Greater effect of diet than exercise training on the fatty acid profile of rat skeletal muscle

We determined the interaction of diet and exercise-training intensity on membrane phospholipid fatty acid (FA) composition in skeletal muscle from 36 female Sprague-Dawley rats. Animals were randomly divided into one of two dietary conditions: high-carbohydrate (64.0% carbohydrate by energy, n = 18) or high fat (78.1% fat by energy, n = 18). Rats in each diet condition were then allocated to one of three subgroups: control, which performed no exercise training; low-intensity (8 m/min) treadmill run training; or high-intensity (28 m/min) run training. All exercise-trained rats ran 1,000 m/session, 4 days/wk for 8 wk and were killed 48 h after the last training bout. Membrane phospholipids were extracted, and FA composition was determined in the red and white vastus lateralis muscles, Diet exerted a major influence on phospholipid FA composition, with the high-fat diet being associated with a significantly (P < 0.01) elevated ratio of n-6/n-3 FA for both red (2.7-3.2 vs. 1.0-1.1) and white vastus lateralis muscle (2.5-2.9 vs. 1.2). In contrast, alterations in FA composition as a result of either exercise-training protocol were only minor in comparison. We conclude that, under the present experimental conditions, a change in the macronutrient content of the diet was a more potent modulator of skeletal muscle membrane phospholipid FA composition compared with either low- or high-intensity treadmill exercise training.

Hyperaccumulation of zinc by Noccaea caerulescens results in a cascade of stress responses and changes in the elemental profile

Noccaea caerulescens (J. & C. Presl) F. K. Meyer is a metal hyperaccumulating plant which can accumulate more than 2% zinc (Zn) dry tissue mass in its aerial tissues. At this concentration Zn is toxic to most plants due to inhibition of enzyme function, oxidative damage and mineral deficiencies. In this study the elemental and metabolite profiles of N. caerulescens plants grown in four different Zn concentrations were measured. This revealed broad changes in the metabolite and elemental profiles with the hyperaccumulation of Zn. The Zn treated plants exhibited no typical signs of stress such as chlorosis or reduced biomass, however, a range of metabolic stress responses, such as the modification of galactolipids and the major membrane lipids of plastids, and increases in oxylipins, which are precursors to the signalling molecules jasmonic and abscisic acids, as well as the increased synthesis of glucosinolates, was observed. Increases in particular organic acids and the ubiquitous metal cation chelator nicotianamine were also observed. The small molecule metabolite changes observed, however, did not account for the extreme Zn concentrations in the leaf tissue showing that the increase in nicotianamine production most likely negates Fe deficiency. The elemental analyses also revealed significant changes in other essential micronutrients, in particular, significantly lower Mn concentrations in the high Zn accumulating plants, yet higher Fe concentrations. This comprehensive elemental and metabolite analysis revealed novel metabolite responses to Zn and offers evidence against organic acids as metal-storage ligands in N. caerulescens. © 2014 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

First-time offender, productive offender, offender with dependents: why the profile of offenders (sometimes) matters in sentencing

Should a single mother of four young children who commits theft be sentenced to a lesser sanction than a woman who commits the same crime but has no dependents? Should a billionaire philanthropist be sentenced to a lesser penalty than the average citizen for assaulting a random bystander? Should a first-time thief receive a lighter sanction than a career thief for the same theft? The relevance of an offender’s profile to sentencing is unclear and is one of the most under-researched and least coherent areas of sentencing law. Intuitively, there is some appeal in treating offenders without a criminal record, those who have made a positive contribution to society, or who have dependents more leniently than other offenders. However, to allow these considerations to mitigate penalty potentially licenses offenders to commit crime and decouples the sanction from the severity of the offense, thereby undermining the proportionality principle. This article analyzes the relevance that an offender’s profile should have in sentencing. We conclude that a lack of prior convictions should generally reduce penalty because the empirical data shows that, in relation to most offenses, first-time offenders are less likely to reoffend than recidivist offenders. The situation is more complex in relation to offenders who have made worthy social contributions. They should not be given sentencing credit for past achievements given that past good acts have no relevance to the proper objectives of sentencing and it is normally not tenable, even in a crude sense, to make an informed assessment of an individual’s overall societal contribution. However, offenders should be accorded a sentencing reduction if they have financial or physical dependents and if imprisoning them is likely to cause harm to their dependents. Conferring asentencing discount to first-time offenders and those withdependents does not license them to commit crime or unjustifiablyencroach on the proportionality principle. Rather, it recognizes thedifferent layers of the legal system and the reality that sentencinglaw should not reflexively overwhelm broader maxims of justice,including the principle that innocent people should not suffer. Thisarticle argues that fundamental legislative reform is necessary toproperly reflect the role that the profile of offenders should have inthe sentencing regime.

