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Sample records for body size metabolic

  1. Sea urchins in a high-CO2 world: partitioned effects of body size, ocean warming and acidification on metabolic rate.

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    Carey, Nicholas; Harianto, Januar; Byrne, Maria

    2016-04-15

    Body size and temperature are the major factors explaining metabolic rate, and the additional factor of pH is a major driver at the biochemical level. These three factors have frequently been found to interact, complicating the formulation of broad models predicting metabolic rates and hence ecological functioning. In this first study of the effects of warming and ocean acidification, and their potential interaction, on metabolic rate across a broad range in body size (two to three orders of magnitude difference in body mass), we addressed the impact of climate change on the sea urchin ITALIC! Heliocidaris erythrogrammain context with climate projections for southeast Australia, an ocean warming hotspot. Urchins were gradually introduced to two temperatures (18 and 23°C) and two pH levels (7.5 and 8.0), at which they were maintained for 2 months. Identical experimental trials separated by several weeks validated the fact that a new physiological steady state had been reached, otherwise known as acclimation. The relationship between body size, temperature and acidification on the metabolic rate of ITALIC! H. erythrogrammawas strikingly stable. Both stressors caused increases in metabolic rate: 20% for temperature and 19% for pH. Combined effects were additive: a 44% increase in metabolism. Body size had a highly stable relationship with metabolic rate regardless of temperature or pH. None of these diverse drivers of metabolism interacted or modulated the effects of the others, highlighting the partitioned nature of how each influences metabolic rate, and the importance of achieving a full acclimation state. Despite these increases in energetic demand there was very limited capacity for compensatory modulating of feeding rate; food consumption increased only in the very smallest specimens, and only in response to temperature, and not pH. Our data show that warming, acidification and body size all substantially affect metabolism and are highly consistent and

  2. Metabolic expenditures of lunge feeding rorquals across scale: implications for the evolution of filter feeding and the limits to maximum body size.

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    Jean Potvin

    Full Text Available Bulk-filter feeding is an energetically efficient strategy for resource acquisition and assimilation, and facilitates the maintenance of extreme body size as exemplified by baleen whales (Mysticeti and multiple lineages of bony and cartilaginous fishes. Among mysticetes, rorqual whales (Balaenopteridae exhibit an intermittent ram filter feeding mode, lunge feeding, which requires the abandonment of body-streamlining in favor of a high-drag, mouth-open configuration aimed at engulfing a very large amount of prey-laden water. Particularly while lunge feeding on krill (the most widespread prey preference among rorquals, the effort required during engulfment involve short bouts of high-intensity muscle activity that demand high metabolic output. We used computational modeling together with morphological and kinematic data on humpback (Megaptera noveaangliae, fin (Balaenoptera physalus, blue (Balaenoptera musculus and minke (Balaenoptera acutorostrata whales to estimate engulfment power output in comparison with standard metrics of metabolic rate. The simulations reveal that engulfment metabolism increases across the full body size of the larger rorqual species to nearly 50 times the basal metabolic rate of terrestrial mammals of the same body mass. Moreover, they suggest that the metabolism of the largest body sizes runs with significant oxygen deficits during mouth opening, namely, 20% over maximum VO2 at the size of the largest blue whales, thus requiring significant contributions from anaerobic catabolism during a lunge and significant recovery after a lunge. Our analyses show that engulfment metabolism is also significantly lower for smaller adults, typically one-tenth to one-half VO2|max. These results not only point to a physiological limit on maximum body size in this lineage, but also have major implications for the ontogeny of extant rorquals as well as the evolutionary pathways used by ancestral toothed whales to transition from hunting

  3. Ontogeny of metabolic rate and red blood cell size in eyelid geckos: species follow different paths.

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    Zuzana Starostová

    Full Text Available While metabolism is a fundamental feature of all organisms, the causes of its scaling with body mass are not yet fully explained. Nevertheless, observations of negative correlations between red blood cell (RBC size and the rate of metabolism suggest that size variation of these cells responsible for oxygen supply may play a crucial role in determining metabolic rate scaling in vertebrates. Based on a prediction derived from the Cell Metabolism Hypothesis, metabolic rate should increase linearly with body mass in species with RBC size invariance, and slower than linearly when RBC size increases with body mass. We found support for that prediction in five species of eyelid geckos (family Eublepharidae with different patterns of RBC size variation during ontogenetic growth. During ontogeny, metabolic rate increases nearly linearly with body mass in those species of eyelid geckos where there is no correlation between RBC size and body mass, whereas non-linearity of metabolic rate scaling is evident in those species with ontogenetic increase of RBC size. Our findings provide evidence that ontogenetic variability in RBC size, possibly correlating with sizes of other cell types, could have important physiological consequences and can contribute to qualitatively different shape of the intraspecific relationship between metabolic rate and body mass.

  4. Ontogeny of metabolic rate and red blood cell size in eyelid geckos: species follow different paths.

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    Starostová, Zuzana; Konarzewski, Marek; Kozłowski, Jan; Kratochvíl, Lukáš

    2013-01-01

    While metabolism is a fundamental feature of all organisms, the causes of its scaling with body mass are not yet fully explained. Nevertheless, observations of negative correlations between red blood cell (RBC) size and the rate of metabolism suggest that size variation of these cells responsible for oxygen supply may play a crucial role in determining metabolic rate scaling in vertebrates. Based on a prediction derived from the Cell Metabolism Hypothesis, metabolic rate should increase linearly with body mass in species with RBC size invariance, and slower than linearly when RBC size increases with body mass. We found support for that prediction in five species of eyelid geckos (family Eublepharidae) with different patterns of RBC size variation during ontogenetic growth. During ontogeny, metabolic rate increases nearly linearly with body mass in those species of eyelid geckos where there is no correlation between RBC size and body mass, whereas non-linearity of metabolic rate scaling is evident in those species with ontogenetic increase of RBC size. Our findings provide evidence that ontogenetic variability in RBC size, possibly correlating with sizes of other cell types, could have important physiological consequences and can contribute to qualitatively different shape of the intraspecific relationship between metabolic rate and body mass.

  5. Intraspecific Allometry of Basal Metabolic Rate : Relations with Body Size, Temperature, Composition, and Circadian Phase in the Kestrel, Falco tinnunculus

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    Daan, Serge; Masman, Dirkjan; Strijkstra, Arjen; Verhulst, Simon

    1989-01-01

    The relationship between body size and basal metabolic rate (BMR) in homeotherms has been treated in the literature primarily by comparison between species of mammals or birds. This paper focuses on the intraindividual changes in BMR when body mass (W) varies with different maintenance regimens. BMR

  6. Circulating omentin-1 might be associated with metabolic health status in different phenotypes of body size.

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    Alizadeh, Shahab; Mirzaei, Khadijeh; Mohammadi, Chonur; Keshavarz, Seyed Ali; Maghbooli, Zhila

    2017-12-01

    Adipokines are mediators of body composition and are involved in obesity complications. This study aimed to assess the association of circulating omentin-1, vaspin, and RBP-4 with body composition indices and metabolic health status (MHS) in different phenotypes of body size. A total of 350 subjects were included in the current cross-sectional study. Body composition was measured using a body composition analyzer, and serum concentrations of omentin-1, vaspin, and RBP-4 were assessed by ELISA kits. Circulating omentin-1 was significantly (OR = 1.81, 95% CI: 1.00-1.91, P = 0.01) and marginally (OR = 1.63, 95%CI: 1.00-1.75, P = 0.06) associated with MHS in the overweight and obese subjects, respectively. But no association was seen between omentin-1 and MHS in normal-weight subjects. Serum levels of vaspin and RBP-4 were not correlated with MHS. Furthermore, a significant positive correlation was observed between circulating omentin-1 and body mass index (BMI) as well as fat percentage (P = 0.02) in the MHS group. Serum vaspin concentrations were not related to body composition components in both groups. In addition, in the MHS group, circulating RBP-4 was positively correlated with fat percentage and fat mass (FM) (p body water (TBW) (p < 0.0001). In contrast, in the metabolically unhealthy group, RBP-4 was negatively correlated with fat percentage, FM, and BMI (p < 0.0001) and was positively correlated with FFM and TBW (p < 0.0001). This study showed that circulating levels of omentin-1 are useful predictors of metabolic health status in overweight and obese people.

  7. A Nested Case-Control Study of Metabolically Defined Body Size Phenotypes and Risk of Colorectal Cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC.

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    Neil Murphy

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Obesity is positively associated with colorectal cancer. Recently, body size subtypes categorised by the prevalence of hyperinsulinaemia have been defined, and metabolically healthy overweight/obese individuals (without hyperinsulinaemia have been suggested to be at lower risk of cardiovascular disease than their metabolically unhealthy (hyperinsulinaemic overweight/obese counterparts. Whether similarly variable relationships exist for metabolically defined body size phenotypes and colorectal cancer risk is unknown.The association of metabolically defined body size phenotypes with colorectal cancer was investigated in a case-control study nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC study. Metabolic health/body size phenotypes were defined according to hyperinsulinaemia status using serum concentrations of C-peptide, a marker of insulin secretion. A total of 737 incident colorectal cancer cases and 737 matched controls were divided into tertiles based on the distribution of C-peptide concentration amongst the control population, and participants were classified as metabolically healthy if below the first tertile of C-peptide and metabolically unhealthy if above the first tertile. These metabolic health definitions were then combined with body mass index (BMI measurements to create four metabolic health/body size phenotype categories: (1 metabolically healthy/normal weight (BMI < 25 kg/m2, (2 metabolically healthy/overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2, (3 metabolically unhealthy/normal weight (BMI < 25 kg/m2, and (4 metabolically unhealthy/overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2. Additionally, in separate models, waist circumference measurements (using the International Diabetes Federation cut-points [≥80 cm for women and ≥94 cm for men] were used (instead of BMI to create the four metabolic health/body size phenotype categories. Statistical tests used in the analysis were all two-sided, and a p-value of <0.05 was

  8. Metabolic 'engines' of flight drive genome size reduction in birds.

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    Wright, Natalie A; Gregory, T Ryan; Witt, Christopher C

    2014-03-22

    The tendency for flying organisms to possess small genomes has been interpreted as evidence of natural selection acting on the physical size of the genome. Nonetheless, the flight-genome link and its mechanistic basis have yet to be well established by comparative studies within a volant clade. Is there a particular functional aspect of flight such as brisk metabolism, lift production or maneuverability that impinges on the physical genome? We measured genome sizes, wing dimensions and heart, flight muscle and body masses from a phylogenetically diverse set of bird species. In phylogenetically controlled analyses, we found that genome size was negatively correlated with relative flight muscle size and heart index (i.e. ratio of heart to body mass), but positively correlated with body mass and wing loading. The proportional masses of the flight muscles and heart were the most important parameters explaining variation in genome size in multivariate models. Hence, the metabolic intensity of powered flight appears to have driven genome size reduction in birds.

  9. Newborn body fat: associations with maternal metabolic state and placental size.

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    Camilla M Friis

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Neonatal body composition has implications for the health of the newborn both in short and long term perspective. The objective of the current study was first to explore the association between maternal BMI and metabolic parameters associated with BMI and neonatal percentage body fat and to determine to which extent any associations were modified if adjusting for placental weight. Secondly, we examined the relations between maternal metabolic parameters associated with BMI and placental weight. METHODS: The present work was performed in a subcohort (n = 207 of the STORK study, an observational, prospective study on the determinants of fetal growth and birthweight in healthy pregnancies at Oslo University Hospital, Norway. Fasting glucose, insulin, triglycerides, free fatty acids, HDL- and total cholesterol were measured at week 30-32. Newborn body composition was determined by Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry (DXA. Placenta was weighed at birth. Linear regression models were used with newborn fat percentage and placental weight as main outcomes. RESULTS: Maternal BMI, fasting glucose and gestational age were independently associated with neonatal fat percentage. However, if placental weight was introduced as a covariate, only placental weight and gestational age remained significant. In the univariate model, the determinants of placenta weight included BMI, insulin, triglycerides, total- and HDL-cholesterol (negatively, gestational weight gain and parity. In the multivariable model, BMI, total cholesterol HDL-cholesterol, gestational weight gain and parity remained independent covariates. CONCLUSION: Maternal BMI and fasting glucose were independently associated with newborn percentage fat. This effect disappeared by introducing placental weight as a covariate. Several metabolic factors associated with maternal BMI were associated with placental weight, but not with neonatal body fat. Our findings are consistent with a concept

  10. Offspring body size and metabolic profile - effects of lifestyle intervention in obese pregnant women.

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    Tanvig, Mette

    2014-07-01

    Worldwide, the prevalence of obesity has reached epidemic proportions. In Denmark one third of all pregnant women are overweight and 12 % are obese. Perhaps even more concerning, a dramatic rise in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity has also been evident over recent decades. The obesity epidemic is not simply a consequence of poor diet or sedentary lifestyles. Obesity is a multifactorial condition in which environmental, biological and genetic factors all play essential roles. The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DoHaD) hypothesis has highlighted the link between prenatal, perinatal and early postnatal exposure to certain environmental factors and subsequent development of obesity and non-communicable diseases. Maternal obesity and excessive gestational weight gain, resulting in over-nutrition of the fetus, are major contributors to obesity and metabolic disturbances in the offspring. Pregnancy offers the opportunity to modify the intrauterine environment, and maternal lifestyle changes during gestation may confer health benefits to the child. The overall aim with this PhD thesis was to study the effects of maternal obesity on offspring body size and metabolic outcomes, with special emphasis on the effects of lifestyle intervention during pregnancy. The thesis is based on a literature review, description of own studies and three original papers/manuscripts (I, II and III). In paper I, we used data from the Danish Medical Birth Registry. The aim of this paper was to examine the impact of maternal pregestational Body Mass Index (BMI) and smoking on neonatal abdominal circumference (AC) and weight at birth and to define reference curves for birth AC and weight in offspring of healthy, non-smoking, normal weight women. Data on 366,886 singletons were extracted and analyzed using multivariate linear regressions. We found that birth AC and weight increased with increasing pregestational BMI and decreased with smoking. Reference curves were

  11. Cellular metabolic rates from primary dermal fibroblast cells isolated from birds of different body masses.

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    Jimenez, Ana Gabriela; Williams, Joseph B

    2014-10-01

    The rate of metabolism is the speed at which organisms use energy, an integration of energy transformations within the body; it governs biological processes that influence rates of growth and reproduction. Progress at understanding functional linkages between whole organism metabolic rate and underlying mechanisms that influence its magnitude has been slow despite the central role this issue plays in evolutionary and physiological ecology. Previous studies that have attempted to relate how cellular processes translate into whole-organism physiology have done so over a range of body masses of subjects. However, the data still remains controversial when observing metabolic rates at the cellular level. To bridge the gap between these ideas, we examined cellular metabolic rate of primary dermal fibroblasts isolated from 49 species of birds representing a 32,000-fold range in body masses to test the hypothesis that metabolic rate of cultured cells scales with body size. We used a Seahorse XF-96 Extracellular flux analyzer to measure cellular respiration in fibroblasts. Additionally, we measured fibroblast size and mitochondrial content. We found no significant correlation between cellular metabolic rate, cell size, or mitochondrial content and body mass. Additionally, there was a significant relationship between cellular basal metabolic rate and proton leak in these cells. We conclude that metabolic rate of cells isolated in culture does not scale with body mass, but cellular metabolic rate is correlated to growth rate in birds. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Oxygen no longer plays a major role in Body Size Evolution

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    Datta, H.; Sachson, W.; Heim, N. A.; Payne, J.

    2015-12-01

    When observing the long-term relationship between atmospheric oxygen and the maximum size in organisms across the Geozoic (~3.8 Ga - present), it appears that as oxygen increases, organism size grows. However, during the Phanerozoic (541 Ma - Present) oxygen levels varied, so we set out to test the hypothesis that oxygen levels drive patterns marine animal body size evolution. Expected decreases in maximum size due to a lack of oxygen do not occur, and instead, body size continues to increase regardless. In the oxygen data, a relatively low atmospheric oxygen percentage can support increasing body size, so our research tries to determine whether lifestyle affects body size in marine organisms. The genera in the data set were organized based on their tiering, motility, and feeding, such as a pelagic, fully-motile, predator. When organisms fill a certain ecological niche to take advantage of resources, they will have certain life modes, rather than randomly selected traits. For example, even in terrestrial environments, large animals have to constantly feed themselves to support their expensive terrestrial lifestyle which involves fairly consistent movement, and the structural support necessary for that movement. Only organisms with access to high energy food sources or large amounts of food can support themselves, and that is before they expend energy elsewhere. Organisms that expend energy frugally when active or have slower metabolisms in comparison to body size have a more efficient lifestyle and are generally able to grow larger, while those who have higher energy demands like predators are limited to comparatively smaller sizes. Therefore, in respect to the fossil record and modern measurements of animals, the metabolism and lifestyle of an organism dictate its body size in general. With this further clarification on the patterns of evolution, it will be easier to observe and understand the reasons for the ecological traits of organisms today.

  13. Body shape shifting during growth permits tests that distinguish between competing geometric theories of metabolic scaling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hirst, Andrew G.; Glazier, Douglas S.; Atkinson, David

    2014-01-01

    Metabolism fuels all of life’s activities, from biochemical reactions to ecological interactions. According to two intensely debated theories, body size affects metabolism via geometrical influences on the transport of resources and wastes. However, these theories differ crucially in whether...... the size dependence of metabolism is derived from material transport across external surfaces, or through internal resource-transport networks. We show that when body shape changes during growth, these models make opposing predictions. These models are tested using pelagic invertebrates, because...... these animals exhibit highly variable intraspecific scaling relationships for metabolic rate and body shape. Metabolic scaling slopes of diverse integument-breathing species were significantly positively correlated with degree of body flattening or elongation during ontogeny, as expected from surface area...

  14. Dinosaurs, dragons, and dwarfs: The evolution of maximal body size

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    Burness, Gary P.; Diamond, Jared; Flannery, Timothy

    2001-01-01

    Among local faunas, the maximum body size and taxonomic affiliation of the top terrestrial vertebrate vary greatly. Does this variation reflect how food requirements differ between trophic levels (herbivores vs. carnivores) and with taxonomic affiliation (mammals and birds vs. reptiles)? We gathered data on the body size and food requirements of the top terrestrial herbivores and carnivores, over the past 65,000 years, from oceanic islands and continents. The body mass of the top species was found to increase with increasing land area, with a slope similar to that of the relation between body mass and home range area, suggesting that maximum body size is determined by the number of home ranges that can fit into a given land area. For a given land area, the body size of the top species decreased in the sequence: ectothermic herbivore > endothermic herbivore > ectothermic carnivore > endothermic carnivore. When we converted body mass to food requirements, the food consumption of a top herbivore was about 8 times that of a top carnivore, in accord with the factor expected from the trophic pyramid. Although top ectotherms were heavier than top endotherms at a given trophic level, lower metabolic rates per gram of body mass in ectotherms resulted in endotherms and ectotherms having the same food consumption. These patterns explain the size of the largest-ever extinct mammal, but the size of the largest dinosaurs exceeds that predicted from land areas and remains unexplained. PMID:11724953

  15. Human Body Exergy Metabolism

    OpenAIRE

    Mady, Carlos Eduardo Keutenedjian

    2013-01-01

    The exergy analysis of the human body is a tool that can provide indicators of health and life quality. To perform the exergy balance it is necessary to calculate the metabolism on an exergy basis, or metabolic exergy, although there is not yet consensus in its calculation procedure. Hence, the aim of this work is to provide a general method to evaluate this physical quantity for human body based on indirect calorimetry data. To calculate the metabolism on an exergy basis it is necessary to d...

  16. Body size mediated coexistence in swans.

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    Engelhardt, Katharina A M; Ritchie, Mark E; Powell, James A

    2014-01-01

    Differences in body sizes may create a trade-off between foraging efficiency (foraging gains/costs) and access to resources. Such a trade-off provides a potential mechanism for ecologically similar species to coexist on one resource. We explored this hypothesis for tundra (Cygnus columbianus) and trumpeter swans (Cygnus buccinator), a federally protected species, feeding solely on sago pondweed (Stuckenia pectinata) tubers during fall staging and wintering in northern Utah. Foraging efficiency was higher for tundra swans because this species experienced lower foraging and metabolic costs relative to foraging gains; however, trumpeter swans (a) had longer necks and therefore had access to exclusive resources buried deep in wetland sediments and (b) were more aggressive and could therefore displace tundra swans from lucrative foraging locations. We conclude that body size differentiation is an important feature of coexistence among ecologically similar species feeding on one resource. In situations where resources are limiting and competition for resources is strong, conservation managers will need to consider the trade-off between foraging efficiency and access to resources to ensure ecologically similar species can coexist on a shared resource.

  17. Effects of season, temperature, and body mass on the standard metabolic rate of tegu lizards (Tupinambis merianae).

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    Toledo, Luís F; Brito, Simone P; Milsom, William K; Abe, Augusto S; Andrade, Denis V

    2008-01-01

    Abstract This study examined how the standard metabolic rate of tegu lizards, a species that undergoes large ontogenetic changes in body weight with associated changes in life-history traits, is affected by changes in body mass, body temperature, season, and life-history traits. We measured rates of oxygen consumption (Vo(2)) in 90 individuals ranging in body mass from 10.4 g to 3.75 kg at three experimental temperatures (17 degrees , 25 degrees , and 30 degrees C) over the four seasons. We found that standard metabolic rate scaled to the power of 0.84 of body mass at all experimental temperatures in all seasons and that thermal sensitivity of metabolism was relatively low (Q(10) approximately 2.0-2.5) over the range from 17 degrees to 30 degrees C regardless of body size or season. Metabolic rates did vary seasonally, being higher in spring and summer than in autumn and winter at the same temperatures, and this was true regardless of animal size. Finally, in this study, the changes in life-history traits that occurred ontogenetically were not accompanied by significant changes in metabolic rate.

  18. Body Size Mediated Coexistence in Swans

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    Katharina A. M. Engelhardt

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Differences in body sizes may create a trade-off between foraging efficiency (foraging gains/costs and access to resources. Such a trade-off provides a potential mechanism for ecologically similar species to coexist on one resource. We explored this hypothesis for tundra (Cygnus columbianus and trumpeter swans (Cygnus buccinator, a federally protected species, feeding solely on sago pondweed (Stuckenia pectinata tubers during fall staging and wintering in northern Utah. Foraging efficiency was higher for tundra swans because this species experienced lower foraging and metabolic costs relative to foraging gains; however, trumpeter swans (a had longer necks and therefore had access to exclusive resources buried deep in wetland sediments and (b were more aggressive and could therefore displace tundra swans from lucrative foraging locations. We conclude that body size differentiation is an important feature of coexistence among ecologically similar species feeding on one resource. In situations where resources are limiting and competition for resources is strong, conservation managers will need to consider the trade-off between foraging efficiency and access to resources to ensure ecologically similar species can coexist on a shared resource.

  19. Body size mediated coexistence of consumers competing for resources in space

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    Basset, A.; Angelis, D.L.

    2007-01-01

    Body size is a major phenotypic trait of individuals that commonly differentiates co-occurring species. We analyzed inter-specific competitive interactions between a large consumer and smaller competitors, whose energetics, selection and giving-up behaviour on identical resource patches scaled with individual body size. The aim was to investigate whether pure metabolic constraints on patch behaviour of vagile species can determine coexistence conditions consistent with existing theoretical and experimental evidence. We used an individual-based spatially explicit simulation model at a spatial scale defined by the home range of the large consumer, which was assumed to be parthenogenic and semelparous. Under exploitative conditions, competitive coexistence occurred in a range of body size ratios between 2 and 10. Asymmetrical competition and the mechanism underlying asymmetry, determined by the scaling of energetics and patch behaviour with consumer body size, were the proximate determinant of inter-specific coexistence. The small consumer exploited patches more efficiently, but searched for profitable patches less effectively than the larger competitor. Therefore, body-size related constraints induced niche partitioning, allowing competitive coexistence within a set of conditions where the large consumer maintained control over the small consumer and resource dynamics. The model summarises and extends the existing evidence of species coexistence on a limiting resource, and provides a mechanistic explanation for decoding the size-abundance distribution patterns commonly observed at guild and community levels. ?? Oikos.

  20. Copepod community growth rates in relation to body size, temperature, and food availability in the East China Sea: a test of metabolic theory of ecology

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    K. Y. Lin

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Zooplankton play an essential role in marine food webs, and understanding how community-level growth rates of zooplankton vary in the field is critical for predicting how marine ecosystem function may vary in the face of environmental changes. Here, we used the artificial cohort method to examine the effects of temperature, body size, and chlorophyll concentration (a proxy for food on weight-specific growth rates for copepod communities in the East China Sea. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that copepod community growth rates can be described by the metabolic theory of ecology (MTE, linking spatio-temporal variation of copepod growth rate with temperature and their body size. Our results generally agree with predictions made by the MTE and demonstrate that weight-specific growth rates of copepod communities in our study area are positively related with temperature and negatively related to body size. However, the regression coefficients of body size do not approach the theoretical predictions. Furthermore, we find that the deviation from the MTE predictions may be partly attributed to the effect of food availability (which is not explicitly accounted for by the MTE. In addition, significant difference in the coefficients of temperature and body size exists among taxonomic groups. Our results suggest that considering the effects of food limitation and taxonomy is necessary to better understand copepod growth rates under in situ conditions, and such effects on the MTE-based predictions need further investigation.

  1. The effect of temperature and body weight on the routine metabolic rate and postprandial metabolic response in mulloway, Argyrosomus japonicus.

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    Pirozzi, Igor; Booth, Mark A

    2009-09-01

    Specific dynamic action (SDA) is the energy expended on the physiological processes associated with meal digestion and is strongly influenced by the characteristics of the meal and the body weight (BW) and temperature of the organism. This study assessed the effects of temperature and body weight on the routine metabolic rate (RMR) and postprandial metabolic response in mulloway, Argyrosomus japonicus. RMR and SDA were established at 3 temperatures (14, 20 and 26 degrees C). 5 size classes of mulloway ranging from 60 g to 1.14 kg were used to establish RMR with 3 of the 5 size classes (60, 120 and 240 g) used to establish SDA. The effect of body size on the mass-specific RMR (mg O(2) kg(-1) h(-1)) varied significantly depending on the temperature; there was a greater relative increase in the mass-specific RMR for smaller mulloway with increasing temperature. No statistical differences were found between the mass exponent (b) values at each temperature when tested against H(0): b=0.8. The gross RMR of mulloway (mg O(2) fish(-1) h(-1)) can be described as function of temperature (T; 14-26 degrees C) as: (0.0195T-0.0454)BW(g)(0.8) and the mass-specific RMR (mg O(2) kg(-1) h(-1)) can be described as: (21.042T-74.867)BW(g)(-0.2). Both SDA duration and time to peak SDA were influenced by temperature and body weight; SDA duration occurred within 41-89 h and peak time occurred within 17-38 h of feeding. The effect of body size on peak metabolic rate varied significantly depending on temperature, generally increasing with temperature and decreasing with increasing body size. Peak gross oxygen consumption (MO(2): mg O(2) fish(-1) h(-1)) scaled allometrically with BW. Temperature, but not body size, significantly affected SDA scope, although the difference was numerically small. There was a trend for MO(2) above RMR over the SDA period to increase with temperature; however, this was not statistically significant. The average proportion of energy expended over the SDA period

  2. Development of Dietary Patterns Spanning Infancy and Toddlerhood: Relation to Body Size, Composition and Metabolic Risk Markers at Three Years

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Louise B. B.; Mølgaard, Christian; Ejlerskov, Katrine Tschentscher

    2015-01-01

    Little is known about the development of dietary patterns during toddlerhood and the relation to growth and health. The study objective was to characterise the development of dietary patterns from 9-36 mo of age and investigate the association to body size, body composition and metabolic risk...... total cholesterol and LDL. Hence, this could represent undesirable development of dietary patterns in toddlers. In conclusion, development of dietary patterns can be exploratory characterised by PCA and related to potential cardiovascular risk markers in toddlers even within a relatively homogeneous...... markers at 36 mo. Food records were filled out at 9, 18 and 36 mo of age (n = 229). Dietary patterns were identified by principal component analysis (PCA). Three dietary patterns were identified: Transition Food, Healthy Food and Traditional Food. The course of development in dietary patterns from 9-36 mo...

  3. Anemia and Iron Status Among Different Body Size Phenotypes in Chinese Adult Population: a Nation-Wide, Health and Nutrition Survey.

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    Li, Jiang; Xiao, Cheng; Yang, Hui; Zhou, Yun; Wang, Rui; Cao, Yongtong

    2017-12-09

    Previous studies have shown that there is a controversial relationship between iron homeostasis and obesity. This study aims to explore the relationship of anemia and iron status with different body size phenotypes in adult Chinese population. Using information on iron status-related parameters and lifestyle data from 8462 participants of the 2009 wave of China Health and Nutrition Survey (2009 CHNS), we performed multivariable logistic regression analyses to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) for the risk of anemia and iron parameters according to different body size phenotypes. Participants with higher body mass index (BMI) had a lower anemia prevalence with significant trends in both metabolic status groups (P different metabolic status groups and in different body size phenotypes, respectively. The ORs for higher ferritin and transferrin increased across different body size phenotypes in both genders, and for sTfR/log ferritin index decreased (P < 0.01 for trend). This association was still statistically significant after adjustment for multiple confounders. We found an inverse association of BMI levels with the prevalence of anemia and strong association of serum ferritin and transferrin with higher risk of obesity or overweight in both metabolic status groups.

  4. Factors determining the average body size of geographically separated Arctodiaptomus salinus (Daday, 1885) populations.

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    Anufriieva, Elena V; Shadrin, Nickolai V

    2014-03-01

    Arctodiaptomus salinus inhabits water bodies across Eurasia and North Africa. Based on our own data and that from the literature, we analyzed the influences of several factors on the intra- and inter-population variability of this species. A strong negative linear correlation between temperature and average body size in the Crimean and African populations was found, in which the parameters might be influenced by salinity. Meanwhile, a significant negative correlation between female body size and the altitude of habitats was found by comparing body size in populations from different regions. Individuals from environments with highly varying abiotic parameters, e.g. temporary reservoirs, had a larger body size than individuals from permanent water bodies. The changes in average body mass in populations were at 11.4 times, whereas, those in individual metabolic activities were at 6.2 times. Moreover, two size groups of A. salinus in the Crimean and the Siberian lakes were observed. The ratio of female length to male length fluctuated between 1.02 and 1.30. The average size of A. salinus in populations and its variations were determined by both genetic and environmental factors. However, the parities of these factors were unequal in either spatial or temporal scales.

  5. The relationship of omental and subcutaneous adipocyte size to metabolic disease in severe obesity.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    O'Connell, Jean

    2012-02-01

    OBJECTIVE: Several studies have reported the existence of a subgroup of obese individuals with normal metabolic profiles. It remains unclear what factors are responsible for this phenomenon. We proposed that adipocyte size might be a key factor in the protection of metabolically healthy obese (MHO) individuals from the adverse effects of obesity. SUBJECTS: Thirty-five patients undergoing bariatric surgery were classified as MHO (n = 15) or metabolically unhealthy obese (MUO, n = 20) according to cut-off points adapted from the International Diabetes Federation definition of the metabolic syndrome. Median body mass index (BMI) was 48 (range 40-71). RESULTS: There was a moderate correlation between omental adipocyte size and subcutaneous adipocyte size (r = 0.59, p<0.05). The MHO group had significantly lower mean omental adipocyte size (80.9+\\/-10.9 microm) when compared with metabolically unhealthy patients (100.0+\\/-7.6 microm, p<0.0001). Mean subcutaneous adipocyte size was similar between the two groups (104.1+\\/-8.5 microm versus 107.9+\\/-7.1 microm). Omental, but not subcutaneous adipocyte size, correlated with the degree of insulin resistance as measured by HOMA-IR (r = 0.73, p<0.0005), as well as other metabolic parameters including triglyceride\\/HDL-cholesterol ratio and HbA1c. Twenty-eight patients consented to liver biopsy. Of these, 46% had steatohepatitis and fibrosis. Fifty percent (including all the MHO patients) had steatosis only. Both omental and subcutaneous adipocyte size were significantly associated with the degree of steatosis (r = 0.66, p<0.0001 and r = 0.63, p<0.005 respectively). However, only omental adipocyte size was an independent predictor of the presence or absence of fibrosis. CONCLUSION: Metabolically healthy individuals are a distinct subgroup of the severely obese. Both subcutaneous and omental adipocyte size correlated positively with the degree of fatty liver, but only omental adipocyte size was related to metabolic health

  6. Effects of independently altering body weight and body mass on the metabolic cost of running.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teunissen, Lennart P J; Grabowski, Alena; Kram, Rodger

    2007-12-01

    The metabolic cost of running is substantial, despite the savings from elastic energy storage and return. Previous studies suggest that generating vertical force to support body weight and horizontal forces to brake and propel body mass are the major determinants of the metabolic cost of running. In the present study, we investigated how independently altering body weight and body mass affects the metabolic cost of running. Based on previous studies, we hypothesized that reducing body weight would decrease metabolic rate proportionally, and adding mass and weight would increase metabolic rate proportionally. Further, because previous studies show that adding mass alone does not affect the forces generated on the ground, we hypothesized that adding mass alone would have no substantial effect on metabolic rate. We manipulated the body weight and body mass of 10 recreational human runners and measured their metabolic rates while they ran at 3 m s(-1). We reduced weight using a harness system, increased mass and weight using lead worn about the waist, and increased mass alone using a combination of weight support and added load. We found that net metabolic rate decreased in less than direct proportion to reduced body weight, increased in slightly more than direct proportion to added load (added mass and weight), and was not substantially different from normal running with added mass alone. Adding mass alone was not an effective method for determining the metabolic cost attributable to braking/propelling body mass. Runners loaded with mass alone did not generate greater vertical or horizontal impulses and their metabolic costs did not substantially differ from those of normal running. Our results show that generating force to support body weight is the primary determinant of the metabolic cost of running. Extrapolating our reduced weight data to zero weight suggests that supporting body weight comprises at most 74% of the net cost of running. However, 74% is probably an

  7. Concerted evolution of body mass and cell size: similar patterns among species of birds (Galliformes) and mammals (Rodentia)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dragosz-Kluska, Dominika; Pis, Tomasz; Pawlik, Katarzyna; Kapustka, Filip; Kilarski, Wincenty M.; Kozłowski, Jan

    2018-01-01

    ABSTRACT Cell size plays a role in body size evolution and environmental adaptations. Addressing these roles, we studied body mass and cell size in Galliformes birds and Rodentia mammals, and collected published data on their genome sizes. In birds, we measured erythrocyte nuclei and basal metabolic rates (BMRs). In birds and mammals, larger species consistently evolved larger cells for five cell types (erythrocytes, enterocytes, chondrocytes, skin epithelial cells, and kidney proximal tubule cells) and evolved smaller hepatocytes. We found no evidence that cell size differences originated through genome size changes. We conclude that the organism-wide coordination of cell size changes might be an evolutionarily conservative characteristic, and the convergent evolutionary body size and cell size changes in Galliformes and Rodentia suggest the adaptive significance of cell size. Recent theory predicts that species evolving larger cells waste less energy on tissue maintenance but have reduced capacities to deliver oxygen to mitochondria and metabolize resources. Indeed, birds with larger size of the abovementioned cell types and smaller hepatocytes have evolved lower mass-specific BMRs. We propose that the inconsistent pattern in hepatocytes derives from the efficient delivery system to hepatocytes, combined with their intense involvement in supracellular function and anabolic activity. PMID:29540429

  8. Concerted evolution of body mass and cell size: similar patterns among species of birds (Galliformes and mammals (Rodentia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marcin Czarnoleski

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Cell size plays a role in body size evolution and environmental adaptations. Addressing these roles, we studied body mass and cell size in Galliformes birds and Rodentia mammals, and collected published data on their genome sizes. In birds, we measured erythrocyte nuclei and basal metabolic rates (BMRs. In birds and mammals, larger species consistently evolved larger cells for five cell types (erythrocytes, enterocytes, chondrocytes, skin epithelial cells, and kidney proximal tubule cells and evolved smaller hepatocytes. We found no evidence that cell size differences originated through genome size changes. We conclude that the organism-wide coordination of cell size changes might be an evolutionarily conservative characteristic, and the convergent evolutionary body size and cell size changes in Galliformes and Rodentia suggest the adaptive significance of cell size. Recent theory predicts that species evolving larger cells waste less energy on tissue maintenance but have reduced capacities to deliver oxygen to mitochondria and metabolize resources. Indeed, birds with larger size of the abovementioned cell types and smaller hepatocytes have evolved lower mass-specific BMRs. We propose that the inconsistent pattern in hepatocytes derives from the efficient delivery system to hepatocytes, combined with their intense involvement in supracellular function and anabolic activity.

  9. Association between different phases of menstrual cycle and body image measures of perceived size, ideal size, and body dissatisfaction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teixeira, André Luiz S; Dias, Marcelo Ricardo C; Damasceno, Vinícius O; Lamounier, Joel A; Gardner, Rick M

    2013-12-01

    The association between phases of the menstrual cycle and body image was investigated. 44 university women (M age = 23.3 yr., SD = 4.7) judged their perceived and ideal body size, and body dissatisfaction was calculated at each phase of the menstrual cycle, including premenstrual, menstrual, and intermenstrual. Participants selected one of nine figural drawings ranging from very thin to obese that represented their perceived size and ideal size. Body dissatisfaction was measured as the absolute difference between scores on perceived and ideal figural drawings. During each menstrual phase, anthropometric measures of weight, height, body mass index, circumference of waist and abdomen, and body composition were taken. There were no significant differences in any anthropometric measures between the three menstrual cycle phases. Perceived body size and body dissatisfaction were significantly different between menstrual phases, with the largest perceived body size and highest body dissatisfaction occurring during the menstrual phase. Ideal body size did not differ between menstrual phases, although participants desired a significantly smaller ideal size as compared to the perceived size.

  10. Sample size calculation in metabolic phenotyping studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Billoir, Elise; Navratil, Vincent; Blaise, Benjamin J

    2015-09-01

    The number of samples needed to identify significant effects is a key question in biomedical studies, with consequences on experimental designs, costs and potential discoveries. In metabolic phenotyping studies, sample size determination remains a complex step. This is due particularly to the multiple hypothesis-testing framework and the top-down hypothesis-free approach, with no a priori known metabolic target. Until now, there was no standard procedure available to address this purpose. In this review, we discuss sample size estimation procedures for metabolic phenotyping studies. We release an automated implementation of the Data-driven Sample size Determination (DSD) algorithm for MATLAB and GNU Octave. Original research concerning DSD was published elsewhere. DSD allows the determination of an optimized sample size in metabolic phenotyping studies. The procedure uses analytical data only from a small pilot cohort to generate an expanded data set. The statistical recoupling of variables procedure is used to identify metabolic variables, and their intensity distributions are estimated by Kernel smoothing or log-normal density fitting. Statistically significant metabolic variations are evaluated using the Benjamini-Yekutieli correction and processed for data sets of various sizes. Optimal sample size determination is achieved in a context of biomarker discovery (at least one statistically significant variation) or metabolic exploration (a maximum of statistically significant variations). DSD toolbox is encoded in MATLAB R2008A (Mathworks, Natick, MA) for Kernel and log-normal estimates, and in GNU Octave for log-normal estimates (Kernel density estimates are not robust enough in GNU octave). It is available at http://www.prabi.fr/redmine/projects/dsd/repository, with a tutorial at http://www.prabi.fr/redmine/projects/dsd/wiki. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  11. Preschool Weight and Body Mass Index in Relation to Central Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome in Adulthood

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Graversen, Lise; Sørensen, Thorkild I A; Petersen, Liselotte

    2014-01-01

    BACKGROUND: If preschool measures of body size routinely collected at preventive health examinations are associated with adult central obesity and metabolic syndrome, a focused use of these data for the identification of high risk children is possible. The aim of this study was to test the associ......BACKGROUND: If preschool measures of body size routinely collected at preventive health examinations are associated with adult central obesity and metabolic syndrome, a focused use of these data for the identification of high risk children is possible. The aim of this study was to test...... the associations between preschool weight and body mass index (BMI) and adult BMI, central obesity and metabolic alterations. METHODS: The Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966) (N = 4111) is a population-based cohort. Preschool weight (age 5 months and 1 year) and BMI (age 2-5 years) were studied...... in relation to metabolic syndrome as well as BMI, waist circumference, lipoproteins, blood pressure, and fasting glucose at the age of 31 years. Linear regression models and generalized linear regression models with log link were used. RESULTS: Throughout preschool ages, weight and BMI were significantly...

  12. Birth mass is the key to understanding the negative correlation between lifespan and body size in dogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Rong; Olbricht, Gayla; Baker, Xavior; Hou, Chen

    2016-12-08

    Larger dog breeds live shorter than the smaller ones, opposite of the mass-lifespan relationship observed across mammalian species. Here we use data from 90 dog breeds and a theoretical model based on the first principles of energy conservation and life history tradeoffs to explain the negative correlation between longevity and body size in dogs. We found that the birth/adult mass ratio of dogs scales negatively with adult size, which is different than the weak interspecific scaling in mammals. Using the model, we show that this ratio, as an index of energy required for growth, is the key to understanding why the lifespan of dogs scales negatively with body size. The model also predicts that the difference in mass-specific lifetime metabolic energy usage between dog breeds is proportional to the difference in birth/adult mass ratio. Empirical data on lifespan, body mass, and metabolic scaling law of dogs strongly supports this prediction.

  13. The relations between forest fragmentation and bird community body size and biodiversity and bird community body size.

    OpenAIRE

    Hopman, F.

    2017-01-01

    Bachelor thesis Future Planet Studies, major biologie ABSTRACT Animal species with a larger body-size tend to have larger home ranges than small-bodied animals. Therefore it is likely that they are more affected by habitat fragmentation than small-bodied species. Body size of birds also seems to have a negative relation with species richness. This research has therefore looked into whether birds with a larger body-size are more sensitive to habitat fragmentation caused by forest...

  14. Can foraging ecology drive the evolution of body size in a diving endotherm?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Timothée R Cook

    Full Text Available Within a single animal species, different morphs can allow for differential exploitation of foraging niches between populations, while sexual size dimorphism can provide each sex with access to different resources. Despite being potentially important agents of evolution, resource polymorphisms, and the way they operate in wild populations, remain poorly understood. In this study, we examine how trophic factors can select for different body sizes between populations and sexes in a diving endotherm. Dive depth and duration are positively related to body size in diving birds and mammals, a relationship explained by a lower mass-specific metabolic rate and greater oxygen stores in larger individuals. Based on this allometry, we predict that selection for exploiting resources situated at different depths can drive the evolution of body size in species of diving endotherms at the population and sexual level. To test this prediction, we studied the foraging ecology of Blue-eyed Shags, a group of cormorants with male-biased sexual size dimorphism from across the Southern Ocean. We found that mean body mass and relative difference in body mass between sexes varied by up to 77% and 107% between neighbouring colonies, respectively. Birds from colonies with larger individuals dived deeper than birds from colonies with smaller individuals, when accounting for sex. In parallel, males dived further offshore and deeper than females and the sexual difference in dive depth reflected the level of sexual size dimorphism at each colony. We argue that body size in this group of birds is under intense selection for diving to depths of profitable benthic prey patches and that, locally, sexual niche divergence selection can exaggerate the sexual size dimorphism of Blue-eyed Shags initially set up by sexual selection. Our findings suggest that trophic resources can select for important geographic micro-variability in body size between populations and sexes.

  15. Explaining body size beliefs in anorexia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gadsby, Stephen

    2017-11-01

    Cognitive neuropsychiatry has had much success in providing theoretical models for the causal origins of many delusional beliefs. Recently, it has been suggested that some anorexia nervosa patients' beliefs about their own body size should be considered delusions. As such, it seems high time the methods of cognitive neuropsychiatry were turned to modelling the false body size beliefs of anorexics. In this paper, I adopt an empiricist approach to modelling the causal origins of false body size beliefs in anorexia. Within the background of cognitive neuropsychiatry, empiricist models claim that abnormal beliefs are grounded by abnormal experiences bearing similar content. I discuss the kinds of abnormal experiences of body size anorexics suffer from which could ground their false beliefs about body size. These oversized experiences come in three varieties: false self-other body comparisons, spontaneous mental imagery of a fat body and distorted perception of affordances. Further theoretical and empirical research into the oversized experiences which anorexics suffer from presents a promising avenue for understanding and treating the disorder.

  16. Evolution of body size in Galapagos marine iguanas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wikelski, Martin

    2005-10-07

    Body size is one of the most important traits of organisms and allows predictions of an individual's morphology, physiology, behaviour and life history. However, explaining the evolution of complex traits such as body size is difficult because a plethora of other traits influence body size. Here I review what we know about the evolution of body size in a group of island reptiles and try to generalize about the mechanisms that shape body size. Galapagos marine iguanas occupy all 13 larger islands in this Pacific archipelago and have maximum island body weights between 900 and 12 000g. The distribution of body sizes does not match mitochondrial clades, indicating that body size evolves independently of genetic relatedness. Marine iguanas lack intra- and inter-specific food competition and predators are not size-specific, discounting these factors as selective agents influencing body size. Instead I hypothesize that body size reflects the trade-offs between sexual and natural selection. We found that sexual selection continuously favours larger body sizes. Large males establish display territories and some gain over-proportional reproductive success in the iguanas' mating aggregations. Females select males based on size and activity and are thus responsible for the observed mating skew. However, large individuals are strongly selected against during El Niño-related famines when dietary algae disappear from the intertidal foraging areas. We showed that differences in algae sward ('pasture') heights and thermal constraints on large size are causally responsible for differences in maximum body size among populations. I hypothesize that body size in many animal species reflects a trade-off between foraging constraints and sexual selection and suggest that future research could focus on physiological and genetic mechanisms determining body size in wild animals. Furthermore, evolutionary stable body size distributions within populations should be analysed to better

  17. Body composition and basal metabolic rate in Hidradenitis Suppurativa

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Miller, I M; Rytgaard, Helene Charlotte; Mogensen, U B

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Several studies have suggested an association between Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) and obesity. Obesity is often expressed as Body Mass Index (BMI). However, BMI lacks information on body composition. General obesity is a predictor of health status and cardiovascular risk, but body...... composition (e.g. abdominal fat) may be more so. Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is an expression of resting metabolism and may serve as a complementary tool when assessing the possibly underlying metabolism behind a persons' body composition. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the body composition and basal metabolic rate...... in individuals with HS compared with healthy controls. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional study on both a hospital-based and population-based HS group and compared with controls using Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis to assess body composition. RESULTS: We identified a hospital-based HS group of 32 hospital...

  18. Optimum body size of Holstein replacement heifers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoffman, P C

    1997-03-01

    Criteria that define optimum body size of replacement heifers are required by commercial dairy producers to evaluate replacement heifer management programs. Historically recommended body size criteria have been based on live BW measurements. Numerous research studies have observed a positive relationship between BW at first calving and first lactation milk yield, which has served as the impetus for using live BW to define body size of replacement heifers. Live BW is, however, not the only available measurement to define body size. Skeletal measurements such as wither height, length, and pelvic area have been demonstrated to be related to first lactation performance and (or) dystocia. Live BW measurements also do not define differences in body composition. Differences in body composition of replacement heifers at first calving are also related to key performance variables. An updated research data base is available for the modern Holstein genotype to incorporate measures of skeletal growth and body composition with BW when defining body size. These research projects also lend insight into the relative importance of measurements that define body size of replacement heifers. Incorporation of these measurements from current research into present BW recommendations should aid commercial dairy producers to better define replacement heifer growth and management practices. This article proposes enhancements in defining optimum body size and growth characteristics of Holstein replacement heifers.

  19. The effects of laboratory housing and spatial enrichment on brain size and metabolic rate in the eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mischa P. Turschwell

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available It has long been hypothesised that there is a functional correlation between brain size and metabolic rate in vertebrates. The present study tested this hypothesis in wild-caught adult mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki by testing for an intra-specific association between resting metabolic rate (RMR and brain size while controlling for variation in body size, and through the examination of the effects of spatial enrichment and laboratory housing on body mass-independent measures of brain size and RMR. Controlling for body mass, there was no relationship between brain size and RMR in wild-caught fish. Contrary to predictions, spatial enrichment caused a decrease in mass-independent brain size, highlighting phenotypic plasticity in the adult brain. As expected, after controlling for differences in body size, wild-caught fish had relatively larger brains than fish that had been maintained in the laboratory for a minimum of six weeks, but wild-caught fish also had significantly lower mass-independent RMR. This study demonstrates that an organisms' housing environment can cause significant plastic changes to fitness related traits including brain size and RMR. We therefore conclude that current standard laboratory housing conditions may cause captive animals to be non-representative of their wild counterparts, potentially undermining the transferability of previous laboratory-based studies of aquatic ectothermic vertebrates to wild populations.

  20. The effect of temperature and body size on metabolic scope of activity in juvenile Atlantic cod Gadus morhua L

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tirsgaard, Bjørn; Behrens, Jane; Steffensen, John Fleng

    2015-01-01

    Changes in ambient temperature affect the physiology and metabolism and thus the distribution of fish. In this study we used intermittent flow respirometry to determine the effect of temperature (2, 5, 10, 15 and 20 °C) and wet body mass (BM) (~30–460 g) on standard metabolic rate (SMR, mg O2 h−1...

  1. Detecting size and shape of bodies capacitatively

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Walton, H.

    1980-01-01

    The size and shape of a body is determined by rolling it between the plates of capacitors and measuring the capacitance changes. A capacitor comprising two parallel, spaced wires inclined to the rolling direction and above and below the rolling body scans sections of the body along its longitudinal axis, another determines the body's lengths and a third comprising two non-parallel wires determines the position of the body. The capacitance changes are compared with those produced by a body of known size and shape so that the size and shape of the body can be determined. (author)

  2. The discrepancy between emotional vs. rational estimates of body size, actual size, and ideal body ratings: theoretical and clinical implications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, J K; Dolce, J J

    1989-05-01

    Thirty-two asymptomatic college females were assessed on multiple aspects of body image. Subjects' estimation of the size of three body sites (waist, hips, thighs) was affected by instructional protocol. Emotional ratings, based on how they "felt" about their body, elicited ratings that were larger than actual and ideal size measures. Size ratings based on rational instructions were no different from actual sizes, but were larger than ideal ratings. There were no differences between actual and ideal sizes. The results are discussed with regard to methodological issues involved in body image research. In addition, a working hypothesis that differentiates affective/emotional from cognitive/rational aspects of body size estimation is offered to complement current theories of body image. Implications of the findings for the understanding of body image and its relationship to eating disorders are discussed.

  3. Spatial and body-size dependent response of marine pelagic communities to projected global climate change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lefort, Stelly; Aumont, Olivier; Bopp, Laurent; Arsouze, Thomas; Gehlen, Marion; Maury, Olivier

    2015-01-01

    Temperature, oxygen, and food availability directly affect marine life. Climate models project a global warming of the ocean's surface (~+3 °C), a de-oxygenation of the ocean's interior (~-3%) and a decrease in total marine net primary production (~-8%) under the 'business as usual' climate change scenario (RCP8.5). We estimated the effects of these changes on biological communities using a coupled biogeochemical (PISCES)--ecosystems (APECOSM) model forced by the physical outputs of the last generation of the IPSL-CM Earth System Model. The APECOSM model is a size-structured bio-energetic model that simulates the 3D dynamical distributions of three interactive pelagic communities (epipelagic, mesopelagic, and migratory) under the effects of multiple environmental factors. The PISCES-APECOSM model ran from 1850 to 2100 under historical forcing followed by RCP8.5. Our RCP8.5 simulation highlights significant changes in the spatial distribution, biomass, and maximum body-size of the simulated pelagic communities. Biomass and maximum body-size increase at high latitude over the course of the century, reflecting the capacity of marine organisms to respond to new suitable environment. At low- and midlatitude, biomass and maximum body-size strongly decrease. In those regions, large organisms cannot maintain their high metabolic needs because of limited and declining food availability. This resource reduction enhances the competition and modifies the biomass distribution among and within the three communities: the proportion of small organisms increases in the three communities and the migrant community that initially comprised a higher proportion of small organisms is favored. The greater resilience of small body-size organisms resides in their capacity to fulfill their metabolic needs under reduced energy supply and is further favored by the release of predation pressure due to the decline of large organisms. These results suggest that small body-size organisms might be

  4. A macroevolutionary explanation for energy equivalence in the scaling of body size and population density.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damuth, John

    2007-05-01

    Across a wide array of animal species, mean population densities decline with species body mass such that the rate of energy use of local populations is approximately independent of body size. This "energetic equivalence" is particularly evident when ecological population densities are plotted across several or more orders of magnitude in body mass and is supported by a considerable body of evidence. Nevertheless, interpretation of the data has remained controversial, largely because of the difficulty of explaining the origin and maintenance of such a size-abundance relationship in terms of purely ecological processes. Here I describe results of a simulation model suggesting that an extremely simple mechanism operating over evolutionary time can explain the major features of the empirical data. The model specifies only the size scaling of metabolism and a process where randomly chosen species evolve to take resource energy from other species. This process of energy exchange among particular species is distinct from a random walk of species abundances and creates a situation in which species populations using relatively low amounts of energy at any body size have an elevated extinction risk. Selective extinction of such species rapidly drives size-abundance allometry in faunas toward approximate energetic equivalence and maintains it there.

  5. Effects of exposure to bodies of different sizes on perception of and satisfaction with own body size: two randomized studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bould, Helen; Carnegie, Rebecca; Allward, Heather; Bacon, Emily; Lambe, Emily; Sapseid, Megan; Button, Katherine S; Lewis, Glyn; Skinner, Andy; Broome, Matthew R; Park, Rebecca; Harmer, Catherine J; Penton-Voak, Ian S; Munafò, Marcus R

    2018-05-01

    Body dissatisfaction is prevalent among women and associated with subsequent obesity and eating disorders. Exposure to images of bodies of different sizes has been suggested to change the perception of 'normal' body size in others. We tested whether exposure to different-sized (otherwise identical) bodies changes perception of own and others' body size, satisfaction with body size and amount of chocolate consumed. In Study 1, 90 18-25-year-old women with normal BMI were randomized into one of three groups to complete a 15 min two-back task using photographs of women either of 'normal weight' (Body Mass Index (BMI) 22-23 kg m -2 ), or altered to appear either under- or over-weight. Study 2 was identical except the 96 participants had high baseline body dissatisfaction and were followed up after 24 h. We also conducted a mega-analysis combining both studies. Participants rated size of others' bodies, own size, and satisfaction with size pre- and post-task. Post-task ratings were compared between groups, adjusting for pre-task ratings. Participants exposed to over- or normal-weight images subsequently perceived others' bodies as smaller, in comparison to those shown underweight bodies ( p  < 0.001). They also perceived their own bodies as smaller (Study 1, p  = 0.073; Study 2, p  = 0.018; mega-analysis, p  = 0.001), and felt more satisfied with their size (Study 1, p  = 0.046; Study 2, p  = 0.004; mega-analysis, p  = 0.006). There were no differences in chocolate consumption. This study suggests that a move towards using images of women with a BMI in the healthy range in the media may help to reduce body dissatisfaction, and the associated risk of eating disorders.

  6. Body size distribution of the dinosaurs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eoin J O'Gorman

    Full Text Available The distribution of species body size is critically important for determining resource use within a group or clade. It is widely known that non-avian dinosaurs were the largest creatures to roam the Earth. There is, however, little understanding of how maximum species body size was distributed among the dinosaurs. Do they share a similar distribution to modern day vertebrate groups in spite of their large size, or did they exhibit fundamentally different distributions due to unique evolutionary pressures and adaptations? Here, we address this question by comparing the distribution of maximum species body size for dinosaurs to an extensive set of extant and extinct vertebrate groups. We also examine the body size distribution of dinosaurs by various sub-groups, time periods and formations. We find that dinosaurs exhibit a strong skew towards larger species, in direct contrast to modern day vertebrates. This pattern is not solely an artefact of bias in the fossil record, as demonstrated by contrasting distributions in two major extinct groups and supports the hypothesis that dinosaurs exhibited a fundamentally different life history strategy to other terrestrial vertebrates. A disparity in the size distribution of the herbivorous Ornithischia and Sauropodomorpha and the largely carnivorous Theropoda suggests that this pattern may have been a product of a divergence in evolutionary strategies: herbivorous dinosaurs rapidly evolved large size to escape predation by carnivores and maximise digestive efficiency; carnivores had sufficient resources among juvenile dinosaurs and non-dinosaurian prey to achieve optimal success at smaller body size.

  7. Body size distribution of the dinosaurs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Gorman, Eoin J; Hone, David W E

    2012-01-01

    The distribution of species body size is critically important for determining resource use within a group or clade. It is widely known that non-avian dinosaurs were the largest creatures to roam the Earth. There is, however, little understanding of how maximum species body size was distributed among the dinosaurs. Do they share a similar distribution to modern day vertebrate groups in spite of their large size, or did they exhibit fundamentally different distributions due to unique evolutionary pressures and adaptations? Here, we address this question by comparing the distribution of maximum species body size for dinosaurs to an extensive set of extant and extinct vertebrate groups. We also examine the body size distribution of dinosaurs by various sub-groups, time periods and formations. We find that dinosaurs exhibit a strong skew towards larger species, in direct contrast to modern day vertebrates. This pattern is not solely an artefact of bias in the fossil record, as demonstrated by contrasting distributions in two major extinct groups and supports the hypothesis that dinosaurs exhibited a fundamentally different life history strategy to other terrestrial vertebrates. A disparity in the size distribution of the herbivorous Ornithischia and Sauropodomorpha and the largely carnivorous Theropoda suggests that this pattern may have been a product of a divergence in evolutionary strategies: herbivorous dinosaurs rapidly evolved large size to escape predation by carnivores and maximise digestive efficiency; carnivores had sufficient resources among juvenile dinosaurs and non-dinosaurian prey to achieve optimal success at smaller body size.

  8. Body Size Distribution of the Dinosaurs

    Science.gov (United States)

    O’Gorman, Eoin J.; Hone, David W. E.

    2012-01-01

    The distribution of species body size is critically important for determining resource use within a group or clade. It is widely known that non-avian dinosaurs were the largest creatures to roam the Earth. There is, however, little understanding of how maximum species body size was distributed among the dinosaurs. Do they share a similar distribution to modern day vertebrate groups in spite of their large size, or did they exhibit fundamentally different distributions due to unique evolutionary pressures and adaptations? Here, we address this question by comparing the distribution of maximum species body size for dinosaurs to an extensive set of extant and extinct vertebrate groups. We also examine the body size distribution of dinosaurs by various sub-groups, time periods and formations. We find that dinosaurs exhibit a strong skew towards larger species, in direct contrast to modern day vertebrates. This pattern is not solely an artefact of bias in the fossil record, as demonstrated by contrasting distributions in two major extinct groups and supports the hypothesis that dinosaurs exhibited a fundamentally different life history strategy to other terrestrial vertebrates. A disparity in the size distribution of the herbivorous Ornithischia and Sauropodomorpha and the largely carnivorous Theropoda suggests that this pattern may have been a product of a divergence in evolutionary strategies: herbivorous dinosaurs rapidly evolved large size to escape predation by carnivores and maximise digestive efficiency; carnivores had sufficient resources among juvenile dinosaurs and non-dinosaurian prey to achieve optimal success at smaller body size. PMID:23284818

  9. Artificial fish schools : Collective effects of school size, body size, and body form

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kunz, H.; Hemelrijk, C.K.

    2003-01-01

    Individual-based models of schooling in fish have demonstrated that, via processes of self-organization. artificial fish may school in the absence of a leader or external stimuli, using local information only. We study for the first time how body size and body form of artificial fish affect school

  10. Size matters: relationships between body size and body mass of common coastal, aquatic invertebrates in the Baltic Sea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Johan Eklöf

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Background Organism biomass is one of the most important variables in ecological studies, making biomass estimations one of the most common laboratory tasks. Biomass of small macroinvertebrates is usually estimated as dry mass or ash-free dry mass (hereafter ‘DM’ vs. ‘AFDM’ per sample; a laborious and time consuming process, that often can be speeded up using easily measured and reliable proxy variables like body size or wet (fresh mass. Another common way of estimating AFDM (one of the most accurate but also time-consuming estimates of biologically active tissue mass is the use of AFDM/DM ratios as conversion factors. So far, however, these ratios typically ignore the possibility that the relative mass of biologically active vs. non-active support tissue (e.g., protective exoskeleton or shell—and therefore, also AFDM/DM ratios—may change with body size, as previously shown for taxa like spiders, vertebrates and trees. Methods We collected aquatic, epibenthic macroinvertebrates (>1 mm in 32 shallow bays along a 360 km stretch of the Swedish coast along the Baltic Sea; one of the largest brackish water bodies on Earth. We then estimated statistical relationships between the body size (length or height in mm, body dry mass and ash-free dry mass for 14 of the most common taxa; five gastropods, three bivalves, three crustaceans and three insect larvae. Finally, we statistically estimated the potential influence of body size on the AFDM/DM ratio per taxon. Results For most taxa, non-linear regression models describing the power relationship between body size and (i DM and (ii AFDM fit the data well (as indicated by low SE and high R2. Moreover, for more than half of the taxa studied (including the vast majority of the shelled molluscs, body size had a negative influence on organism AFDM/DM ratios. Discussion The good fit of the modelled power relationships suggests that the constants reported here can be used to quickly estimate

  11. Muzzle size, paranasal swelling size and body mass in Mandrillus leucophaeus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elton, Sarah; Morgan, Bethan J

    2006-04-01

    The drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus), a forest-living Old World monkey, is highly sexually dimorphic, with males exhibiting extreme secondary sexual characteristics, including growth of paranasal swellings on the muzzle. In this study, the size of the secondary bone that forms the paranasal swellings on the muzzles of drills was assessed in relation to body mass proxies. The relationship between the overall size of the muzzle and surrogate measures of body mass was also examined. In female drills, muzzle breadth was positively correlated with two proxies of overall body mass, greatest skull length and upper M1 area. However, there was no such correlation in males. Paranasal swellings in males also appeared to have no significant relationship to body mass proxies. This suggests that secondary bone growth on the muzzles of male drills is independent of overall body size. Furthermore, this secondary bone appears to be vermiculate, probably developing rapidly and in an irregular manner, with no correlation in the sizes of paranasal swelling height and breadth. However, various paranasal swelling dimensions were related to the size of the muzzle. It is suggested that the growth of the paranasal swellings and possibly the muzzle could be influenced by androgen production and reflect testes size and sperm motility. The size and appearance of the paranasal swellings may thus be an indicator of reproductive quality both to potential mates and male competitors. Further work is required to investigate the importance of the paranasal swellings as secondary sexual characteristics in Mandrillus and the relationship between body size and secondary sexual characteristics. Attention should also be paid to the mechanisms and trajectories of facial growth in Mandrillus.

  12. RESEARCH OF THE METABOLIC AGE AND BODY MASS INDEX FOR FEMALE STUDENTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Galina Petrova Dyakova

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available Metabolic age - this feature takes into account, the basic metabolism and all the basic physical parameters and the determining of age, which corresponds to this type of metabolism. The aim of the research is to establish a metabolic age and the index of the body mass (Body Mass Index for students. Anthropometric measurement was applied. The analyzer was used for the composition of body weight (body composition analyzer, BC-420MA “Tanita” for determining the metabolic age and body mass index. The conducted monitoring of the metabolic age reveals opportunities to improve students' motivation for healthy lifestyle.

  13. Acute dim light at night increases body mass, alters metabolism, and shifts core body temperature circadian rhythms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borniger, Jeremy C; Maurya, Santosh K; Periasamy, Muthu; Nelson, Randy J

    2014-10-01

    The circadian system is primarily entrained by the ambient light environment and is fundamentally linked to metabolism. Mounting evidence suggests a causal relationship among aberrant light exposure, shift work, and metabolic disease. Previous research has demonstrated deleterious metabolic phenotypes elicited by chronic (>4 weeks) exposure to dim light at night (DLAN) (∼ 5 lux). However, the metabolic effects of short-term (dim light would gain more body mass, alter whole body metabolism, and display altered body temperature (Tb) and activity rhythms compared to mice maintained in dark nights. Our data largely support these predictions; DLAN mice gained significantly more mass, reduced whole body energy expenditure, increased carbohydrate over fat oxidation, and altered temperature circadian rhythms. Importantly, these alterations occurred despite similar activity locomotor levels (and rhythms) and total food intake between groups. Peripheral clocks are potently entrained by body temperature rhythms, and the deregulation of body temperature we observed may contribute to metabolic problems due to "internal desynchrony" between the central circadian oscillator and temperature sensitive peripheral clocks. We conclude that even relatively short-term exposure to low levels of nighttime light can influence metabolism to increase mass gain.

  14. Body Temperature Measurements for Metabolic Phenotyping in Mice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meyer, Carola W.; Ootsuka, Youichirou; Romanovsky, Andrej A.

    2017-01-01

    Endothermic organisms rely on tightly balanced energy budgets to maintain a regulated body temperature and body mass. Metabolic phenotyping of mice, therefore, often includes the recording of body temperature. Thermometry in mice is conducted at various sites, using various devices and measurement practices, ranging from single-time probing to continuous temperature imaging. Whilst there is broad agreement that body temperature data is of value, procedural considerations of body temperature measurements in the context of metabolic phenotyping are missing. Here, we provide an overview of the various methods currently available for gathering body temperature data from mice. We explore the scope and limitations of thermometry in mice, with the hope of assisting researchers in the selection of appropriate approaches, and conditions, for comprehensive mouse phenotypic analyses. PMID:28824441

  15. Sauropod dinosaurs evolved moderately sized genomes unrelated to body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Organ, Chris L; Brusatte, Stephen L; Stein, Koen

    2009-12-22

    Sauropodomorph dinosaurs include the largest land animals to have ever lived, some reaching up to 10 times the mass of an African elephant. Despite their status defining the upper range for body size in land animals, it remains unknown whether sauropodomorphs evolved larger-sized genomes than non-avian theropods, their sister taxon, or whether a relationship exists between genome size and body size in dinosaurs, two questions critical for understanding broad patterns of genome evolution in dinosaurs. Here we report inferences of genome size for 10 sauropodomorph taxa. The estimates are derived from a Bayesian phylogenetic generalized least squares approach that generates posterior distributions of regression models relating genome size to osteocyte lacunae volume in extant tetrapods. We estimate that the average genome size of sauropodomorphs was 2.02 pg (range of species means: 1.77-2.21 pg), a value in the upper range of extant birds (mean = 1.42 pg, range: 0.97-2.16 pg) and near the average for extant non-avian reptiles (mean = 2.24 pg, range: 1.05-5.44 pg). The results suggest that the variation in size and architecture of genomes in extinct dinosaurs was lower than the variation found in mammals. A substantial difference in genome size separates the two major clades within dinosaurs, Ornithischia (large genomes) and Saurischia (moderate to small genomes). We find no relationship between body size and estimated genome size in extinct dinosaurs, which suggests that neutral forces did not dominate the evolution of genome size in this group.

  16. Body Size Distribution of the Dinosaurs

    OpenAIRE

    O?Gorman, Eoin J.; Hone, David W. E.

    2012-01-01

    The distribution of species body size is critically important for determining resource use within a group or clade. It is widely known that non-avian dinosaurs were the largest creatures to roam the Earth. There is, however, little understanding of how maximum species body size was distributed among the dinosaurs. Do they share a similar distribution to modern day vertebrate groups in spite of their large size, or did they exhibit fundamentally different distributions due to unique evolutiona...

  17. Influence of adult nutrition on the relationship between body size and reproductive parameters in a parasitoid wasp

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bezemer, T.M.; Harvey, J.A.; Mills, N.J.

    2005-01-01

    1. An important constraint upon life-history evolution in parasitoids is the limit imposed by body size on allocation of limited metabolic resources to different fitness-related physiological functions such as reproduction and survival. 2. The influence of adult nutrition on reproductive and

  18. Nonplantigrade Foot Posture: A Constraint on Dinosaur Body Size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tai Kubo

    Full Text Available Dinosaurs had functionally digitigrade or sub-unguligrade foot postures. With their immediate ancestors, dinosaurs were the only terrestrial nonplantigrades during the Mesozoic. Extant terrestrial mammals have different optimal body sizes according to their foot posture (plantigrade, digitigrade, and unguligrade, yet the relationship of nonplantigrade foot posture with dinosaur body size has never been investigated, even though the body size of dinosaurs has been studied intensively. According to a large dataset presented in this study, the body sizes of all nonplantigrades (including nonvolant dinosaurs, nonvolant terrestrial birds, extant mammals, and extinct Nearctic mammals are above 500 g, except for macroscelid mammals (i.e., elephant shrew, a few alvarezsauroid dinosaurs, and nondinosaur ornithodirans (i.e., the immediate ancestors of dinosaurs. When nonplantigrade tetrapods evolved from plantigrade ancestors, lineages with nonplantigrade foot posture exhibited a steady increase in body size following Cope's rule. In contrast, contemporaneous plantigrade lineages exhibited no trend in body size evolution and were largely constrained to small body sizes. This evolutionary pattern of body size specific to foot posture occurred repeatedly during both the Mesozoic and the Cenozoic eras. Although disturbed by the end-Cretaceous extinction, species of mid to large body size have predominantly been nonplantigrade animals from the Jurassic until the present; conversely, species with small body size have been exclusively composed of plantigrades in the nonvolant terrestrial tetrapod fauna.

  19. Nonplantigrade Foot Posture: A Constraint on Dinosaur Body Size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kubo, Tai; Kubo, Mugino O

    2016-01-01

    Dinosaurs had functionally digitigrade or sub-unguligrade foot postures. With their immediate ancestors, dinosaurs were the only terrestrial nonplantigrades during the Mesozoic. Extant terrestrial mammals have different optimal body sizes according to their foot posture (plantigrade, digitigrade, and unguligrade), yet the relationship of nonplantigrade foot posture with dinosaur body size has never been investigated, even though the body size of dinosaurs has been studied intensively. According to a large dataset presented in this study, the body sizes of all nonplantigrades (including nonvolant dinosaurs, nonvolant terrestrial birds, extant mammals, and extinct Nearctic mammals) are above 500 g, except for macroscelid mammals (i.e., elephant shrew), a few alvarezsauroid dinosaurs, and nondinosaur ornithodirans (i.e., the immediate ancestors of dinosaurs). When nonplantigrade tetrapods evolved from plantigrade ancestors, lineages with nonplantigrade foot posture exhibited a steady increase in body size following Cope's rule. In contrast, contemporaneous plantigrade lineages exhibited no trend in body size evolution and were largely constrained to small body sizes. This evolutionary pattern of body size specific to foot posture occurred repeatedly during both the Mesozoic and the Cenozoic eras. Although disturbed by the end-Cretaceous extinction, species of mid to large body size have predominantly been nonplantigrade animals from the Jurassic until the present; conversely, species with small body size have been exclusively composed of plantigrades in the nonvolant terrestrial tetrapod fauna.

  20. Scale effects between body size and limb design in quadrupedal mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kilbourne, Brandon M; Hoffman, Louwrens C

    2013-01-01

    Recently the metabolic cost of swinging the limbs has been found to be much greater than previously thought, raising the possibility that limb rotational inertia influences the energetics of locomotion. Larger mammals have a lower mass-specific cost of transport than smaller mammals. The scaling of the mass-specific cost of transport is partly explained by decreasing stride frequency with increasing body size; however, it is unknown if limb rotational inertia also influences the mass-specific cost of transport. Limb length and inertial properties--limb mass, center of mass (COM) position, moment of inertia, radius of gyration, and natural frequency--were measured in 44 species of terrestrial mammals, spanning eight taxonomic orders. Limb length increases disproportionately with body mass via positive allometry (length ∝ body mass(0.40)); the positive allometry of limb length may help explain the scaling of the metabolic cost of transport. When scaled against body mass, forelimb inertial properties, apart from mass, scale with positive allometry. Fore- and hindlimb mass scale according to geometric similarity (limb mass ∝ body mass(1.0)), as do the remaining hindlimb inertial properties. The positive allometry of limb length is largely the result of absolute differences in limb inertial properties between mammalian subgroups. Though likely detrimental to locomotor costs in large mammals, scale effects in limb inertial properties appear to be concomitant with scale effects in sensorimotor control and locomotor ability in terrestrial mammals. Across mammals, the forelimb's potential for angular acceleration scales according to geometric similarity, whereas the hindlimb's potential for angular acceleration scales with positive allometry.

