-continuous dynamic membrane bioreactor was operated for over 300 days with an FW/CM ratio of 2.5. Following the optimised operation scheme, the organic loading rate gradually increased to 11.9 g COD/L/d. Thus, stable anaerobic co-digestion was maintained at FW/CM ratio of 2.5, and a high CH4 production of 2.71 L CH4/L/d and CH4 yield of 441 mL CH4/g VS was achieved. In the long-term operation, the digestate pH was stable at approximately 8.4, which indicated a very favourable anaerobic reaction condition without volatile fatty acid accumulation.

Acclimatization of anaerobic sludge with cow manure and realization of high-rate food waste digestion for biogas production.

Long-term acclimatization of anaerobic sludge was conducted by operating a mesophilic continuously stirred anaerobic reactor (CSTR) with continuous feeding of food wastes (FW) and cow manure (CM). During the long-term acclimatization, continued increase of enzyme activity was revealed, while the microbial structure tended stable as shown by the Shannon index and microbial community. By biomethane potential analysis, the acclimated sludge had a methane yield about 13 times higher than the initial anaerobic sludge. The acclimated sludge was subsequently used for FW digestion with stepwise organic loading rate increase without CM addition. The functional phyla of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria, which originated from CM but not very abundant, were significantly enriched not only during sludge acclimatization with CM addition but also in the process of FW digestion without CM addition. A microbe coexistence network was proposed to support an explanation of the metabolic pathways of FW digestion using the acclimated sludge.

Cosubstrate strategy for enhancing lignocellulose degradation during rumen fermentation in vitro: Characteristics and microorganism composition.

To enhance the degradation of wheat straw (WS) and corn straw (CS) in rumen fermentation, characterization of degradation and ruminal microorganisms of monosubstrate (WS/CS) groups and a cosubstrate strategy with food waste (FW) group was performed. The cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin degradation efficiency of WS and CS; soluble chemical oxygen demand; volatile fatty acid yields; and activity of ligninolytic, cellulolytic, and hemicellulolytic enzymes for the cosubstrate group were improved compared with those for the corresponding monosubstrate groups. An accurate and a good of fit of the Weibull kinetic model, decreased crystallinity index values, and characteristic absorbance bands in the Fourier transform-infrared spectra further confirmed that cosubstrate addition with FW decreased the resistance of cellulose and hemicellulose to biodegradation. High-throughput sequencing results suggested that the bacterial diversity in CS rumen fermentation and fungal diversity and richness in WS rumen fermentation were promoted with FW as a cosubstrate. The cosubstrate addition with FW significantly affected the composition of the ruminal bacteria and fungi in rumen fermentation. The relative abundances (RAs) of rumen bacteria were increased in the cosubstrate CS/WS and FW fermentation conditions, and the enhancement of CS degradation with FW supplementation was stronger than that of WS rumen fermentation with FW supplementation. The RAs of the ruminal fungal genera Ustilago and Fusarium were promoted in CS and WS fermentation with FW, respectively. Moreover, the fermentation properties and rumen flora in the FW rumen fermentation also provided some evidence to suggest an enhancement of the cosubstrate strategy compared with the monosubstrate strategy.

Persistent action of cow rumen microorganisms in enhancing biodegradation of wheat straw by rumen fermentation.

Rumen fermentation is known to be effective for lignocellulosic-wastes biodegradation to certain extent but it is still unclear if there exists a termination of the microorganisms' action to further degrade the bio-refractory fractions. In order to illuminate the related microbiological characteristics, experiments were conducted in a prolonged duration of rumen fermentation of mechanically ruptured wheat straw, with inoculation of cow rumen microorganisms in vitro. Although the organic wastes could not be biodegraded quickly, continuous conversion of the lignocellulosic contents to volatile fatty acids and biogas proceeded in the duration of more than three months, resulting in 96-97% cellulose and hemicellulose decomposition, and 42% lignin decomposition. X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy further demonstrated the characteristics of lignocellulosic structure decomposition. Under the actions of cow rumen microorganisms, stable pH was maintained in the fermentation liquid, along with a steady NH4+-N, volatile fatty acids accumulation, and a large buffering ability. It was identified by enzyme analysis and Illumina MiSeq sequencing that the rich core lignocellulolytic enzymes secreted by the abundant and diverse rumen bacteria and fungi contributed to the persistent degradation of lignocellulosic wastes. Members of the Clostridiales order and Basidiomycota phylum were found to be the dominant lignocellulolytic bacteria and fungi, respectively. It could thus be inferred that the main lignocellulose degradation processes were a series of catalytic reactions under the actions of lignocellulolytic enzymes secreted from bacteria and fungi. The dominant hydrogenotrophic methanogens (Methanomassiliicoccus, Methanobrevibacter, Methanosphaera, and Methanoculleus) in the rumen could also assist CH4 production if the rumen fermentation was followed with anaerobic digestion.

