Does inflammation mediate the association between obesity and hearing status in mid-childhood and mid-life?

Background: Obesity is characterized by heightened inflammation, and both phenotypes are associated with hearing loss. We aimed to determine if inflammation mediates the associations between obesity and hearing ability in mid-childhood and mid-life.

Methods: Participants: 1165 11- to 12-year-old children and 1316 parents in the population-based cross-sectional Child Health CheckPoint within the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children.

High-Density Amplicon Sequencing Identifies Community Spread and Ongoing Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in the Southern United States.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is constantly evolving. Prior studies focused on high-case-density locations, such as the northern and western metropolitan areas of the United States. This study demonstrates continued SARS-CoV-2 evolution in a suburban southern region of the United States by high-density amplicon sequencing of symptomatic cases.

Recommendations for using standardised phenotypes in genetic association studies.

Genetic association studies of complex traits often rely on standardised quantitative phenotypes, such as percentage of predicted forced expiratory volume and body mass index to measure an underlying trait of interest (eg lung function, obesity). These phenotypes are appealing because they provide an easy mechanism for comparing subjects, although such standardisations may not be the best way to control for confounders and other covariates. We recommend adjusting raw or standardised phenotypes within the study population via regression.