Review
Nutrition & Dietetics
Lihchyun Joseph Su, Tung-Chin Chiang, Sarah N. O'Connor
Summary: Brown rice is considered a healthier alternative to white rice, but it contains higher levels of arsenic and pesticide contaminants. The potential health risks and benefits of consuming more brown rice than white rice are still unclear, so mainstream nutritional messaging should not favor brown rice over white rice. This mini-review aims to provide consumers with evidence of both the risks and benefits of consuming more brown rice, with a focus on recent findings. Despite the challenges in assessing risk-benefit in nutrition, researchers should continue to validate findings and strengthen the evidence. In the meantime, consumers should be aware that the concentration of arsenic, which determines its toxicity, is greater in brown rice than in white rice.
FRONTIERS IN NUTRITION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Anne E. Nigra, Katherine A. Moon, Miranda R. Jones, Tiffany R. Sanchez, Ana Navas-Acien
Summary: The study found an association between urinary arsenic levels and heart disease mortality, especially for low-to moderate-levels of iAs exposure. Despite a limited number of events and a relatively short follow-up time, the flexible dose-response models demonstrated significant associations.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
MD. Rokonuzzaman, Zh Ye, C. Wu, Wc Li
Summary: The occurrence of arsenic in groundwater and its accumulation in rice grains is a global health concern. This study found that utilizing alternate wetting and drying (AWD) irrigation with temporarily stored groundwater (TSG) can effectively reduce arsenic content in rice grains. The research also highlights the importance of irrigation management and rice variety selection in minimizing arsenic accumulation in rice grains.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kohsuke Shirakawa, Motoaki Sano
Summary: Advances in secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases have greatly improved prognosis, but CVDs remain a leading cause of global mortality, warranting a re-evaluation of cardiovascular risk and optimal therapy. Inflammation, pro-thrombotic factors, and gene mutations have emerged as potential therapeutic targets for CVDs, with recent studies suggesting the possibility of anti-inflammatory therapy. Osteopontin (OPN) has shown dual roles in cardiovascular pathology, with acute increases having protective effects and chronic increases predicting a poor prognosis, highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Giovanni Cimmino, Francesco S. S. Loffredo, Gennaro De Rosa, Plinio Cirillo
Summary: Inflammation plays a crucial role in the development of atherosclerosis and its thrombotic complications. Anti-inflammatory agents, such as colchicine, have shown promising results in improving cardiovascular outcomes. Colchicine, an ancient plant-derived drug, has been used to treat inflammatory diseases and is now being recognized for its potential effects in cardiovascular diseases. This review provides an overview of its anti-inflammatory mechanisms, its potential role in atherothrombosis, and an updated summary of clinical evidence in cardiovascular disease.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Yue He, Ting Zhang, Yu Sun, Xuejing Wang, Qingqing Cao, Zhigang Fang, Ming Chang, Qingsheng Cai, Laiqing Lou
Summary: The study showed that exogenous plant hormone IAA has a significant impact on the growth of rice and the accumulation of As, promoting rice growth and reducing As accumulation in rice grains.
JOURNAL OF PLANT GROWTH REGULATION
(2022)
Review
Microbiology
Eric M. Brown, Jon Clardy, Ramnik J. Xavier
Summary: Metabolites from commensal gut microbes have significant impacts on host health through immune recognition and modulation of various metabolic pathways. The gut microbiota plays a dual role in transforming and synthesizing lipids, as well as breaking down dietary lipids to generate secondary metabolites with host regulatory properties. Recent research has highlighted the signaling activities of lipids, which have potential effects on host health and physiology. This review focuses on the functions of bioactive lipids in mammalian physiology, with a particular emphasis on immunity and metabolism.
