hnRNP L and NF90 interact with hepatitis C virus 5'-terminal untranslated RNA and promote efficient replication.

Unlabelled: The 5'-terminal sequence of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) positive-strand RNA genome is essential for viral replication. Critical host factors, including a miR-122/Ago2 complex and poly(rC)-binding protein 2 (PCBP2), associate with this RNA segment. We used a biotinylated RNA pulldown approach to isolate host factors binding to the HCV 5' terminal 47 nucleotides and, in addition to Ago2 and PCBP2, identified several novel proteins, including IGF2BP1, hnRNP L, DHX9, ADAR1, and NF90 (ILF3).

Evaluating the significance of delaying intravenous lipid therapy during the first week of hospitalization in the intensive care unit.

Background: The American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (A.S.P.

Who benefits from diabetes self-management interventions? The influence of depression in the Latinos en Control trial.

Background: Depressive symptoms are common among adults with diabetes. Depression and social support may influence diabetes self-management.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine change in depressive symptoms and the role of depression and support on clinical and dietary outcomes among Latinos with type 2 diabetes participating in a diabetes self-management intervention.

Weight loss motivations: a latent class analysis approach.

Objective: To identify subgroups of adults with respect to weight loss motivations and assess factors associated with subgroup membership.

Method: A cross-sectional survey among 414 overweight/ obese employees in 12 Massachusetts high schools was conducted. Latent class analysis (LCA) defined distinct weight loss motivation classes.

Severity of depressive symptoms and accuracy of dietary reporting among obese women with major depressive disorder seeking weight loss treatment.

An elevation in symptoms of depression has previously been associated with greater accuracy of reported dietary intake, however this association has not been investigated among individuals with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. The purpose of this study was to investigate reporting accuracy of dietary intake among a group of women with major depressive disorder in order to determine if reporting accuracy is similarly associated with depressive symptoms among depressed women. Reporting accuracy of dietary intake was calculated based on three 24-hour phone-delivered dietary recalls from the baseline phase of a randomized trial of weight loss treatment for 161 obese women with major depressive disorder.

Co-immunoprecipitation of Flag-TLR3 or Myc-MSR1 with HCV RNA.

Co-immunoprecipitation assay of TLR3-Flag or Myc-MSR1 with HCV RNA is used to identify direct interaction of viral RNA with host proteins that recognize viral RNA to initiate interferon (IFN) signaling, a crucial antiviral response of the host cells. Both Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) and class-A scavenger receptor type 1 (MSR1) proteins recognize viral double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) which may be released into the extracellular milieu or spread from HCV-infected cells to uninfected neighbor cells via cell-to-cell contact, resulting in IFN-β activation that restricts viral propagation. We have found that MSR1 binds extracellular dsRNA, mediating its endocytosis and transport toward the endosome where it is engaged by TLR3, thereby triggering IFN responses in both infected and uninfected cells.

Evolution of a cell culture-derived genotype 1a hepatitis C virus (H77S.2) during persistent infection with chronic hepatitis in a chimpanzee.

Unlabelled: Persistent infection is a key feature of hepatitis C virus (HCV). However, chimpanzee infections with cell culture-derived viruses (JFH1 or related chimeric viruses that replicate efficiently in cell culture) have been limited to acute-transient infections with no pathogenicity. Here, we report persistent infection with chronic hepatitis in a chimpanzee challenged with cell culture-derived genotype 1a virus (H77S.

Development and validation of the Lifestyle Self-Efficacy Scale for Latinos with Diabetes (LSESLD).

Objectives: To develop and validate a self-efficacy measure of diabetes self-management, the Lifestyle Self-Efficacy Scale for Latinos with Diabetes (LSESLD), designed for low-income, Spanish-speaking Latinos with diabetes.

Design: Quantitative and qualitative methods.

Setting: Community health centers in central and western Massachusetts.

Weight gain prevention in the school worksite setting: results of a multi-level cluster randomized trial.

Objective: To describe the effectiveness, reach and implementation of a weight gain prevention intervention among public school employees.

Method: A multi-level intervention was tested in a cluster randomized trial among 782 employees in 12 central Massachusetts public high schools from 2009 to 2012. The intervention targeted the nutrition and physical activity environment and policies, the social environment and individual knowledge, attitudes and skills.

Peek-a-boo: membrane hijacking and the pathogenesis of viral hepatitis.

Historically, animal viruses have been classified on the basis of the presence or absence of an envelope - an external lipid bilayer membrane typically carrying one or more viral glycoproteins. However, growing evidence indicates that some 'non-enveloped' viruses circulate in the blood of infected individuals enveloped in host-derived membranes that provide protection from neutralizing antibodies. In this opinion article, we discuss this novel strategy for virus survival and consider how it contributes to the pathogenesis of acute viral hepatitis.

Cognitive impairment and self-care in heart failure.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a prevalent chronic disease in older adults that requires extensive self-care to prevent decompensation and hospitalization. Cognitive impairment may impact the ability to perform HF self-care activities. We examined the association between cognitive impairment and adherence to self-care in patients hospitalized for acute HF.