Cow manure as additive to a DMBR for stable and high-rate digestion of food waste: Performance and microbial community.

Cow manure (CM) was added to a dynamic membrane bioreactor (DMBR) operated under anaerobic condition for enhancing food waste (FW) digestion for over 300 days with stepwise increase of organic loading rates (OLRs) from 1.07 to 11.9 g COD/L/day. At a FW/CM ratio of 3.5:1 (based on volatile solids), the mixed liquor pH was always above 8.0 and no apparent volatile fatty acids (VFAs) accumulation occurred even at the highest OLR of 11.9 g COD/L/day (hydraulic retention time as 10 days and solid retention time as 15.5 days, correspondingly), indicating a very stable operation condition which resulted in an average CH4 yield as high as 250 mL/g COD and CH4 production as high as 2.71 L CH4/L/day. The hardly biodegradable organic components, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, were effectively degraded by 78.3%, 58.8%, and 47.5%, respectively. Significantly high anaerobic digestion reaction ratios, especially the hydrolysis ratio which is usually the limiting factor, were calculated based on experimental results. Furthermore, the high lignocellulase contents and coenzyme F420 levels, along with the decrease of cellulose crystallinity from 72.6% to 16.4% in the feedstock, provided strong evidence of an enhanced biological activity by CM addition. By high-throughput sequencing analysis, more abundant and diverse bacterial, archaeal, and fungal genera were identified from the DMBR sludge. With CM addition, the biodegradation of lignocellulose might have produced sufficient H2 and CO2 for the hydrogenotrophic methanogens such as Methanoculleus, Methanomassiliicoccus, and Methanobacterium, which were highly tolerant to ammonium inhibition, and then the elevated ammonium level would have provided high buffering capacity in the DMBR thus ensuring a stable condition for high rate FW digestion and CH4 production.

Life's Simple 7 and ischemic heart disease in the general Australian population.

BACKGROUND: The American Heart Association released 7 modifiable factors, Life's Simple 7, that are expected to improve cardiovascular health (CVH), but their contributions to ischemic heart disease (IHD) in the general Australians are not well clarified. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional study based on 7499 adults (≥18 years) who have tested for total cholesterol and fasting plasma glucose as part of 2011-12 Australian Health Survey. Poisson regression analyses were used to estimate the incidence rate ratios and population attributable fractions of those factors to IHD prevalence. Participants were classified into three CVH groups based on the number of ideal metrics: inadequate (0-2), average (3-4), and optimal (5-7). Logistic regression analyses were performed to elucidate the relationship between overall CVH and IHD prevalence. RESULTS: 357 participants were self-reported having IHD condition, with a weighted prevalence of 3.3%. Physical inactivity, elevated body mass index (BMI) and total cholesterol (TC) were independently associated with IHD. Compared to the inadequate category, participants in the optimal and average categories have a 78% [adjusted odds ratio (OR), 0.22; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.03-1.96] and a 45% (adjusted OR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.39-0.77) lower IHD risk. One more optimal metric was associated with an 18% lower IHD risk (adjusted OR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.71-0.93). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that physical inactivity, raised BMI and elevated TC were independent modifiable risk factors of IHD in the general Australian population. The improvement of overall CVH may also reduce IHD risk among the general Australian adults.

Effects of Exercise Intervention on Preventing Letrozole-Exposed Rats From Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a prevalent endocrinological disorder in reproductive-age women and is often associated with a metabolic syndrome. To investigate whether exercise intervention promotes PCOS prevention, a rat model was used. Polycystic ovary syndrome was induced by letrozole administration, and animals presented with obesity, sex hormone disorder, no ovulation, large cystic follicles, and increasing fasting insulin (FINS) and leptin levels. The intervention was set at 3 different intensities of swimming exercise: low (0.5 h/d), moderate (1 h/d), and high (2 h/d), and compared with a PCOS model group (letrozole administration without exercise intervention) and a control group. The exercise intervention in the low-intensity group did not produce changes in obesity, testosterone, progesterone (P), and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels. Moderate-intensity exercise reduced body weight, retained ovulation, and P levels were increased but remained lower than those in the control group. The FSH levels were significantly higher, and FINS and leptin levels were lower than in the model group ( P < 0.05) but not in the control group. The high-intensity group demonstrated the greatest effect of PCOS prevention. Testosterone, luteinizing hormone, FINS, and leptin levels were significantly lower in the high-intensity group, and FSH and P levels were higher compared with the model group. These results suggest that high-intensity exercise intervention can effectively prevent PCOS development.