Latent profiles of the feeding practices of caregivers of rural children with overweight and obesity and associations with child eating behaviors.

Previous research has shown that food parenting practices, which vary within the context of sociocultural factors, are associated with child weight, eating behaviors, and body dissatisfaction. While parents typically engage in multiple food parenting practices, few studies have examined what subgroups or combinations of food parenting practices are associated with child health outcomes and sociocultural factors. The current study examined profiles of food parenting practices among school-age children with overweight/obesity (OW/OB) from rural communities and examined how they may be associated with sociocultural factors, child-eating habits, and health outcomes. The study included 270 children with OW/OB aged 8-12 (Mage = 10.36 years) and their caregivers. Caregivers completed a measure assessing perceptions of their feeding practices and sociocultural questionnaires. Children completed measures assessing disordered eating habits, weight control behaviors, and body dissatisfaction. Weight status was measured for caregivers and children with height and weight measurements. Latent variable mixture modeling (LVMM) was conducted. Three profiles emerged: (a) Lower Parental Involvement, (b) Higher Parental Involvement, and (c) Mixed Parental Involvement. Lower family income and non-White child race were related to membership in the "Higher Parental Involvement" profile. After controlling for income and child race, children in the "Mixed Parental Involvement" profile reported significantly higher body dissatisfaction than children in the "Lower Parental Involvement" profile. There are subgroups of caregivers of rural children with OW/OB that demonstrate various patterns of parent feeding practices, and these subgroups differ by income, race, and child body dissatisfaction. Future research should consider how caregiver-specific feeding practices may impact child eating behaviors and their body image development, as well as the impact cultural factors may have on parent feeding practices.

Eating behaviors and dietary quality in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors.

BACKGROUND: Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) survivors' increased risk for adverse health outcomes could be mitigated through consuming a balanced diet. Nonetheless, >70% of adult survivors do not meet survivorship dietary recommendations. ALL treatment may amplify risk for restricted dietary preferences (picky eating) and poor self-regulation of food intake that could contribute to suboptimal diets in survivorship. This study aims to: (a) characterize differences in picky eating and self-regulation of food intake between survivors and peer controls; and (b) examine the associations between these eating behaviors and dietary quality in ALL survivors relative to peer controls. METHODS: Participants were children (5-13 years) with (n = 32) and without (n = 32) a history of ALL and their caregivers. Children's dietary quality (Healthy Eating Index-2015) was calculated from 24-h dietary recalls. Caregivers completed the Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire-Food Fussiness subscale and the Child Self-Regulation in Eating Questionnaire. RESULTS: Independent samples t-tests revealed survivors exhibited greater picky eating than peer controls but comparable self-regulation of food intake. Bootstrapped grouped multivariate regression results showed that for ALL survivors, greater picky eating was associated with worse dietary quality (controlling for age and self-regulation of food intake). For peer controls, worse self-regulation of food intake was associated with poorer dietary quality (controlling for picky eating and age). CONCLUSIONS: Results provide preliminary support that different eating behaviors contribute to poor dietary quality in children with and without an ALL history. These findings suggest that interventions to improve ALL survivors' dietary quality may benefit targeting picky eating.

Predictive role of renal resistive index for clinical outcome after revascularization in hypertensive patients with atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis: a monocentric observational study.