  1. Oocyte size, egg index, and body lipid content in relation to body size in the solitary bee Megachile rotundata.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Neill, Kevin M; Delphia, Casey M; O'Neill, Ruth P

    2014-01-01

    Females of solitary, nest-provisioning bees have relatively low fecundity, but produce large eggs as part of their overall strategy of investing substantially in each offspring. In intraspecific comparisons of several species of solitary, nest-provisioning bees and wasps, the size of the mature eggs produced increases with female body size. We further examined oocyte size-body size correlations in the solitary bee Megachile rotundata (F.), an important crop pollinator. We hypothesized that larger females carry larger basal oocytes (i.e., those next in line to be oviposited) but that body size-oocyte size correlations would be absent soon after emergence, before their first eggs fully matured. Because egg production is likely affected by the quantity of stored lipids carried over from the bees' immature stages, we also tested the hypothesis that female body size is correlated with the body lipid content at adult emergence, the time during which oocyte growth accelerates. We found significant correlations of body size with oocyte size variables chosen to reflect: (1) the magnitude of the investment in the next egg to be laid (i.e., the length and volume of the basal oocyte) and (2) the longer term potential to produce mature oocytes (i.e., the summed lengths and volumes of the three largest oocytes in each female). Positive correlations existed throughout the nesting season, even during the first week following adult emergence. The ability to produce and carry larger oocytes may be linked to larger females starting the nesting season with greater lipid stores (which we document here) or to greater space within the abdomen of larger females. Compared to other species of solitary bees, M. rotundata appears to have (1) smaller oocytes than solitary nest-provisioning bees in general, (2) comparable oocyte sizes relative to congeners, and (3) larger oocytes than related brood parasitic megachilids.

  2. Hibernation in black bears: independence of metabolic suppression from body temperature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tøien, Øivind; Blake, John; Edgar, Dale M; Grahn, Dennis A; Heller, H Craig; Barnes, Brian M

    2011-02-18

    Black bears hibernate for 5 to 7 months a year and, during this time, do not eat, drink, urinate, or defecate. We measured metabolic rate and body temperature in hibernating black bears and found that they suppress metabolism to 25% of basal rates while regulating body temperature from 30° to 36°C, in multiday cycles. Heart rates were reduced from 55 to as few as 9 beats per minute, with profound sinus arrhythmia. After returning to normal body temperature and emerging from dens, bears maintained a reduced metabolic rate for up to 3 weeks. The pronounced reduction and delayed recovery of metabolic rate in hibernating bears suggest that the majority of metabolic suppression during hibernation is independent of lowered body temperature.

  3. Effects of independently altering body weight and body mass on the metabolic cost of running

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Teunissen, L.P.J.; Grabowski, A.; Kram, R.

    2011-01-01

    The metabolic cost of running is substantial, despite the savings from elastic energy storage and return. Previous studies suggest that generating vertical force to support body weight and horizontal forces to brake and propel body mass are the major determinants of the metabolic cost of running. In

  4. Body weight in relation to variation in body size of Oystercatchers Haematopus ostralegus

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zwarts, L; Hulscher, JB; Koopman, K; Zegers, PM

    1996-01-01

    This paper analyses the relationships between body weight in the Oystercatcher and two measures of its body size, bill length and wing length. The weight variation between individuals due to differences in body size is nearly as large as the seasonal variation in body weight within individuals. Wing

  5. Sneaker Males Affect Fighter Male Body Size and Sexual Size Dimorphism in Salmon.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weir, Laura K; Kindsvater, Holly K; Young, Kyle A; Reynolds, John D

    2016-08-01

    Large male body size is typically favored by directional sexual selection through competition for mates. However, alternative male life-history phenotypes, such as "sneakers," should decrease the strength of sexual selection acting on body size of large "fighter" males. We tested this prediction with salmon species; in southern populations, where sneakers are common, fighter males should be smaller than in northern populations, where sneakers are rare, leading to geographical clines in sexual size dimorphism (SSD). Consistent with our prediction, fighter male body size and SSD (fighter male∶female size) increase with latitude in species with sneaker males (Atlantic salmon Salmo salar and masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou) but not in species without sneakers (chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta and pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha). This is the first evidence that sneaker males affect SSD across populations and species, and it suggests that alternative male mating strategies may shape the evolution of body size.

  6. Joint evolution of predator body size and prey-size preference.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Troost, T.A.; Kooi, B.W.; Dieckmann, U.

    2007-01-01

    We studied the joint evolution of predator body size and prey-size preference based on dynamic energy budget theory. The predators' demography and their functional response are based on general eco-physiological principles involving the size of both predator and prey. While our model can account for

  7. Joint evolution of predator body size and prey-size preference

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Troost, Tineke; Kooi, Bob; Dieckmann, Ulf

    2007-01-01

    We studied the joint evolution of predator body size and prey-size preference based on dynamic energy budget theory. The predators’ demography and their functional response are based on general eco-physiological principles involving the size of both predator and prey. While our model can account

  8. Oocyte size, egg index, and body lipid content in relation to body size in the solitary bee Megachile rotundata

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin M. O’Neill

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Females of solitary, nest-provisioning bees have relatively low fecundity, but produce large eggs as part of their overall strategy of investing substantially in each offspring. In intraspecific comparisons of several species of solitary, nest-provisioning bees and wasps, the size of the mature eggs produced increases with female body size. We further examined oocyte size–body size correlations in the solitary bee Megachile rotundata (F., an important crop pollinator. We hypothesized that larger females carry larger basal oocytes (i.e., those next in line to be oviposited but that body size–oocyte size correlations would be absent soon after emergence, before their first eggs fully matured. Because egg production is likely affected by the quantity of stored lipids carried over from the bees’ immature stages, we also tested the hypothesis that female body size is correlated with the body lipid content at adult emergence, the time during which oocyte growth accelerates. We found significant correlations of body size with oocyte size variables chosen to reflect: (1 the magnitude of the investment in the next egg to be laid (i.e., the length and volume of the basal oocyte and (2 the longer term potential to produce mature oocytes (i.e., the summed lengths and volumes of the three largest oocytes in each female. Positive correlations existed throughout the nesting season, even during the first week following adult emergence. The ability to produce and carry larger oocytes may be linked to larger females starting the nesting season with greater lipid stores (which we document here or to greater space within the abdomen of larger females. Compared to other species of solitary bees, M. rotundata appears to have (1 smaller oocytes than solitary nest-provisioning bees in general, (2 comparable oocyte sizes relative to congeners, and (3 larger oocytes than related brood parasitic megachilids.

  9. Total body fat as a possible indicator of metabolic syndrome in adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edgar Navarro Lechuga

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: The metabolic syndrome is a set of factors related to insulin resistance, which increases the likelihood of coronary events. It is important timely onset identifying to reduce its prevalence. Objective: To explore the percentage of total body fat as indicator of metabolic syndrome in adults from Soledad, Colombia. Material and Methods: Cross-sectional study. n=99 adults (non-pregnant, nor subjects with psychomotor disturbances. Blood samples were taken: total cholesterol, HDL; triglycerides and glucose. Waist circumference, Body Mass Index and body fat by bioimpedance and skinfold thickness were measured. Diagnosis of metabolic syndrome was made according to NHLBI/AHA, ATP III and IDF criteria. Subjects with and without metabolic syndrome according to total body fat averages were compared. Results: The average percentage of body fat was higher (p0.05 in the classification according to ATP III in women, where the average fat percentage was 39.31 % in those with metabolic syndrome and 37.7% in those not suffering. Conclusions: Subjects with metabolic syndrome have higher mean total body fat, significantly, compared with those who did not, so it could be considered the values of total body fat obtained by bioimpedance as future indicators of metabolic syndrome, both as screening and control.

  10. Song repertoire size correlates with measures of body size in Eurasian blackbirds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hesler, Nana; Mundry, Roger; Sacher, Thomas

    2012-01-01

    In most oscine bird species males possess a repertoire of different song patterns. The size of these repertoires is assumed to serve as an honest signal of male quality. The Eurasian blackbird’s (Turdus merula) song contains a large repertoire of different element types with a flexible song...... organisation. Here we investigated whether repertoire size in Eurasian blackbirds correlates with measures of body size, namely length of wing, 8th primary, beak and tarsus. So far, very few studies have investigated species with large repertoires and a flexible song organisation in this context. We found...... positive correlations, meaning that larger males had larger repertoires. Larger males may have better fighting abilities and, thus, advantages in territorial defence. Larger structural body size may also reflect better conditions during early development. Therefore, under the assumption that body size...

  11. Increased body size along urbanization gradients at both community and intraspecific level in macro-moths.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merckx, Thomas; Kaiser, Aurélien; Van Dyck, Hans

    2018-05-23

    Urbanization involves a cocktail of human-induced rapid environmental changes and is forecasted to gain further importance. Urban-heat-island effects result in increased metabolic costs expected to drive shifts towards smaller body sizes. However, urban environments are also characterized by strong habitat fragmentation, often selecting for dispersal phenotypes. Here, we investigate to what extent, and at which spatial scale(s), urbanization drives body size shifts in macro-moths-an insect group characterized by positive size-dispersal links-at both the community and intraspecific level. Using light and bait trapping as part of a replicated, spatially nested sampling design, we show that despite the observed urban warming of their woodland habitat, macro-moth communities display considerable increases in community-weighted mean body size because of stronger filtering against small species along urbanization gradients. Urbanization drives intraspecific shifts towards increased body size too, at least for a third of species analysed. These results indicate that urbanization drives shifts towards larger, and hence, more mobile species and individuals in order to mitigate low connectivity of ecological resources in urban settings. Macro-moths are a key group within terrestrial ecosystems, and since body size is central to species interactions, such urbanization-driven phenotypic change may impact urban ecosystem functioning, especially in terms of nocturnal pollination and food web dynamics. Although we show that urbanization's size-biased filtering happens simultaneously and coherently at both the inter- and intraspecific level, we demonstrate that the impact at the community level is most pronounced at the 800 m radius scale, whereas species-specific size increases happen at local and landscape scales (50-3,200 m radius), depending on the species. Hence, measures-such as creating and improving urban green infrastructure-to mitigate the effects of urbanization on

  12. Body Size, Fecundity, and Sexual Size Dimorphism in the Neotropical Cricket Macroanaxipha macilenta (Saussure) (Orthoptera: Gryllidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cueva Del Castillo, R

    2015-04-01

    Body size is directly or indirectly correlated with fitness. Body size, which conveys maximal fitness, often differs between sexes. Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) evolves because body size tends to be related to reproductive success through different pathways in males and females. In general, female insects are larger than males, suggesting that natural selection for high female fecundity could be stronger than sexual selection in males. I assessed the role of body size and fecundity in SSD in the Neotropical cricket Macroanaxipha macilenta (Saussure). This species shows a SSD bias toward males. Females did not present a correlation between number of eggs and body size. Nonetheless, there were fluctuations in the number of eggs carried by females during the sampling period, and the size of females that were collected carrying eggs was larger than that of females collected with no eggs. Since mating induces vitellogenesis in some cricket species, differences in female body size might suggest male mate choice. Sexual selection in the body size of males of M. macilenta may possibly be stronger than the selection of female fecundity. Even so, no mating behavior was observed during the field observations, including audible male calling or courtship songs, yet males may produce ultrasonic calls due to their size. If female body size in M. macilenta is not directly related to fecundity, the lack of a correlated response to selection on female body size could represent an alternate evolutionary pathway in the evolution of body size and SSD in insects.

  13. The role of sex and body weight on the metabolic effects of high-fat diet in C57BL/6N mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ingvorsen, C; Karp, N A; Lelliott, C J

    2017-04-10

    Metabolic disorders are commonly investigated using knockout and transgenic mouse models on the C57BL/6N genetic background due to its genetic susceptibility to the deleterious metabolic effects of high-fat diet (HFD). There is growing awareness of the need to consider sex in disease progression, but limited attention has been paid to sexual dimorphism in mouse models and its impact in metabolic phenotypes. We assessed the effect of HFD and the impact of sex on metabolic variables in this strain. We generated a reference data set encompassing glucose tolerance, body composition and plasma chemistry data from 586 C57BL/6N mice fed a standard chow and 733 fed a HFD collected as part of a high-throughput phenotyping pipeline. Linear mixed model regression analysis was used in a dual analysis to assess the effect of HFD as an absolute change in phenotype, but also as a relative change accounting for the potential confounding effect of body weight. HFD had a significant impact on all variables tested with an average absolute effect size of 29%. For the majority of variables (78%), the treatment effect was modified by sex and this was dominated by male-specific or a male stronger effect. On average, there was a 13.2% difference in the effect size between the male and female mice for sexually dimorphic variables. HFD led to a significant body weight phenotype (24% increase), which acts as a confounding effect on the other analysed variables. For 79% of the variables, body weight was found to be a significant source of variation, but even after accounting for this confounding effect, similar HFD-induced phenotypic changes were found to when not accounting for weight. HFD and sex are powerful modifiers of metabolic parameters in C57BL/6N mice. We also demonstrate the value of considering body size as a covariate to obtain a richer understanding of metabolic phenotypes.

  14. Body size, energy use, and community structure of small mammals

    OpenAIRE

    Ernest, S.K. Morgan

    2005-01-01

    Body size has long been hypothesized to play a major role in community structure and dynamics. Two general hypotheses exist for how resources are distributed among body sizes: (1) resources are equally available and uniformly utilized across body sizes and (2) resources are differentially available to organisms of different body sizes, resulting in a nonuniform or modal distribution. It has also been predicted that the distri-bution of body sizes of species in a community should reflect the u...

  15. Exercise-induced maximum metabolic rate scaled to body mass by ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Exercise-induced maximum metabolic rate scaled to body mass by the fractal ... rate scaling is that exercise-induced maximum aerobic metabolic rate (MMR) is ... muscle stress limitation, and maximized oxygen delivery and metabolic rates.

  16. Exercise-induced maximum metabolic rate scaled to body mass by ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    user

    2016-10-27

    Oct 27, 2016 ... maximum aerobic metabolic rate (MMR) is proportional to the fractal extent ... metabolic rate with body mass can be obtained by taking body .... blood takes place. ..... MMR and BMR is that MMR is owing mainly to respiration in skeletal .... the spectra of surface area scaling strategies of cells and organisms:.

  17. Association between inaccurate estimation of body size and obesity in schoolchildren

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Larissa da Cunha Feio Costa

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of inaccurate estimation of own body size among Brazilian schoolchildren of both sexes aged 7-10 years, and to test whether overweight/obesity; excess body fat and central obesity are associated with inaccuracy. Methods: Accuracy of body size estimation was assessed using the Figure Rating Scale for Brazilian Children. Multinomial logistic regression was used to analyze associations. Results: The overall prevalence of inaccurate body size estimation was 76%, with 34% of the children underestimating their body size and 42% overestimating their body size. Obesity measured by body mass index was associated with underestimation of body size in both sexes, while central obesity was only associated with overestimation of body size among girls. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest there is a high prevalence of inaccurate body size estimation and that inaccurate estimation is associated with obesity. Accurate estimation of own body size is important among obese schoolchildren because it may be the first step towards adopting healthy lifestyle behaviors.

  18. Investigating Young Children's Perceptions of Body Size and Healthy Habits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Tingting; Nerren, Jannah S.

    2017-01-01

    Attitudes and biases toward body size perceived as fat and body size perceived as thin are present in young children (Cramer and Steinwert in "J Appl Dev Psychol" 19(3):429-451, 1998; Worobey and Worobey in "Body Image" 11:171-174, 2014). However, the information children have regarding body size and ways to modify body size…

  19. The effects of a low-fat, plant-based dietary intervention on body weight, metabolism, and insulin sensitivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnard, Neal D; Scialli, Anthony R; Turner-McGrievy, Gabrielle; Lanou, Amy J; Glass, Jolie

    2005-09-01

    This study investigated the effect of a low-fat, plant-based diet on body weight, metabolism, and insulin sensitivity, while controlling for exercise in free-living individuals. In an outpatient setting, 64 overweight, postmenopausal women were randomly assigned to a low-fat, vegan diet or a control diet based on National Cholesterol Education Program guidelines, without energy intake limits, and were asked to maintain exercise unchanged. Dietary intake, body weight and composition, resting metabolic rate, thermic effect of food, and insulin sensitivity were measured at baseline and 14 weeks. Mean +/- standard deviation intervention-group body weight decreased 5.8 +/- 3.2 kg, compared with 3.8 +/- 2.8 kg in the control group (P = .012). In a regression model of predictors of weight change, including diet group and changes in energy intake, thermic effect of food, resting metabolic rate, and reported energy expenditure, significant effects were found for diet group (P effect of food (P vegan diet was associated with significant weight loss in overweight postmenopausal women, despite the absence of prescribed limits on portion size or energy intake.

  20. Latitudinal clines in Drosophila melanogaster: body size, allozyme ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Unknown

    logy, in explaining such natural genetic variation in D. melanogaster body size and development time. It is argued .... high latitudes were found to use limited food more effi- ciently, so ..... always associate fast development with small body size.

  1. Body size in early life and risk of breast cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shawon, Md Shajedur Rahman; Eriksson, Mikael; Li, Jingmei

    2017-07-21

    Body size in early life is inversely associated with adult breast cancer (BC) risk, but it is unclear whether the associations differ by tumor characteristics. In a pooled analysis of two Swedish population-based studies consisting of 6731 invasive BC cases and 28,705 age-matched cancer-free controls, we examined the associations between body size in early life and BC risk. Self-reported body sizes at ages 7 and 18 years were collected by a validated nine-level pictogram (aggregated into three categories: small, medium and large). Odds ratios (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated from multivariable logistic regression models in case-control analyses, adjusting for study, age at diagnosis, age at menarche, number of children, hormone replacement therapy, and family history of BC. Body size change between ages 7 and 18 were also examined in relation to BC risk. Case-only analyses were performed to test whether the associations differed by tumor characteristics. Medium or large body size at age 7 and 18 was associated with a statistically significant decreased BC risk compared to small body size (pooled OR (95% CI): comparing large to small, 0.78 (0.70-0.86), P trend <0.001 and 0.72 (0.64-0.80), P trend <0.001, respectively). The majority of the women (~85%) did not change body size categories between age 7 and 18 . Women who remained medium or large between ages 7 and 18 had significantly decreased BC risk compared to those who remained small. A reduction in body size between ages 7 and 18 was also found to be inversely associated with BC risk (0.90 (0.81-1.00)). No significant association was found between body size at age 7 and tumor characteristics. Body size at age 18 was found to be inversely associated with tumor size (P trend  = 0.006), but not estrogen receptor status and lymph node involvement. For all analyses, the overall inferences did not change appreciably after further adjustment for adult body mass index. Our data

  2. From the Cover: Environmental and biotic controls on the evolutionary history of insect body size

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clapham, Matthew E.; Karr, Jered A.

    2012-07-01

    Giant insects, with wingspans as large as 70 cm, ruled the Carboniferous and Permian skies. Gigantism has been linked to hyperoxic conditions because oxygen concentration is a key physiological control on body size, particularly in groups like flying insects that have high metabolic oxygen demands. Here we show, using a dataset of more than 10,500 fossil insect wing lengths, that size tracked atmospheric oxygen concentrations only for the first 150 Myr of insect evolution. The data are best explained by a model relating maximum size to atmospheric environmental oxygen concentration (pO2) until the end of the Jurassic, and then at constant sizes, independent of oxygen fluctuations, during the Cretaceous and, at a smaller size, the Cenozoic. Maximum insect size decreased even as atmospheric pO2 rose in the Early Cretaceous following the evolution and radiation of early birds, particularly as birds acquired adaptations that allowed more agile flight. A further decrease in maximum size during the Cenozoic may relate to the evolution of bats, the Cretaceous mass extinction, or further specialization of flying birds. The decoupling of insect size and atmospheric pO2 coincident with the radiation of birds suggests that biotic interactions, such as predation and competition, superseded oxygen as the most important constraint on maximum body size of the largest insects.

  3. Nonplantigrade Foot Posture: A Constraint on Dinosaur Body Size

    OpenAIRE

    Kubo, Tai; Kubo, Mugino O.

    2016-01-01

    Dinosaurs had functionally digitigrade or sub-unguligrade foot postures. With their immediate ancestors, dinosaurs were the only terrestrial nonplantigrades during the Mesozoic. Extant terrestrial mammals have different optimal body sizes according to their foot posture (plantigrade, digitigrade, and unguligrade), yet the relationship of nonplantigrade foot posture with dinosaur body size has never been investigated, even though the body size of dinosaurs has been studied intensively. Accordi...

  4. Body size evolution in insular speckled rattlesnakes (Viperidae: Crotalus mitchellii.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesse M Meik

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Speckled rattlesnakes (Crotalus mitchellii inhabit multiple islands off the coast of Baja California, Mexico. Two of the 14 known insular populations have been recognized as subspecies based primarily on body size divergence from putative mainland ancestral populations; however, a survey of body size variation from other islands occupied by these snakes has not been previously reported. We examined body size variation between island and mainland speckled rattlesnakes, and the relationship between body size and various island physical variables among 12 island populations. We also examined relative head size among giant, dwarfed, and mainland speckled rattlesnakes to determine whether allometric differences conformed to predictions of gape size (and indirectly body size evolving in response to shifts in prey size.Insular speckled rattlesnakes show considerable variation in body size when compared to mainland source subspecies. In addition to previously known instances of gigantism on Angel de la Guarda and dwarfism on El Muerto, various degrees of body size decrease have occurred frequently in this taxon, with dwarfed rattlesnakes occurring mostly on small, recently isolated, land-bridge islands. Regression models using the Akaike information criterion (AIC showed that mean SVL of insular populations was most strongly correlated with island area, suggesting the influence of selection for different body size optima for islands of different size. Allometric differences in head size of giant and dwarf rattlesnakes revealed patterns consistent with shifts to larger and smaller prey, respectively.Our data provide the first example of a clear relationship between body size and island area in a squamate reptile species; among vertebrates this pattern has been previously documented in few insular mammals. This finding suggests that selection for body size is influenced by changes in community dynamics that are related to graded differences in area over

  5. Being Barbie: The Size of One’s Own Body Determines the Perceived Size of the World

    Science.gov (United States)

    van der Hoort, Björn; Guterstam, Arvid; Ehrsson, H. Henrik

    2011-01-01

    A classical question in philosophy and psychology is if the sense of one's body influences how one visually perceives the world. Several theoreticians have suggested that our own body serves as a fundamental reference in visual perception of sizes and distances, although compelling experimental evidence for this hypothesis is lacking. In contrast, modern textbooks typically explain the perception of object size and distance by the combination of information from different visual cues. Here, we describe full body illusions in which subjects experience the ownership of a doll's body (80 cm or 30 cm) and a giant's body (400 cm) and use these as tools to demonstrate that the size of one's sensed own body directly influences the perception of object size and distance. These effects were quantified in ten separate experiments with complementary verbal, questionnaire, manual, walking, and physiological measures. When participants experienced the tiny body as their own, they perceived objects to be larger and farther away, and when they experienced the large-body illusion, they perceived objects to be smaller and nearer. Importantly, despite identical retinal input, this “body size effect” was greater when the participants experienced a sense of ownership of the artificial bodies compared to a control condition in which ownership was disrupted. These findings are fundamentally important as they suggest a causal relationship between the representations of body space and external space. Thus, our own body size affects how we perceive the world. PMID:21633503

  6. Small body size and extreme cortical bone remodeling indicate phyletic dwarfism in Magyarosaurus dacus (Sauropoda: Titanosauria).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stein, Koen; Csiki, Zoltan; Rogers, Kristina Curry; Weishampel, David B; Redelstorff, Ragna; Carballido, Jose L; Sander, P Martin

    2010-05-18

    Sauropods were the largest terrestrial tetrapods (>10(5) kg) in Earth's history and grew at rates that rival those of extant mammals. Magyarosaurus dacus, a titanosaurian sauropod from the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of Romania, is known exclusively from small individuals (dwarfism (phyletic nanism) in dinosaurs, but a recent study suggested that the small Romanian titanosaurs actually represent juveniles of a larger-bodied taxon. Here we present strong histological evidence that M. dacus was indeed a dwarf (phyletic nanoid). Bone histological analysis of an ontogenetic series of Magyarosaurus limb bones indicates that even the smallest Magyarosaurus specimens exhibit a bone microstructure identical to fully mature or old individuals of other sauropod taxa. Comparison of histologies with large-bodied sauropods suggests that Magyarosaurus had an extremely reduced growth rate, but had retained high basal metabolic rates typical for sauropods. The uniquely decreased growth rate and diminutive body size in Magyarosaurus were adaptations to life on a Cretaceous island and show that sauropod dinosaurs were not exempt from general ecological principles limiting body size.

  7. Body composition and risk for metabolic alterations in female adolescents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eliane Rodrigues de Faria

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To study anthropometrical and body composition variables as predictors of risk for metabolic alterations and metabolic syndrome in female adolescents.METHODS: Biochemical, clinical and corporal composition data of 100 adolescents from 14 to 17 years old, who attended public schools in Viçosa, Southeastern Brazil, were collected.RESULTS: Regarding nutritional status, 83, 11 and 6% showed eutrophia, overweight/obesity and low weight, respectively, and 61% presented high body fat percent. Total cholesterol presented the highest percentage of inadequacy (57%, followed by high-density lipoprotein (HDL - 50%, low-density lipoprotein (LDL - 47% and triacylglycerol (22%. Inadequacy was observed in 11, 9, 3 and 4% in relation to insulin resistance, fasting insulin, blood pressure and glycemia, respectively. The highest values of the fasting insulin and the Homeostasis Model Assessment-Insulin Resistance(HOMA-IR were verified at the highest quartiles of body mass index (BMI, waist perimeter, waist-to-height ratio and body fat percent. Body mass index, waist perimeter, and waist-to-height ratio were the better predictors for high levels of HOMA-IR, blood glucose and fasting insulin. Waist-to-hip ratio was associated to arterial hypertension diagnosis. All body composition variables were effective in metabolic syndrome diagnosis.CONCLUSIONS: Waist perimeter, BMI and waist-to-height ratio showed to be good predictors for metabolic alterations in female adolescents and then should be used together for the nutritional assessment in this age range.

  8. Overestimation of body size in eating disorders and its association to body-related avoidance behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vossbeck-Elsebusch, Anna N; Waldorf, Manuel; Legenbauer, Tanja; Bauer, Anika; Cordes, Martin; Vocks, Silja

    2015-06-01

    Body-related avoidance behavior, e.g., not looking in the mirror, is a common feature of eating disorders. It is assumed that it leads to insufficient feedback concerning one's own real body form and might thus contribute to distorted mental representation of one's own body. However, this assumption still lacks empirical foundation. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between misperception of one's own body and body-related avoidance behavior in N = 78 female patients with Bulimia nervosa and eating disorder not otherwise specified. Body-size misperception was assessed using a digital photo distortion technique based on an individual picture of each participant which was taken in a standardized suit. In a regression analysis with body-related avoidance behavior, body mass index and weight and shape concerns as predictors, only body-related avoidance behavior significantly contributed to the explanation of body-size overestimation. This result supports the theoretical assumption that body-related avoidance behavior makes body-size overestimation more likely.

  9. Male songbird indicates body size with low-pitched advertising songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Michelle L; Kingma, Sjouke A; Peters, Anne

    2013-01-01

    Body size is a key sexually selected trait in many animal species. If size imposes a physical limit on the production of loud low-frequency sounds, then low-pitched vocalisations could act as reliable signals of body size. However, the central prediction of this hypothesis--that the pitch of vocalisations decreases with size among competing individuals--has limited support in songbirds. One reason could be that only the lowest-frequency components of vocalisations are constrained, and this may go unnoticed when vocal ranges are large. Additionally, the constraint may only be apparent in contexts when individuals are indeed advertising their size. Here we explicitly consider signal diversity and performance limits to demonstrate that body size limits song frequency in an advertising context in a songbird. We show that in purple-crowned fairy-wrens, Malurus coronatus coronatus, larger males sing lower-pitched low-frequency advertising songs. The lower frequency bound of all advertising song types also has a significant negative relationship with body size. However, the average frequency of all their advertising songs is unrelated to body size. This comparison of different approaches to the analysis demonstrates how a negative relationship between body size and song frequency can be obscured by failing to consider signal design and the concept of performance limits. Since these considerations will be important in any complex communication system, our results imply that body size constraints on low-frequency vocalisations could be more widespread than is currently recognised.

  10. Male songbird indicates body size with low-pitched advertising songs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michelle L Hall

    Full Text Available Body size is a key sexually selected trait in many animal species. If size imposes a physical limit on the production of loud low-frequency sounds, then low-pitched vocalisations could act as reliable signals of body size. However, the central prediction of this hypothesis--that the pitch of vocalisations decreases with size among competing individuals--has limited support in songbirds. One reason could be that only the lowest-frequency components of vocalisations are constrained, and this may go unnoticed when vocal ranges are large. Additionally, the constraint may only be apparent in contexts when individuals are indeed advertising their size. Here we explicitly consider signal diversity and performance limits to demonstrate that body size limits song frequency in an advertising context in a songbird. We show that in purple-crowned fairy-wrens, Malurus coronatus coronatus, larger males sing lower-pitched low-frequency advertising songs. The lower frequency bound of all advertising song types also has a significant negative relationship with body size. However, the average frequency of all their advertising songs is unrelated to body size. This comparison of different approaches to the analysis demonstrates how a negative relationship between body size and song frequency can be obscured by failing to consider signal design and the concept of performance limits. Since these considerations will be important in any complex communication system, our results imply that body size constraints on low-frequency vocalisations could be more widespread than is currently recognised.

  11. Size structure, not metabolic scaling rules, determines fisheries reference points

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Ken Haste; Beyer, Jan

    2015-01-01

    Impact assessments of fishing on a stock require parameterization of vital rates: growth, mortality and recruitment. For 'data-poor' stocks, vital rates may be estimated from empirical size-based relationships or from life-history invariants. However, a theoretical framework to synthesize...... these empirical relations is lacking. Here, we combine life-history invariants, metabolic scaling and size-spectrum theory to develop a general size- and trait-based theory for demography and recruitment of exploited fish stocks. Important concepts are physiological or metabolic scaled mortalities and flux...... is that larger species have a higher egg production per recruit than small species. This means that density dependence is stronger for large than for small species and has the consequence that fisheries reference points that incorporate recruitment do not obey metabolic scaling rules. This result implies...

  12. Cerebral ketone body metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morris, A A M

    2005-01-01

    Ketone bodies (KBs) are an important source of energy for the brain. During the neonatal period, they are also precursors for the synthesis of lipids (especially cholesterol) and amino acids. The rate of cerebral KB metabolism depends primarily on the concentration in blood; high concentrations occur during fasting and on a high-fat diet. Cerebral KB metabolism is also regulated by the permeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which depends on the abundance of monocarboxylic acid transporters (MCT1). The BBB's permeability to KBs increases with fasting in humans. In rats, permeability increases during the suckling period, but human neonates have not been studied. Monocarboxylic acid transporters are also present in the plasma membranes of neurons and glia but their role in regulating KB metabolism is uncertain. Finally, the rate of cerebral KB metabolism depends on the activities of the relevant enzymes in brain. The activities vary with age in rats, but reliable results are not available for humans. Cerebral KB metabolism in humans differs from that in the rat in several respects. During fasting, for example, KBs supply more of the brain's energy in humans than in the rat. Conversely, KBs are probably used more extensively in the brain of suckling rats than in human neonates. These differences complicate the interpretation of rodent studies. Most patients with inborn errors of ketogenesis develop normally, suggesting that the only essential role for KBs is as an alternative fuel during illness or prolonged fasting. On the other hand, in HMG-CoA lyase deficiency, imaging generally shows asymptomatic white-matter abnormalities. The ability of KBs to act as an alternative fuel explains the effectiveness of the ketogenic diet in GLUT1 deficiency, but its effectiveness in epilepsy remains unexplained.

  13. Body size, body composition, and metabolic profile explain higher energy expenditure in overweight children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lower relative rates of energy expenditure (EE), increased energetic efficiency, and altered fuel utilization purportedly associated with obesity have not been demonstrated indisputably in overweight children. We hypothesized that differences in energy metabolism between nonoverweight and overweight...

  14. Body size estimation of self and others in females varying in BMI.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anne Thaler

    Full Text Available Previous literature suggests that a disturbed ability to accurately identify own body size may contribute to overweight. Here, we investigated the influence of personal body size, indexed by body mass index (BMI, on body size estimation in a non-clinical population of females varying in BMI. We attempted to disentangle general biases in body size estimates and attitudinal influences by manipulating whether participants believed the body stimuli (personalized avatars with realistic weight variations represented their own body or that of another person. Our results show that the accuracy of own body size estimation is predicted by personal BMI, such that participants with lower BMI underestimated their body size and participants with higher BMI overestimated their body size. Further, participants with higher BMI were less likely to notice the same percentage of weight gain than participants with lower BMI. Importantly, these results were only apparent when participants were judging a virtual body that was their own identity (Experiment 1, but not when they estimated the size of a body with another identity and the same underlying body shape (Experiment 2a. The different influences of BMI on accuracy of body size estimation and sensitivity to weight change for self and other identity suggests that effects of BMI on visual body size estimation are self-specific and not generalizable to other bodies.

  15. Body size estimation of self and others in females varying in BMI.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thaler, Anne; Geuss, Michael N; Mölbert, Simone C; Giel, Katrin E; Streuber, Stephan; Romero, Javier; Black, Michael J; Mohler, Betty J

    2018-01-01

    Previous literature suggests that a disturbed ability to accurately identify own body size may contribute to overweight. Here, we investigated the influence of personal body size, indexed by body mass index (BMI), on body size estimation in a non-clinical population of females varying in BMI. We attempted to disentangle general biases in body size estimates and attitudinal influences by manipulating whether participants believed the body stimuli (personalized avatars with realistic weight variations) represented their own body or that of another person. Our results show that the accuracy of own body size estimation is predicted by personal BMI, such that participants with lower BMI underestimated their body size and participants with higher BMI overestimated their body size. Further, participants with higher BMI were less likely to notice the same percentage of weight gain than participants with lower BMI. Importantly, these results were only apparent when participants were judging a virtual body that was their own identity (Experiment 1), but not when they estimated the size of a body with another identity and the same underlying body shape (Experiment 2a). The different influences of BMI on accuracy of body size estimation and sensitivity to weight change for self and other identity suggests that effects of BMI on visual body size estimation are self-specific and not generalizable to other bodies.

  16. Spatial and temporal variation of body size among early Homo.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Will, Manuel; Stock, Jay T

    2015-05-01

    The estimation of body size among the earliest members of the genus Homo (2.4-1.5Myr [millions of years ago]) is central to interpretations of their biology. It is widely accepted that Homo ergaster possessed increased body size compared with Homo habilis and Homo rudolfensis, and that this may have been a factor involved with the dispersal of Homo out of Africa. The study of taxonomic differences in body size, however, is problematic. Postcranial remains are rarely associated with craniodental fossils, and taxonomic attributions frequently rest upon the size of skeletal elements. Previous body size estimates have been based upon well-preserved specimens with a more reliable species assessment. Since these samples are small (n Koobi Fora after 1.7Myr, indicating regional size variation. The significant body size differences between specimens from Koobi Fora and Olduvai support the cranial evidence for at least two co-existing morphotypes in the Early Pleistocene of eastern Africa. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Large-scale ocean connectivity and planktonic body size

    KAUST Repository

    Villarino, Ernesto; Watson, James R.; Jö nsson, Bror; Gasol, Josep M.; Salazar, Guillem; Acinas, Silvia G.; Estrada, Marta; Massana, Ramó n; Logares, Ramiro; Giner, Caterina R.; Pernice, Massimo C.; Olivar, M. Pilar; Citores, Leire; Corell, Jon; Rodrí guez-Ezpeleta, Naiara; Acuñ a, José Luis; Molina-Ramí rez, Axayacatl; Gonzá lez-Gordillo, J. Ignacio; Có zar, André s; Martí , Elisa; Cuesta, José A.; Agusti, Susana; Fraile-Nuez, Eugenio; Duarte, Carlos M.; Irigoien, Xabier; Chust, Guillem

    2018-01-01

    Global patterns of planktonic diversity are mainly determined by the dispersal of propagules with ocean currents. However, the role that abundance and body size play in determining spatial patterns of diversity remains unclear. Here we analyse spatial community structure - β-diversity - for several planktonic and nektonic organisms from prokaryotes to small mesopelagic fishes collected during the Malaspina 2010 Expedition. β-diversity was compared to surface ocean transit times derived from a global circulation model, revealing a significant negative relationship that is stronger than environmental differences. Estimated dispersal scales for different groups show a negative correlation with body size, where less abundant large-bodied communities have significantly shorter dispersal scales and larger species spatial turnover rates than more abundant small-bodied plankton. Our results confirm that the dispersal scale of planktonic and micro-nektonic organisms is determined by local abundance, which scales with body size, ultimately setting global spatial patterns of diversity.

  18. Large-scale ocean connectivity and planktonic body size

    KAUST Repository

    Villarino, Ernesto

    2018-01-04

    Global patterns of planktonic diversity are mainly determined by the dispersal of propagules with ocean currents. However, the role that abundance and body size play in determining spatial patterns of diversity remains unclear. Here we analyse spatial community structure - β-diversity - for several planktonic and nektonic organisms from prokaryotes to small mesopelagic fishes collected during the Malaspina 2010 Expedition. β-diversity was compared to surface ocean transit times derived from a global circulation model, revealing a significant negative relationship that is stronger than environmental differences. Estimated dispersal scales for different groups show a negative correlation with body size, where less abundant large-bodied communities have significantly shorter dispersal scales and larger species spatial turnover rates than more abundant small-bodied plankton. Our results confirm that the dispersal scale of planktonic and micro-nektonic organisms is determined by local abundance, which scales with body size, ultimately setting global spatial patterns of diversity.

  19. Body size, performance and fitness in galapagos marine iguanas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wikelski, Martin; Romero, L Michael

    2003-07-01

    Complex organismal traits such as body size are influenced by innumerable selective pressures, making the prediction of evolutionary trajectories for those traits difficult. A potentially powerful way to predict fitness in natural systems is to study the composite response of individuals in terms of performance measures, such as foraging or reproductive performance. Once key performance measures are identified in this top-down approach, we can determine the underlying physiological mechanisms and gain predictive power over long-term evolutionary processes. Here we use marine iguanas as a model system where body size differs by more than one order of magnitude between island populations. We identified foraging efficiency as the main performance measure that constrains body size. Mechanistically, foraging performance is determined by food pasture height and the thermal environment, influencing intake and digestion. Stress hormones may be a flexible way of influencing an individual's response to low-food situations that may be caused by high population density, famines, or anthropogenic disturbances like oil spills. Reproductive performance, on the other hand, increases with body size and is mediated by higher survival of larger hatchlings from larger females and increased mating success of larger males. Reproductive performance of males may be adjusted via plastic hormonal feedback mechanisms that allow individuals to assess their social rank annually within the current population size structure. When integrated, these data suggest that reproductive performance favors increased body size (influenced by reproductive hormones), with an overall limit imposed by foraging performance (influenced by stress hormones). Based on our mechanistic understanding of individual performances we predicted an evolutionary increase in maximum body size caused by global warming trends. We support this prediction using specimens collected during 1905. We also show in a common

  20. Visual attention mediates the relationship between body satisfaction and susceptibility to the body size adaptation effect.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephen, Ian D; Sturman, Daniel; Stevenson, Richard J; Mond, Jonathan; Brooks, Kevin R

    2018-01-01

    Body size misperception-the belief that one is larger or smaller than reality-affects a large and growing segment of the population. Recently, studies have shown that exposure to extreme body stimuli results in a shift in the point of subjective normality, suggesting that visual adaptation may be a mechanism by which body size misperception occurs. Yet, despite being exposed to a similar set of bodies, some individuals within a given geographical area will develop body size misperception and others will not. The reason for these individual difference is currently unknown. One possible explanation stems from the observation that women with lower levels of body satisfaction have been found to pay more attention to images of thin bodies. However, while attention has been shown to enhance visual adaptation effects in low (e.g. rotational and linear motion) and high level stimuli (e.g., facial gender), it is not known whether this effect exists in visual adaptation to body size. Here, we test the hypothesis that there is an indirect effect of body satisfaction on the direction and magnitude of the body fat adaptation effect, mediated via visual attention (i.e., selectively attending to images of thin over fat bodies or vice versa). Significant mediation effects were found in both men and women, suggesting that observers' level of body satisfaction may influence selective visual attention to thin or fat bodies, which in turn influences the magnitude and direction of visual adaptation to body size. This may provide a potential mechanism by which some individuals develop body size misperception-a risk factor for eating disorders, compulsive exercise behaviour and steroid abuse-while others do not.

  1. Investigation of protein and lipid metabolism in thyroid pathology using whole-body radiometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gorobets, V.F.; Matveenko, E.G.

    1987-01-01

    Radiometry of the whole body and its organs was employed to study certain aspects of protein-aminoacid and lipid metabolism in patients with thyroid diseases. Metabolism of human serum 131 I-albumin was studied in 12 patients with neurocirculatory dystonia, in 13 patients with diffuse toxic goiter (in 10 before and after drug therapy) and in 9 controls. 75 Se-methionine aminoacid metabolism was investigated in 9 patients with toxic thyroid adenoma and in 13 controls. The body cell mass was determined in 82 patients with thyrotoxicosis by a measurable amount of 40 K. These data were compared with those of 249 healthy persons. An increase in catabolism of labeled albumin, intensification of labeled methionine metabolism at the tissue level, signs of a decrease in the total amount of metabolic albumin in the body were revealed. Intensification of protein metabolism resulted in a decrease in the body cell mass of these patients. After adequate therapy the above indices of protein metabolism in patients with thyrotoxicosis returned to normal. The assimilation of fatty acids and neutral fat was disturbed both in thyrotoxicosis and hypothyroidism

  2. Improved cerebral energetics and ketone body metabolism in db/db mice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Jens V; Christensen, Sofie K; Nissen, Jakob D

    2017-01-01

    It is becoming evident that type 2 diabetes mellitus is affecting brain energy metabolism. The importance of alternative substrates for the brain in type 2 diabetes mellitus is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate whether ketone bodies are relevant candidates to compensate...... metabolism in type 2 diabetes mellitus. The increased hippocampal ketone body utilization and improved mitochondrial function in db/db mice, may act as adaptive mechanisms in order to maintain cerebral energetics during hampered glucose metabolism....

  3. The evolution of body size and shape in the human career

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grabowski, Mark; Hatala, Kevin G.; Richmond, Brian G.

    2016-01-01

    Body size is a fundamental biological property of organisms, and documenting body size variation in hominin evolution is an important goal of palaeoanthropology. Estimating body mass appears deceptively simple but is laden with theoretical and pragmatic assumptions about best predictors and the most appropriate reference samples. Modern human training samples with known masses are arguably the ‘best’ for estimating size in early bipedal hominins such as the australopiths and all members of the genus Homo, but it is not clear if they are the most appropriate priors for reconstructing the size of the earliest putative hominins such as Orrorin and Ardipithecus. The trajectory of body size evolution in the early part of the human career is reviewed here and found to be complex and nonlinear. Australopith body size varies enormously across both space and time. The pre-erectus early Homo fossil record from Africa is poor and dominated by relatively small-bodied individuals, implying that the emergence of the genus Homo is probably not linked to an increase in body size or unprecedented increases in size variation. Body size differences alone cannot explain the observed variation in hominin body shape, especially when examined in the context of small fossil hominins and pygmy modern humans. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Major transitions in human evolution’. PMID:27298459

  4. Interspecific geographic range size-body size relationship and the diversification dynamics of Neotropical furnariid birds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inostroza-Michael, Oscar; Hernández, Cristián E; Rodríguez-Serrano, Enrique; Avaria-Llautureo, Jorge; Rivadeneira, Marcelo M

    2018-05-01

    Among the earliest macroecological patterns documented, is the range and body size relationship, characterized by a minimum geographic range size imposed by the species' body size. This boundary for the geographic range size increases linearly with body size and has been proposed to have implications in lineages evolution and conservation. Nevertheless, the macroevolutionary processes involved in the origin of this boundary and its consequences on lineage diversification have been poorly explored. We evaluate the macroevolutionary consequences of the difference (hereafter the distance) between the observed and the minimum range sizes required by the species' body size, to untangle its role on the diversification of a Neotropical species-rich bird clade using trait-dependent diversification models. We show that speciation rate is a positive hump-shaped function of the distance to the lower boundary. The species with highest and lowest distances to minimum range size had lower speciation rates, while species close to medium distances values had the highest speciation rates. Further, our results suggest that the distance to the minimum range size is a macroevolutionary constraint that affects the diversification process responsible for the origin of this macroecological pattern in a more complex way than previously envisioned. © 2018 The Author(s). Evolution © 2018 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  5. Amino acid metabolism and whole-body protein turnover in lambs ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The effect of protein supplementation of a wheat straw diet on the metabolism of lysine, leucine, methionine and urea, and on whole-body protein turnover rate was investigated in lambs. The metabolism of lysine and leucine is reported elsewhere (Cronje et aI., 1992); in this paper methionine metabolism is discussed, and ...

  6. Taylor's law and body size in exploited marine ecosystems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Joel E; Plank, Michael J; Law, Richard

    2012-12-01

    Taylor's law (TL), which states that variance in population density is related to mean density via a power law, and density-mass allometry, which states that mean density is related to body mass via a power law, are two of the most widely observed patterns in ecology. Combining these two laws predicts that the variance in density is related to body mass via a power law (variance-mass allometry). Marine size spectra are known to exhibit density-mass allometry, but variance-mass allometry has not been investigated. We show that variance and body mass in unexploited size spectrum models are related by a power law, and that this leads to TL with an exponent slightly <2. These simulated relationships are disrupted less by balanced harvesting, in which fishing effort is spread across a wide range of body sizes, than by size-at-entry fishing, in which only fish above a certain size may legally be caught.

  7. Evidence for the Higher Importance of Signal Size Over Body Size in Aposematic Signaling in Insects

    OpenAIRE

    Remmel, Triinu; Tammarub, Toomas

    2011-01-01

    To understand the evolution of warning coloration, it is important to distinguish between different aspects of conspicuous color patterns. As an example, both pattern element size and body size of prey have been shown to enhance the effectiveness of warning signals. However, it is unclear whether the effect of body size is merely a side effect of proportionally increasing pattern elements, or if there is an effect of body size per se. These possibilities were evaluated by offering different s...

  8. Can blind persons accurately assess body size from the voice?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pisanski, Katarzyna; Oleszkiewicz, Anna; Sorokowska, Agnieszka

    2016-04-01

    Vocal tract resonances provide reliable information about a speaker's body size that human listeners use for biosocial judgements as well as speech recognition. Although humans can accurately assess men's relative body size from the voice alone, how this ability is acquired remains unknown. In this study, we test the prediction that accurate voice-based size estimation is possible without prior audiovisual experience linking low frequencies to large bodies. Ninety-one healthy congenitally or early blind, late blind and sighted adults (aged 20-65) participated in the study. On the basis of vowel sounds alone, participants assessed the relative body sizes of male pairs of varying heights. Accuracy of voice-based body size assessments significantly exceeded chance and did not differ among participants who were sighted, or congenitally blind or who had lost their sight later in life. Accuracy increased significantly with relative differences in physical height between men, suggesting that both blind and sighted participants used reliable vocal cues to size (i.e. vocal tract resonances). Our findings demonstrate that prior visual experience is not necessary for accurate body size estimation. This capacity, integral to both nonverbal communication and speech perception, may be present at birth or may generalize from broader cross-modal correspondences. © 2016 The Author(s).

  9. Influence of body size on coexistence of bird species

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leyequien Abarca, E.; Boer, de W.F.; Cleef, A.M.

    2007-01-01

    Theory suggests that body size is an important factor in determining interspecific competition and, ultimately, in structuring ecological communities. However, there is a lack of pragmatic studies linking body size and interspecific competition to patterns in ecological communities. The objective of

  10. Impact of ancestry and body size on sonographic ulnar nerve dimensions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Childs, Jessie T.; Phillips, Maureen; Thoirs, Kerry A.

    2012-01-01

    Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact that geographic ancestry and body size have on ultrasonographic measurements of the ulnar nerve size measured at the elbow. Materials and methods: We performed anthropometric measurements of body size and ultrasonographic measurements of the ulnar nerve at the elbow on 13 Vietnamese and 24 European participants. Regression analysis was used to determine the effect of body size and geographic ancestry on ulnar nerve size. Results: BMI had the greatest impact on ulnar nerve size. The short axis diameter was least resilient, and the long axis diameter was the most resilient to the effects of body size and geographic ancestry. Discussion: The long axis diameter has an apparent immunity to the influences of overall body size, arm size, or geographic ancestry and has the most potential as a sensitive discriminator between normal nerves and nerves affected by ulnar neuropathy at the elbow.

  11. The Significance of Epidermal Lipid Metabolism in Whole-Body Physiology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kruse, Vibeke; Neess, Ditte; Færgeman, Nils J

    2017-01-01

    The skin is the largest sensory organ of the human body. The skin not only prevents loss of water and other components of the body, but also is involved in regulation of body temperature and serves as an essential barrier, protecting mammals from both routine and extreme environments. Given...... the importance of the skin in temperature regulation, it is surprising that adaptive alterations in skin functions and morphology only vaguely have been associated with systemic physiological responses. Despite that impaired lipid metabolism in the skin often impairs the epidermal permeability barrier...... and insulation properties of the skin, its role in regulating systemic physiology and metabolism is yet to be recognized....

  12. Body size diversity and frequency distributions of Neotropical cichlid fishes (Cichliformes: Cichlidae: Cichlinae.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah E Steele

    Full Text Available Body size is an important correlate of life history, ecology and distribution of species. Despite this, very little is known about body size evolution in fishes, particularly freshwater fishes of the Neotropics where species and body size diversity are relatively high. Phylogenetic history and body size data were used to explore body size frequency distributions in Neotropical cichlids, a broadly distributed and ecologically diverse group of fishes that is highly representative of body size diversity in Neotropical freshwater fishes. We test for divergence, phylogenetic autocorrelation and among-clade partitioning of body size space. Neotropical cichlids show low phylogenetic autocorrelation and divergence within and among taxonomic levels. Three distinct regions of body size space were identified from body size frequency distributions at various taxonomic levels corresponding to subclades of the most diverse tribe, Geophagini. These regions suggest that lineages may be evolving towards particular size optima that may be tied to specific ecological roles. The diversification of Geophagini appears to constrain the evolution of body size among other Neotropical cichlid lineages; non-Geophagini clades show lower species-richness in body size regions shared with Geophagini. Neotropical cichlid genera show less divergence and extreme body size than expected within and among tribes. Body size divergence among species may instead be present or linked to ecology at the community assembly scale.

  13. Lipid metabolism and body composition in Gclm(-/-) mice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kendig, Eric L. [Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Center for Environmental Genetics, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Chen, Ying [Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO 80045 (United States); Krishan, Mansi; Johansson, Elisabet; Schneider, Scott N. [Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Genter, Mary Beth; Nebert, Daniel W. [Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Center for Environmental Genetics, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Shertzer, Howard G., E-mail: shertzhg@ucmail.uc.edu [Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States); Center for Environmental Genetics, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, P.O. Box 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267 (United States)

    2011-12-15

    In humans and experimental animals, high fat diets (HFD) are associated with risk factors for metabolic diseases, such as excessive weight gain and adiposity, insulin resistance and fatty liver. Mice lacking the glutamate-cysteine ligase modifier subunit gene (Gclm(-/-)) and deficient in glutathione (GSH), are resistant to HFD-mediated weight gain. Herein, we evaluated Gclm-associated regulation of energy metabolism, oxidative stress, and glucose and lipid homeostasis. C57BL/6J Gclm(-/-) mice and littermate wild-type (WT) controls received a normal diet or an HFD for 11 weeks. HFD-fed Gclm(-/-) mice did not display a decreased respiratory quotient, suggesting that they are unable to process lipid for metabolism. Although dietary energy consumption and intestinal lipid absorption were unchanged in Gclm(-/-) mice, feeding these mice an HFD did not produce excess body weight nor fat storage. Gclm(-/-) mice displayed higher basal metabolic rates resulting from higher activities of liver mitochondrial NADH-CoQ oxidoreductase, thus elevating respiration. Although Gclm(-/-) mice exhibited strong systemic and hepatic oxidative stress responses, HFD did not promote glucose intolerance or insulin resistance. Furthermore, HFD-fed Gclm(-/-) mice did not develop fatty liver, likely resulting from very low expression levels of genes encoding lipid metabolizing enzymes. We conclude that Gclm is involved in the regulation of basal metabolic rate and the metabolism of dietary lipid. Although Gclm(-/-) mice display a strong oxidative stress response, they are protected from HFD-induced excessive weight gain and adipose deposition, insulin resistance and steatosis. -- Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A high fat diet does not produce body weight and fat gain in Gclm(-/-) mice. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A high fat diet does not induce steatosis or insulin resistance in Gclm(-/-) mice. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Gclm(-/-) mice have high basal metabolism and mitochondrial

  14. Sex differences in gait utilization and energy metabolism during terrestrial locomotion in two varieties of chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus selected for different body size

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kayleigh A. Rose

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available In leghorn chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus of standard breed (large and bantam (small varieties, artificial selection has led to females being permanently gravid and sexual selection has led to male-biased size dimorphism. Using respirometry, videography and morphological measurements, sex and variety differences in metabolic cost of locomotion, gait utilisation and maximum sustainable speed (Umax were investigated during treadmill locomotion. Males were capable of greater Umax than females and used a grounded running gait at high speeds, which was only observed in a few bantam females and no standard breed females. Body mass accounted for variation in the incremental increase in metabolic power with speed between the varieties, but not the sexes. For the first time in an avian species, a greater mass-specific incremental cost of locomotion, and minimum measured cost of transport (CoTmin were found in males than in females. Furthermore, in both varieties, the female CoTmin was lower than predicted from interspecific allometry. Even when compared at equivalent speeds (using Froude number, CoT decreased more rapidly in females than in males. These trends were common to both varieties despite a more upright limb in females than in males in the standard breed, and a lack of dimorphism in posture in the bantam variety. Females may possess compensatory adaptations for metabolic efficiency during gravidity (e.g. in muscle specialization/posture/kinematics. Furthermore, the elevated power at faster speeds in males may be linked to their muscle properties being suited to inter-male aggressive combat.

  15. Integrating Cellular Metabolism into a Multiscale Whole-Body Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krauss, Markus; Schaller, Stephan; Borchers, Steffen; Findeisen, Rolf; Lippert, Jörg; Kuepfer, Lars

    2012-01-01

    Cellular metabolism continuously processes an enormous range of external compounds into endogenous metabolites and is as such a key element in human physiology. The multifaceted physiological role of the metabolic network fulfilling the catalytic conversions can only be fully understood from a whole-body perspective where the causal interplay of the metabolic states of individual cells, the surrounding tissue and the whole organism are simultaneously considered. We here present an approach relying on dynamic flux balance analysis that allows the integration of metabolic networks at the cellular scale into standardized physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models at the whole-body level. To evaluate our approach we integrated a genome-scale network reconstruction of a human hepatocyte into the liver tissue of a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model of a human adult. The resulting multiscale model was used to investigate hyperuricemia therapy, ammonia detoxification and paracetamol-induced toxication at a systems level. The specific models simultaneously integrate multiple layers of biological organization and offer mechanistic insights into pathology and medication. The approach presented may in future support a mechanistic understanding in diagnostics and drug development. PMID:23133351

  16. The thermal environment of the nest affects body and cell size in the solitary red mason bee (Osmia bicornis L.).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kierat, Justyna; Szentgyörgyi, Hajnalka; Czarnoleski, Marcin; Woyciechowski, Michał

    2017-08-01

    Many ectotherms grow larger at lower temperatures than at higher temperatures. This pattern, known as the temperature-size rule, is often accompanied by plastic changes in cell size, which can mechanistically explain the thermal dependence of body size. However, the theory predicts that thermal plasticity in cell size has adaptive value for ectotherms because there are different optimal cell-membrane-to-cell-volume ratios at different temperatures. At high temperatures, the demand for oxygen is high; therefore, a large membrane surface of small cells is beneficial because it allows high rates of oxygen transport into the cell. The metabolic costs of maintaining membranes become more important at low temperatures than at high temperatures, which favours large cells. In a field experiment, we manipulated the thermal conditions inside nests of the red mason bee, a solitary bee that does not regulate the temperature in its nests and whose larvae develop under ambient conditions. We assessed the effect of temperature on body mass and ommatidia size (our proxy of cell size). The body and cell sizes decreased in response to a higher mean temperature and greater temperature fluctuations. This finding is in accordance with predictions of the temperature-size rule and optimal cell size theory and suggests that both the mean temperature and the magnitude of temperature fluctuations are important for determining body and cell sizes. Additionally, we observed that males of the red mason bee tend to have larger ommatidia in relation to their body mass than females, which might play an important role during mating flight. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Common variants near MC4R in relation to body fat, body fat distribution, metabolic traits and energy expenditure

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kring, Sofia Inez Iqbal; Holst, C; Toubro, Søren

    2010-01-01

    Common variants near melanocortin receptor 4 (MC4R) have been related to fatness and type 2 diabetes. We examined the associations of rs17782313 and rs17700633 in relation to body fat, body fat distribution, metabolic traits, weight development and energy expenditure.......Common variants near melanocortin receptor 4 (MC4R) have been related to fatness and type 2 diabetes. We examined the associations of rs17782313 and rs17700633 in relation to body fat, body fat distribution, metabolic traits, weight development and energy expenditure....

  18. Emaciated mannequins: a study of mannequin body size in high street fashion stores.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, Eric; Aveyard, Paul

    2017-01-01

    There is concern that the body size of fashion store mannequins are too thin and promote unrealistic body ideals. To date there has been no systematic examination of the size of high street fashion store mannequins. We surveyed national fashion retailers located on the high street of two English cities. The body size of 'male' and 'female' mannequins was assessed by two blinded research assistants using visual rating scales. The average female mannequin body size was representative of a very underweight woman and 100% of female mannequins represented an underweight body size. The average male mannequin body size was significantly larger than the average female mannequin body size. Only 8% of male mannequins represented an underweight body size. The body size of mannequins used to advertise female fashion is unrealistic and would be considered medically unhealthy in humans.

  19. Perception of biological motion from size-invariant body representations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Markus eLappe

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The visual recognition of action is one of the socially most important and computationally demanding capacities of the human visual system. It combines visual shape recognition with complex non-rigid motion perception. Action presented as a point-light animation is a striking visual experience for anyone who sees it for the first time. Information about the shape and posture of the human body is sparse in point-light animations, but it is essential for action recognition. In the posturo-temporal filter model of biological motion perception posture information is picked up by visual neurons tuned to the form of the human body before body motion is calculated. We tested whether point-light stimuli are processed through posture recognition of the human body form by using a typical feature of form recognition, namely size invariance. We constructed a point-light stimulus that can only be perceived through a size-invariant mechanism. This stimulus changes rapidly in size from one image to the next. It thus disrupts continuity of early visuo-spatial properties but maintains continuity of the body posture representation. Despite this massive manipulation at the visuo-spatial level, size-changing point-light figures are spontaneously recognized by naive observers, and support discrimination of human body motion.

  20. Decreases in beetle body size linked to climate change and warming temperatures.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tseng, Michelle; Kaur, Katrina M; Soleimani Pari, Sina; Sarai, Karnjit; Chan, Denessa; Yao, Christine H; Porto, Paula; Toor, Anmol; Toor, Harpawantaj S; Fograscher, Katrina

    2018-05-01

    Body size is a fundamental ecological trait and is correlated with population dynamics, community structure and function, and ecosystem fluxes. Laboratory data from broad taxonomic groups suggest that a widespread response to a warming world may be an overall decrease in organism body size. However, given the myriad of biotic and abiotic factors that can also influence organism body size in the wild, it is unclear whether results from these laboratory assays hold in nature. Here we use datasets spanning 30 to 100 years to examine whether the body size of wild-caught beetles has changed over time, whether body size changes are correlated with increased temperatures, and we frame these results using predictions derived from a quantitative review of laboratory responses of 22 beetle species to temperature. We found that 95% of laboratory-reared beetles decreased in size with increased rearing temperature, with larger-bodied species shrinking disproportionately more than smaller-bodied beetles. In addition, the museum datasets revealed that larger-bodied beetle species have decreased in size over time, that mean beetle body size explains much of the interspecific variation in beetle responses to temperature, and that long-term beetle size changes are explained by increases in autumn temperature and decreases in spring temperature in this region. Our data demonstrate that the relationship between body size and temperature of wild-caught beetles matches relatively well with results from laboratory studies, and that variation in this relationship is largely explained by interspecific variation in mean beetle body size. This long-term beetle dataset is one of the most comprehensive arthropod body size datasets compiled to date, it improves predictions regarding the shrinking of organisms with global climate change, and together with the meta-analysis data, call for new hypotheses to explain why larger-bodied organisms may be more sensitive to temperature. © 2018 The

  1. Body Size, Extinction Risk and Knowledge Bias in New World Snakes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vilela, Bruno; Villalobos, Fabricio; Rodríguez, Miguel Ángel; Terribile, Levi Carina

    2014-01-01

    Extinction risk and body size have been found to be related in various vertebrate groups, with larger species being more at risk than smaller ones. We checked whether this was also the case for snakes by investigating extinction risk–body size relationships in the New World's Colubroidea species. We used the IUCN Red List risk categories to assign each species to one of two broad levels of threat (Threatened and Non-Threatened) or to identify it as either Data Deficient or Not-Evaluated by the IUCN. We also included the year of description of each species in our analysis as this could affect the level of threat assigned to it (earlier described species had more time to gather information about them, which might have facilitated their evaluation). Also, species detectability could be a function of body size, with larger species tending to be described earlier, which could have an impact in extinction risk–body size relationships. We found a negative relationship between body size and description year, with large-bodied species being described earlier. Description year also varied among risk categories, with Non-Threatened species being described earlier than Threatened species and both species groups earlier than Data Deficient species. On average, Data Deficient species also presented smaller body sizes, while no size differences were detected between Threatened and Non-Threatened species. So it seems that smaller body sizes are related with species detectability, thus potentially affecting both when a species is described (smaller species tend to be described more recently) as well as the amount of information gathered about it (Data Deficient species tend to be smaller). Our data also indicated that if Data Deficient species were to be categorized as Threatened in the future, snake body size and extinction risk would be negatively related, contrasting with the opposite pattern commonly observed in other vertebrate groups. PMID:25409293

  2. Body size satisfaction and physical activity levels among men and women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kruger, Judy; Lee, Chong-Do; Ainsworth, Barbara E; Macera, Caroline A

    2008-08-01

    Body size satisfaction may be an important factor associated with physical activity. We analyzed data from the 2002 National Physical Activity and Weight Loss Survey (NPAWLS), a population-based cross-sectional telephone survey of US adults. Multiple logistic regression models were used to examine the association of body size satisfaction on being regularly active. Participants were aged > or =18 years with complete data on weight, race/ethnicity, physical activity level, and body size satisfaction (n = 10,021). More than half of men (55.8%) and women (53.3%) who reported being very satisfied with the body size were regularly active. After adjustment for covariates, participants who reported being somewhat or not satisfied with their body size had a 13 and 44% lower odds of being regularly active, respectively, compared with those very satisfied with their body size. When stratified by race/ethnicity, this association remained in whites (P for trend physical activity than those less satisfied. Further research is needed to explore predictors of physical activity to reduce health disparities.

  3. Body composition and metabolic profile in adults with vitamin D deficiency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liane Murari ROCHA

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: To investigate the body composition and metabolic profile in individuals in terms of different concentrations of serum vitamin D, ranging from deficiency to sufficiency. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 106 adults of both genders, who were divided into three groups according to vitamin D levels: deficiency: <20ng/mL; insufficiency: 20-29.9ng/mL; and sufficiency: 30-100ng/mL. Anthropometric evaluation included weight, height, and body circumferences. Fat mass and lean mass were assessed using the Tetrapolar bioelectrical impedance method. Clinical and biochemical evaluations were also carried out. Insulin resistance was estimated using the Homeostasis Model Assessment Insulin index. Results: The analysis showed that the main alterations in individuals in the vitamin D deficiency group were higher triglycerides, very low density lipoprotein - cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, insulin, glycated hemoglobin, body mass index, body fat percentage, lean mass percentage, waist circumference, and Homeostasis Model Assessment Insulin than those of the vitamin D sufficient group (p<0.05. Conclusion: It was found that vitamin D deficiency causes important body composition and metabolic changes, which may lead to diseases such as diabetes Mellitus and metabolic syndrome.

  4. Effect of body size and temperature on respiration of Galaxias maculatus (Pisces: Galaxiidae)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Milano, D.; Vigliano, P.H.; Beauchamp, David A.

    2017-01-01

    Body mass and temperature are primary determinants of metabolic rate in ectothermic animals. Oxygen consumption of post-larval Galaxias maculatus was measured in respirometry trials under different temperatures (5–21°C) and varying body masses (0.1–>1.5 g) spanning a relevant range of thermal conditions and sizes. Specific respiration rates (R in g O2 g−1 d−1) declined as a power function of body mass and increased exponentially with temperature and was expressed as: R = 0.0007 * W −0.31 * e 0.13 * T. The ability of this model to predict specific respiration rate was evaluated by comparing observed values with those predicted by the model. Our findings suggest that the respiration rate of G. maculatus is the result of multiple interactive processes (intrinsic and extrinsic factors) that modulate each other in ‘meta-mechanistic’ ways; this would help to explain the species’ ability to undergo the complex ontogenetic habitat shifts observed in the lakes of the Andean Patagonic range.

  5. Body weight regulation and obesity: dietary strategies to improve the metabolic profile.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Munsters, M J M; Saris, W H M

    2014-01-01

    This review discusses dietary strategies that may improve the metabolic profile and body weight regulation in obesity. Recent evidence demonstrated that long-term health effects seem to be more beneficial for low-glycemic index (GI) diets compared to high-protein diets. Still, these results need to be confirmed by other prospective cohort studies and long-term clinical trials, and the discrepancy between these study designs needs to be explored in more detail. Furthermore, the current literature is mixed with regard to the efficacy of increased meal frequency (or snacking) regimens in causing metabolic alterations, particularly in relation to body weight control. In conclusion, a growing body of evidence suggests that dietary strategies with the aim to reduce postprandial insulin response and increase fat oxidation, and that tend to restore metabolic flexibility, have a place in the prevention and treatment of obesity and associated metabolic disorders.

  6. Correlates of self-worth and body size dissatisfaction among obese Latino youth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mirza, Nazrat M; Mackey, Eleanor Race; Armstrong, Bridget; Jaramillo, Ana; Palmer, Matilde M

    2011-03-01

    The current study examined self-worth and body size dissatisfaction, and their association with maternal acculturation among obese Latino youth enrolled in a community-based obesity intervention program. Upon entry to the program, a sample of 113 participants reported global self-worth comparable to general population norms, but lower athletic competence and perception of physical appearance. Interestingly, body size dissatisfaction was more prevalent among younger respondents. Youth body size dissatisfaction was associated with less acculturated mothers and higher maternal dissatisfaction with their child's body size. By contrast, although global self-worth was significantly related to body dissatisfaction, it was not influenced by mothers' acculturation or dissatisfaction with their own or their child's body size. Obesity intervention programs targeted to Latino youth need to address self-worth concerns among the youth as well as addressing maternal dissatisfaction with their children's body size. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Predictive value of body mass index to metabolic syndrome risk factors in Syrian adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Bachir, Mahfouz; Bakir, Mohamad Adel

    2017-06-25

    Obesity has become a serious epidemic health problem in both developing and developed countries. There is much evidence that obesity among adolescents contributed significantly to the development of type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease in adulthood. Very limited information exists on the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and associated metabolic risk factors among Syrian adolescents. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between obesity determined by body mass index and the major metabolic risk factors among Syrian adolescents. A cross-sectional study of a randomly selected sample of 2064 apparently healthy Syrian adolescents aged 18 to 19 years from Damascus city, in Syria, was performed. Body mass index and blood pressure were measured. Serum concentrations of glucose, triglycerides, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol were determined. Metabolic syndrome was defined using the national criteria for each determined metabolic risk factor. Individuals with a body mass index 25 to 29.9 were classified as overweight, whereas individuals with a body mass index ≥30 were classified as obese. A receiver operating characteristics curve was drawn to determine appropriate cut-off points of the body mass index for defining overweight and obesity, and to indicate the performance of body mass index as a predictor of risk factors. The obtained data showed that blood pressure and the overall mean concentrations of fasting blood sugar, triglycerides, cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and triglycerides/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol were significantly higher in overweight and obese adolescent groups (p index and some metabolic risks, the data suggest the best body mass index cut-offs ranged between 23.25 and 24.35 kg/m 2 . A strong association between overweight and obesity as determined by body mass index and high concentrations of metabolic syndrome

  8. Winter reduction in body mass in a very small, nonhibernating mammal: consequences for heat loss and metabolic rates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Jan R E; Rychlik, Leszek; Churchfield, Sara

    2013-01-01

    Low temperatures in northern winters are energetically challenging for mammals, and a special energetic burden is expected for diminutive species like shrews, which are among the smallest of mammals. Surprisingly, shrews shrink their body size in winter and reduce body and brain mass, an effect known as Dehnel's phenomenon, which is suggested to lower absolute energy intake requirements and thereby enhance survival when food availability is low. Yet reduced body size coupled with higher body-surface-to-mass ratio in these tiny mammals may result in thermoregulatory heat production at a given temperature constituting a larger proportion of the total energy expenditure. To evaluate energetic consequences of reduced body size in winter, we investigated common shrews Sorex araneus in northeastern Poland. Average body mass decreased by 19.0% from summer to winter, and mean skull depth decreased by 13.1%. There was no difference in Dehnel's phenomenon between years despite different weather conditions. The whole-animal thermal conductance (proportional to absolute heat loss) in shrews was 19% lower in winter than in summer; the difference between the two seasons remained significant after correcting for body mass and was caused by improved fur insulation in winter. Thermogenic capacity of shrews, although much enhanced in winter, did not reach its full potential of increase, and this corresponded with relatively mild subnivean temperatures. These findings indicate that, despite their small body size, shrews effectively decrease their costs of thermoregulation. The recorded decrease in body mass from summer to winter resulted in a reduction of overall resting metabolic rate (in thermoneutrality) by 18%. This, combined with the reduced heat loss, should translate to food requirements that are substantially lower than would be the case if shrews did not undergo seasonal decrease in body mass.

  9. Integrating cellular metabolism into a multiscale whole-body model.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Markus Krauss

    Full Text Available Cellular metabolism continuously processes an enormous range of external compounds into endogenous metabolites and is as such a key element in human physiology. The multifaceted physiological role of the metabolic network fulfilling the catalytic conversions can only be fully understood from a whole-body perspective where the causal interplay of the metabolic states of individual cells, the surrounding tissue and the whole organism are simultaneously considered. We here present an approach relying on dynamic flux balance analysis that allows the integration of metabolic networks at the cellular scale into standardized physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models at the whole-body level. To evaluate our approach we integrated a genome-scale network reconstruction of a human hepatocyte into the liver tissue of a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model of a human adult. The resulting multiscale model was used to investigate hyperuricemia therapy, ammonia detoxification and paracetamol-induced toxication at a systems level. The specific models simultaneously integrate multiple layers of biological organization and offer mechanistic insights into pathology and medication. The approach presented may in future support a mechanistic understanding in diagnostics and drug development.