CELL HOST & MICROBE
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Jiao Luo, Jesper Qvist Thomassen, Borge G. Nordestgaard, Anne Tybjaerg-Hansen, Ruth Frikke-Schmidt
Summary: This study investigated the associations between neutrophil counts and nine cardiovascular endpoints using observational and genetic approaches. The results showed that high neutrophil counts were associated with an increased risk of all cardiovascular outcomes. Genetic studies also supported this finding. No robust associations were found for other types of leukocytes in the two-sample MR analysis.
EUROPEAN HEART JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Julia I. P. van Heck, Ranko Gacesa, Rinke Stienstra, Jingyuan Fu, Alexandra Zhernakova, Hermie J. M. Harmsen, Rinse K. Weersma, Leo A. B. Joosten, Cees J. Tack
Summary: The gut microbiome in patients with type 1 diabetes is altered and associated with glycemic control and diabetes-related complications. Factors such as HbA(1c) and disease duration play a significant role in the variation of the gut microbiome, while micro- and macrovascular complications also contribute to this variation.
Review
Immunology
Haixia Zhang, Ke Yang, Feng Chen, Qianqian Liu, Jingyu Ni, Weilong Cao, Yunqing Hua, Feng He, Zhihao Liu, Lan Li, Guanwei Fan
Summary: This article describes the mechanisms of action of the CCL2-CCR2 axis in cardiovascular diseases and explores its potential as a targeted therapy.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Immunology
Wei Yu, Iqra Ilyas, Xuerui Hu, Suowen Xu, Hui Yu
Summary: Paeoniflorin, a bioactive monomer extracted from P. lactiflora Pall., has shown anti-atherosclerosis effects by regulating inflammation and immune-related pathway dysfunction in vascular endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, and other cells. It has the potential to be a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of atherosclerosis and its complications.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Yustina M. Puspitasari, Stefano Ministrini, Lena Schwarz, Caroline Karch, Luca Liberale, Giovanni G. Camici
Summary: The improvements in healthcare services and quality of life are leading to a longer life expectancy, resulting in a larger population of elderly individuals who are more susceptible to age-related cardiovascular diseases. Inflammation has been recognized as a key factor in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases, suggesting that inflamm-aging could potentially be a driver of age-related cardiovascular afflictions and a viable therapeutic target.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Matthew C. Reid, Maria P. Asta, Lily Falk, Scott C. Maguffin, Vu Hoai Cong Pham, Hoang Anh Le, Rizlan Bernier-Latmani, Phu Le Vo
Summary: This study conducted a survey in the Mekong Delta and found no relationship between rice arsenic concentration and speciation with soil levels, but a strong correlation was observed between rice and groundwater arsenic concentrations. The study hypothesizes that surficial sediments with high concentrations of arsenic may serve as sources of arsenic to downgradient shallow aquifers.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Cong-Lin Liu, Xin Liu, Yuanyuan Zhang, Jing Liu, Chongzhe Yang, Songyuan Luo, Tianxiao Liu, Yunzhe Wang, Jes S. Lindholt, Axel Diederichsen, Lars M. Rasmussen, Marie Dahl, Galina K. Sukhova, Guanyi Lu, Gilbert R. Upchurch, Peter Libby, Junli Guo, Jinying Zhang, Guo-Ping Shi
Summary: Blood eosinophil count and ECP are associated with cardiovascular diseases, and eosinophils have been found to accumulate in AAA lesions. Eosinophil deficiency exacerbates AAA growth, while eosinophils play a protective role by releasing IL4 and cationic proteins to regulate macrophage and monocyte polarization and block NF-kappa B activation in aortic inflammatory and vascular cells.
CIRCULATION RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Craig S. Miller, Richard J. Kryscio, Amy L. Doneen, Bradley F. Bale
Summary: This study observed a link between dental infection and circulating levels of inflammation, suggesting that oral infection could be a risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Pediatrics
Sandra Brooks, Barbara D. Friedes, Frances Northington, Ernest Graham, Aylin Tekes, Vera J. Burton, Gwendolyn Gerner, Jie Zhu, Raul Chavez-Valdez, Dhananjay Vaidya, Allen D. Everett
Summary: This multicenter observational study aimed to determine the association between gestational age and day of life with the serum concentration of brain injury-associated biomarkers in non-brain injured neonates. The results showed that BDNF and IL-8 concentrations varied with gestational age, while VEGF and interleukin concentrations were dynamic in the first week of life. Adjusting for gestational age and day of life is important for the accurate assessment of clinical brain injury in neonates.
PEDIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Erin O. Semmens, Cindy S. Leary, Annette L. Fitzpatrick, Sindana D. Ilango, Christina Park, Claire E. Adam, Steven T. DeKosky, Oscar Lopez, Anjum Hajat, Joel D. Kaufman
Summary: This study found that long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) air pollution may increase the risk of dementia, particularly mixed vascular and Alzheimer's disease dementia.
ALZHEIMERS & DEMENTIA
(2023)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Arunkumar Krishnan, Tinsay A. Woreta, Dhananjay Vaidya, Yisi Liu, James P. Hamilton, Kelvin Hong, Alia Dadabhai, Michelle Ma
Summary: The study compared the ability of MELD and MELD-Na to predict mortality after TIPS and found that MELD outperformed MELD-Na in predicting mortality. Additionally, the study found that MELD-Na had a good predictive ability for overall mortality in cirrhotic patients.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL HEPATOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Joshua Ra, Matt T. T. Oberdier, Masahito Suzuki, Dhananjay Vaidya, Yisi Liu, Rozann Hansford, Diana McVeigh, Valeria Weltin, Susumu Tao, David R. Thiemann, Saman Nazarian, Henry R. Halperin
Summary: This study found that non-MRI-conditional ICDs appropriately treated detected tachyarrhythmias after MRI, and no serious adverse effects on device function were reported.
ANNALS OF INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Letter
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Lyndia C. Brumback, Leah I. B. Andrews, David R. Jacobs, Daniel Duprez, Elizabeth K. Hom Thepaksorn, Joel D. Kaufman, Julie Denenberg, Matthew Allison
Article
Respiratory System
Mudiaga O. Sowho, Abigail L. Koch, Nirupama Putcha, Han Woo, Amanda Gassett, Laura M. Paulin, Kirsten Koehler, R. Graham Barr, Alejandro P. Comellas, Christopher B. Cooper, Igor Barjaktarevic, Michelle R. Zeidler, Martha E. Billings, Russell P. Bowler, MeiLan K. Han, Victor Kim, Robert Paine III, Trisha M. Parekh, Jerry A. Krishnan, Stephen P. Peters, Prescott G. Woodruff, Aaron M. Baugh, Joel D. Kaufman, David Couper, Nadia N. Hansel
Summary: This study examined the association between air pollution exposure, obesity, and sleep disturbances in individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The results showed that overweight and obese COPD patients were more susceptible to the effects of ambient PM2.5 on sleep quality, while no association was found in lean/normal weight patients. This suggests that obesity and ambient PM2.5 may be modifiable risk factors for improving sleep quality in COPD.
CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASES-JOURNAL OF THE COPD FOUNDATION
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Erin R. Kulick, Melissa N. Eliot, Adam A. Szpiro, Brent A. Coull, Lesley F. Tinker, Charles B. Eaton, Eric A. Whitsel, Joel D. Kaufman, Gregory A. Wellenius, James D. Stewart
Summary: This study conducted a 15-year follow-up investigation in the US on 155,410 postmenopausal women without previous cerebrovascular disease, and found that long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), respirable particulate matter (PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) significantly increased the risk of cerebrovascular events among these women.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Logan C. Dearborn, Marnie F. Hazlehurst, Christine T. Loftus, Adam A. Szpiro, Kecia N. Carroll, Paul E. Moore, Margaret A. Adgent, Emily S. Barrett, Ruby H. N. Nguyen, Sheela Sathyanarayana, Kaja Z. LeWinn, Nicole R. Bush, Joel D. Kaufman, Catherine J. Karr
Summary: This study found that early life air pollution can influence the development of asthma and wheezing in children aged 4-6 years with a history of bronchiolitis. The research was conducted by observing and evaluating a longitudinal cohort from six US cities, estimating the exposure of these children to fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone pollution from ages 1 to 3 years, and controlling for other factors. The results showed that for every 2 ppb increase in ozone concentration, the risk of developing asthma in children increased by 1.4 times, and the risk of developing wheezing increased by 1.3 times.