BACKGROUND: The present study evaluated the predictive value of renal resistive index (RI) for renal function and blood pressure (BP) outcome in hypertensive patients with unilateral atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis submitted to successful revascularization. METHODS: In 158 hypertensive patients with atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis RI was acquired. Twelve months after revascularization, they were classified on the basis of renal function and BP outcome as benefit (BP < 140/90 mmHg or diastolic BP reduction > 15 mmHg with the same of reduced drugs; decrease in glomerular filtration rate > 20%), or failure. RESULTS: Regarding renal function outcome, RI in the stenotic and in the contralateral kidney were significantly higher in patients with failure (n = 20) than in those with benefit (0.72 ± 0.11 vs 0.61 ± 0.11 and 0.76 ± 0.08 vs 0.66 ± 0.09, p < 0.05). Among different cutpoints generated, RI in the contralateral kidney >0.73 provided the largest area under the curve (0.77), and the highest sensitivity (80%) and specificity (72%). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, RI in the contralateral kidney >0.73 was an independent predictor of a failure in renal function outcome.Regarding BP outcome, patients with no benefit from revascularization (n = 60) had similar RI in the stenotic and contralateral kidney (p = ns), but presented higher pulse pressure, albuminuria and hypertension duration in comparison to patients with improved BP control. CONCLUSIONS: RI in the contralateral kidney is an independent predictor of renal function outcome after successful revascularization in hypertensive patients with unilateral atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis, whereas it is not able to predict blood pressure outcome.

Anti-Pythium insidiosum activity of MSI-78, LL-37, and magainin-2 antimicrobial peptides.

We investigated the anti-Pythium insidiosum activity of the antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) MSI-78, LL-37, and magainin-2. To detect the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), fourteen clinical strains were incubated with the AMPs following the CLSI M38-A2 protocol. All three AMPs showed antimicrobial activity with an MIC range of 20-80 mg/L against all strains. We concluded that the evaluated AMPs have great potential as anti-Pythium insidiosum agents, and their activity deserves to be more explored in further research. Antimicrobial peptides were tested against Pythium insidiosum, a microorganism that causes a difficult-to-treat disease in animals and humans. These peptides have been shown to be able to kill P. insidiosum and may be candidates for use in the treatment of this infection.

In vitro activity of the antimicrobial peptides h-Lf1-11, MSI-78, LL-37, fengycin 2B, and magainin-2 against clinically important bacteria.

We investigated the antibacterial activity of the antimicrobial peptides h-Lf1-11, MSI-78, LL-37, fengycin 2B, and magainin-2. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined by microdilution technique according to CLSI (M07-A9, 2012) against Escherichia coli, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Acinetobacter baumannii. The MSI-78 showed potent bactericidal activity with MIC range of 1.25-40 mg/L against all bacterial strains. The h-Lf1-11, magainin-2, and LL-37 exhibited moderate activity (MIC range of 40-160, 80-160, and 40-160 mg/L, respectively) while the fengycin 2B did not show significant activity against all bacterial strains tested. These results revealed that MSI-78, h-Lf1-11, magainin-2, and LL-37 have great potential as antibacterial agents and their activity deserves to be more explored in further studies for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Investigation of powerful fungicidal activity of tetra-cationic platinum(II) and palladium(II) porphyrins by antimicrobial photodynamic therapy assays.

This manuscript reports enhanced antimicrobial photoinactivation using tetra-cationic porphyrins with peripheral platinum(II) and palladium(II) complexes against fungal dermatophyte strains. Six different positively charged porphyrins were used and applied in antimicrobial photodynamic therapy experiments (aPDT) against dermatophyte fungi colonies. The microbiological tests were conducted with an adequate concentration of photosensitizer (PS) under white-light irradiation for 120 min and the most effective PS meta isomer 3PtP significantly reduced the concentration of viable fungal colony. In this way, tetra-cationic porphyrins containing platinum(II)-bipyridyl complexes may be promising fungicidal aPDT agents with potential applications in future clinical cases.

Meta-analysis of lifestyle modification interventions addressing overweight and obesity in preschool-age children.