  10. Human vocal attractiveness as signaled by body size projection.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi Xu

    Full Text Available Voice, as a secondary sexual characteristic, is known to affect the perceived attractiveness of human individuals. But the underlying mechanism of vocal attractiveness has remained unclear. Here, we presented human listeners with acoustically altered natural sentences and fully synthetic sentences with systematically manipulated pitch, formants and voice quality based on a principle of body size projection reported for animal calls and emotional human vocal expressions. The results show that male listeners preferred a female voice that signals a small body size, with relatively high pitch, wide formant dispersion and breathy voice, while female listeners preferred a male voice that signals a large body size with low pitch and narrow formant dispersion. Interestingly, however, male vocal attractiveness was also enhanced by breathiness, which presumably softened the aggressiveness associated with a large body size. These results, together with the additional finding that the same vocal dimensions also affect emotion judgment, indicate that humans still employ a vocal interaction strategy used in animal calls despite the development of complex language.

  11. Evolution of extreme body size disparity in monitor lizards (Varanus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Collar, David C; Schulte, James A; Losos, Jonathan B

    2011-09-01

    Many features of species' biology, including life history, physiology, morphology, and ecology are tightly linked to body size. Investigation into the causes of size divergence is therefore critical to understanding the factors shaping phenotypic diversity within clades. In this study, we examined size evolution in monitor lizards (Varanus), a clade that includes the largest extant lizard species, the Komodo dragon (V. komodoensis), as well as diminutive species that are nearly four orders of magnitude smaller in adult body mass. We demonstrate that the remarkable body size disparity of this clade is a consequence of different selective demands imposed by three major habitat use patterns-arboreality, terrestriality, and rock-dwelling. We reconstructed phylogenetic relationships and ancestral habitat use and applied model selection to determine that the best-fitting evolutionary models for species' adult size are those that infer oppositely directed adaptive evolution associated with terrestriality and rock-dwelling, with terrestrial lineages evolving extremely large size and rock-dwellers becoming very small. We also show that habitat use affects the evolution of several ecologically important morphological traits independently of body size divergence. These results suggest that habitat use exerts a strong, multidimensional influence on the evolution of morphological size and shape disparity in monitor lizards. © 2011 The Author(s).

  12. Body size distributions signal a regime shift in a lake ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    Communities of organisms, from mammals to microorganisms, have discontinuous distributions of body size. This pattern of size structuring is a conservative trait of community organization and is a product of processes that occur at multiple spatial and temporal scales. In this study, we assessed whether body size patterns serve as an indicator of a threshold between alternative regimes. Over the past 7000 years, the biological communities of Foy Lake (Montana,USA) have undergone a major regime shift owing to climate change. We used a palaeoecological record of diatom communities to estimate diatom sizes, and then analysed the discontinuous distribution of organism sizes over time. We used Bayesian classification and regression tree models to determine that all time intervals exhibited aggregations of sizes separated by gaps in the distribution and found a significant change in diatom body size distributions approximately 150 years before the identified ecosystem regime shift. We suggest that discontinuity analysis is a useful addition to the suite of tools for the detection of early warning signals of regime shifts. Communities of organisms from mammals to microorganisms have discontinuous distributions of body size. This pattern of size structuring is a conservative trait of community organization and is a product of processes that occur at discrete spatial and temporal scales within ecosystems. Here, a paleoecological record of diatom community change is use

  13. Change in proportional protein intake in a 10-week energy-restricted low- or high-fat diet, in relation to changes in body size and metabolic factors

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stocks, Tanja; Taylor, Moira A; Ängquist, Lars

    2013-01-01

    Objective: To investigate in a secondary analysis of a randomised trial the effects of a low-/high-fat diet and reported change from baseline in energy% from protein (prot%), in relation to changes in body size and metabolic factors. Methods: Obese adults (n = 771) were randomised to a 600 kcal...... while not considering prot% change. The high-fat group reduced plasma triglycerides more than the low-fat group, but not compared to those in the low-fat group with >2 units prot% increase (p fat-protein interaction = 0.01). Conclusions: Under energy restriction, participants on a low-fat diet who had...... increased the percentage energy intake from protein showed the greatest reduction in weight and cholesterol, and a triglyceride reduction equally large to that of participants on a high-fat diet. Copyright © 2013 S. Karger GmbH, Freiburg....

  14. The influence of personal BMI on body size estimations and sensitivity to body size change in anorexia spectrum disorders.

    OpenAIRE

    Cornelissen, Katri; Bester, Andre; Cairns, Paul; Tovee, Martin; Cornelissen, Piers

    2015-01-01

    In this cross-sectional study, we investigated the influence of personal BMI on body size estimation in 42 women who have symptoms of anorexia (referred to henceforth as anorexia spectrum disorders, ANSD), and 100 healthy controls. Low BMI control participants over-estimate their size and high BMI controls under-estimate, a pattern which is predicted by a perceptual phenomenon called contraction bias. In addition, control participants' sensitivity to size change declines as their BMI increase...

  15. Variability in human body size

    Science.gov (United States)

    Annis, J. F.

    1978-01-01

    The range of variability found among homogeneous groups is described and illustrated. Those trends that show significantly marked differences between sexes and among a number of racial/ethnic groups are also presented. Causes of human-body size variability discussed include genetic endowment, aging, nutrition, protective garments, and occupation. The information is presented to aid design engineers of space flight hardware and equipment.

  16. Effect of body size and body mass on δ 13 C and δ 15 N in coastal fishes and cephalopods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vinagre, C.; Máguas, C.; Cabral, H. N.; Costa, M. J.

    2011-11-01

    Carbon and nitrogen isotopes have been widely used in the investigation of trophic relations, energy pathways, trophic levels and migrations, under the assumption that δ 13C is independent of body size and that variation in δ 15N occurs exclusively due to ontogenetic changes in diet and not body size increase per se. However, several studies have shown that these assumptions are uncertain. Data from food-webs containing an important number of species lack theoretical support on these assumptions because very few species have been tested for δ 13C and δ 15N variation in captivity. However, if sampling comprises a wide range of body sizes from various species, the variation of δ 13C and δ 15N with body size can be investigated. While correlation between body size and δ 13C and δ 15N can be due to ontogenetic diet shifts, stability in such values throughout the size spectrum can be considered an indication that δ 13C and δ 15N in muscle tissues of such species is independent of body size within that size range, and thus the basic assumptions can be applied in the interpretation of such food webs. The present study investigated the variation in muscle δ 13C and δ 15N with body size and body mass of coastal fishes and cephalopods. It was concluded that muscle δ 13C and δ 15N did not vary with body size or mass for all bony fishes with only one exception, the dragonet Callionymus lyra. Muscle δ 13C and δ 15N also did not vary with body size or mass in cartilaginous fishes and cephalopods, meaning that body size/mass per se have no effect on δ 13C or δ 15N, for most species analysed and within the size ranges sampled. The assumption that δ 13C is independent of body size and that variation in δ 15N is not affected by body size increase per se was upheld for most organisms and can be applied to the coastal food web studied taking into account that C. lyra is an exception.

  17. Metabolic syndrome: Differences for Asian Americans is in their percentage of body fat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patricia Alpert

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Asian Americans are not frequently thought of as being obese or overweight yet some of the Asian American subgroups have a disproportionate risk for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Although the standardized body mass index (BMI assessment is an adequate tool for reporting secular prevalence trends for overweight/obesity across populations, it falls short in accuracy when assessing Asian Americans. In recent years more has been written about the re-evaluation of BMI cut points for normal weight, overweight, or obese Asian Americans. Additionally, the waist circumference norm was modified to indicate a smaller waist size is a risk for metabolic syndrome. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the research literature on BMI and percentage of body fat as it relates to health risk for metabolic syndrome for Asian American subgroups. Three databases were used to identify articles for this review: Google Scholar, CINHAL, and PubMed. Seven hundred twenty-six articles were initially identified as meeting the criteria; 690 articles were eliminated after a review of the article titles revealed the content did not meet the focus of this review. Of the remaining articles, 19 were eliminated after a review of the abstracts indicated they were meta-analyses, review articles, or case studies. The remaining 18 articles were included in this review. Three common themes emerged. (1 The differences in BMI and body fat percentage are evident between Asian Americans and other ethnic groups. (2 Differences in the percentage of body fat exist between Asian American subgroups, and between Asian Americans and Asian immigrants. (3 There are differences in disease development end points when comparing Asian American subgroups and Asian immigrant subgroups. There are differences in body fat distribution and body fat percentages as well as BMI compared to other ethnic groups for metabolic syndrome. There are also differences between Asian

  18. Microclimatic Divergence in a Mediterranean Canyon Affects Richness, Composition, and Body Size in Saproxylic Beetle Assemblages.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jörn Buse

    Full Text Available Large valleys with opposing slopes may act as a model system with which the effects of strong climatic gradients on biodiversity can be evaluated. The advantage of such comparisons is that the impact of a change of climate can be studied on the same species pool without the need to consider regional differences. The aim of this study was to compare the assemblage of saproxylic beetles on such opposing slopes at Lower Nahal Oren, Mt. Carmel, Israel (also known as "Evolution Canyon" with a 200-800% higher solar radiation on the south-facing (SFS compared to the north-facing slope (NFS. We tested specific hypotheses of species richness patterns, assemblage structure, and body size resulting from interslope differences in microclimate. Fifteen flight-interception traps per slope were distributed over three elevation levels ranging from 50 to 100 m a.s.l. Richness of saproxylic beetles was on average 34% higher on the SFS compared with the NFS, with no detected influence of elevation levels. Both assemblage structure and average body size were determined by slope aspect, with more small-bodied beetles found on the SFS. Both the increase in species richness and the higher prevalence of small species on the SFS reflect ecological rules present on larger spatial grain (species-energy hypothesis and community body size shift hypothesis, and both can be explained by the metabolic theory of ecology. This is encouraging for the complementary use of micro- and macroclimatic gradients to study impacts of climate warming on biodiversity.

  19. Estimating the size of the solution space of metabolic networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mulet Roberto

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Cellular metabolism is one of the most investigated system of biological interactions. While the topological nature of individual reactions and pathways in the network is quite well understood there is still a lack of comprehension regarding the global functional behavior of the system. In the last few years flux-balance analysis (FBA has been the most successful and widely used technique for studying metabolism at system level. This method strongly relies on the hypothesis that the organism maximizes an objective function. However only under very specific biological conditions (e.g. maximization of biomass for E. coli in reach nutrient medium the cell seems to obey such optimization law. A more refined analysis not assuming extremization remains an elusive task for large metabolic systems due to algorithmic limitations. Results In this work we propose a novel algorithmic strategy that provides an efficient characterization of the whole set of stable fluxes compatible with the metabolic constraints. Using a technique derived from the fields of statistical physics and information theory we designed a message-passing algorithm to estimate the size of the affine space containing all possible steady-state flux distributions of metabolic networks. The algorithm, based on the well known Bethe approximation, can be used to approximately compute the volume of a non full-dimensional convex polytope in high dimensions. We first compare the accuracy of the predictions with an exact algorithm on small random metabolic networks. We also verify that the predictions of the algorithm match closely those of Monte Carlo based methods in the case of the Red Blood Cell metabolic network. Then we test the effect of gene knock-outs on the size of the solution space in the case of E. coli central metabolism. Finally we analyze the statistical properties of the average fluxes of the reactions in the E. coli metabolic network. Conclusion We propose a

  20. Deforestation and stream warming affect body size of Amazonian fishes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilha, Paulo; Schiesari, Luis; Yanagawa, Fernando I; Jankowski, KathiJo; Navas, Carlos A

    2018-01-01

    Declining body size has been suggested to be a universal response of organisms to rising temperatures, manifesting at all levels of organization and in a broad range of taxa. However, no study to date evaluated whether deforestation-driven warming could trigger a similar response. We studied changes in fish body size, from individuals to assemblages, in streams in Southeastern Amazonia. We first conducted sampling surveys to validate the assumption that deforestation promoted stream warming, and to test the hypothesis that warmer deforested streams had reduced fish body sizes relative to cooler forest streams. As predicted, deforested streams were up to 6 °C warmer and had fish 36% smaller than forest streams on average. This body size reduction could be largely explained by the responses of the four most common species, which were 43-55% smaller in deforested streams. We then conducted a laboratory experiment to test the hypothesis that stream warming as measured in the field was sufficient to cause a growth reduction in the dominant fish species in the region. Fish reared at forest stream temperatures gained mass, whereas those reared at deforested stream temperatures lost mass. Our results suggest that deforestation-driven stream warming is likely to be a relevant factor promoting observed body size reductions, although other changes in stream conditions, like reductions in organic matter inputs, can also be important. A broad scale reduction in fish body size due to warming may be occurring in streams throughout the Amazonian Arc of Deforestation, with potential implications for the conservation of Amazonian fish biodiversity and food supply for people around the Basin.

  1. Deforestation and stream warming affect body size of Amazonian fishes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yanagawa, Fernando I.; Jankowski, KathiJo; Navas, Carlos A.

    2018-01-01

    Declining body size has been suggested to be a universal response of organisms to rising temperatures, manifesting at all levels of organization and in a broad range of taxa. However, no study to date evaluated whether deforestation-driven warming could trigger a similar response. We studied changes in fish body size, from individuals to assemblages, in streams in Southeastern Amazonia. We first conducted sampling surveys to validate the assumption that deforestation promoted stream warming, and to test the hypothesis that warmer deforested streams had reduced fish body sizes relative to cooler forest streams. As predicted, deforested streams were up to 6 °C warmer and had fish 36% smaller than forest streams on average. This body size reduction could be largely explained by the responses of the four most common species, which were 43–55% smaller in deforested streams. We then conducted a laboratory experiment to test the hypothesis that stream warming as measured in the field was sufficient to cause a growth reduction in the dominant fish species in the region. Fish reared at forest stream temperatures gained mass, whereas those reared at deforested stream temperatures lost mass. Our results suggest that deforestation-driven stream warming is likely to be a relevant factor promoting observed body size reductions, although other changes in stream conditions, like reductions in organic matter inputs, can also be important. A broad scale reduction in fish body size due to warming may be occurring in streams throughout the Amazonian Arc of Deforestation, with potential implications for the conservation of Amazonian fish biodiversity and food supply for people around the Basin. PMID:29718960

  2. No Effect of Featural Attention on Body Size Aftereffects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ian David Stephen

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Prolonged exposure to images of narrow bodies has been shown to induce a perceptual aftereffect, such that observers’ point of subjective normality (PSN for bodies shifts towards narrower bodies. The converse effect is shown for adaptation to wide bodies. In low-level stimuli, object attention (attention directed to the object and spatial attention (attention directed to the location of the object have been shown to increase the magnitude of visual aftereffects, while object-based attention enhances the adaptation effect in faces. It is not known whether featural attention (attention directed to a specific aspect of the object affects the magnitude of adaptation effects in body stimuli. Here, we manipulate the attention of Caucasian observers to different featural information in body images, by asking them to rate the fatness or sex typicality of male and female bodies manipulated to appear fatter or thinner than average. PSNs for body fatness were taken at baseline and after adaptation, and a change in PSN (ΔPSN was calculated. A body size adaptation effect was found, with observers who viewed fat bodies showing an increased PSN, and those exposed to thin bodies showing a reduced PSN. However, manipulations of featural attention to body fatness or sex typicality produced equivalent results, suggesting that featural attention may not affect the strength of the body size aftereffect.

  3. No Effect of Featural Attention on Body Size Aftereffects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephen, Ian D; Bickersteth, Chloe; Mond, Jonathan; Stevenson, Richard J; Brooks, Kevin R

    2016-01-01

    Prolonged exposure to images of narrow bodies has been shown to induce a perceptual aftereffect, such that observers' point of subjective normality (PSN) for bodies shifts toward narrower bodies. The converse effect is shown for adaptation to wide bodies. In low-level stimuli, object attention (attention directed to the object) and spatial attention (attention directed to the location of the object) have been shown to increase the magnitude of visual aftereffects, while object-based attention enhances the adaptation effect in faces. It is not known whether featural attention (attention directed to a specific aspect of the object) affects the magnitude of adaptation effects in body stimuli. Here, we manipulate the attention of Caucasian observers to different featural information in body images, by asking them to rate the fatness or sex typicality of male and female bodies manipulated to appear fatter or thinner than average. PSNs for body fatness were taken at baseline and after adaptation, and a change in PSN (ΔPSN) was calculated. A body size adaptation effect was found, with observers who viewed fat bodies showing an increased PSN, and those exposed to thin bodies showing a reduced PSN. However, manipulations of featural attention to body fatness or sex typicality produced equivalent results, suggesting that featural attention may not affect the strength of the body size aftereffect.

  4. The benefits of being big: effects of body size on energy budgets of three wintering goose species grazing Carex beds in the Yangtze River floodplain

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wang, X.; Zhang, Y.; Zhao, M.; Cao, L.; Fox, A.

    2013-01-01

    Herbivores of different body size vary in food selection because of their different metabolic requirements and abilities to harvest and digest food. Compared with smaller grazers, larger ones require higher food quantity but can tolerate poorer quality. This divergence may also explain habitat

  5. Digestive enzymes and gut morphometric parameters of threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus): Influence of body size and temperature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hani, Younes Mohamed Ismail; Marchand, Adrien; Turies, Cyril; Kerambrun, Elodie; Palluel, Olivier; Bado-Nilles, Anne; Beaudouin, Rémy; Porcher, Jean-Marc; Geffard, Alain; Dedourge-Geffard, Odile

    2018-01-01

    Determining digestive enzyme activity is of potential interest to obtain and understand valuable information about fish digestive physiology, since digestion is an elementary process of fish metabolism. We described for the first time (i) three digestive enzymes: amylase, trypsin and intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP), and (ii) three gut morphometric parameters: relative gut length (RGL), relative gut mass (RGM) and Zihler's index (ZI) in threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), and we studied the effect of temperature and body size on these parameters. When mimicking seasonal variation in temperature, body size had no effect on digestive enzyme activity. The highest levels of amylase and trypsin activity were observed at 18°C, while the highest IAP activity was recorded at 20°C. When sticklebacks were exposed to three constant temperatures (16, 18 and 21°C), a temporal effect correlated to fish growth was observed with inverse evolution patterns between amylase activity and the activities of trypsin and IAP. Temperature (in both experiments) had no effect on morphometric parameters. However, a temporal variation was recorded for both RGM (in the second experiment) and ZI (in both experiments), and the later was correlated to fish body mass.

  6. Digestive enzymes and gut morphometric parameters of threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus): Influence of body size and temperature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marchand, Adrien; Turies, Cyril; Kerambrun, Elodie; Palluel, Olivier; Bado-Nilles, Anne; Beaudouin, Rémy; Porcher, Jean-Marc; Geffard, Alain; Dedourge-Geffard, Odile

    2018-01-01

    Determining digestive enzyme activity is of potential interest to obtain and understand valuable information about fish digestive physiology, since digestion is an elementary process of fish metabolism. We described for the first time (i) three digestive enzymes: amylase, trypsin and intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP), and (ii) three gut morphometric parameters: relative gut length (RGL), relative gut mass (RGM) and Zihler’s index (ZI) in threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), and we studied the effect of temperature and body size on these parameters. When mimicking seasonal variation in temperature, body size had no effect on digestive enzyme activity. The highest levels of amylase and trypsin activity were observed at 18°C, while the highest IAP activity was recorded at 20°C. When sticklebacks were exposed to three constant temperatures (16, 18 and 21°C), a temporal effect correlated to fish growth was observed with inverse evolution patterns between amylase activity and the activities of trypsin and IAP. Temperature (in both experiments) had no effect on morphometric parameters. However, a temporal variation was recorded for both RGM (in the second experiment) and ZI (in both experiments), and the later was correlated to fish body mass. PMID:29614133

  7. The Sex Determination Gene transformer Regulates Male-Female Differences in Drosophila Body Size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rideout, Elizabeth J; Narsaiya, Marcus S; Grewal, Savraj S

    2015-12-01

    Almost all animals show sex differences in body size. For example, in Drosophila, females are larger than males. Although Drosophila is widely used as a model to study growth, the mechanisms underlying this male-female difference in size remain unclear. Here, we describe a novel role for the sex determination gene transformer (tra) in promoting female body growth. Normally, Tra is expressed only in females. We find that loss of Tra in female larvae decreases body size, while ectopic Tra expression in males increases body size. Although we find that Tra exerts autonomous effects on cell size, we also discovered that Tra expression in the fat body augments female body size in a non cell-autonomous manner. These effects of Tra do not require its only known targets doublesex and fruitless. Instead, Tra expression in the female fat body promotes growth by stimulating the secretion of insulin-like peptides from insulin producing cells in the brain. Our data suggest a model of sex-specific growth in which body size is regulated by a previously unrecognized branch of the sex determination pathway, and identify Tra as a novel link between sex and the conserved insulin signaling pathway.

  8. The Sex Determination Gene transformer Regulates Male-Female Differences in Drosophila Body Size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elizabeth J Rideout

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Almost all animals show sex differences in body size. For example, in Drosophila, females are larger than males. Although Drosophila is widely used as a model to study growth, the mechanisms underlying this male-female difference in size remain unclear. Here, we describe a novel role for the sex determination gene transformer (tra in promoting female body growth. Normally, Tra is expressed only in females. We find that loss of Tra in female larvae decreases body size, while ectopic Tra expression in males increases body size. Although we find that Tra exerts autonomous effects on cell size, we also discovered that Tra expression in the fat body augments female body size in a non cell-autonomous manner. These effects of Tra do not require its only known targets doublesex and fruitless. Instead, Tra expression in the female fat body promotes growth by stimulating the secretion of insulin-like peptides from insulin producing cells in the brain. Our data suggest a model of sex-specific growth in which body size is regulated by a previously unrecognized branch of the sex determination pathway, and identify Tra as a novel link between sex and the conserved insulin signaling pathway.

  9. Carotid body size on CTA: Correlation with comorbidities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cramer, J.A.; Wiggins, R.H.; Fudim, M.; Engelman, Z.J.; Sobotka, P.A.; Shah, L.M.

    2014-01-01

    Aim: To test the hypothesis that computed tomographic angiography (CTA) can identify carotid body enlargement in patients with sympathetically mediated diseases. Materials and methods: A retrospective chart review of all patients obtaining CTAs of the cervical vasculature at University of Utah Health Sciences Center over a 6-month period was performed. Widest axial measurements of both carotid bodies were performed on a picture archiving and communication system (PACS). Statistical analysis was then performed to compare the mean carotid body size between control patients and patients with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and congestive heart failure. Results: Measurements were performed on 288 patients, with 134 controls. Of the remaining 154, 72 patients had diabetes mellitus, 46 had congestive heart failure, and 130 had hypertension. The control patients had a mean carotid body diameter of 2.3 mm. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.01) 20–25% increase in mean diameter with diabetes mellitus (2.8 mm), hypertension (2.7 mm), and congestive heart failure (2.7 mm; p < 0.01). Conclusions: This study found a 20–25% larger mean carotid body size in patients with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and congestive heart failure relative to controls. However, this small enlargement should not mimic other carotid body diseases, such as a paraganglionoma. Moreover, these findings further support the proposed functional relationship between the carotid body and sympathetically mediated disease states

  10. Stereometrical analysis of number and size of prolamellar bodies during pea chloroplast development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agnieszka Mostowska

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The plastid prolamelar bodies in dark-grown pea seedlings undergo gradual transformation and decay after illumination with low intensity light. Random micrographs do not give direct information concerning the sizes and average numbers of prolamellar bodies in a plastid. These values were obtained after evaluation by a stereometrical method from the ratio of polamellar bodies sizes to the plastid size and from the frequency of prolamellar body sections of a given diameter. Plastids of dark-grown seedlings contained on the average at least one prolamellar body. After illumination the size of the bodies decreased rapidly owing to dispersion into primary thylakoids and split into much smaller numerous prolamellar bodies.

  11. Body Size Predicts Cardiac and Vascular Resistance Effects on Men's and Women's Blood Pressure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joyce M. Evans

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Key Points SummaryWe report how blood pressure, cardiac output and vascular resistance are related to height, weight, body surface area (BSA, and body mass index (BMI in healthy young adults at supine rest and standing.Much inter-subject variability in young adult's blood pressure, currently attributed to health status, may actually result from inter-individual body size differences.Each cardiovascular variable is linearly related to height, weight and/or BSA (more than to BMI.When supine, cardiac output is positively related, while vascular resistance is negatively related, to body size. Upon standing, the change in vascular resistance is positively related to size.The height/weight relationships of cardiac output and vascular resistance to body size are responsible for blood pressure relationships to body size.These basic components of blood pressure could help distinguish normal from abnormal blood pressures in young adults by providing a more effective scaling mechanism.Introduction: Effects of body size on inter-subject blood pressure (BP variability are not well established in adults. We hypothesized that relationships linking stroke volume (SV, cardiac output (CO, and total peripheral resistance (TPR with body size would account for a significant fraction of inter-subject BP variability.Methods: Thirty-four young, healthy adults (19 men, 15 women participated in 38 stand tests during which brachial artery BP, heart rate, SV, CO, TPR, and indexes of body size were measured/calculated.Results: Steady state diastolic arterial BP was not significantly correlated with any index of body size when subjects were supine. However, upon standing, the more the subject weighed, or the taller s/he was, the greater the increase in diastolic pressure. Systolic pressure strongly correlated with body weight and height both supine and standing. Diastolic and systolic BP were more strongly related to height, weight and body surface area than to body mass

  12. Tamoxifen affects glucose and lipid metabolism parameters, causes browning of subcutaneous adipose tissue and transient body composition changes in C57BL/6NTac mice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hesselbarth, Nico; Pettinelli, Chiara; Gericke, Martin; Berger, Claudia; Kunath, Anne; Stumvoll, Michael; Blüher, Matthias; Klöting, Nora

    2015-01-01

    Tamoxifen is a selective estrogen receptor (ER) modulator which is widely used to generate inducible conditional transgenic mouse models. Activation of ER signaling plays an important role in the regulation of adipose tissue (AT) metabolism. We therefore tested the hypothesis that tamoxifen administration causes changes in AT biology in vivo. 12 weeks old male C57BL/6NTac mice were treated with either tamoxifen (n = 18) or vehicle (n = 18) for 5 consecutive days. Tamoxifen treatment effects on body composition, energy homeostasis, parameters of AT biology, glucose and lipid metabolism were investigated up to an age of 18 weeks. We found that tamoxifen treatment causes: I) significantly increased HbA 1c , triglyceride and free fatty acid serum concentrations (p < 0.01), II) browning of subcutaneous AT and increased UCP-1 expression, III) increased AT proliferation marker Ki67 mRNA expression, IV) changes in adipocyte size distribution, and V) transient body composition changes. Tamoxifen may induce changes in body composition, whole body glucose and lipid metabolism and has significant effects on AT biology, which need to be considered when using Tamoxifen as a tool to induce conditional transgenic mouse models. Our data further suggest that tamoxifen-treated wildtype mice should be characterized in parallel to experimental transgenic models to control for tamoxifen administration effects. - Highlights: • Tamoxifen treatment causes significantly increased HbA 1c , triglyceride and free fatty acid serum concentrations. • Tamoxifen induces browning of subcutaneous AT and increased UCP-1 expression. • Tamoxifen changes adipocyte size distribution, and transient body composition

  13. Effects of temperature and body size on radiocaesium retention in brown trout, Salmo trutta

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ugedal, O.; Jonsson, B.; Njastad, O.; Naeumann, R.

    1992-01-01

    The elimination rate of radiocaesium in brown trout Salmo trutta L. was determined in the laboratory at four water temperatures (range 4.4 -15.6 0 C). In the experiments three or four homogeneous size-groups of fish (mean weights 23-496g) were studied at each temperature. The brown trout received acute oral doses of 134 Cs and were killed at intervals for radioactivity counting. The retention versus time curves were composed of two distinct exponential components. The long-lived component was quantitatively the most important for retention of radiocaesium. Elimination rate increased with increasing water temperature and decreased with increasing body weight. The biological half-life of 134 Cs (T b , days) was related to fresh body weight (W, g) and water temperature (t, 0 C) by the equation: T b = 290 x W 0.176 x e -0.106 x t . The elimination rate of Cs could be predicted from weight-specific metabolic rate as given by Elliott's equations for brown trout. (author)

  14. The effects of parity, litter size, physiological state, and milking frequency on the metabolic profile of Lacaune dairy ewes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-García, E; Tesniere, A; Camous, S; Bocquier, F; Barillet, F; Hassoun, P

    2015-01-01

    Effects of parity (primiparous, PRIM vs multiparous, MULT) and litter size (singletons, SING vs twins, TWIN) on metabolic profiles from 1 wk before lambing to the end of lactation were studied in 48 Lacaune dairy ewes reared in confinement during most of the year and grazed on improved pastures at the end of lactation (summer). Another group of 48 ewes was incorporated during the milking period (ie, from 1 wk after weaning), to measure the effects of milking frequency (1 vs 2 milkings per day) on intake, milk production and composition, and body energy usage. Thus, in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design, ewes (n = 96) were allocated to homogeneous groups according to body weight (BW) and body condition score (BCS) and were monitored from late pregnancy to late lactation as a function of parity (PRIM, n = 48; MULT, n = 48), litter size (LSi) (SING, n = 40; TWIN, n = 56) and daily milking frequency (FREQ; milked once, ONE; n = 48; or twice, TWO; n = 48). Individual BW, BCS, plasma metabolites, and metabolic hormones were measured regularly (ie, 9 consecutive sampling dates). The BW was higher in MULT but no differences because of LSi or FREQ were detected at the intra-parity group level. The BCS was higher in MULT and in ewes with SING throughout the experiment. The latter was related to the demands for body reserves mobilization, as expressed by higher nonesterified fatty acids and β-hydroxybutyrate concentrations in ewes with TWIN from late pregnancy to weaning (35 d postpartum) in both PRIM and MULT ewes. This was consistent with higher insulin in MULT and higher triiodothyronine, leptin and insulin-like growth factor 1 in ewes with SING during this period. Differences in energy balance because of FREQ were evident after interpretation of plasma nonesterified fatty acids, glucose, insulin, and leptin concentration during the milking period. At similar feed intakes, ewes in ONE were in positive balance with regard to TWO. Overall, clear effects of parity, LSi

  15. Basal metabolic rate and the mass of tissues differing in metabolic scope : Migration-related covariation between individual knots Calidris canutus

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Weber, TP; Piersma, T; Weber, Thomas P.

    To examine whether variability in the basal metabolic rate (BMR) of migrant shorebirds is a function of a variably sized metabolic machinery or of temporal changes in metabolic intensities at the tissue level, BMR, body composition and activity of cytochrome-c oxidase (CCO, a marker for maximum

  16. Inborn Errors of Metabolism with Acidosis: Organic Acidemias and Defects of Pyruvate and Ketone Body Metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schillaci, Lori-Anne P; DeBrosse, Suzanne D; McCandless, Shawn E

    2018-04-01

    When a child presents with high-anion gap metabolic acidosis, the pediatrician can proceed with confidence by recalling some basic principles. Defects of organic acid, pyruvate, and ketone body metabolism that present with acute acidosis are reviewed. Flowcharts for identifying the underlying cause and initiating life-saving therapy are provided. By evaluating electrolytes, blood sugar, lactate, ammonia, and urine ketones, the provider can determine the likelihood of an inborn error of metabolism. Freezing serum, plasma, and urine samples during the acute presentation for definitive diagnostic testing at the provider's convenience aids in the differential diagnosis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Neural substrate of body size: illusory feeling of shrinking of the waist.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H Henrik Ehrsson

    2005-12-01

    Full Text Available The perception of the size and shape of one's body (body image is a fundamental aspect of how we experience ourselves. We studied the neural correlates underlying perceived changes in the relative size of body parts by using a perceptual illusion in which participants felt that their waist was shrinking. We scanned the brains of the participants using functional magnetic resonance imaging. We found that activity in the cortices lining the left postcentral sulcus and the anterior part of the intraparietal sulcus reflected the illusion of waist shrinking, and that this activity was correlated with the reported degree of shrinking. These results suggest that the perceived changes in the size and shape of body parts are mediated by hierarchically higher-order somatosensory areas in the parietal cortex. Based on this finding we suggest that relative size of body parts is computed by the integration of more elementary somatic signals from different body segments.

  18. Carotid body, insulin and metabolic diseases: unravelling the links

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Silvia V Conde

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available The carotid bodies (CB are peripheral chemoreceptors that sense changes in arterial blood O2, CO2 and pH levels. Hypoxia, hypercapnia and acidosis activate the CB, which respond by increasing the action potential frequency in their sensory nerve, the carotid sinus nerve (CSN. CSN activity is integrated in the brain stem to induce a panoply of cardiorespiratory reflexes aimed, primarily, to normalize the altered blood gases, via hyperventilation, and to regulate blood pressure and cardiac performance, via sympathetic nervous system (SNS activation. Besides its role in the cardiorespiratory control the CB has been proposed as a metabolic sensor implicated in the control of energy homeostasis and, more recently, in the regulation of whole body insulin sensitivity. Hypercaloric diets cause CB overactivation in rats, which seems to be at the origin of the development of insulin resistance and hypertension, core features of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. Consistent with this notion, CB sensory denervation prevents metabolic and hemodynamic alterations in hypercaloric feed animal. Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA is another chronic disorder characterized by increased CB activity and intimately related with several metabolic and cardiovascular abnormalities. In this manuscript we review in a concise manner the putative pathways linking CB chemoreceptors deregulation with the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and arterial hypertension. Also, the link between chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH and insulin resistance is discussed. Then, a final section is devoted to debate strategies to reduce CB activity and its use for prevention and therapeutics of metabolic diseases with an emphasis on new exciting research in the modulation of bioelectronic signals, likely to be central in the future.

  19. Lipid metabolism and body composition in Gclm(−/−) mice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kendig, Eric L.; Chen, Ying; Krishan, Mansi; Johansson, Elisabet; Schneider, Scott N.; Genter, Mary Beth; Nebert, Daniel W.; Shertzer, Howard G.

    2011-01-01

    In humans and experimental animals, high fat diets (HFD) are associated with risk factors for metabolic diseases, such as excessive weight gain and adiposity, insulin resistance and fatty liver. Mice lacking the glutamate–cysteine ligase modifier subunit gene (Gclm(−/−)) and deficient in glutathione (GSH), are resistant to HFD-mediated weight gain. Herein, we evaluated Gclm-associated regulation of energy metabolism, oxidative stress, and glucose and lipid homeostasis. C57BL/6J Gclm(−/−) mice and littermate wild-type (WT) controls received a normal diet or an HFD for 11 weeks. HFD-fed Gclm(−/−) mice did not display a decreased respiratory quotient, suggesting that they are unable to process lipid for metabolism. Although dietary energy consumption and intestinal lipid absorption were unchanged in Gclm(−/−) mice, feeding these mice an HFD did not produce excess body weight nor fat storage. Gclm(−/−) mice displayed higher basal metabolic rates resulting from higher activities of liver mitochondrial NADH-CoQ oxidoreductase, thus elevating respiration. Although Gclm(−/−) mice exhibited strong systemic and hepatic oxidative stress responses, HFD did not promote glucose intolerance or insulin resistance. Furthermore, HFD-fed Gclm(−/−) mice did not develop fatty liver, likely resulting from very low expression levels of genes encoding lipid metabolizing enzymes. We conclude that Gclm is involved in the regulation of basal metabolic rate and the metabolism of dietary lipid. Although Gclm(−/−) mice display a strong oxidative stress response, they are protected from HFD-induced excessive weight gain and adipose deposition, insulin resistance and steatosis. -- Highlights: ► A high fat diet does not produce body weight and fat gain in Gclm(−/−) mice. ► A high fat diet does not induce steatosis or insulin resistance in Gclm(−/−) mice. ► Gclm(−/−) mice have high basal metabolism and mitochondrial oxygen consumption.

  20. Physical activity, body composition and metabolic syndrome in young adults.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Minna K Salonen

    Full Text Available Low physical activity (PA is a major risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic disorders in all age groups. We measured intensity and volume of PA and examined the associations between PA and the metabolic syndrome (MS, its components and body composition among young Finnish adults.The study comprises 991 men and women born 1985-86, who participated in a clinical study during the years 2009-11 which included assessments of metabolism, body composition and PA. Objectively measured (SenseWear Armband five-day PA data was available from 737 participants and was expressed in metabolic equivalents of task (MET.The prevalence of MS ranged between 8-10%. Higher total mean volume (MET-hours or intensity (MET were negatively associated with the risk of MS and separate components of MS, while the time spent at sedentary level of PA was positively associated with MS.MS was prevalent in approximately every tenth of the young adults at the age of 24 years. Higher total mean intensity and volume rates as well as longer duration spent at moderate and vigorous PA level had a beneficial impact on the risk of MS. Longer time spent at the sedentary level of PA increased the risk of MS.

  1. The benefits of being big: effects of body size on energy budgets of three wintering goose species grazing Carex beds in the Yangtze River Floodplain, China

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, Xin; Zhang, Yong; Zhao, Meijuan

    2013-01-01

    Herbivores of different body size vary in food selection because of their different metabolic requirements and abilities to harvest and digest food. Compared with smaller grazers, larger ones require higher food quantity but can tolerate poorer quality. This divergence may also explain habitat pa...

  2. Nontraditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease and visceral adiposity index among different body size phenotypes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Du, T; Zhang, J; Yuan, G; Zhang, M; Zhou, X; Liu, Z; Sun, X; Yu, X

    2015-01-01

    Increased cardiovascular disease and mortality risk in metabolically healthy obese (MHO) individuals remain highly controversial. Several studies suggested risk while others do not. The traditional cardiovascular risk factors may be insufficient to demonstrate the complete range of metabolic abnormalities in MHO individuals. Hence, we aimed to compare the prevalence of elevated lipoprotein (a), apolipoprotein B, and uric acid (UA) levels, apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A1 ratio, and visceral adiposity index (VAI) scores, and low apolipoprotein A1 levels among 6 body size phenotypes (normal weight with and without metabolic abnormalities, overweight with and without metabolic abnormalities, and obese with or without metabolic abnormalities). We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 7765 Chinese adults using data from the nationwide China Health and Nutrition Survey 2009. MHO persons had intermediate prevalence of elevated apolipoprotein B and UA levels, apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A1 ratio and VAI scores, and low apolipoprotein A1 levels between metabolically healthy normal-weight (MHNW) and metabolically abnormal obese individuals (P < 0.001 for all comparisons). Elevated apolipoprotein B and UA concentrations, apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A1 ratio, and VAI scores were all strongly associated with the MHO phenotype (all P < 0.01). Prevalence of elevated apolipoprotein B and UA levels, apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A1 ratio and VAI scores, and low levels of apolipoprotein A1 was higher among MHO persons than among MHNW individuals. The elevated levels of the nontraditional risk factors and VAI scores in MHO persons could contribute to the increased cardiovascular disease risk observed in long-term studies. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. The body size of the oil-collecting bee Tetrapedia diversipes (Apidae)

    OpenAIRE

    Pinto da Silva,Carlos; Silva,Adriana; Duran Cordeiro,Guaraci; Alves dos Santos ,Isabel

    2015-01-01

    The body size of bees can affect their fitness in many ways. There is an indirect relationship between the size of the mother and the size of her progeny. This is so because large mothers use larger nests and brood cells and have higher foraging capacity than small mothers, and consequently large mothers supply a larger amount of food to their larvae, which grow larger. We analyzed the relationship between body size of individual oil-collecting bees of the species Tetrapedia diversipes and th...

  4. Geographical variation in body size and sexual size dimorphism in an Australian lizard, Boulenger's Skink (Morethia boulengeri).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michael, Damian R; Banks, Sam C; Piggott, Maxine P; Cunningham, Ross B; Crane, Mason; MacGregor, Christopher; McBurney, Lachlan; Lindenmayer, David B

    2014-01-01

    Ecogeographical rules help explain spatial and temporal patterns in intraspecific body size. However, many of these rules, when applied to ectothermic organisms such as reptiles, are controversial and require further investigation. To explore factors that influence body size in reptiles, we performed a heuristic study to examine body size variation in an Australian lizard, Boulenger's Skink Morethia boulengeri from agricultural landscapes in southern New South Wales, south-eastern Australia. We collected tissue and morphological data on 337 adult lizards across a broad elevation and climate gradient. We used a model-selection procedure to determine if environmental or ecological variables best explained body size variation. We explored the relationship between morphology and phylogenetic structure before modeling candidate variables from four broad domains: (1) geography (latitude, longitude and elevation), (2) climate (temperature and rainfall), (3) habitat (vegetation type, number of logs and ground cover attributes), and (4) management (land use and grazing history). Broad phylogenetic structure was evident, but on a scale larger than our study area. Lizards were sexually dimorphic, whereby females had longer snout-vent length than males, providing support for the fecundity selection hypothesis. Body size variation in M. boulengeri was correlated with temperature and rainfall, a pattern consistent with larger individuals occupying cooler and more productive parts of the landscape. Climate change forecasts, which predict warmer temperature and increased aridity, may result in reduced lizard biomass and decoupling of trophic interactions with potential implications for community organization and ecosystem function.

  5. Body Size Shifts in Philippine Reef Fishes: Interfamilial Variation in Responses to Protection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert Y. Fidler

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available As a consequence of intense fishing pressure, fished populations experience reduced population sizes and shifts in body size toward the predominance of smaller and early maturing individuals. Small, early-maturing fish exhibit significantly reduced reproductive output and, ultimately, reduced fitness. As part of resource management and biodiversity conservation programs worldwide, no-take marine protected areas (MPAs are expected to ameliorate the adverse effects of fishing pressure. In an attempt to advance our understanding of how coral reef MPAs meet their long-term goals, this study used visual census data from 23 MPAs and fished reefs in the Philippines to address three questions: (1 Do MPAs promote shifts in fish body size frequency distribution towards larger body sizes when compared to fished reefs? (2 Do MPA size and (3 age contribute to the efficacy of MPAs in promoting such shifts? This study revealed that across all MPAs surveyed, the distribution of fishes between MPAs and fished reefs were similar; however, large-bodied fish were more abundant within MPAs, along with small, young-of-the-year individuals. Additionally, there was a significant shift in body size frequency distribution towards larger body sizes in 12 of 23 individual reef sites surveyed. Of 22 fish families, eleven demonstrated significantly different body size frequency distributions between MPAs and fished reefs, indicating that shifts in the size spectrum of fishes in response to protection are family-specific. Family-level shifts demonstrated a significant, positive correlation with MPA age, indicating that MPAs become more effective at increasing the density of large-bodied fish within their boundaries over time.

  6. Associations between Body Composition Indices and Metabolic Disorders in Chinese Adults: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rong Zhang

    2018-01-01

    Conclusions: This study identified positive associations between all evaluated body composition indices and metabolic parameters in Chinese adults. Among the body composition indices, BMI predicted four of the five evaluated metabolic disorders in both gender groups.

  7. The non-linear relationship between body size and function in parrotfishes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lokrantz, J.; Nyström, M.; Thyresson, M.; Johansson, C.

    2008-12-01

    Parrotfishes are a group of herbivores that play an important functional role in structuring benthic communities on coral reefs. Increasingly, these fish are being targeted by fishermen, and resultant declines in biomass and abundance may have severe consequences for the dynamics and regeneration of coral reefs. However, the impact of overfishing extends beyond declining fish stocks. It can also lead to demographic changes within species populations where mean body size is reduced. The effect of reduced mean body size on population dynamics is well described in literature but virtually no information exists on how this may influence important ecological functions. The study investigated how one important function, scraping (i.e., the capacity to remove algae and open up bare substratum for coral larval settlement), by three common species of parrotfishes ( Scarus niger, Chlorurus sordidus, and Chlorurus strongylocephalus) on coral reefs at Zanzibar (Tanzania) was influenced by the size of individual fishes. There was a non-linear relationship between body size and scraping function for all species examined, and impact through scraping was also found to increase markedly when fish reached a size of 15 20 cm. Thus, coral reefs which have a high abundance and biomass of parrotfish may nonetheless be functionally impaired if dominated by small-sized individuals. Reductions in mean body size within parrotfish populations could, therefore, have functional impacts on coral reefs that previously have been overlooked.

  8. Body size ideals and dissatisfaction in Ghanaian adolescents: role of media, lifestyle and well-being.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michels, N; Amenyah, S D

    2017-05-01

    To inspire effective health promotion campaigns, we tested the relationship of ideal body size and body size dissatisfaction with (1) the potential resulting health-influencing factors diet, physical activity and well-being; and (2) with media as a potential influencer of body ideals. This is a cross-sectional study in 370 Ghanaian adolescents (aged 11-18 years). Questionnaires included disordered eating (EAT26), diet quality (FFQ), physical activity (IPAQ), well-being (KINDL) and media influence on appearance (SATAQ: pressure, internalisation and information). Ideal body size and body size dissatisfaction were assessed using the Stunkard figure rating scale. Body mass index (BMI), skinfolds and waist were measured. Linear regressions were adjusted for gender, age and parental education. Also, mediation was tested: 'can perceived media influence play a role in the effects of actual body size on body size dissatisfaction?'. Body size dissatisfaction was associated with lower well-being and more media influence (pressure and internalisation) but not with physical activity, diet quality or disordered eating. An underweight body size ideal might worsen disordered eating but was not significantly related to the other predictors of interest. Only a partial mediation effect by media pressure was found: especially overweight adolescents felt media pressure, and this media pressure was associated with more body size dissatisfaction. To prevent disordered eating and low well-being, health messages should include strategies that reduce body size dissatisfaction and increase body esteem by not focussing on the thin body ideal. Changing body size ideals in the media might be an appropriate way since media pressure was a mediator in the BMI-dissatisfaction relation. Copyright © 2017 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Adjusting parameters of aortic valve stenosis severity by body size

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Minners, Jan; Gohlke-Baerwolf, Christa; Kaufmann, Beat A

    2014-01-01

    stenosis (jet velocity ≥2.5 m/s) and related to outcomes in a second cohort of 1525 patients from the Simvastatin/Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis (SEAS) study. RESULTS: Whereas jet velocity and MPG were independent of body size, AVA was significantly correlated with height, weight, BSA and BMI (Pearson...... correlation coefficient (r) 0.319, 0.281, 0.317 and 0.126, respectively, all pcorrelation between AVA and body size...

  10. Migrate small, sound big: functional constraints on body size promote tracheal elongation in cranes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, M R; Witt, C C

    2014-06-01

    Organismal traits often represent the outcome of opposing selection pressures. Although social or sexual selection can cause the evolution of traits that constrain function or survival (e.g. ornamental feathers), it is unclear how the strength and direction of selection respond to ecological shifts that increase the severity of the constraint. For example, reduced body size might evolve by natural selection to enhance flight performance in migratory birds, but social or sexual selection favouring large body size may provide a countervailing force. Tracheal elongation is a potential outcome of these opposing pressures because it allows birds to convey an auditory signal of exaggerated body size. We predicted that the evolution of migration in cranes has coincided with a reduction in body size and a concomitant intensification of social or sexual selection for apparent large body size via tracheal elongation. We used a phylogenetic comparative approach to examine the relationships among migration distance, body mass and trachea length in cranes. As predicted, we found that migration distance correlated negatively with body size and positively with proportional trachea length. This result was consistent with our hypothesis that evolutionary reductions in body size led to intensified selection for trachea length. The most likely ultimate causes of intensified positive selection on trachea length are the direct benefits of conveying a large body size in intraspecific contests for mates and territories. We conclude that the strength of social or sexual selection on crane body size is linked to the degree of functional constraint. © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2014 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

  11. Weight-adjusted lean body mass and calf circumference are protective against obesity-associated insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takamura, Toshinari; Kita, Yuki; Nakagen, Masatoshi; Sakurai, Masaru; Isobe, Yuki; Takeshita, Yumie; Kawai, Kohzo; Urabe, Takeshi; Kaneko, Shuichi

    2017-07-01

    To test the hypothesis that preserved muscle mass is protective against obesity-associated insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities, we analyzed the relationship of lean body mass and computed tomography-assessed sectional areas of specific skeletal muscles with insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities in a healthy cohort. A total of 195 subjects without diabetes who had completed a medical examination were included in this study. Various anthropometric indices such as circumferences of the arm, waist, hip, thigh, and calf were measured. Body composition (fat and lean body mass) was determined by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Sectional areas of specific skeletal muscles (iliopsoas, erector spinae, gluteus, femoris, and rectus abdominis muscles) were measured using computed tomography. Fat and lean body mass were significantly correlated with metabolic abnormalities and insulin resistance indices. When adjusted by weight, relationships of fat and lean body mass with metabolic parameters were mirror images of each other. The weight-adjusted lean body mass negatively correlated with systolic and diastolic blood pressures; fasting plasma glucose, HbA1c, alanine aminotransferase, and triglyceride, and insulin levels; and hepatic insulin resistance indices, and positively correlated with HDL-cholesterol levels and muscle insulin sensitivity indices. Compared with weight-adjusted lean body mass, weight-adjusted sectional areas of specific skeletal muscles showed similar, but not as strong, correlations with metabolic parameters. Among anthropometric measures, the calf circumference best reflected lean body mass, and weight-adjusted calf circumference negatively correlated with metabolic abnormalities and insulin resistance indices. Weight-adjusted lean body mass and skeletal muscle area are protective against weight-associated insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities. The calf circumference reflects lean body mass and may be useful as a protective

  12. Body Size Preference of Marine Animals in Relation to Extinction Selectivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sriram, A.; Idgunji, S.; Heim, N. A.; Payne, J.

    2014-12-01

    Our project encompasses an extremely specific aspect in relation to the five mass extinctions in geologic history. We asked ourselves whether larger or smaller body sizes would be better suited for surviving a mass extinction. To conduct research for our project, we used the body sizes of 17,172 marine animal genera as our primary data. These animals include echinoderms, arthropods, chordates, mollusks, and brachiopods. These creatures are perfect model organisms in terms of finding data on them because they have an excellent fossil record, and are well documented. We focused on the mean body size of these animals before and after each of the five mass extinctions (end-Ordovician, Late Devonian, end-Permian, end-Triassic, and end-Cretaceous). Our hypothesis was that the average biovolume of animals increased after each of the extinctions, with the mean size being greater after than it was before. Our size data is from the Ellis & Messina Catalogue of Ostracoda and the Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology. We obtained stratigraphic range data The Treatise and Sepkoski (2002). In our analyses, we compared the mean size of the different animal genera before and after each extinction event. We further partitioned size change across mass extinction boundaries into three categories: the surviving genera, the extinct genera, and the newly originating genera that came about after the extinction. According to our analyses, the mean sizes did not change significantly from the genera living during the stages before the extinctions and after the extinctions. From our results, we can assume that there were not enough major increases in the overall volume of the organisms to warrant a definite conclusion that extinctions lead to larger body sizes. Further support for our findings came from the T-tests in our R code. Only the Cretaceous period showed true evidence for size changing because of the extinction; in this case, the mean size decreased. T-tests for the Cretaceous

  13. Role of Autophagy in the Control of Body Metabolism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenying Quan

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Autophagy plays a crucial role in the maintenance of cellular nutrient balance and the function of organelles such as mitochondria or the endoplasmic reticulum, which are important in intracellular metabolism, insulin release, and insulin sensitivity. In the insulin-producing pancreatic β-cells, autophagy is important in the maintenance of β-cell mass, structure, and function. Mice with deficiencies in β-cell-specific autophagy show reduced β-cell mass and defects in insulin secretion that lead to hypoinsulinemia and hyperglycemia but not diabetes. However, these mice developed diabetes when bred with ob/ob mice, suggesting that autophagy-deficient β-cells have defects in dealing with the increased metabolic stress imposed by obesity. These results also imply that autophagy deficiency in β-cells could be a factor in the progression from obesity to diabetes. Another important function of autophagy is in hypothalamic neurons for the central control of energy expenditure, appetite, and body weight. In addition, mice with autophagy deficiencies in the target tissues of insulin have yielded diverse phenotypes. Taken together, these results suggest that autophagy is important in the control of whole body energy and nutrient homeostasis, and its dysregulation could play a role in the development of metabolic disorders and diabetes.

  14. Spatial variation in egg size of a top predator: Interplay of body size and environmental factors?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Louzao, Maite; Igual, José M.; Genovart, Meritxell; Forero, Manuela G.; Hobson, Keith A.; Oro, Daniel

    2008-09-01

    It is expected that nearby populations are constrained by the same ecological features shaping in turn similarity in their ecological traits. Here, we studied the spatio-temporal variability in egg size among local populations of the critically endangered Balearic shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus, a top marine predator endemic to the western Mediterranean region. Specifically we assessed whether this trait was influenced by maternal body size, as an indicator of a genetic component, and feeding ecology (through stable-carbon and nitrogen-isotope measurements), as an indicator of environmental factors. We found that egg size varied among local populations, an unexpected result at such a small spatial scale. Body size differences at the local population level only partially explained such differences. Blood isotope measurements also differed among local populations. Values of δ 15N suggested inter-population differences in trophic level, showing a similar general pattern with egg size, and suggesting a nutritional link between them whereby egg size was affected by differences in feeding resources and/or behaviour. Values of δ 13C suggested that local populations did not differ in foraging habits with respect to benthic- vs. pelagic-based food-webs. Egg size did not vary among years as did breeding performance, suggesting that a differential temporal window could affect both breeding parameters in relation to food availability. The absence of a relationship between breeding performance and egg size suggested that larger eggs might only confer an advantage during harsh conditions. Alternatively parental quality could greatly affect breeding performance. We showed that inter-population differences in egg size could be influenced by both body size and environmental factors.

  15. Illusory changes in body size modulate body satisfaction in a way that is related to non-clinical eating disorder psychopathology.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Catherine Preston

    Full Text Available Historically, body size overestimation has been linked to abnormal levels of body dissatisfaction found in eating disorders. However, recently this relationship has been called into question. Indeed, despite a link between how we perceive and how we feel about our body seeming intuitive, until now lack of an experimental method to manipulate body size has meant that a causal link, even in healthy participants, has remained elusive. Recent developments in body perception research demonstrate that the perceptual experience of the body can be readily manipulated using multisensory illusions. The current study exploits such illusions to modulate perceived body size in an attempt to influence body satisfaction. Participants were presented with stereoscopic video images of slimmer and wider mannequin bodies viewed through head-mounted displays from first person perspective. Illusory ownership was induced by synchronously stroking the seen mannequin body with the unseen real body. Pre and post-illusion affective and perceptual measures captured changes in perceived body size and body satisfaction. Illusory ownership of a slimmer body resulted in participants perceiving their actual body as slimmer and giving higher ratings of body satisfaction demonstrating a direct link between perceptual and affective body representations. Change in body satisfaction following illusory ownership of a wider body, however, was related to degree of (non-clinical eating disorder psychopathology, which can be linked to fluctuating body representations found in clinical samples. The results suggest that body perception is linked to body satisfaction and may be of importance for eating disorder symptomology.

  16. Illusory Changes in Body Size Modulate Body Satisfaction in a Way That Is Related to Non-Clinical Eating Disorder Psychopathology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Preston, Catherine; Ehrsson, H. Henrik

    2014-01-01

    Historically, body size overestimation has been linked to abnormal levels of body dissatisfaction found in eating disorders. However, recently this relationship has been called into question. Indeed, despite a link between how we perceive and how we feel about our body seeming intuitive, until now lack of an experimental method to manipulate body size has meant that a causal link, even in healthy participants, has remained elusive. Recent developments in body perception research demonstrate that the perceptual experience of the body can be readily manipulated using multisensory illusions. The current study exploits such illusions to modulate perceived body size in an attempt to influence body satisfaction. Participants were presented with stereoscopic video images of slimmer and wider mannequin bodies viewed through head-mounted displays from first person perspective. Illusory ownership was induced by synchronously stroking the seen mannequin body with the unseen real body. Pre and post-illusion affective and perceptual measures captured changes in perceived body size and body satisfaction. Illusory ownership of a slimmer body resulted in participants perceiving their actual body as slimmer and giving higher ratings of body satisfaction demonstrating a direct link between perceptual and affective body representations. Change in body satisfaction following illusory ownership of a wider body, however, was related to degree of (non-clinical) eating disorder psychopathology, which can be linked to fluctuating body representations found in clinical samples. The results suggest that body perception is linked to body satisfaction and may be of importance for eating disorder symptomology. PMID:24465698

  17. Aging and body size in solitary bees

    Science.gov (United States)

    Solitary bees are important pollinators of crops and non-domestic plants. Osmia lignaria is a native, commercially-reared solitary bee used to maximize pollination in orchard crops. In solitary bees, adult body size is extremely variable depending on the nutritional resources available to the develo...

  18. Covariation of metabolic rates and cell size in coccolithophores

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aloisi, G.

    2015-08-01

    Coccolithophores are sensitive recorders of environmental change. The size of their coccosphere varies in the ocean along gradients of environmental conditions and provides a key for understanding the fate of this important phytoplankton group in the future ocean. But interpreting field changes in coccosphere size in terms of laboratory observations is hard, mainly because the marine signal reflects the response of multiple morphotypes to changes in a combination of environmental variables. In this paper I examine the large corpus of published laboratory experiments with coccolithophores looking for relations between environmental conditions, metabolic rates and cell size (a proxy for coccosphere size). I show that growth, photosynthesis and, to a lesser extent, calcification covary with cell size when pCO2, irradiance, temperature, nitrate, phosphate and iron conditions change. With the exception of phosphate and temperature, a change from limiting to non-limiting conditions always results in an increase in cell size. An increase in phosphate or temperature (below the optimum temperature for growth) produces the opposite effect. The magnitude of the coccosphere-size changes observed in the laboratory is comparable to that observed in the ocean. If the biological reasons behind the environment-metabolism-size link are understood, it will be possible to use coccosphere-size changes in the modern ocean and in marine sediments to investigate the fate of coccolithophores in the future ocean. This reasoning can be extended to the size of coccoliths if, as recent experiments are starting to show, coccolith size reacts to environmental change proportionally to coccosphere size. The coccolithophore database is strongly biased in favour of experiments with the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi (E. huxleyi; 82 % of database entries), and more experiments with other species are needed to understand whether these observations can be extended to coccolithophores in general. I

  19. Tamoxifen affects glucose and lipid metabolism parameters, causes browning of subcutaneous adipose tissue and transient body composition changes in C57BL/6NTac mice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hesselbarth, Nico; Pettinelli, Chiara [Department of Medicine, University of Leipzig, D-04103 Leipzig (Germany); Gericke, Martin [Institute of Anatomy, University of Leipzig, D-04103 Leipzig (Germany); Berger, Claudia [IFB Adiposity Disease, Core Unit Animal Models, University of Leipzig, D-04103 Leipzig (Germany); Kunath, Anne [German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Leipzig (Germany); Stumvoll, Michael; Blüher, Matthias [Department of Medicine, University of Leipzig, D-04103 Leipzig (Germany); Klöting, Nora, E-mail: nora.kloeting@medizin.uni-leipzig.de [IFB Adiposity Disease, Core Unit Animal Models, University of Leipzig, D-04103 Leipzig (Germany)

    2015-08-28

    Tamoxifen is a selective estrogen receptor (ER) modulator which is widely used to generate inducible conditional transgenic mouse models. Activation of ER signaling plays an important role in the regulation of adipose tissue (AT) metabolism. We therefore tested the hypothesis that tamoxifen administration causes changes in AT biology in vivo. 12 weeks old male C57BL/6NTac mice were treated with either tamoxifen (n = 18) or vehicle (n = 18) for 5 consecutive days. Tamoxifen treatment effects on body composition, energy homeostasis, parameters of AT biology, glucose and lipid metabolism were investigated up to an age of 18 weeks. We found that tamoxifen treatment causes: I) significantly increased HbA{sub 1c}, triglyceride and free fatty acid serum concentrations (p < 0.01), II) browning of subcutaneous AT and increased UCP-1 expression, III) increased AT proliferation marker Ki67 mRNA expression, IV) changes in adipocyte size distribution, and V) transient body composition changes. Tamoxifen may induce changes in body composition, whole body glucose and lipid metabolism and has significant effects on AT biology, which need to be considered when using Tamoxifen as a tool to induce conditional transgenic mouse models. Our data further suggest that tamoxifen-treated wildtype mice should be characterized in parallel to experimental transgenic models to control for tamoxifen administration effects. - Highlights: • Tamoxifen treatment causes significantly increased HbA{sub 1c}, triglyceride and free fatty acid serum concentrations. • Tamoxifen induces browning of subcutaneous AT and increased UCP-1 expression. • Tamoxifen changes adipocyte size distribution, and transient body composition.

  20. Big or fast: two strategies in the developmental control of body size

    OpenAIRE

    Nijhout, H. Frederik

    2015-01-01

    Adult body size is controlled by the mechanisms that stop growth when a species-characteristic size has been reached. The mechanisms by which size is sensed and by which this information is transduced to the growth regulating system are beginning to be understood in a few species of insects. Two rather different strategies for control have been discovered; one favors large body size and the other favors rapid development.

  1. Basal metabolic rate scaled to body mass within species by the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Basal metabolic rate scaled to body mass within species by the fractal dimension of the vascular system and body composition. ... The postulate bd = c is shown to hold for both these species within the limits of experimental error, with the crucian carp evidence being especially convincing, since b, c and d are estimated from ...

  2. Body size and body esteem in women : The mediating role of possible self expectancy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dalley, Simon E.; Pollet, Thomas V.; Vidal, Jose

    We predicted that an expectancy of acquiring a feared fat self and an expectancy of acquiring a hoped-for thin self both mediate the impact of body size on women's body esteem. We also predicted that the mediating pathway through the feared fat self would be stronger than that through the hoped-for

  3. Body size and body esteem in women: The mediating role of possible self expectancy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dalley, S.E.; Pollet, T.V.; Vidal, J.

    2013-01-01

    We predicted that an expectancy of acquiring a feared fat self and an expectancy of acquiring a hoped-for thin self both mediate the impact of body size on women's body esteem. We also predicted that the mediating pathway through the feared fat self would be stronger than that through the hoped-for

  4. Body size limits dim-light foraging activity in stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponini).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Streinzer, Martin; Huber, Werner; Spaethe, Johannes

    2016-10-01

    Stingless bees constitute a species-rich tribe of tropical and subtropical eusocial Apidae that act as important pollinators for flowering plants. Many foraging tasks rely on vision, e.g. spatial orientation and detection of food sources and nest entrances. Meliponini workers are usually small, which sets limits on eye morphology and thus quality of vision. Limitations are expected both on acuity, and thus on the ability to detect objects from a distance, as well as on sensitivity, and thus on the foraging time window at dusk and dawn. In this study, we determined light intensity thresholds for flight under dim light conditions in eight stingless bee species in relation to body size in a Neotropical lowland rainforest. Species varied in body size (0.8-1.7 mm thorax-width), and we found a strong negative correlation with light intensity thresholds (0.1-79 lx). Further, we measured eye size, ocelli diameter, ommatidia number, and facet diameter. All parameters significantly correlated with body size. A disproportionately low light intensity threshold in the minute Trigonisca pipioli, together with a large eye parameter P eye suggests specific adaptations to circumvent the optical constraints imposed by the small body size. We discuss the implications of body size in bees on foraging behavior.

  5. Low level of polyandry constrains phenotypic plasticity of male body size in mites.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Schausberger

    Full Text Available Polyandry, i.e. females mating with multiple males, is more common than previously anticipated and potentially provides both direct and indirect fitness benefits to females. The level of polyandry (defined by the lifetime number of male mates of a female is an important determinant of the occurrence and intensity of sexual selection acting on male phenotypes. While the forces of sexual selection acting on phenotypic male traits such as body size are relatively well understood, sexual selection acting on phenotypic plasticity of these traits is unexplored. We tackled this issue by scrutinizing the link between polyandry and phenotypic plasticity of male body size in two sympatric plant-inhabiting predatory mite species, Phytoseiulus persimilis and Neoseiulus californicus. These two species are similar in life history, ecological niche requirements, mating behavior, polygyny and female body size plasticity but strikingly differ in the level of both polyandry and phenotypic plasticity of male body size (both lower in P. persimilis. We hypothesized that deviations from standard body size, i.e. the size achieved under favorable conditions, incur higher costs for males in the less polyandrous P. persimilis. To test our hypotheses, we conducted two experiments on (i the effects of male body size on spermatophore transfer in singly mating females and (ii the effects of mate sequence (switching the order of standard-sized and small males on mating behavior and paternity success in doubly mating females. In P. persimilis but not N. californicus, small males transferred fewer but larger spermatophores to the females; in both species, females re-mated more likely with standard-sized following small than small following standard-sized males; in P. persimilis, first standard-sized males sired a higher proportion of offspring produced after re-mating by the female than first small males, whereas in N. californicus the paternity success of small and standard-sized

  6. Low level of polyandry constrains phenotypic plasticity of male body size in mites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schausberger, Peter; Walzer, Andreas; Murata, Yasumasa; Osakabe, Masahiro

    2017-01-01

    Polyandry, i.e. females mating with multiple males, is more common than previously anticipated and potentially provides both direct and indirect fitness benefits to females. The level of polyandry (defined by the lifetime number of male mates of a female) is an important determinant of the occurrence and intensity of sexual selection acting on male phenotypes. While the forces of sexual selection acting on phenotypic male traits such as body size are relatively well understood, sexual selection acting on phenotypic plasticity of these traits is unexplored. We tackled this issue by scrutinizing the link between polyandry and phenotypic plasticity of male body size in two sympatric plant-inhabiting predatory mite species, Phytoseiulus persimilis and Neoseiulus californicus. These two species are similar in life history, ecological niche requirements, mating behavior, polygyny and female body size plasticity but strikingly differ in the level of both polyandry and phenotypic plasticity of male body size (both lower in P. persimilis). We hypothesized that deviations from standard body size, i.e. the size achieved under favorable conditions, incur higher costs for males in the less polyandrous P. persimilis. To test our hypotheses, we conducted two experiments on (i) the effects of male body size on spermatophore transfer in singly mating females and (ii) the effects of mate sequence (switching the order of standard-sized and small males) on mating behavior and paternity success in doubly mating females. In P. persimilis but not N. californicus, small males transferred fewer but larger spermatophores to the females; in both species, females re-mated more likely with standard-sized following small than small following standard-sized males; in P. persimilis, first standard-sized males sired a higher proportion of offspring produced after re-mating by the female than first small males, whereas in N. californicus the paternity success of small and standard-sized males was

  7. The relationship between body mass and field metabolic rate among individual birds and mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hudson, Lawrence N; Isaac, Nick J B; Reuman, Daniel C

    2013-09-01

    1. The power-law dependence of metabolic rate on body mass has major implications at every level of ecological organization. However, the overwhelming majority of studies examining this relationship have used basal or resting metabolic rates, and/or have used data consisting of species-averaged masses and metabolic rates. Field metabolic rates are more ecologically relevant and are probably more directly subject to natural selection than basal rates. Individual rates might be more important than species-average rates in determining the outcome of ecological interactions, and hence selection. 2. We here provide the first comprehensive database of published field metabolic rates and body masses of individual birds and mammals, containing measurements of 1498 animals of 133 species in 28 orders. We used linear mixed-effects models to answer questions about the body mass scaling of metabolic rate and its taxonomic universality/heterogeneity that have become classic areas of controversy. Our statistical approach allows mean scaling exponents and taxonomic heterogeneity in scaling to be analysed in a unified way while simultaneously accounting for nonindependence in the data due to shared evolutionary history of related species. 3. The mean power-law scaling exponents of metabolic rate vs. body mass relationships were 0.71 [95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.625-0.795] for birds and 0.64 (95% CI 0.564-0.716) for mammals. However, these central tendencies obscured meaningful taxonomic heterogeneity in scaling exponents. The primary taxonomic level at which heterogeneity occurred was the order level. Substantial heterogeneity also occurred at the species level, a fact that cannot be revealed by species-averaged data sets used in prior work. Variability in scaling exponents at both order and species levels was comparable to or exceeded the differences 3/4-2/3 = 1/12 and 0.71-0.64. 4. Results are interpreted in the light of a variety of existing theories. In particular, results

  8. Rule reversal: Ecogeographical patterns of body size variation in the common treeshrew (Mammalia, Scandentia)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sargis, Eric J.; Millien, Virginie; Woodman, Neal; Olson, Link E.

    2018-01-01

    There are a number of ecogeographical “rules” that describe patterns of geographical variation among organisms. The island rule predicts that populations of larger mammals on islands evolve smaller mean body size than their mainland counterparts, whereas smaller‐bodied mammals evolve larger size. Bergmann's rule predicts that populations of a species in colder climates (generally at higher latitudes) have larger mean body sizes than conspecifics in warmer climates (at lower latitudes). These two rules are rarely tested together and neither has been rigorously tested in treeshrews, a clade of small‐bodied mammals in their own order (Scandentia) broadly distributed in mainland Southeast Asia and on islands throughout much of the Sunda Shelf. The common treeshrew, Tupaia glis, is an excellent candidate for study and was used to test these two rules simultaneously for the first time in treeshrews. This species is distributed on the Malay Peninsula and several offshore islands east, west, and south of the mainland. Using craniodental dimensions as a proxy for body size, we investigated how island size, distance from the mainland, and maximum sea depth between the mainland and the islands relate to body size of 13 insular T. glis populations while also controlling for latitude and correlation among variables. We found a strong negative effect of latitude on body size in the common treeshrew, indicating the inverse of Bergmann's rule. We did not detect any overall difference in body size between the island and mainland populations. However, there was an effect of island area and maximum sea depth on body size among island populations. Although there is a strong latitudinal effect on body size, neither Bergmann's rule nor the island rule applies to the common treeshrew. The results of our analyses demonstrate the necessity of assessing multiple variables simultaneously in studies of ecogeographical rules.

  9. Body composition of freshwater Wallago attu in relation to body size ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Wallago attu is one of the large freshwater catfish found in Pakistan. The rapid growth and high nutritional quality encouraged investigation into the aquaculture potential of this excellent food fish. It was observed that body size had a positive influence on percent ash, percent fat and percent protein contents (wet weight) but ...

  10. Comparing fishers' and scientific estimates of size at maturity and maximum body size as indicators for overfishing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mclean, Elizabeth L; Forrester, Graham E

    2018-04-01

    We tested whether fishers' local ecological knowledge (LEK) of two fish life-history parameters, size at maturity (SAM) at maximum body size (MS), was comparable to scientific estimates (SEK) of the same parameters, and whether LEK influenced fishers' perceptions of sustainability. Local ecological knowledge was documented for 82 fishers from a small-scale fishery in Samaná Bay, Dominican Republic, whereas SEK was compiled from the scientific literature. Size at maturity estimates derived from LEK and SEK overlapped for most of the 15 commonly harvested species (10 of 15). In contrast, fishers' maximum size estimates were usually lower than (eight species), or overlapped with (five species) scientific estimates. Fishers' size-based estimates of catch composition indicate greater potential for overfishing than estimates based on SEK. Fishers' estimates of size at capture relative to size at maturity suggest routine inclusion of juveniles in the catch (9 of 15 species), and fishers' estimates suggest that harvested fish are substantially smaller than maximum body size for most species (11 of 15 species). Scientific estimates also suggest that harvested fish are generally smaller than maximum body size (13 of 15), but suggest that the catch is dominated by adults for most species (9 of 15 species), and that juveniles are present in the catch for fewer species (6 of 15). Most Samaná fishers characterized the current state of their fishery as poor (73%) and as having changed for the worse over the past 20 yr (60%). Fishers stated that concern about overfishing, catching small fish, and catching immature fish contributed to these perceptions, indicating a possible influence of catch-size composition on their perceptions. Future work should test this link more explicitly because we found no evidence that the minority of fishers with more positive perceptions of their fishery reported systematically different estimates of catch-size composition than those with the more

  11. Prolificacy and Its Relationship with Age, Body Weight, Parity, Previous Litter Size and Body Linear Type Traits in Meat-type Goats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Avijit Haldar

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Data on age and body weight at breeding, parity, previous litter size, days open and some descriptive body linear traits from 389 meat-type, prolific Black Bengal goats in Tripura State of India, were collected for 3 and 1/2 years (2007 to 2010 and analyzed using logistic regression model. The objectives of the study were i to evaluate the effect of age and body weight at breeding, parity, previous litter size and days open on litter size of does; and ii to investigate if body linear type traits influenced litter size in meat-type, prolific goats. The incidence of 68.39% multiple births with a prolificacy rate of 175.07% was recorded. Higher age (>2.69 year, higher parity order (>2.31, more body weight at breeding (>20.5 kg and larger previous litter size (>1.65 showed an increase likelihood of multiple litter size when compared to single litter size. There was a strong, positive relationship between litter size and various body linear type traits like neck length (>22.78 cm, body length (>54.86 cm, withers height (>48.85 cm, croup height (>50.67 cm, distance between tuber coxae bones (>11.38 cm and distance between tuber ischii bones (>4.56 cm for discriminating the goats bearing multiple fetuses from those bearing a single fetus.

