Validation of self-reported diagnosis of diabetes in the 1946 British birth cohort.

The aim of this study was to validate self-reported diabetes and age at diagnosis among a sample of the British population, using general practitioners (GPs) as the reference standard. Using data from the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD), self-reported diabetes was determined either in response to a direct question at five follow-ups between 1977 and 2010, or from other self-reported medical information. A validation questionnaire was sent to the GP for all participants who reported a diagnosis of diabetes and gave permission to contact their GP (172).

Skin pigmentation, sun exposure and vitamin D levels in children of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children.

Background: It has been hypothesised that light skin pigmentation has arisen to ensure adequate levels of vitamin D as human populations moved out of Africa and into higher latitudes. Vitamin D, which is primarily obtained through exposure to sunlight (specifically ultraviolet radiation B (UVR-B)), has been inversely associated with several complex diseases. Greater sun exposure, on the other hand, is a well-known cause of skin cancer.

The use of botulinum toxin injections to manage drooling in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease: a systematic review.

Difficulty in managing oral secretions is commonly experienced by patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)/motor neurone disease (MND) and associated bulbar weakness including dysphagia. There are no definitive evidence-based treatment guidelines to manage the distressing symptom of drooling. We reviewed the evidence for the effectiveness of botulinum toxin injections to reduce saliva in ALS/MND.

Physical activity across adulthood in relation to fat and lean body mass in early old age: findings from the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development, 1946-2010.

Fat and lean body mass have important implications for health and physical functioning in older age, and physical activity is purported to be an important modifiable determinant. However, our evidence-based understanding of its role is limited. We examined the associations of physical activity, assessed both by self-report (using data on leisure time physical activity (LTPA) collected on 4 occasions over a 28-year period) and objectively (using 5-day heart rate and movement monitoring), with fat and lean mass at ages 60-64 years in 1,162 British participants from the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development in 1946-2010.

Estimation of insecticide persistence, biological activity and mosquito resistance to PermaNet® 2 long-lasting insecticidal nets over three to 32 months of use in Ethiopia.

Background: Information is needed on the expected durability of insecticidal nets under operational conditions. The persistence of insecticidal efficacy is important to estimate the median serviceable life of nets under field conditions and to plan for net replacement.

Methods: Deltamethrin residue levels were evaluated by the proxy method of X-ray fluorescence spectrometry on 189 nets used for three to six months from nine sites, 220 nets used for 14-20 months from 11 sites, and 200 nets used for 26-32 months from ten sites in Ethiopia.

Hypercaloric enteral nutrition in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a fatal neurodegenerative disease with few therapeutic options. Mild obesity is associated with greater survival in patients with the disease, and calorie-dense diets increased survival in a mouse model. We aimed to assess the safety and tolerability of two hypercaloric diets in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis receiving enteral nutrition.

Socioeconomic position across life and body composition in early old age: findings from a British birth cohort study.

Background: Previous studies have reported associations between lower lifetime socioeconomic position (SEP) and higher body mass index in adulthood, but few have examined associations with direct measures of fat and lean mass which are likely to have independent roles in health and physical functioning.

Methods: We examined associations of SEP across life with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry measures of fat and lean mass at 60-64 years using data from a total of 1558 men and women participating in the Medical Research Council (MRC) National Survey of Health and Development. We also examined whether associations of childhood SEP with fat and lean mass were explained by preadulthood weight gain (birth weight, 0-7 and 7-20 years) and adult SEP.

Weakness, SR function and stress in gastrocnemius muscles of aged male rats.

Aging is associated with a decline in muscle force that exceeds loss of muscle mass, suggesting that factors other than sarcopenia affect age-related muscle weakness. Here, we investigate in situ muscle force and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) properties in gastrocnemius muscles of adult (6-8 months) and aged (24 months) rats. Despite minimal loss of muscle mass, peak tetanic force was significantly reduced (-28%) in aged muscles.

Attention, predictive learning, and the inverse base-rate effect: evidence from event-related potentials.

We report the first electrophysiological investigation of the inverse base-rate effect (IBRE), a robust non-rational bias in predictive learning. In the IBRE, participants learn that one pair of symptoms (AB) predicts a frequently occurring disease, whilst an overlapping pair of symptoms (AC) predicts a rarely occurring disease. Participants subsequently infer that BC predicts the rare disease, a non-rational decision made in opposition to the underlying base rates of the two diseases.

Maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D and its association with childhood atopic outcomes and lung function.

Background: It has been suggested that maternal vitamin D status in pregnancy influences the risk of asthma and atopy in the offspring. The epidemiological evidence to support these claims is conflicting and may reflect chance findings and differences in how vitamin D was assessed.

Objective: To examine the association between blood total maternal 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations in pregnancy and offspring asthma, atopy and lung function in the largest birth cohort study to date.