OBJECTIVE: Increased rates of pediatric obesity extend into early childhood. There have been increasing calls for intervention programs specifically designed to address obesity in preschool-age youth. A review of the literature is critical to guide intervention and future research. The objective of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials examining the efficacy of lifestyle modification interventions to address overweight and obesity in preschool-age children. METHOD: Six electronic databases were searched for articles through December 8, 2020. After screening articles for inclusion criteria, 14 articles with 12 randomized, controlled trials (41 effect sizes, 2,525 participants) were included in this meta-analysis. Weighted-standardized mean differences for body mass index-related variables were calculated using random-effects models to estimate effect sizes. Risk of bias assessment was conducted. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant impact of the interventions on child weight outcomes. Cohen's d was .32 (95% CI [.09, .55]). The quality of evidence was assigned a "low" GRADE rating. CONCLUSIONS: Lifestyle modification interventions for overweight and obesity in preschool-age children produce small but significant changes in child weight status. However, few new trials have been published in the last 5 years and the quality of evidence in this area is low, limiting confidence in the estimates and the power to examine potential moderator effects. Additional quality, randomized, control trials that report study information consistent with consort guidelines, use intent-to-treatment procedures, assess and report health behaviors and treatment adherence to explore mechanisms of change, and examine sustained effects of interventions are needed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Subjective social status in adolescents with asthma: Psychosocial and physical health outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: Asthma prevalence and morbidity are disproportionately higher among youth with lower socioeconomic status (SES). Examination of subjective social status (SSS) may improve understanding of associations between SES and health outcomes in pediatric asthma. METHOD: Fifty adolescents with asthma (Mage = 13.2 years, SD = 1.23; 54% male; 55.1% African American) completed the MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status-Youth Version, Daily Life Stressors Scale, Children's Depression Inventory-Short Form, Adolescent Sleep-Wake Scale-short version, and Asthma Control Test during the baseline visit of a study of health behaviors. Body mass index z scores (BMIz) were calculated using height and weight obtained during the visits. Hierarchical linear regressions examined associations between SSS and psychosocial and physical health outcomes, controlling for caregiver-reported objective SES. RESULTS: Caregiver-reported objective SES was not associated with adolescent SSS. SSS-society was associated with daily stress (b = -3.14), t(47) = -2.13, p = .033; asthma control (ß = .34, p = .045); BMIz (ß = .38, p = .013); and sleep quality (ß = .49, p = .001). SSS-community was associated with daily stress (b = -3.76), t(46) = -3.07, p = .002, and sleep quality (ß = .36, p = .010). SSS was not associated with depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents' SSS may not always reflect caregiver's objective SES. Perceived social status may play a role in the experience of daily stress, asthma control, BMIz, and sleep quality among adolescents with asthma. SSS may offer a novel means of assessing health disparities in pediatric asthma. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

SRC/ABL inhibition disrupts CRLF2-driven signaling to induce cell death in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Children with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) overexpressing the CRLF2 gene (hiCRLF2) have poor prognosis. CRLF2 protein overexpression leads to activated JAK/STAT signaling and trials are underway using JAK inhibitors to overcome treatment failure. Pre-clinical studies indicated limited efficacy of single JAK inhibitors, thus additional pathways must be targeted in hiCRLF2 cells. To identify additional activated networks, we used single-cell mass cytometry to examine 15 BCP-ALL primary patient samples. We uncovered a coordinated signaling network downstream of CRLF2 characterized by co-activation of JAK/STAT, PI3K, and CREB pathways. This CRLF2-driven network could be more effectively disrupted by SRC/ABL inhibition than single-agent JAK or PI3K inhibition, and this could be demonstrated even in primary minimal residual disease (MRD) cells. Our study suggests SCR/ABL inhibition as effective in disrupting the cooperative functional networks present in hiCRLF2 BCP-ALL patients, supporting further investigation of this strategy in pre-clinical studies.

Does soil fauna like truffles just as humans do? One-year study of biodiversity in natural brûlés of Tuber aestivum Vittad.