  12. Thermodynamic Limits of Body Dimension of Warm Blooded Animals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahlborn, Boye K.

    2000-05-01

    The metabolic rates Г o = aoM 0.73 [W], a 0 = 3.6, of animals of different body masses M [kg] determines their heat production Q' and their mechanical power output P. The metabolic heat production of small warm blooded animals living in a cold environment sets lower size limits for the body mass of birds and terrestrial mammals of Mt,b ≥ 0.01 kg and Maq ≥ 10 kg for fast aquatic mammals. Birds must travel at the speed υfl = 15M 1/6 [m/s] in order to stay aloft, but their muscles only generate the metabolic velocity υ Г ≤≈ 50M -0.25 [m/s]. These conditions yield an upper body size limit for flying birds: Mb ,max ≤ 15 kg. Walking speeds scale with body mass as υ walk ∝ M 1/6, while propagation speeds for endurance running are nearly independent of body mass. This makes walking faster than endurance running for animals with body masses M ≥ 600 kg.

  13. Metabolism during flight in two species of bats, Phyllostomus hastatus and Pteropus gouldii.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, S P

    1975-08-01

    The energetic cost of flight in a wind-tunnel was measured at various combinations of speed and flight angle from two species of bats whose body masses differ by almost an order of magnitude. The highest mean metabolic rate per unit body mass measured from P. hastatus (mean body mass, 0.093 kg) was 130.4 Wkg-1, and that for P. gouldii (mean body mass, 0.78 kg) was 69.6 Wkg-1. These highest metabolic rates, recorded from flying bats, are essentially the same as those predicted for flying birds of the same body masses, but are from 2.5 to 3.0 times greater than the highest metabolic rates of which similar-size exercising terrestrial mammals appear capable. The lowest mean rate of energy utilization per unit body mass P. hastatus required to sustain level flight was 94.2 Wkg-1 and that for P. gouldii was 53.4 Wkg-1. These data from flying bats together with comparable data for flying birds all fall along a straight line when plotted on double logarithmic coordinates as a function of body mass. Such data show that even the lowest metabolic requirements of bats and birds during level flight are about twice the highest metabolic capabilities of similar-size terrestrial mammals. Flying bats share with flying birds the ability to move substantially greater distance per unit energy consumed than walking or running mammals. Calculations show that P. hastatus requires only one-sixth the energy to cover a given distance as does the same-size terrestrial mammal, while P. gouldii requires one-fourth the energy of the same-size terrestrial mammal. An empirically derived equation is presented which enables one to make estimates of the metabolic rates of bats and birds during level flight in nature from body mass data alone. Metabolic data obtained in this study are compared with predictions calculated from an avian flight theory.

  14. Body Composition and Basal Metabolic Rate in Women with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

    OpenAIRE

    de Figueiredo Ferreira, Marina; Detrano, Filipe; Coelho, Gabriela Morgado de Oliveira; Barros, Maria Elisa; Serrão Lanzillotti, Regina; Firmino Nogueira Neto, José; Portella, Emilson Souza; Serrão Lanzillotti, Haydée; Soares, Eliane de Abreu

    2014-01-01

    Objective. The aim of this study was to determine which of the seven selected equations used to predict basal metabolic rate most accurately estimated the measured basal metabolic rate. Methods. Twenty-eight adult women with type 2 diabetes mellitus participated in this cross-sectional study. Anthropometric and biochemical variables were measured as well as body composition (by absorptiometry dual X-ray emission) and basal metabolic rate (by indirect calorimetry); basal metabolic rate was als...

  15. The evolution of body size in extant groups of North American freshwater fishes: speciation, size distributions, and Cope's rule.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knouft, Jason H; Page, Lawrence M

    2003-03-01

    Change in body size within an evolutionary lineage over time has been under investigation since the synthesis of Cope's rule, which suggested that there is a tendency for mammals to evolve larger body size. Data from the fossil record have subsequently been examined for several other taxonomic groups to determine whether they also displayed an evolutionary increase in body size. However, we are not aware of any species-level study that has investigated the evolution of body size within an extant continental group. Data acquired from the fossil record and data derived from the evolutionary relationships of extant species are not similar, with each set exhibiting both strengths and weaknesses related to inferring evolutionary patterns. Consequently, expectation that general trends exhibited in the fossil record will correspond to patterns in extant groups is not necessarily warranted. Using phylogenetic relationships of extant species, we show that five of nine families of North American freshwater fishes exhibit an evolutionary trend of decreasing body size. These trends result from the basal position of large species and the more derived position of small species within families. Such trends may be caused by the invasion of small streams and subsequent isolation and speciation. This pattern, potentially influenced by size-biased dispersal rates and the high percentage of small streams in North America, suggests a scenario that could result in the generation of the size-frequency distribution of North American freshwater fishes.

  16. Body Size Changes Among National Collegiate Athletic Association New England Division III Football Players, 1956-2014: Comparison With Age-Matched Population Controls.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elliott, Kayla R; Harmatz, Jerold S; Zhao, Yanli; Greenblatt, David J

    2016-05-01

    Collegiate football programs encourage athletes to pursue high body weights. To examine position-dependent trends over time in body size characteristics among football players in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) from 1956 to 2014 and to compare the observed absolute and relative changes with those in age-matched male population controls. Descriptive laboratory study. Medical school affiliated with a NESCAC institution. Football team rosters from the 10-member NESCAC schools, available as public documents, were analyzed along with body size data from general population males aged 20 to 29 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Body weight, height, and calculated body mass index were evaluated using analysis of variance, linear regression, and nonlinear regression to determine the distribution features of size variables and changes associated with time (year), school, and position. Among NESCAC linemen, absolute and relative changes over time in body weight and body mass index exceeded corresponding changes in the NHANES population controls. New England Small College Athletic Conference offensive linemen body weights increased by 37.5% from 1956 to 2014 (192 to 264 lb [86.4 to 118.8 kg]), compared with a 12% increase (164 to 184 lb [73.8 to 82.8 kg]) since 1961 in the NHANES population controls. Body mass index changed in parallel with body weight and exceeded 35 kg/m(2) in more than 30% of contemporary NESCAC offensive linemen. Among skill players in the NESCAC group, time-related changes in body size characteristics generally paralleled those in the NHANES controls. High body weight and body mass indices were evident in offensive linemen, even among those in Division III football programs with no athletic scholarships. These characteristics may be associated with adverse cardiovascular and metabolic outcomes. We need approaches to encourage risk

  17. Critical PO2 is size-independent in insects: implications for the metabolic theory of ecology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrison, Jon F; Klok, C J; Waters, James S

    2014-10-01

    Insects, and all animals, exhibit hypometric scaling of metabolic rate, with larger species having lower mass-specific metabolic rates. The metabolic theory of ecology (MTE) is based on models ascribing hypometric scaling of metabolic rate to constrained O 2 supply systems in larger animals. We compiled critical PO 2 of metabolic and growth rates for more than 40 insect species with a size range spanning four orders of magnitude. Critical PO 2 values vary from far below 21kPa for resting animals to near 21kPa for growing or flying animals and are size-independent, demonstrating that supply capacity matches oxygen demand. These data suggest that hypometric scaling of resting metabolic rate in insects is not driven by constraints on oxygen availability. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Heritability of body size in the polar bears of Western Hudson Bay.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malenfant, René M; Davis, Corey S; Richardson, Evan S; Lunn, Nicholas J; Coltman, David W

    2018-04-18

    Among polar bears (Ursus maritimus), fitness is dependent on body size through males' abilities to win mates, females' abilities to provide for their young and all bears' abilities to survive increasingly longer fasting periods caused by climate change. In the Western Hudson Bay subpopulation (near Churchill, Manitoba, Canada), polar bears have declined in body size and condition, but nothing is known about the genetic underpinnings of body size variation, which may be subject to natural selection. Here, we combine a 4449-individual pedigree and an array of 5,433 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to provide the first quantitative genetic study of polar bears. We used animal models to estimate heritability (h 2 ) among polar bears handled between 1966 and 2011, obtaining h 2 estimates of 0.34-0.48 for strictly skeletal traits and 0.18 for axillary girth (which is also dependent on fatness). We genotyped 859 individuals with the SNP array to test for marker-trait association and combined p-values over genetic pathways using gene-set analysis. Variation in all traits appeared to be polygenic, but we detected one region of moderately large effect size in body length near a putative noncoding RNA in an unannotated region of the genome. Gene-set analysis suggested that variation in body length was associated with genes in the regulatory cascade of cyclin expression, which has previously been associated with body size in mice. A greater understanding of the genetic architecture of body size variation will be valuable in understanding the potential for adaptation in polar bear populations challenged by climate change. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Body shape and size depictions of African American women in JET magazine, 1953-2006.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawson-Andoh, Nana A; Gray, James J; Soto, José A; Parker, Scott

    2011-01-01

    Depictions of Caucasian women in the mainstream media have become increasingly thinner in size and straighter in shape. These changes may be inconsistent with the growing influence of African American beauty ideals, which research has established as more accepting of larger body sizes and more curvaceous body types than Caucasians. The present study looked at trends in the portrayal of African American women featured in JET magazine from 1953 to 2006. Beauty of the Week (BOW) images were collected and analyzed to examine body size (estimated by independent judges) and body shape (estimated by waist-to-hip ratio). We expected body sizes to increase and body shapes to become more curvaceous. Results revealed a rise in models' body size consistent with expectations, but an increase in waist-to-hip ratio, contrary to prediction. Our findings suggest that the African American feminine beauty ideal reflects both consistencies with and departures from mainstream cultural ideals. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Metabolic, thermoregulatory, and perceptual responses during exercise after lower vs. whole body precooling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    White, Andrea T; Davis, Scott L; Wilson, Thad E

    2003-03-01

    The purpose of this investigation was to compare the thermoregulatory, metabolic, and perceptual effects of lower body (LBI) and whole body (WBI) immersion precooling techniques during submaximal exercise. Eleven healthy men completed two 30-min cycling bouts at 60% of maximal O(2) uptake preceded by immersion to the suprailiac crest (LBI) or clavicle (WBI) in 20 degrees C water. WBI produced significantly lower rectal temperature (T(re)) during minutes 24-30 of immersion and lower T(re), mean skin temperature, and mean body temperature for the first 24, 14, and 16 min of exercise, respectively. Body heat storage rates differed significantly for LBI and WBI during immersion and exercise, although no net differences were observed between conditions. For WBI, metabolic heat production and heart rate were significantly higher during immersion but not during exercise. Thermal sensation was significantly lower (felt colder) and thermal discomfort was significantly higher (less comfortable) for WBI during immersion and exercise. In conclusion, WBI and LBI attenuated T(re) increases during submaximal exercise and produced similar net heat storage over the protocol. LBI minimized metabolic increases and negative perceptual effects associated with WBI.

  1. Milk lacking α-casein leads to permanent reduction in body size in mice.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas F Kolb

    Full Text Available The major physiological function of milk is the transport of amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids and minerals to mammalian offspring. Caseins, the major milk proteins, are secreted in the form of a micelle consisting of protein and calcium-phosphate.We have analysed the role of the milk protein α-casein by inactivating the corresponding gene in mice. Absence of α-casein protein significantly curtails secretion of other milk proteins and calcium-phosphate, suggesting a role for α-casein in the establishment of casein micelles. In contrast, secretion of albumin, which is not synthesized in the mammary epithelium, into milk is not reduced. The absence of α-casein also significantly inhibits transcription of the other casein genes. α-Casein deficiency severely delays pup growth during lactation and results in a life-long body size reduction compared to control animals, but has only transient effects on physical and behavioural development of the pups. The data support a critical role for α-casein in casein micelle assembly. The results also confirm lactation as a critical window of metabolic programming and suggest milk protein concentration as a decisive factor in determining adult body weight.

  2. Milk Lacking α-Casein Leads to Permanent Reduction in Body Size in Mice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kolb, Andreas F.; Huber, Reinhard C.; Lillico, Simon G.; Carlisle, Ailsa; Robinson, Claire J.; Neil, Claire; Petrie, Linda; Sorensen, Dorte B.; Olsson, I. Anna S.; Whitelaw, C. Bruce A.

    2011-01-01

    The major physiological function of milk is the transport of amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids and minerals to mammalian offspring. Caseins, the major milk proteins, are secreted in the form of a micelle consisting of protein and calcium-phosphate. We have analysed the role of the milk protein α-casein by inactivating the corresponding gene in mice. Absence of α-casein protein significantly curtails secretion of other milk proteins and calcium-phosphate, suggesting a role for α-casein in the establishment of casein micelles. In contrast, secretion of albumin, which is not synthesized in the mammary epithelium, into milk is not reduced. The absence of α-casein also significantly inhibits transcription of the other casein genes. α-Casein deficiency severely delays pup growth during lactation and results in a life-long body size reduction compared to control animals, but has only transient effects on physical and behavioural development of the pups. The data support a critical role for α-casein in casein micelle assembly. The results also confirm lactation as a critical window of metabolic programming and suggest milk protein concentration as a decisive factor in determining adult body weight. PMID:21789179

  3. Body size correlates with fertilization success but not gonad size in grass goby territorial males.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jose Martin Pujolar

    Full Text Available In fish species with alternative male mating tactics, sperm competition typically occurs when small males that are unsuccessful in direct contests steal fertilization opportunities from large dominant males. In the grass goby Zosterisessor ophiocephalus, large territorial males defend and court females from nest sites, while small sneaker males obtain matings by sneaking into nests. Parentage assignment of 688 eggs from 8 different nests sampled in the 2003-2004 breeding season revealed a high level of sperm competition. Fertilization success of territorial males was very high but in all nests sneakers also contributed to the progeny. In territorial males, fertilization success correlated positively with male body size. Gonadal investment was explored in a sample of 126 grass gobies collected during the period 1995-1996 in the same area (61 territorial males and 65 sneakers. Correlation between body weight and testis weight was positive and significant for sneaker males, while correlation was virtually equal to zero in territorial males. That body size in territorial males is correlated with fertilization success but not gonad size suggests that males allocate much more energy into growth and relatively little into sperm production once the needed size to become territorial is attained. The increased paternity of larger territorial males might be due to a more effective defense of the nest in comparison with smaller territorial males.

  4. Body size correlates with fertilization success but not gonad size in grass goby territorial males.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pujolar, Jose Martin; Locatello, Lisa; Zane, Lorenzo; Mazzoldi, Carlotta

    2012-01-01

    In fish species with alternative male mating tactics, sperm competition typically occurs when small males that are unsuccessful in direct contests steal fertilization opportunities from large dominant males. In the grass goby Zosterisessor ophiocephalus, large territorial males defend and court females from nest sites, while small sneaker males obtain matings by sneaking into nests. Parentage assignment of 688 eggs from 8 different nests sampled in the 2003-2004 breeding season revealed a high level of sperm competition. Fertilization success of territorial males was very high but in all nests sneakers also contributed to the progeny. In territorial males, fertilization success correlated positively with male body size. Gonadal investment was explored in a sample of 126 grass gobies collected during the period 1995-1996 in the same area (61 territorial males and 65 sneakers). Correlation between body weight and testis weight was positive and significant for sneaker males, while correlation was virtually equal to zero in territorial males. That body size in territorial males is correlated with fertilization success but not gonad size suggests that males allocate much more energy into growth and relatively little into sperm production once the needed size to become territorial is attained. The increased paternity of larger territorial males might be due to a more effective defense of the nest in comparison with smaller territorial males.

  5. Considerations on pig models for appetite, metabolic syndrome and obese type 2 diabetes: Form food intake to metabolic disease

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koopmans, S.J.; Schuurman, T.

    2015-01-01

    (Mini)pigs have proven to be a valuable animal model in nutritional, metabolic and cardiovascular research and in some other biomedical research areas (toxicology, neurobiology). The large resemblance of (neuro)anatomy, the gastro-intestinal tract, body size, body composition, and the omnivorous

  6. Galectin-3 levels relate in children to total body fat, abdominal fat, body fat distribution, and cardiac size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dencker, Magnus; Arvidsson, Daniel; Karlsson, Magnus K; Wollmer, Per; Andersen, Lars B; Thorsson, Ola

    2018-03-01

    Galectin-3 has recently been proposed as a novel biomarker for cardiovascular disease in adults. The purpose of this investigation was to assess relationships between galectin-3 levels and total body fat, abdominal fat, body fat distribution, aerobic fitness, blood pressure, left ventricular mass, left atrial size, and increase in body fat over a 2-year period in a population-based sample of children. Our study included 170 children aged 8-11 years. Total fat mass and abdominal fat were measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Body fat distribution was expressed as abdominal fat/total fat mass. Maximal oxygen uptake was assessed by indirect calorimetry during a maximal exercise test and scaled to body mass. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure and pulse pressure were measured. Left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness were measured by echocardiography. Frozen serum samples were analyzed for galectin-3 by the Proximity Extension Assay technique. A follow-up DXA scan was performed in 152 children 2 years after the baseline exam. Partial correlations, with adjustment for sex and age, between galectin-3 versus body fat measurements indicated weak to moderate relationships. Moreover, left atrial size, left ventricular mass, and relative wall thickness and pulse pressure were also correlated with galectin-3. Neither systolic blood pressure nor maximal oxygen uptake was correlated with galectin-3. There was also a correlation between galectin-3 and increase in total body fat over 2 years, while no such correlations were found for the other fat measurements. More body fat and abdominal fat, more abdominal body fat distribution, more left ventricular mass, and increased left atrial size were all associated with higher levels of galectin-3. Increase in total body fat over 2 years was also associated with higher levels of galectin-3. What is Known: • Galectin-3 has been linked to obesity and been proposed to be a novel biomarker

  7. Integration of genome-scale metabolic networks into whole-body PBPK models shows phenotype-specific cases of drug-induced metabolic perturbation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cordes, Henrik; Thiel, Christoph; Baier, Vanessa; Blank, Lars M; Kuepfer, Lars

    2018-01-01

    Drug-induced perturbations of the endogenous metabolic network are a potential root cause of cellular toxicity. A mechanistic understanding of such unwanted side effects during drug therapy is therefore vital for patient safety. The comprehensive assessment of such drug-induced injuries requires the simultaneous consideration of both drug exposure at the whole-body and resulting biochemical responses at the cellular level. We here present a computational multi-scale workflow that combines whole-body physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models and organ-specific genome-scale metabolic network (GSMN) models through shared reactions of the xenobiotic metabolism. The applicability of the proposed workflow is illustrated for isoniazid, a first-line antibacterial agent against Mycobacterium tuberculosis , which is known to cause idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injuries (DILI). We combined GSMN models of a human liver with N-acetyl transferase 2 (NAT2)-phenotype-specific PBPK models of isoniazid. The combined PBPK-GSMN models quantitatively describe isoniazid pharmacokinetics, as well as intracellular responses, and changes in the exometabolome in a human liver following isoniazid administration. Notably, intracellular and extracellular responses identified with the PBPK-GSMN models are in line with experimental and clinical findings. Moreover, the drug-induced metabolic perturbations are distributed and attenuated in the metabolic network in a phenotype-dependent manner. Our simulation results show that a simultaneous consideration of both drug pharmacokinetics at the whole-body and metabolism at the cellular level is mandatory to explain drug-induced injuries at the patient level. The proposed workflow extends our mechanistic understanding of the biochemistry underlying adverse events and may be used to prevent drug-induced injuries in the future.

  8. A pilot study on body image, attractiveness and body size in Gambians living in an urban community.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siervo, M; Grey, P; Nyan, O A; Prentice, A M

    2006-06-01

    We investigated the attitudinal and perceptual components of body image and its link with body mass index (BMI) in a sample of urban Gambians. We also looked at cross-cultural differences in body image and views on attractiveness between Gambians and Americans. Four groups of 50 subjects were assessed: men 14- 25y (YM); women 14-25y (YW); men 35-50y (OM); women 35-50y (OW). Socio-economic status, education, healthy lifestyle and western influences were investigated. Height and weight were measured. Body dissatisfaction was assessed with the body dissatisfaction scale of the Eating Disorder Inventory. Perceptions of body image and attractiveness were assessed using the Body Image Assessment for Obesity (BIA-O) and Figure Rating Scale (FRS). Different generations of Gambians had very different perceptions and attitudes towards obesity. Current body size was realistically perceived and largely well tolerated. Older women had a higher body discrepancy (current minus ideal body size) than other groups (pbody size until they were overweight (BMI=27.8 kg/m2), whilst OM, YM and YW started to be concerned at a BMI respectively of 22.9, 19.8 and 21.5 kg/m2. A cross-cultural comparison using published data on FRS showed that Gambians were more obesity tolerant than black and white Americans. The Gambia is a country in the early stage of demographic transitions but in urban areas there is an increase in obesity prevalence. Inherent tensions between the preservation of cultural values and traditional habits, and raising awareness of the risks of obesity, may limit health interventions to prevent weight gain.

  9. Herbivory and body size: allometries of diet quality and gastrointestinal physiology, and implications for herbivore ecology and dinosaur gigantism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clauss, Marcus; Steuer, Patrick; Müller, Dennis W H; Codron, Daryl; Hummel, Jürgen

    2013-01-01

    Digestive physiology has played a prominent role in explanations for terrestrial herbivore body size evolution and size-driven diversification and niche differentiation. This is based on the association of increasing body mass (BM) with diets of lower quality, and with putative mechanisms by which a higher BM could translate into a higher digestive efficiency. Such concepts, however, often do not match empirical data. Here, we review concepts and data on terrestrial herbivore BM, diet quality, digestive physiology and metabolism, and in doing so give examples for problems in using allometric analyses and extrapolations. A digestive advantage of larger BM is not corroborated by conceptual or empirical approaches. We suggest that explanatory models should shift from physiological to ecological scenarios based on the association of forage quality and biomass availability, and the association between BM and feeding selectivity. These associations mostly (but not exclusively) allow large herbivores to use low quality forage only, whereas they allow small herbivores the use of any forage they can physically manage. Examples of small herbivores able to subsist on lower quality diets are rare but exist. We speculate that this could be explained by evolutionary adaptations to the ecological opportunity of selective feeding in smaller animals, rather than by a physiologic or metabolic necessity linked to BM. For gigantic herbivores such as sauropod dinosaurs, other factors than digestive physiology appear more promising candidates to explain evolutionary drives towards extreme BM.

  10. Herbivory and body size: allometries of diet quality and gastrointestinal physiology, and implications for herbivore ecology and dinosaur gigantism.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marcus Clauss

    Full Text Available Digestive physiology has played a prominent role in explanations for terrestrial herbivore body size evolution and size-driven diversification and niche differentiation. This is based on the association of increasing body mass (BM with diets of lower quality, and with putative mechanisms by which a higher BM could translate into a higher digestive efficiency. Such concepts, however, often do not match empirical data. Here, we review concepts and data on terrestrial herbivore BM, diet quality, digestive physiology and metabolism, and in doing so give examples for problems in using allometric analyses and extrapolations. A digestive advantage of larger BM is not corroborated by conceptual or empirical approaches. We suggest that explanatory models should shift from physiological to ecological scenarios based on the association of forage quality and biomass availability, and the association between BM and feeding selectivity. These associations mostly (but not exclusively allow large herbivores to use low quality forage only, whereas they allow small herbivores the use of any forage they can physically manage. Examples of small herbivores able to subsist on lower quality diets are rare but exist. We speculate that this could be explained by evolutionary adaptations to the ecological opportunity of selective feeding in smaller animals, rather than by a physiologic or metabolic necessity linked to BM. For gigantic herbivores such as sauropod dinosaurs, other factors than digestive physiology appear more promising candidates to explain evolutionary drives towards extreme BM.

  11. Environmental, biological and anthropogenic effects on grizzly bear body size: temporal and spatial considerations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nielsen, Scott E; Cattet, Marc R L; Boulanger, John; Cranston, Jerome; McDermid, Greg J; Shafer, Aaron B A; Stenhouse, Gordon B

    2013-09-08

    Individual body growth is controlled in large part by the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of, and competition for, resources. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos L.) are an excellent species for studying the effects of resource heterogeneity and maternal effects (i.e. silver spoon) on life history traits such as body size because their habitats are highly variable in space and time. Here, we evaluated influences on body size of grizzly bears in Alberta, Canada by testing six factors that accounted for spatial and temporal heterogeneity in environments during maternal, natal and 'capture' (recent) environments. After accounting for intrinsic biological factors (age, sex), we examined how body size, measured in mass, length and body condition, was influenced by: (a) population density; (b) regional habitat productivity; (c) inter-annual variability in productivity (including silver spoon effects); (d) local habitat quality; (e) human footprint (disturbances); and (f) landscape change. We found sex and age explained the most variance in body mass, condition and length (R(2) from 0.48-0.64). Inter-annual variability in climate the year before and of birth (silver spoon effects) had detectable effects on the three-body size metrics (R(2) from 0.04-0.07); both maternal (year before birth) and natal (year of birth) effects of precipitation and temperature were related with body size. Local heterogeneity in habitat quality also explained variance in body mass and condition (R(2) from 0.01-0.08), while annual rate of landscape change explained additional variance in body length (R(2) of 0.03). Human footprint and population density had no observed effect on body size. These results illustrated that body size patterns of grizzly bears, while largely affected by basic biological characteristics (age and sex), were also influenced by regional environmental gradients the year before, and of, the individual's birth thus illustrating silver spoon effects. The magnitude of the silver

  12. Body Size Changes Among National Collegiate Athletic Association New England Division III Football Players, 1956−2014: Comparison With Age-Matched Population Controls

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elliott, Kayla R.; Harmatz, Jerold S.; Zhao, Yanli; Greenblatt, David J.

    2016-01-01

    Context:  Collegiate football programs encourage athletes to pursue high body weights. Objective:  To examine position-dependent trends over time in body size characteristics among football players in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) from 1956 to 2014 and to compare the observed absolute and relative changes with those in age-matched male population controls. Design:  Descriptive laboratory study. Setting:  Medical school affiliated with a NESCAC institution. Patients or Other Participants:  Football team rosters from the 10-member NESCAC schools, available as public documents, were analyzed along with body size data from general population males aged 20 to 29 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Main Outcome Measure(s):  Body weight, height, and calculated body mass index were evaluated using analysis of variance, linear regression, and nonlinear regression to determine the distribution features of size variables and changes associated with time (year), school, and position. Results:  Among NESCAC linemen, absolute and relative changes over time in body weight and body mass index exceeded corresponding changes in the NHANES population controls. New England Small College Athletic Conference offensive linemen body weights increased by 37.5% from 1956 to 2014 (192 to 264 lb [86.4 to 118.8 kg]), compared with a 12% increase (164 to 184 lb [73.8 to 82.8 kg]) since 1961 in the NHANES population controls. Body mass index changed in parallel with body weight and exceeded 35 kg/m2 in more than 30% of contemporary NESCAC offensive linemen. Among skill players in the NESCAC group, time-related changes in body size characteristics generally paralleled those in the NHANES controls. Conclusions:  High body weight and body mass indices were evident in offensive linemen, even among those in Division III football programs with no athletic

  13. Body size reductions in nonmammalian eutheriodont therapsids (Synapsida) during the end-Permian mass extinction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huttenlocker, Adam K

    2014-01-01

    The extent to which mass extinctions influence body size evolution in major tetrapod clades is inadequately understood. For example, the 'Lilliput effect,' a common feature of mass extinctions, describes a temporary decrease in body sizes of survivor taxa in post-extinction faunas. However, its signature on existing patterns of body size evolution in tetrapods and the persistence of its impacts during post-extinction recoveries are virtually unknown, and rarely compared in both geologic and phylogenetic contexts. Here, I evaluate temporal and phylogenetic distributions of body size in Permo-Triassic therocephalian and cynodont therapsids (eutheriodonts) using a museum collections-based approach and time series model fitting on a regional stratigraphic sequence from the Karoo Basin, South Africa. I further employed rank order correlation tests on global age and clade rank data from an expanded phylogenetic dataset, and performed evolutionary model testing using Brownian (passive diffusion) models. Results support significant size reductions in the immediate aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction (ca. 252.3 Ma) consistent with some definitions of Lilliput effects. However, this temporal succession reflects a pattern that was underscored largely by Brownian processes and constructive selectivity. Results also support two recent contentions about body size evolution and mass extinctions: 1) active, directional evolution in size traits is rare over macroevolutionary time scales and 2) geologically brief size reductions may be accomplished by the ecological removal of large-bodied species without rapid originations of new small-bodied clades or shifts from long-term evolutionary patterns.

  14. The effect of psoriasis treatment on body composition, components of metabolic syndrome and psoriatic arthritis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Funda Tamer

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Background and Design: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory immun mediated skin disorder with unknown etiology. The chronic inflammation in psoriasis have role in the development of metabolic and vascular disorders related with associating comorbidities. Recent studies have suggested a strong association exists between metabolic syndrome, obesity and complexity of the association between psoriasis, body mass index (BMI and psoriasis tratment. In this study, our aim was to investigate the effect of psoriasis treatment with methotrexate, cyclosporine and biological agents on body composition, comorbidities and associated laboratory findings. Materials and Methods: Seventy-nine patients treated with methotrexate, cyclosporin and biological agents were included in our study. Demographic characteristics, body composition analysis, psoriasis related comorbidities and laboratory examinations were evaluated before and after 12 weeks of systemic treatment. Results: Comorbidities and metabolic syndrome tended to be more frequent in the anti tumor necrosis factor alpha (anti-TNF-α treated group. Increase in body fat and weight detected in patiens receiving biologic drug therapy. Conclusion: The results of our study showed that severe psoriasis patients with longer disease duration were more likely to have metabolic syndrome because of severe and long term inflammation in pathogenesis of comorbidities.

  15. Patterns of diversity in soft-bodied meiofauna: dispersal ability and body size matter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curini-Galletti, Marco; Artois, Tom; Delogu, Valentina; De Smet, Willem H; Fontaneto, Diego; Jondelius, Ulf; Leasi, Francesca; Martínez, Alejandro; Meyer-Wachsmuth, Inga; Nilsson, Karin Sara; Tongiorgi, Paolo; Worsaae, Katrine; Todaro, M Antonio

    2012-01-01

    Biogeographical and macroecological principles are derived from patterns of distribution in large organisms, whereas microscopic ones have often been considered uninteresting, because of their supposed wide distribution. Here, after reporting the results of an intensive faunistic survey of marine microscopic animals (meiofauna) in Northern Sardinia, we test for the effect of body size, dispersal ability, and habitat features on the patterns of distribution of several groups. As a dataset we use the results of a workshop held at La Maddalena (Sardinia, Italy) in September 2010, aimed at studying selected taxa of soft-bodied meiofauna (Acoela, Annelida, Gastrotricha, Nemertodermatida, Platyhelminthes and Rotifera), in conjunction with data on the same taxa obtained during a previous workshop hosted at Tjärnö (Western Sweden) in September 2007. Using linear mixed effects models and model averaging while accounting for sampling bias and potential pseudoreplication, we found evidence that: (1) meiofaunal groups with more restricted distribution are the ones with low dispersal potential; (2) meiofaunal groups with higher probability of finding new species for science are the ones with low dispersal potential; (3) the proportion of the global species pool of each meiofaunal group present in each area at the regional scale is negatively related to body size, and positively related to their occurrence in the endobenthic habitat. Our macroecological analysis of meiofauna, in the framework of the ubiquity hypothesis for microscopic organisms, indicates that not only body size but mostly dispersal ability and also occurrence in the endobenthic habitat are important correlates of diversity for these understudied animals, with different importance at different spatial scales. Furthermore, since the Western Mediterranean is one of the best-studied areas in the world, the large number of undescribed species (37%) highlights that the census of marine meiofauna is still very far

  16. A Prospective Investigation of Body Size, Body Fat Composition and Colorectal Cancer Risk in the UK Biobank.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ortega, Luisa Saldana; Bradbury, Kathryn E; Cross, Amanda J; Morris, Jessica S; Gunter, Marc J; Murphy, Neil

    2017-12-19

    Obesity has been consistently associated with a greater colorectal cancer risk, but this relationship is weaker among women. In the UK Biobank, we investigated the associations between body size (body mass index [BMI], height, waist circumference, and waist-to-hip ratio) and body fat composition (total body fat percentage and trunk fat percentage) measurements with colorectal cancer risk among 472,526 men and women followed for 5.6 years on average. Multivariable hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) for developing colorectal cancer (2,636 incident cases) were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models. Among men, when the highest and lowest fifths were compared, BMI (HR = 1.35, 95%CI: 1.13-1.61; P trend  body fat percentage (HR = 1.27, 95%CI: 1.06-1.53; P trend  = 0.002), and trunk fat percentage (HR = 1.31, 95%CI: 1.09-1.58; P trend  = 0.002) were associated with greater colorectal cancer risk. For women, only waist-to-hip ratio (HR for highest versus lowest fifth = 1.33, 95%CI: 1.08-1.65; P trend  = 0.005) was positively associated with colorectal cancer risk. Greater body size (overall and abdominal adiposity) was positively associated with colorectal cancer development in men. For women, abdominal adiposity, rather than overall body size, was associated with a greater colorectal cancer risk.

  17. Low resting metabolic rate in exercise-associated amenorrhea is not due to a reduced proportion of highly active metabolic tissue compartments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koehler, Karsten; Williams, Nancy I; Mallinson, Rebecca J; Southmayd, Emily A; Allaway, Heather C M; De Souza, Mary Jane

    2016-08-01

    Exercising women with menstrual disturbances frequently display a low resting metabolic rate (RMR) when RMR is expressed relative to body size or lean mass. However, normalizing RMR for body size or lean mass does not account for potential differences in the size of tissue compartments with varying metabolic activities. To explore whether the apparent RMR suppression in women with exercise-associated amenorrhea is a consequence of a lower proportion of highly active metabolic tissue compartments or the result of metabolic adaptations related to energy conservation at the tissue level, RMR and metabolic tissue compartments were compared among exercising women with amenorrhea (AMEN; n = 42) and exercising women with eumenorrheic, ovulatory menstrual cycles (OV; n = 37). RMR was measured using indirect calorimetry and predicted from the size of metabolic tissue compartments as measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Measured RMR was lower than DEXA-predicted RMR in AMEN (1,215 ± 31 vs. 1,327 ± 18 kcal/day, P < 0.001) but not in OV (1,284 ± 24 vs. 1,252 ± 17, P = 0.16), resulting in a lower ratio of measured to DEXA-predicted RMR in AMEN (91 ± 2%) vs. OV (103 ± 2%, P < 0.001). AMEN displayed proportionally more residual mass (P < 0.001) and less adipose tissue (P = 0.003) compared with OV. A lower ratio of measured to DXA-predicted RMR was associated with lower serum total triiodothyronine (ρ = 0.38, P < 0.001) and leptin (ρ = 0.32, P = 0.004). Our findings suggest that RMR suppression in this population is not the result of a reduced size of highly active metabolic tissue compartments but is due to metabolic and endocrine adaptations at the tissue level that are indicative of energy conservation.

  18. Body size, swimming speed, or thermal sensitivity? Predator-imposed selection on amphibian larvae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gvoždík, Lumír; Smolinský, Radovan

    2015-11-02

    Many animals rely on their escape performance during predator encounters. Because of its dependence on body size and temperature, escape velocity is fully characterized by three measures, absolute value, size-corrected value, and its response to temperature (thermal sensitivity). The primary target of the selection imposed by predators is poorly understood. We examined predator (dragonfly larva)-imposed selection on prey (newt larvae) body size and characteristics of escape velocity using replicated and controlled predation experiments under seminatural conditions. Specifically, because these species experience a wide range of temperatures throughout their larval phases, we predict that larvae achieving high swimming velocities across temperatures will have a selective advantage over more thermally sensitive individuals. Nonzero selection differentials indicated that predators selected for prey body size and both absolute and size-corrected maximum swimming velocity. Comparison of selection differentials with control confirmed selection only on body size, i.e., dragonfly larvae preferably preyed on small newt larvae. Maximum swimming velocity and its thermal sensitivity showed low group repeatability, which contributed to non-detectable selection on both characteristics of escape performance. In the newt-dragonfly larvae interaction, body size plays a more important role than maximum values and thermal sensitivity of swimming velocity during predator escape. This corroborates the general importance of body size in predator-prey interactions. The absence of an appropriate control in predation experiments may lead to potentially misleading conclusions about the primary target of predator-imposed selection. Insights from predation experiments contribute to our understanding of the link between performance and fitness, and further improve mechanistic models of predator-prey interactions and food web dynamics.

  19. Body size reductions in nonmammalian eutheriodont therapsids (Synapsida during the end-Permian mass extinction.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam K Huttenlocker

    Full Text Available The extent to which mass extinctions influence body size evolution in major tetrapod clades is inadequately understood. For example, the 'Lilliput effect,' a common feature of mass extinctions, describes a temporary decrease in body sizes of survivor taxa in post-extinction faunas. However, its signature on existing patterns of body size evolution in tetrapods and the persistence of its impacts during post-extinction recoveries are virtually unknown, and rarely compared in both geologic and phylogenetic contexts. Here, I evaluate temporal and phylogenetic distributions of body size in Permo-Triassic therocephalian and cynodont therapsids (eutheriodonts using a museum collections-based approach and time series model fitting on a regional stratigraphic sequence from the Karoo Basin, South Africa. I further employed rank order correlation tests on global age and clade rank data from an expanded phylogenetic dataset, and performed evolutionary model testing using Brownian (passive diffusion models. Results support significant size reductions in the immediate aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction (ca. 252.3 Ma consistent with some definitions of Lilliput effects. However, this temporal succession reflects a pattern that was underscored largely by Brownian processes and constructive selectivity. Results also support two recent contentions about body size evolution and mass extinctions: 1 active, directional evolution in size traits is rare over macroevolutionary time scales and 2 geologically brief size reductions may be accomplished by the ecological removal of large-bodied species without rapid originations of new small-bodied clades or shifts from long-term evolutionary patterns.

  20. Body Size Reductions in Nonmammalian Eutheriodont Therapsids (Synapsida) during the End-Permian Mass Extinction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huttenlocker, Adam K.

    2014-01-01

    The extent to which mass extinctions influence body size evolution in major tetrapod clades is inadequately understood. For example, the ‘Lilliput effect,’ a common feature of mass extinctions, describes a temporary decrease in body sizes of survivor taxa in post-extinction faunas. However, its signature on existing patterns of body size evolution in tetrapods and the persistence of its impacts during post-extinction recoveries are virtually unknown, and rarely compared in both geologic and phylogenetic contexts. Here, I evaluate temporal and phylogenetic distributions of body size in Permo-Triassic therocephalian and cynodont therapsids (eutheriodonts) using a museum collections-based approach and time series model fitting on a regional stratigraphic sequence from the Karoo Basin, South Africa. I further employed rank order correlation tests on global age and clade rank data from an expanded phylogenetic dataset, and performed evolutionary model testing using Brownian (passive diffusion) models. Results support significant size reductions in the immediate aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction (ca. 252.3 Ma) consistent with some definitions of Lilliput effects. However, this temporal succession reflects a pattern that was underscored largely by Brownian processes and constructive selectivity. Results also support two recent contentions about body size evolution and mass extinctions: 1) active, directional evolution in size traits is rare over macroevolutionary time scales and 2) geologically brief size reductions may be accomplished by the ecological removal of large-bodied species without rapid originations of new small-bodied clades or shifts from long-term evolutionary patterns. PMID:24498335

  1. The impact of psychological stress on men's judgements of female body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swami, Viren; Tovée, Martin J

    2012-01-01

    Previous work has suggested that the experience of psychological stress may influence physical attractiveness ideals, but most evidence in favour of this hypothesis remains archival. The objective of this study was to experimentally investigate the impact of stress on men's judgements of female body size. Men were randomly assigned to either an experimental group, in which they took part in a task that heightened stress (experimental group, n = 41) or in which they did not take part in such a task (control group, n = 40). Both groups rated the attractiveness of female bodies varying in size from emaciated to obese, completed a measure of appetite sensation, and had their body mass indices (BMIs) measured. Between-groups analyses showed that the experimental group was matched with the control group in terms of mean age, BMI, and appetite sensation. Further analyses showed that men in the experimental group rated a significantly heavier female body size as maximally attractive than the control group. Men in the experimental group also rated heavier female bodies as more attractive and idealised a wider range of female figures than did the control group. This study found that the experience of stress was associated with a preference among men for heavier female body sizes. These results indicate that human attractiveness judgements are sensitive to variations in local ecologies and reflect adaptive strategies for dealing with changing environmental conditions.

  2. Avian basal metabolic rates : their association with body composition and energy expenditure in nature

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Daan, Serge; Masman, Dirkjan; Groenewold, Alex

    Measurements of basal metabolic rate (BMR), body water, fat, and lean dry mass of different organs were obtained in 22 bird species, ranging from 10.8 to 1,253 g body mass. Residuals of BMR (after subtracting BMR allometrically predicted from body mass) were positively correlated with residuals of

  3. Three-month-old human infants use vocal cues of body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pietraszewski, David; Wertz, Annie E; Bryant, Gregory A; Wynn, Karen

    2017-06-14

    Differences in vocal fundamental ( F 0 ) and average formant ( F n ) frequencies covary with body size in most terrestrial mammals, such that larger organisms tend to produce lower frequency sounds than smaller organisms, both between species and also across different sex and life-stage morphs within species. Here we examined whether three-month-old human infants are sensitive to the relationship between body size and sound frequencies. Using a violation-of-expectation paradigm, we found that infants looked longer at stimuli inconsistent with the relationship-that is, a smaller organism producing lower frequency sounds, and a larger organism producing higher frequency sounds-than at stimuli that were consistent with it. This effect was stronger for fundamental frequency than it was for average formant frequency. These results suggest that by three months of age, human infants are already sensitive to the biologically relevant covariation between vocalization frequencies and visual cues to body size. This ability may be a consequence of developmental adaptations for building a phenotype capable of identifying and representing an organism's size, sex and life-stage. © 2017 The Author(s).

  4. Body size and predatory performance in wolves: is bigger better?

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacNulty, Daniel R; Smith, Douglas W; Mech, L David; Eberly, Lynn E

    2009-05-01

    1. Large body size hinders locomotor performance in ways that may lead to trade-offs in predator foraging ability that limit the net predatory benefit of larger size. For example, size-related improvements in handling prey may come at the expense of pursuing prey and thus negate any enhancement in overall predatory performance due to increasing size. 2. This hypothesis was tested with longitudinal data from repeated observations of 94 individually known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Wolf size was estimated from an individually based sex-specific growth model derived from body mass measurements of 304 wolves. 3. Larger size granted individual wolves a net predatory advantage despite substantial variation in its effect on the performance of different predatory tasks; larger size improved performance of a strength-related task (grappling and subduing elk) but failed to improve performance of a locomotor-related task (selecting an elk from a group) for wolves > 39 kg. 4. Sexual dimorphism in wolf size also explained why males outperformed females in each of the three tasks considered (attacking, selecting, and killing). 5. These findings support the generalization that bigger predators are overall better hunters, but they also indicate that increasing size ultimately limits elements of predatory behaviour that require superior locomotor performance. We argue that this could potentially narrow the dietary niche of larger carnivores as well as limit the evolution of larger size if prey are substantially more difficult to pursue than to handle.

  5. Study on the Effect of Asparagus Extracts on Promoting Metabolism of the Body

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Li Xiaohong

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to analyze the effective ingredients of asparagus extracts and the changes of vitamins content in mice body after the intake of asparagus extracts, thus to conclude the effect of asparagus extracts on body metabolism during exercises. Extracts were made into different concentrations of solution and given to the mice by intragastric administration. The content of micro-elements and vitamin groups in the mice body before and after the drug administration were detected respectively and biochemical index parameter values before and after swimming were measured respectively. Results showed that, 20 min after the drug administration, the content of blood lactic acid of the mice in the swimming experiment group decreased significantly. Besides, the content of muscle glycogen decreased and correspondingly the content of hepatic glycogen increased significantly (experiment group one and two: p < 0.01; experiment group 3: p < 0.05. Thus the ethanol extract solution of asparagus can effectively improve body metabolism.

  6. Effect of oral cinnamon intervention on metabolic profile and body composition of Asian Indians with metabolic syndrome: a randomized double -blind control trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gupta Jain, Sonal; Puri, Seema; Misra, Anoop; Gulati, Seema; Mani, Kalaivani

    2017-06-12

    Nutritional modulation remains central to the management of metabolic syndrome. Intervention with cinnamon in individuals with metabolic syndrome remains sparsely researched. We investigated the effect of oral cinnamon consumption on body composition and metabolic parameters of Asian Indians with metabolic syndrome. In this 16-week double blind randomized control trial, 116 individuals with metabolic syndrome were randomized to two dietary intervention groups, cinnamon [6 capsules (3 g) daily] or wheat flour [6 capsules (2.5 g) daily]. Body composition, blood pressure and metabolic parameters were assessed. Significantly greater decrease [difference between means, (95% CI)] in fasting blood glucose (mmol/L) [0.3 (0.2, 0.5) p = 0.001], glycosylated haemoglobin (mmol/mol) [2.6 (0.4, 4.9) p = 0.023], waist circumference (cm) [4.8 (1.9, 7.7) p = 0.002] and body mass index (kg/m2 ) [1.3 (0.9, 1.5) p = 0.001] was observed in the cinnamon group compared to placebo group. Other parameters which showed significantly greater improvement were: waist-hip ratio, blood pressure, serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, serum triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Prevalence of defined metabolic syndrome was significantly reduced in the intervention group (34.5%) vs. the placebo group (5.2%). A single supplement intervention with 3 g cinnamon for 16 weeks resulted in significant improvements in all components of metabolic syndrome in a sample of Asian Indians in north India. The clinical trial was retrospectively registered (after the recruitment of the participants) in ClinicalTrial.gov under the identification number: NCT02455778 on 25th May 2015.

  7. Island Rule, quantitative genetics and brain-body size evolution in Homo floresiensis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diniz-Filho, José Alexandre Felizola; Raia, Pasquale

    2017-06-28

    Colonization of islands often activate a complex chain of adaptive events that, over a relatively short evolutionary time, may drive strong shifts in body size, a pattern known as the Island Rule. It is arguably difficult to perform a direct analysis of the natural selection forces behind such a change in body size. Here, we used quantitative evolutionary genetic models, coupled with simulations and pattern-oriented modelling, to analyse the evolution of brain and body size in Homo floresiensis , a diminutive hominin species that appeared around 700 kya and survived up to relatively recent times (60-90 kya) on Flores Island, Indonesia. The hypothesis of neutral evolution was rejected in 97% of the simulations, and estimated selection gradients are within the range found in living natural populations. We showed that insularity may have triggered slightly different evolutionary trajectories for body and brain size, which means explaining the exceedingly small cranial volume of H. floresiensis requires additional selective forces acting on brain size alone. Our analyses also support previous conclusions that H. floresiensis may be most likely derived from an early Indonesian H. erectus , which is coherent with currently accepted biogeographical scenario for Homo expansion out of Africa. © 2017 The Author(s).

  8. Mammal extinctions, body size, and paleotemperature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bown, T M; Holroyd, P A; Rose, K D

    1994-10-25

    There is a general inverse relationship between the natural logarithm of tooth area (a body size indicator) of some fossil mammals and paleotemperature during approximately 2.9 million years of the early Eocene in the Bighorn Basin of northwest Wyoming. When mean temperatures became warmer, tooth areas tended to become smaller. During colder times, larger species predominated; these generally became larger or remained the same size. Paleotemperature trends also markedly affected patterns of local (and, perhaps, regional) extinction and immigration. New species appeared as immigrants during or near the hottest (smaller forms) and coldest (larger forms) intervals. Paleotemperature trend reversals commonly resulted in the ultimate extinction of both small forms (during cooling intervals) and larger forms (during warming intervals). These immigrations and extinctions mark faunal turnovers that were also modulated by sharp increases in sediment accumulation rate.

  9. Cultural constructions of "obesity": understanding body size, social class and gender in Morocco.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Batnitzky, Adina K

    2011-01-01

    This article presents data from an in-depth qualitative study of overweight and diabetic women in Morocco, a North African country experiencing a rapid increase in obesity according to national statistics. This case study explores the heterogeneous relationship among health, culture and religion in Morocco by highlighting the relationship between the intricacies of women's everyday lives and their body sizes. My findings suggest that although the Body Mass Index (BMI) of adult women has been documented to have increased in Morocco along with other macroeconomic changes (i.e., increases in urbanization, etc.), "obesity" has yet to be universally medicalized in the Moroccan context. As such women do not generally utilize a medicalized concept of obesity in reference to their larger body sizes. Rather, cultural constructions of "obesity" are understood through cultural understandings of a larger body size, religious beliefs about health and illness, and the nature of women's religious participation. This stands in contrast to dominant accounts about the region that promote an overall veneration of a larger body size for women. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. The Relationship of Body Size and Adiposity to Source of Self-Esteem in College Women

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moncur, Breckann; Bailey, Bruce W.; Lockhart, Barbara D.; LeCheminant, James D.; Perkins, Annette E.

    2013-01-01

    Background: Studies looking at self-esteem and body size or adiposity generally demonstrate a negative relationship. However, the relationship between the source of self-esteem and body size has not been examined in college women. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of body size and adiposity to source of…

  11. Obesity Bias in Children: The Role of Actual and Perceived Body Size

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kornilaki, Ekaterina N.

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study was to examine how children perceive their body size and whether their actual or perceived body size can explain their anti-fat views. Four hundred and fourteen 5-6, 7-8 and 9-10-year-old children were read short vignettes depicting two characters, one possessing a positive and the other a negative quality. Following each…

  12. The impact of psychological stress on men's judgements of female body size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viren Swami

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Previous work has suggested that the experience of psychological stress may influence physical attractiveness ideals, but most evidence in favour of this hypothesis remains archival. The objective of this study was to experimentally investigate the impact of stress on men's judgements of female body size. METHODS: Men were randomly assigned to either an experimental group, in which they took part in a task that heightened stress (experimental group, n = 41 or in which they did not take part in such a task (control group, n = 40. Both groups rated the attractiveness of female bodies varying in size from emaciated to obese, completed a measure of appetite sensation, and had their body mass indices (BMIs measured. RESULTS: Between-groups analyses showed that the experimental group was matched with the control group in terms of mean age, BMI, and appetite sensation. Further analyses showed that men in the experimental group rated a significantly heavier female body size as maximally attractive than the control group. Men in the experimental group also rated heavier female bodies as more attractive and idealised a wider range of female figures than did the control group. CONCLUSION: This study found that the experience of stress was associated with a preference among men for heavier female body sizes. These results indicate that human attractiveness judgements are sensitive to variations in local ecologies and reflect adaptive strategies for dealing with changing environmental conditions.

  13. Weight-adjusted lean body mass and calf circumference are protective against obesity-associated insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Toshinari Takamura

    2017-07-01

    Interpretation: Weight-adjusted lean body mass and skeletal muscle area are protective against weight-associated insulin resistance and metabolic abnormalities. The calf circumference reflects lean body mass and may be useful as a protective marker against obesity-associated metabolic abnormalities.

  14. Temporal profile of body temperature in acute ischemic stroke: relation to infarct size and outcome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geurts, Marjolein; Scheijmans, Féline E V; van Seeters, Tom; Biessels, Geert J; Kappelle, L Jaap; Velthuis, Birgitta K; van der Worp, H Bart

    2016-11-21

    High body temperatures after ischemic stroke have been associated with larger infarct size, but the temporal profile of this relation is unknown. We assess the relation between temporal profile of body temperature and infarct size and functional outcome in patients with acute ischemic stroke. In 419 patients with acute ischemic stroke we assessed the relation between body temperature on admission and during the first 3 days with both infarct size and functional outcome. Infarct size was measured in milliliters on CT or MRI after 3 days. Poor functional outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score ≥3 at 3 months. Body temperature on admission was not associated with infarct size or poor outcome in adjusted analyses. By contrast, each additional 1.0 °C in body temperature on day 1 was associated with 0.31 ml larger infarct size (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04-0.59), on day 2 with 1.13 ml larger infarct size(95% CI, 0.83-1.43), and on day 3 with 0.80 ml larger infarct size (95% CI, 0.48-1.12), in adjusted linear regression analyses. Higher peak body temperatures on days two and three were also associated with poor outcome (adjusted relative risks per additional 1.0 °C in body temperature, 1.52 (95% CI, 1.17-1.99) and 1.47 (95% CI, 1.22-1.77), respectively). Higher peak body temperatures during the first days after ischemic stroke, rather than on admission, are associated with larger infarct size and poor functional outcome. This suggests that prevention of high temperatures may improve outcome if continued for at least 3 days.

  15. Waif goodbye! Average-size female models promote positive body image and appeal to consumers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diedrichs, Phillippa C; Lee, Christina

    2011-10-01

    Despite consensus that exposure to media images of thin fashion models is associated with poor body image and disordered eating behaviours, few attempts have been made to enact change in the media. This study sought to investigate an effective alternative to current media imagery, by exploring the advertising effectiveness of average-size female fashion models, and their impact on the body image of both women and men. A sample of 171 women and 120 men were assigned to one of three advertisement conditions: no models, thin models and average-size models. Women and men rated average-size models as equally effective in advertisements as thin and no models. For women with average and high levels of internalisation of cultural beauty ideals, exposure to average-size female models was associated with a significantly more positive body image state in comparison to exposure to thin models and no models. For men reporting high levels of internalisation, exposure to average-size models was also associated with a more positive body image state in comparison to viewing thin models. These findings suggest that average-size female models can promote positive body image and appeal to consumers.

  16. Reduced body size and cub recruitment in polar bears associated with sea ice decline

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rode, Karyn D.; Amstrup, Steven C.; Regehr, Eric V.

    2010-01-01

    Rates of reproduction and survival are dependent upon adequate body size and condition of individuals. Declines in size and condition have provided early indicators of population decline in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) near the southern extreme of their range. We tested whether patterns in body size, condition, and cub recruitment of polar bears in the southern Beaufort Sea of Alaska were related to the availability of preferred sea ice habitats and whether these measures and habitat availability exhibited trends over time, between 1982 and 2006. The mean skull size and body length of all polar bears over three years of age declined over time, corresponding with long‐term declines in the spatial and temporal availability of sea ice habitat. Body size of young, growing bears declined over time and was smaller after years when sea ice availability was reduced. Reduced litter mass and numbers of yearlings per female following years with lower availability of optimal sea ice habitat, suggest reduced reproductive output and juvenile survival. These results, based on analysis of a long‐term data set, suggest that declining sea ice is associated with nutritional limitations that reduced body size and reproduction in this population.

  17. ZResponse to selection, heritability and genetic correlations between body weight and body size in Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andriantahina, Farafidy; Liu, Xiaolin; Huang, Hao; Xiang, Jianhai

    2012-03-01

    To quantify the response to selection, heritability and genetic correlations between weight and size of Litopenaeus vannamei, the body weight (BW), total length (TL), body length (BL), first abdominal segment depth (FASD), third abdominal segment depth (TASD), first abdominal segment width (FASW), and partial carapace length (PCL) of 5-month-old parents and of offspnng were measured by calculating seven body measunngs of offspnng produced by a nested mating design. Seventeen half-sib families and 42 full-sib families of L. vannamei were produced using artificial fertilization from 2-4 dams by each sire, and measured at around five months post-metamorphosis. The results show that hentabilities among vanous traits were high: 0.515±0.030 for body weight and 0.394±0.030 for total length. After one generation of selection. the selection response was 10.70% for offspring growth. In the 5th month, the realized heritability for weight was 0.296 for the offspnng generation. Genetic correlations between body weight and body size were highly variable. The results indicate that external morphological parameters can be applied dunng breeder selection for enhancing the growth without sacrificing animals for determining the body size and breed ability; and selective breeding can be improved significantly, simultaneously with increased production.

  18. AN AGENT-BASED APPROACH TO MODELING MAMMALIAN EVOLUTION: HOW RESOURCE DISTRIBUTION AND PREDATION AFFECT BODY SIZE

    OpenAIRE

    ANNE KANDLER; JEROEN B. SMAERS

    2012-01-01

    Macro-evolutionary investigations into cross-scale patterns of body size variation have put many of the pieces of the evolutionary body size puzzle in place. To further tackle micro- and meso-scale process-based reasons underlying changes in body size, researchers compare natural populations across different habitat structures, assessing which habitat structures correspond to which changes in body size variation. The complex multi-scale dynamics underlying the effect of the external environme...

  19. Thermal phenotypic plasticity of body size in Drosophila ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    ... body size in Drosophila melanogaster: sexual dimorphism and genetic correlations. Jean R. David, Amir Yassin, Jean-Claude Moreteau, Helene Legout and Brigitte Moreteau. J. Genet. 90, 295–302. Table 1. Correlations between wing and thorax length at the within (n = 420) and between line level (n = 30). Temperature.

  20. Fat body glycogen serves as a metabolic safeguard for the maintenance of sugar levels in Drosophila.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamada, Takayuki; Habara, Okiko; Kubo, Hitomi; Nishimura, Takashi

    2018-03-14

    Adapting to changes in food availability is a central challenge for survival. Glucose is an important resource for energy production, and therefore many organisms synthesize and retain sugar storage molecules. In insects, glucose is stored in two different forms: the disaccharide trehalose and the branched polymer glycogen. Glycogen is synthesized and stored in several tissues, including in muscle and the fat body. Despite the major role of the fat body as a center for energy metabolism, the importance of its glycogen content remains unclear. Here, we show that glycogen metabolism is regulated in a tissue-specific manner under starvation conditions in the fruit fly Drosophila The mobilization of fat body glycogen in larvae is independent of Adipokinetic hormone (Akh, the glucagon homolog) but is regulated by sugar availability in a tissue-autonomous manner. Fat body glycogen plays a crucial role in the maintenance of circulating sugars, including trehalose, under fasting conditions. These results demonstrate the importance of fat body glycogen as a metabolic safeguard in Drosophila . © 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  1. Proximate composition of Mystus bleekeri in relation to body size ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Proximate composition of small catfish, Mystus bleekeri, from Nala Daik, Sialkot, Pakistan was investigated and fluctuation in relation to body size and condition factor was carried out. Mean percentages for water, fat, protein and ash contents in the whole wet body weight of wild M. bleekeri were 77.87, 3.26, 15.01 and ...

  2. Canalization of body size matters for lifetime reproductive success of male predatory mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walzer, Andreas; Schausberger, Peter

    2014-04-01

    The adaptive canalization hypothesis predicts that highly fitness-relevant traits are canalized via past selection, resulting in low phenotypic plasticity and high robustness to environmental stress. Accordingly, we hypothesized that the level of phenotypic plasticity of male body size of the predatory mites Phytoseiulus persimilis (low plasticity) and Neoseiulus californicus (high plasticity) reflects the effects of body size variation on fitness, especially male lifetime reproductive success (LRS). We first generated small and standard-sized males of P. persimilis and N. californicus by rearing them to adulthood under limited and ample prey supply, respectively. Then, adult small and standard-sized males were provided with surplus virgin females throughout life to assess their mating and reproductive traits. Small male body size did not affect male longevity or the number of fertilized females but reduced male LRS of P. persimilis but not N. californicus . Proximately, the lower LRS of small than standard-sized P. persimilis males correlated with shorter mating durations, probably decreasing the amount of transferred sperm. Ultimately, we suggest that male body size is more strongly canalized in P. persimilis than N. californicus because deviation from standard body size has larger detrimental fitness effects in P. persimilis than N. californicus .

  3. Body size and predatory performance in wolves: Is bigger better?

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacNulty, D.R.; Smith, D.W.; Mech, L.D.; Eberly, L.E.

    2009-01-01

    Large body size hinders locomotor performance in ways that may lead to trade-offs in predator foraging ability that limit the net predatory benefit of larger size. For example, size-related improvements in handling prey may come at the expense of pursuing prey and thus negate any enhancement in overall predatory performance due to increasing size. 2. This hypothesis was tested with longitudinal data from repeated observations of 94 individually known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Wolf size was estimated from an individually based sex-specific growth model derived from body mass measurements of 304 wolves. 3. Larger size granted individual wolves a net predatory advantage despite substantial variation in its effect on the performance of different predatory tasks; larger size improved performance of a strength-related task (grappling and subduing elk) but failed to improve performance of a locomotor-related task (selecting an elk from a group) for wolves > 39 kg. 4. Sexual dimorphism in wolf size also explained why males outperformed females in each of the three tasks considered (attacking, selecting, and killing). 5. These findings support the generalization that bigger predators are overall better hunters, but they also indicate that increasing size ultimately limits elements of predatory behaviour that require superior locomotor performance. We argue that this could potentially narrow the dietary niche of larger carnivores as well as limit the evolution of larger size if prey are substantially more difficult to pursue than to handle. ?? 2009 British Ecological Society.

  4. Host body size and the diversity of tick assemblages on Neotropical vertebrates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helen J. Esser

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Identifying the factors that influence the species diversity and distribution of ticks (Acari: Ixodida across vertebrate host taxa is of fundamental ecological and medical importance. Host body size is considered one of the most important determinants of tick abundance, with larger hosts having higher tick burdens. The species diversity of tick assemblages should also be greater on larger-bodied host species, but empirical studies testing this hypothesis are lacking. Here, we evaluate this relationship using a comparative dataset of feeding associations from Panama between 45 tick species and 171 host species that range in body size by three orders of magnitude. We found that tick species diversity increased with host body size for adult ticks but not for immature ticks. We also found that closely related host species tended to have similar tick species diversity, but correcting for host phylogeny did not alter the relationships between host body size and tick species diversity. The distribution of tick species was highly aggregated, with approximately 20% of the host species harboring 80% of all tick species, following the Pareto principle or 20/80 Rule. Thus, the aggregated pattern commonly observed for tick burdens and disease transmission also holds for patterns of tick species richness. Our finding that the adult ticks in this system preferentially parasitize large-bodied host species suggests that the ongoing anthropogenic loss of large-bodied vertebrates is likely to result in host-tick coextinction events, even when immature stages feed opportunistically. As parasites play critical roles in ecological and evolutionary processes, such losses may profoundly affect ecosystem functioning and services.

  5. Body Composition and Basal Metabolic Rate in Women with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marina de Figueiredo Ferreira

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective. The aim of this study was to determine which of the seven selected equations used to predict basal metabolic rate most accurately estimated the measured basal metabolic rate. Methods. Twenty-eight adult women with type 2 diabetes mellitus participated in this cross-sectional study. Anthropometric and biochemical variables were measured as well as body composition (by absorptiometry dual X-ray emission and basal metabolic rate (by indirect calorimetry; basal metabolic rate was also estimated by prediction equations. Results. There was a significant difference between the measured and the estimated basal metabolic rate determined by the FAO/WHO/UNU (Pvalue<0.021 and Huang et al. (Pvalue≤0.005 equations. Conclusion. The calculations using Owen et al’s. equation were the closest to the measured basal metabolic rate.

  6. Body Size Estimation from Early to Middle Childhood: Stability of Underestimation, BMI, and Gender Effects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Silje Steinsbekk

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Individuals who are overweight are more likely to underestimate their body size than those who are normal weight, and overweight underestimators are less likely to engage in weight loss efforts. Underestimation of body size might represent a barrier to prevention and treatment of overweight; thus insight in how underestimation of body size develops and tracks through the childhood years is needed. The aim of the present study was therefore to examine stability in children’s underestimation of body size, exploring predictors of underestimation over time. The prospective path from underestimation to BMI was also tested. In a Norwegian cohort of 6 year olds, followed up at ages 8 and 10 (analysis sample: n = 793 body size estimation was captured by the Children’s Body Image Scale, height and weight were measured and BMI calculated. Overall, children were more likely to underestimate than overestimate their body size. Individual stability in underestimation was modest, but significant. Higher BMI predicted future underestimation, even when previous underestimation was adjusted for, but there was no evidence for the opposite direction of influence. Boys were more likely than girls to underestimate their body size at ages 8 and 10 (age 8: 38.0% vs. 24.1%; Age 10: 57.9% vs. 30.8% and showed a steeper increase in underestimation with age compared to girls. In conclusion, the majority of 6, 8, and 10-year olds correctly estimate their body size (prevalence ranging from 40 to 70% depending on age and gender, although a substantial portion perceived themselves to be thinner than they actually were. Higher BMI forecasted future underestimation, but underestimation did not increase the risk for excessive weight gain in middle childhood.

  7. Whole-body metabolism varies across the estrous cycle in Sprague-Dawley rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, G C; McKee, M E; Bishop, C; Coscina, D V

    2001-10-01

    Food intake in rats and other mammals is lowest at estrus and highest at diestrus. While much is known about the effects of different estrous phases on energy intake, as well as some of the metabolic effects the associated hormones exert, little has been reported about changes in whole-body metabolism that accompany those phases. This study investigates how energy expenditure (EE) and respiratory quotient (RQ) vary in intact female Sprague-Dawley rats (n=12) tested mid-light cycle over 2 h on days associated with estrus vs. diestrus. Rats showed small but reliable decreases in body weight on days associated with estrus, but not diestrus. EE was significantly increased by approximately 21% on the day associated with estrus compared to diestrus. At the same time, RQ was significantly decreased by approximately 7% on the day associated with estrus, indicating a relative shift to fat over carbohydrate as the energy substrate to support energetic needs. Future investigations of ingestive processes can integrate the present findings to investigate how gender differences in feeding and metabolism contribute to regulatory behaviors.

  8. Whole-body CO2 production as an index of the metabolic response to sepsis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whole-body carbon dioxide (CO2) production (RaCO2) is an index of substrate oxidation and energy expenditure; therefore, it may provide information about the metabolic response to sepsis. Using stable isotope techniques, we determined RaCO2 and its relationship to protein and glucose metabolism in m...

  9. Associations among body size across the life course, adult height and endometriosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farland, L V; Missmer, S A; Bijon, A; Gusto, G; Gelot, A; Clavel-Chapelon, F; Mesrine, S; Boutron-Ruault, M C; Kvaskoff, M

    2017-08-01

    Are body size across the life course and adult height associated with endometriosis? Endometriosis is associated with lean body size during childhood, adolescence and adulthood; tall total adult height; and tall sitting height. The literature suggests that both adult body size and height are associated with endometriosis risk, but few studies have investigated the role of body size across the life course. Additionally, no study has investigated the relationships between components of height and endometriosis. We used a nested case-control design within E3N (Etude Epidémiologique auprès de femmes de l'Education Nationale), a prospective cohort of French women. Data were updated every 2-3 years through self-administered questionnaires. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs were computed using logistic regression models adjusted for a priori confounding factors. A total of 2416 endometriosis cases were reported as surgically ascertained among the 61 208 included women. The odds of endometriosis were lower among women who reported having a large versus lean body size at 8 years (P for trend = 0.003), at menarche (P for trend endometriosis compared to those in the lowest (endometriosis. Endometriosis cases may be prone to misclassification; however, we restricted our case definition to surgically-confirmed cases, which showed a high validation rate. Body size is based on retrospective self-report, which may be subject to recall bias. The results of this study suggest that endometriosis is positively associated with lean body size across the life course and total adult height. They also suggest that components of height are associated with endometriosis, which should be investigated further. The Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale (MGEN); the European Community; the French League against Cancer (LNCC); Gustave Roussy; the French Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm). L.V.F. was supported by a T32 grant (#HD060454) in reproductive, perinatal and pediatric

  10. Climate change and body size shift in Mediterranean bivalve assemblages: unexpected role of biological invasions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nawrot, Rafał; Albano, Paolo G; Chattopadhyay, Devapriya; Zuschin, Martin

    2017-08-16

    Body size is a synthetic functional trait determining many key ecosystem properties. Reduction in average body size has been suggested as one of the universal responses to global warming in aquatic ecosystems. Climate change, however, coincides with human-enhanced dispersal of alien species and can facilitate their establishment. We address effects of species introductions on the size structure of recipient communities using data on Red Sea bivalves entering the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal. We show that the invasion leads to increase in median body size of the Mediterranean assemblage. Alien species are significantly larger than native Mediterranean bivalves, even though they represent a random subset of the Red Sea species with respect to body size. The observed patterns result primarily from the differences in the taxonomic composition and body-size distributions of the source and recipient species pools. In contrast to the expectations based on the general temperature-size relationships in marine ectotherms, continued warming of the Mediterranean Sea indirectly leads to an increase in the proportion of large-bodied species in bivalve assemblages by accelerating the entry and spread of tropical aliens. These results underscore complex interactions between changing climate and species invasions in driving functional shifts in marine ecosystems. © 2017 The Author(s).

  11. [Body composition and metabolic risk in small for gestational age children treated with growth hormone].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aurensanz Clemente, Esther; Samper Villagrasa, Pilar; Ayerza Casas, Ariadna; Ruiz Frontera, Pablo; Moreno Aznar, Luis Alberto; Bueno Lozano, Gloria

    2016-09-16

    Small for gestational age (SGA) children are at increased risk of metabolic syndrome. Our objective is to evaluate changes in body composition produced by growth hormone (GH) treatment. A group of 28 SGA children without catch-up growth and undergoing treatment with GH was selected for evaluation. Over the course of 3 years from the beginning of the treatment with GH, the children's body composition variables (bone mineral density [BMD], fat and lean body mass proportion) were evaluated annually with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. A study of correlation between metabolic and body composition variables was also made. Treatment with GH produces a reduction in fat mass proportion in relation to lean body mass, decreasing from 25.94±6.09 to 22.88±5.38% (P=.034). In the abdominal regions we observe an increase in lean mass, from 1,356,91±426,71 to 2,570,96±814,36g (P=.000) and a tendency for visceral fat deposits to decrease. BMD in lumbar vertebrae improved from -1.55±0.68 to -0.90±0.79Z (P=.019). Treatment with GH produces changes in body composition, improving BMD and increasing the proportion of lean body mass with a reduction in fat mass. If these changes persisted into adulthood, they may cause a reduction in the metabolic and cardiovascular risk in this group of patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  12. Body size and lean mass of brown bears across and within four diverse ecosystems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hilderbrand, Grant V.; Gustine, David; Mangipane, Buck A.; Joly, Kyle; Leacock, William; Mangipane, Lindsey S.; Erlenbach, Joy; Sorum, Mathew; Cameron, Matthew; Belant, Jerrold L.; Cambier, Troy

    2018-01-01

    Variation in body size across populations of brown bears (Ursus arctos) is largely a function of the availability and quality of nutritional resources while plasticity within populations reflects utilized niche width with implications for population resiliency. We assessed skull size, body length, and lean mass of adult female and male brown bears in four Alaskan study areas that differed in climate, primary food resources, population density, and harvest regime. Full body-frame size, as evidenced by asymptotic skull size and body length, was achieved by 8 to 14 years of age across populations and sexes. Lean body mass of both sexes continued to increase throughout their life. Differences between populations existed for all morphological measures in both sexes, bears in ecosystems with abundant salmon were generally larger. Within all populations, broad variation was seen in body size measures of adults with females displaying roughly a 2-fold difference in lean mass and males showing a 3- to 4-fold difference. The high level of intraspecific variation seen across and within populations suggests the presence of multiple life-history strategies and niche variation relative to resource partitioning, risk tolerance or aversion, and competition. Further, this level of variation indicates broad potential to adapt to changes within a given ecosystem and across the species’ range.

