Msh2-Msh3 DNA-binding is not sufficient to promote trinucleotide repeat expansions in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Mismatch repair (MMR) is a highly conserved DNA repair pathway that recognizes mispairs that occur spontaneously during DNA replication and coordinates their repair. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Msh2-Msh3 and Msh2-Msh6 initiate MMR by recognizing and binding insertion deletion loops (in/dels) up to ∼ 17 nucleotides (nt.) and base-base mispairs, respectively; the two complexes have overlapping specificity for small (1-2 nt.

Machine Learning and Augmented Intelligence Enables Prognosis of Type 2 Diabetes Prior to Clinical Manifestation.

Background: The global incidence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) persists at epidemic proportions. Early diagnosis and/or preventive efforts are critical to attenuate the multi-systemic clinical manifestation and consequent healthcare burden. Despite enormous strides in the understanding of pathophysiology and on-going therapeutic development, effectiveness and access are persistent limitations.

Exosomes; a Potential Source of Biomarkers, Therapy, and Cure for Type-1 Diabetes.

The scourge of type-1 diabetes (T1D) is the morbidity and mortality it and its complications cause at a younger age. This propels the constant search for better diagnostic, treatment, and management strategies, with the ultimate quest being a cure for T1D. Recently, the therapeutic potential of exosomes has generated a lot of interest.

The impact of Emblica Officinalis (Amla) on lipid profile, glucose, and C-reactive protein: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background And Aims: Emblica Officinalis (Amla) is a plant often utilized in traditional medicine due to its purported anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, and hypolipidemic properties. However, current evidence regarding its potential for preventing and treating metabolic abnormalities associated with chronic diseases remains unclear.

Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to examine the effects of Amla supplementation on lipid profile, glucose, and C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations in adults.

Rapid transition from in-person to videoconferencing psychotherapy in a counselor training clinic: A safety and feasibility study during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many counselor training clinics rapidly transitioned in-person (IP) services to videoconferencing psychotherapy (VCP). Because VCP is a relatively new technology, more research is needed to establish whether this delivery format is a safe and acceptable substitute for IP services in counselor training clinics. The purpose of this study is to explore questions related to how clients perceive VCP versus IP in terms of credibility and expectancy.

The Interaction Between Dietary Total Antioxidant Capacity and MC4R Gene and HOMA-IR in Metabolically Healthy and Unhealthy Overweight and Obese Women.

Introduction: The current prevalence of the metabolically healthy obesity is about 3%. Genetic and nutrition are influencers of such phenotypes. The main goal of this study was to assess the interaction between Dietary Total Antioxidant Capacity (DTAC) and the genotypes of MC4R and Insulin resistance in metabolically healthy/unhealthy overweight and obese women in Iran.

The Association Between Dietary Diversity Score and Odds of Diabetic Nephropathy: A Case-Control Study.

A dietary diversity score (DDS) may be a useful strategy for monitoring risks associated with chronic diseases. Few studies have investigated the relationship between DDS and the progression to chronic kidney disease (CKD). A better understanding of the relationship between DDS and diabetic nephropathy (DN) may provide insight for monitoring the overall diet and clinical outcomes.

Elevated Plasma Concentrations of Vitamin D-Binding Protein Are Associated with Lower High-Density Lipoprotein and Higher Fat Mass Index in Overweight and Obese Women.

(1) Observational studies have established that vitamin D-binding protein (DBP) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations are the major factors affecting the bioavailability of 25(OH)D. It has also been shown that poor 25(OH)D bioavailability elevates the risk of obesity and its related cardio-metabolic disorders. However, the relationship between 25(OH)D and DBP concentrations with cardio-metabolic risk factors in overweight and obese cohorts has not been established.

The negative relationship of dietary inflammatory index and sleeping quality in obese and overweight women.

: Substantial evidence have linked low grade inflammation with the pathophysiology of chronic diseases and psychological impairment. An integral component underlying the link is pro-inflammatory diet. While sleeping is another significant contributor, few studies have addressed the relationship between the sleep quality and inflammatory cascade with the dietary quality as a moderator.

Association of vitamin D-binding protein and vitamin D with insulin and homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR) in overweight and obese females.

Objective: Equivocal association the contribution of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and the well-accepted role of vitamin D-binding protein (VDBP) on bioavailability of 25(OH)D or its independent roles, has led to possible association of the VDBP in glucose metabolism. This study was conducted to evaluate the relationships among 25(OH)D, VDBP, glucose/insulin metabolism and homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-IR). Blood samples were collected from 236 obese and overweight women.

The interaction between dietary approaches to stop hypertension and MC4R gene variant in predicting cardiovascular risk factors.

: The genetic variants near the melanocortin-4 receptor gene (MC4R), a key protein regulating energy balance and adiposity, have been related to obesity and cardiovascular risk factors. However, qualitative and quantitative aspects of diet may modulate the association of this polymorphism with obesity and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). The aim of this study was to evaluate interactions among MC4R rs17782313, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet and risk factors for CVDs.

Training in metabolomics research. II. Processing and statistical analysis of metabolomics data, metabolite identification, pathway analysis, applications of metabolomics and its future.