Mental health service delivery : a profile of mental health non-government organisations in south-east Queensland, Australia.

Non-government organisations make a substantial contribution to the provision of mental health services; despite this, there has been little research and evaluation targeted at understanding the role played by these services within the community mental health sector. The aim of the present study was to examine the depth and breadth of services offered by these organisations in south-east Queensland, Australia, across five key aspects of reach and delivery.

A dietary guideline adherence score is positively associated with dietary biomarkers but not lipid profile in healthy children

BACKGROUND: Whether dietary indexes are associated with biomarkers of children's dietary intake is unclear. OBJECTIVE: The study aim was to examine the relations between diet quality and selected plasma biomarkers of dietary intake and serum lipid profile. METHODS: The study sample consisted of 130 children aged 4-13 y (mean ± SD: 8.6 ± 2.9 y) derived by using baseline data from an intervention study. The Dietary Guideline Index for Children and Adolescents (DGI-CA) comprises the following 11 components with age-specific criteria: 5 core food groups, whole-grain bread, reduced-fat dairy foods, discretionary foods (nutrient poor; high in saturated fat, salt, and added sugar), healthy fats/oils, water, and diet variety (possible score of 100). A higher score reflects greater compliance with dietary guidelines. Venous blood was collected for measurements of serum lipids, fatty acid composition, plasma carotenoids, lutein, lycopene, and α-tocopherol. Linear regression was used to examine the relation between DGI-CA score (independent variable) and concentrations of biomarkers by using the log-transformed variable (outcome), controlling for confounders. RESULTS: DGI-CA score was positively associated (P < 0.05) with plasma concentrations of lutein (standardized β = 0.17), α-carotene (standardized β = 0.28), β-carotene (standardized β = 0.26), and n-3 (ω-3) fatty acids (standardized β = 0.51) and inversely associated with plasma concentrations of lycopene (standardized β = -0.23) and stearic acid (18:0) (standardized β = -0.22). No association was observed between diet quality and α-tocopherol, n-6 fatty acids, or serum lipid profile (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Diet quality, conceptualized as adherence to national dietary guidelines, is cross-sectionally associated with plasma biomarkers of dietary exposure but not serum lipid profile. This trial was registered with the Australia New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry (www.anztr.org.au) as ACTRN12609000453280.

The health profile of people living with Parkinson's Disease managed in a comprehensive care setting

Background: Globally there are few reports of the impairments, disabilities and medications used in people living with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease. Caregiver characteristics and caregiver burden have seldom been reported. We examined the health status in a large cohort of people living with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers managed in a comprehensive health care setting.

Methods/Design: A prospective, cross sectional analysis of impairments, disabilities and Parkinson’s disease medication use was conducted in a sample of 100 people with Parkinson’s disease rated I-IV on the modified Hoehn & Yahr scale. Participants were recruited from the Victorian Comprehensive Parkinson Program in Melbourne, Australia. Their caregivers were invited to provide their views on the burden of care, services provided and support received.

Results: The severity of impairments and disabilities was strongly associated with disease duration (mean of 5.5 years). Those with long standing disease or more severe disease also used more Parkinson’s disease medications and participated in fewer social roles than people who were newly diagnosed or mildly affected. The severity of impairments was strongly correlated with limitations in performing activities of daily living. Limitations in performing daily activities were also found to be a significant contributing factor for health-related quality of life (PDQ-39 SI β=0.55, p=0.000; EQ-5D SI β=0.43, p=0.001). People with Parkinson’s disease lived at home with relatives. The average caregiver was a spouse or child providing approximately 3.5 hours of care per day, with the capacity to provide 9.4 hours per day and had provided care for four years. Additional support was high (63%) for 2.5 hours per day.

Conclusion: The comprehensive care setting of this cohort describes a relatively benign condition despite a wide range of disease duration and severity. This report provides a baseline with which to compare other delivery models.