  13. Breaking Haller's rule: brain-body size isometry in a minute parasitic wasp.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Woude, van der E.; Smid, H.M.; Chittka, L.; Huigens, M.E.

    2013-01-01

    Throughout the animal kingdom, Haller's rule holds that smaller individuals have larger brains relative to their body than larger-bodied individuals. Such brain-body size allometry is documented for all animals studied to date, ranging from small ants to the largest mammals. However, through

  14. Body Size as a Driver of Scavenging in Theropod Dinosaurs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kane, Adam; Healy, Kevin; Ruxton, Graeme D; Jackson, Andrew L

    2016-06-01

    Theropod dinosaurs dominated Earth's terrestrial ecosystem as a diverse group of predators for more than 160 million years, yet little is known about their foraging ecology. Maintaining a balanced energy budget presented a major challenge for therapods, which ranged from the chicken-sized Microraptor up to the whale-sized Giganotosaurus, in the face of intense competition and the demands of ontogenetic growth. Facultative scavenging, a behavior present in almost all modern predators, may have been important in supplementing energetically expensive lifestyles. By using agent-based models based on the allometric relationship between size and foraging behaviors, we show that theropods between 27 and 1,044 kg would have gained a significant energetic advantage over individuals at both the small and large extremes of theropod body mass through their scavenging efficiency. These results were robust to rate of competition, primary productivity, and detection distance. Our models demonstrate the potential importance of facultative scavenging in theropods and the role of body size in defining its prevalence in Mesozoic terrestrial systems.

  15. Pre- and Postoperative Body Composition and Metabolic Characteristics in Patients with Acromegaly: A Prospective Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Lu; Li, Hailong; Wang, Qiang; Wang, Zihao

    2018-01-01

    Objective To investigate the preoperative body composition, metabolic characteristics, and postoperative changes in patients with active acromegaly and analyze the effects of gender and age. Methods We included 36 patients with untreated acromegaly and 37 patients with nonfunctional pituitary adenomas. Adipose tissue (AT), the visceral fat index (VFI), sclerotin, protein, skeletal muscle, total body water (TBW), intracellular water (ICW), and extracellular water (ECW) were measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). Total energy expenditure (TEE) and basal metabolism (BM) were measured with a cardiopulmonary and metabolic analyzer (CMA). Tricep skinfold thickness (TST), bicep circumference, waistline, hipline, and calf circumference were measured with a skinfold caliper and tape. These indices were measured before surgery and 3 months and 1 year after surgery. Results Overall, AT, VFI, and TST were lower, whereas sclerotin, protein, skeletal muscle, TBW, ICW, ECW, TEE, and BM were higher in acromegaly patients. Postoperatively, TST rose initially and then decreased, the waistline increased, and sclerotin, skeletal muscle, TEE, and BM decreased. Changes in these indices differed with gender and age in unique patterns. Conclusions Body composition and metabolism in acromegaly patients changed after surgery, and gender and age influenced these changes. PMID:29531529

  16. The relationship of omental and subcutaneous adipocyte size to metabolic disease in severe obesity.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    O'Connell, Jean

    2010-01-01

    Several studies have reported the existence of a subgroup of obese individuals with normal metabolic profiles. It remains unclear what factors are responsible for this phenomenon. We proposed that adipocyte size might be a key factor in the protection of metabolically healthy obese (MHO) individuals from the adverse effects of obesity.

  17. Correlation between Leukocyte Numbers and Body Size of Rainbow Trout

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mohammad, Rezkar Jaafar; Otani, Maki; Kania, Per Walter

    2016-01-01

    wild and cultured fish and we show that the size of the leukocyte population increases exponentially with body size of rainbow trout. Four groups (5 fish/group) of naive rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) with a mean body weight of 2 - 4 g (group I), 4 - 6 g (group II), 25 - 30 g (group III), and 650...... towards an antigen to be initiated even in fry. The number of leukocytes in individual fish at different developmental stages is likely to influence the capacity of the fish to respond simultaneously to several antigens (pathogens and vaccine components). This parameter may therefore be crucial for both...... - 780 g (group IV) were investigated. The number of lymphocytes was generally higher in head kidney compared to blood and spleen but they dominated in all samples (blood, head kidney and spleen) and their numbers increased exponentially with fish size. Percentages of lymphocytes in relation...

  18. Women Build Long Bones With Less Cortical Mass Relative to Body Size and Bone Size Compared With Men.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jepsen, Karl J; Bigelow, Erin M R; Schlecht, Stephen H

    2015-08-01

    The twofold greater lifetime risk of fracturing a bone for white women compared with white men and black women has been attributed in part to differences in how the skeletal system accumulates bone mass during growth. On average, women build more slender long bones with less cortical area compared with men. Although slender bones are known to have a naturally lower cortical area compared with wider bones, it remains unclear whether the relatively lower cortical area of women is consistent with their increased slenderness or is reduced beyond that expected for the sex-specific differences in bone size and body size. Whether this sexual dimorphism is consistent with ethnic background and is recapitulated in the widely used mouse model also remains unclear. We asked (1) do black women build bones with reduced cortical area compared with black men; (2) do white women build bones with reduced cortical area compared with white men; and (3) do female mice build bones with reduced cortical area compared with male mice? Bone strength and cross-sectional morphology of adult human and mouse bone were calculated from quantitative CT images of the femoral midshaft. The data were tested for normality and regression analyses were used to test for differences in cortical area between men and women after adjusting for body size and bone size by general linear model (GLM). Linear regression analysis showed that the femurs of black women had 11% lower cortical area compared with those of black men after adjusting for body size and bone size (women: mean=357.7 mm2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 347.9-367.5 mm2; men: mean=400.1 mm2; 95% CI, 391.5-408.7 mm2; effect size=1.2; pbone size (women: mean=350.1 mm2; 95% CI, 340.4-359.8 mm2; men: mean=394.3 mm2; 95% CI, 386.5-402.1 mm2; effect size=1.3; pbone size (female: mean=0.73 mm2; 95% CI, 0.71-0.74 mm2; male: mean=0.70 mm2; 95% CI, 0.68-0.71 mm2; effect size=0.74; p=0.04, GLM). Female femurs are not simply a more slender version of male

  19. Body Size Adaptations to Altitudinal Climatic Variation in Neotropical Grasshoppers of the Genus Sphenarium (Orthoptera: Pyrgomorphidae)

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-01-01

    Altitudinal clines in body size can result from the effects of natural and sexual selection on growth rates and developing times in seasonal environments. Short growing and reproductive seasons constrain the body size that adults can attain and their reproductive success. Little is known about the effects of altitudinal climatic variation on the diversification of Neotropical insects. In central Mexico, in addition to altitude, highly heterogeneous topography generates diverse climates that can occur even at the same latitude. Altitudinal variation and heterogeneous topography open an opportunity to test the relative impact of climatic variation on body size adaptations. In this study, we investigated the relationship between altitudinal climatic variation and body size, and the divergence rates of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in Neotropical grasshoppers of the genus Sphenarium using a phylogenetic comparative approach. In order to distinguish the relative impact of natural and sexual selection on the diversification of the group, we also tracked the altitudinal distribution of the species and trends of both body size and SSD on the phylogeny of Sphenarium. The correlative evidence suggests no relationship between altitude and body size. However, larger species were associated with places having a warmer winter season in which the temporal window for development and reproduction can be longer. Nonetheless, the largest species were also associated with highly seasonal environments. Moreover, large body size and high levels of SSD have evolved independently several times throughout the history of the group and male body size has experienced a greater evolutionary divergence than females. These lines of evidence suggest that natural selection, associated with seasonality and sexual selection, on maturation time and body size could have enhanced the diversification of this insect group. PMID:26684616

  20. Evolution of bill size in relation to body size in toucans and hornbills (Aves: Piciformes and Bucerotiformes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Austin L. Hughes

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Evidence that the bill of the Toco Toucan, Ramphastos toco Statius Muller, 1776, has a specialized role in heat dissipation suggests a new function for the large and light-weight bill of the toucan family (Piciformes: Ramphastidae. A prediction of this hypothesis is that bill length in toucans will increase with body mass at a rate greater than the isometric expectation. This hypothesis was tested in a phylogenetic context with measurements of skeletal elements in adult males of 21 toucan species. In these species, 64.3% of variance in relative skeletal measurements was accounted for by the contrast between bill and body size. Maxilla length and depth increased with body mass at a greater than isometric rate relative to both body mass and other linear skeletal measures. By contrast, no such trend was seen in a parallel analysis of 24 hornbill species (Bucerotiformes, sometimes considered ecological equivalents of toucans. The unique relationship between bill size and body mass in toucans supports the hypothesis that the evolution of a heat dissipation function has been a persistent theme of bill evolution in toucans.

  1. Attention biases in preoccupation with body image: An ERP study of the role of social comparison and automaticity when processing body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uusberg, Helen; Peet, Krista; Uusberg, Andero; Akkermann, Kirsti

    2018-03-17

    Appearance-related attention biases are thought to contribute to body image disturbances. We investigated how preoccupation with body image is associated with attention biases to body size, focusing on the role of social comparison processes and automaticity. Thirty-six women varying on self-reported preoccupation compared their actual body size to size-modified images of either themselves or a figure-matched peer. Amplification of earlier (N170, P2) and later (P3, LPP) ERP components recorded under low vs. high concurrent working memory load were analyzed. Women with high preoccupation exhibited an earlier bias to larger bodies of both self and peer. During later processing stages, they exhibited a stronger bias to enlarged as well as reduced self-images and a lack of sensitivity to size-modifications of the peer-image. Working memory load did not affect these biases systematically. Current findings suggest that preoccupation with body image involves an earlier attention bias to weight increase cues and later over-engagement with own figure. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Interactive effects of body-size structure and adaptive foraging on food-web stability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heckmann, Lotta; Drossel, Barbara; Brose, Ulrich; Guill, Christian

    2012-03-01

    Body-size structure of food webs and adaptive foraging of consumers are two of the dominant concepts of our understanding how natural ecosystems maintain their stability and diversity. The interplay of these two processes, however, is a critically important yet unresolved issue. To fill this gap in our knowledge of ecosystem stability, we investigate dynamic random and niche model food webs to evaluate the proportion of persistent species. We show that stronger body-size structures and faster adaptation stabilise these food webs. Body-size structures yield stabilising configurations of interaction strength distributions across food webs, and adaptive foraging emphasises links to resources closer to the base. Moreover, both mechanisms combined have a cumulative effect. Most importantly, unstructured random webs evolve via adaptive foraging into stable size-structured food webs. This offers a mechanistic explanation of how size structure adaptively emerges in complex food webs, thus building a novel bridge between these two important stabilising mechanisms. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd/CNRS.

  3. Vocal tract length and formant frequency dispersion correlate with body size in rhesus macaques.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitch, W T

    1997-08-01

    Body weight, length, and vocal tract length were measured for 23 rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) of various sizes using radiographs and computer graphic techniques. linear predictive coding analysis of tape-recorded threat vocalizations were used to determine vocal tract resonance frequencies ("formants") for the same animals. A new acoustic variable is proposed, "formant dispersion," which should theoretically depend upon vocal tract length. Formant dispersion is the averaged difference between successive formant frequencies, and was found to be closely tied to both vocal tract length and body size. Despite the common claim that voice fundamental frequency (F0) provides an acoustic indication of body size, repeated investigations have failed to support such a relationship in many vertebrate species including humans. Formant dispersion, unlike voice pitch, is proposed to be a reliable predictor of body size in macaques, and probably many other species.

  4. Relative Importance of Sex, Pre-Starvation Body Mass and Structural Body Size in the Determination of Exceptional Starvation Resistance of Anchomenus dorsalis (Coleoptera: Carabidae.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michal Knapp

    Full Text Available In nature, almost all animals have to cope with periods of food shortage during their lifetimes. Starvation risks are especially high for carnivorous predatory species, which often experience long intervals between stochastic prey capturing events. A laboratory experiment using the common predatory carabid beetle Anchomenus dorsalis revealed an exceptional level of starvation resistance in this species: males survived up to 137 days and females up to 218 days without food at 20°C. Individual starvation resistance was strongly positively affected by pre-starvation body mass but only slightly by beetle structural body size per se. Females outperformed males even when the effect of gender was corrected for the effects of structural body size and pre-starvation body mass. The better performance of females compared to males and of beetles with higher relative pre-starvation body mass could be linked to higher fat content and lean dry mass before starvation, followed by a greater decrease in both during starvation. There was also a difference between the sexes in the extent of body mass changes both during ad libitum feeding and following starvation; the body masses of females fluctuated more compared to males. This study stresses the need to distinguish between body mass and structural body size when investigating the ecological and evolutionary consequences of body size. Investigation of the net effects of body size and sex is necessary to disentangle the causes of differences in individual performances in studies of species with significant sexual size dimorphism.

  5. Body size and growth in 0- to 4-year-old children and the relation to body size in primary school age

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Stocks, T.; Renders, C.M.; Bulk-Bunschoten, A.M.W.; Hirasing, R.A.; Buuren, S. van; Seidell, J.C.

    2011-01-01

    Excess weight in early life is believed to increase susceptibility to obesity, and in support of such theory, excess weight and fast weight gain in early childhood have been related to overweight later in life. The aim of this study was to review the literature on body size and growth in 0- to

  6. Body size and growth in 0- to 4-year-old children and the relation to body size in primary school age

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Stocks, T; Renders, C M; Bulk-Bunschoten, A.M.W.; HiraSing, R.A.; van Buuren, S.; Seidell, J C

    Excess weight in early life is believed to increase susceptibility to obesity, and in support of such theory, excess weight and fast weight gain in early childhood have been related to overweight later in life. The aim of this study was to review the literature on body size and growth in 0- to

  7. Detrimental and protective fat: body fat distribution and its relation to metabolic disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Booth, Andrea; Magnuson, Aaron; Foster, Michelle

    2014-01-01

    Obesity is linked to numerous comorbidities that include, but are not limited to, glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular disease. Current evidence suggests, however, obesity itself is not an exclusive predictor of metabolic dysregulation but rather adipose tissue distribution. Obesity-related adverse health consequences occur predominately in individuals with upper body fat accumulation, the detrimental distribution, commonly associated with visceral obesity. Increased lower body subcutaneous adipose tissue, however, is associated with a reduced risk of obesity-induced metabolic dysregulation and even enhanced insulin sensitivity, thus, storage in this region is considered protective. The proposed mechanisms that causally relate the differential outcomes of adipose tissue distribution are often attributed to location and/or adipocyte regulation. Visceral adipose tissue effluent to the portal vein drains into the liver where hepatocytes are directly exposed to its metabolites and secretory products, whereas the subcutaneous adipose tissue drains systemically. Adipose depots are also inherently different in numerous ways such as adipokine release, immunity response and regulation, lipid turnover, rate of cell growth and death, and response to stress and sex hormones. Proximal extrinsic factors also play a role in the differential drive between adipose tissue depots. This review focuses on the deleterious mechanisms postulated to drive the differential metabolic response between central and lower body adipose tissue distribution.

  8. Scaling of Metabolic Scaling within Physical Limits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Douglas S. Glazier

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Both the slope and elevation of scaling relationships between log metabolic rate and log body size vary taxonomically and in relation to physiological or developmental state, ecological lifestyle and environmental conditions. Here I discuss how the recently proposed metabolic-level boundaries hypothesis (MLBH provides a useful conceptual framework for explaining and predicting much, but not all of this variation. This hypothesis is based on three major assumptions: (1 various processes related to body volume and surface area exert state-dependent effects on the scaling slope for metabolic rate in relation to body mass; (2 the elevation and slope of metabolic scaling relationships are linked; and (3 both intrinsic (anatomical, biochemical and physiological and extrinsic (ecological factors can affect metabolic scaling. According to the MLBH, the diversity of metabolic scaling relationships occurs within physical boundary limits related to body volume and surface area. Within these limits, specific metabolic scaling slopes can be predicted from the metabolic level (or scaling elevation of a species or group of species. In essence, metabolic scaling itself scales with metabolic level, which is in turn contingent on various intrinsic and extrinsic conditions operating in physiological or evolutionary time. The MLBH represents a “meta-mechanism” or collection of multiple, specific mechanisms that have contingent, state-dependent effects. As such, the MLBH is Darwinian in approach (the theory of natural selection is also meta-mechanistic, in contrast to currently influential metabolic scaling theory that is Newtonian in approach (i.e., based on unitary deterministic laws. Furthermore, the MLBH can be viewed as part of a more general theory that includes other mechanisms that may also affect metabolic scaling.

  9. Effect of meal size and body size on specific dynamic action and gastric processing in decapod crustaceans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGaw, Iain J; Curtis, Daniel L

    2013-11-01

    Meal size and animal size are important factors affecting the characteristics of the specific dynamic action (SDA) response across a variety of taxa. The effects of these two variables on the SDA of decapod crustaceans are based on just a couple of articles, and are not wholly consistent with the responses reported for other aquatic ectotherms. Therefore, the effects of meal size and animal size on the characteristics of SDA response were investigated in a variety of decapod crustaceans from different families. A 6 fold increase in meal size (0.5%-3% body mass) resulted a pronounced increase in the duration of increased oxygen consumption, resulting in an increase in the SDA of Callinectes sapidus, Cancer gracilis, Hemigrapsus nudus, Homarus americanus, Pugettia producta and Procambarus clarkii. Unlike many other aquatic ectotherms a substantial increase between meal sizes was required, with meal size close to their upper feeding limit (3% body mass), before changes were evident. In many organisms increases in both duration and scope contribute to the overall SDA, here changes in scope as a function of meal size were weak, suggesting that a similar amount of energy is required to upregulate gastric processes, regardless of meal size. The SDA characteristics were less likely to be influenced by the size of the animal, and there was no difference in the SDA (kJ) as a function of size in H. americanus or Cancer irroratus when analysed as mass specific values. In several fish species characteristics of the SDA response are more closely related to the transit times of food, rather than the size of a meal. To determine if a similar trend occurred in crustaceans, the transit rates of different sized meals were followed through the digestive system using a fluoroscope. Although there was a trend towards larger meals taking longer to pass through the gut, this was only statistically significant for P. clarkii. There were some changes in transit times as a function of animal

  10. My 'Fat Girl Complex': a preliminary investigation of sexual health and body image in women of size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Satinsky, Sonya; Dennis, Barbara; Reece, Michael; Sanders, Stephanie; Bardzell, Shaowen

    2013-01-01

    Women of size who inhabit non-normative bodies may have different experiences with body image and sexual health than women of average body size. In this exploratory study, we interviewed four women of size recruited from a larger mixed-methodological study of body image and sexuality. Each woman was interviewed twice on topics of body image, sexuality and sexual health. Reconstructive Horizon Analysis was used to analyse the content of the interviews. Women who expressed that their bodies had inherent personal and social value regardless of size did not articulate connections between body size and their sexual health. However, those women who looked externally for validation of their attractiveness struggled with acceptance of their sexuality and bodies and spoke of ways in which their body size and appearance hindered them from having the sexually healthy lives that they wanted. Findings highlight two important components of women's sexual health as participants related them to body image: the right to pleasure and the right to engage only in wanted sexual activity. Participants described how negative body attitudes affected both of these aspects of their sexual health. Interventions targeting weight-based stigma may offer a means of indirectly promoting sexual health and autonomy in women.

  11. Effects of seed predators of different body size on seed mortality in Bornean logged forest.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hautier, Yann; Saner, Philippe; Philipson, Christopher; Bagchi, Robert; Ong, Robert C; Hector, Andy

    2010-07-19

    The Janzen-Connell hypothesis proposes that seed and seedling enemies play a major role in maintaining high levels of tree diversity in tropical forests. However, human disturbance may alter guilds of seed predators including their body size distribution. These changes have the potential to affect seedling survival in logged forest and may alter forest composition and diversity. We manipulated seed density in plots beneath con- and heterospecific adult trees within a logged forest and excluded vertebrate predators of different body sizes using cages. We show that small and large-bodied predators differed in their effect on con- and heterospecific seedling mortality. In combination small and large-bodied predators dramatically decreased both con- and heterospecific seedling survival. In contrast, when larger-bodied predators were excluded small-bodied predators reduced conspecific seed survival leaving seeds coming from the distant tree of a different species. Our results suggest that seed survival is affected differently by vertebrate predators according to their body size. Therefore, changes in the body size structure of the seed predator community in logged forests may change patterns of seed mortality and potentially affect recruitment and community composition.

  12. Body Size Perceptions and Weight Status of Adults in a Nigerian ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Subjects and Methods: A cross‑sectional sample of 183 adults living in a rural community, South‑West Nigeria was randomly recruited into the study. Their verbal and visual body size perceptions were assessed through structured questions and body images. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the ...

  13. Sexual Size Dimorphism and Body Condition in the Australasian Gannet.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lauren P Angel

    Full Text Available Sexual size dimorphism is widespread throughout seabird taxa and several drivers leading to its evolution have been hypothesised. While the Australasian Gannet (Morus serrator has previously been considered nominally monomorphic, recent studies have documented sexual segregation in diet and foraging areas, traits often associated with size dimorphism. The present study investigated the sex differences in body mass and structural size of this species at two colonies (Pope's Eye, PE; Point Danger, PD in northern Bass Strait, south-eastern Australia. Females were found to be 3.1% and 7.3% heavier (2.74 ± 0.03, n = 92; 2.67 ± 0.03 kg, n = 43 than males (2.66 ± 0.03, n = 92; 2.48 ± 0.03 kg, n = 43 at PE and PD, respectively. Females were also larger in wing ulna length (0.8% both colonies but smaller in bill depth (PE: 2.2%; PD: 1.7% than males. Despite this dimorphism, a discriminant function provided only mild accuracy in determining sex. A similar degree of dimorphism was also found within breeding pairs, however assortative mating was not apparent at either colony (R2 < 0.04. Using hydrogen isotope dilution, a body condition index was developed from morphometrics to estimate total body fat (TBF stores, where TBF(% = 24.43+1.94*(body mass/wing ulna length - 0.58*tarsus length (r2 = 0.84, n = 15. This index was used to estimate body composition in all sampled individuals. There was no significant difference in TBF(% between the sexes for any stage of breeding or in any year of the study at either colony suggesting that, despite a greater body mass, females were not in a better condition than males. While the driving mechanism for sexual dimorphism in this species is currently unknown, studies of other Sulids indicate segregation in foraging behaviour, habitat and diet may be a contributing factor.

  14. Disorders of bone-mineral metabolism and their correction with women who have body weight deficiency at pregravid stage and during pregnancy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. P. Shelestova

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available The processes in bone-mineral metabolism provide normal course of pregnancy, labour and fetus development, women with body weight deficiency are at risk reduction of bone tissue mineral density, progressing of osteopenia and osteoporosis. This shows the necessity of medical and preventive measures that have the aim to correct calcium- phosphorus and bone metabolism with women who have body weight deficiency. Aim. To elaborate and to evaluate medical and preventive measures that have the aim to correct disorders in bone-mineral metabolism with women who have body weight deficiency at pregravid stage and during pregnancy. Materials and methods. The efficiency of adding combined medicine of calcium carbonate and cholecalciferol and dietary nourishment to traditional treatment that affected the state of bone-mineral metabolism with women who have body weight deficiency at pregravid stage and during pregnancy was studied. Results. With women who have body weight deficiency at pregravid stage and during pregnancy it is noted statistically considerable reduction in blood of total calcium and bone tissue markers that grows with the course of gestation. The changes in mineral density of bone tissue can be seen from the existence of osteopenic syndrome at pregravid stage that occurs with every third woman who has body weight deficiency and with every second before labour. The use of elaborated medical and preventive measures including combined medicine of calcium carbonate and cholecalciferol allows to normalize the indexes of bone-mineral metabolism with women who have body weight deficiency. Conclusions. Women with body weight deficiency already at pregravid stage have disorders in bone metabolism and coming of pregnancy lead to aggravation of bone metabolism disorders. The additional use of combined medicine of calcium carbonate and cholecalciferol and dietary nourishment made the indexes of calcium-phosphorus and bone metabolism better and osteopenic

  15. Understanding mismatches in body size, speed and power among adolescent rugby union players.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krause, Lyndon M; Naughton, Geraldine A; Denny, Greg; Patton, Declan; Hartwig, Tim; Gabbett, Tim J

    2015-05-01

    With adolescent sport increasingly challenged by mismatches in size, new strategies are important to maximize participation. The objectives were to (1) improve the understanding of mismatches in physical size, speed and power in adolescent rugby union players, (2) explore associations between size and performance with demographic, playing-history, and injury profiles, and (3) explore the applicability of existing criteria for age/body mass-based dispensation (playing-down) strategies. Cross-sectional study. Four hundred and eighty-five male community rugby union players were recruited from three Australian states selected to represent community-based U12, U13, U14 and U15 players. Body mass, stature, speed (10, 30, and 40 m sprints) and lower-leg power (relative peak power and relative peak force) were measured. Independent student t-tests, linear regressions and Chi square analyses were undertaken. Mean values in age groups for size, speed and power masked considerable overlap in the ranges within specific age groups of adolescent rugby players. Only a small proportion of players (approximately 5%) shared the highest and lowest tertiles for speed, relative peak power and body mass. Physical size was not related to injury. The mean body mass of current community rugby union players was above the 75th percentile on normative growth-charts. The notion that bigger, faster, and more powerful characteristics occur simultaneously in adolescent rugby players was not supported in the present study. Current practices in body mass-based criteria for playing down an age group lack a sufficient evidence for decision-making. Dispensation solely based on body mass may not address mismatch in junior rugby union. Copyright © 2014 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Changes in Body Compositions and Basal Metabolic Rates during Treatment of Graves’ Disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Min Joo Kim

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Objectives. Because thyroid hormone is an important determinant of body weight and basal metabolic rate, we investigated the changes in the basal metabolic rate and body composition sequentially after treatment for Graves’ disease. Methods. A prospective cohort study was performed with six women newly diagnosed with Graves’ disease. During a 52-week treatment of methimazole, body composition, resting respiratory expenditure (REE, and handgrip strength were measured consecutively. Results. After methimazole treatment, body weight was initially increased (0–8 weeks, subsequently plateaued (8–24 weeks, and gradually decreased in the later period (24–52 weeks despite the decreased food intake. The measured REE was 40% higher than the predicted REE at baseline, and it gradually decreased after treatment. REE positively correlated with thyroid hormone levels, peripheral deiodinase activity, and thyroid’s secretory capacity. Body compositional analyses showed that the fat mass increased during an earlier period (4–12 weeks, while the lean mass increased significantly during the later period (26–52 weeks. Consistent with the lean mass changes, muscle strength also significantly increased during the later period. Conclusions. Treatment of Graves’ disease increased body weight and fat mass transiently with decreased REE. However, long-term compositional changes moved in a beneficial direction increasing lean mass and reinforcing muscle strength, following decreasing fat percentages.

  17. Body size and the timing of egg production in parasitoid wasps.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ellers, J.; Jervis, M.

    2003-01-01

    In insects several key fitness-related variables are positively correlated with intraspecific variation in body size, but little is known about size-related variation in the timing of egg production within species. Female insects are known to vary in the degree to which they concentrate egg

  18. Hepatic mTORC1 controls locomotor activity, body temperature, and lipid metabolism through FGF21

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cornu, Marion; Oppliger, Wolfgang; Albert, Verena; Robitaille, Aaron M.; Trapani, Francesca; Quagliata, Luca; Fuhrer, Tobias; Sauer, Uwe; Terracciano, Luigi; Hall, Michael N.

    2014-01-01

    The liver is a key metabolic organ that controls whole-body physiology in response to nutrient availability. Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a nutrient-activated kinase and central controller of growth and metabolism that is negatively regulated by the tumor suppressor tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (TSC1). To investigate the role of hepatic mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) in whole-body physiology, we generated liver-specific Tsc1 (L-Tsc1 KO) knockout mice. L-Tsc1 KO mice displayed reduced locomotor activity, body temperature, and hepatic triglyceride content in a rapamycin-sensitive manner. Ectopic activation of mTORC1 also caused depletion of hepatic and plasma glutamine, leading to peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α)–dependent fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) expression in the liver. Injection of glutamine or knockdown of PGC-1α or FGF21 in the liver suppressed the behavioral and metabolic defects due to mTORC1 activation. Thus, mTORC1 in the liver controls whole-body physiology through PGC-1α and FGF21. Finally, mTORC1 signaling correlated with FGF21 expression in human liver tumors, suggesting that treatment of glutamine-addicted cancers with mTOR inhibitors might have beneficial effects at both the tumor and whole-body level. PMID:25082895

  19. Body size evolution in an old insect order: No evidence for Cope's Rule in spite of fitness benefits of large size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waller, John T; Svensson, Erik I

    2017-09-01

    We integrate field data and phylogenetic comparative analyses to investigate causes of body size evolution and stasis in an old insect order: odonates ("dragonflies and damselflies"). Fossil evidence for "Cope's Rule" in odonates is weak or nonexistent since the last major extinction event 65 million years ago, yet selection studies show consistent positive selection for increased body size among adults. In particular, we find that large males in natural populations of the banded demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens) over several generations have consistent fitness benefits both in terms of survival and mating success. Additionally, there was no evidence for stabilizing or conflicting selection between fitness components within the adult life-stage. This lack of stabilizing selection during the adult life-stage was independently supported by a literature survey on different male and female fitness components from several odonate species. We did detect several significant body size shifts among extant taxa using comparative methods and a large new molecular phylogeny for odonates. We suggest that the lack of Cope's rule in odonates results from conflicting selection between fitness advantages of large adult size and costs of long larval development. We also discuss competing explanations for body size stasis in this insect group. © 2017 The Author(s). Evolution © 2017 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  20. Mammal body size evolution in North America and Europe over 20 Myr: similar trends generated by different processes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Shan; Eronen, Jussi T; Janis, Christine M; Saarinen, Juha J; Silvestro, Daniele; Fritz, Susanne A

    2017-02-22

    Because body size interacts with many fundamental biological properties of a species, body size evolution can be an essential component of the generation and maintenance of biodiversity. Here we investigate how body size evolution can be linked to the clade-specific diversification dynamics in different geographical regions. We analyse an extensive body size dataset of Neogene large herbivores (covering approx. 50% of the 970 species in the orders Artiodactyla and Perissodactyla) in Europe and North America in a Bayesian framework. We reconstruct the temporal patterns of body size in each order on each continent independently, and find significant increases of minimum size in three of the continental assemblages (except European perissodactyls), suggesting an active selection for larger bodies. Assessment of trait-correlated birth-death models indicates that the common trend of body size increase is generated by different processes in different clades and regions. Larger-bodied artiodactyl species on both continents tend to have higher origination rates, and both clades in North America show strong links between large bodies and low extinction rate. Collectively, our results suggest a strong role of species selection and perhaps of higher-taxon sorting in driving body size evolution, and highlight the value of investigating evolutionary processes in a biogeographic context. © 2017 The Author(s).

  1. Carotid body size measured by computed tomographic angiography in individuals born prematurely.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, Melissa L; Welch, Brian T; Randall, Jess T; Petersen-Jones, Humphrey G; Limberg, Jacqueline K

    2018-05-24

    We tested the hypothesis that the carotid bodies would be smaller in individuals born prematurely or exposed to perinatal oxygen therapy when compared individuals born full term that did not receive oxygen therapy. A retrospective chart review was conducted on patients who underwent head/neck computed tomography angiography (CTA) at the Mayo Clinic between 10 and 40 years of age (n = 2503). Patients were identified as premature ( body images captured during the CTA were performed. Carotid body visualization was possible in 43% of patients and 52% of age, sex, and body mass index (BMI)-matched controls but only 17% of juvenile preterm subjects (p = 0.07). Of the carotid bodies that could be visualized, widest axial measurements of the carotid bodies in individuals born prematurely (n = 7, 34 ± 4 weeks gestation, birth weight: 2460 ± 454 g; average size: 2.5 ± 0.2 cm) or individuals exposed to perinatal oxygen therapy (n = 3, 38 ± 2 weeks gestation, Average size: 2.2 ± 0.1 cm) were not different when compared to controls (2.3 ± 0.2 cm and 2.3 ± 0.2 cm, respectively, p > 0.05). Carotid body size, as measured using CTA, is not smaller in adults born prematurely or exposed to perinatal oxygen therapy when compared to sex, age, and BMI-matched controls. However, carotid body visualization was lower in juvenile premature patients. The decreased ability to visualize the carotid bodies in these individuals may be a result of their prematurity. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  2. Habitat structure and body size distributions: Cross-ecosystem comparison for taxa with determinate and indeterminate growth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nash, Kirsty L.; Allen, Craig R.; Barichievy, Chris; Nystrom, Magnus; Sundstrom, Shana M.; Graham, Nicholas A.J.

    2014-01-01

    Habitat structure across multiple spatial and temporal scales has been proposed as a key driver of body size distributions for associated communities. Thus, understanding the relationship between habitat and body size is fundamental to developing predictions regarding the influence of habitat change on animal communities. Much of the work assessing the relationship between habitat structure and body size distributions has focused on terrestrial taxa with determinate growth, and has primarily analysed discontinuities (gaps) in the distribution of species mean sizes (species size relationships or SSRs). The suitability of this approach for taxa with indeterminate growth has yet to be determined. We provide a cross-ecosystem comparison of bird (determinate growth) and fish (indeterminate growth) body mass distributions using four independent data sets. We evaluate three size distribution indices: SSRs, species size–density relationships (SSDRs) and individual size–density relationships (ISDRs), and two types of analysis: looking for either discontinuities or abundance patterns and multi-modality in the distributions. To assess the respective suitability of these three indices and two analytical approaches for understanding habitat–size relationships in different ecosystems, we compare their ability to differentiate bird or fish communities found within contrasting habitat conditions. All three indices of body size distribution are useful for examining the relationship between cross-scale patterns of habitat structure and size for species with determinate growth, such as birds. In contrast, for species with indeterminate growth such as fish, the relationship between habitat structure and body size may be masked when using mean summary metrics, and thus individual-level data (ISDRs) are more useful. Furthermore, ISDRs, which have traditionally been used to study aquatic systems, present a potentially useful common currency for comparing body size distributions

  3. Intermittent fasting does not affect whole-body glucose, lipid, or protein metabolism

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Soeters, Maarten R.; Lammers, Nicolette M.; Dubbelhuis, Peter F.; Ackermans, Mariëtte T.; Jonkers-Schuitema, Cora F.; Fliers, Eric; Sauerwein, Hans P.; Aerts, Johannes M.; Serlie, Mireille J.

    2009-01-01

    Background: Intermittent fasting (IF) was shown to increase whole-body insulin sensitivity, but it is uncertain whether IF selectively influences intermediary metabolism. Such selectivity might be advantageous when adapting to periods of food abundance and food shortage. Objective: The objective was

  4. Body size and symbiotic status influence gonad development in Aiptasia pallida anemones.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carlisle, Judith F; Murphy, Grant K; Roark, Alison M

    2017-01-01

    Pale anemones ( Aiptasia pallida ) coexist with dinoflagellates (primarily Symbiodinium minutum ) in a mutualistic relationship. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of these symbionts in gonad development of anemone hosts. Symbiotic and aposymbiotic anemones were subjected to light cycles that induced gametogenesis. These anemones were then sampled weekly for nine weeks, and gonad development was analyzed histologically. Anemone size was measured as mean body column diameter, and oocytes or sperm follicles were counted for each anemone. Generalized linear models were used to evaluate the influence of body size and symbiotic status on whether gonads were present and on the number of oocytes or sperm follicles produced. Body size predicted whether gonads were present, with larger anemones being more likely than smaller anemones to develop gonads. Both body size and symbiotic status predicted gonad size, such that larger and symbiotic anemones produced more oocytes and sperm follicles than smaller and aposymbiotic anemones. Overall, only 22 % of aposymbiotic females produced oocytes, whereas 63 % of symbiotic females produced oocytes. Similarly, 6 % of aposymbiotic males produced sperm follicles, whereas 60 % of symbiotic males produced sperm follicles. Thus, while gonads were present in 62 % of symbiotic anemones, they were present in only 11 % of aposymbiotic anemones. These results indicate that dinoflagellate symbionts influence gonad development and thus sexual maturation in both female and male Aiptasia pallida anemones. This finding substantiates and expands our current understanding of the importance of symbionts in the development and physiology of cnidarian hosts.

  5. Effects of intermittent fasting and chronic swimming exercise on body composition and lipid metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moraes, Ruan Carlos Macedo de; Portari, Guilherme Vannucchi; Ferraz, Alex Soares Marreiros; da Silva, Tiago Eugênio Oliveira; Marocolo, Moacir

    2017-12-01

    Intermittent fasting protocol (IFP) has been suggested as a strategy to change body metabolism and improve health. The effects of IFP seem to be similar to aerobic exercise, having a hormetic adaptation according to intensity and frequency. However, the effects of combining both interventions are still unknown. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of IFP with and without endurance-exercise training on body composition, food behavior, and lipid metabolism. Twenty-week-old Wistar rats were kept under an inverted circadian cycle of 12 h with water ad libitum and assigned to 4 different groups: control group (ad libitum feeding and sedentary), exercise group (ad libitum feeding and endurance training), intermittent fasting group (IF; intermittent fasting and sedentary), and intermittent fasting and exercise group (IFEX; intermittent fasting and endurance training). After 6 weeks, the body weight of IF and IFEX animals decreased without changes in food consumption. Yet, the body composition between the 2 groups was different, with the IFEX animals containing higher total protein and lower total fat content than the IF animals. The IFEX group also showed increases in total high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and increased intramuscular lipid content. The amount of brown adipose tissue was higher in IF and IFEX groups; however, the IFEX group showed higher expression levels of uncoupling protein 1 in this tissue, indicating a greater thermogenesis. The IFP combined with endurance training is an efficient method for decreasing body mass and altering fat metabolism, without inflicting losses in protein content.

  6. Macroscale patterns in body size of intertidal crustaceans provide insights on climate change effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dugan, Jenifer E.; Hubbard, David M.; Contreras, Heraldo; Duarte, Cristian; Acuña, Emilio; Schoeman, David S.

    2017-01-01

    Predicting responses of coastal ecosystems to altered sea surface temperatures (SST) associated with global climate change, requires knowledge of demographic responses of individual species. Body size is an excellent metric because it scales strongly with growth and fecundity for many ectotherms. These attributes can underpin demographic as well as community and ecosystem level processes, providing valuable insights for responses of vulnerable coastal ecosystems to changing climate. We investigated contemporary macroscale patterns in body size among widely distributed crustaceans that comprise the majority of intertidal abundance and biomass of sandy beach ecosystems of the eastern Pacific coasts of Chile and California, USA. We focused on ecologically important species representing different tidal zones, trophic guilds and developmental modes, including a high-shore macroalga-consuming talitrid amphipod (Orchestoidea tuberculata), two mid-shore scavenging cirolanid isopods (Excirolana braziliensis and E. hirsuticauda), and a low-shore suspension-feeding hippid crab (Emerita analoga) with an amphitropical distribution. Significant latitudinal patterns in body sizes were observed for all species in Chile (21° - 42°S), with similar but steeper patterns in Emerita analoga, in California (32°- 41°N). Sea surface temperature was a strong predictor of body size (-4% to -35% °C-1) in all species. Beach characteristics were subsidiary predictors of body size. Alterations in ocean temperatures of even a few degrees associated with global climate change are likely to affect body sizes of important intertidal ectotherms, with consequences for population demography, life history, community structure, trophic interactions, food-webs, and indirect effects such as ecosystem function. The consistency of results for body size and temperature across species with different life histories, feeding modes, ecological roles, and microhabitats inhabiting a single widespread coastal

  7. Beauty, body size and wages: Evidence from a unique data set.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oreffice, Sonia; Quintana-Domeque, Climent

    2016-09-01

    We analyze how attractiveness rated at the start of the interview in the German General Social Survey is related to weight, height, and body mass index (BMI), separately by gender and accounting for interviewers' characteristics or fixed effects. We show that height, weight, and BMI all strongly contribute to male and female attractiveness when attractiveness is rated by opposite-sex interviewers, and that anthropometric characteristics are irrelevant to male interviewers when assessing male attractiveness. We also estimate whether, controlling for beauty, body size measures are related to hourly wages. We find that anthropometric attributes play a significant role in wage regressions in addition to attractiveness, showing that body size cannot be dismissed as a simple component of beauty. Our findings are robust to controlling for health status and accounting for selection into working. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Body size and premolar evolution in the early-middle eocene euprimates of Wyoming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Katrina E; Rose, Kenneth D; Perry, Jonathan M G

    2014-01-01

    The earliest euprimates to arrive in North America were larger-bodied notharctids and smaller-bodied omomyids. Through the Eocene, notharctids generally continued to increase in body size, whereas omomyids generally radiated within small- and increasingly mid-sized niches in the middle Eocene. This study examines the influence of changing body size and diet on the evolution of the lower fourth premolar in Eocene euprimates. The P4 displays considerable morphological variability in these taxa. Despite the fact that most studies of primate dental morphology have focused on the molars, P4 can also provide important paleoecological insights. We analyzed the P4 from 177 euprimate specimens, representing 35 species (11 notharctids and 24 omomyids), in three time bins of approximately equal duration: early Wasatchian, late Wasatchian, and Bridgerian. Two-dimensional surface landmarks were collected from lingual photographs, capturing important variation in cusp position and tooth shape. Disparity metrics were calculated and compared for the three time bins. In the early Eocene, notharctids have a more molarized P4 than omomyids. During the Bridgerian, expanding body size range of omomyids was accompanied by a significant increase in P4 disparity and convergent evolution of the semimolariform condition in the largest omomyines. P4 morphology relates to diet in early euprimates, although patterns vary between families. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Factors determining the average body size of geographically separated Arctodiaptomus salinus (Daday, 1885) populations

    OpenAIRE

    Anufriieva, Elena V.; Shadrin, Nickolai V.

    2014-01-01

    Arctodiaptomus salinus inhabits water bodies across Eurasia and North Africa. Based on our own data and that from the literature, we analyzed the influences of several factors on the intra- and inter-population variability of this species. A strong negative linear correlation between temperature and average body size in the Crimean and African populations was found, in which the parameters might be influenced by salinity. Meanwhile, asignificant negative correlation between female body size a...

  10. Effect of abomasal glucose infusion on splanchnic and whole-body glucose metabolism in periparturient dairy cows

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Mogens; Kristensen, Niels Bastian

    2009-01-01

    Six periparturient Holstein cows fitted with ruminal cannulas and permanent indwelling catheters in the hepatic portal vein, hepatic vein, mesenteric vein, and an artery were used to study the effects of abomasal glucose infusion on splanchnic and whole-body glucose metabolism.......Six periparturient Holstein cows fitted with ruminal cannulas and permanent indwelling catheters in the hepatic portal vein, hepatic vein, mesenteric vein, and an artery were used to study the effects of abomasal glucose infusion on splanchnic and whole-body glucose metabolism....

  11. Age-dependent metabolic model of radionuclides in Human body

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ye Changqing

    1986-01-01

    Age-dependent metabolic model of radionuclides in human body was introduced briefly. These data are necessary in setting up the secondary dose limit of internal exposure of the general public. For the gastro-intestinal tract model, it was shown that the dose of various sections of GI tract caused by unsoluble radioactive materials were influenced by the mass of section and mean residence time, both of which are age-dependent, but the absorption fraction f 1 through gastro-intestinal tract should be corrected only for the infant less than 1 year of age. For the lung model, it was indicated that the fraction of deposition or clearance of particles in the different compartments of lung were related to age. The doses of tracheobronchial and pulmonary compartment of adult for 222 Rn or 220 Rn with their decay products were one third of that of 6-years old child who received the maximum dose in comparison with other ages. The age-dependent metabolic models in organ and/or body of Tritium, Iodine-131, Caesium-137, radioactive Strontium, Radium and Plutonium were reported. A generalized approach for estimating the effect of age on deposition fractions and retention half-time were presented. Calculated results indicated that younger ages were characterized by increased deposition fraction and decreased half-time for retention. Representative examples were provided for 21 elements of current interest in health physics

  12. Regulation of Ketone Body Metabolism and the Role of PPARα

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maja Grabacka

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Ketogenesis and ketolysis are central metabolic processes activated during the response to fasting. Ketogenesis is regulated in multiple stages, and a nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator activated receptor α (PPARα is one of the key transcription factors taking part in this regulation. PPARα is an important element in the metabolic network, where it participates in signaling driven by the main nutrient sensors, such as AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK, PPARγ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α, and mammalian (mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR and induces hormonal mediators, such as fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21. This work describes the regulation of ketogenesis and ketolysis in normal and malignant cells and briefly summarizes the positive effects of ketone bodies in various neuropathologic conditions.

  13. Body Size of Male Youth Soccer Players: 1978-2015.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malina, Robert M; Figueiredo, António J; Coelho-E-Silva, Manuel J

    2017-10-01

    Studies of the body size and proportions of athletes have a long history. Comparisons of athletes within specific sports across time, though not extensive, indicate both positive and negative trends. To evaluate secular variation in heights and weights of male youth soccer players reported in studies between 1978 and 2015. Reported mean ages, heights, and weights of male soccer players 9-18 years of age were extracted from the literature and grouped into two intervals: 1978-99 and 2000-15. A third-order polynomial was fitted to the mean heights and weights across the age range for each interval, while the Preece-Baines model 1 was fitted to the grand means of mean heights and mean weights within each chronological year to estimate ages at peak height velocity and peak weight velocity for each time interval. Third-order polynomials applied to all data points and estimates based on the Preece-Baines model applied to grand means for each age group provided similar fits. Both indicated secular changes in body size between the two intervals. Secular increases in height and weight between 1978-99 and 2000-15 were especially apparent between 13 and 16 years of age, but estimated ages at peak height velocity (13.01 and 12.91 years) and peak weight velocity (13.86 and 13.77 years) did not differ between the time intervals. Although the body size of youth soccer players increased between 1978-99 and 2000-15, estimated ages at peak height velocity and peak weight velocity did not change. The increase in height and weight likely reflected improved health and nutritional conditions, in addition to the selectivity of soccer reflected in systematic selection and retention of players advanced in maturity status, and exclusion of late maturing players beginning at about 12-13 years of age. Enhanced training programs aimed at the development of strength and power are probably an additional factor contributing to secular increases in body weight.

  14. Are rates of species diversification and body size evolution coupled in the ferns?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Testo, Weston L; Sundue, Michael A

    2018-03-01

    Understanding the relationship between phenotypic evolution and lineage diversification is a central goal of evolutionary biology. To extend our understanding of the role morphological evolution plays in the diversification of plants, we examined the relationship between leaf size evolution and lineage diversification across ferns. We tested for an association between body size evolution and lineage diversification using a comparative phylogenetic approach that combined a time-calibrated phylogeny and leaf size data set for 2654 fern species. Rates of leaf size change and lineage diversification were estimated using BAMM, and rate correlations were performed for rates obtained for all families and individual species. Rates and patterns of rate-rate correlation were also analyzed separately for terrestrial and epiphytic taxa. We find no significant correlation between rates of leaf area change and lineage diversification, nor was there a difference in this pattern when growth habit is considered. Our results are consistent with the findings of an earlier study that reported decoupled rates of body size evolution and diversification in the Polypodiaceae, but conflict with a recent study that reported a positive correlation between body size evolution and lineage diversification rates in the tree fern family Cyatheaceae. Our findings indicate that lineage diversification in ferns is largely decoupled from shifts in body size, in contrast to several other groups of organisms. Speciation in ferns appears to be primarily driven by hybridization and isolation along elevational gradients, rather than adaptive radiations featuring prominent morphological restructuring. The exceptional diversity of leaf morphologies in ferns appears to reflect a combination of ecophysiological constraints and adaptations that are not key innovations. © 2018 Botanical Society of America.

  15. Endothermy in African platypleurine cicadas: the influence of body size and habitat (Hemiptera: Cicadidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanborn, Allen F; Villet, Martin H; Phillips, Polly K

    2004-01-01

    The platypleurine cicadas have a wide distribution across Africa and southern Asia. We investigate endothermy as a thermoregulatory strategy in 11 South African species from five genera, with comparisons to the lone ectothermic platypleurine we found, in an attempt to ascertain any influence that habitat and/or body size have on the expression of endothermy in the platypleurine cicadas. Field measurements of body temperature (T(b)) show that these animals regulate T(b) through endogenous heat production. Heat production in the laboratory elevated T(b) to the same range as in animals active in the field. Maximum T(b) measured during calling activity when there was no access to solar radiation ranged from 13.2 degrees to 22.3 degrees C above ambient temperature in the five species measured. The mean T(b) during activity without access to solar radiation did not differ from the mean T(b) during diurnal activity. All platypleurines exhibit a unique behavior for cicadas while warming endogenously, a temperature-dependent telescoping pulsation of the abdomen that probably functions in ventilation. Platypleurines generally call from trunks and branches within the canopy and appear to rely on endothermy even when the sun is available to elevate T(b), in contrast to the facultative endothermy exhibited by New World endothermic species. The two exceptions to this generalization we found within the platypleurines are Platypleura wahlbergi and Albanycada albigera, which were the smallest species studied. The small size of P. wahlbergi appears to have altered their thermoregulatory strategy to one of facultative endothermy, whereby they use the sun when it is available to facilitate increases in T(b). Albanycada albigera is the only ectothermic platypleurine we found. The habitat and host plant association of A. albigera appear to have influenced the choice of ectothermy as a thermoregulatory strategy, as the species possesses the metabolic machinery to elevate to the T

  16. Life course evolution of body size and breast cancer survival in the E3N cohort.

    Science.gov (United States)

    His, Mathilde; Le Guélennec, Marine; Mesrine, Sylvie; Boutron-Ruault, Marie-Christine; Clavel-Chapelon, Françoise; Fagherazzi, Guy; Dossus, Laure

    2018-04-15

    Although adult obesity has been associated with poor breast cancer survival, data on adiposity at different periods in life and its lifelong evolution are scarce. Our aims were to assess the associations between breast cancer survival and body size during childhood, puberty and early adulthood and body size trajectories from childhood to adulthood. Self-assessed body size at age 8, at puberty, at age 20-25 and at age 35-40 and trajectories of body size of 4,662 breast cancer survivors from the prospective E3N cohort were studied in relation to risk of death from any cause, death from breast cancer and second invasive cancer event using multivariate Cox regression models. Four trajectories of body size were identified (T1 "moderate increase," T2 "stable/low increase," T3 "increase at puberty" and T4 "constantly high"). Compared with stable body size, an increase in body size during adult life was associated with an increased risk of death from any cause (HR T1 vs. T2 = 1.27; 95% CI = 1.01-1.60) and an increased risk of second invasive cancer event (HR T1 vs. T2 = 1.25; 95% CI = 1.06-1.47). Silhouettes at various ages were not associated with survival. Our results suggest that the evolution of body size from childhood to adulthood has a long-term influence on breast cancer survival. Although these results need to be confirmed, this work sheds light on the need to combine lifelong approaches to current BMI to better identify breast cancer survivors who are at higher risk of recurrence or second primary cancer, or of death. © 2017 UICC.

  17. Body-size spectra of biofilm-dwelling protozoa and their seasonal shift in coastal ecosystems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Lu; Xu, Guangjian; Wang, Zheng; Xu, Henglong

    2016-10-01

    Community-based assessment of protozoa is usually performed at a taxon-dependent resolution. As an inherent 'taxon-free' trait, however, body-size spectrum has proved to be a highly informative indicator to summarize the functional structure of a community in both community research and monitoring programs in aquatic ecosystems. To demonstrate the relationships between the taxon-free resolution of protozoan communities and water conditions, the body-size spectra of biofilm-dwelling protozoa and their seasonal shift and environmental drivers were explored based on an annual dataset collected monthly from coastal waters of the Yellow Sea, northern China. Body sizes were calculated in equivalent spherical diameter (ESD). Among a total of 8 body-size ranks, S2 (19-27μm), S3 (28-36μm), S4 (37-50μm) and S5 (53-71μm) were the top four levels in frequency of occurrence, while rank S1 (13-17μm), S2 and S4 were the dominant levels in abundance. These dominants showed a clear seasonal succession: S2/S4 (spring)→S2/S4 (summer)→S4 (autumn)→S2 (winter) in frequency of occurrence; S1 (spring)→S4 (summer)→S2 (autumn)→S1 (winter) in abundance. Bootstrapped average analysis showed a clear seasonal shift in body-size spectra of the protozoa during a 1-year cycle, and the best-matching analysis demonstrated that the temporal variations in frequency of occurrence and abundance were significantly correlated with water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), alone or in combination with chemical oxygen demand (COD) and nutrients. Thus, the body-size spectra of biofilm-dwelling protozoa were seasonally shaped and might be used as a time and cost efficient bioindicator of water quality in marine ecosystems. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  18. Effects of aerobic exercise training on serum sex hormone binding globulin, body fat index, and metabolic syndrome factors in obese postmenopausal women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Jong-Won; Kim, Do-Yeon

    2012-12-01

    The percentage of obese postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome is rising, and physical factors associated with the metabolic syndrome prevalence or incidence are also rising, including high body mass index (BMI), visceral fat area (VFA), low plasma sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels, and low cardiorespiratory fitness. Therefore, we investigated the influence of aerobic exercise on SHBG, body fat index (BFI), and metabolic syndrome factors in obese postmenopausal Korean women. Thirty healthy postmenopausal, women aged 53.46 ± 2.4 years and with over 32% body fat, were randomly assigned to an aerobic exercise group (EX; n=15) or to a "nonexercise" control (Con; n=15) group. The primary outcome measurements were serum SHBG, lipid profiles, insulin levels, and metabolic syndrome factors. Secondary outcome measurements were body composition, VFA, blood pressure (BP), and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Posttraining body weight and BFI (Pmetabolic syndrome factors (Pexercise group but not in the control group. SHBG levels also showed a significant positive correlation with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and significant negative correlations withglucose, diastolic blood pressure, fat mass, BMI, and percent body fat (Pexercise improves body composition, SHBG, insulin levels, and metabolic syndrome factors. These findings suggest that in obesepostmenopausal Korean women, 16 weeks of aerobic exercise is effective for preventing the metabolic syndrome caused by obesity.

  19. Body size and mating success in Drosophila willistoni are ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Mating activity and wing length were investigated in the F1 progeny of Drosophila willistoni females collected in the field to examine any possible relationship between body size and mating success. The flies were observed in a mating chamber under laboratory conditions. No significant differences in wing length were ...

  20. Basal metabolic rate scaled to body mass between species by the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The principal reason that basal metabolic rate (BMR) and MMR scale with different power exponents to whole body mass is that MMR is due mainly to respiration in skeletal muscle during exercise and BMR to respiration in the viscera during rest. It follows, therefore, from the self-similarity of the vascular system that BMR is ...

  1. Variation of Body Size in Rice Water Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and Its Associations with Population Biology

    OpenAIRE

    Huang, Yunshan; Ao, Yan; Jiang, Mingxing; Way, Michael O

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Life history characteristics help us to determine the ability of invasive species to establish and thrive in an exotic environment. However, so far, there have been very few reports concerning geographic variation in the body size of invasive insects and the associations between body size variation and population biology. In this study, we surveyed the geographic variation in body size of an invasive agricultural pest, the rice water weevil Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuschel (Coleopte...

  2. Adenylate Kinase and AMP Signaling Networks: Metabolic Monitoring, Signal Communication and Body Energy Sensing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andre Terzic

    2009-04-01

    Full Text Available Adenylate kinase and downstream AMP signaling is an integrated metabolic monitoring system which reads the cellular energy state in order to tune and report signals to metabolic sensors. A network of adenylate kinase isoforms (AK1-AK7 are distributed throughout intracellular compartments, interstitial space and body fluids to regulate energetic and metabolic signaling circuits, securing efficient cell energy economy, signal communication and stress response. The dynamics of adenylate kinase-catalyzed phosphotransfer regulates multiple intracellular and extracellular energy-dependent and nucleotide signaling processes, including excitation-contraction coupling, hormone secretion, cell and ciliary motility, nuclear transport, energetics of cell cycle, DNA synthesis and repair, and developmental programming. Metabolomic analyses indicate that cellular, interstitial and blood AMP levels are potential metabolic signals associated with vital functions including body energy sensing, sleep, hibernation and food intake. Either low or excess AMP signaling has been linked to human disease such as diabetes, obesity and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Recent studies indicate that derangements in adenylate kinase-mediated energetic signaling due to mutations in AK1, AK2 or AK7 isoforms are associated with hemolytic anemia, reticular dysgenesis and ciliary dyskinesia. Moreover, hormonal, food and antidiabetic drug actions are frequently coupled to alterations of cellular AMP levels and associated signaling. Thus, by monitoring energy state and generating and distributing AMP metabolic signals adenylate kinase represents a unique hub within the cellular homeostatic network.

  3. The role of underestimating body size for self-esteem and self-efficacy among grade five children in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maximova, Katerina; Khan, Mohammad K A; Austin, S Bryn; Kirk, Sara F L; Veugelers, Paul J

    2015-10-01

    Underestimating body size hinders healthy behavior modification needed to prevent obesity. However, initiatives to improve body size misperceptions may have detrimental consequences on self-esteem and self-efficacy. Using sex-specific multiple mixed-effect logistic regression models, we examined the association of underestimating versus accurate body size perceptions with self-esteem and self-efficacy in a provincially representative sample of 5075 grade five school children. Body size perceptions were defined as the standardized difference between the body mass index (BMI, from measured height and weight) and self-perceived body size (Stunkard body rating scale). Self-esteem and self-efficacy for physical activity and healthy eating were self-reported. Most of overweight boys and girls (91% and 83%); and most of obese boys and girls (93% and 90%) underestimated body size. Underestimating weight was associated with greater self-efficacy for physical activity and healthy eating among normal-weight children (odds ratio: 1.9 and 1.6 for boys, 1.5 and 1.4 for girls) and greater self-esteem among overweight and obese children (odds ratio: 2.0 and 6.2 for boys, 2.0 and 3.4 for girls). Results highlight the importance of developing optimal intervention strategies as part of targeted obesity prevention efforts that de-emphasize the focus on body weight, while improving body size perceptions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Microgeographic body size variation in a high elevation Andean anole (Anolis mariarum; Squamata, Polychrotidae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brian C Bock

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available Intra-specific body size variation is common and often is assumed to be adaptive. Studies of body size variation among sites should include or consider environmental and ecological variables in their designs. Additionally, reciprocal transplant or common garden studies will support which variables are really contributing to the observed body size variation. This study analyzed the microgeographic body size variation in Anolis mariarum, a small lizard endemic to Antioquia, Colombia. Parameters such as body size, shape, and lepidosis variation were quantified in 217 adult A. mariarum, belonging to six populations separated by less than 80km. Results showed that significant body size variation was not related to differences among sites in mean annual temperature, but covaried with mean annual precipitation, with the largest individuals occurring in dryer sites. Mark-recapture data obtained from 115 individuals from both the wettest and dryest sites from October 2004 to April 2005 showed that growth rates were higher at the latter. Eight males from each site were captured at the end of the mark- recapture study and reared for two months under identical conditions in a common garden study. Individuals from both sites grew faster when reared in the laboratory with food provided ad libitum. Although growth rates of males from the two populations did not differ significantly in the laboratory, males from the dryest site still maintained a significantly larger asymptotic body size in their growth trajectories. Multivariate analyses also demonstrated that both males and females from the six populations differed in terms of body shape and lepidosis. However, only female body size was found to covary significantly with an environmental gradient (precipitation. A. mariarum does not conform to Bergmann’s rule, but the relationship found between mean body size and asympotic growth with mean annual precipitation at these sites needs further analysis

  5. Insights into bioassessment of marine pollution using body-size distinctness of planktonic ciliates based on a modified trait hierarchy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Henglong; Jiang, Yong; Xu, Guangjian

    2016-06-15

    Based on a modified trait hierarchy of body-size units, the feasibility for bioassessment of water pollution using body-size distinctness of planktonic ciliates was studied in a semi-enclosed bay, northern China. An annual dataset was collected at five sampling stations within a gradient of heavy metal contaminants. Results showed that: (1) in terms of probability density, the body-size spectra of the ciliates represented significant differences among the five stations; (2) bootstrap average analysis demonstrated a spatial variation in body-size rank patterns in response to pollution stress due to heavy metals; and (3) the average body-size distinctness (Δz(+)) and variation in body-size distinctness (Λz(+)), based on the modified trait hierarchy, revealed a clear departure pattern from the expected body-size spectra in areas with pollutants. These results suggest that the body-size diversity measures based on the modified trait hierarchy of the ciliates may be used as a potential indicator of marine pollution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Diabetes Awareness and Body Size Perceptions of Cree Schoolchildren

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willows, Noreen D.; Marshall, Dru; Raine, Kim; Ridley, Denise C.

    2009-01-01

    Native American Indians and First Nations are predisposed to obesity and diabetes. A study was done to understand Cree schoolchildren's diabetes awareness and body size perceptions in two communities that had diabetes awareness-raising activities in the Province of Quebec, Canada. Children (N = 203) in grades 4-6 were classified into weight…

  7. Is higher dairy consumption associated with lower body weight and fewer metabolic disturbances? The Hoorn study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Snijder, Marieke B.; Van Der Heijden, Amber A W A; Van Dam, Rob M.; Stehouwer, Coen D A; Hiddink, Gerrit J.; Nijpels, Giel; Heine, Robert J.; Bouter, Lex M.; Dekker, Jacqueline M.

    2007-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Dairy consumption has been postulated to reduce the risk of obesity and metabolic disturbances. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations of dairy consumption with body weight and other components of the metabolic syndrome. DESIGN: We used cross-sectional data for

  8. Temporal profile of body temperature in acute ischemic stroke: Relation to infarct size and outcome

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    M. Geurts (Marjolein); Scheijmans, F.E.V. (Féline E.V.); T. van Seeters (Tom); G.J. Biessels; L.J. Kappelle (Jaap); B.K. Velthuis (Birgitta K.); H.B. van der Worp (Bart); C.B. Majoie (Charles); Y.B.W.E.M. Roos (Yvo); L.E.M. Duijm (Lucien); K. Keizer (Koos); A. van der Lugt (Aad); D.W.J. Dippel (Diederik); Greve, D. (Droogh-de); H.P. Bienfait (Henri); M.A.A. van Walderveen (Marianne); M.J.H. Wermer (Marieke); G.J. Lycklama à Nijeholt (Geert); J. Boiten (Jelis); A. Duyndam (Anita); V.I.H. Kwa; F.J. Meijer (F.); E.J. van Dijk (Ewoud); A.M. Kesselring (Anouk); J. Hofmeijer; J.A. Vos (Jan Albert); W.J. Schonewille (Wouter); W.J. van Rooij (W.); P.L.M. de Kort (Paul); C.C. Pleiter (C.); S.L.M. Bakker (Stef); Bot, J.; M.C. Visser (Marieke); B.K. Velthuis (Birgitta); I.C. van der Schaaf (Irene); J.W. Dankbaar (Jan); W.P. Mali (Willem); van Seeters, T.; A.D. Horsch (Alexander D.); J.M. Niesten (Joris); G.J. Biessels (Geert Jan); L.J. Kappelle (Jaap); J.S.K. Luitse; Y. van der Graaf (Yolanda)

    2016-01-01

    textabstractBackground: High body temperatures after ischemic stroke have been associated with larger infarct size, but the temporal profile of this relation is unknown. We assess the relation between temporal profile of body temperature and infarct size and functional outcome in patients with acute

  9. A longitudinal study of the relationships between the Big Five personality traits and body size perception.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hartmann, Christina; Siegrist, Michael

    2015-06-01

    The present study investigated the longitudinal development of body size perception in relation to different personality traits. A sample of Swiss adults (N=2905, 47% men), randomly selected from the telephone book, completed a questionnaire on two consecutive years (2012, 2013). Body size perception was assessed with the Contour Drawing Rating Scale and personality traits were assessed with a short version of the Big Five Inventory. Longitudinal analysis of change indicated that men and women scoring higher on conscientiousness perceived themselves as thinner one year later. In contrast, women scoring higher on neuroticism perceived their body size as larger one year later. No significant effect was observed for men scoring higher on neuroticism. These results were independent of weight changes, body mass index, age, and education. Our findings suggest that personality traits contribute to body size perception among adults. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Tradeoffs in the evolution of caste and body size in the hyperdiverse ant genus Pheidole.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Terrence P McGlynn

    Full Text Available The efficient investment of resources is often the route to ecological success, and the adaptability of resource investment may play a critical role in promoting biodiversity. The ants of the "hyperdiverse" genus Pheidole produce two discrete sterile castes, soldiers and minor workers. Within Pheidole, there is tremendous interspecific variation in proportion of soldiers. The causes and correlates of caste ratio variation among species of Pheidole remain enigmatic. Here we test whether a body size threshold model accounts for interspecific variation in caste ratio in Pheidole, such that species with larger body sizes produce relatively fewer soldiers within their colonies. We evaluated the caste ratio of 26 species of Pheidole and found that the body size of workers accounts for interspecific variation in the production of soldiers as we predicted. Twelve species sampled from one forest in Costa Rica yielded the same relationship as found in previously published data from many localities. We conclude that production of soldiers in the most species-rich group of ants is regulated by a body size threshold mechanism, and that the great variation in body size and caste ratio in Pheidole plays a role in niche divergence in this rapidly evolving taxon.

  11. Interdependent effects of male and female body size plasticity on mating behaviour of predatory mites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walzer, Andreas; Schausberger, Peter

    2015-02-01

    The adaptive canalization hypothesis predicts that traits with low phenotypic plasticity are more fitness relevant, because they have been canalized via strong past selection, than traits with high phenotypic plasticity. Based on differing male body size plasticities of the predatory mites Phytoseiulus persimilis (low plasticity) and Neoseiulus californicus (high plasticity), we accordingly hypothesized that small male body size entails higher costs in female choice and male-male competition in P. persimilis than N. californicus . Males of both species are highly polygynous but females differ in the level of polyandry (low level in P. persimilis ; medium level in N. californicus ). We videotaped the mating interactions in triplets of either P. persimilis or N. californicus , consisting of a virgin female (small or standard-sized) and a small and a standard-sized male. Mating by both small and standard-sized P. persimilis females was biased towards standard-sized males, resulting from the interplay between female preference for standard-sized males and the inferiority of small males in male-male competition. In contrast, mating by N. californicus females was equally balanced between small and standard-sized males. Small N. californicus males were more aggressive ('Napoleon complex') in male-male competition, reducing the likelihood of encounter between the standard-sized male and the female, and thus counterbalancing female preference for standard-sized males. Our results support the hypothesis that male body size is more important to fitness in the low-level polyandrous P. persimilis than in the medium-level polyandrous N. californicus and provide a key example of the implications of sexually selected body size plasticity on mating behaviour.

  12. Iodine metabolism in leprosy patients (examination with a method of whole-body radiometry)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Balybin, E.S.

    1986-01-01

    A method of whole-body radiometry was used to study iodine metabolism in 47 patients with lepromatous leprosy. Disorders were found in 1/3 of the cases. The level of organic iodine in the body was the most informative of all iodine metabolism indices. In the active stage of leprosy it was twice as low, on an average, as the normal one, in the stage of incomplete and stable regression it rose not reaching, however, the values of healthy persons. The content of iodine in the thyroid of leprosy patients showed a tendency to a rise starting from the active stage, however it was only in the stages of incomplete and stable regression that it significantly exceeded the normal level. The data obtained should be considered during therapy of lepers to predict and control an unfavorable complication like specific polyneuritis

  13. The tempo and mode of evolution: body sizes of island mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raia, Pasquale; Meiri, Shai

    2011-07-01

    The tempo and mode of body size evolution on islands are believed to be well known. It is thought that body size evolves relatively quickly on islands toward the mammalian modal value, thus generating extreme cases of size evolution and the island rule. Here, we tested both theories in a phylogenetically explicit context, by using two different species-level mammalian phylogenetic hypotheses limited to sister clades dichotomizing into an exclusively insular and an exclusively mainland daughter nodes. Taken as a whole, mammals were found to show a largely punctuational mode of size evolution. We found that, accounting for this, and regardless of the phylogeny used, size evolution on islands is no faster than on the continents. We compared different selection regimes using a set of Ornstein-Uhlenbeck models to examine the effects of insularity of the mode of evolution. The models strongly supported clade-specific selection regimes. Under this regime, however, an evolutionary model allowing insular species to evolve differently from their mainland relatives performs worse than a model that ignores insularity as a factor. Thus, insular taxa do not experience statistically different selection from their mainland relatives. © 2011 The Author(s). Evolution© 2011 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  14. Effects of TiO2 nanoparticles on nutrition metabolism in silkworm fat body

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. H. Tian

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Silkworm (Bombyx mori is an important economic insect with a fat body that plays a crucial role in the storage and transfer of nutrients. It is also known that TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs can improve feed efficiency and promote silk protein synthesis in the silkworm. In this study, we profiled gene expression in the silkworm fat body after TiO2 NP treatment, validated the major RNA-seq findings, and determined the contents of trehalose and triglyceride, the activity of lipase, and the amount of total proteins. RNA-seq analysis revealed that TiO2 NP treatment caused significant expression changes in 341 genes (P≤0.01, 138 of which were upregulated while the other 203 were downregulated. The expression levels of two target genes in the insulin signaling pathway and two protein metabolism-related target genes, three lipid metabolism-associated target genes, two carbohydrate metabolism related target genes and expression levels of seven heat shock protein genes were increased, and that of threonine dehydratase gene and fatty acid transport protein gene were decreased. The RNA-seq results of 16 genes were validated by quantitative real-time PCR. The lipase activity, content of trehalose, and amount of total proteins were elevated by 3.86-fold, 1.34-fold, and 1.21-fold, respectively, and the content of triglyceride was decreased by 0.94-fold after TiO2 NP treatment. These results indicated that TiO2 NPs activated the insulin signaling pathway, promoted the metabolism of protein, fat, and carbohydrate, and improved nutrition metabolism. Our study provides new support for the understanding of the beneficial effect of TiO2 NPs on silkworm nutrient metabolism.

  15. Role of media and peers on body change strategies among adult men: is body size important?

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCabe, Marita P; McGreevy, Shauna J

    2011-01-01

    There has been limited previous research that has examined the role of sociocultural influences on body change strategies among adult men. The current study investigated the role of specific types of messages (encouragement, teasing and modelling) from peers and the media on the strategies to change weight among adult men. Differences were evaluated between 526 men aged from 18 to 60 years from three groups (normal weight, overweight and obese) on body image, body change strategies and messages about their body received from peers and the media. Men were primarily drawn from United States, Australia and Europe. Results showed that messages received by men regarding losing weight or increasing muscle size differed according to weight. Body image and media messages were the strongest predictors of losing weight, whereas body image importance and messages from peers were the strongest predictors of increasing muscles. These findings highlight the importance of sociocultural influences on body change strategies among adult males. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

  16. How acoustic signals scale with individual body size: common trends across diverse taxa

    OpenAIRE

    Rafael L. Rodríguez; Marcelo Araya-Salas; David A. Gray; Michael S. Reichert; Laurel B. Symes; Matthew R. Wilkins; Rebecca J. Safran; Gerlinde Höbel

    2015-01-01

    We use allometric analysis to explore how acoustic signals scale on individual body size and to test hypotheses about the factors shaping relationships between signals and body size. Across case studies spanning birds, crickets, tree crickets, and tree frogs, we find that most signal traits had low coefficients of variation, shallow allometric scalings, and little dispersion around the allometric function. We relate variation in these measures to the shape of mate preferences and the level of...

