Immunoglobulin free light chains as an inflammatory biomarker of heart failure with myocarditis.

Background: In this study, we measured immunoglobulin free light chains (FLC), a biomarker of inflammation in the sera of patients with heart failure due to myocarditis.

Methods: FLC kappa and FLC lambda were assayed in stored serum samples from patients with heart failure with myocarditis from the US myocarditis treatment trial by a competitive-inhibition multiplex Luminex® assay.

Results: The median concentration of circulating FLC kappa/lambda ratio was significantly lower in the sera from patients with heart failure with myocarditis than in healthy controls, and FLC kappa/lambda ratio had good diagnostic ability for identification of heart failure with myocarditis.

Nutrients in one-carbon metabolism and urinary arsenic methylation in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003-2004.

Exposure to inorganic arsenic (inAs), a potent toxicant, occurs primarily through ingestion of food and water. The efficiency with which it is methylated to mono and dimethyl arsenicals (MMA and DMA) affects toxicity. Folate, vitamins B12 and B6 are required for 1C metabolism, and studies have found that higher levels of these nutrients increase methylation capacity and are associated with protection against adverse health effects from inAs, especially in undernourished populations.

Reliability of a Kid's Activity and Nutrition Questionnaire for School-Based SNAP-Ed Interventions as Part of a Tiered Development Process.

Objective: To assess the reliability of the Kids' Activity and Nutrition Questionnaire (KAN-Q) as part of a tiered process for developing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education tools.

Methods: The KAN-Q was administered at 2 time points to assess internal consistency using standardized values of Cronbach α and test-retest reliability using the intraclass correlation coefficient for continuous variables, Cohen's kappa (κ) statistic for categorical variables, and the weighted κ statistic for ordinal data.

Results: Data were collected from 119 fourth graders.

Relation of dietary inorganic arsenic to serum matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) at different threshold concentrations of tap water arsenic.

Arsenic (As) exposure is associated with cancer, lung and cardiovascular disease, yet the mechanisms involved are not clearly understood. Elevated matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) levels are also associated with these diseases, as well as with exposure to water As. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of dietary components of inorganic As (iAs) intake on serum MMP-9 concentration at differing levels of tap water As.

Need for specific sugar-sweetened beverage lessons for fourth- and fifth-graders.

Objective: Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) is linked to obesity. The authors hypothesized that school-based nutrition education would decrease SSB consumption.

Design: Self-selected interventional cohort with random selection for pre and post measurements.