Letter
Medicine, General & Internal
Erik H. H. Hoyer, Sowmya Kumble, April Pruski, Kelly N. N. Daley, Nicole Langton-Frost, Bhavesh Patel, Yisi Liu, Dhananjay Vaidya, Annette Lavezza, Pablo A. A. Celnik
JOURNAL OF INTERNAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Sindana D. Ilango, Cindy S. Leary, Emily Ritchie, Erin O. Semmens, Christina Park, Annette L. Fitzpatrick, Joel D. Kaufman, Anjum Hajat
Summary: This study examined whether the social environment buffers the adverse effect of air pollution on dementia in older adults. The findings showed that long-term exposure to particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide increases the risk of dementia, but there was no evidence of additive interaction between air pollution and the social environment.
ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Meng Wang, Xiao-Hua Andrew Zhou, Cynthia Curl, Annette Fitzpatrick, Sverre Vedal, Joel Kaufman
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the associations between long-term air pollution exposure, including source-specific components in PM2.5, and cognition in older adults. The results showed that higher exposure to traffic-related air pollutants, including both tailpipe (EC and NOx) and non-tailpipe (Si) species, were associated with lower cognitive function in older adults.
ENVIRONMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Developmental Biology
Eva Catenaccio, Rachel J. J. Smith, Raul Chavez-Valdez, Vera J. J. Burton, Ernest Graham, Charlamaine Parkinson, Dhananjay Vaidya, Aylin Tekes, Frances J. J. Northington, Allen D. D. Everett, Carl E. E. Stafstrom, Eva K. K. Ritzl
Summary: Quantitative analysis of electroencephalography (qEEG) is a potential source of biomarkers for neonatal encephalopathy (NE). We piloted a fully automated method to calculate qEEG features using commercially available software. We found that qEEG features were associated with the degree of encephalopathy, severity of neuroimaging abnormalities, and brain maturity in neonates undergoing therapeutic hypothermia.
DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Meeting Abstract
Allergy
Ragha Suresh, Collin Dunnam, Dhananjay Vaidya, Donald MacGlashan, Robert Wood, Bruce Bochner, Melanie Dispenza
JOURNAL OF ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Ryan L. Wallace, Oluseye Ogunmoroti, Di Zhao, Dhananjay Vaidya, Amir Heravi, Eliseo Guallar, Chiadi E. Ndumele, Joao A. C. Lima, Pamela Ouyang, Matthew J. Budoff, Matthew Allison, Isac Thomas, Oluwaseun E. Fashanu, Ron Hoogeveen, Wendy S. Post, Erin D. Michos
Summary: This study examined the associations between urinary isoprostane levels and measures of plaque prevalence, burden, incidence, and progression in different vascular beds. The results showed inconsistent associations between urinary isoprostanes and subclinical atherosclerosis by imaging. Therefore, the urinary isoprostane levels may have limited prognostic value in the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD).
ATHEROSCLEROSIS PLUS
(2023)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Guillermo Torres, Jun Yang, Megan Griffiths, Stephanie Brandal, Rachel Damico, Dhananjay Vaidya, Catherine E. E. Simpson, Michael W. W. Pauciulo, William C. C. Nichols, David D. D. Ivy, Eric D. D. Austin, Paul M. M. Hassoun, Allen D. D. Everett
Summary: This study revealed that elevated serum IGFBP4 levels in patients with PAH were significantly associated with worse disease severity, decreased survival, and disease progression.
PULMONARY CIRCULATION
(2023)
