Sedentary behaviors (involving prolonged sitting) can be associated detrimentally with health outcomes. Older adults, the most sedentary age group, are especially at risk due to their high levels of television viewing time. This study examined individual, social, and physical environmental correlates of older adults' television viewing. Data on daily television viewing time, plus individual, so...

KEY POINTS: Ageing is associated with an upregulation of mitochondrial dynamics proteins mitofusin 2 (Mfn2) and mitochondrial dynamics protein 49 (MiD49) in human skeletal muscle with the increased abundance of Mfn2 being exclusive to type II muscle fibres. These changes occur despite a similar content of mitochondria, as measured by COXIV, NDUFA9 and complexes in their native states (Blue N...

KEY POINTS: MicroRNA (miRNA)-based therapies are in development for numerous diseases, including heart disease. Currently, very limited basic information is available on the regulation of specific miRNAs in male and female hearts in settings of disease. The identification of sex-specific miRNA signatures has implications for translation into the clinic and suggests the need for customised th...

We examined the effect of chronic angiotensin (Ang II)-induced hypertension on activity of postganglionic renal sympathetic units to determine whether altered whole renal nerve activity is due to recruitment or changes in firing frequency. Rabbits were treated with a low (20 ng kg(-1) min(-1), 8 weeks) or high dose (50 ng kg(-1) min(-1), 4 weeks) of Ang II before the experiment under chloralose...

NEW FINDINGS: What is the central question of this study? Sodium appetite is controlled by conserved neuronal transmitter-receptor systems. Here, we tested the contribution made by relaxin family peptide 3 receptor (RXFP3), the cognate G-protein-coupled receptor for the neuropeptide relaxin-3. What is the main finding and its importance? Intracerebroventricular infusion of an RXFP3 antagonis...

BACKGROUND: Biochemical changes induced in red blood cells (RBCs) during storage may impair their function upon transfusion. Transfusion-associated stresses may further amplify storage lesion effects including increased phosphatidylserine (PS) exposure at the RBC membrane, microparticle (MP) release, and adhesion to endothelial cells (ECs). RBC stress susceptibility in vitro was investigated...

Tendinopathy is a common condition, which has been linked to surrogate measures of sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity and insulin resistance. This study aimed to compare in vivo measures of the SNS and insulin resistance between individuals with and without Achilles tendinopathy. This case-control study compared Achilles tendinopathy sufferers to healthy controls. SNS activity was quanti...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Mortality and hospital separation data suggest a higher burden of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in indigenous than non-indigenous subpopulations of high-income countries. This study sought to accurately measure the true prevalence of post-bronchodilator airflow obstruction and forced vital capacity reduction in representative samples of Indigenous and n...

OBJECTIVES: Although a diagnosis of coeliac disease (CD) may be confronting to children with type 1 diabetes and their families, we hypothesize that children with CD have lower urinary albumin excretion, a marker of renal dysfunction. RESEARCH DESIGN: Twenty-four children with type 1 diabetes and biopsy-proven CD, on a gluten-free diet for at least 1 yr, were recruited from a single paediatr...

BACKGROUND: Cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) hematomas are associated with many adverse outcomes. We examined the incidence and risk factors associated with hematoma formation post-CIED implantation, and explored the preventative effect of prophylactic pressure bandaging (PPB) in a large tertiary center. METHODS: 1,091 devices were implanted during October 2011-December 2014....

Obesity is associated with excessive daytime sleepiness, but its causality remains unclear. We aimed to assess the extent to which intentional weight loss affects daytime sleepiness. Electronic databases were searched through 24 October 2016. Studies involving overweight or obese adults, a weight loss intervention and repeated valid measures of daytime sleepiness were included in the review. Tw...

Screen time, but not overall sedentary behaviour, is consistently related to cardiometabolic health in adolescents. Because of the associations screen time has with dietary intake, diet may be an important factor in the screen time and health relationship; however, evidence has not previously been synthesized. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to explore whether the associations betwe...

Whole-of-community (WOC) interventions have led to modest reductions in population weight gain. Whether they exhibit differential effectiveness by socioeconomic position (SEP) remains unknown. We aimed to summarize evidence of differential effectiveness of WOC interventions by SEP. Electronic databases and grey literature were searched to identify studies that evaluated the effectiveness of a W...

Excessive sedentary time is detrimentally linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and premature mortality. Studies have been investigating the use of activity-permissive workstations to reduce sedentary time in office workers, a highly sedentary target group. This review systematically summarizes the evidence for activity-permissive workstations on sedentary time, health-risk...

Obesity prevention is a major public health priority. It is important that all groups benefit from measures to prevent obesity, but we know little about the differential effectiveness of such interventions within particular population subgroups. This review aimed to identify interventions for obesity prevention that evaluated a change in adiposity according to socioeconomic position (SEP) and t...

AIMS: Uncertainties about the role of cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) in the prediction of cardiovascular disease (CVD) beyond traditional CVD risk factors remain. We assessed contributions of eGFR to CVD and mortality in the general population. METHODS: Using 14 year follow-up data on 9353 adults without a reported history of CVD from the Australian Diabetes...

AIM: Proteinuria and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) predict progression of renal impairment in type 2 diabetic nephropathy (DN) but are they still predictive when these patients are treated with angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB)? We investigated whether residual (after ≥3 months of ARB treatment) urinary protein/creatinine ratio (rPCR) or urinary albumin/creatinine ratio (rACR) ...

BACKGROUND: Adult non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) involves lobular necroinflammatory activity and fibrosis is typically centrilobular, whereas paediatric NAFLD has predominantly portal fibrosis. The reasons for these differences are unclear. We aimed to determine (a) how centrilobular and portal fibrosis in children relate to histological parameters; and (b) whether atypical fibrosis ...

Background Myocardial infarction and stroke remain the leading causes of mortality and morbidity. The major limitation of current antiplatelet therapy is that the effective concentrations are limited because of bleeding complications. Targeted delivery of antiplatelet drug to sites of thrombosis would overcome these limitations. Objectives Here, we have exploited a key biomechanical feature spe...

AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a pilot screening program for rheumatic heart disease (RHD) on patient quality of life (QOL) and health services. METHODS: A QOL questionnaire (CHQ-PF28) was used to assess the impact of RHD screening on children with a potentially abnormal screening echocardiogram and matched normal controls. The health service response to a potentially...