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Lipid metabolism disorders induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) are closely associated with kidney injury. Prolonged HFD consumption can lead to excessive lipid accumulation and chronic inflammation, contributing to renal structural and functional impairment. Fucoxanthin (Fx), a marine carotenoid with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, has shown potential benefits in metabolic regulation.
Objective:
This study aimed to evaluate the protective effects of Fx against HFD-induced kidney injury and elucidate the underlying mechanisms, particularly focusing on oxidative stress and inflammation. Methods: Male C57BL/6J mice were fed an HFD to induce kidney injury, with or without Fx supplementation. Renal function, histopathology, oxidative stress markers, and pro-inflammatory cytokines were assessed. Gut microbiota profiling by 16S rDNA sequencing was performed as an exploratory analysis.
Results:
Fx significantly improved renal function and ameliorated histological damage. Treatment with Fx reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and suppressed the expression of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β in kidney tissues, indicating attenuation of oxidative stress and inflammation. Fx also improved lipid profiles and metabolic parameters. Preliminary analysis showed that Fx induced changes in gut microbiota composition, though the relevance to renal outcomes remains to be further investigated.
Conclusion:
Fx confers renoprotective effects in HFD-induced kidney injury, primarily through modulation of oxidative stress and inflammatory responses. These findings support its potential as a functional food ingredient or nutraceutical for managing obesity-related renal dysfunction.
While most Conditional Cash Transfer programs in Latin America expanded from rural to national coverage, Peru’s Juntos program maintained a strict rural focus for 15 years, systematically excluding poor urban households. This article examines the Peruvian paradox: why, despite regional trends and internal efforts to broaden coverage, Juntos remained territorially constrained. Using process tracing and semi-structured interviews with policymakers, senior bureaucrats, former congress members, and policy experts, the study identifies two institutional legacies rooted in the neoliberal reforms of the Fujimori era. First, the institutional consolidation of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) as a powerful veto player with control over public spending; and second, the diffusion of an ideational framework centered on fiscal austerity, efficiency, and aversion to clientelism. These legacies gave rise to two policy locks, a persistent rural bias and a regime of horizontal and fiscal control, that have limited the program’s adaptability to shifting poverty dynamics and urban demands.
This article concerns opportunities for improving systems for processing public finds through digital technology and citizen science, taking England, Estonia, and Finland as case studies. These three countries have differing legislation, but all face a significant growth in hobby metal detecting and consequent increase in archaeological finds being reported, which places pressure on existing resources for recording them. While archaeologists in the different countries all value public finds as items that add to public collections, provide information about sites at risk, and can advance research, their priorities vary. This has an impact on approaches to processing finds, but offers the chance to embrace digital technology and involve the public. This article shows how digital technology and public involvement in archaeology have already facilitated change in all three countries and highlights further opportunities these might provide, given a growing desire to democratize archaeology and share public finds data as widely as possible.
I provide an analysis of incel ideology which contributes to philosophical reflection on this distinctive form of online misogyny. The analysis complements extant feminist interpretations by illustrating some moral psychological limitations of popular objectification and entitlement frameworks. After emphasizing the central role of self-loathing in the incel worldview, I offer a partial explanation of the roots of this self-loathing by appealing to the underappreciated significance of masculine warrior ideals.
Maritime piracy represents a significant international challenge, impacting both economic stability and political dynamics. Researchers from diverse disciplines have been drawn to this multifaceted issue, each aiming to understand and address different aspects of piracy’s impact and implications. This study offers a comprehensive overview of maritime piracy research based on bibliographic analysis. Its objective is threefold. First, to delineate the key domains of inquiry within maritime piracy research. These domains encompass a wide range of topics, including the socio-economic drivers of piracy, the legal frameworks governing maritime security, and computer science to analyse piracy acts. Second, to identify major contributions in the field, recognising seminal works, influential authors and significant findings related to maritime piracy. Lastly, to discern emerging research trends within maritime piracy, and to identify novel areas of inquiry, innovative methodologies and promising avenues for future exploration. Furthermore, the most popular datasets from these studies that include relevant information are presented in this work.