Loss of immune escape mutations during persistent HCV infection in pregnancy enhances replication of vertically transmitted viruses.

Globally, about 1% of pregnant women are persistently infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Mother-to-child transmission of HCV occurs in 3-5% of pregnancies and accounts for most new childhood infections. HCV-specific CD8(+) cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are vital in the clearance of acute HCV infections, but in the 60-80% of infections that persist, these cells become functionally exhausted or select for mutant viruses that escape T cell recognition.

microRNA-122 abundance in hepatocellular carcinoma and non-tumor liver tissue from Japanese patients with persistent HCV versus HBV infection.

Mechanisms of hepatic carcinogenesis in chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C are incompletely defined but often assumed to be similar and related to immune-mediated inflammation. Despite this, several studies hint at differences in expression of miR-122, a liver-specific microRNA with tumor suppressor properties, in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) associated with hepatitis B virus (HBV) versus hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Differences in the expression of miR-122 in these cancers would be of interest, as miR-122 is an essential host factor for HCV but not HBV replication.

Beverage-consumption patterns and associations with metabolic risk factors among low-income Latinos with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes.

In the United States, Latinos experience disproportionately higher rates of type 2 diabetes and diabetes-related complications than non-Latino whites. Sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption is strongly associated with increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Reducing caloric intake, particularly from energy-dense, low-nutrient foods or beverages, can be an effective and key strategy for metabolic and weight control.

Mechanisms of HCV-induced liver cancer: what did we learn from in vitro and animal studies?

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a cause of liver diseases that range from steatohepatitis, to fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The challenge of understanding the pathogenesis of HCV-associated liver cancer is difficult as most standard animal models used in biomedical research are not permissive to HCV infection. Herein, we provide an overview of a number of creative in vivo, mostly in the mouse, and in vitro models that have been developed to advance our understanding of the molecular and cellular effects of HCV on the liver, specifically with their relevance to HCC.

miR-122 and the Hepatitis C RNA genome: more than just stability.

MicroRNA-122 (miR-122) plays a key role in hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication, but understanding exactly how it functions in the viral lifecycle has been elusive. HCV is a positive-strand virus with a messenger-sense RNA genome, to which miR-122 binds in a non-canonical fashion at two sites near the 5' end. Recent studies show that miR-122 recruits Ago-2 to the genomic RNA, stabilizing it and slowing its decay in infected cells.

Class A scavenger receptor 1 (MSR1) restricts hepatitis C virus replication by mediating toll-like receptor 3 recognition of viral RNAs produced in neighboring cells.

Persistent infections with hepatitis C virus (HCV) may result in life-threatening liver disease, including cirrhosis and cancer, and impose an important burden on human health. Understanding how the virus is capable of achieving persistence in the majority of those infected is thus an important goal. Although HCV has evolved multiple mechanisms to disrupt and block cellular signaling pathways involved in the induction of interferon (IFN) responses, IFN-stimulated gene (ISG) expression is typically prominent in the HCV-infected liver.

Municipal officials' perceived barriers to consideration of physical activity in community design decision making.

Context: Built environment-focused interventions and policies are recommended as sustainable approaches for promoting physical activity. Physical activity has not traditionally been considered in land use and transportation decision making. Effective collaboration with non-public health partners requires knowledge of their perceived barriers to such consideration.

Roles and strategies of state organizations related to school-based physical education and physical activity policies.

School-based physical education (PE) and physical activity (PA) policies can improve PA levels of students and promote health. Studies of policy implementation, communication, monitoring, enforcement, and evaluation are lacking. To describe how states implement, communicate, monitor, enforce, and evaluate key school-based PE and PA policies, researchers interviewed 24 key informants from state-level organizations in 9 states, including representatives from state departments of health and education, state boards of education, and advocacy/professional organizations.

A pathogenic picornavirus acquires an envelope by hijacking cellular membranes.

Animal viruses are broadly categorized structurally by the presence or absence of an envelope composed of a lipid-bilayer membrane, attributes that profoundly affect stability, transmission and immune recognition. Among those lacking an envelope, the Picornaviridae are a large and diverse family of positive-strand RNA viruses that includes hepatitis A virus (HAV), an ancient human pathogen that remains a common cause of enterically transmitted hepatitis. HAV infects in a stealth-like manner and replicates efficiently in the liver.

Liver injury and disease pathogenesis in chronic hepatitis C.

Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a leading cause of liver-specific morbidity and mortality in humans, including progressive liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. It has also been associated with altered function in other organs, including those of the endocrine, hematopoietic, and nervous systems. Disease results from both direct regulation of cellular metabolism and signaling pathways by viral proteins as well as indirect consequences of the host response to HCV infection, including inflammatory responses stemming from immune recognition of the virus.

Randomized controlled trial of behavioral treatment for comorbid obesity and depression in women: the Be Active Trial.

Objective: Depression is associated with increased risk for obesity and worse weight loss treatment outcomes. The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that delivering evidence-based behavior therapy for depression before a lifestyle weight loss intervention improves both weight loss and depression.

Design: In a randomized controlled trial, obese women with major depressive disorder (N=161, mean age=45.