  17. Effects of Contingency versus Constraints on the Body-Mass Scaling of Metabolic Rate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Douglas S. Glazier

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available I illustrate the effects of both contingency and constraints on the body-mass scaling of metabolic rate by analyzing the significantly different influences of ambient temperature (Ta on metabolic scaling in ectothermic versus endothermic animals. Interspecific comparisons show that increasing Ta results in decreasing metabolic scaling slopes in ectotherms, but increasing slopes in endotherms, a pattern uniquely predicted by the metabolic-level boundaries hypothesis, as amended to include effects of the scaling of thermal conductance in endotherms outside their thermoneutral zone. No other published theoretical model explicitly predicts this striking variation in metabolic scaling, which I explain in terms of contingent effects of Ta and thermoregulatory strategy in the context of physical and geometric constraints related to the scaling of surface area, volume, and heat flow across surfaces. My analysis shows that theoretical models focused on an ideal 3/4-power law, as explained by a single universally applicable mechanism, are clearly inadequate for explaining the diversity and environmental sensitivity of metabolic scaling. An important challenge is to develop a theory of metabolic scaling that recognizes the contingent effects of multiple mechanisms that are modulated by several extrinsic and intrinsic factors within specified constraints.

  18. Adaptive evolution of body size subject to indirect effect in trophic cascade system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Xin; Fan, Meng; Hao, Lina

    2017-09-01

    Trophic cascades represent a classic example of indirect effect and are wide-spread in nature. Their ecological impact are well established, but the evolutionary consequences have received even less theoretical attention. We theoretically and numerically investigate the trait (i.e., body size of consumer) evolution in response to indirect effect in a trophic cascade system. By applying the quantitative trait evolutionary theory and the adaptive dynamic theory, we formulate and explore two different types of eco-evolutionary resource-consumer-predator trophic cascade model. First, an eco-evolutionary model incorporating the rapid evolution is formulated to investigate the effect of rapid evolution of the consumer's body size, and to explore the impact of density-mediate indirect effect on the population dynamics and trait dynamics. Next, by employing the adaptive dynamic theory, a long-term evolutionary model of consumer body size is formulated to evaluate the effect of long-term evolution on the population dynamics and the effect of trait-mediate indirect effect. Those models admit rich dynamics that has not been observed yet in empirical studies. It is found that, both in the trait-mediated and density-mediated system, the body size of consumer in predator-consumer-resource interaction (indirect effect) evolves smaller than that in consumer-resource and predator-consumer interaction (direct effect). Moreover, in the density-mediated system, we found that the evolution of consumer body size contributes to avoiding consumer extinction (i.e., evolutionary rescue). The trait-mediate and density-mediate effects may produce opposite evolutionary response. This study suggests that the trophic cascade indirect effect affects consumer evolution, highlights a more comprehensive mechanistic understanding of the intricate interplay between ecological and evolutionary force. The modeling approaches provide avenue for study on indirect effects from an evolutionary perspective

  19. Metabolism of ketone bodies during exercise and training: physiological basis for exogenous supplementation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, Mark; Cogan, Karl E.

    2016-01-01

    Abstract Optimising training and performance through nutrition strategies is central to supporting elite sportspeople, much of which has focused on manipulating the relative intake of carbohydrate and fat and their contributions as fuels for energy provision. The ketone bodies, namely acetoacetate, acetone and β‐hydroxybutyrate (βHB), are produced in the liver during conditions of reduced carbohydrate availability and serve as an alternative fuel source for peripheral tissues including brain, heart and skeletal muscle. Ketone bodies are oxidised as a fuel source during exercise, are markedly elevated during the post‐exercise recovery period, and the ability to utilise ketone bodies is higher in exercise‐trained skeletal muscle. The metabolic actions of ketone bodies can alter fuel selection through attenuating glucose utilisation in peripheral tissues, anti‐lipolytic effects on adipose tissue, and attenuation of proteolysis in skeletal muscle. Moreover, ketone bodies can act as signalling metabolites, with βHB acting as an inhibitor of histone deacetylases, an important regulator of the adaptive response to exercise in skeletal muscle. Recent development of ketone esters facilitates acute ingestion of βHB that results in nutritional ketosis without necessitating restrictive dietary practices. Initial reports suggest this strategy alters the metabolic response to exercise and improves exercise performance, while other lines of evidence suggest roles in recovery from exercise. The present review focuses on the physiology of ketone bodies during and after exercise and in response to training, with specific interest in exploring the physiological basis for exogenous ketone supplementation and potential benefits for performance and recovery in athletes. PMID:27861911

  20. [Analysis of body composition and resting metabolic rate of 858 middle-aged and elderly people in urban area of Beijing].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, D N; Xian, T Z; Wang, L J; Cheng, B; Sun, M X; Guo, L X

    2018-05-10

    Objective: To understand the overweight rate and obesity rate in middle-aged and elderly people in urban area of Beijing, and analyze the changes of body composition and resting metabolic rate with age. Methods: From November 2014 to December 2015, body composition measurement and resting metabolic rate detection were conducted among 858 people aged 51 to 99 years, including 760 men, 98 women, who received physical examination at Beijing Hospital. Results: The overweight rate was 51.4 % , and the obesity rate was 16.9 % . The overweight rate was 26.5 % and the obesity rate was 14.3 % in women, significantly lower than those in men (54.6 % and 17.2 % ) ( P area and resting metabolic rate in different age groups were different ( P area increased obviously ( P area increased significantly in age group 70- years ( P area of Beijing, and the rates were higher in men than in women. With the increase of age, the skeletal muscle volume, muscle index and resting metabolic rate gradually decreased, while the percentage of body fat and visceral fat area increased; Overweight and obese people had earlier changes in body composition and resting metabolic rate.

  1. Race differences in accuracy of self-reported childhood body size among white and black women

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Field, AE; Franko, DL; Striegel-Moore, RH; Schreiber, GB; Crawford, PB; Daniels, [No Value

    Objective: To assess the relation of self-reported current and recalled preadolescent body size to measured BMI (kilograms per meter squared) and interviewer's assessment of body size. 4Research Methods and Procedures: This was a prospective cohort study of 1890 white and black women who were 9 to

  2. Mice divergently selected for high and low basal metabolic rates evolved different cell size and organ mass.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maciak, S; Bonda-Ostaszewska, E; Czarnołęski, M; Konarzewski, M; Kozłowski, J

    2014-03-01

    Evolution of metabolic rates of multicellular organisms is hypothesized to reflect the evolution of their cell architecture. This is likely to stem from a tight link between the sizes of cells and nuclei, which are expected to be inversely related to cell metabolism. Here, we analysed basal metabolic rate (BMR), internal organ masses and the cell/nucleus size in different tissues of laboratory mice divergently selected for high/low mass-corrected BMR and four random-bred mouse lines. Random-bred lines had intermediate levels of BMR as compared to low- and high-BMR lines. Yet, this pattern was only partly consistent with the between-line differences in cell/nucleus sizes. Erythrocytes and skin epithelium cells were smaller in the high-BMR line than in other lines, but the cells of low-BMR and random-bred mice were similar in size. On the other hand, the size of hepatocytes, kidney proximal tubule cells and duodenum enterocytes were larger in high-BMR mice than other lines. All cell and nucleus sizes were positively correlated, which supports the role of the nucleus in cell size regulation. Our results suggest that the evolution of high BMR involves a reduction in cell size in specialized tissues, whose functions are primarily dictated by surface-to-volume ratios, such as erythrocytes. High BMR may, however, also incur an increase in cell size in tissues with an intense transcription and translation, such as hepatocytes. © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2014 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

  3. The island rule of body size demonstrated on individual hosts

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Molleman, Freerk; Depoilly, Alexandre; Vernon, Philippe; Müller, Jörg; Bailey, Richard; Jarzabek-Müller, Andrea; Prinzing, Andreas

    2016-01-01

    Aim: Under spatial isolation on oceanic islands, species tend to show extreme body sizes. From the point of view of many colonizers, individual hosts surrounded by phylogenetically distant neighbours are phylogenetically isolated. This study addresses for the first time how phylogenetic isolation

  4. Penis size interacts with body shape and height to influence male attractiveness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mautz, Brian S; Wong, Bob B M; Peters, Richard A; Jennions, Michael D

    2013-04-23

    Compelling evidence from many animal taxa indicates that male genitalia are often under postcopulatory sexual selection for characteristics that increase a male's relative fertilization success. There could, however, also be direct precopulatory female mate choice based on male genital traits. Before clothing, the nonretractable human penis would have been conspicuous to potential mates. This observation has generated suggestions that human penis size partly evolved because of female choice. Here we show, based upon female assessment of digitally projected life-size, computer-generated images, that penis size interacts with body shape and height to determine male sexual attractiveness. Positive linear selection was detected for penis size, but the marginal increase in attractiveness eventually declined with greater penis size (i.e., quadratic selection). Penis size had a stronger effect on attractiveness in taller men than in shorter men. There was a similar increase in the positive effect of penis size on attractiveness with a more masculine body shape (i.e., greater shoulder-to-hip ratio). Surprisingly, larger penis size and greater height had almost equivalent positive effects on male attractiveness. Our results support the hypothesis that female mate choice could have driven the evolution of larger penises in humans. More broadly, our results show that precopulatory sexual selection can play a role in the evolution of genital traits.

  5. Blood flow to long bones indicates activity metabolism in mammals, reptiles and dinosaurs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seymour, Roger S; Smith, Sarah L; White, Craig R; Henderson, Donald M; Schwarz-Wings, Daniela

    2012-02-07

    The cross-sectional area of a nutrient foramen of a long bone is related to blood flow requirements of the internal bone cells that are essential for dynamic bone remodelling. Foramen area increases with body size in parallel among living mammals and non-varanid reptiles, but is significantly larger in mammals. An index of blood flow rate through the foramina is about 10 times higher in mammals than in reptiles, and even higher if differences in blood pressure are considered. The scaling of foramen size correlates well with maximum whole-body metabolic rate during exercise in mammals and reptiles, but less well with resting metabolic rate. This relates to the role of blood flow associated with bone remodelling during and following activity. Mammals and varanid lizards have much higher aerobic metabolic rates and exercise-induced bone remodelling than non-varanid reptiles. Foramen areas of 10 species of dinosaur from five taxonomic groups are generally larger than from mammals, indicating a routinely highly active and aerobic lifestyle. The simple measurement holds possibilities offers the possibility of assessing other groups of extinct and living vertebrates in relation to body size, behaviour and habitat.

  6. Does the experience of ownership over a rubber hand change body size perception in anorexia nervosa patients?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Keizer, Anouk; Smeets, Monique A M; Postma, Albert; van Elburg, Annemarie; Dijkerman, H. Chris

    Anorexia nervosa (AN) patients show disturbances in body size experience. Here, malleability of body representation was assessed by inducing the Rubber Hand Illusion (RHI). Specifically the impact of the illusion on body size estimation was investigated.Thirty AN patients and thirty healthy females

  7. Is higher dairy consumption associated with lower body weight and fewer metabolic disturbances? The Hoorn Study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Snijder, M.B.; Heijden, van der A.A.; Dam, van R.M.; Stehouwer, C.D.A.; Hiddink, G.J.; Nijpels, Giel; Heine, R.J.; Bouter, L.M.; Dekker, J.M.

    2007-01-01

    Objective:The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations of dairy consumption with body weight and other components of the metabolic syndrome. Design:We used cross-sectional data for 2064 men and women aged 50¿75 y who participated in the Hoorn Study. The metabolic syndrome was defined

  8. Insect temperature-body size trends common to laboratory, latitudinal and seasonal gradients are not found across altitudes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Horne, Curtis R.; Hirst, Andrew G.; Atkinson, David

    2018-01-01

    Body size affects rates of most biological and ecological processes, from individual performance to ecosystem function, and is fundamentally linked to organism fitness. Within species, size at maturity can vary systematically with environmental temperature in the laboratory and across seasons...... altitude. Although the general direction of body size clines along altitudinal gradients has been examined previously, to our knowledge altitude-body size (A-S) clines have never been synthesised quantitatively, nor compared with temperature-size (T-S) responses measured under controlled laboratory......, as well as over latitudinal gradients. Recent meta-analyses have revealed a close match in the magnitude and direction of these size gradients in various arthropod orders, suggesting that these size responses share common drivers. As with increasing latitude, temperature also decreases with increasing...

  9. Perspectives on the metabolic management of epilepsy through dietary reduction of glucose and elevation of ketone bodies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greene, Amanda E; Todorova, Mariana T; Seyfried, Thomas N

    2003-08-01

    Brain cells are metabolically flexible because they can derive energy from both glucose and ketone bodies (acetoacetate and beta-hydroxybutyrate). Metabolic control theory applies principles of bioenergetics and genome flexibility to the management of complex phenotypic traits. Epilepsy is a complex brain disorder involving excessive, synchronous, abnormal electrical firing patterns of neurons. We propose that many epilepsies with varied etiologies may ultimately involve disruptions of brain energy homeostasis and are potentially manageable through principles of metabolic control theory. This control involves moderate shifts in the availability of brain energy metabolites (glucose and ketone bodies) that alter energy metabolism through glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle, respectively. These shifts produce adjustments in gene-linked metabolic networks that manage or control the seizure disorder despite the continued presence of the inherited or acquired factors responsible for the epilepsy. This hypothesis is supported by information on the management of seizures with diets including fasting, the ketogenic diet and caloric restriction. A better understanding of the compensatory genetic and neurochemical networks of brain energy metabolism may produce novel antiepileptic therapies that are more effective and biologically friendly than those currently available.

  10. Regulation of Caenorhabditis elegans body size and male tail development by the novel gene lon-8

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Korswagen Hendrik C

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background In C. elegans and other nematode species, body size is determined by the composition of the extracellular cuticle as well as by the nuclear DNA content of the underlying hypodermis. Mutants that are defective in these processes can exhibit either a short or a long body size phenotype. Several mutations that give a long body size (Lon phenotype have been characterized and found to be regulated by the DBL-1/TGF-β pathway, that controls post-embryonic growth and male tail development. Results Here we characterize a novel gene affecting body size. lon-8 encodes a secreted product of the hypodermis that is highly conserved in Rhabditid nematodes. lon-8 regulates larval elongation as well as male tail development. In both processes, lon-8 appears to function independently of the Sma/Mab pathway. Rather, lon-8 genetically interacts with dpy-11 and dpy-18, which encode cuticle collagen modifying enzymes. Conclusion The novel gene lon-8 encodes a secreted product of the hypodermis that controls body size and male ray morphology in C. elegans. lon-8 genetically interacts with enzymes that affect the composition of the cuticle.

  11. The effect of body size evolution and ecology on encephalization in cave bears and extant relatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Veitschegger, Kristof

    2017-06-05

    The evolution of larger brain volumes relative to body size in Mammalia is the subject of an extensive amount of research. Early on palaeontologists were interested in the brain of cave bears, Ursus spelaeus, and described its morphology and size. However, until now, it was not possible to compare the absolute or relative brain size in a phylogenetic context due to the lack of an established phylogeny, comparative material, and phylogenetic comparative methods. In recent years, many tools for comparing traits within phylogenies were developed and the phylogenetic position of cave bears was resolved based on nuclear as well as mtDNA. Cave bears exhibit significantly lower encephalization compared to their contemporary relatives and intraspecific brain mass variation remained rather small. Encephalization was correlated with the combined dormancy-diet score. Body size evolution was a main driver in the degree of encephalization in cave bears as it increased in a much higher pace than brain size. In Ursus spelaeus, brain and body size increase over time albeit differently paced. This rate pattern is different in the highest encephalized bear species within the dataset, Ursus malayanus. The brain size in this species increased while body size heavily decreased compared to its ancestral stage. Early on in the evolution of cave bears encephalization decreased making it one of the least encephalized bear species compared to extant and extinct members of Ursidae. The results give reason to suspect that as herbivorous animals, cave bears might have exhibited a physiological buffer strategy to survive the strong seasonality of their environment. Thus, brain size was probably affected by the negative trade-off with adipose tissue as well as diet. The decrease of relative brain size in the herbivorous Ursus spelaeus is the result of a considerable increase in body size possibly in combination with environmental conditions forcing them to rest during winters.

  12. Thermodynamics of the living organisms. Allometric relationship between the total metabolic energy, chemical energy and body temperature in mammals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atanasov, Atanas Todorov

    2017-11-01

    The study present relationship between the total metabolic energy (ETME(c), J) derived as a function of body chemical energy (Gchem, J) and absolute temperature (Tb, K) in mammals: ETME(c) =Gchem (Tb/Tn). In formula the temperature Tn =2.73K appears normalization temperature. The calculated total metabolic energy ETME(c) differs negligible from the total metabolic energy ETME(J), received as a product between the basal metabolic rate (Pm, J/s) and the lifespan (Tls, s) of mammals: ETME = Pm×Tls. The physical nature and biological mean of the normalization temperature (Tn, K) is unclear. It is made the hypothesis that the kTn energy (where k= 1.3806×10-23 J/K -Boltzmann constant) presents energy of excitation states (modes) in biomolecules and body structures that could be in equilibrium with chemical energy accumulated in body. This means that the accumulated chemical energy allows trough all body molecules and structures to propagate excitations states with kTn energy with wavelength in the rage of width of biological membranes. The accumulated in biomolecules chemical energy maintains spread of the excited states through biomolecules without loss of energy.

  13. Human TP53 polymorphism (rs1042522) modelled in mouse does not affect glucose metabolism and body composition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reiling, Erwin; Speksnijder, Ewoud N; Pronk, Amanda C M; van den Berg, Sjoerd A A; Neggers, Silvia J W; Rietbroek, Ilma; van Steeg, Harry; Dollé, Martijn E T

    2014-02-13

    Variation in TP53 has been associated with cancer. The pro-allele of a TP53 polymorphism in codon 72 (rs1042522) has been associated with longevity. Recently, we showed that the same allele might be involved in preservation of glucose metabolism, body composition and blood pressure during ageing. Here, we assessed glucose tolerance and body composition in mice carrying the human polymorphism. Our data do not support the previous findings in humans, suggesting that this polymorphism does not play a major role in development of glucose metabolism and body composition during ageing. Alternatively, the mouse model may not be suitable to validate these rs1042522-associated traits up to the age tested.

  14. EFFECTS OF RATION SIZE AND TEMPERATURE ON MOULT INCREMENT AND METABOLIC PARAMETERS OF JUVENILE NOBLE CRAYFISH, ASTACUS ASTACUS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    RENAI B.

    2007-07-01

    Full Text Available A laboratory experiment was carried out to test the combined effects of ration size (1 vs 3% body weight, b.w. and temperature (15 ± 2 vs 22 ± 2 °C on moult increment and metabolic parameters of 80 juvenile noble crayfish (Astacus astacus. The maximum daily consumption (Cmax and respiration rate (R were used to calculate the growth scope (i.e. the difference between maximum daily energy consumption and energy costs at a given temperature. The conversion of R into a food-equivalent unit allowed the comparison with Cmax. Results showed that crayfish obtained the maximum moult increment when fed 3% b.w. while temperature seemed to play a less relevant role on growth rate per moult, affecting only the moulting frequency. Crayfish A. astacus fed ad libitum showed a relative insensitivity to the metabolic parameters (oxygen uptake, R and Cmax within the analysed range of temperatures, possibly as a reflection of this “species” distribution across a broad variety of habitats with different thermal regimes. In the present study, A. astacus displayed characteristics proper of a K-selected species, as slow to moderate growth.

  15. Dynamics of human whole body amino acid metabolism

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Young, V.R.

    1981-01-01

    The mechanism of regulation of the nitrogen metabolism in humans under various nutritional and physiological states was examined using stable isotopes. In the simultaneous continuous infusion of 1- [ 13 ] - leucine and α- [ 15 N]- lysine, their fluxed decreased when individuals received lower protein intake. The rates of oxidation and incorporation into body proteins of leucine changed in parallel with the protein intake. Such effects of diet on whole body leucine kinetics were modified by the energy state and dietary energy level. The nitrogen balance was also improved by an excess level of dietary energy. When the intake of dietary protein was lowered below the maintenance level, the whole body flux and de novo synthesis of glycine were lowered, but alanine synthesis was clearly increased. The intravenous infusion of glucose at 4 mg/kg.min, which causes increase in excess blood sugar and plasma insulin, increased the alanine flux, but had no effect on the glycine flux. The rate of albumin synthesis, determined by giving 15 N-glycine orally every 3 hr, decreased with the lowered intake of dietary protein in young men, but not in elderly men. This explains why the serum albumin synthesis increases with the increase in the intake of dietary protein in young men, but not in elderly men. The rate of whole body protein synthesis in young men receiving the L-amino acid diets providing with the required intake of specific amino acid was much lower than that in the men receiving the diets providing with generous intake of specific amino acid. Thus the control mechanism to maintain the homeostasis of body nitrogen and amino acids is related in some unknown way to the nutritional requirement of the hosts. (Kaihara, S.)

  16. Body size of commom opossum Didelphis aurita Wied-Neuwied 1826 (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae on southern brazilian islands

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    CH. Salvador

    Full Text Available The body size of vertebrates isolated on islands can undergo changes due to ecological features of these environments. This study aimed to compare the body size of the common opossum, Didelphis aurita, from different insular populations within the same archipelago in southern Brazil. The opossum populations showed corporal variation and different hypotheses were raised to understand the results. This study constitutes the most detailed body size comparison of a marsupial within different insular populations in the Neotropical zone and the data gathered represents an initial contribution for regional fauna biometric knowledge.

  17. Life course variations in the heritability of body size

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhao, J.; Luan, J.A.; Sharp, S.J.

    aim was to use this approach to investigate the life course variations in heritability of body size. Methods: We analysed height, weight and body mass index variables at 11 time-points in 2,452 individuals (1,225 men, 1,227 women) born in 1946 and enrolled in the MRC National Survey of Health...... and Development (NSHD), with genotypes at 147,949 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on Metabochips which were subsequently imputed to 506,255 according to the 1000Genomes project. We obtained genome-wide kinship matrices using genotypes at SNPs on Metabochips and genotypes at all SNPs, which were used.......11(0-0.20), 0.10(0-0.22) for height, weight and body mass index, respectively. Variation in estimates was also seen between alternative procedures. Conclusion: This work supports the utility of large-scale genotype data in heritability estimation and highlights the age-related variability in genetic...

  18. Variations in otolith patterns, sizes and body morphometrics of jack mackerel Trachurus japonicus juveniles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kanaji, Y; Kishida, M; Watanabe, Y; Kawamura, T; Xie, S; Yamashita, Y; Sassa, C; Tsukamoto, Y

    2010-10-01

    Variations in otolith patterns, sizes and body morphometrics of jack mackerel Trachurus japonicus juveniles were investigated. Under transmitted light, translucent (W(t)) and opaque otoliths (W(o)) were detected in juveniles collected from Wakasa Bay between July 2005 and April 2006, whereas only opaque otoliths (G(o)) were detected in Goto-nada Sea individuals between May and June 2006. Three groups of juveniles were distinguished based on differences in hatch season, otolith size and growth history, and body morphometrics. As T. japonicus has different spawning seasons according to spawning grounds, each group was estimated to hatch in different waters. Juveniles with W(t) otoliths were considered to have stayed in coastal habitat longer, as the hatch area was estimated to be near Wakasa Bay. Juveniles with W(o) and G(o) otoliths appear to recruit to coastal waters at larger size, since their hatch areas were estimated to be far from each collection area. Larger otoliths of W(t) were attributed to otolith accretion after the second growth flexion, which was observed only for W(t) . Standard length of W(t) fish at the second otolith growth flexion was estimated to correspond to recruitment size to coastal rocky reefs in Wakasa Bay. Body morphometrics were correlated with otolith size after removing body size effect, suggesting that morphological variations of T. japonicus juveniles were also associated with the timing of recruitment to coastal habitat. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

  19. Whole-Body Vibration Mimics the Metabolic Effects of Exercise in Male Leptin Receptor-Deficient Mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGee-Lawrence, Meghan E; Wenger, Karl H; Misra, Sudipta; Davis, Catherine L; Pollock, Norman K; Elsalanty, Mohammed; Ding, Kehong; Isales, Carlos M; Hamrick, Mark W; Wosiski-Kuhn, Marlena; Arounleut, Phonepasong; Mattson, Mark P; Cutler, Roy G; Yu, Jack C; Stranahan, Alexis M

    2017-05-01

    Whole-body vibration (WBV) has gained attention as a potential exercise mimetic, but direct comparisons with the metabolic effects of exercise are scarce. To determine whether WBV recapitulates the metabolic and osteogenic effects of physical activity, we exposed male wild-type (WT) and leptin receptor-deficient (db/db) mice to daily treadmill exercise (TE) or WBV for 3 months. Body weights were analyzed and compared with WT and db/db mice that remained sedentary. Glucose and insulin tolerance testing revealed comparable attenuation of hyperglycemia and insulin resistance in db/db mice following TE or WBV. Both interventions reduced body weight in db/db mice and normalized muscle fiber diameter. TE or WBV also attenuated adipocyte hypertrophy in visceral adipose tissue and reduced hepatic lipid content in db/db mice. Although the effects of leptin receptor deficiency on cortical bone structure were not eliminated by either intervention, exercise and WBV increased circulating levels of osteocalcin in db/db mice. In the context of increased serum osteocalcin, the modest effects of TE and WBV on bone geometry, mineralization, and biomechanics may reflect subtle increases in osteoblast activity in multiple areas of the skeleton. Taken together, these observations indicate that WBV recapitulates the effects of exercise on metabolism in type 2 diabetes.

  20. Metabolism of ketone bodies during exercise and training: physiological basis for exogenous supplementation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, Mark; Cogan, Karl E; Egan, Brendan

    2017-05-01

    Optimising training and performance through nutrition strategies is central to supporting elite sportspeople, much of which has focused on manipulating the relative intake of carbohydrate and fat and their contributions as fuels for energy provision. The ketone bodies, namely acetoacetate, acetone and β-hydroxybutyrate (βHB), are produced in the liver during conditions of reduced carbohydrate availability and serve as an alternative fuel source for peripheral tissues including brain, heart and skeletal muscle. Ketone bodies are oxidised as a fuel source during exercise, are markedly elevated during the post-exercise recovery period, and the ability to utilise ketone bodies is higher in exercise-trained skeletal muscle. The metabolic actions of ketone bodies can alter fuel selection through attenuating glucose utilisation in peripheral tissues, anti-lipolytic effects on adipose tissue, and attenuation of proteolysis in skeletal muscle. Moreover, ketone bodies can act as signalling metabolites, with βHB acting as an inhibitor of histone deacetylases, an important regulator of the adaptive response to exercise in skeletal muscle. Recent development of ketone esters facilitates acute ingestion of βHB that results in nutritional ketosis without necessitating restrictive dietary practices. Initial reports suggest this strategy alters the metabolic response to exercise and improves exercise performance, while other lines of evidence suggest roles in recovery from exercise. The present review focuses on the physiology of ketone bodies during and after exercise and in response to training, with specific interest in exploring the physiological basis for exogenous ketone supplementation and potential benefits for performance and recovery in athletes. © 2016 The Authors. The Journal of Physiology © 2016 The Physiological Society.

  1. Association of regular walking and body mass index on metabolic syndrome among an elderly Korean population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Soonyoung; Kim, Dong-Il

    2018-06-01

    Aging is associated with increased body fat and lower lean body mass, which leads to increased prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome. This study aimed to investigate the association of regular participation in walking and body mass index (BMI) with metabolic syndrome and its 5 criteria in elderly Koreans. A total of 3554 (male = 1581, female = 1973) elderly subjects (age ≥ 65 years), who participated in the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES V) were analyzed in this cross-sectional study. Participation in walking activity, BMI, metabolic syndrome and its 5 criteria; waist circumference (WC), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), fasting glucose (FG) levels, triglyceride (TG) levels, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) levels, were measured. Subjects were categorized into four groups based on the duration and regularity of their walks and BMI. In the regular walking (≥30 min of continuous walking a day, on ≥5 days a week) and normal weight (BMI metabolic syndrome was 4.36 times higher (Odds ratio [OR]: 4.36, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.37-5.63) in the non-regular walking and overweight group than that of the regular walking and normal weight group after controlling for the influence of age, sex, and smoking status. Moreover, The BMI (β = 0.328, R 2  = 0.152) were more contributing factors than Regular walking (β = -0.011) for metabolic syndrome. In conclusions, regular participation in walking activity and implementing weight control may reduce the incidence rate of metabolic syndrome in elderly Koreans, with weight management serving as the greater influences of the two. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  2. Silk elasticity as a potential constraint on spider body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodríguez-Gironés, Miguel A; Corcobado, Guadalupe; Moya-Laraño, Jordi

    2010-10-07

    Silk is known for its strength and extensibility and has played a key role in the radiation of spiders. Individual spiders use different glands to produce silk types with unique sets of proteins. Most research has studied the properties of major ampullate and capture spiral silks and their ecological implications, while little is known about minor ampullate silk, the type used by those spider species studied to date for bridging displacements. A biomechanical model parameterised with available data shows that the minimum radius of silk filaments required for efficient bridging grows with the square root of the spider's body mass, faster than the radius of minor ampullate silk filaments actually produced by spiders. Because the morphology of spiders adapted to walking along or under silk threads is ill suited for moving on a solid surface, for these species there is a negative relationship between body mass and displacement ability. As it stands, the model suggests that spiders that use silk for their displacements are prevented from attaining a large body size if they must track their resources in space. In particular, silk elasticity would favour sexual size dimorphism because males that must use bridging lines to search for females cannot grow large. 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Nano-sized metabolic precursors for heterogeneous tumor-targeting strategy using bioorthogonal click chemistry in vivo.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Sangmin; Jung, Seulhee; Koo, Heebeom; Na, Jin Hee; Yoon, Hong Yeol; Shim, Man Kyu; Park, Jooho; Kim, Jong-Ho; Lee, Seulki; Pomper, Martin G; Kwon, Ick Chan; Ahn, Cheol-Hee; Kim, Kwangmeyung

    2017-12-01

    Herein, we developed nano-sized metabolic precursors (Nano-MPs) for new tumor-targeting strategy to overcome the intrinsic limitations of biological ligands such as the limited number of biological receptors and the heterogeneity in tumor tissues. We conjugated the azide group-containing metabolic precursors, triacetylated N-azidoacetyl-d-mannosamine to generation 4 poly(amidoamine) dendrimer backbone. The nano-sized dendrimer of Nano-MPs could generate azide groups on the surface of tumor cells homogeneously regardless of cell types via metabolic glycoengineering. Importantly, these exogenously generated 'artificial chemical receptors' containing azide groups could be used for bioorthogonal click chemistry, regardless of phenotypes of different tumor cells. Furthermore, in tumor-bearing mice models, Nano-MPs could be mainly localized at the target tumor tissues by the enhanced permeation and retention (EPR) effect, and they successfully generated azide groups on tumor cells in vivo after an intravenous injection. Finally, we showed that these azide groups on tumor tissues could be used as 'artificial chemical receptors' that were conjugated to bioorthogonal chemical group-containing liposomes via in vivo click chemistry in heterogeneous tumor-bearing mice. Therefore, overall results demonstrated that our nano-sized metabolic precursors could be extensively applied to new alternative tumor-targeting technique for molecular imaging and drug delivery system, regardless of the phenotype of heterogeneous tumor cells. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Brain size is correlated with endangerment status in mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abelson, Eric S

    2016-02-24

    Increases in relative encephalization (RE), brain size after controlling for body size, comes at a great metabolic cost and is correlated with a host of cognitive traits, from the ability to count objects to higher rates of innovation. Despite many studies examining the implications and trade-offs accompanying increased RE, the relationship between mammalian extinction risk and RE is unknown. I examine whether mammals with larger levels of RE are more or less likely to be at risk of endangerment than less-encephalized species. I find that extant species with large levels of encephalization are at greater risk of endangerment, with this effect being strongest in species with small body sizes. These results suggest that RE could be a valuable asset in estimating extinction vulnerability. Additionally, these findings suggest that the cost-benefit trade-off of RE is different in large-bodied species when compared with small-bodied species. © 2016 The Author(s).

  5. Ecological and evolutionary influences on body size and shape in the Galápagos marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiari, Ylenia; Glaberman, Scott; Tarroso, Pedro; Caccone, Adalgisa; Claude, Julien

    2016-07-01

    Oceanic islands are often inhabited by endemic species that have undergone substantial morphological evolutionary change due to processes of multiple colonizations from various source populations, dispersal, and local adaptation. Galápagos marine iguanas are an example of an island endemic exhibiting high morphological diversity, including substantial body size variation among populations and sexes, but the causes and magnitude of this variation are not well understood. We obtained morphological measurements from marine iguanas throughout their distribution range. These data were combined with genetic and local environmental data from each population to investigate the effects of evolutionary history and environmental conditions on body size and shape variation and sexual dimorphism. Our results indicate that body size and shape are highly variable among populations. Sea surface temperature and island perimeter, but not evolutionary history as depicted by phylogeographic patterns in this species, explain variation in body size among populations. Conversely, evolutionary history, but not environmental parameters or island size, was found to influence variation in body shape among populations. Finally, in all populations except one, we found strong sexual dimorphism in body size and shape in which males are larger, with higher heads than females, while females have longer heads than males. Differences among populations suggest that plasticity and/or genetic adaptation may shape body size and shape variation in marine iguanas. This study will help target future investigations to address the contribution of plasticity versus genetic adaptation on size and shape variation in marine iguanas.

  6. Effect of host plant on body size of Frankliniella occidentalis and its correlation with reproductive capacity

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kogel, de W.J.; Bosco, D.; Hoek, van der M.; Mollema, C.

    1999-01-01

    The effect of different host plants on Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) body size was investigated. Thrips from three different populations, from the Netherlands, Italy, and USA, achieved greater body sizes when reared on cucumber than on bean. The same thrips grew

  7. Effect of beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB) on protein metabolism in whole body and in selected tissues.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holecek, M; Muthny, T; Kovarik, M; Sispera, L

    2009-01-01

    Beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB) is a leucine metabolite with protein anabolic effect. The aim of the study was to examine the role of exogenous HMB on leucine and protein metabolism in whole body and selected tissues. Rats were administered by HMB (0.1 g/kg b.w.) or by saline. The parameters of whole-body protein metabolism were evaluated 24 h later using L-[1-14C]leucine and L-[3,4,5-3H]phenylalanine. Changes in proteasome dependent proteolysis and protein synthesis were determined according the "chymotrypsin-like" enzyme activity and labeled leucine and phenylalanine incorporation into the protein. A decrease in leucine clearance and whole-body protein turnover (i.e., a decrease in whole-body proteolysis and protein synthesis) was observed in HMB treated rats. Proteasome-dependent proteolysis decreased significantly in skeletal muscle, changes in heart, liver, jejunum, colon, kidney, and spleen were insignificant. Decrease in protein synthesis was observed in the heart, colon, kidney, and spleen, while an increase was observed in the liver. There were no significant changes in leucine oxidation. We conclude that protein anabolic effect of HMB in skeletal muscle is related to inhibition of proteolysis in proteasome. Alterations in protein synthesis in visceral tissues may affect several important functions and the metabolic status of the whole body.

  8. Effect of Ramadan fasting on metabolic markers, body composition, and dietary intake in Emiratis of Ajman (UAE) with metabolic syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sadiya, Amena; Ahmed, Solafa; Siddieg, Hisham Hussain; Babas, Irish Joy; Carlsson, Martin

    2011-01-01

    The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of Ramadan fasting on metabolic markers, body composition and dietary intake in native Emiratis of Ajman, UAE with the metabolic syndrome (MS). 19 patients (14 Female, 5 Male) aged 37.1 ± 12.5 years, were encouraged healthy lifestyle changes during fasting and data was collected 1 week before and in the fourth week of Ramadan. No patients experienced complications or increased symptoms of hypoglycemia during Ramadan. Total energy consumption remained similar. Meal frequency decreased (3.2 ± 0.5 vs 2.1 ± 0.4 meals/day). Protein intake decreased 12% (P = 0.04) but fat intake increased 23% (P = 0.03). Body weight (103.9 ± 29.8 vs 102.1 ± 29.0 kg, P = 0.001) and waist circumference (123 ± 14 vs 119 ± 17 cm, P = 0.001) decreased. Forty percent of patients increased their physical activity due to increased praying hours. Fasting P-glucose (6.3 ± 1.7 vs 6.8 ± 2.0 mmol/L, P = 0.024) and B-HbA(1c) concentrations 6.3 ± 0.9 vs 6.5% ± 0.9%, P = 0.003) increased but P-insulin concentration, HOMA-IR index and lipid concentrations remained unchanged. The present study investigated the effect of Ramadan fasting on dietary intake, metabolic parameters and body composition showing that the energy consumption per day did not decrease, although the fat intake increased. However, the patients lost weight and reduced their waist circumference. Ramadan fasting has also elicited small but significant increases in Glucose and HbA(1c) after 4 weeks.

  9. Body Image Issues In Lithuanian Magazines Aimed For Children And Adolescents In Relation To Body Mass Index And Body Size Perception Of 16-19 Y. Old Girls During The Last 15 Years

    OpenAIRE

    Tutkuviene, Janina

    2017-01-01

    Mass media plays an important role in forming body image and makes the significant impact on body size perception in children and adolescents. The aim of present study was to reveal trends in depiction of body image cues in Lithuanian magazines aimed for children and adolescents in relation to changes of real body mass index (BMI) and body size perception of 16-19 y. old girls in the year 2000 and the 2015. Three popular journals published both in the year 2000 and the 2015, were chosen for i...

  10. Paradoxical reproduction and body size in the rock lizard, Agama ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1993-07-05

    Jul 5, 1993 ... The rock lizard Agama atra atra from Namaqualand differs in both body size and reproduction from other populations of this species occurring elsewhere in southern Africa. Both sexes from Namaqualand are significantly larger than their counterparts in the south-western Cape. While reproduction in this ...

  11. Freshwater fishes in Greek lakes: Species richness and body size patterns

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anthi Oikonomou

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Freshwater ecosystems are widely recognised as hotspots of biodiversity and endemism; thus they are of great value for conservation biogeography. Amongst the taxa found in freshwater ecosystems, fish are the ideal biological model for testing biogeographical patterns and have often been used in large-scale ecological and biogeographical analyses. Lakes of Greece provide a unique opportunity to test biogeographical theories, however, biogeographical studies in Greece at broader, regional, scales, based on the distribution of freshwater species, species richness and endemism, are scarce. The aim of the current study is to test the effect of key environmental factors and spatial variables on species richness of lacustrine fishes and to test their effect on species’ size distributions. We assembled datasets of species richness and body size and environmental (predictor factors for 13 Greek lakes. Model selection procedures revealed that fish species richness increased with ecosystem area and decreased with altitude. In addition, our results showed that latitude per se is a good predictor of body size. Indeed, the mean size of lacustrine communities in the northern and southern lake ecosystems differed significantly. These patterns reflect the biogeographical history of these areas and highlight the crucial role connectivity plays in communities’ species composition.

  12. Balancing the dilution and oddity effects: decisions depend on body size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gwendolen M Rodgers

    Full Text Available Grouping behaviour, common across the animal kingdom, is known to reduce an individual's risk of predation; particularly through dilution of individual risk and predator confusion (predator inability to single out an individual for attack. Theory predicts greater risk of predation to individuals more conspicuous to predators by difference in appearance from the group (the 'oddity' effect. Thus, animals should choose group mates close in appearance to themselves (eg. similar size, whilst also choosing a large group.We used the Trinidadian guppy (Poecilia reticulata, a well known model species of group-living freshwater fish, in a series of binary choice trials investigating the outcome of conflict between preferences for large and phenotypically matched groups along a predation risk gradient. We found body-size dependent differences in the resultant social decisions. Large fish preferred shoaling with size-matched individuals, while small fish demonstrated no preference. There was a trend towards reduced preferences for the matched shoal under increased predation risk. Small fish were more active than large fish, moving between shoals more frequently. Activity levels increased as predation risk decreased. We found no effect of unmatched shoal size on preferences or activity.Our results suggest that predation risk and individual body size act together to influence shoaling decisions. Oddity was more important for large than small fish, reducing in importance at higher predation risks. Dilution was potentially of limited importance at these shoal sizes. Activity levels may relate to how much sampling of each shoal was needed by the test fish during decision making. Predation pressure may select for better decision makers to survive to larger size, or that older, larger fish have learned to make shoaling decisions more efficiently, and this, combined with their size relative to shoal-mates, and attractiveness as prey items influences shoaling

  13. Porters of the eastern hills of Nepal: Body size and load weight.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malville, Nancy J.

    1999-01-01

    This study documents the activities of 635 porters transporting goods along three traditional trade routes of eastern Nepal. Nearly 95% of the porters were male. They ranged in age from 10-65 years, and most of them had begun to perform long-distance portage at 12-15 years of age. Mean body mass and height of adult males in the combined sample (n = 438) was 49.7 +/- 5.0 kg and 155.5 +/- 6.5 cm, respectively. Adult males age 20-49 years carried loads of 73 +/- 15 kg, equivalent to 146% +/- 30% of body mass. Body size of adult males was not a strong predictor of load weight. The correlation between body mass and load was r = 0.24 (P porters to carry such large loads in spite of their small body size is the ability to pace themselves by making frequent rest stops. Heart rate monitoring of 26 adult male commercial porters demonstrated how porters regulate heart rate and energy expenditure by resting the load every two to three minutes on the T-headed walking stick (tokma) and by setting the load periodically on load-resting platforms (chautaras) for longer recovery periods. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 11:1-11, 1999. Copyright 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  14. Geographic variation in body size and its relationship with environmental gradients in the Oriental Garden Lizard, Calotes versicolor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Xiaomei; Yan, Linmiao; Zhao, Chengjian; Zhang, Yueyun; Xu, Yongli; Cai, Bo; Jiang, Ni; Huang, Yong

    2018-05-01

    Patterns of geographic variation in body size are predicted to evolve as adaptations to local environmental gradients. However, many of these clinal patterns in body size, such as Bergmann's rule, are controversial and require further investigation into ectotherms such as reptiles on a regional scale. To examine the environmental variables (temperature, precipitation, topography and primary productivity) that shaped patterns of geographic variation in body size in the reptile Calotes versicolor , we sampled 180 adult specimens (91 males and 89 females) at 40 locations across the species range in China. The MANOVA results suggest significant sexual size dimorphism in C. versicolor ( F 23,124  = 11.32, p  body size of C. versicolor differed for males and females, but mechanisms related to heat balance and water availability hypotheses were involved in both sexes. Temperature seasonality, precipitation of the driest month, precipitation seasonality, and precipitation of the driest quarter were the most important predictors of variation in body size in males, whereas mean precipitation of the warmest quarter, mean temperature of the wettest quarter, precipitation seasonality, and precipitation of the wettest month were most important for body size variation in females. The discrepancy between patterns of association between the sexes suggested that different selection pressures may be acting in males and females.

  15. Long-term exercise in mice has sex-dependent benefits on body composition and metabolism during aging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McMullan, Rachel C; Kelly, Scott A; Hua, Kunjie; Buckley, Brian K; Faber, James E; Pardo-Manuel de Villena, Fernando; Pomp, Daniel

    2016-11-01

    Aging is associated with declining exercise and unhealthy changes in body composition. Exercise ameliorates certain adverse age-related physiological changes and protects against many chronic diseases. Despite these benefits, willingness to exercise and physiological responses to exercise vary widely, and long-term exercise and its benefits are difficult and costly to measure in humans. Furthermore, physiological effects of aging in humans are confounded with changes in lifestyle and environment. We used C57BL/6J mice to examine long-term patterns of exercise during aging and its physiological effects in a well-controlled environment. One-year-old male (n = 30) and female (n = 30) mice were divided into equal size cohorts and aged for an additional year. One cohort was given access to voluntary running wheels while another was denied exercise other than home cage movement. Body mass, composition, and metabolic traits were measured before, throughout, and after 1 year of treatment. Long-term exercise significantly prevented gains in body mass and body fat, while preventing loss of lean mass. We observed sex-dependent differences in body mass and composition trajectories during aging. Wheel running (distance, speed, duration) was greater in females than males and declined with age. We conclude that long-term exercise may serve as a preventive measure against age-related weight gain and body composition changes, and that mouse inbred strains can be used to characterize effects of long-term exercise and factors (e.g. sex, age) modulating these effects. These findings will facilitate studies on relationships between exercise and health in aging populations, including genetic predisposition and genotype-by-environment interactions. © 2016 The Authors. Physiological Reports published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Physiological Society and the American Physiological Society.

  16. Intra- and trans-generational costs of reduced female body size caused by food limitation early in life in mites.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas Walzer

    Full Text Available Food limitation early in life may be compensated for by developmental plasticity resulting in accelerated development enhancing survival at the expense of small adult body size. However and especially for females in non-matching maternal and offspring environments, being smaller than the standard may incur considerable intra- and trans-generational costs.Here, we evaluated the costs of small female body size induced by food limitation early in life in the sexually size-dimorphic predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis. Females are larger than males. These predators are adapted to exploit ephemeral spider mite prey patches. The intra- and trans-generational effects of small maternal body size manifested in lower maternal survival probabilities, decreased attractiveness for males, and a reduced number and size of eggs compared to standard-sized females. The trans-generational effects of small maternal body size were sex-specific with small mothers producing small daughters but standard-sized sons.Small female body size apparently intensified the well-known costs of sexual activity because mortality of small but not standard-sized females mainly occurred shortly after mating. The disadvantages of small females in mating and egg production may be generally explained by size-associated morphological and physiological constraints. Additionally, size-assortative mate preferences of standard-sized mates may have rendered small females disproportionally unattractive mating partners. We argue that the sex-specific trans-generational effects were due to sexual size dimorphism - females are the larger sex and thus more strongly affected by maternal stress than the smaller males - and to sexually selected lower plasticity of male body size.

  17. Intra- and trans-generational costs of reduced female body size caused by food limitation early in life in mites.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walzer, Andreas; Schausberger, Peter

    2013-01-01

    Food limitation early in life may be compensated for by developmental plasticity resulting in accelerated development enhancing survival at the expense of small adult body size. However and especially for females in non-matching maternal and offspring environments, being smaller than the standard may incur considerable intra- and trans-generational costs. Here, we evaluated the costs of small female body size induced by food limitation early in life in the sexually size-dimorphic predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis. Females are larger than males. These predators are adapted to exploit ephemeral spider mite prey patches. The intra- and trans-generational effects of small maternal body size manifested in lower maternal survival probabilities, decreased attractiveness for males, and a reduced number and size of eggs compared to standard-sized females. The trans-generational effects of small maternal body size were sex-specific with small mothers producing small daughters but standard-sized sons. Small female body size apparently intensified the well-known costs of sexual activity because mortality of small but not standard-sized females mainly occurred shortly after mating. The disadvantages of small females in mating and egg production may be generally explained by size-associated morphological and physiological constraints. Additionally, size-assortative mate preferences of standard-sized mates may have rendered small females disproportionally unattractive mating partners. We argue that the sex-specific trans-generational effects were due to sexual size dimorphism - females are the larger sex and thus more strongly affected by maternal stress than the smaller males - and to sexually selected lower plasticity of male body size.

  18. Changes in bone mineral density, body composition, and lipid metabolism during growth hormone (GH) treatment in children with GH deficiency

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    A.M. Boot (Annemieke); M.A. Engels (Melanie); G.J.M. Boerma (Geert); E.P. Krenning (Eric); S.M.P.F. de Muinck Keizer-Schrama (Sabine)

    1997-01-01

    textabstractAdults with childhood onset GH deficiency (GHD) have reduced bone mass, increased fat mass, and disorders of lipid metabolism. The aim of the present study was to evaluate bone mineral density (BMD), bone metabolism, body composition, and lipid metabolism in

  19. Role of body composition and metabolic profile in Barrett's oesophagus and progression to cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Di Caro, Simona; Cheung, Wui Hang; Fini, Lucia; Keane, Margaret G; Theis, Belinda; Haidry, Rehan; Di Renzo, Laura; De Lorenzo, Antonino; Lovat, Laurence; Batterham, Rachel L; Banks, Matthew

    2016-03-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the risk for Barrett's oesophagus (BE) on the basis of body composition, metabolic pathways, adipokines and metabolic syndrome (MS), as well as their role in cancer progression. In patients with and without BE at gastroscopy, data on MS, BMI, waist/hip ratio for abdominal obesity (AO) and body fat percentage by bioimpedance were obtained. Fasting plasma glucose, insulin, HbA1c, lipid, serum adiponectin and leptin levels were measured. The homoeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR) was used to estimate insulin resistance. Histological findings for BE were correlated with the above parameters. Risk factors for BE identified using univariate analysis were entered into a multivariate logistic regression analysis. A total of 250 patients and 224 controls (F/M: 189/285, mean age 58.08±15.51 years) were enroled. In the BE and control groups, 39.6 versus 31.3% were overweight, 32 versus 22.8% were obese, 75.6 versus 51.3% had AO, and 28.1 versus 18.9% were metabolically obese, respectively. AO [odds ratio (OR) 3.08], increased body fat percentage (OR 2.29), and higher BMI (overweight: OR 2.04; obese: OR 2.26) were significantly associated with BE. A positive trend was found in Normal Weight Obese Syndrome (OR 1.69). MS was associated with BE (overweight: OR 3.05; obese: OR 5.2; AO: OR 8.08). Insulin levels (P=0.05) and HOMA-IR (Pbody composition.

  20. A Macrophysiological Analysis of Energetic Constraints on Geographic Range Size in Mammals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ceballos, Gerardo; Steele, Michael A.

    2013-01-01

    Physiological processes are essential for understanding the distribution and abundance of organisms, and recently, with widespread attention to climate change, physiology has been ushered back to the forefront of ecological thinking. We present a macrophysiological analysis of the energetics of geographic range size using combined data on body size, basal metabolic rate (BMR), phylogeny and range properties for 574 species of mammals. We propose three mechanisms by which interspecific variation in BMR should relate positively to geographic range size: (i) Thermal Plasticity Hypothesis, (ii) Activity Levels/Dispersal Hypothesis, and (iii) Energy Constraint Hypothesis. Although each mechanism predicts a positive correlation between BMR and range size, they can be further distinguished based on the shape of the relationship they predict. We found evidence for the predicted positive relationship in two dimensions of energetics: (i) the absolute, mass-dependent dimension (BMR) and (ii) the relative, mass-independent dimension (MIBMR). The shapes of both relationships were similar and most consistent with that expected from the Energy Constraint Hypothesis, which was proposed previously to explain the classic macroecological relationship between range size and body size in mammals and birds. The fact that this pattern holds in the MIBMR dimension indicates that species with supra-allometric metabolic rates require among the largest ranges, above and beyond the increasing energy demands that accrue as an allometric consequence of large body size. The relationship is most evident at high latitudes north of the Tropics, where large ranges and elevated MIBMR are most common. Our results suggest that species that are most vulnerable to extinction from range size reductions are both large-bodied and have elevated MIBMR, but also, that smaller species with elevated MIBMR are at heightened risk. We also provide insights into the global latitudinal trends in range size and MIBMR

  1. Body Image Issues In Lithuanian Magazines Aimed For Children And Adolescents In Relation To Body Mass Index And Body Size Perception Of 16-19 Y. Old Girls During The Last 15 Years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tutkuviene, Janina; Misiute, Agne; Strupaite, Ieva; Paulikaite, Gintare; Pavlovskaja, Erika

    2017-03-01

    Mass media plays an important role in forming body image and makes the significant impact on body size perception in children and adolescents. The aim of present study was to reveal trends in depiction of body image cues in Lithuanian magazines aimed for children and adolescents in relation to changes of real body mass index (BMI) and body size perception of 16-19 y. old girls in the year 2000 and the 2015. Three popular journals published both in the year 2000 and the 2015, were chosen for in-depth analysis of their contents (the periodicity of different topics was counted and compared). Attention given to a healthy body image has increased and the promotion of especially skinny females’ body has decreased during the last 15 years from the dominant type in the year 2000 to depiction of slightly thin or normal body build in the 2015. However, the real BMI of 16-19 y. old Lithuanian girls has significantly increased during the 2000-2015 period (from 20.09 till 21.32 kg/m²; pimage issues in mass media (magazines aimed for adolescent girls) were in parallel with the proper self-esteem of body size in adolescent girls.

  2. Some like it hot... : the evolution and genetics of temperature dependent body size in Drosophila melanogaster

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bochdanovits, Z. (Zoltán)

    2003-01-01

    Body size is one of the most obvious and most important characteristic of any organism. A thorough understanding of how and why a certain individual obtains a specific body size, given its evolutionary history and ecological context, is a fundamental question in biology. One special case of

  3. How Big Is It Really? Assessing the Efficacy of Indirect Estimates of Body Size in Asian Elephants.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simon N Chapman

    Full Text Available Information on an organism's body size is pivotal in understanding its life history and fitness, as well as helping inform conservation measures. However, for many species, particularly large-bodied wild animals, taking accurate body size measurements can be a challenge. Various means to estimate body size have been employed, from more direct methods such as using photogrammetry to obtain height or length measurements, to indirect prediction of weight using other body morphometrics or even the size of dung boli. It is often unclear how accurate these measures are because they cannot be compared to objective measures. Here, we investigate how well existing estimation equations predict the actual body weight of Asian elephants Elephas maximus, using body measurements (height, chest girth, length, foot circumference and neck circumference taken directly from a large population of semi-captive animals in Myanmar (n = 404. We then define new and better fitting formulas to predict body weight in Myanmar elephants from these readily available measures. We also investigate whether the important parameters height and chest girth can be estimated from photographs (n = 151. Our results show considerable variation in the ability of existing estimation equations to predict weight, and that the equations proposed in this paper predict weight better in almost all circumstances. We also find that measurements from standardised photographs reflect body height and chest girth after applying minor adjustments. Our results have implications for size estimation of large wild animals in the field, as well as for management in captive settings.

  4. Quantitative genetics parameters show partial independent evolutionary potential for body mass and metabolism in stonechats from different populations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tieleman, B. I.; Versteegh, M. A.; Helm, B.; Dingemanse, N. J.; Volff, Jean-Nicolas

    2009-01-01

    Phenotypic variation in physiological traits, such as energy metabolism, is commonly subjected to adaptive interpretations, but little is known about the heritable basis or genetic correlations among physiological traits in non-domesticated species. Basal metabolic rate (BMR) and body mass are

  5. Brain Size and Cerebral Glucose Metabolic Rate in Nonspecific Retardation and Down Syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haier, Richard J.; And Others

    1995-01-01

    Brain size and cerebral glucose metabolic rate were determined for 10 individuals with mild mental retardation (MR), 7 individuals with Down syndrome (DS), and 10 matched controls. MR and DS groups both had brain volumes of about 80% compared to controls, with variance greatest within the MR group. (SLD)

  6. A whole-body mathematical model of cholesterol metabolism and its age-associated dysregulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mc Auley Mark T

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Global demographic changes have stimulated marked interest in the process of aging. There has been, and will continue to be, an unrelenting rise in the number of the oldest old ( >85 years of age. Together with an ageing population there comes an increase in the prevalence of age related disease. Of the diseases of ageing, cardiovascular disease (CVD has by far the highest prevalence. It is regarded that a finely tuned lipid profile may help to prevent CVD as there is a long established relationship between alterations to lipid metabolism and CVD risk. In fact elevated plasma cholesterol, particularly Low Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (LDL-C has consistently stood out as a risk factor for having a cardiovascular event. Moreover it is widely acknowledged that LDL-C may rise with age in both sexes in a wide variety of groups. The aim of this work was to use a whole-body mathematical model to investigate why LDL-C rises with age, and to test the hypothesis that mechanistic changes to cholesterol absorption and LDL-C removal from the plasma are responsible for the rise. The whole-body mechanistic nature of the model differs from previous models of cholesterol metabolism which have either focused on intracellular cholesterol homeostasis or have concentrated on an isolated area of lipoprotein dynamics. The model integrates both current and previously published data relating to molecular biology, physiology, ageing and nutrition in an integrated fashion. Results The model was used to test the hypothesis that alterations to the rate of cholesterol absorption and changes to the rate of removal of LDL-C from the plasma are integral to understanding why LDL-C rises with age. The model demonstrates that increasing the rate of intestinal cholesterol absorption from 50% to 80% by age 65 years can result in an increase of LDL-C by as much as 34 mg/dL in a hypothetical male subject. The model also shows that decreasing the rate of hepatic

  7. Critical threshold size for overwintering sandeels (Ammodytes marinus)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Deurs, Mikael van; Hartvig, Martin; Steffensen, John Fleng

    2011-01-01

    scales with body size and increases with temperature, and the two factors together determine a critical threshold size for passive overwintering below which the organism is unlikely to survive without feeding. This is because the energetic cost of metabolism exceeds maximum energy reserves...... independent long-term overwintering experiments. Maximum attainable energy reserves were estimated from published data on A. marinus in the North Sea. The critical threshold size in terms of length (Lth) for A. marinus in the North Sea was estimated to be 9.5 cm. We then investigated two general predictions...

  8. Depictive and metric body size estimation in anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mölbert, Simone Claire; Klein, Lukas; Thaler, Anne; Mohler, Betty J; Brozzo, Chiara; Martus, Peter; Karnath, Hans-Otto; Zipfel, Stephan; Giel, Katrin Elisabeth

    2017-11-01

    A distorted representation of one's own body is a diagnostic criterion and core psychopathology of both anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN). Despite recent technical advances in research, it is still unknown whether this body image disturbance is characterized by body dissatisfaction and a low ideal weight and/or includes a distorted perception or processing of body size. In this article, we provide an update and meta-analysis of 42 articles summarizing measures and results for body size estimation (BSE) from 926 individuals with AN, 536 individuals with BN and 1920 controls. We replicate findings that individuals with AN and BN overestimate their body size as compared to controls (ES=0.63). Our meta-regression shows that metric methods (BSE by direct or indirect spatial measures) yield larger effect sizes than depictive methods (BSE by evaluating distorted pictures), and that effect sizes are larger for patients with BN than for patients with AN. To interpret these results, we suggest a revised theoretical framework for BSE that accounts for differences between depictive and metric BSE methods regarding the underlying body representations (conceptual vs. perceptual, implicit vs. explicit). We also discuss clinical implications and argue for the importance of multimethod approaches to investigate body image disturbance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Prolonged whole body immersion in cold water: hormonal and metabolic changes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, D J; Deuster, P A; Ryan, C J; Doubt, T J

    1990-03-01

    To characterize metabolic and hormonal responses during prolonged whole body immersion, 16 divers wearing dry suits completed four immersions in 5 degrees C water during each of two 5-day air saturation dives at 6.1 meters of sea water. One immersion began in the AM (1000 h) and one began in the PM (2200 h) to evaluate diurnal variations. Venous blood samples were obtained before and after completion of each immersion. Cortisol and ACTH levels demonstrated diurnal variation, with larger increases occurring after PM immersions. A greater than three-fold postimmersion increase occurred in norepinephrine (NE). There were significant increases in triiodothyronine (T3) uptake and epinephrine, but no change in T3, thyroxine, thyrotrophic hormone, and dopamine. Postimmersion free fatty acid levels increased 409% from preimmersion levels; glucose levels declined, and lactate increased significantly. Only changes in NE correlated significantly with changes in rectal temperature. In summary, when subjects are immersed in cold water for prolonged periods, with a slow rate of body cooling afforded by thermal protection and intermittent exercise, hormonal and metabolic changes occur that are similar in direction and magnitude to short-duration unprotected exposures. Except for cortisol and ACTH, none of the other measured variables exhibited diurnal alterations.

  10. Body size, skills, and income: evidence from 150,000 teenage siblings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lundborg, Petter; Nystedt, Paul; Rooth, Dan-Olof

    2014-10-01

    We provide new evidence on the long-run labor market penalty of teenage overweight and obesity using unique and large-scale data on 150,000 male siblings from the Swedish military enlistment. Our empirical analysis provides four important results. First, we provide the first evidence of a large adult male labor market penalty for being overweight or obese as a teenager. Second, we replicate this result using data from the United States and the United Kingdom. Third, we note a strikingly strong within-family relationship between body size and cognitive skills/noncognitive skills. Fourth, a large part of the estimated body-size penalty reflects lower skill acquisition among overweight and obese teenagers. Taken together, these results reinforce the importance of policy combating early-life obesity in order to reduce healthcare expenditures as well as poverty and inequalities later in life.

  11. Rictor/TORC2 regulates Caenorhabditis elegans fat storage, body size, and development through sgk-1.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin T Jones

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available The target of rapamycin (TOR kinase coordinately regulates fundamental metabolic and cellular processes to support growth, proliferation, survival, and differentiation, and consequently it has been proposed as a therapeutic target for the treatment of cancer, metabolic disease, and aging. The TOR kinase is found in two biochemically and functionally distinct complexes, termed TORC1 and TORC2. Aided by the compound rapamycin, which specifically inhibits TORC1, the role of TORC1 in regulating translation and cellular growth has been extensively studied. The physiological roles of TORC2 have remained largely elusive due to the lack of pharmacological inhibitors and its genetic lethality in mammals. Among potential targets of TORC2, the pro-survival kinase AKT has garnered much attention. Within the context of intact animals, however, the physiological consequences of phosphorylation of AKT by TORC2 remain poorly understood. Here we describe viable loss-of-function mutants in the Caenorhabditis elegans homolog of the TORC2-specific component, Rictor (CeRictor. These mutants display a mild developmental delay and decreased body size, but have increased lipid storage. These functions of CeRictor are not mediated through the regulation of AKT kinases or their major downstream target, the insulin-regulated FOXO transcription factor DAF-16. We found that loss of sgk-1, a homolog of the serum- and glucocorticoid-induced kinase, mimics the developmental, growth, and metabolic phenotypes of CeRictor mutants, while a novel, gain-of-function mutation in sgk-1 suppresses these phenotypes, indicating that SGK-1 is a mediator of CeRictor activity. These findings identify new physiological roles for TORC2, mediated by SGK, in regulation of C. elegans lipid accumulation and growth, and they challenge the notion that AKT is the primary effector of TORC2 function.

  12. Concurrent and aerobic exercise training promote similar benefits in body composition and metabolic profiles in obese adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monteiro, Paula Alves; Chen, Kong Y; Lira, Fabio Santos; Saraiva, Bruna Thamyres Cicotti; Antunes, Barbara Moura Mello; Campos, Eduardo Zapaterra; Freitas, Ismael Forte

    2015-11-26

    The prevalence of obesity in pediatric population is increasing at an accelerated rate in many countries, and has become a major public health concern. Physical activity, particularly exercise training, remains to be a cornerstone of pediatric obesity interventions. The purpose of our current randomized intervention trial was to compare the effects of two types of training matched for training volume, aerobic and concurrent, on body composition and metabolic profile in obese adolescents. Thus the aim of the study was compare the effects of two types of training matched for training volume, aerobic and concurrent, on body composition and metabolic profile in obese adolescents. 32 obese adolescents participated in two randomized training groups, concurrent or aerobic, for 20 weeks (50 mins x 3 per week, supervised), and were compared to a 16-subject control group. We measured the percentage body fat (%BF, primary outcome), fat-free mass, percentage of android fat by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry, and others metabolic profiles at baseline and after interventions, and compared them between groups using the Intent-to-treat design. In 20 weeks, both exercise training groups significantly reduced %BF by 2.9-3.6% as compare to no change in the control group (p = 0.042). There were also positive changes in lipid levels in exercise groups. No noticeable changes were found between aerobic and concurrent training groups. The benefits of exercise in reducing body fat and metabolic risk profiles can be achieved by performing either type of training in obese adolescents. RBR-4HN597.

  13. Effect of directional selection for body size on fluctuating asymmetry ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    In this study, we investigated whether stress caused by artificial bidirectional selection for body size has any effect on the levels of FA of different morphological traits in Drosophila ananassae. The realised heritability (h2) was higher in low-line females and high-line males, which suggests an asymmetrical response to ...

  14. Intra- and Trans-Generational Costs of Reduced Female Body Size Caused by Food Limitation Early in Life in Mites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walzer, Andreas; Schausberger, Peter

    2013-01-01

    Background Food limitation early in life may be compensated for by developmental plasticity resulting in accelerated development enhancing survival at the expense of small adult body size. However and especially for females in non-matching maternal and offspring environments, being smaller than the standard may incur considerable intra- and trans-generational costs. Methodology/Principal Findings Here, we evaluated the costs of small female body size induced by food limitation early in life in the sexually size-dimorphic predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis. Females are larger than males. These predators are adapted to exploit ephemeral spider mite prey patches. The intra- and trans-generational effects of small maternal body size manifested in lower maternal survival probabilities, decreased attractiveness for males, and a reduced number and size of eggs compared to standard-sized females. The trans-generational effects of small maternal body size were sex-specific with small mothers producing small daughters but standard-sized sons. Conclusions/Significance Small female body size apparently intensified the well-known costs of sexual activity because mortality of small but not standard-sized females mainly occurred shortly after mating. The disadvantages of small females in mating and egg production may be generally explained by size-associated morphological and physiological constraints. Additionally, size-assortative mate preferences of standard-sized mates may have rendered small females disproportionally unattractive mating partners. We argue that the sex-specific trans-generational effects were due to sexual size dimorphism – females are the larger sex and thus more strongly affected by maternal stress than the smaller males – and to sexually selected lower plasticity of male body size. PMID:24265745

  15. Does vagal nerve stimulation affect body composition and metabolism? Experimental study of a new potential technique in bariatric surgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sobocki, Jacek; Fourtanier, Gilles; Estany, Joan; Otal, Phillipe

    2006-02-01

    It has been shown that vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) can affect body mass. The aim of this study was to evaluate effect of VNS on body mass, body composition, metabolic rate, and plasma leptin and IGF-I levels. Eight female pigs were included in the study. Under general anesthesia, a bipolar electrode was implanted on the anterior vagal nerve by laparoscopy. Group A was treated by VNS, and group B was the control. After 4 weeks, stimulation was discontinued in group A and started in group B. The following parameters were evaluated: body mass, body composition, metabolic rate, plasma leptin and IGF-1 levels and intramuscular fat content (IMF). VNS attenuated body weight gain (2.28 +/- 3.47 kg vs 14.04 +/- 6.75 kg; P = .0112, for stimulation and nonstimulation periods, respectively), backfat gain (0.04 +/- 0.26 mm vs 2.31 +/- 1.12 mm) and IMF gain (-3.76 +/- 6.06 mg/g MS vs 7.24 +/- 12.90 mg/g MS; P = .0281). VNS resulted in lower backfat depth/loin muscle area ratio (0.33 +/- 0.017 vs 0.38 +/- 0.35; P = .0476). Lower plasma IGF-I concentration was found after VNS (-3.67 +/- -11.55 ng/mL vs 9.86 +/- 10.74 ng/mL; P = .0312). No significant changes in other parameters were observed. VNS affects body weight mainly at the expense of body fat resources; however, metabolic rate is not affected.

  16. Pool size measurements facilitate the determination of fluxes at branching points in nonstationary metabolic flux analysis: The case of Arabidopsis thaliana

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert eHeise

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Pool size measurements are important for the estimation of absolute intracellular fluxes in particular scenarios based on data from heavy carbon isotope experiments. Recently, steady-state fluxes estimates were obtained for central carbon metabolism in an intact illuminated rosette of Arabidopsis thaliana grown photoautotrophically (Szecowka et al., 2013; Heise et al., 2014. Fluxes were estimated therein by integrating mass-spectrometric data of the dynamics of the unlabeled metabolic fraction, data on metabolic pool sizes, partitioning of metabolic pools between cellular compartments and estimates of photosynthetically inactive pools, with a simplified model of plant central carbon metabolism. However, the fluxes were determined by treating the pool sizes as fixed parameters. Here we investigated whether and, if so, to what extent the treatment of pool sizes as parameters to be optimized in three scenarios may affect the flux estimates. The results are discussed in terms of benchmark values for canonical pathways and reactions, including starch and sucrose synthesis as well as the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylation and oxygenation reactions. In addition, we discuss pathways emerging from a divergent branch point for which pool sizes are required for flux estimation, irrespective of the computational approach used for the simulation of the observable labelling pattern. Therefore, our findings indicate the necessity for development of techniques for accurate pool size measurements to improve the quality of flux estimates from nonstationary flux estimates in intact plant cells in the absence of alternative flux measurements.

  17. The Effect of Body Size in Mercury Accumulation Biokinetic of Cockle Shell (Anadara Granosa)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wahyu Retno Prihatiningsih

    2007-01-01

    Accumulation of mercury biokinetic in cockle shell (Anadara granosa) through water pathway has been investigated under laboratory condition. The objective of research is to find the effect of body size in mercury biokinetic of Anadara granosa and to find bioindicator based on biokinetic parameter. The research shows that body size of Anadara granosa give an effect to concentration factor and could barrier mercury contaminant. Concentration factor for size 1.9, 2.5 and 3.9 cm of biota moving high and reach steady state condition after 24 days. Concentration factor of Anadara granosa in size 1.9, 2.5 and 3.9 is 0.1476, 0.1645 and 0.2573 day. Based on mechanism of mercury biokinetic process, it was proof that Anadara granosa is an ideal invertebrate for bioindicator. (author)

  18. Shrinkage of body size of small insects: A possible link to global warming?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    He Jihuan

    2007-01-01

    The increase of global mean surface temperature leads to the increase of metabolic rate. This might lead to an unexpected threat from the small insect world. Global warming shrinks cell size, shorten lifespan, and accelerate evolution. The present note speculates on possible connections between allometry and E-infinity theory

  19. Body Size of Contemporary Youth in Different Parts of the World

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meredith, Howard V.

    1969-01-01

    Based on body size measurements accumulated between 1950-1960, comparisons were made of 13-year-old girls and 15-year-old boys from North and South America, northern, central, and southwest Asia, Oceania, Australia, Africa, the Near East, and Europe. (DO)

  20. Density, body size, and reproduction of feral house mice on Gough ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1991-05-02

    May 2, 1991 ... 1992,27(1). Density, body size, and reproduction of feral house mice on Gough Island ... and mean monthly air temperatures (at sea level) range between 9°C ..... Concern about the adverse effect of introduced mice on island.

  1. The Influence of Age and Sex on Genetic Associations with Adult Body Size and Shape

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Winkler, Thomas W; Justice, Anne E; Graff, Mariaelisa

    2015-01-01

    Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified more than 100 genetic variants contributing to BMI, a measure of body size, or waist-to-hip ratio (adjusted for BMI, WHRadjBMI), a measure of body shape. Body size and shape change as people grow older and these changes differ substantially...... (G x AGE), sex-specific effects (G x SEX) or age-specific effects that differed between men and women (G x AGE x SEX). For BMI, we identified 15 loci (11 previously established for main effects, four novel) that showed significant (FDR... effects on WHRadjBMI. These results may provide further insights into the biology that underlies weight change with age or the sexually dimorphism of body shape....

  2. Scaling of lifting forces in relation to object size in whole body lifting

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kingma, I.; van Dieen, J.H.; Toussaint, H.M.

    2005-01-01

    Subjects prepare for a whole body lifting movement by adjusting their posture and scaling their lifting forces to the expected object weight. The expectancy is based on visual and haptic size cues. This study aimed to find out whether lifting force overshoots related to object size cues disappear or

  3. Whole-body pre-cooling does not alter human muscle metabolism during sub-maximal exercise in the heat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Booth, J; Wilsmore, B R; Macdonald, A D; Zeyl, A; Mcghee, S; Calvert, D; Marino, F E; Storlien, L H; Taylor, N A

    2001-06-01

    Muscle metabolism was investigated in seven men during two 35 min cycling trials at 60% peak oxygen uptake, at 35 degrees C and 50% relative humidity. On one occasion, exercise was preceded by whole-body cooling achieved by immersion in water during a reduction in temperature from 29 to 24 degrees C, and, for the other trial, by immersion in water at a thermoneutral temperature (control, 34.8 degrees C). Pre-cooling did not alter oxygen uptake during exercise (P > 0.05), whilst the change in cardiac frequency and body mass both tended to be lower following pre-cooling (0.05 whole-body pre-cooling does not alter muscle metabolism during submaximal exercise in the heat. It is more likely that thermoregulatory and cardiovascular strain are reduced, through lower muscle and core temperatures.