There are numerous aspects related to Tuber species, which have not been explored to date. Tuber aestivum Vitt. is an ectomycorrhizal fungus, that produces an area (called brûlé) around the host plant trunk, where the germination of other plants is inhibited. What happens inside this particular environment is still not sufficiently understood, especially in terms of soil fauna. A previous work showed that there were higher microarthropod abundances outside during the period of maximum activity of the mycelium. The genus Folsomia (Isotomidae Family; Order Collembola) showed higher abundance inside. The aim of this paper is to investigate the effects of brûlé, on soil parameters and soil fauna, during the annual biological cycle of T. aestivum. This study was carried out in nine spontaneous brûlés situated in Northern Italy (Emilia Romagna Region - Piacenza Province). Soil cores were collected in order to perform soil chemical and biological analysis. Moisture content, pH, organic matter content, total organic carbon were analyzed. Biodiversity and soil quality indices were applied. We found higher pH, lower carbon and organic matter content within the brûlé. Soil fauna community also showed some differences, seasonal and inside vs outside the brûlé. Some groups seem to be negatively affected by Tuber while Folsomia genus recorded almost always higher values inside. These results suggest that some organisms, such as some Collembola, might find a favorable environment inside the brûlé, while others - a negative one. However, these results should be compared by other analysis either on other Tuber species and on other soil organisms, such as nematodes and earthworms.

Effect of oral contraceptives on endothelial function in the peripheral microcirculation of healthy women.

OBJECTIVES: We assessed whether third-generation oral contraceptive (OC) treatment (30 microg ethinylestradiol + 75 microg gestodene daily) could affect the endothelial function of healthy women. METHODS: In 20 young healthy women (HW) and 10 hypercholesterolemic women (CW) we assessed forearm blood flow (strain-gauge plethysmography) changes induced by the intrabrachial infusion of acetylcholine (ACH) (0.15-15 microg/100 ml forearm tissue/min) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) (1-4 microg/100 ml forearm tissue/min). ACH was repeated during the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor intra-arterial NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA) (100 microg/100 ml forearm tissue/min) or the antioxidant vitamin C (8 mg/100 ml forearm tissue/min). HW repeated the protocol after 6-month OC (n = 10) or placebo (n = 10) treatment. RESULTS: In HW the maximal vasodilation to ACH, similar between placebo and OC subgroups, was significantly reduced in CW (P < 0.01). Vasodilation to ACH was blunted (P < 0.01) by L-NMMA and unaffected by vitamin C, in both OC and placebo groups. In CW the vasodilation to ACH, not modified by L-NMMA, was improved by vitamin C (P < 0.01). OC treatment raised (P < 0.01) plasma total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and values were similar to those shown by CW. Both OC and placebo intake did not change the response to ACH and the modulation induced by L-NMMA or vitamin C. Vasodilation to SNP was similar in all groups. CONCLUSIONS: In HW 6-month treatment with third-generation OC, although associated with an abnormal lipid profile, does not adversely affect endothelium-dependent vasodilation. This neutral effect could be the balance between a deleterious effect of hypercholesterolemia and a protective effect of OC on endothelial function.

Contrast-Enhanced Doppler Ultrasound of Renal Artery Stenosis: Prologue to a Promising Future.

Over the past few years, there has been extensive research for a reliable, noninvasive, and nonionizing imaging method to screen for renal artery stenosis (RAS). Doppler ultrasound (US) is one of many modalities that have been evaluated for the detection of RAS. The lack of standardization in examination protocols and diagnostic criteria, as well as the wide differences in reported accuracy among different laboratories, however, have prevented universal acceptance of this technique as a reliable screening test for RAS. Recently, the introduction of US contrast agents has substantially expanded the potentials of color Doppler US. The use of microbubble echo enhancers in combination with harmonic Doppler imaging has been shown to improve diagnostic confidence by improving the operator's ability to visualize the renal arteries, and to significantly reduce the number of equivocal examinations. In addition, contrast-enhanced harmonic Doppler US can currently provide objective functional assessment of RAS through analysis of time-intensity renal enhancement curve. State-of-the-art contrast-enhanced Doppler US seems to have the potential to become a useful screening test for patients at risk from renovascular hypertension and a tool for follow-up of patients who undergo revascularization procedures.

Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition improves vascular endothelial dysfunction in a rat model of endotoxic shock: role of inducible nitric-oxide synthase and oxidative stress.