Unrecognized vitamin D3 deficiency is common in Parkinson disease: Harvard Biomarker Study.

Objective: To conclusively test for a specific association between the biological marker 25-hydroxy-vitamin D3, a transcriptionally active hormone produced in human skin and liver, and the prevalence and severity of Parkinson disease (PD).

Methods: We used liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry to establish an association specifically between deficiency of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D3 and PD in a cross-sectional and longitudinal case-control study of 388 patients (mean Hoehn and Yahr stage of 2.1 ± 0.

Chromatin immunoprecipitation and deep sequencing in Xenopus tropicalis and Xenopus laevis.

Chromatin immunoprecipitation and deep sequencing (ChIP-SEQ) represents a powerful tool for identifying the genomic targets of transcription factors, chromatin remodeling factors, and histone modifications. The frogs Xenopus laevis and Xenopus tropicalis have historically been outstanding model systems for embryology and cell biology, with emerging utility as highly accessible embryos for genome-wide studies. Here we focus on the particular strengths and limitations of Xenopus cell biology and genomics as they apply to ChIP-SEQ, and outline a methodology for ChIP-SEQ in both species, providing detailed strategies for sample preparation, antibody selection, quality control, sequencing library preparation, and basic analysis.

Recovering the spectrum of a low level signal from two noisy measurements using the cross power spectral density.

The article describes a method for estimating the spectrum or RMS value of a low-level signal corrupted by noise. If two identical sensors can be employed simultaneously and the additive noise sources are uncorrelated, the cross power spectrum can recover the power spectrum of the underlying signal. When using the Welch method to estimate the cross power spectrum, the estimation process is shown to be biased but consistent, with a variance that is inversely proportional to the number of data sets.

Adolescent peer choice and cigarette smoking: evidence of active gene-environment correlation?

Both peer groups and genetics have been associated with adolescent smoking behavior. Recently, Loehlin (Loehlin, J. C.

Body mass index, occupational activity, and leisure-time physical activity: an exploration of risk factors and modifiers for knee osteoarthritis in the 1946 British birth cohort.

Background: Knee osteoarthritis (kOA) risk is increased by obesity and physical activities (PA) which mechanically stress the joint. We examined the associations of midlife kOA with body mass index (BMI) and activity exposure across adult life and their interaction.

Methods: Data are from a UK birth cohort of 2597 participants with a clinical assessment for kOA at age 53.

Interrogating transcriptional regulatory sequences in Tol2-mediated Xenopus transgenics.

Identifying gene regulatory elements and their target genes in vertebrates remains a significant challenge. It is now recognized that transcriptional regulatory sequences are critical in orchestrating dynamic controls of tissue-specific gene expression during vertebrate development and in adult tissues, and that these elements can be positioned at great distances in relation to the promoters of the genes they control. While significant progress has been made in mapping DNA binding regions by combining chromatin immunoprecipitation and next generation sequencing, functional validation remains a limiting step in improving our ability to correlate in silico predictions with biological function.

A review of complications associated with the surgical treatment of vulvar cancer.

Objective: The mainstay of treatment for most vulvar malignancies is surgery to the vulva with lymphadenectomy to the inguino-femoral areas, plus radiotherapy or/and chemotherapy for locally advanced, or recurrent disease. Treatment is associated with significant physical, sexual, and psychological morbidity. The high morbidity rate has resulted in a continuing shift in treatment paradigms that focus on treatments that reduce morbidity without compromising cure rates.

Physical durability of PermaNet 2.0 long-lasting insecticidal nets over three to 32 months of use in Ethiopia.

Background: Ethiopia scaled up net distribution markedly starting in 2006. Information on expected net life under field conditions (physical durability and persistence of insecticidal activity) is needed to improve planning for net replacement. Standardization of physical durability assessment methods is lacking.

Cueing an unresolved personal goal causes persistent ruminative self-focus: an experimental evaluation of control theories of rumination.

Background And Objectives: Control theory predicts that the detection of goal discrepancies initiates ruminative self-focus (Martin & Tesser, 1996). Despite the breadth of applications and interest in control theory, there is a lack of experimental evidence evaluating this prediction. The present study provided the first experimental test of this prediction.

Birth weight and growth from infancy to late adolescence in relation to fat and lean mass in early old age: findings from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development.

Objective: High birth weight and greater weight gain in infancy have been associated with increased risk of obesity as assessed using body mass index, but few studies have examined associations with direct measures of fat and lean mass. This study examined associations of birth weight and weight and height gain in infancy, childhood and adolescence with fat and lean mass in early old age.

Subjects: A total of 746 men and 812 women in England, Scotland and Wales from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development whose heights and weights had been prospectively ascertained across childhood and adolescence and who had dual energy X-ray absorptiometry measures at age 60-64 years.