  4. Comparison of organ doses in human phantoms: variations due to body size and posture

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feng, Xu; Xiang-Hong, Jia; Xue-Jun, Yu; Zhan-Chun, Pan; Qian, Liu; Chun-Xin, Yang

    2017-01-01

    Organ dose calculations performed using human phantoms can provide estimates of astronauts' health risks due to cosmic radiation. However, the characteristics of such phantoms strongly affect the estimation precision. To investigate organ dose variations with body size and posture in human phantoms, a non-uniform rational B-spline boundary surfaces model was constructed based on cryo-section images. This model was used to establish four phantoms with different body size and posture parameters, whose organs parameters were changed simultaneously and which were voxelised with 4x4x4 mm"3 resolution. Then, using Monte Carlo transport code, the organ doses caused by ≤500 MeV isotropic incident protons were calculated. The dose variations due to body size differences within a certain range were negligible, and the doses received in crouching and standing-up postures were similar. Therefore, a standard Chinese phantom could be established, and posture changes cannot effectively protect astronauts during solar particle events. (authors)

  5. Body size shifts and early warning signals precede the historic collapse of whale stocks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clements, Christopher F; Blanchard, Julia L; Nash, Kirsty L; Hindell, Mark A; Ozgul, Arpat

    2017-06-22

    Predicting population declines is a key challenge in the face of global environmental change. Abundance-based early warning signals have been shown to precede population collapses; however, such signals are sensitive to the low reliability of abundance estimates. Here, using historical data on whales harvested during the 20th century, we demonstrate that early warning signals can be present not only in the abundance data, but also in the more reliable body size data of wild populations. We show that during the period of commercial whaling, the mean body size of caught whales declined dramatically (by up to 4 m over a 70-year period), leading to early warning signals being detectable up to 40 years before the global collapse of whale stocks. Combining abundance and body size data can reduce the length of the time series required to predict collapse, and decrease the chances of false positive early warning signals.

  6. Interrelationships of Hormones, Diet, Body Size and Breast Cancer among Hispanic Women

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Peltz, Gerson

    2005-01-01

    ...). The training program will focus on breast cancer etiology, specifically the interrelationships between hormones, diet, body size, and breast cancer among Hispanic women in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV...

  7. Size relationships of different body parts in the three dipteran species Drosophila melanogaster, Ceratitis capitata and Musca domestica.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siomava, Natalia; Wimmer, Ernst A; Posnien, Nico

    2016-06-01

    Body size is an integral feature of an organism that influences many aspects of life such as fecundity, life span and mating success. Size of individual organs and the entire body size represent quantitative traits with a large reaction norm, which are influenced by various environmental factors. In the model system Drosophila melanogaster, pupal size and adult traits, such as tibia and thorax length or wing size, accurately estimate the overall body size. However, it is unclear whether these traits can be used in other flies. Therefore, we studied changes in size of pupae and adult organs in response to different rearing temperatures and densities for D. melanogaster, Ceratitis capitata and Musca domestica. We confirm a clear sexual size dimorphism (SSD) for Drosophila and show that the SSD is less uniform in the other species. Moreover, the size response to changing growth conditions is sex dependent. Comparison of static and evolutionary allometries of the studied traits revealed that response to the same environmental variable is genotype specific but has similarities between species of the same order. We conclude that the value of adult traits as estimators of the absolute body size may differ among species and the use of a single trait may result in wrong assumptions. Therefore, we suggest using a body size coefficient computed from several individual measurements. Our data is of special importance for monitoring activities of natural populations of the three dipteran flies, since they are harmful species causing economical damage (Drosophila, Ceratitis) or transferring diseases (Musca).

  8. Basal metabolic rate and body composition of elite Japanese male athletes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koshimizu, Takako; Matsushima, Yoshiko; Yokota, Yukari; Yanagisawa, Kae; Nagai, Satsuki; Okamura, Koji; Komatsu, Yutaka; Kawahara, Takashi

    2012-01-01

    The estimated energy requirement is important for adequate nutritional management in athletes. The energy requirement can be estimated from the basal metabolic rate (BMR). However, there is little data regarding the BMR of Japanese athletes. This study measured the BMR and body composition of 81 elite Japanese male athletes in different sports categories: endurance (E), strength, power and sprint (S) and ball game (B). The factors influencing the BMR were also investigated. The BMR and body composition were measured by indirect calorimetry and an air-displacement plentysmograph device (the BOD POD), respectively. The BMR per lean body mass (LBM) differed significantly among the three groups. The BMR was significantly correlated with the body weight (BW) and LBM in all groups. A multiple-regression analysis showed that the LBM was the most powerful predictor in the E and S groups, whereas the BW was the most powerful predictor in the B group. The BW appears to become an important predictor as the BW of athletes increases. Additionally, height was the second explanatory variable in the S and B groups, thus suggesting that height needs to be considered for the BMR in these groups. Therefore, the BMR in elite athletes needs to be estimated according to their body composition.

  9. Shape shifting predicts ontogenetic changes in metabolic scaling in diverse aquatic invertebrates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glazier, Douglas S; Hirst, Andrew G; Atkinson, David

    2015-03-07

    Metabolism fuels all biological activities, and thus understanding its variation is fundamentally important. Much of this variation is related to body size, which is commonly believed to follow a 3/4-power scaling law. However, during ontogeny, many kinds of animals and plants show marked shifts in metabolic scaling that deviate from 3/4-power scaling predicted by general models. Here, we show that in diverse aquatic invertebrates, ontogenetic shifts in the scaling of routine metabolic rate from near isometry (bR = scaling exponent approx. 1) to negative allometry (bR < 1), or the reverse, are associated with significant changes in body shape (indexed by bL = the scaling exponent of the relationship between body mass and body length). The observed inverse correlations between bR and bL are predicted by metabolic scaling theory that emphasizes resource/waste fluxes across external body surfaces, but contradict theory that emphasizes resource transport through internal networks. Geometric estimates of the scaling of surface area (SA) with body mass (bA) further show that ontogenetic shifts in bR and bA are positively correlated. These results support new metabolic scaling theory based on SA influences that may be applied to ontogenetic shifts in bR shown by many kinds of animals and plants. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  10. Geographic body size variation in the periodical cicadas Magicicada: implications for life cycle divergence and local adaptation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koyama, T; Ito, H; Kakishima, S; Yoshimura, J; Cooley, J R; Simon, C; Sota, T

    2015-06-01

    Seven species in three species groups (Decim, Cassini and Decula) of periodical cicadas (Magicicada) occupy a wide latitudinal range in the eastern United States. To clarify how adult body size, a key trait affecting fitness, varies geographically with climate conditions and life cycle, we analysed the relationships of population mean head width to geographic variables (latitude, longitude, altitude), habitat annual mean temperature (AMT), life cycle and species differences. Within species, body size was larger in females than males and decreased with increasing latitude (and decreasing habitat AMT), following the converse Bergmann's rule. For the pair of recently diverged 13- and 17-year species in each group, 13-year cicadas were equal in size or slightly smaller on average than their 17-year counterparts despite their shorter developmental time. This fact suggests that, under the same climatic conditions, 17-year cicadas have lowered growth rates compared to their 13-years counterparts, allowing 13-year cicadas with faster growth rates to achieve body sizes equivalent to those of their 17-year counterparts at the same locations. However, in the Decim group, which includes two 13-year species, the more southerly, anciently diverged 13-year species (Magicicada tredecim) was characterized by a larger body size than the other, more northerly 13- and 17-year species, suggesting that local adaptation in warmer habitats may ultimately lead to evolution of larger body sizes. Our results demonstrate how geographic clines in body size may be maintained in sister species possessing different life cycles. © 2015 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2015 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

  11. Weber's Illusion and Body Shape: Anisotropy of Tactile Size Perception on the Hand

    Science.gov (United States)

    Longo, Matthew R.; Haggard, Patrick

    2011-01-01

    The perceived distance between touches on a single skin surface is larger on regions of high tactile sensitivity than those with lower acuity, an effect known as "Weber's illusion". This illusion suggests that tactile size perception involves a representation of the perceived size of body parts preserving characteristics of the somatosensory…

  12. Population-based resequencing of experimentally evolved populations reveals the genetic basis of body size variation in Drosophila melanogaster.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thomas L Turner

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Body size is a classic quantitative trait with evolutionarily significant variation within many species. Locating the alleles responsible for this variation would help understand the maintenance of variation in body size in particular, as well as quantitative traits in general. However, successful genome-wide association of genotype and phenotype may require very large sample sizes if alleles have low population frequencies or modest effects. As a complementary approach, we propose that population-based resequencing of experimentally evolved populations allows for considerable power to map functional variation. Here, we use this technique to investigate the genetic basis of natural variation in body size in Drosophila melanogaster. Significant differentiation of hundreds of loci in replicate selection populations supports the hypothesis that the genetic basis of body size variation is very polygenic in D. melanogaster. Significantly differentiated variants are limited to single genes at some loci, allowing precise hypotheses to be formed regarding causal polymorphisms, while other significant regions are large and contain many genes. By using significantly associated polymorphisms as a priori candidates in follow-up studies, these data are expected to provide considerable power to determine the genetic basis of natural variation in body size.

  13. Plasma levels of 24S-hydroxycholesterol reflect the balance between cerebral production and hepatic metabolism and are inversely related to body surface.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bretillon, L; Lütjohann, D; Ståhle, L; Widhe, T; Bindl, L; Eggertsen, G; Diczfalusy, U; Björkhem, I

    2000-05-01

    We have previously presented evidence that most of the 24S-hydroxycholesterol present in the circulation originates from the brain and that most of the elimination of this oxysterol occurs in the liver. Plasma 24S-hydroxycholesterol levels decline by a factor of about 5 during the first decades of life. The concentration of the enzyme cholesterol 24S-hydroxylase in the brain is, however, about constant from the first year of life, and reduced enzyme levels thus cannot explain the decreasing plasma levels during infancy. In the present work we tested the hypothesis that the plasma levels of 24S-hydroxycholesterol may reflect the size of the brain relative to the capacity of the liver to eliminate the substance. It is shown here that the age-dependent changes in absolute as well as cholesterol-related plasma level of 24S-hydroxycholesterol closely follow the changes in the ratio between estimated brain weight and estimated liver volume. The size of the brain is increased only about 50% whereas the size of the liver is increased by about 6-fold after the age of 1 year. Liver volume is known to be highly correlated to body surface, and in accordance with this the absolute as well as the cholesterol-related plasma level of 24S-hydroxycholesterol was found to be highly inversely correlated to body surface in 77 healthy subjects of varying ages (r(2) = 0.74). Two chondrodystrophic dwarves with normal size of the brain but with markedly reduced body area had increased levels of 24S-hydroxycholesterol when related to age but normal levels when related to body surface. It is concluded that the balance between cerebral production and hepatic metabolism is a critical determinant for plasma levels of 24S-hydroxycholesterol at different ages and that endocrinological factors are less important. The results are discussed in relation to the possibility to use 24S-hydroxycholesterol in the circulation as a marker for cholesterol homeostasis in the brain.

  14. Influence of body size, metabolic rate and life history stage on the uptake and excretion of the lampricide 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM) by invasive sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tessier, Laura R; Long, Tristan A F; Wilkie, Michael P

    2018-01-01

    Invasive sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) are controlled in the Great Lakes using the lampricide 3-trifluoromethyl-4-nitrophenol (TFM), which is applied to streams infested with larval lamprey. However, lamprey that survive treatments (residuals) remain a challenge because they may subsequently undergo metamorphosis into parasitic juvenile animals that migrate downstream to the Great Lakes, where they feed on important sport and commercial fishes. The goal of this study was to determine if body size and life stage could potentially influence sea lamprey tolerance to TFM by influencing patterns of TFM uptake and elimination. Because mass specific rates of oxygen consumption (M˙O 2 ) are lower in larger compared to smaller lamprey, we predicted that TFM uptake would be negatively correlated to body size, suggesting that large larvae would be more tolerant to TFM exposure. Accordingly, TFM uptake and M˙O 2 were measured in larvae ranging in size from 0.2-4.2g using radio-labelled TFM ( 14 C-TFM) and static respirometry. Both were inversely proportional to wet mass (M), and could be described usingthe allometric power relationship: Y=aM b , in which M˙O 2 =1.86M 0.53 and TFM Uptake=7.24M 0.34 . We also predicted that body size would extend to rates of TFM elimination, which was measured following the administration of 14 C-TFM (via intraperitoneal injection). However, there were no differences in the half-lives of elimination of TFM (T 1/2 -TFM). There were also no differences in M˙O 2 or TFM uptake amongst size-matched larval, metamorphosing (stages 6-7), or post-metamorphic (juvenile) sea lamprey. However, the T 1/2 -TFM was significantly lower in larval than post-metamorphic lamprey (juvenile), indicating the larval lamprey cleared TFM more efficiently than juvenile lamprey. We conclude that larger larval sea lamprey are more likely to survive TFM treatments suggesting that body size might be an important variable to consider when treating streams with TFM to

  15. The bold and the beautiful. Influence of body size of televised media models on body dissatisfaction and actual food intake

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Anschutz, Doeschka J; Engels, Rutger C M E; Becker, Eni S; van Strien, Tatjana

    2008-01-01

    The effects of exposure to televised thin and average size models on body dissatisfaction and actual food intake were examined. Normal weight female students (N=104) were exposed to a 30-min movie clip featuring beautiful girls. Half of them viewed the movie clip in normal screen size (4:3) and the

  16. Microencapsulated conjugated linoleic acid associated with hypocaloric diet reduces body fat in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carvalho RF

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Roberta F Carvalho,1 Sofia K Uehara,2 Glorimar Rosa1,21Medicine Department, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; 2Nutrition and Dietetic Department, Josué de Castro Institute of Nutrition, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, BrazilBackground: Animal studies have suggested beneficial effects of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA in reducing body fat mass and improvement in the serum lipid profile and glycemia. However, these effects are controversial in humans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of microencapsulated CLA supplementation on body composition, body mass index, waist circumference, and blood pressure in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome.Methods: This study was a placebo-controlled and randomized clinical trial. Fourteen women diagnosed with metabolic syndrome received light strawberry jam enriched or not with microencapsulated CLA (3 g/day as a mixture of 38.57% cis-9, trans-11, and 39.76% trans-10, cis-12 CLA isomers associated with a hypocaloric diet for 90 days. The subjects were monitored to assess variables associated with the metabolic syndrome, in addition to assessing adherence with the intervention.Results: There were no significant effects of microencapsulated CLA on the lipid profile or blood pressure. Mean plasma insulin concentrations were significantly lower in women supplemented with microencapsulated CLA (Δ T90 – T0 = −12.87 ± 4.26 µU/mL, P = 0.02. Microencapsulated CLA supplementation did not alter the waist circumference, but there was a reduction in body fat mass detected after 30 days (Δ = −2.68% ± 0.82%, P = 0.02, which was maintained until the 90-day intervention period (Δ = −3.32% ± 1.41%, P = 0.02 in the microencapsulated CLA group. The placebo group showed this effect only after 90 days (Δ = −1.97% ± 0.60%, P = 0.02, but had a reduced waist circumference (Δ T90 – T0 = −4.25 ± 1.31 cm, P = 0.03.Conclusion: Supplementation with mixed

  17. The effects of body temperature and mass on the postprandial metabolic responses of the African egg-eating snakes Dasypeltis scabra and Dasypeltis inornata.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greene, Sara; McConnachie, Suzanne; Secor, Stephen; Perrin, Mike

    2013-06-01

    African egg-eating snakes (Dasypeltis) feed only on freshly laid bird eggs which they perforate within their esophagus before swallowing the liquid contents and regurgitating the empty shell. Compared to a snake's typical intact meal, the liquid diet of Dasypeltis would expectedly generate a more moderate postprandial metabolic response and specific dynamic action (SDA). Free-ranging Dasypeltis feed over a range of ambient temperatures and thereby experience predicted temperature-dependent shifts in the duration and magnitude of their postprandial metabolic response. Such shifts would undoubtedly be shared among different species and age classes of Dasypeltis. To examine these expectations, we measured pre- and postprandial metabolic rates of adult Dasypeltis inornata and adult and neonate Dasypeltis scabra in response to liquid egg meals weighing 20% of snake body mass at 20, 25, 27, 30, and 32 °C. With an increase in body temperature, postprandial metabolic profiles of neonate and adult snakes became narrower and shorter in duration. Specific dynamic action varied among temperature treatments, increasing from 20 to 32 °C. Standard metabolic rate, postprandial peak metabolic rate, and SDA scaled with mass exponents that typically did not differ from 1.0. As expected, Dasypeltis digesting a liquid egg diet experienced a more modest postprandial response and SDA, expending on average only 10.6% of the meal's energy on the breakdown, absorption, and assimilation of the egg meal, whereas other colubrids consuming intact rodent or fish meals expend on average 16.3% of the meal's energy on digestion and assimilation. Actively foraging and feeding throughout the avian egg laying season enable Dasypeltis to survive when eggs are not available. The adaptive suite of traits that enable Dasypeltis to consume eggs of large relative size and ingest only the liquid contents may also be joined by physiological adaptations specific to their liquid diet and extended bouts of

  18. Size Effect of the 2-D Bodies on the Geothermal Gradient and Q-A Plot

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thakur, M.; Blackwell, D. D.

    2009-12-01

    Using numerical models we have investigated some of the criticisms on the Q-A plot of related to the effect of size of the body on the slope and reduced heat flow. The effects of horizontal conduction depend on the relative difference of radioactivity between the body and the country rock (assuming constant thermal conductivity). Horizontal heat transfer due to different 2-D bodies was numerically studied in order to quantify resulting temperature differences at the Moho and errors on the predication of Qr (reduced heat flow). Using the two end member distributions of radioactivity, the step model (thickness 10km) and exponential model, different 2-D models of horizontal scale (width) ranging from 10 -500 km were investigated. Increasing the horizontal size of the body tends to move observations closer towards the 1-D solution. A temperature difference of 50 oC is produced (for the step model) at Moho between models of width 10 km versus 500 km. In other words the 1-D solution effectively provides large scale averaging in terms of heat flow and temperature field in the lithosphere. For bodies’ ≤ 100 km wide the geotherms at shallower levels are affected, but at depth they converge and are 50 oC lower than that of the infinite plate model temperature. In case of 2-D bodies surface heat flow is decreased due to horizontal transfer of heat, which will shift the Q-A point vertically downward on the Q-A plot. The smaller the size of the body, the more will be the deviation from the 1-D solution and the more will be the movement of Q-A point downwards on a Q-A plot. On the Q-A plot, a limited points of bodies of different sizes with different radioactivity contrast (for the step and exponential model), exactly reproduce the reduced heat flow Qr. Thus the size of the body can affect the slope on a Q-A plot but Qr is not changed. Therefore, Qr ~ 32 mWm-2 obtained from the global terrain average Q-A plot represents the best estimate of stable continental mantle heat

  19. Myonuclear domain size and myosin isoform expression in muscle fibres from mammals representing a 100,000-fold difference in body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Jing-Xia; Höglund, Anna-Stina; Karlsson, Patrick; Lindblad, Joakim; Qaisar, Rizwan; Aare, Sudhakar; Bengtsson, Ewert; Larsson, Lars

    2009-01-01

    This comparative study of myonuclear domain (MND) size in mammalian species representing a 100,000-fold difference in body mass, ranging from 25 g to 2500 kg, was undertaken to improve our understanding of myonuclear organization in skeletal muscle fibres. Myonuclear domain size was calculated from three-dimensional reconstructions in a total of 235 single muscle fibre segments at a fixed sarcomere length. Irrespective of species, the largest MND size was observed in muscle fibres expressing fast myosin heavy chain (MyHC) isoforms, but in the two smallest mammalian species studied (mouse and rat), MND size was not larger in the fast-twitch fibres expressing the IIA MyHC isofom than in the slow-twitch type I fibres. In the larger mammals, the type I fibres always had the smallest average MND size, but contrary to mouse and rat muscles, type IIA fibres had lower mitochondrial enzyme activities than type I fibres. Myonuclear domain size was highly dependent on body mass in the two muscle fibre types expressed in all species, i.e. types I and IIA. Myonuclear domain size increased in muscle fibres expressing both the beta/slow (type I; r = 0.84, P fast IIA MyHC isoform (r = 0.90; P muscle fibre type, independent of species. However, myosin isoform expression is not the sole protein determining MND size, and other protein systems, such as mitochondrial proteins, may be equally or more important determinants of MND size.

  20. Caloric restriction increases ketone bodies metabolism and preserves blood flow in aging brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Ai-Ling; Zhang, Wei; Gao, Xiaoli; Watts, Lora

    2015-07-01

    Caloric restriction (CR) has been shown to increase the life span and health span of a broad range of species. However, CR effects on in vivo brain functions are far from explored. In this study, we used multimetric neuroimaging methods to characterize the CR-induced changes of brain metabolic and vascular functions in aging rats. We found that old rats (24 months of age) with CR diet had reduced glucose uptake and lactate concentration, but increased ketone bodies level, compared with the age-matched and young (5 months of age) controls. The shifted metabolism was associated with preserved vascular function: old CR rats also had maintained cerebral blood flow relative to the age-matched controls. When investigating the metabolites in mitochondrial tricarboxylic acid cycle, we found that citrate and α-ketoglutarate were preserved in the old CR rats. We suggest that CR is neuroprotective; ketone bodies, cerebral blood flow, and α-ketoglutarate may play important roles in preserving brain physiology in aging. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Anthropometry and Body Composition of Preterm Neonates in the Light of Metabolic Programming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parlapani, Elisavet; Agakidis, Charalampos; Karagiozoglou-Lampoudi, Thomais

    2018-01-01

    The improved survival of preterm infants has led to increased interest regarding their health as adults. In the context of metabolic programming, the connection between perinatal and early postnatal nutrition and growth with health in later life has brought to the fore the role of catch-up growth during the first months of preterm infants' lives and its association with body fat and obesity in childhood or puberty. A state-of-the art review was conducted in order to assess the way catch-up is evaluated, in terms of timing and rate. Adequate growth is of major importance for neurodevelopment; however, it may compete with adiposity or metabolic health. Studies based on body composition assessment have given conflicting results as regards the effect of early versus late and rapid versus slow catch-up growth on later health, mainly attributed to the lack of established criteria and definitions. Given that adequate early nutrition is crucial for the neurodevelopment of preterm infants, further studies are needed on the role of catch-up growth in long-term outcome, using generally accepted qualitative and quantitative criteria.

  2. Ideal Body Size as a Mediator for the Gender-Specific Association Between Socioeconomic Status and Body Mass Index: Evidence From an Upper-Middle-Income Country in the African Region.

    OpenAIRE

    Yepes Maryam; Maurer Jürgen; Stringhini Silvia; Viswanathan Barathi; Gedeon Jude; Bovet Pascal

    2016-01-01

    While obesity continues to rise globally the associations between body size gender and socioeconomic status (SES) seem to vary in different populations and little is known on the contribution of perceived ideal body size in the social disparity of obesity in African countries. We examined the gender and socioeconomic patterns of body mass index (BMI) and perceived ideal body size in the Seychelles a middle income small island state in the African region. We also assessed the potential role of...

  3. Generating size-controlled embryoid bodies using laser direct-write

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dias, A D; Corr, D T; Unser, A M; Xie, Y; Chrisey, D B

    2014-01-01

    Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have the potential to self-renew and differentiate into any specialized cell type. One common method to differentiate ESCs in vitro is through embryoid bodies (EBs), three-dimensional cellular aggregates that spontaneously self-assemble and generally express markers for the three germ layers, endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm. It has been previously shown that both EB size and 2D colony size each influence differentiation. We hypothesized that we could control the size of the EB formed by mouse ESCs (mESCs) by using a cell printing method, laser direct-write (LDW), to control both the size of the initial printed colony and the local cell density in printed colonies. After printing mESCs at various printed colony sizes and printing densities, two-way ANOVAs indicated that the EB diameter was influenced by printing density after three days (p = 0.0002), while there was no effect of the printed colony diameter on the EB diameter at the same timepoint (p = 0.74). There was no significant interaction between these two factors. Tukey's honestly significant difference test showed that high-density colonies formed significantly larger EBs, suggesting that printed mESCs quickly aggregate with nearby cells. Thus, EBs can be engineered to a desired size by controlling printing density, which will influence the design of future differentiation studies. Herein, we highlight the capacity of LDW to control the local cell density and colony size independently, at prescribed spatial locations, potentially leading to better stem cell maintenance and directed differentiation. (paper)

  4. Investigation into the relationship between body surface area and total body potassium using Monte Carlo and measurement

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rogers, J.A. [Medical Physics and Imaging, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham (United Kingdom)]. E-mail: jane.rogers@university-b.wmids.nhs.uk; Blake-James, M. [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham (United Kingdom); Green, S.; Beddoe, A.H. [Medical Physics and Imaging, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham (United Kingdom)

    2002-03-07

    The use of body surface area (BSA) as a means of indexing chemotherapy doses is widespread even though the value of this practice is uncertain. In principle, the body cell mass (BCM) more closely represents the body's metabolic size and this is investigated here as an alternative to BSA; since 98% of body potassium is intracellular the derivation of total body potassium (TBK) via the measurement of {sup 40}K in a whole body counter (WBC) will provide a useful normalizing index for metabolic size, potentially avoiding toxicity and underdosing. The Queen Elizabeth Hospital WBC has been used in this study, initially involving single geometrical phantoms and then combinations of these to simulate human body habitus. Monte Carlo N-particle (MCNP) codes were constructed to model the phantoms and simulate the measurements made in the WBC. Efficiency corrections were derived by comparing measurement and modelled data for each detector separately. A method of modelling a person in the WBC as a series of ellipsoids was developed. Twenty-four normal males and 24 females were measured for their {sup 40}K emissions. Individual MCNP codes were constructed for each volunteer and the results used in conjunction with the measurements to derive TBK, correcting for body habitus effects and detector efficiencies. An estimate of the component of error arising from sources other than counting statistics was included by analysing data from the measurement of phantoms. The total residual errors (expressed as coefficients of variation) for males and females were 10.1% and 8.5% respectively. The measurement components were determined to be 2.4% and 2.5%, implying that the biological components were 9.8% and 8.1% respectively. These results suggest that the use of BSA for indexing chemotherapy doses is likely to give rise to clinically significant under- or overdosing. (author)

  5. Basal metabolic rate in relation to body composition and daily energy expenditure in the field vole, Microtus agrestis

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Meerlo, P; Bolle, L; Visser, GH; Masman, D; Daan, S

    1997-01-01

    Basal metabolic rate in the field vole (Microtus agrestis) was studied in relation to body composition and daily energy expenditure in the field Daily energy expenditure was measured by means of doubly labelled water ((D2O)-O-18). In the same individuals, basal metabolic rate was subsequently

  6. Metabolic profile of santa inês ewes whith low body condition score during peripartum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nayara Resende Nasciutti

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study was to analyse the variations in the metabolic profile of protein, energy enzyme and mineral of Santa Inês ewes with low body condition score (BCS during peripartum. Blood samples were collected from 12 animals by jugular venipuncture to determine the serum biochemical profiles of protein, energy, mineral and enzyme metabolisms. Samples were collected on the following days: days 28, 21, 14, and 7 before lambing, at birth and, at days 2, 4, 7, 14, 21, and 28 postpartum (dpp. The samples were centrifuged and the serum analysed by Automated-Analyser. There was no alteration of the BCS during the 28 dpp, between 0.6 and 2.1 ± 2.4 ± 0.5, and was considered, as lean. The values of the total serum protein, globulin, albumin, and albumin/globulin ratio were reduced effective from the period before birth until 28dpp. The values of beta-hydroxybutyrate, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium remained below those of reference values. The concentrations of alanin aminotransferase (ALT were decreased particularly during the weeks before delivery. It was concluded that Santa Inês sheep with low body condition score demonstrated a reduction in the metabolism of proteins, energy, mineral and enzyme during peripartum.

  7. Body Size and the Risk of Primary Hyperparathyroidism in Women: A Cohort Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vaidya, Anand; Curhan, Gary C; Paik, Julie M; Wang, Molin; Taylor, Eric N

    2017-09-01

    Greater body weight and fat mass have been associated with higher serum parathyroid hormone levels and a higher prevalence of primary hyperparathyroidism (P-HPTH) in women. However, prospective studies to evaluate whether greater body size associates with a higher incidence of developing P-HPTH have not been reported. We investigated whether greater body size was independently associated with a higher risk for developing P-HPTH in women. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 85,013 female participants in the Nurses' Health Study I followed for up to 26 years. Body size was measured via multiple metrics: weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference (WC). Weight and BMI were assessed every 2 years from 1986 to 2012, and WC was assessed in 1986, 1996, and 2000. Detailed dietary and demographic exposures were quantified via validated biennial questionnaires. Incident cases of P-HPTH were confirmed by individual medical record review. Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate whether WC, weight, and BMI were independent risk factors for developing P-HPTH. Models were adjusted for demographic variables, comorbidities, medications, intakes of calcium and vitamin D, and exposure to ultraviolet light. We confirmed 491 incident cases of P-HPTH during 2,128,068 person-years of follow-up. The multivariable-adjusted relative risks for incident P-HPTH increased across quartiles of WC: Q1, ref; Q2, 1.34 (0.97, 1.86); Q3, 1.70 (1.24, 2.31); Q4, 2.27 (1.63, 3.18); p trend < 0.001. Similarly, the multivariable-adjusted risks for incident P-HPTH increased across quartiles of weight: Q1, ref; Q2, 1.23 (0.92, 1.65); Q3, 1.63 (1.24, 2.14); Q4, 1.65 (1.24, 2.19); p trend < 0.001. A similar but statistically non-significant trend was observed across quartiles of BMI (p trend = 0.07). In summary, body size may be an independent and modifiable risk factor for developing P-HPTH in women. © 2017 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. © 2017 American

  8. Beyond body size: muscle biochemistry and body shape explain ontogenetic variation of anti-predatory behaviour in the lizard Salvator merianae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Barros, Fábio Cury; de Carvalho, José Eduardo; Abe, Augusto Shinya; Kohlsdorf, Tiana

    2016-06-01

    Anti-predatory behaviour evolves under the strong action of natural selection because the success of individuals avoiding predation essentially defines their fitness. Choice of anti-predatory strategies is defined by prey characteristics as well as environmental temperature. An additional dimension often relegated in this multilevel equation is the ontogenetic component. In the tegu Salvator merianae, adults run away from predators at high temperatures but prefer fighting when it is cold, whereas juveniles exhibit the same flight strategy within a wide thermal range. Here, we integrate physiology and morphology to understand ontogenetic variation in the temperature-dependent shift of anti-predatory behaviour in these lizards. We compiled data for body shape and size, and quantified enzyme activity in hindlimb and head muscles, testing the hypothesis that morphophysiological models explain ontogenetic variation in behavioural associations. Our prediction is that juveniles exhibit body shape and muscle biochemistry that enhance flight strategies. We identified biochemical differences between muscles mainly in the LDH:CS ratio, whereby hindlimb muscles were more glycolytic than the jaw musculature. Juveniles, which often use evasive strategies to avoid predation, have more glycolytic hindlimb muscles and are much smaller when compared with adults 1-2 years old. Ontogenetic differences in body shape were identified but marginally contributed to behavioural variation between juvenile and adult tegus, and variation in anti-predatory behaviour in these lizards resides mainly in associations between body size and muscle biochemistry. Our results are discussed in the ecological context of predator avoidance by individuals differing in body size living at temperature-variable environments, where restrictions imposed by the cold could be compensated by specific phenotypes. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  9. Estimation of body-size traits by photogrammetry in large mammals to inform conservation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berger, Joel

    2012-10-01

    Photography, including remote imagery and camera traps, has contributed substantially to conservation. However, the potential to use photography to understand demography and inform policy is limited. To have practical value, remote assessments must be reasonably accurate and widely deployable. Prior efforts to develop noninvasive methods of estimating trait size have been motivated by a desire to answer evolutionary questions, measure physiological growth, or, in the case of illegal trade, assess economics of horn sizes; but rarely have such methods been directed at conservation. Here I demonstrate a simple, noninvasive photographic technique and address how knowledge of values of individual-specific metrics bears on conservation policy. I used 10 years of data on juvenile moose (Alces alces) to examine whether body size and probability of survival are positively correlated in cold climates. I investigated whether the presence of mothers improved juvenile survival. The posited latter relation is relevant to policy because harvest of adult females has been permitted in some Canadian and American jurisdictions under the assumption that probability of survival of young is independent of maternal presence. The accuracy of estimates of head sizes made from photographs exceeded 98%. The estimates revealed that overwinter juvenile survival had no relation to the juvenile's estimated mass (p < 0.64) and was more strongly associated with maternal presence (p < 0.02) than winter snow depth (p < 0.18). These findings highlight the effects on survival of a social dynamic (the mother-young association) rather than body size and suggest a change in harvest policy will increase survival. Furthermore, photographic imaging of growth of individual juvenile muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus) over 3 Arctic winters revealed annual variability in size, which supports the idea that noninvasive monitoring may allow one to detect how some environmental conditions ultimately affect body growth.

  10. Intraspecific Variation in Maximum Ingested Food Size and Body Mass in Varecia rubra and Propithecus coquereli

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam Hartstone-Rose

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available In a recent study, we quantified the scaling of ingested food size (Vb—the maximum size at which an animal consistently ingests food whole—and found that Vb scaled isometrically between species of captive strepsirrhines. The current study examines the relationship between Vb and body size within species with a focus on the frugivorous Varecia rubra and the folivorous Propithecus coquereli. We found no overlap in Vb between the species (all V. rubra ingested larger pieces of food relative to those eaten by P. coquereli, and least-squares regression of Vb and three different measures of body mass showed no scaling relationship within each species. We believe that this lack of relationship results from the relatively narrow intraspecific body size variation and seemingly patternless individual variation in Vb within species and take this study as further evidence that general scaling questions are best examined interspecifically rather than intraspecifically.

  11. Effects of pistachios on body weight in Chinese subjects with metabolic syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang Xin

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Studies have shown that pistachios can improve blood lipid profiles in subjects with moderate hypercholesterolemia which could reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, there is also a widely perceived view that eating nuts can lead to body weight gain due to their high fat content. Purpose To investigate the impact of different dosages of pistachios on body weight, blood pressure, blood lipids, blood glucose and insulin in subjects with metabolic syndrome. Methods Ninety subjects with metabolic syndrome (consistent with 2005 International Diabetes Federation metabolic syndrome standard without diabetes were enrolled in three endocrinology outpatient clinics in Beijing. All subjects received dietary counseling according to the guidelines of the American Heart Association Step I diet. After a 4 week run-in, subjects were randomized to consume either the recommended daily serving of 42 g pistachios (RSG, a higher daily serving of 70 g pistachio (HSG or no pistachios (DCG for 12 weeks. Results Subjects in all three groups were matched at baseline for BMI: DCG 28.03 ± 4.3; RSG 28.12 ± 3.22; and HSG 28.01 ± 4.51 kg/m2. There were no significant changes in body weight or BMI in any groups during the study nor any change from baseline at any time point in any group. During the entire study, there were no significant differences in waist-to-hip ratio among the groups or any change from baseline in any group (DCG -0.00 ± 0.03, RSG -0.01 ± 0.02 and HSG 0.01 ± 0.04. There were no significant differences detected among groups in triglycerides, fasting glucose and 2 hour postprandial glucose following a 75 gram glucose challenge. Exploratory analyses demonstrated that glucose values 2 h after a 75 gm glucose challenge were significantly lower at week 12 compared with baseline values in the HSG group (-1.13 ± 2.58 mmol/L, p = 0.02, and a similar trend was noted in the RSG group (-0.77 ± 2.07 mmol/L, p = 0.06, while no

  12. Childhood Body Size and the Risk of Malignant Melanoma in Adulthood

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Meyle, Kathrine D; Gamborg, Michael; Sørensen, Thorkild I A

    2017-01-01

    years and age 13 years had a significantly increased MM risk compared with children who grew taller between those ages. Birth weight was positively associated with MM. We conclude that associations between body size and MM originate early in life and are driven largely by height and birth weight...

  13. Microencapsulated conjugated linoleic acid associated with hypocaloric diet reduces body fat in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carvalho, Roberta F; Uehara, Sofia K; Rosa, Glorimar

    2012-01-01

    Animal studies have suggested beneficial effects of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in reducing body fat mass and improvement in the serum lipid profile and glycemia. However, these effects are controversial in humans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of microencapsulated CLA supplementation on body composition, body mass index, waist circumference, and blood pressure in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome. This study was a placebo-controlled and randomized clinical trial. Fourteen women diagnosed with metabolic syndrome received light strawberry jam enriched or not with microencapsulated CLA (3 g/day) as a mixture of 38.57% cis-9, trans-11, and 39.76% trans-10, cis-12 CLA isomers associated with a hypocaloric diet for 90 days. The subjects were monitored to assess variables associated with the metabolic syndrome, in addition to assessing adherence with the intervention. There were no significant effects of microencapsulated CLA on the lipid profile or blood pressure. Mean plasma insulin concentrations were significantly lower in women supplemented with microencapsulated CLA (Δ T₉₀ - T₀ = -12.87 ± 4.26 μU/mL, P = 0.02). Microencapsulated CLA supplementation did not alter the waist circumference, but there was a reduction in body fat mass detected after 30 days (Δ = -2.68% ± 0.82%, P = 0.02), which was maintained until the 90-day intervention period (Δ = -3.32% ± 1.41%, P = 0.02) in the microencapsulated CLA group. The placebo group showed this effect only after 90 days (Δ = -1.97% ± 0.60%, P = 0.02), but had a reduced waist circumference (Δ T₉₀ - T₀ = -4.25 ± 1.31 cm, P = 0.03). Supplementation with mixed-isomer microencapsulated CLA may have a favorable effect on glycemic control and body fat mass loss at an earlier time in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome, although there were no effects on lipid profile and blood pressure.

  14. Microencapsulated conjugated linoleic acid associated with hypocaloric diet reduces body fat in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carvalho, Roberta F; Uehara, Sofia K; Rosa, Glorimar

    2012-01-01

    Background Animal studies have suggested beneficial effects of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in reducing body fat mass and improvement in the serum lipid profile and glycemia. However, these effects are controversial in humans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of microencapsulated CLA supplementation on body composition, body mass index, waist circumference, and blood pressure in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome. Methods This study was a placebo-controlled and randomized clinical trial. Fourteen women diagnosed with metabolic syndrome received light strawberry jam enriched or not with microencapsulated CLA (3 g/day) as a mixture of 38.57% cis-9, trans-11, and 39.76% trans-10, cis-12 CLA isomers associated with a hypocaloric diet for 90 days. The subjects were monitored to assess variables associated with the metabolic syndrome, in addition to assessing adherence with the intervention. Results There were no significant effects of microencapsulated CLA on the lipid profile or blood pressure. Mean plasma insulin concentrations were significantly lower in women supplemented with microencapsulated CLA (Δ T90 – T0 = −12.87 ± 4.26 μU/mL, P = 0.02). Microencapsulated CLA supplementation did not alter the waist circumference, but there was a reduction in body fat mass detected after 30 days (Δ = −2.68% ± 0.82%, P = 0.02), which was maintained until the 90-day intervention period (Δ = −3.32% ± 1.41%, P = 0.02) in the microencapsulated CLA group. The placebo group showed this effect only after 90 days (Δ = −1.97% ± 0.60%, P = 0.02), but had a reduced waist circumference (Δ T90 – T0 = −4.25 ± 1.31 cm, P = 0.03). Conclusion Supplementation with mixed-isomer microencapsulated CLA may have a favorable effect on glycemic control and body fat mass loss at an earlier time in sedentary women with metabolic syndrome, although there were no effects on lipid profile and blood pressure. PMID:23271912

  15. Rates and modes of body size evolution in early carnivores and herbivores: a case study from Captorhinidae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neil Brocklehurst

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Body size is an extremely important characteristic, impacting on a variety of ecological and life-history traits. It is therefore important to understand the factors which may affect its evolution, and diet has attracted much interest in this context. A recent study which examined the evolution of the earliest terrestrial herbivores in the Late Carboniferous and Early Permian concluded that in the four herbivorous clades examined there was a trend towards increased body size, and that this increase was more substantial than that observed in closely related carnivorous clades. However, this hypothesis was not based on quantitative examination, and phylogenetic comparative methods provide a more robust means of testing such hypotheses. Here, the evolution of body size within different dietary regimes is examined in Captorhinidae, the most diverse and longest lived of these earliest high fibre herbivores. Evolutionary models were fit to their phylogeny to test for variation in rate and mode of evolution between the carnivorous and herbivorous members of this clade, and an analysis of rate variation throughout the tree was carried out. Estimates of ancestral body sizes were calculated in order to compare the rates and direction of evolution of lineages with different dietary regimes. Support for the idea that the high fibre herbivores within captorhinids are being drawn to a higher adaptive peak in body size than the carnivorous members of this clade is weak. A shift in rates of body size evolution is identified, but this does not coincide with the evolution of high-fibre herbivory, instead occurring earlier in time and at a more basal node. Herbivorous lineages which show an increase in size are not found to evolve at a faster rate than those which show a decrease; in fact, it is those which experience a size decrease which evolve at higher rates. It is possible the shift in rates of evolution is related to the improved food processing ability of

  16. Nasonia Parasitic Wasps Escape from Haller's Rule by Diphasic, Partially Isometric Brain-Body Size Scaling and Selective Neuropil Adaptations

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Groothuis, Jitte; Smid, Hans M.

    2017-01-01

    Haller's rule states that brains scale allometrically with body size in all animals, meaning that relative brain size increases with decreasing body size. This rule applies both on inter- and intraspecific comparisons. Only 1 species, the extremely small parasitic wasp Trichogramma evanescens, is

  17. Effects of pistachio nuts on body composition, metabolic, inflammatory and oxidative stress parameters in Asian Indians with metabolic syndrome: a 24-wk, randomized control trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gulati, Seema; Misra, Anoop; Pandey, Ravindra Mohan; Bhatt, Surya Prakash; Saluja, Shelza

    2014-02-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of pistachio nuts as an adjunct to diet and exercise on body composition, metabolic, inflammatory, and oxidative stress parameters in Asian Indians with metabolic syndrome. In this 24-wk randomized control trial, 60 individuals with the metabolic syndrome were randomized to either pistachio (intervention group) or control group (diet as per weight and physical activity profile, modulated according to dietary guidelines for Asian Indians) after 3 wk of a diet and exercise run in. In the first group, unsalted pistachios (20% energy) were given daily. A standard diet and exercise protocol was followed for both groups. Body weight, waist circumference (WC), magnetic resonance imaging estimation of intraabdominal adipose tissue and subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue, fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting serum insulin, glycosylated hemoglobin, lipid profile, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), adiponectin, free fatty acids (FFAs), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, leptin, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were assessed before and after the intervention. Statistically significant improvement in mean values for various parameters in the intervention group compared with control group were as follows: WC (P pistachios leads to beneficial effects on the cardiometabolic profile of Asian Indians with metabolic syndrome. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Speciation in little: the role of range and body size in the diversification of Malagasy mantellid frogs

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    Vences Miguel

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The rate and mode of lineage diversification might be shaped by clade-specific traits. In Madagascar, many groups of organisms are characterized by tiny distribution ranges and small body sizes, and this high degree of microendemism and miniaturization parallels a high species diversity in some of these groups. We here investigate the geographic patterns characterizing the radiation of the frog family Mantellidae that is virtually endemic to Madagascar. We integrate a newly reconstructed near-complete species-level timetree of the Mantellidae with georeferenced distribution records and maximum male body size data to infer the influence of these life-history traits on each other and on mantellid diversification. Results We reconstructed a molecular phylogeny based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA for 257 species and candidate species of the mantellid frog radiation. Based on this phylogeny we identified 53 well-supported pairs of sister species that we used for phylogenetic comparative analyses, along with whole tree-based phylogenetic comparative methods. Sister species within the Mantellidae diverged at 0.2-14.4 million years ago and more recently diverged sister species had geographical range centroids more proximate to each other, independently of their current sympatric or allopatric occurrence. The largest number of sister species pairs had non-overlapping ranges, but several examples of young microendemic sister species occurring in full sympatry suggest the possibility of non-allopatric speciation. Range sizes of species included in the sister species comparisons increased with evolutionary age, as did range size differences between sister species, which rejects peripatric speciation. For the majority of mantellid sister species and the whole mantellid radiation, range and body sizes were associated with each other and small body sizes were linked to higher mitochondrial nucleotide substitution rates and higher clade

  19. Body-size trends of the extinct giant shark Carcharocles megalodon: a deep-time perspective on marine apex predators.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pimiento, Catalina; Balk, Meghan A

    2015-06-01

    The extinct shark Carcharocles megalodon is one of the largest marine apex predators ever to exist. Nonetheless, little is known about its body-size variations through time and space. Here, we studied the body-size trends of C. megalodon through its temporal and geographic range to better understand its ecology and evolution. Given that this species was the last of the megatooth lineage, a group of species that shows a purported size increase through time, we hypothesized that C. megalodon also displayed this trend, increasing in size over time and reaching its largest size prior to extinction. We found that C. megalodon body-size distribution was left-skewed (suggesting a long-term selective pressure favoring larger individuals), and presented significant geographic variation (possibly as a result of the heterogeneous ecological constraints of this cosmopolitan species) over geologic time. Finally, we found that stasis was the general mode of size evolution of C. megalodon (i.e., no net changes over time), contrasting with the trends of the megatooth lineage and our hypothesis. Given that C. megalodon is a relatively long-lived species with a widely distributed fossil record, we further used this study system to provide a deep-time perspective to the understanding of the body-size trends of marine apex predators. For instance, our results suggest that (1) a selective pressure in predatory sharks for consuming a broader range of prey may favor larger individuals and produce left-skewed distributions on a geologic time scale; (2) body-size variations in cosmopolitan apex marine predators may depend on their interactions with geographically discrete communities; and (3) the inherent characteristics of shark species can produce stable sizes over geologic time, regardless of the size trends of their lineages.

  20. Choosing representative body sizes for reference adults and children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cristy, M.

    1992-01-01

    In 1975 the International Commission on Radiological Protection published a report on Reference Man (ICRP Publication 23), and a task group of the ICRP is now revising that report. Currently 'Reference Man [adult male] is defined as being between 20-30 years of age, weighing 70 kg, is 170 cm in height, is a Caucasian and is a Western European or North American in habitat and custom' (ICRP 23, p. 4). A reference adult female (58 kg, 160 cm) was also defined and data on the fetus and children were given, but with less detail and fewer specific reference values because the focus of the ICRP at that time was on young male radiation workers. The 70-kg Reference Man (earlier called Standard Man) has been used in radiation protection for 40 years, including the dosimetric schema for nuclear medicine, and this 70-kg reference has been used since at least the 1920's in physiological models. As is well known, humans in most parts of the world have increased in size (height and weight) since this standard was first adopted. Taking modern European populations as a reference and expanding the age range to 20-50 years, the author now suggests 176 cm height and 73-75 kg weight for adult males and 163 cm and about 60 kg for adult females would be more appropriate. The change in height is particularly important because many anatomical and physiological parameters - e.g., lean body mass, skeletal weight, total body water, blood volume, respiratory volumes - are correlated more closely with height than with weight. The difference in lean body mass between Asian and Caucasian persons, for example, is largely or wholly due to the difference in body height. Many equations for mean body water and other whole-body measures use body height as the only or the most important parameter, and so it is important that reference body height be chosen well

  1. Studies of 51Cr-albumin metabolism by the method of the whole body radiometry in men

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bondarenko, N.I.; Kaplan, M.A.; Bolovin, L.M.

    1980-01-01

    A method of investigation on metabolism of human serum 61 Cr-labelled albumin is reported. The method allows to determine albumin and plasma losses without of collecting excreta. The studies of external losses show that healthy individuals lose about 2% or 2.5 g albumin and 60-70 ml plasma a day on the average. Total plasma albumin, extravascular albumin and total metabolic albumin are calculated by means of whole-body radiometry

  2. Asian Americans have greater prevalence of metabolic syndrome despite lower body mass index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palaniappan, L P; Wong, E C; Shin, J J; Fortmann, S P; Lauderdale, D S

    2011-03-01

    To examine the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and metabolic syndrome for Asian Americans and non-Hispanic Whites (NHWs), given that existing evidence shows racial/ethnic heterogeneity exists in how BMI predicts metabolic syndrome. Electronic health records of 43,507 primary care patients aged 35 years and older with self-identified race/ethnicity of interest (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese or NHW) were analyzed in a mixed-payer, outpatient-focused health-care organization in the San Francisco Bay Area. Metabolic syndrome prevalence is significantly higher in Asians compared with NHWs for every BMI category. For women at the mean age of 55 and BMI of 25  kg  m(-2), the predicted prevalence of metabolic syndrome is 12% for NHW women compared with 30% for Asians; similarly for men, the predicted prevalence of metabolic syndrome is 22% for NHWs compared with 43% of Asians. Compared with NHW women and men with a BMI of 25  kg  m(-2), comparable prevalence of metabolic syndrome was observed at BMI of 19.6  kg  m(-2) for Asian women and 19.9  kg  m(-2) for Asian men. A similar pattern was observed in disaggregated Asian subgroups. In spite of the lower BMI values and lower prevalence of overweight/obesity than NHWs, Asian Americans have higher rates of metabolic syndrome over the range of BMI. Our results indicate that BMI ranges for defining overweight/obesity in Asian populations should be lower than for NHWs.

  3. Prospective Evaluation of Changes in Tumor Size and Tumor Metabolism in Patients with Advanced Gastric Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy: Association and Clinical Implication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Seongyeol; Ha, Seunggyun; Kwon, Hyun Woo; Kim, Woo Hyoung; Kim, Tae-Yong; Oh, Do-Youn; Cheon, Gi Jeong; Bang, Yung-Jue

    2017-06-01

    A change in tumor size is a well-validated and commonly used value for evaluating response to chemotherapy in cancer. Metabolic changes induced by chemotherapy are related to prognosis in several tumor types. However, the clinical implication of metabolic changes in patients with advanced gastric cancer (AGC) undergoing chemotherapy remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate response of tumor size and metabolism in AGC during chemotherapy and to reveal the relationship between them in view of their impact on patient survival. Methods: We prospectively enrolled patients with AGC before the initiation of first-line palliative chemotherapy. Using baseline and follow-up contrast-enhanced CT and 18 F-FDG PET, we assessed the tumor diameter, SUV max , and total lesion glycolysis in each lesion and their changes during chemotherapy at the same time. We included all lesions with the maximal longest diameters over 1 cm on CT, and each lesion was evaluated by matched 18 F-FDG PET. We analyzed the association between changes in tumor metabolism and tumor size and performed outcome analysis on overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Results: Seventy-four patients were enrolled, and the number of all lesions included in this study was 620. Compared with adenocarcinomas, poorly cohesive carcinomas demonstrated lower SUV max irrespective of tumor size ( P chemotherapy had a linear correlation with the changes in tumor size of each lesion, and a 30% tumor size reduction was associated with a 50% SUV max reduction ( P chemotherapy correlated with changes in tumor size in AGC. Considering both changes in metabolism and size could help predict a more accurate prognosis for AGC patients undergoing chemotherapy. © 2017 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging.

  4. Tactic changes in dusky frillgoby Bathygobius fuscus sneaker males: effects of body size and nest availability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takegaki, T; Kaneko, T; Matsumoto, Y

    2013-02-01

    Field and laboratory studies were conducted to examine the effects of nest availability and body size on changes in male mating tactics from sneaking to nest-holding in the dusky frillgoby Bathygobius fuscus. In the field, the body size of nest-holding males decreased from early to mid-breeding season, suggesting the possibility of a change in the tactics of sneaker males to nest-holding. Many sneaker males did not use vacant spawning nests even when size-matched nests were available, but they continued to reproduce as sneakers. Similarly, in aquarium experiments with available vacant nests, some sneaker males became nest-holders irrespective of their body size, but some did not. These results showed that nest availability is not a limiting factor for changes in tactics by sneaker males in this species. Because tactic-unchanged sneaker males were co-housed with larger nest-holding males in the tanks, the body size of nearby nest-holding males may have affected the decision to change tactics for sneaker males. Moreover, smaller individuals among tactic-changed males tended to spend more time until spawning, probably because they had relatively larger costs and smaller benefits of reproduction as nest-holding males compared to larger males. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Fish Biology © 2012 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

  5. Litter size variation in hypothalamic gene expression determines adult metabolic phenotype in Brandt's voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xue-Ying Zhang

    Full Text Available Early postnatal environments may have long-term and potentially irreversible consequences on hypothalamic neurons involved in energy homeostasis. Litter size is an important life history trait and negatively correlated with milk intake in small mammals, and thus has been regarded as a naturally varying feature of the early developmental environment. Here we investigated the long-term effects of litter size on metabolic phenotype and hypothalamic neuropeptide mRNA expression involved in the regulation of energy homeostasis, using the offspring reared from large (10-12 and small (3-4 litter sizes, of Brandt's voles (Lasiopodomys brandtii, a rodent species from Inner Mongolia grassland in China.Hypothalamic leptin signaling and neuropeptides were measured by Real-Time PCR. We showed that offspring reared from small litters were heavier at weaning and also in adulthood than offspring from large litters, accompanied by increased food intake during development. There were no significant differences in serum leptin levels or leptin receptor (OB-Rb mRNA in the hypothalamus at weaning or in adulthood, however, hypothalamic suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS3 mRNA in adulthood increased in small litters compared to that in large litters. As a result, the agouti-related peptide (AgRP mRNA increased in the offspring from small litters.These findings support our hypothesis that natural litter size has a permanent effect on offspring metabolic phenotype and hypothalamic neuropeptide expression, and suggest central leptin resistance and the resultant increase in AgRP expression may be a fundamental mechanism underlying hyperphagia and the increased risk of overweight in pups of small litters. Thus, we conclude that litter size may be an important and central determinant of metabolic fitness in adulthood.

  6. Standard metabolic rate is associated with gestation duration, but not clutch size, in speckled cockroaches Nauphoeta cinerea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalie G. Schimpf

    2012-09-01

    Metabolic rate varies significantly between individuals, and these differences persist even when the wide range of biotic and abiotic factors that influence metabolism are accounted for. It is important to understand the life history implications of variation in metabolic rate, but they remain poorly characterised despite a growing body of work examining relationships between metabolism and a range of traits. In the present study we used laboratory-bred families (one sire to three dams of Nauphoeta cinerea (Olivier (speckled cockroaches to examine the relationship between standard metabolic rate (SMR and reproductive performance (number of offspring and gestation duration. We show that SMR is negatively associated with female gestation duration. Age at mating is negatively associated with gestation duration for females, and mass is negatively associated with the average gestation duration of the females a male was mated with. In addition to the results in the current literature, the results from the present study suggest that the association between metabolism and life history is more complex than simple relationships between metabolism and various fitness traits. Future work should consider longitudinal, ontogenetic as well as selective and quantitative genetic breeding approaches to fully examine the associations between metabolism and fitness.

  7. Metabolic changes in malnutrition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Emery, P W

    2005-10-01

    This paper is concerned with malnutrition caused by inadequate intake of all the major nutrients rather than deficiency diseases relating to a single micronutrient. Three common situations are recognised: young children in third world countries with protein-energy malnutrition; adults in the same countries who are chronically adapted to subsisting on marginally inadequate diets; and patients who become malnourished as a result of chronic diseases. In all these situations infectious diseases are often also present, and this complicates the interpretation of biochemical and physiological observations. The metabolic response to starvation is primarily concerned with maintaining a supply of water-soluble substrates to supply energy to the brain. Thus there is an initial rise in metabolic rate, reflecting gluconeogenic activity. As fasting progresses, gluconeogenesis is suppressed to minimise muscle protein breakdown and ketones become the main fuel for the brain. With chronic underfeeding the basal metabolic rate per cell appears to fall, but the mechanistic basis for this is not clear. The main adaptation to chronic energy deficiency is slow growth and low adult body size, although the reduction in energy requirement achieved by this is partially offset by the preservation of the more metabolically active organs at the expense of muscle, which has a lower metabolic rate. The interaction between malnutrition and the metabolic response to trauma has been studied using an animal model. The rise in energy expenditure and urinary nitrogen excretion following surgery were significantly attenuated in malnourished rats, suggesting that malnutrition impairs the ability of the body to mobilise substrates to support inflammatory and reparative processes. However, the healing process in wounded muscle remained unimpaired in malnutrition, suggesting that this process has a high biological priority.

  8. The effects of intermittent, CD4-guided antiretroviral therapy on body composition and metabolic parameters

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Martinez, Esteban; Visnegarwala, Fehmida; Grund, Birgit; Thomas, Avis; Gibert, Cynthia; Shlay, Judith; Drummond, Fraser; Pearce, Daniel; Edwards, Simon; Reiss, Peter; El-Sadr, Wafaa; Carr, Andrew

    2010-01-01

    Objective: To assess the effects of decreased antiretroviral therapy exposure on body fat and metabolic parameters. Design: Substudy of the Strategies for Management of Anti-Retroviral Therapy study, in which participants were randomized to intermittent CD4-guided [Drug Conservation (DC) group] or

  9. Redistribution of whole-body energy metabolism by exercise. A positron emission tomography study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Masud, M.M.; Miyake, Masayasu; Watanuki, Shoichi; Itoh, Masatoshi; Tashiro, Manabu; Fujimoto, Toshihiko

    2009-01-01

    Our aim was to evaluate changes in glucose metabolism of skeletal muscles and viscera induced by different workloads using 18 F-2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose ([ 18 F]FDG) and three-dimensional positron emission tomography (3-D PET). Five male volunteers performed ergometer bicycle exercise for 40 min at 40% and 70% of the maximal O 2 consumption (VO 2max ). [ 18 ]FDG was injected 10 min later following the exercise task. Whole-body 3-D PET was performed. Five other male volunteers were studied as a control to compare with the exercise group. The PET image data were analyzed using manually defined regions of interest to quantify the regional metabolic rate of glucose (rMRGlc). Group comparisons were made using analysis of variance, and significant differences (P 18 F]FDG-PET can be used as an index of organ energy metabolism for moderate exercise workloads (70% VO 2max ). The results of this investigation may contribute to sports medicine and rehabilitation science. (author)

  10. Geographic body size and shape variation in a mainland anolis (Squamata: Dactyloidae) from northwestern South America (Colombia)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Calderon Espinosa, Martha L; Barragan Contreras, Leidy Alejandra

    2014-01-01

    Anolis auratus is a widely distributed species, from Costa Rica in Central America, through northern South America, including Colombia, Venezuela, northern Brazil, Surinam and the Guyanas. In Colombia, its widespread distribution across different life zones suggests that these lizards occupy different environments and exhibit different microhabitat use in different geographic areas. On the other hand, some observations suggest that this species prefers open areas, selecting grasslands over brushy areas, and thus, an alternative hypothesis is that microhabitat use is similar among different populations. In Anolis, body variables related to locomotion (body size and shape) defines structural microhabitat use, so two distinct patterns could be expected in this species: Conservative or highly variable body size and shape throughout the species distribution. To test these predictions, we characterized geographic variation in morphometric traits of this species in Colombia. Females and males were similar in body size, but exhibited differences in some variables related to body shape. These characteristics also varied among males and females from different regions, suggesting heterogeneous use of structural microhabitat, between sexes and among populations. As an alternative, phylogenetic divergence among populations could also account for the observed differences. Absence of ecological and phylogenetic data limits our ability to identify the underlying causes of this pattern. However, we provide a general framework to explore hypotheses about evolution of body size and shape in this species.

  11. Dissecting the variance-covariance structure in insect physiology: the multivariate association between metabolism and morphology in the nymphs of the sand cricket (Gryllus firmus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nespolo, Roberto F; Castañeda, Luis E; Roff, Derek A

    2005-08-01

    Energy metabolism in animals has been largely studied in relation to exogenous sources of variation. However, because they give insight into the relationship between whole metabolism and lower organizational levels such as organs and tissues, examination of endogenous determinants of metabolism other than body mass is itself very important. We studied the multivariate association of body parts and several aspects of energy metabolism in an insect, the nymphs of the sand cricket, Gryllus firmus. By using a variety of both univariate and multivariate techniques, we explored the resultant variance-covariance matrix to build a path diagram with latent variables. After controlling for body mass, we found a significant canonical correlation between metabolism and morphology. According to the factor loadings and path coefficients, the most important contributions of morphology to the correlation were thorax and abdomen size measures, whereas the most important metabolic contribution was resting metabolism. Activity metabolism was mostly explained by body mass rather than body parts, which could be a result of resting rates being chronic consequences of the functioning of the metabolic machinery that the insect must maintain.

  12. Association between obesity and reduced body temperature in dogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piccione, G; Giudice, E; Fazio, F; Refinetti, R

    2011-08-01

    Industrialized nations are currently experiencing an obesity epidemic, the causes of which are not fully known. One possible mechanism of enhanced energy efficiency that has received almost no attention is a reduction in the metabolic cost of homeothermy, which could be achieved by a modest lowering of body core temperature. We evaluated the potential of this obesity-inducing mechanism in a canine model of the metabolic syndrome. We compared the rectal temperature of lean dogs and obese dogs by (a) conducting cross-sectional measurements in 287 dogs of many breeds varying greatly in body size, (b) conducting longitudinal measurements in individual dogs over 7-10 years and (c) tracking rectal temperature of lean and obese dogs at 3-h intervals for 48 consecutive hours in the laboratory. We found that larger dogs have lower rectal temperatures than smaller dogs and that, for the same body mass, obese dogs have lower rectal temperatures than lean dogs. The results were consistent in the cross-sectional, longitudinal and around-the-clock measurements. These findings document an association between obesity and reduced body temperature in dogs and support the hypothesis that obesity in this and other species of homeotherms may result from an increase in metabolic efficiency achieved by a regulated lowering of body temperature.

  13. Secular trends of body sizes in Korean children and adolescents: from 1965 to 2010

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jin Soo Moon

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available An anthropometric survey is one of the most important approaches to use when evaluating the health status of children. Secular trends in body sizes, such as height, weight, head circumference, chest circumference, and body mass index showed significant changes over 40 years in Korea. A series of periodic surveys were conducted in 1967, 1975, 1985, 1997, and 2005 by the Korean Pediatric Society and Ministry of Health and Welfare. The quality of data from school health examinations and the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey has improved, so we can use them now as resources for anthropometric analysis. The final height differences between 1965 and 1997 were 4.5 cm both in boys (168.9 cm in 1965; 173.4 cm in 1997 and girls (155.9 cm in 1965; 160.4 cm in 1997. The differences between 1997 and 2005 were 0.9 cm in boys (174.3cm in 2005 and 0.8 cm in girls (161.2 cm in 2005. There was no difference in final height measurements between 2005 and 2010. An increase in body size at earlier teen ages was pronounced during these decades compared to the previous generation; however, little change has been identified more recently. Body size has been increasing, and obesity has become more prevalent. Systems that gather data should be updated in order to cope with these secular trends. In an upcoming era of secular trends that would be in a slow transition, several surveys that include body measurements should be prepared to meet future needs.

  14. Body composition and metabolic changes during a 520-day mission simulation to Mars.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strollo, F; Macchi, C; Eberini, I; Masini, M A; Botta, M; Vassilieva, G; Nichiporuk, I; Monici, M; Santucci, D; Celotti, F; Magni, P; Ruscica, M

    2018-03-12

    The "Mars-500 project" allowed to evaluate the changes in psychological/physiological adaptation over a prolonged confinement, in order to gather information for future missions. Here, we evaluated the impact of confinement and isolation on body composition, glucose metabolism/insulin resistance and adipokine levels. The "Mars-500 project" consisted of 520 consecutive days of confinement from June 3, 2010 to Nov 4, 2011. The crew was composed of six male subjects (three Russians, two Europeans, and one Chinese) with a median age of 31 years (range 27-38 years). During the 520-day confinement, total body mass and BMI progressively decreased, reaching a significant difference at the end (417 days) of the observation period (- 9.2 and - 5.5%, respectively). Fat mass remained unchanged. A progressive and significant increase of fasting plasma glucose was observed between 249 and 417 days (+ 10/+ 17% vs baseline), with a further increase at the end of confinement (up to + 30%). Median plasma insulin showed a non-significant early increment (60 days; + 86%). Total adiponectin halved (- 47%) 60 days after hatch closure, remaining at this nadir (- 51%) level for a further 60 days. High molecular weight adiponectin remained significantly lower from 60 to 168 days. Based on these data, countermeasures may be envisioned to balance the potentially harmful effects of prolonged confinement, including a better exercise program, with accurate monitoring of (1) the individual activity and (2) the relationship between body composition and metabolic derangement.

  15. Blood Metabolic Signatures of Body Mass Index: A Targeted Metabolomics Study in the EPIC Cohort.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Carayol, Marion; Leitzmann, Michael F; Ferrari, Pietro; Zamora-Ros, Raul; Achaintre, David; Stepien, Magdalena; Schmidt, Julie A; Travis, Ruth C; Overvad, Kim; Tjønneland, Anne; Hansen, Louise; Kaaks, Rudolf; Kühn, Tilman; Boeing, Heiner; Bachlechner, Ursula; Trichopoulou, Antonia; Bamia, Christina; Palli, Domenico; Agnoli, Claudia; Tumino, Rosario; Vineis, Paolo; Panico, Salvatore; Quirós, J Ramón; Sánchez-Cantalejo, Emilio; Huerta, José María; Ardanaz, Eva; Arriola, Larraitz; Agudo, Antonio; Nilsson, Jan; Melander, Olle; Bueno-de-Mesquita, Bas; Peeters, Petra H; Wareham, Nick; Khaw, Kay-Tee; Jenab, Mazda; Key, Timothy J; Scalbert, Augustin; Rinaldi, Sabina

    2017-01-01

    Metabolomics is now widely used to characterize metabolic phenotypes associated with lifestyle risk factors such as obesity. The objective of the present study was to explore the associations of body mass index (BMI) with 145 metabolites measured in blood samples in the European Prospective

  16. The influence of tested body size upon longitudinal ultrasonic pulse velocity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suarez Antola, R.

    2001-01-01

    Low ultrasonic frequencies are used in nondestructive testing of heterogeneous materials,such as concrete,rocks and timber.When frequencies are low enough,size and shape of tested bodies may influence measured longitudinal pulse velocities(geometric dispersion).A simplified mathematical model is developed from known experimental and theoretical results obtained for elastic wave propagation in rods of uniform circular cross section.Wave propagation is described by a spatial averaged dilatational field in an approach which is named quasi fluid.A formula is obtained which relates group velocity with an effective lateral size of the body,with transducers a frequency,with a non-dimensional parameter and with asymptotic P-wave velocity.In principle it can be applied to bars of any uniform cross section.The limitations of this formula are discussed in relation to path length,threshold of detection,patterns of radiation and reception and other variables.A more general formula is proposed.Practical application of this formula is briefly exemplified using some experimental data obtained by the author.The problem of longitudinal pulse propagation in reinforcing steel bars embedded in concrete is briefly considered

  17. The influence of body size on adult skeletal age estimation methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merritt, Catherine E

    2015-01-01

    Accurate age estimations are essential to archaeological and forensic analyses. However, reliability for adult skeletal age estimations is poor, especially for individuals over the age of 40 years. This is the first study to show that body size influences skeletal age estimation. The İşcan et al., Lovejoy et al., Buckberry and Chamberlain, and Suchey-Brooks age methods were tested on 764 adult skeletons from the Hamann-Todd and William Bass Collections. Statures ranged from 1.30 to 1.93 m and body masses ranged from 24.0 to 99.8 kg. Transition analysis was used to evaluate the differences in the age estimations. For all four methods, the smallest individuals have the lowest ages at transition and the largest individuals have the highest ages at transition. Short and light individuals are consistently underaged, while tall and heavy individuals are consistently overaged. When femoral length and femoral head diameter are compared with the log-age model, results show the same trend as the known stature and body mass measurements. The skeletal remains of underweight individuals have fewer age markers while those of obese individuals have increased surface degeneration and osteophytic lipping. Tissue type and mechanical loading have been shown to affect bone turnover rates, and may explain the differing patterns of skeletal aging. From an archaeological perspective, the underaging of light, short individuals suggests the need to revisit the current research consensus on the young mortality rates of past populations. From a forensic perspective, understanding the influence of body size will impact efforts to identify victims of mass disasters, genocides, and homicides. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Associations of Maternal Pre-Pregnancy Body Mass Index and Gestational Weight Gain with Adult Offspring Cardio-Metabolic Risk Factors: The Jerusalem Perinatal Family Follow-up Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hochner, Hagit; Friedlander, Yechiel; Calderon-Margalit, Ronit; Meiner, Vardiella; Sagy, Yael; Avgil-Tsadok, Meytal; Burger, Ayala; Savitsky, Bella; Siscovick, David S.; Manor, Orly

    2012-01-01

    Background Accumulating evidence demonstrates that both maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (mppBMI) and gestational weight gain (GWG) are associated with adult offspring adiposity. However, whether these maternal attributes are related to other cardio-metabolic risk factors in adulthood has not been comprehensively studied. Methods and Results We used a birth cohort of 1400 young adults born in Jerusalem, with extensive archival data as well as clinical information at age 32, to prospectively examine the associations of mppBMI and GWG with adiposity and related cardio-metabolic outcomes. Greater mppBMI, independent of GWG and confounders, was significantly associated with higher offspring BMI, waist circumference (WC), systolic and diastolic BP, insulin and triglycerides and with lower HDL-C. For example, the effect sizes were translated to nearly 5kg/m2 higher mean BMI, 8.4cm higher WC, 0.13mmol/L (11.4mg/dL) higher triglycerides and 0.10mmol/L (3.8mg/dL) lower HDL-C among offspring of mothers within the upper mppBMI quartile (BMI>26.4kg/m2) compared to the lower (BMI14kg) and lower (GWG<9kg) quartiles of GWG were compared. Further adjustment for offspring adiposity attenuated to null the observed associations. Conclusions Maternal size both before and during pregnancy are associated with cardio-metabolic risk factors in young adult offspring. The associations appear to be driven mainly by offspring adiposity. Future studies that explore mechanisms underlying the intergenerational cycle of obesity are warranted to identify potentially novel targets for cardio-metabolic risk-reduction interventions. PMID:22344037

  19. Vertebral Adaptations to Large Body Size in Theropod Dinosaurs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John P Wilson

    Full Text Available Rugose projections on the anterior and posterior aspects of vertebral neural spines appear throughout Amniota and result from the mineralization of the supraspinous and interspinous ligaments via metaplasia, the process of permanent tissue-type transformation. In mammals, this metaplasia is generally pathological or stress induced, but is a normal part of development in some clades of birds. Such structures, though phylogenetically sporadic, appear throughout the fossil record of non-avian theropod dinosaurs, yet their physiological and adaptive significance has remained unexamined. Here we show novel histologic and phylogenetic evidence that neural spine projections were a physiological response to biomechanical stress in large-bodied theropod species. Metaplastic projections also appear to vary between immature and mature individuals of the same species, with immature animals either lacking them or exhibiting smaller projections, supporting the hypothesis that these structures develop through ontogeny as a result of increasing bending stress subjected to the spinal column. Metaplastic mineralization of spinal ligaments would likely affect the flexibility of the spinal column, increasing passive support for body weight. A stiff spinal column would also provide biomechanical support for the primary hip flexors and, therefore, may have played a role in locomotor efficiency and mobility in large-bodied species. This new association of interspinal ligament metaplasia in Theropoda with large body size contributes additional insight to our understanding of the diverse biomechanical coping mechanisms developed throughout Dinosauria, and stresses the significance of phylogenetic methods when testing for biological trends, evolutionary or not.