We investigated whether cyclooxygenase (COX) isoforms (COX-1 and COX-2) and decreased NO availability contribute to endothelial dysfunction in endotoxemic rats. The involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was also evaluated. Rats were injected with Salmonella-derived lipopolysaccharide or saline. After 6 h, endothelial function of mesenteric resistance arteries was evaluated. In controls, acetylcholine (ACh)-induced relaxation was inhibited by the nitric-oxide synthase inhibitor N(G)-monomethyl-l-arginine (l-NMMA) and unaffected by 5,5-dimethyl-3-(3-fluorophenyl)-4-(4-methylsulphonyl)-phenyl-2(5H)-furanone (DFU) (COX-2 inhibitor). In lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated rats, the response to ACh was blunted compared with controls, less sensitive to l-NMMA, and enhanced by DFU. COX-2 blockade also improved the inhibitory effect of l-NMMA on cholinergic relaxation. SC-560 [5-(4-clorophenyl)-1-(4-metoxyphenyl)-3-trifluoromethylpirazole] (COX-1 inhibitor) did not modify the response to ACh in both groups. LPS-induced endothelial dysfunction was unaffected by the thromboxane A(2) (TxA(2)) receptor antagonist SQ-29548 (7-[3-[[2-[(phenylamino)carbonyl]hydrazino]methyl]-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1] hept-2-yl]-[1S(1alpha,2alpha(Z),3alpha,4alpha)]-5-heptenoic acid). In vivo inducible nitric-oxide synthase (iNOS) inhibition by S-methylisothiourea partly attenuated LPS-induced endothelial dysfunction. The antioxidants ascorbic acid and superoxide dismutase normalized endothelium-dependent relaxation and restored the inhibitory action of l-NMMA on ACh. Responses to sodium nitroprusside were similar in both groups. In LPS-treated rats, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction showed a marked increase in mesenteric iNOS and COX-2 expressions, whereas endothelial nitric-oxide synthase and COX-1 were unchanged. LPS-induced COX-2 overexpression was reduced but not abrogated by S-methylisothiourea. LPS-induced COX-2 up-regulation was also documented by immunohistochemistry. In conclusion, mesenteric resistance vessels from endotoxemic rats show impaired endothelial function due to reduced NO availability, a condition that is partly ascribable to an iNOS-dependent enhanced COX-2 expression, whereas TxA(2) does not seem to be involved. Oxidative stress is the main mechanism responsible for reduced NO availability, and COX-2 might act as a source of ROS.

Predictive factors of in-stent restenosis in renal artery stenting: a retrospective analysis.

PURPOSE: To retrospectively evaluate the role of clinical and procedural factors in predicting in-stent restenosis in patients with renovascular disease treated by renal artery stenting. METHODS: From 1995 to 2002, 147 patients underwent renal artery stenting for the treatment of significant ostial atherosclerotic stenosis. Patients underwent strict clinical and color-coded duplex ultrasound follow-up. Ninety-nine patients (111 stents), with over 6 months of continuous follow-up (mean 22+/-12 months, range 6-60 months), were selected and classified according to the presence (group A, 30 patients, 32 lesions) or absence (group B, 69 patients, 79 lesions) of significant in-stent restenosis. A statistical analysis was performed to identify possible preprocedural and procedural predictors of restenosis considering the following data: sex, age, smoking habit, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, serum creatinine, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, renal artery stenosis grade, and stent type, length and diameter. RESULTS: Comparing group A and B patients (chi(2) test), a statistically significant relation was demonstrated between stent diameter and length and restenosis: the risk of in-stent restenosis decreased when the stent was >/=6 mm in diameter and between 15 and 20 mm in length. This finding was confirmed by multiple logistic regression analysis. Stent diameter and length were proved to be significantly related to in-stent restenosis also when evaluating only patients treated by Palmaz stent (71 stents). CONCLUSION: Although it is based on a retrospective analysis, the present study confirms the importance of correct stent selection in increasing long-term patency, using stents of at least 6 mm in diameter and with a length of approximately 15-20 mm.