Temporal patterns of physical activity in successful weight loss maintainers.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Individuals successful at weight loss maintenance engage in high amounts of physical activity (PA). Understanding how and when weight loss maintainers accumulate PA within a day and across the week may inform PA promotion strategies and recommendations for weight management. METHODS: We compared patterns of PA in a cohort of weight loss maintainers (WLM, n = 28, maintaining ≥13.6 kg weight loss for ≥1 year, BMI 23.6 ± 2.3 kg/m2), controls without obesity (NC, n = 30, BMI similar to current BMI of WLM, BMI 22.8 ± 1.9 kg/m2), and controls with overweight/obesity (OC, n = 26, BMI similar to pre-weight loss BMI of WLM, 33.6 ± 5.1 kg/m2). PA was assessed during 7 consecutive days using the activPALTM activity monitor. The following variables were quantified; sleep duration, sedentary time (SED), light-intensity PA (LPA), moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA (MVPA), and steps. Data were examined to determine differences in patterns of PA across the week and across the day using mixed effect models. RESULTS: Across the week, WLM engaged in ≥60 min of MVPA on 73% of days, significantly more than OC (36%, p < 0.001) and similar to NC (59%, p = 0.10). Across the day, WLM accumulated more MVPA in the morning (i.e., within 3 h of waking) compared to both NC and OC (p < 0.01). WLM engaged in significantly more MVPA accumulated in bouts ≥10 min compared to NC and OC (p < 0.05). Specifically, WLM engaged in more MVPA accumulated in bouts of ≥60 min compared to NC and OC (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: WLM engage in high amounts of MVPA (≥60 min/d) on more days of the week, accumulate more MVPA in sustained bouts, and accumulate more MVPA in the morning compared to controls. Future research should investigate if these distinct patterns of PA help to promote weight loss maintenance.

Decreased placental folate transporter expression and activity in first and second trimester in obese mothers.

Obese women have an approximately twofold higher risk to deliver an infant with neural tube defects (NTDs) despite folate supplementation. Placental transfer of folate is mediated by folate receptor alpha (FR-α), proton coupled folate transporter (PCFT), and reduced folate carrier (RFC). Decreased placental transport may contribute to NTDs in obese women. Serum folate levels were measured and placental tissue was collected from 13 women with normal BMI (21.9±1.9) and 11 obese women (BMI 33.1±2.8) undergoing elective termination at 8-22 weeks of gestation. The syncytiotrophoblast microvillous plasma membranes (MVM) were isolated using homogenization, magnesium precipitation, and differential centrifugation. MVM expression of FR-α, PCFT and RFC was determined by western blot. Folate transport capacity was assessed using radiolabeled methyl-tetrahydrofolate and rapid filtration techniques. Differences in expression and transport capacity were adjusted for gestational age and maternal age in multivariable regression models. P<.05 was considered statistically significant. Serum folate levels were not significantly different between groups. Placental MVM folate transporter expression did not change with gestational age. MVM RFC (-19%) and FR-α (-17%) expression was significantly reduced in placentas from obese women (P<.05). MVM folate transporter activity was reduced by-52% (P<.05) in obese women. These differences remained after adjustment for gestational age. There was no difference in mTOR signaling between groups. In conclusion, RFC and FR alpha expression and transporter activity in the placental MVM are significantly reduced in obese women in early pregnancy. These results may explain the higher incidence of NTDs in infants of obese women with adequate serum folate.

Time Course of C-Reactive Protein and Procalcitonin Levels During the Treatment of Acute Bacterial Skin Infections.

In a pilot study of 22 patients with an acute bacterial skin infection, serum levels of C-reactive protein and procalcitonin tended to be elevated at presentation and declined within 3-5 days of treatment. Further study of a biomarker-guided treatment strategy to reduce antibiotic overuse in skin infections is warranted.