  20. Vertebral Adaptations to Large Body Size in Theropod Dinosaurs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, John P; Woodruff, D Cary; Gardner, Jacob D; Flora, Holley M; Horner, John R; Organ, Chris L

    2016-01-01

    Rugose projections on the anterior and posterior aspects of vertebral neural spines appear throughout Amniota and result from the mineralization of the supraspinous and interspinous ligaments via metaplasia, the process of permanent tissue-type transformation. In mammals, this metaplasia is generally pathological or stress induced, but is a normal part of development in some clades of birds. Such structures, though phylogenetically sporadic, appear throughout the fossil record of non-avian theropod dinosaurs, yet their physiological and adaptive significance has remained unexamined. Here we show novel histologic and phylogenetic evidence that neural spine projections were a physiological response to biomechanical stress in large-bodied theropod species. Metaplastic projections also appear to vary between immature and mature individuals of the same species, with immature animals either lacking them or exhibiting smaller projections, supporting the hypothesis that these structures develop through ontogeny as a result of increasing bending stress subjected to the spinal column. Metaplastic mineralization of spinal ligaments would likely affect the flexibility of the spinal column, increasing passive support for body weight. A stiff spinal column would also provide biomechanical support for the primary hip flexors and, therefore, may have played a role in locomotor efficiency and mobility in large-bodied species. This new association of interspinal ligament metaplasia in Theropoda with large body size contributes additional insight to our understanding of the diverse biomechanical coping mechanisms developed throughout Dinosauria, and stresses the significance of phylogenetic methods when testing for biological trends, evolutionary or not.

  1. Ultrasonography assessment of renal size and its correlation with body mass index in adults without known renal disease

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Raza, M.; Hameed, A.; Khan, M.I.

    2012-01-01

    Many conditions affect renal size. To evaluate abnormalities in renal size, knowledge of standardised values for normal renal dimensions is essential as it shows variability in the values of normal renal size depending on body size, age and ethnicity. Ultrasound, being an easily available, non-invasive, safe and less expensive modality, is widely used for evaluation of renal dimensions and repeated follow-ups. The objectives of this study were to determine renal size by ultrasound in adults without any known renal disease, and to determine the relationship of renal size with body mass index. Methods: Study was conducted in the Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Shifa International Hospital and PIMS Islamabad. Renal size was assessed by ultrasound in 4,035 adult subjects with normal serum creatinine and without any known renal disease, between November 2002 and December 2010. Renal length, width, thickness and volume were obtained and mean renal length and volume were correlated with body mass index and other factors like age, side, gender, weight and height of the subjects. Results: Mean renal length on right side was 101.6+-8.9 mm, renal width 42.7+-7.1 mm, and parenchymal thickness 14.4+-2.9 mm. On left side, mean renal length was 102.7+-9.2 mm, width 47.6+-7.0 mm, and parenchymal thickness 15.1+-3.1 mm. Mean renal volume on right was 99.8+-37.2 cm/sup 3/ and on left was 124.4+-41.3 cm/sup 3/. Left renal size was significantly larger than right in both genders. Relationship of mean renal length was significant when correlated with age, side, gender, height and weight, and body mass index. Renal volumes also showed a similar relationship with side, gender, height and weight, and body mass index; but with age such a relationship was seen only for left kidney. Conclusion: Pakistani population has mean renal size smaller than reference values available in international literature. Renal length and volume have a direct relationship with body mass index. Mean renal

  2. Effect of gender and lean body mass on kidney size in healthy 10-year-old children

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schmidt, I. M.; Mølgaard, C.; Main, K. M.

    2001-01-01

    predictor of kidney volume was lean body mass, overruling height, weight, and surface area. When total kidney volume was related to lean body mass as a ratio, the gender difference in kidney size was no longer significant. A strong negative correlation was found between fat body mass and kidney volume...

  3. A conserved role for syndecan family members in the regulation of whole-body energy metabolism.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria De Luca

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Syndecans are a family of type-I transmembrane proteins that are involved in cell-matrix adhesion, migration, neuronal development, and inflammation. Previous quantitative genetic studies pinpointed Drosophila Syndecan (dSdc as a positional candidate gene affecting variation in fat storage between two Drosophila melanogaster strains. Here, we first used quantitative complementation tests with dSdc mutants to confirm that natural variation in this gene affects variability in Drosophila fat storage. Next, we examined the effects of a viable dSdc mutant on Drosophila whole-body energy metabolism and associated traits. We observed that young flies homozygous for the dSdc mutation had reduced fat storage and slept longer than homozygous wild-type flies. They also displayed significantly reduced metabolic rate, lower expression of spargel (the Drosophila homologue of PGC-1, and reduced mitochondrial respiration. Compared to control flies, dSdc mutants had lower expression of brain insulin-like peptides, were less fecund, more sensitive to starvation, and had reduced life span. Finally, we tested for association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs in the human SDC4 gene and variation in body composition, metabolism, glucose homeostasis, and sleep traits in a cohort of healthy early pubertal children. We found that SNP rs4599 was significantly associated with resting energy expenditure (P = 0.001 after Bonferroni correction and nominally associated with fasting glucose levels (P = 0.01 and sleep duration (P = 0.044. On average, children homozygous for the minor allele had lower levels of glucose, higher resting energy expenditure, and slept shorter than children homozygous for the common allele. We also observed that SNP rs1981429 was nominally associated with lean tissue mass (P = 0.035 and intra-abdominal fat (P = 0.049, and SNP rs2267871 with insulin sensitivity (P = 0.037. Collectively, our results in Drosophila and humans argue that

  4. Metabolic profiles and free radical scavenging activity of Cordyceps bassiana fruiting bodies according to developmental stage.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sun-Hee Hyun

    Full Text Available The metabolic profiles of Cordyceps bassiana according to fruiting body developmental stage were investigated using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. We were able to detect 62 metabolites, including 48 metabolites from 70% methanol extracts and 14 metabolites from 100% n-hexane extracts. These metabolites were classified as alcohols, amino acids, organic acids, phosphoric acids, purine nucleosides and bases, sugars, saturated fatty acids, unsaturated fatty acids, or fatty amides. Significant changes in metabolite levels were found according to developmental stage. Relative levels of amino acids, purine nucleosides, and sugars were higher in development stage 3 than in the other stages. Among the amino acids, valine, isoleucine, lysine, histidine, glutamine, and aspartic acid, which are associated with ABC transporters and aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis, also showed higher levels in stage 3 samples. The free radical scavenging activities, which were significantly higher in stage 3 than in the other stages, showed a positive correlation with purine nucleoside metabolites such as adenosine, guanosine, and inosine. These results not only show metabolic profiles, but also suggest the metabolic pathways associated with fruiting body development stages in cultivated C. bassiana.

  5. The lateral hypothalamic area revisited: neuroanatomy, body weight regulation, neuroendocrinology and metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bernardis, L L; Bellinger, L L

    1993-01-01

    This article reviews findings that have accumulated since the original description of the syndrome that follows destruction of the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA). These data comprise the areas of neuroanatomy, body weight regulation, neuroendocrinology, neurochemistry, and intermediary metabolism. Neurons in the LHA are the largest in the hypothalamus, and are topographically well organized. The LHA belongs to the parasympathetic area of the hypothalamus, and connects with all major parts of the brain and the major hypothalamic nuclei. Rats with LHA lesions regulate their body weight set point in a primary manner and not because of destruction of a "feeding center". The lower body weight is not due to finickiness. In the early stages of the syndrome, catabolism and running activity are enhanced, and so is the activity of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) as shown by increased norepinephrine excretion that normalizes one mo later. The LHA plays a role in the feedback control of body weight regulation different from ventromedial (VMN) and dorsomedial (DMN). Tissue preparations from the LHA promote glucose utilization and insulin release. Although it does not belong to the classical hypothysiotropic area of the hypothalamus, the LHA does affect neuroendocrine secretions. No plasma data on growth hormone are available following electrolytic lesions LHA but electrical stimulation fails to elicit GH secretion. Nevertheless, antiserum raised against the 1-37 fragment of human GHRF stains numerous perikarya in the dorsolateral LHA. The plasma circadian corticosterone rhythm is disrupted in LHA lesioned rats, but this is unlikely due to destruction of intrinsic oscillators. Stimulation studies show a profound role of the LHA in glucose metabolism (glycolysis, glycogenesis, gluconeogenesis), this mechanism being cholinergic. Its role in lipolysis appears not to be critical. In general, stimulation of the VMN elicits opposite effects. Lesion studies in rats show altered

  6. Patient size and x-ray transmission in body CT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ogden, Kent; Huda, Walter; Scalzetti, Ernest M; Roskopf, Marsha L

    2004-04-01

    Physical characteristics were obtained for 196 patients undergoing chest and abdomen computed tomography (CT) examinations. Computed tomography sections for these patients having no evident pathology were analyzed to determine patient dimensions (AP and lateral), together with the average attenuation coefficient. Patient weights ranged from approximately 3 kg to about 120 kg. For chest CT, the mean Hounsfield unit (HU) fell from about -120 HU for newborns to about -300 HU for adults. For abdominal CT, the mean HU for children and normal-sized adults was about 20 HU, but decreased to below -50 HU for adults weighing more than 100 kg. The effective photon energy and percent energy fluence transmitted through a given patient size and composition was calculated for representative x-ray spectra at 80, 100, 120, and 140 kV tube potentials. A 70-kg adult scanned at 120 kVp transmits 2.6% of the energy fluence for chest and 0.7% for abdomen CT examinations. Reducing the patient size to 10 kg increases transmission by an order of magnitude. For 70 kg patients, effective energies in body CT range from approximately 50 keV at 80 kVp to approximately 67 keV at 140 kVp; increasing patient size from 10 to 120 kg resulted in an increase in effective photon energy of approximately 4 keV. The x-ray transmission data and effective photon energy data can be used to determine CT image noise and image contrast, respectively, and information on patient size and composition can be used to determine patient doses.

  7. Change in body size and mortality: results from the Melbourne collaborative cohort study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karahalios, Amalia; Simpson, Julie A; Baglietto, Laura; MacInnis, Robert J; Hodge, Allison M; Giles, Graham G; English, Dallas R

    2014-01-01

    The association between change in weight or body mass index, and mortality is widely reported, however, both measures fail to account for fat distribution. Change in waist circumference, a measure of central adiposity, in relation to mortality has not been studied extensively. We investigated the association between mortality and changes in directly measured waist circumference, hips circumference and weight from baseline (1990-1994) to wave 2 (2003-2007) in a prospective cohort study of people aged 40-69 years at baseline. Cox regression, with age as the time metric and follow-up starting at wave 2, adjusted for confounding variables, was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for change in body size in relation to mortality from all causes, cardiovascular disease and cancer. There were 1465 deaths (109 cancer, 242 cardiovascular disease) identified during an average 7.7 years of follow-up from 21 298 participants. Compared to minimal increase in body size, loss of waist circumference (HR: 1.26; 95% CI: 1.09-1.47), weight (1.80; 1.54-2.11), or hips circumference (1.35; 1.15-1.57) were associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality, particularly for older adults. Weight loss was associated with cardiovascular disease mortality (2.40; 1.57-3.65) but change in body size was not associated with obesity-related cancer mortality. This study confirms the association between weight loss and increased mortality from all-causes for older adults. Based on evidence from observational cohort studies, weight stability may be the recommended option for most adults, especially older adults.

  8. Physical capital and the embodied nature of income inequality: gender differences in the effect of body size on workers' incomes in Canada.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perks, Thomas

    2012-02-01

    This study assesses the effects of body size--measured using the body mass index--on the income attainment of female and male workers in Canada. Using data from a national representative sample of Canadians, multivariate analyses show that, for female workers, the body size-income relationship is negative. However, for male workers, the body size-income relationship is positive and nonlinear. Using Bourdieu's conceptualization of physical capital, and Shilling's extension of it, it is argued that these results are suggestive of the relative importance of body size to the production and continuation of gender income inequality in Canada.

  9. Ontogenetic and evolutionary effects of predation and competition on nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) body size.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Välimäki, Kaisa; Herczeg, Gábor

    2012-07-01

    1. Individual- and population-level variation in body size and growth often correlates with many fitness traits. Predation and food availability are expected to affect body size and growth as important agents of both natural selection and phenotypic plasticity. How differences in predation and food availability affect body size/growth during ontogeny in populations adapted to different predation and competition regimes is rarely studied. 2. Nine-spined stickleback (Pungitius pungitius) populations originating from habitats with varying levels of predation and competition are known to be locally adapted to their respective habitats in terms of body size and growth. Here, we studied how different levels of perceived predation risk and competition during ontogeny affect the reaction norms of body size and growth in (i) marine and pond populations adapted to different levels of predation and competition and (ii) different sexes. We reared nine-spined stickleback in a factorial experiment under two levels of perceived predation risk (present/absent) and competition (high/low food supply). 3. We found divergence in the reaction norms at two levels: (i) predation-adapted marine stickleback had stronger reactions to predatory cues than intraspecific competition-adapted pond stickleback, the latter being more sensitive to available food than the marine fish and (ii) females reacting more strongly to the treatments than males. 4. The repeated, habitat-dependent nature of the differences suggests that natural selection is the agent behind the observed patterns. Our results suggest that genetic adaptation to certain environmental factors also involves an increase in the range of expressible phenotypic plasticity. We found support for this phenomenon at two levels: (i) across populations driven by habitat type and (ii) within populations driven by sex. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Animal Ecology © 2012 British Ecological Society.

  10. Cryptic lineage diversity, body size divergence, and sympatry in a species complex of Australian lizards (Gehyra).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moritz, Craig C; Pratt, Renae C; Bank, Sarah; Bourke, Gayleen; Bragg, Jason G; Doughty, Paul; Keogh, J Scott; Laver, Rebecca J; Potter, Sally; Teasdale, Luisa C; Tedeschi, Leonardo G; Oliver, Paul M

    2018-01-01

    Understanding the joint evolutionary and ecological underpinnings of sympatry among close relatives remains a key challenge in biology. This problem can be addressed through joint phylogenomic and phenotypic analysis of complexes of closely related lineages within, and across, species and hence representing the speciation continuum. For a complex of tropical geckos from northern Australia-Gehyra nana and close relatives-we combine mtDNA phylogeography, exon-capture sequencing, and morphological data to resolve independently evolving lineages and infer their divergence history and patterns of morphological evolution. Gehyra nana is found to include nine divergent lineages and is paraphyletic with four other species from the Kimberley region of north-west Australia. Across these 13 taxa, 12 of which are restricted to rocky habitats, several lineages overlap geographically, including on the diverse Kimberley islands. Morphological evolution is dominated by body size shifts, and both body size and shape have evolved gradually across the group. However, larger body size shifts are observed among overlapping taxa than among closely related parapatric lineages of G. nana, and sympatric lineages are more divergent than expected at random. Whether elevated body size differences among sympatric lineages are due to ecological sorting or character displacement remains to be determined. © 2017 The Author(s). Evolution © 2017 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  11. Body size and hosts of Triatoma infestans populations affect the size of bloodmeal contents and female fecundity in rural northwestern Argentina.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gürtler, Ricardo E; Fernández, María Del Pilar; Cecere, María Carla; Cohen, Joel E

    2017-12-01

    Human sleeping quarters (domiciles) and chicken coops are key source habitats of Triatoma infestans-the principal vector of the infection that causes Chagas disease-in rural communities in northern Argentina. Here we investigated the links among individual bug bloodmeal contents (BMC, mg), female fecundity, body length (L, mm), host blood sources and habitats. We tested whether L, habitat and host blood conferred relative fitness advantages using generalized linear mixed-effects models and a multimodel inference approach with model averaging. The data analyzed include 769 late-stage triatomines collected in 120 sites from six habitats in 87 houses in Figueroa, Santiago del Estero, during austral spring. L correlated positively with other body-size surrogates and was modified by habitat type, bug stage and recent feeding. Bugs from chicken coops were significantly larger than pig-corral and kitchen bugs. The best-fitting model of log BMC included habitat, a recent feeding, bug stage, log Lc (mean-centered log L) and all two-way interactions including log Lc. Human- and chicken-fed bugs had significantly larger BMC than bugs fed on other hosts whereas goat-fed bugs ranked last, in consistency with average blood-feeding rates. Fecundity was maximal in chicken-fed bugs from chicken coops, submaximal in human- and pig-fed bugs, and minimal in goat-fed bugs. This study is the first to reveal the allometric effects of body-size surrogates on BMC and female fecundity in a large set of triatomine populations occupying multiple habitats, and discloses the links between body size, microsite temperatures and various fitness components that affect the risks of transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi.

  12. Body size and hosts of Triatoma infestans populations affect the size of bloodmeal contents and female fecundity in rural northwestern Argentina.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ricardo E Gürtler

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Human sleeping quarters (domiciles and chicken coops are key source habitats of Triatoma infestans-the principal vector of the infection that causes Chagas disease-in rural communities in northern Argentina. Here we investigated the links among individual bug bloodmeal contents (BMC, mg, female fecundity, body length (L, mm, host blood sources and habitats. We tested whether L, habitat and host blood conferred relative fitness advantages using generalized linear mixed-effects models and a multimodel inference approach with model averaging. The data analyzed include 769 late-stage triatomines collected in 120 sites from six habitats in 87 houses in Figueroa, Santiago del Estero, during austral spring. L correlated positively with other body-size surrogates and was modified by habitat type, bug stage and recent feeding. Bugs from chicken coops were significantly larger than pig-corral and kitchen bugs. The best-fitting model of log BMC included habitat, a recent feeding, bug stage, log Lc (mean-centered log L and all two-way interactions including log Lc. Human- and chicken-fed bugs had significantly larger BMC than bugs fed on other hosts whereas goat-fed bugs ranked last, in consistency with average blood-feeding rates. Fecundity was maximal in chicken-fed bugs from chicken coops, submaximal in human- and pig-fed bugs, and minimal in goat-fed bugs. This study is the first to reveal the allometric effects of body-size surrogates on BMC and female fecundity in a large set of triatomine populations occupying multiple habitats, and discloses the links between body size, microsite temperatures and various fitness components that affect the risks of transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi.

  13. Mammalian collection on Noah's Ark: the effects of beauty, brain and body size.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Frynta

    Full Text Available The importance of today's zoological gardens as the so-called "Noah's Ark" grows as the natural habitat of many species quickly diminishes. Their potential to shelter a large amount of individuals from many species gives us the opportunity to reintroduce a species that disappeared in nature. However, the selection of animals to be kept in zoos worldwide is highly selective and depends on human decisions driven by both ecological criteria such as population size or vulnerability and audience-driven criteria such as aesthetic preferences. Thus we focused our study on the most commonly kept and bred animal class, the mammals, and we asked which factors affect various aspects of the mammalian collection of zoos. We analyzed the presence/absence, population size, and frequency per species of each of the 123 mammalian families kept in the worldwide zoo collection. Our aim was to explain these data using the human-perceived attractiveness of mammalian families, their body weight, relative brain size and species richness of the family. In agreement with various previous studies, we found that the body size and the attractiveness of mammals significantly affect all studied components of the mammalian collection of zoos. There is a higher probability of the large and attractive families to be kept. Once kept, these animals are presented in larger numbers in more zoos. On the contrary, the relative mean brain size only affects the primary selection whether to keep the family or not. It does not affect the zoo population size or the number of zoos that keep the family.

  14. Gut microbiome diversity influenced more by the Westernized dietary regime than the body mass index as assessed using effect size statistic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, Shannon C; Yadav, Jagjit S; Barrow, Stephanie D; Robertson, Boakai K

    2017-08-01

    Human gut microbiome dysbiosis has been associated with the onset of metabolic diseases and disorders. However, the critical factors leading to dysbiosis are poorly understood. In this study, we provide increasing evidence of the association of diet type and body mass index (BMI) and how they relatively influence the taxonomic structure of the gut microbiota with respect to the causation of gut microbiome dysbiosis. The study included randomly selected Alabama residents (n = 81), including females (n = 45) and males (n = 36). The demographics data included age (33 ± 13.3 years), height (1.7 ± 0.11 meters), and weight (82.3 ± 20.6 kg). The mean BMI was 28.3 ± 7.01, equating to an overweight BMI category. A cross-sectional case-control design encompassing the newly recognized effect size approach to bioinformatics analysis was used to analyze data from donated stool samples and accompanying nutrition surveys. We investigated the microbiome variations in the Bacteroidetes-Firmicutes ratio relative to BMI, food categories, and dietary groups at stratified abundance percentages of gut microbiota diversity than an increased BMI with an effect size of 0.16. This implied Westernized diet as a critical factor in causing dysbiosis as compared to an overweight or obese body mass index. © 2017 The Authors. MicrobiologyOpen published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  15. Professional hazards? The impact of models' body size on advertising effectiveness and women's body-focused anxiety in professions that do and do not emphasize the cultural ideal of thinness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dittmar, Helga; Howard, Sarah

    2004-12-01

    Previous experimental research indicates that the use of average-size women models in advertising prevents the well-documented negative effect of thin models on women's body image, while such adverts are perceived as equally effective (Halliwell & Dittmar, 2004). The current study extends this work by: (a) seeking to replicate the finding of no difference in advertising effectiveness between average-size and thin models (b) examining level of ideal-body internalization as an individual, internal factor that moderates women's vulnerability to thin media models, in the context of (c) comparing women in professions that differ radically in their focus on, and promotion of, the sociocultural ideal of thinness for women--employees in fashion advertising (n = 75) and teachers in secondary schools (n = 75). Adverts showing thin, average-size and no models were perceived as equally effective. High internalizers in both groups of women felt worse about their body image after exposure to thin models compared to other images. Profession affected responses to average-size models. Teachers reported significantly less body-focused anxiety after seeing average-size models compared to no models, while there was no difference for fashion advertisers. This suggests that women in professional environments with less focus on appearance-related ideals can experience increased body-esteem when exposed to average-size models, whereas women in appearance-focused professions report no such relief.

  16. The genetic basis of natural variation in mushroom body size in Drosophila melanogaster.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zwarts, Liesbeth; Vanden Broeck, Lies; Cappuyns, Elisa; Ayroles, Julien F; Magwire, Michael M; Vulsteke, Veerle; Clements, Jason; Mackay, Trudy F C; Callaerts, Patrick

    2015-12-11

    Genetic variation in brain size may provide the basis for the evolution of the brain and complex behaviours. The genetic substrate and the selective pressures acting on brain size are poorly understood. Here we use the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel to map polymorphic variants affecting natural variation in mushroom body morphology. We identify 139 genes and 39 transcription factors and confirm effects on development and adult plasticity. We show correlations between morphology and aggression, sleep and lifespan. We propose that natural variation in adult brain size is controlled by interaction of the environment with gene networks controlling development and plasticity.

  17. The extended Price equation quantifies species selection on mammalian body size across the Palaeocene/Eocene Thermal Maximum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rankin, Brian D; Fox, Jeremy W; Barrón-Ortiz, Christian R; Chew, Amy E; Holroyd, Patricia A; Ludtke, Joshua A; Yang, Xingkai; Theodor, Jessica M

    2015-08-07

    Species selection, covariation of species' traits with their net diversification rates, is an important component of macroevolution. Most studies have relied on indirect evidence for its operation and have not quantified its strength relative to other macroevolutionary forces. We use an extension of the Price equation to quantify the mechanisms of body size macroevolution in mammals from the latest Palaeocene and earliest Eocene of the Bighorn and Clarks Fork Basins of Wyoming. Dwarfing of mammalian taxa across the Palaeocene/Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), an intense, brief warming event that occurred at approximately 56 Ma, has been suggested to reflect anagenetic change and the immigration of small bodied-mammals, but might also be attributable to species selection. Using previously reconstructed ancestor-descendant relationships, we partitioned change in mean mammalian body size into three distinct mechanisms: species selection operating on resident mammals, anagenetic change within resident mammalian lineages and change due to immigrants. The remarkable decrease in mean body size across the warming event occurred through anagenetic change and immigration. Species selection also was strong across the PETM but, intriguingly, favoured larger-bodied species, implying some unknown mechanism(s) by which warming events affect macroevolution. © 2015 The Author(s).

  18. Cut-off value of body fat in association with metabolic syndrome in Thai peri- and postmenopausal women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bintvihok, W; Chaikittisilpa, S; Panyakamlerd, K; Jaisamrarn, U; Taechakraichana, N

    2013-06-01

    Pathophysiologic changes during the menopause transition may contribute to the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS). Body fat composition, particularly visceral fat, is highly associated with increased insulin resistance, abnormal carbohydrate metabolism and high blood pressure. We purposefully wished to determine the optimal cut-off values of body fat composition, including visceral fat, in order to predict MetS and to assess the prevalence of MetS in peri- and postmenopausal women. This cross-sectional study was conducted in a population-based, prospective cohort at the Menopause and Gynecology clinics, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital. Body fat percentage and visceral fat rating were measured by a bioelectrical impedance analyzer (Tanita SC 330). MetS was diagnosed using the Harmonizing criteria of A Joint Interim Statement of IDF/NHLBI/AHA/WHF/IAS/IASO 2009. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were performed to determine the optimal cut-off values of body fat, visceral fat, waist circumference and body mass index to identify peri- and postmenopausal women at risk of MetS. Ninety-two perimenopausal and 446 postmenopausal women aged 40-60 years were recruited for the analyses. The optimal cut-off values for body fat percentage, visceral fat rating, waist circumference and body mass index for identifying women at risk of MetS were 34%, 7, 88 cm and 24 kg/m(2), respectively. The prevalence of MetS in this study was 27.9%. The optimal cut-off values to predict MetS of body fat percentage, visceral fat and waist circumference were established. Using the Harmonizing 2009 criteria, we found that approximately one out of four peri- and postmenopausal women in this study had MetS.

  19. Whey Protein Supplementation Enhances Whole Body Protein Metabolism and Performance Recovery after Resistance Exercise: A Double-Blind Crossover Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    West, Daniel W D; Abou Sawan, Sidney; Mazzulla, Michael; Williamson, Eric; Moore, Daniel R

    2017-07-11

    No study has concurrently measured changes in free-living whole body protein metabolism and exercise performance during recovery from an acute bout of resistance exercise. We aimed to determine if whey protein ingestion enhances whole body net protein balance and recovery of exercise performance during overnight (10 h) and 24 h recovery after whole body resistance exercise in trained men. In a double-blind crossover design, 12 trained men (76 ± 8 kg, 24 ± 4 years old, 14% ± 5% body fat; means ± standard deviation (SD)) performed resistance exercise in the evening prior to consuming either 25 g of whey protein (PRO; MuscleTech 100% Whey) or an energy-matched placebo (CHO) immediately post-exercise (0 h), and again the following morning (~10 h of recovery). A third randomized trial, completed by the same participants, involving no exercise and no supplement served as a rested control trial (Rest). Participants ingested [ 15 N]glycine to determine whole body protein kinetics and net protein balance over 10 and 24 h of recovery. Performance was assessed pre-exercise and at 0, 10, and 24 h of recovery using a battery of tests. Net protein balance tended to improve in PRO ( P = 0.064; effect size (ES) = 0.61, PRO vs. CHO) during overnight recovery. Over 24 h, net balance was enhanced in PRO ( P = 0.036) but not in CHO ( P = 0.84; ES = 0.69, PRO vs. CHO), which was mediated primarily by a reduction in protein breakdown (PRO protein supplementation improved MVC (ES = 0.76), REP (ES = 0.44), and peak power (ES = 0.55). In conclusion, whey protein supplementation enhances whole body anabolism, and may improve acute recovery of exercise performance after a strenuous bout of resistance exercise.

  20. German and English Bodies: No Evidence for Cross-Linguistic Differences in Preferred Orthographic Grain Size

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xenia Schmalz

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Previous studies have found that words and nonwords with many body neighbours (i.e., words with the same orthographic body, e.g., 'cat, brat, at' are read faster than items with fewer body neighbours. This body-N effect has been explored in the context of cross-linguistic differences in reading where it has been reported that the size of the effect differs as a function of orthographic depth: readers of English, a deep orthography, show stronger facilitation than readers of German, a shallow orthography. Such findings support the psycholinguistic grain size theory, which proposes that readers of English rely on large orthographic units to reduce ambiguity of print-to-speech correspondences in their orthography. Here we re-examine the evidence for this pattern and find that there is no reliable evidence for such a cross-linguistic difference. Re-analysis of a key study (Ziegler et al., 2001, analysis of data from the English Lexicon Project (Balota et al., 2007, and a large-scale analysis of nine new experiments all support this conclusion. Using Bayesian analysis techniques, we find little evidence of the body-N effect in most tasks and conditions. Where we do find evidence for a body-N effect (lexical decision for nonwords, we find evidence against an interaction with language.

  1. A review on effects of conjugated linoleic fatty acid (CLA) upon body composition and energetic metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lehnen, Tatiana Ederich; da Silva, Marcondes Ramos; Camacho, Augusto; Marcadenti, Aline; Lehnen, Alexandre Machado

    2015-01-01

    Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is highly found in fats from ruminants and it appears to favorably modify the body composition and cardiometabolic risk factors. The capacity of CLA to reduce the body fat levels as well as its benefic actions on glycemic profile, atherosclerosis and cancer has already been proved in experimental models. Furthermore, CLA supplementation may modulate the immune function, help re-synthetize of glycogen and potentiate the bone mineralization. CLA supplementation also could increase the lipolysis and reduce the accumulation of fatty acids on the adipose tissue; the putative mechanisms involved may be its action in reducing the lipase lipoprotein activity and to increase the carnitine-palmitoil-transferase-1 (CAT-1) activity, its interaction with PPARγ, and to raise the expression of UCP-1. Although studies made in human have shown some benefits of CLA supplementation as the weight loss, the results are still discordant. Moreover, some have shown adverse effects, such as negative effects on glucose metabolism and lipid profile. The purpose of this article is to review the available data regarding the benefits of CLA on the energetic metabolism and body composition, emphasizing action mechanisms.

  2. DNA methylation patterns in cord blood DNA and body size in childhood.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Caroline L Relton

    Full Text Available Epigenetic markings acquired in early life may have phenotypic consequences later in development through their role in transcriptional regulation with relevance to the developmental origins of diseases including obesity. The goal of this study was to investigate whether DNA methylation levels at birth are associated with body size later in childhood.A study design involving two birth cohorts was used to conduct transcription profiling followed by DNA methylation analysis in peripheral blood. Gene expression analysis was undertaken in 24 individuals whose biological samples and clinical data were collected at a mean ± standard deviation (SD age of 12.35 (0.95 years, the upper and lower tertiles of body mass index (BMI were compared with a mean (SD BMI difference of 9.86 (2.37 kg/m(2. This generated a panel of differentially expressed genes for DNA methylation analysis which was then undertaken in cord blood DNA in 178 individuals with body composition data prospectively collected at a mean (SD age of 9.83 (0.23 years. Twenty-nine differentially expressed genes (>1.2-fold and p<10(-4 were analysed to determine DNA methylation levels at 1-3 sites per gene. Five genes were unmethylated and DNA methylation in the remaining 24 genes was analysed using linear regression with bootstrapping. Methylation in 9 of the 24 (37.5% genes studied was associated with at least one index of body composition (BMI, fat mass, lean mass, height at age 9 years, although only one of these associations remained after correction for multiple testing (ALPL with height, p(Corrected = 0.017.DNA methylation patterns in cord blood show some association with altered gene expression, body size and composition in childhood. The observed relationship is correlative and despite suggestion of a mechanistic epigenetic link between in utero life and later phenotype, further investigation is required to establish causality.

  3. Basal metabolic rate scaled to body mass within species by the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Marlene Botha

    2017-06-06

    Jun 6, 2017 ... South African Journal of Animal Science 2017, 47 (No. .... the within-species power exponent of BMR with Mw often varies ... selection experiment on BMR with positive response in BMR, and no change ..... Modelling the influence of body size on VO₂ ... The fire of life: An introduction to animal energetics.

  4. Calcium metabolism in fluorosis and endemic genu valgum using radioactive tracer, whole body counting and radioimmunoassay

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Narasinga Rao, B.

    1979-11-01

    Endemic fluorosis with extensive skeletal changes has been reported from several parts of India. In recent years a new condition, endemic genu valgum, has been recognized in one of these areas. In both conditions osteosclerosis, particularly of the spine, has been observed, but in genu valgum the most distinctive pathology is osteoporosis in bones of the extremities and presumably as a result the ''knock knees'' that give the syndrome its name. In this project certain aspects of calcium metabolism were investigated in endemic fluorosis and genu valgum and in appropriate control subjects. Calcium kinetics were studied by intravenously injecting a tracer dose of 47 Ca and following for 10 days thereafter the concentration of the tracer in serum and excreta, as well as its total retention in the body (the latter measured by whole body counting). In addition calcium balance was measured on some of the subjects while resident in a metabolic ward. Statistical analysis of the results showed in general a higher metabolic activity of calcium in the fluorosis and genu valgum cases than in the controls (specifically, higher ''turnover'' of calcium in the blood pool and an apparently elevated bone mineralization rate). Whole body retention was somewhat greater in the patients than in the controls. Several measurements were also performed relative to blood chemistry, and in particular the serum concentration of 25-OHD 3 (a metabolite of vitamin D) was measured. There was no evidence that vitamin D deficiency played a significant role in the causation of genu valgum

  5. Evaluation of Five Formulae for Estimating Body Surface Area of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    for making decision on many critical treatments plans. For ... index[5,6] and oxygen consumption[7] is required. ... of weight and height of only nine patients including just ... Aim: To explore the suitability of existing formulae for estimating the BSA of ..... critically ill. .... Schmidt‑Nielsen K. Energy metabolism, body size, and.

  6. Body size, blood feeding activity, and fecundity of Psorophora howardii, Psorophora ciliata, and Psorophora ferox (Diptera: Culicidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Lin; Fulcher, Ali; Hossain, Tanjim; Davidson, Claudia; Beier, John C; Xue, Rui-De

    2014-03-01

    Field-collected female Psorophora howardii (Coquillett), Psorophora ciliate (F.), and Psorophora ferox (Humboltd) mosquitoes were tested in laboratory conditions to measure body size, blood engorgement duration, bloodmeal size, fecundity, and egg morphology. Mean bloodmeal size was significantly different among the three species of mosquitoes, whereas there was no difference in blood engorgement duration. Mean body weights and wing lengths of Ps. howardii and Ps. ciliata were significantly greater than Ps.ferox. Seven days after bloodmeals, oviposition rates for Ps. howardii, Ps. ciliata, and Ps.ferox were 18.8, 56.2, and 0%, respectively. The mean number of total eggs produced per female for the three species was 59, 81, and 73, respectively. Mean egg lengths of Ps. howardii and Ps. ciliata were significantly greater than Ps.ferox, and egg diameters for each of the three species were significantly different from one another. Length per diameter ratios of Ps. howardii and Ps. ciliata were significantly smaller than Ps. ferox. Bloodmeal size was positively related to body weight, but not related to blood engorgement duration, and the total egg number was positively related to bloodmeal size.

  7. Seasonal body size reductions with warming covary with major body size gradients in arthropod species

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Horne, Curtis R.; Hirst, Andrew G.; Atkinson, David

    2017-01-01

    experience different developmental conditions. Yet, unlike other size patterns, these common seasonal temperature–size gradients have never been collectively analysed. We undertake the largest analysis to date of seasonal temperature-size gradients in multivoltine arthropods, including 102 aquatic...... and terrestrial species from 71 global locations. Adult size declines in warmer seasons in 86% of the species examined. Aquatic species show approximately 2.5-fold greater reduction in size per °C of warming than terrestrial species, supporting the hypothesis that greater oxygen limitation in water than in air...

  8. Adipose tissue remodeling: its role in energy metabolism and metabolic disorders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sung Sik eChoe

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The adipose tissue is a central metabolic organ in the regulation of whole-body energy homeostasis. The white adipose tissue (WAT functions as a key energy reservoir for other organs, whereas the brown adipose tissue (BAT accumulates lipids for cold-induced adaptive thermogenesis. Adipose tissues secret various hormones, cytokines, and metabolites (termed as adipokines that control systemic energy balance by regulating appetitive signals from the central nerve system as well as metabolic activity in peripheral tissues. In response to changes in the nutritional status, the adipose tissue undergoes dynamic remodeling, including quantitative and qualitative alterations in adipose tissue resident cells. A growing body of evidence indicates that adipose tissue remodeling in obesity is closely associated with adipose tissue function. Changes in the number and size of the adipocytes affect the microenvironment of expanded fat tissues, accompanied by alterations in adipokine secretion, adipocyte death, local hypoxia, and fatty acid fluxes. Concurrently, stromal vascular cells in the adipose tissue, including immune cells, are involved in numerous adaptive processes, such as dead adipocyte clearance, adipogenesis, and angiogenesis, all of which are dysregulated in obese adipose tissue remodeling. Chronic over-nutrition triggers uncontrolled inflammatory responses, leading to systemic low-grade inflammation and metabolic disorders, such as insulin resistance. This review will discuss current mechanistic understandings of adipose tissue remodeling processes in adaptive energy homeostasis and pathological remodeling of adipose tissue in connection with immune response.

  9. Examining predator–prey body size, trophic level and body mass across marine and terrestrial mammals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucker, Marlee A.; Rogers, Tracey L.

    2014-01-01

    Predator–prey relationships and trophic levels are indicators of community structure, and are important for monitoring ecosystem changes. Mammals colonized the marine environment on seven separate occasions, which resulted in differences in species' physiology, morphology and behaviour. It is likely that these changes have had a major effect upon predator–prey relationships and trophic position; however, the effect of environment is yet to be clarified. We compiled a dataset, based on the literature, to explore the relationship between body mass, trophic level and predator–prey ratio across terrestrial (n = 51) and marine (n = 56) mammals. We did not find the expected positive relationship between trophic level and body mass, but we did find that marine carnivores sit 1.3 trophic levels higher than terrestrial carnivores. Also, marine mammals are largely carnivorous and have significantly larger predator–prey ratios compared with their terrestrial counterparts. We propose that primary productivity, and its availability, is important for mammalian trophic structure and body size. Also, energy flow and community structure in the marine environment are influenced by differences in energy efficiency and increased food web stability. Enhancing our knowledge of feeding ecology in mammals has the potential to provide insights into the structure and functioning of marine and terrestrial communities. PMID:25377460

  10. Body composition and water metabolism in tropical ruminants using tritiated water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ranjhan, S.K.; Kalanidhi, A.P.; Gosh, T.K.; Singh, U.B.; Saxena, K.K.

    1982-01-01

    Experiment 1. Studies were conducted on Muzaffarnagri, Muzaffarnagri x Dorset and Muzaffarnagri x Suffolk breeds of sheep to determine the water turnover rates and body composition. The native Muzaffarnagri and crossbred animals did not differ significantly in body composition. The water turnover rates were not significantly different between breeds within the same season, but a significant difference was observed between the two seasons (winter and summer). Experiment 2. Nine animals, three each of crossbred cattle (Hariana x Holstein), buffalo and crossbred sheep (Muzaffarnagri x Suffolk), were used to determine the body composition by the indirect method in the two seasons. There was a reduction in the TOH space and total body water during the summer season in cattle and buffalo as compared with the winter season. Experiment 3. Four adult Barbari goats were used to study body composition by direct (slaughter) and indirect (isotope dilution) techniques. There was a significant correlation between corrected TOH space and total body water, fat and protein. Experiment 4. Twelve animals, three each of buffalo, crossbred cattle (Hariana x Holstein), crossbred sheep (Muzaffarnagri x Suffolk) and Barbari goats, were used to determine the water requirements during the two seasons (winter and summer) by the tritiated water (TOH) dilution technique. There were significant differences (P < 0.01) in the water requirement and water turnover between seasons and between species within a season. The lowest water turnover and water requirement were found in goats, followed by sheep, crossbred cattle and buffalo when expressed as ml/kgsup(0.82).d. The metabolic water production was 10% of the total water input in the case of buffalo and crossbred cattle, but it was more in sheep and goats in both seasons

  11. Lean body mass, interleukin 18, and metabolic syndrome in apparently healthy Chinese.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liang Sun

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: We aimed to investigate how lean body mass is related to circulating Interleukin 18 (IL-18 and its association with metabolic syndrome (MetS among apparently healthy Chinese. METHODS: A population-based sample of 1059 Chinese men and women aged 35-54 years was used to measure plasma IL-18, glucose, insulin, lipid profile, inflammatory markers and high-molecular-weight (HMW-adiponectin. Fat mass index (FMI and lean mass index (LMI were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. MetS was defined by the updated National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria for Asian-Americans. RESULTS: Circulating IL-18 was positively correlated with LMI after adjustment for FMI (correlation coefficient = 0.11, P<0.001. The association with the MetS (odds ratio 3.43, 95% confidence interval 2.01-5.85 was substantially higher in the highest than the lowest quartile of IL-18 after multiple adjustments including body mass index. In the stratified multivariable regression analyses, the positive association between IL-18 and MetS was independent of tertiles of FMI, inflammatory markers and HMW-adiponectin, but significantly interacted with tertile of LMI (P for interaction = 0.010. CONCLUSION: Elevated plasma IL-18 was associated with higher MetS prevalence in apparently healthy Chinese, independent of traditional risk factors, FMI, inflammatory markers and HMW-adiponectin. More studies are needed to clarify the role of lean mass in IL-18 secretion and its associated cardio-metabolic disorders.

  12. Effect of size and composition of the body on absolute measurement of calcium in vivo

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spinks, T.J.

    1979-01-01

    The effect of size and composition of the body on the measurement of total calcium in absolute units by neutron activation analysis is described. The neutron beam, produced from a cyclotron, was of mean energy 7.5 MeV. Counting of the activities induced in a patient was carried out with a multidetector whole body counter. Calibration of the system was achieved by using two phantoms of different sizes containing known quantities of calcium. The dimensions of various phantom sections were varied to determine the effect on efficiency of activation, an approximately linear relationship with body thickness being found. The influence of body habitus on counting efficiency was assessed by counting different patients who had been given known quantities of 42 K. The effects of (a) the non-uniform distribution of calcium and (b) the variation in density of different tissues on both activation and counting efficiency are discussed. It is estimated that the 68% confidence limits on the measurement of 49 Ca count rate per unit neutron fluence is +- 3.0% and on the measurement of calcium in grams +- 8.2%. (author)

  13. Variation in genes related to hepatic lipid metabolism and changes in waist circumference and body weight

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Meidtner, Karina; Fisher, Eva; Angquist, Lars

    2014-01-01

    We analysed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) tagging the genetic variability of six candidate genes (ATF6, FABP1, LPIN2, LPIN3, MLXIPL and MTTP) involved in the regulation of hepatic lipid metabolism, an important regulatory site of energy balance for associations with body mass index (BMI...

  14. Body size and allometric shape variation in the molly Poecilia vivipara along a gradient of salinity and predation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araújo, Márcio S; Perez, S Ivan; Magazoni, Maria Julia C; Petry, Ana C

    2014-12-04

    Phenotypic diversity among populations may result from divergent natural selection acting directly on traits or via correlated responses to changes in other traits. One of the most frequent patterns of correlated response is the proportional change in the dimensions of anatomical traits associated with changes in growth or absolute size, known as allometry. Livebearing fishes subject to predation gradients have been shown to repeatedly evolve larger caudal peduncles and smaller cranial regions under high predation regimes. Poecilia vivipara is a livebearing fish commonly found in coastal lagoons in the north of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Similar to what is observed in other predation gradients, lagoons inhabited by P. vivipara vary in the presence of piscivorous fishes; contrary to other poeciliid systems, populations of P. vivipara vary greatly in body size, which opens the possibility of strong allometric effects on shape variation. Here we investigated body shape diversification among six populations of P. vivipara along a predation gradient and its relationship with allometric trajectories within and among populations. We found substantial body size variation and correlated shape changes among populations. Multivariate regression analysis showed that size variation among populations accounted for 66% of shape variation in females and 38% in males, suggesting that size is the most important dimension underlying shape variation among populations of P. vivipara in this system. Changes in the relative sizes of the caudal peduncle and cranial regions were only partly in line with predictions from divergent natural selection associated with predation regime. Our results suggest the possibility that adaptive shape variation among populations has been partly constrained by allometry in P. vivipara. Processes governing body size changes are therefore important in the diversification of this species. We conclude that in species characterized by substantial

  15. Body size distributions of the pale grass blue butterfly in Japan: Size rules and the status of the Fukushima population

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taira, Wataru; Iwasaki, Mayo; Otaki, Joji M.

    2015-01-01

    The body size of the pale grass blue butterfly, Zizeeria maha, has been used as an environmental indicator of radioactive pollution caused by the Fukushima nuclear accident. However, geographical and temporal size distributions in Japan and temperature effects on size have not been established in this species. Here, we examined the geographical, temporal, and temperature-dependent changes of the forewing size of Z. maha argia in Japan. Butterflies collected in 2012 and 2013 from multiple prefectures throughout Japan demonstrated an inverse relationship of latitude and forewing size, which is the reverse of Bergmann’s cline. The Fukushima population was significantly larger than the Aomori and Miyagi populations and exhibited no difference from most of the other prefectural populations. When monitored at a single geographic locality every other month, forewing sizes were the largest in April and the smallest in August. Rearing larvae at a constant temperature demonstrated that forewing size followed the temperature-size rule. Therefore, the converse Bergmann’s rule and the temperature-size rule coexist in this multivoltine species. Our study establishes this species as a useful environmental indicator and supports the idea that the size reduction observed only in Fukushima Prefecture in 2011 was caused by the environmental stress of radioactive pollution. PMID:26197998

  16. Survival Times of Meter-Sized Rock Boulders on the Surface of Airless Bodies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Basilevsky, A. T.; Head, J. W.; Horz, F.; Ramsley, K.

    2015-01-01

    This study considers the survival times of meter-sized rock boulders on the surfaces of several airless bodies. As the starting point, we employ estimates of the survival times of such boulders on the surface of the Moon by[1], then discuss the role of destruction due to day-night temperature cycling, consider the meteorite bombardment environment on the considered bodies in terms of projectile flux and velocities and finally estimate the survival times. Survival times of meter-sized rocks on lunar surface: The survival times of hand specimen-sized rocks exposed to the lunar surface environment were estimated based on experiments modeling the destruction of rocks by meteorite impacts, combined with measurements of the lunar surface meteorite flux, (e.g.,[2]). For estimations of the survival times of meter-sized lunar boulders, [1] suggested a different approach based on analysis of the spatial density of boulders on the rims of small lunar craters of known absolute age. It was found that for a few million years, only a small fraction of the boulders ejected by cratering process are destroyed, for several tens of million years approx.50% are destroyed, and for 200-300 Ma, 90 to 99% are destroyed. Following [2] and other works, [1] considered that the rocks are mostly destroyed by meteorite impacts. Destruction of rocks by thermal-stress. However, high diurnal temperature variations on the surface of the Moon and other airless bodies imply that thermal stresses may also be a cause of surface rock destruction. Delbo et al. [3] interpreted the observed presence of fine debris on the surface of small asteroids as due to thermal surface cycling. They stated that because of the very low gravity on the surface of these bodies, ejecta from meteorite impacts should leave the body, so formation there of fine debris has to be due to thermal cycling. Based on experiments on heating-cooling of cm-scale pieces of ordinary and carbonaceous chondrites and theoretical modeling of

  17. Ideal Body Size as a Mediator for the Gender-Specific Association between Socioeconomic Status and Body Mass Index: Evidence from an Upper-Middle-Income Country in the African Region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yepes, Maryam; Maurer, Jürgen; Stringhini, Silvia; Viswanathan, Barathi; Gedeon, Jude; Bovet, Pascal

    2016-01-01

    Background: While obesity continues to rise globally, the associations between body size, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) seem to vary in different populations, and little is known on the contribution of perceived ideal body size in the social disparity of obesity in African countries. Purpose: We examined the gender and socioeconomic…

  18. Impact of Glucose Tolerance Status, Sex, and Body Size on Glucose Absorption Patterns During OGTTs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Faerch, K.; Pacini, G.; Nolan, J. J.

    2013-01-01

    OBJECTIVEWe studied whether patterns of glucose absorption during oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) were abnormal in individuals with impaired glucose regulation and whether they were related to sex and body size (height and fat-free mass). We also examined how well differences in insulin......, reflected the differences for these parameters between those with normal and impaired glucose regulation as measured by gold-standard tests.CONCLUSIONSGlucose absorption patterns during an OGTT are significantly related to plasma glucose levels and body size, which should be taken into account when.......RESULTSMore rapid glucose absorption (P 0.036) and reduced late glucose absorption (P 0.039) were observed in the i-IFG group relative to NGT and i-IGT groups. Women with i-IGT had a lower early glucose absorption than did men with i-IGT (P = 0.041); however, this difference did not persist when differences in body...

  19. Partitioning the Metabolic Cost of Human Running: A Task-by-Task Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arellano, Christopher J.; Kram, Rodger

    2014-01-01

    Compared with other species, humans can be very tractable and thus an ideal “model system” for investigating the metabolic cost of locomotion. Here, we review the biomechanical basis for the metabolic cost of running. Running has been historically modeled as a simple spring-mass system whereby the leg acts as a linear spring, storing, and returning elastic potential energy during stance. However, if running can be modeled as a simple spring-mass system with the underlying assumption of perfect elastic energy storage and return, why does running incur a metabolic cost at all? In 1980, Taylor et al. proposed the “cost of generating force” hypothesis, which was based on the idea that elastic structures allow the muscles to transform metabolic energy into force, and not necessarily mechanical work. In 1990, Kram and Taylor then provided a more explicit and quantitative explanation by demonstrating that the rate of metabolic energy consumption is proportional to body weight and inversely proportional to the time of foot-ground contact for a variety of animals ranging in size and running speed. With a focus on humans, Kram and his colleagues then adopted a task-by-task approach and initially found that the metabolic cost of running could be “individually” partitioned into body weight support (74%), propulsion (37%), and leg-swing (20%). Summing all these biomechanical tasks leads to a paradoxical overestimation of 131%. To further elucidate the possible interactions between these tasks, later studies quantified the reductions in metabolic cost in response to synergistic combinations of body weight support, aiding horizontal forces, and leg-swing-assist forces. This synergistic approach revealed that the interactive nature of body weight support and forward propulsion comprises ∼80% of the net metabolic cost of running. The task of leg-swing at most comprises ∼7% of the net metabolic cost of running and is independent of body weight support and forward

  20. Body Image and Body Type Preferences in St. Kitts, Caribbean: A Cross-Cultural Comparison with U.S. Samples regarding Attitudes towards Muscularity, Body Fat, and Breast Size

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter B. Gray

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available We investigated body image in St. Kitts, a Caribbean island where tourism, international media, and relatively high levels of body fat are common. Participants were men and women recruited from St. Kitts (n = 39 and, for comparison, U.S. samples from universities (n = 618 and the Internet (n = 438. Participants were shown computer generated images varying in apparent body fat level and muscularity or breast size and they indicated their body type preferences and attitudes. Overall, there were only modest differences in body type preferences between St. Kitts and the Internet sample, with the St. Kitts participants being somewhat more likely to value heavier women. Notably, however, men and women from St. Kitts were more likely to idealize smaller breasts than participants in the U.S. samples. Attitudes regarding muscularity were generally similar across samples. This study provides one of the few investigations of body preferences in the Caribbean.

  1. Rates of ecological divergence and body size evolution are correlated with species diversification in scaly tree ferns

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramírez-Barahona, Santiago; Barrera-Redondo, Josué; Eguiarte, Luis E.

    2016-01-01

    Variation in species richness across regions and between different groups of organisms is a major feature of evolution. Several factors have been proposed to explain these differences, including heterogeneity in the rates of species diversification and the age of clades. It has been frequently assumed that rapid rates of diversification are coupled to high rates of ecological and morphological evolution, leading to a prediction that remains poorly explored for most species: the positive association between ecological niche divergence, morphological evolution and species diversification. We combined a time-calibrated phylogeny with distribution, ecological and body size data for scaly tree ferns (Cyatheaceae) to test whether rates of species diversification are predicted by the rates at which clades have evolved distinct ecological niches and body sizes. We found that rates of species diversification are positively correlated with rates of ecological and morphological evolution, with rapidly diversifying clades also showing rapidly evolving ecological niches and body sizes. Our results show that rapid diversification of scaly tree ferns is associated with the evolution of species with comparable morphologies that diversified into similar, yet distinct, environments. This suggests parallel evolutionary pathways opening in different tropical regions whenever ecological and geographical opportunities arise. Accordingly, rates of ecological niche and body size evolution are relevant to explain the current patterns of species richness in this ‘ancient’ fern lineage across the tropics. PMID:27412279

  2. Rates of ecological divergence and body size evolution are correlated with species diversification in scaly tree ferns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramírez-Barahona, Santiago; Barrera-Redondo, Josué; Eguiarte, Luis E

    2016-07-13

    Variation in species richness across regions and between different groups of organisms is a major feature of evolution. Several factors have been proposed to explain these differences, including heterogeneity in the rates of species diversification and the age of clades. It has been frequently assumed that rapid rates of diversification are coupled to high rates of ecological and morphological evolution, leading to a prediction that remains poorly explored for most species: the positive association between ecological niche divergence, morphological evolution and species diversification. We combined a time-calibrated phylogeny with distribution, ecological and body size data for scaly tree ferns (Cyatheaceae) to test whether rates of species diversification are predicted by the rates at which clades have evolved distinct ecological niches and body sizes. We found that rates of species diversification are positively correlated with rates of ecological and morphological evolution, with rapidly diversifying clades also showing rapidly evolving ecological niches and body sizes. Our results show that rapid diversification of scaly tree ferns is associated with the evolution of species with comparable morphologies that diversified into similar, yet distinct, environments. This suggests parallel evolutionary pathways opening in different tropical regions whenever ecological and geographical opportunities arise. Accordingly, rates of ecological niche and body size evolution are relevant to explain the current patterns of species richness in this 'ancient' fern lineage across the tropics. © 2016 The Author(s).

  3. Body size mediates social and environmental effects on nest building behaviour in a fish with paternal care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lehtonen, Topi K; Lindström, Kai; Wong, Bob B M

    2015-07-01

    Body size, social setting, and the physical environment can all influence reproductive behaviours, but their interactions are not well understood. Here, we investigated how male body size, male-male competition, and water turbidity influence nest-building behaviour in the sand goby (Pomatoschistus minutus), a marine fish with exclusive paternal care. We found that environmental and social factors affected the nest characteristics of small and large males differently. In particular, association between male size and the level of nest elaboration (i.e. the amount of sand piled on top of the nest) was positive only under clear water conditions. Similarly, male size and nest entrance size were positively associated only in the absence of competition. Such interactions may, in turn, help to explain the persistence of variation in reproductive behaviours, which-due to their importance in offspring survival-are otherwise expected to be under strong balancing selection.

  4. Metabolism

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... lin), which signals cells to increase their anabolic activities. Metabolism is a complicated chemical process, so it's not ... how those enzymes or hormones work. When the metabolism of body chemicals is ... Hyperthyroidism (pronounced: hi-per-THIGH-roy-dih-zum). Hyperthyroidism ...

  5. Body fat distribution, metabolic and inflammatory markers and retinal microvasculature in school-age children. The Generation R Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gishti, O; Jaddoe, V W V; Hofman, A; Wong, T Y; Ikram, M K; Gaillard, R

    2015-10-01

    To examine the associations of body fatness, metabolic and inflammatory markers with retinal vessel calibers among children. We performed a population-based cohort study among 4145 school-age children. At the median age of 6.0 years (95% range 5.8, 8.0 years), we measured body mass index, total and abdominal fat mass, metabolic and inflammatory markers (blood levels of lipids, insulin and C-peptide and C-reactive protein) and retinal vascular calibers from retinal photographs. We observed that compared with normal weight children, obese children had narrower retinal arteriolar caliber (difference -0.21 s.d. score (SDS; 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.35, -0.06)), but not venular caliber. Continuous analyses showed that higher body mass index and total body fat mass, but not android/gynoid fat mass ratio and pre-peritoneal fat mass, were associated with narrower retinal arteriolar caliber (Pfat mass), but not with retinal venular caliber. Lipid and insulin levels were not associated with retinal vessel calibers. Higher C-reactive protein was associated with only wider retinal venular caliber (difference 0.10 SDS (95% CI 0.06, 0.14) per SDS increase in C-reactive protein). This latter association was not influenced by body mass index. Higher body fatness is associated with narrower retinal arteriolar caliber, whereas increased C-reactive protein levels are associated with wider retinal venular caliber. Increased fat mass and inflammation correlate with microvascular development from school-age onwards.

  6. Visual diet versus associative learning as mechanisms of change in body size preferences.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lynda G Boothroyd

    Full Text Available Systematic differences between populations in their preferences for body size may arise as a result of an adaptive 'prepared learning' mechanism, whereby cues to health or status in the local population are internalized and affect body preferences. Alternatively, differences between populations may reflect their 'visual diet' as a cognitive byproduct of mere exposure. Here we test the relative importance of these two explanations for variation in body preferences. Two studies were conducted where female observers were exposed to pictures of high or low BMI women which were either aspirational (healthy, attractive models in high status clothes or non-aspirational (eating disordered patients in grey leotards, or to combinations thereof, in order to manipulate their body-weight preferences which were tested at baseline and at post-test. Overall, results showed good support for visual diet effects (seeing a string of small or large bodies resulted in a change from pre- to post-test whether the bodies were aspirational or not and also some support for the associative learning explanation (exposure to aspirational images of overweight women induced a towards preferring larger bodies, even when accompanied by equal exposure to lower weight bodies in the non-aspirational category. Thus, both influences may act in parallel.

  7. Premigratory fat metabolism in hummingbirds: A rumsfeldian approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raul K. SUAREZ

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Hummingbird migration is a remarkable feat, given the small body sizes of migratory species, their high metabolic rates during flight and the long distances traveled using fat to fuel the effort. Equally remarkable is the ability of premigratory hummingbirds in the wild to accumulate fat, synthesized from sugar, at rates as high as 10% of body mass per day. This paper summarizes, using Rumsfeldian terminology, “known knowns” concerning the energetics of hummingbird migration and premigratory fattening. Energy metabolism during hover-feeding on floral nectar is fueled directly by dietary sugar through the pathway recently named the “sugar oxidation cascade”. However, flight without feeding for more than a few minutes requires shifting to fat as a fuel. It is proposed that behavior and metabolic fuel choice are coadapted to maximize the rate of fat deposition during premigratory fattening. The hummingbird liver appears to possess extraordinarily high capacities for fatty acid synthesis. The analysis of “known knowns” leads to identification of “known unknowns”, e.g., the fates of dietary glucose and fructose, the regulation of fat metabolism and metabolic interactions between liver and adipose tissue. The history of science behooves recognition of “unknown unknowns” that, when discovered serendipitously, might shed new light on fundamental mechanisms as well as human pathological conditions [Current Zoology 59 (3: 371–380, 2013].

  8. Body size distribution in ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) as a possible monitoring method of environmental impacts of transgenic maize

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grumo, Davide di; Lövei, Gabor L.

    2015-01-01

    Despite the obligatory post-market environmental monitoring of genetically modified (GM) crops in Europe, there are no available standards on methods. Our aim was to examine the suitability of using changes in carabid body size distribution as a possible monitoring method. The sampling was carried...... informative Lorenz asymmetry coefficients. A total of 6339 carabids belonging to 38 species were captured and indentified. The analysis detected a shift in size distribution between months but no important differences in the assemblages in Bt vs. non-Bt maize plots were found. We concluded that an increasing...... body size trend from spring to autumn was evident, and the use of a multilevel analysis was important to correctly interpret the body size distribution. Therefore, the proposed methods are indeed sensitive to subtle changes in the structure of the carabid assemblages, and they have the potential...

  9. The art of being small : brain-body size scaling in minute parasitic wasps

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Woude, van der Emma

    2017-01-01

    Haller’s rule states that small animals have relatively larger brains than large animals. This brain-body size relationship may enable small animals to maintain similar levels of brain performance as large animals. However, it also causes small animals to spend an exceptionally large proportion

  10. Examining predator-prey body size, trophic level and body mass across marine and terrestrial mammals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucker, Marlee A; Rogers, Tracey L

    2014-12-22

    Predator-prey relationships and trophic levels are indicators of community structure, and are important for monitoring ecosystem changes. Mammals colonized the marine environment on seven separate occasions, which resulted in differences in species' physiology, morphology and behaviour. It is likely that these changes have had a major effect upon predator-prey relationships and trophic position; however, the effect of environment is yet to be clarified. We compiled a dataset, based on the literature, to explore the relationship between body mass, trophic level and predator-prey ratio across terrestrial (n = 51) and marine (n = 56) mammals. We did not find the expected positive relationship between trophic level and body mass, but we did find that marine carnivores sit 1.3 trophic levels higher than terrestrial carnivores. Also, marine mammals are largely carnivorous and have significantly larger predator-prey ratios compared with their terrestrial counterparts. We propose that primary productivity, and its availability, is important for mammalian trophic structure and body size. Also, energy flow and community structure in the marine environment are influenced by differences in energy efficiency and increased food web stability. Enhancing our knowledge of feeding ecology in mammals has the potential to provide insights into the structure and functioning of marine and terrestrial communities. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  11. Body Mass Index, Metabolic Factors, and Striatal Activation During Stressful and Neutral-Relaxing States: An fMRI Study

    OpenAIRE

    Jastreboff, Ania M; Potenza, Marc N; Lacadie, Cheryl; Hong, Kwangik A; Sherwin, Robert S; Sinha, Rajita

    2010-01-01

    Stress is associated with alterations in neural motivational-reward pathways in the ventral striatum (VS), hormonal/metabolic changes, and weight increases. The relationship between these different factors is not well understood. We hypothesized that body mass index (BMI) status and hormonal/metabolic factors would be associated with VS activation. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to compare brain responses of overweight and obese (OW/OB: BMI ⩾25 kg/m2: N=27) individuals w...

  12. Lower limits of ornithischian dinosaur body size inferred from a new Upper Jurassic heterodontosaurid from North America

    Science.gov (United States)

    Butler, Richard J.; Galton, Peter M.; Porro, Laura B.; Chiappe, Luis M.; Henderson, Donald M.; Erickson, Gregory M.

    2010-01-01

    The extremes of dinosaur body size have long fascinated scientists. The smallest (dinosaurs are carnivorous saurischian theropods, and similarly diminutive herbivorous or omnivorous ornithischians (the other major group of dinosaurs) are unknown. We report a new ornithischian dinosaur, Fruitadens haagarorum, from the Late Jurassic of western North America that rivals the smallest theropods in size. The largest specimens of Fruitadens represent young adults in their fifth year of development and are estimated at just 65–75 cm in total body length and 0.5–0.75 kg body mass. They are thus the smallest known ornithischians. Fruitadens is a late-surviving member of the basal dinosaur clade Heterodontosauridae, and is the first member of this clade to be described from North America. The craniodental anatomy and diminutive body size of Fruitadens suggest that this taxon was an ecological generalist with an omnivorous diet, thus providing new insights into morphological and palaeoecological diversity within Dinosauria. Late-surviving (Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous) heterodontosaurids are smaller and less ecologically specialized than Early (Late Triassic and Early Jurassic) heterodontosaurids, and this ecological generalization may account in part for the remarkable 100-million-year-long longevity of the clade. PMID:19846460

  13. Androgen excess and metabolic disorders in women with PCOS: beyond the body mass index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Condorelli, R A; Calogero, A E; Di Mauro, M; Mongioi', L M; Cannarella, R; Rosta, G; La Vignera, S

    2018-04-01

    Insulin resistance is a common feature among women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), especially in those patients with hyperandrogenism and chronic anovulation. PCOS women are at risk for developing metabolic syndrome, impaired glucose tolerance and type II diabetes mellitus (DM II). The aim of this review is to explore the existing knowledge of the interplay between androgen excess, pancreatic β-cell function, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), intra-abdominal and subcutaneous (SC) abdominal adipocytes in PCOS, providing a better comprehension of the molecular mechanisms of diabetologic interest. A comprehensive MEDLINE ® search was performed using relevant key terms for PCOS and DM II. Insulin-induced hyperandrogenism could impair pancreatic β-cell function, the SC abdominal adipocytes' lipid storage capacity, leading to intra-abdominal adipocyte hypertrophy and lipotoxicity, which in turn promotes insulin resistance, and could enhance NAFLD. Fetal hyperandrogenism exposure prompts to metabolic disorders. Treatment with flutamide showed to partially reverse insulin resistance. Metabolic impairment seems not to be dependent only on the total fat mass content and body weight in women with PCOS and might be ascribed to the androgen excess.

  14. Glenoid version and size: does gender, ethnicity, or body size play a role?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piponov, Hristo Ivanov; Savin, David; Shah, Neal; Esposito, Domenic; Schwartz, Brian; Moretti, Vincent; Goldberg, Benjamin

    2016-11-01

    Variations in glenoid morphology among patients of different gender, body habitus, and ethnicity have been of interest for surgeons. Understanding these anatomical variations is a critical step in restoring normal glenohumeral structure during shoulder reconstruction surgery. Retrospective review of 108 patient shoulder CT scans was performed and glenoid version, AP diameter and height were measured. Statistical multiple regression models were used to investigate the ability of gender and ethnicity to predict glenoid AP diameter, height, and version independently of patient weight and height. The mean glenoid AP diameter was 24.7 ± 3.5, the mean glenoid height was 31.7 ± 3.7, and the mean glenoid version was 0.05 ± 9.05. According to our regression models, males would be expected to exhibit 8.4° more glenoid retroversion than females (p = 0.003) and have 2.9 mm larger glenoid height compared to females (p = 0.002). The predicted male glenoid AP diameter was 3.4 mm higher than that in females (p variations in glenoid size and version are observed among ethnicities, larger sample size ethnic groups will be necessary to explore the precise relations. Surgeons should consider gender and ethnic variations in the pre-operative planning and surgical restoration of the native glenohumeral relationship. Anatomic Study.

  15. Effects of Abiotic Factors on the Geographic Distribution of Body Size Variation and Chromosomal Polymorphisms in Two Neotropical Grasshopper Species (Dichroplus: Melanoplinae: Acrididae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claudio J. Bidau

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available We review the effects of abiotic factors on body size in two grasshopper species with large geographical distributions: Dichroplus pratensis and D. vittatus, inhabiting Argentina in diverse natural habitats. Geographical spans for both species provide an opportunity to study the effects of changes in abiotic factors on body size. The analyses of body size distribution in both species revealed a converse Bergmannian pattern: body size is positively correlated with latitude, altitude, and seasonality that influences time available for development and growth. Allen’s rule is also inverted. Morphological variability increases towards the ends of the Bergmannian clines and, in D. pratensis, is related with a central-marginal distribution of chromosomal variants that influence recombination. The converse Bergmannian patterns influence sexual size dimorphism in both species but in different fashions. Body size variation at a microspatial scale in D. pratensis is extremely sensitive to microclimatic clines. We finally compare our results with those for other Orthopteran species.

  16. Clinical correlation of radiological spinal stenosis after standardization for vertebral body size

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Athiviraham, A.; Yen, D.; Scott, C.; Soboleski, D.

    2007-01-01

    Aim: To determine the relationship between the degree of radiographic lumbar spinal stenosis, adjusted with an internal control for vertebral body size, and disability from lumbar stenosis. Materials and methods: one hundred and twenty-three consecutive patients with clinical and radiological confirmation of neural impingement secondary to lumbar stenosis were enrolled prospectively. Thecal sac anteroposterior (AP) diameter (TSD) and cross-sectional area (CSA), and vertebral body AP dimension (VBD) were determined. These parameters were then correlated with patients' symptoms using the modified Roland-Morris questionnaire (RMQ) disability score. Results: No statistically significant inverse correlation was found between the TSD and RMQ score (p = 0.433), between the CSA and RMQ score (p = 0.124), or between the TSD:VBD ratio and RMQ score (p = 0.109). There was a significant positive correlation between the CSA:VBD ratio and RMQ score (p = .036), and therefore, there was no statistical support for an inverse relationship between the two. There was a significant difference in mean RMQ scores when the patients were divided into those with CSA greater than or equal to 70 mm 2 and those less than 70 mm 2 , with T = -2.104 and p = 0.038. Conclusion: The degree of radiographic lumbar spinal stenosis, even with the use of an internal control of vertebral body size and standardized disability questionnaires, does not correlate with clinical symptoms. However, patients with more severe stenosis below a CSA critical threshold of 70 mm 2 , have significantly greater functional disability

  17. Metabolic Networks and Metabolites Underlie Associations Between Maternal Glucose During Pregnancy and Newborn Size at Birth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scholtens, Denise M; Bain, James R; Reisetter, Anna C; Muehlbauer, Michael J; Nodzenski, Michael; Stevens, Robert D; Ilkayeva, Olga; Lowe, Lynn P; Metzger, Boyd E; Newgard, Christopher B; Lowe, William L

    2016-07-01

    Maternal metabolites and metabolic networks underlying associations between maternal glucose during pregnancy and newborn birth weight and adiposity demand fuller characterization. We performed targeted and nontargeted gas chromatography/mass spectrometry metabolomics on maternal serum collected at fasting and 1 h following glucose beverage consumption during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) for 400 northern European mothers at ∼28 weeks' gestation in the Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome Study. Amino acids, fatty acids, acylcarnitines, and products of lipid metabolism decreased and triglycerides increased during the OGTT. Analyses of individual metabolites indicated limited maternal glucose associations at fasting, but broader associations, including amino acids, fatty acids, carbohydrates, and lipids, were found at 1 h. Network analyses modeling metabolite correlations provided context for individual metabolite associations and elucidated collective associations of multiple classes of metabolic fuels with newborn size and adiposity, including acylcarnitines, fatty acids, carbohydrates, and organic acids. Random forest analyses indicated an improved ability to predict newborn size outcomes by using maternal metabolomics data beyond traditional risk factors, including maternal glucose. Broad-scale association of fuel metabolites with maternal glucose is evident during pregnancy, with unique maternal metabolites potentially contributing specifically to newborn birth weight and adiposity. © 2016 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.

  18. Body size and the rate of spread of invasive ladybird beetles in North America

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Hemptinne, J. L.; Magro, A.; Evans, E.W.; Dixon, Anthony F. G.

    2012-01-01

    Roč. 14, č. 3 (2012), s. 595-605 ISSN 1387-3547 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : Invasiveness * Body size * Reproductive rate * Coccinella septempunctata * Harmonia axyridis Subject RIV: EH - Ecology , Behaviour Impact factor: 2.509, year: 2012

  19. A critical evaluation of the insect body size model and causes of metamorphosis in solitary bees

    Science.gov (United States)

    The insect body size model posits that adult size is determined by growth rate and the duration of growth during the larval stage of development. Within the model, growth rate is regulated by many mechanistic elements that are influenced by both internal and external factors. However, the duration o...

  20. Anatomical and metabolic small-animal whole-body imaging using ring-shaped confocal photoacoustic computed tomography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xia, Jun; Chatni, Muhammad; Maslov, Konstantin; Wang, Lihong V.

    2013-03-01

    Due to the wide use of animals for human disease studies, small animal whole-body imaging plays an increasingly important role in biomedical research. Currently, none of the existing imaging modalities can provide both anatomical and glucose metabolic information, leading to higher costs of building dual-modality systems. Even with image coregistration, the spatial resolution of the metabolic imaging modality is not improved. We present a ring-shaped confocal photoacoustic computed tomography (RC-PACT) system that can provide both assessments in a single modality. Utilizing the novel design of confocal full-ring light delivery and ultrasound transducer array detection, RC-PACT provides full-view cross-sectional imaging with high spatial resolution. Scanning along the orthogonal direction provides three-dimensional imaging. While the mouse anatomy was imaged with endogenous hemoglobin contrast, the glucose metabolism was imaged with a near-infrared dye-labeled 2-deoxyglucose. Through mouse tumor models, we demonstrate that RC-PACT may be a paradigm shifting imaging method for preclinical research.