Metabolomics, a systems biology discipline representing analysis of known and unknown pathways of metabolism, has grown tremendously over the past 20 years. Because of its comprehensive nature, metabolomics requires careful consideration of the question(s) being asked, the scale needed to answer the question(s), collection and storage of the sample specimens, methods for extraction of the metabolites from biological matrices, the analytical method(s) to be employed and the quality control of the analyses, how collected data are correlated, the statistical methods to determine metabolites undergoing significant change, putative identification of metabolites and the use of stable isotopes to aid in verifying metabolite identity and establishing pathway connections and fluxes. This second part of a comprehensive description of the methods of metabolomics focuses on data analysis, emerging methods in metabolomics and the future of this discipline.

Surrounding community residents' expectations of HOPE VI for their community, health and physical activity.

Using a community-engaged participatory research approach, this study identified surrounding community residents' expectations for how a HOPE VI housing initiative might affect their community and individual health and physical activity. Fifty-nine women and men engaged in concept mapping, which is a mixed methods approach, where participants generate, sort, and rate ideas. Participants generated 197 unique statements.

Training in metabolomics research. I. Designing the experiment, collecting and extracting samples and generating metabolomics data.

Metabolomics is perhaps the most challenging of the -omics fields, given the complexity of an organism's metabolome and the rapid rate at which it changes. When one sets out to study metabolism there are numerous dynamic variables that can influence metabolism that must be considered. Recognizing the experimental challenges confronting researchers who undertake metabolism studies, workshops like the one at University of Alabama at Birmingham have been established to offer instructional guidance.

Training in metabolomics research. I. Designing the experiment, collecting and extracting samples and generating metabolomics data.

The study of metabolism has had a long history. Metabolomics, a systems biology discipline representing analysis of known and unknown pathways of metabolism, has grown tremendously over the past 20 years. Because of its comprehensive nature, metabolomics requires careful consideration of the question(s) being asked, the scale needed to answer the question(s), collection and storage of the sample specimens, methods for extraction of the metabolites from biological matrices, the analytical method(s) to be employed and the quality control of the analyses, how collected data are correlated, the statistical methods to determine metabolites undergoing significant change, putative identification of metabolites and the use of stable isotopes to aid in verifying metabolite identity and establishing pathway connections and fluxes.

Setting Adolescents Up for Success: Promoting a Policy to Delay High School Start Times.

Background: A unique biological shift in sleep cycles occurs during adolescence causing later sleep and wake times. This shift is not matched by a concurrent modification in school start times, resulting in sleep curtailment for a large majority of adolescents. Chronic inadequate sleep is associated with poor academic performance including executive function impairments, mood, and behavioral issues, as well as adverse health outcomes such as an increased risk of obesity, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

Overweight adolescents with type 2 diabetes have significantly higher lipoprotein abnormalities than those with type 1 diabetes.

Aim: Diabetes-associated glucoregulatory derangements may precipitate atherogenesis in childhood and CVD risk, particularly with obesity. We aimed to delineate lipoprotein profile differences between children with type 1 and 2 diabetes who are overweight/obese.

Methods: Data were obtained from electronic medical records of patients ≥85th BMI percentile with type 1 (n=159) and type 2 (n=77) diabetes, ages 12-19y.

Pediatric obesity prevention: From naïve examination of energy imbalance towards strategies that influence the competition for nutrient resources among tissues.

Current pediatric obesity interventions have collectively yielded relatively unsuccessful results. In this Field of Vision, we present plausible physiologic underpinnings fostering ineffectiveness of conventional strategies grounded in requisite induction of negative energy imbalance. Moreover, such recommendations exacerbate the underlying metabolic dysfunction by further limiting metabolic fuel availability, lowering energy expenditure, and increasing hunger (recapitulating the starvation response amid apparent nutritional adequacy) which precede and promote obesity during growth and development.

Circulating levels of fibroblast growth factor-21 increase with age independently of body composition indices among healthy individuals.

Background: Circulating FGF21 levels are commonly elevated in disease states. There is limited information regarding concentrations of circulating FGF21 in the absence of disease, as well as age-related differences in body composition that may contribute to FGF21 regulation across groups.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to assess FGF21 levels across age groups (childhood to elder adulthood), and investigate whether body composition indices are associated with age-related differences in circulating FGF21.

Feasibility, acceptability, and characteristics associated with adherence and completion of a culturally relevant internet-enhanced physical activity pilot intervention for overweight and obese young adult African American women enrolled in college.

Background: African American women are one of the least active demographic groups in the US, with only 36% meeting the national physical activity recommendations in comparison to 46% of White women. Physical activity begins to decline in African American women in adolescence and continues to decline into young adulthood. Yet, few interventions have been developed to promote physical activity in African American women during this critical period of life.

Bone Mineral Content as a Driver of Energy Expenditure in Prepubertal and Early Pubertal Boys.

Objective: To examine the associations of bone and bone-secreted factors with measures of energy metabolism in prepubertal and early pubertal boys.

Study Design: Participants in this cross-sectional, observational study included 37 (69% black, 31% white) boys, aged 7-12 years (Tanner stage View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Associations of fibroblast growth factor-23 with markers of inflammation, insulin resistance and obesity in adults.

Introduction: Elevated fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF23) is an established marker of cardiovascular disease. The underlying reason(s) for the rise accompanying cardiovascular health decline are unclear. Prior studies have shown that FGF23 concentrations are associated with markers of inflammation and insulin resistance but they have been limited by a focus on persons with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and lack of race and sex diversity.