Cross-sectional and longitudinal evidence indicates that the error-related negativity (ERN) increases across adolescence. However, there are no longitudinal studies of ERN development which traverse all of adolescence. In addition, anxiety (e.g., generalized and social anxiety) and depression have been associated with a larger and smaller ERN, respectively, but it is unknown whether childhood psychopathology is associated with adolescent development of the ERN. In the present study, 317 8 to 14-year-old girls completed a flanker task at baseline and approximately 2-year and 5-year follow-ups. Multilevel growth modeling was used to examine ERN trajectory across adolescence and test whether self-reported childhood generalized anxiety, social anxiety, and depression symptoms at baseline predicted ERN trajectory. On average, the ERN demonstrated a linear increase from late childhood to early adulthood. Additionally, participants with high baseline anxiety (generalized anxiety, social anxiety) and low depression symptoms had the steepest ERN trajectory across adolescence. The present study provides longitudinal support for an increase in the ERN spanning adolescence and demonstrates that childhood psychopathology is associated with error-related neural development into early adulthood.
Gammaridean amphipods are a major component of macrobenthic communities, but information on their distribution and ecology in subtidal habitats of northern Japan is limited. We present the species composition and community structure of benthic amphipods in the subtidal bottoms (5–32 m deep) of Akkeshi Bay, eastern Hokkaido, Japan, and examine whether spatial variability of amphipod assemblage is related to local environmental gradients and biogeographic affinities of the component species. Amphipods were collected at nine sites in 2020 and identified to 40 species consisting of 21 families. Similarity analyses showed that the amphipod community differed among the three habitats: (1) marine soft-bottom substrate, (2) gravelly estuarine substrate, and (3) marine hard-bottom substrate. Distance-based redundancy analysis revealed that variation in the soft-bottom community was related to that of depth and sediment composition. The biogeographic affinities of 15 identified species were categorized as two groups, “Arctic and surroundings” and “Northwestern Pacific,” by similarity analysis with global occurrence records in marine ecoregions. Differences in species composition were related to the biogeographic affinities of the component species, with species grouped as Arctic and surroundings occurring at deeper sites than the Northwestern Pacific species. Changes in community structure along the depth gradient reflected variations in environmental factors, such as temperature, as well as differences in the suitable temperature ranges of the species as determined by their biogeographic history. This study highlights the importance of considering both environmental gradients and macroecological features of component species in interpreting variations in amphipod community structure on the local scale.
Despite their considerable public health impact, most people with depressive disorders do not receive treatment due to barriers that limit access to high-quality care. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, depressive symptoms have sharply increased, and access-to-care barriers were magnified by physical distancing requirements. Videoconferencing is a virtual care modality that reduces access-to-care barriers and can be used to deliver cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), an evidence-based treatment for depressive disorders. However, it is unclear whether videoconference CBT effectively decreases depressive symptoms, particularly in a group therapy format.
Aim:
This non-randomized study compared outcomes of group CBT for depressive disorders delivered via videoconference versus in-person.
Method:
Data on clinical outcomes (pre- and post-treatment depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms), treatment attendance, drop-out, and patient satisfaction were collected from adult outpatients of a mood disorders clinic who attended 14 weekly group CBT sessions either in-person (pre-pandemic; n=255) or via videoconference (during the pandemic; n=113).
Results:
Pre- to post-treatment decreases in depression, anxiety and stress symptoms did not differ between treatment modalities (β=–.01–.06, p>.05). These effects were robust to patient-level factors (i.e. age, sex, co-morbidities, medication use). Moreover, videoconference group CBT was associated with higher attendance (d=0.33) and lower drop-out (53% vs 70% of participants) compared with in-person group CBT.
Conclusions:
Videoconference group CBT for depressive disorders appears to be a promising and effective alternative to in-person CBT. However, these findings should be interpreted in light of the study’s non-randomized design and the potential confounding effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Microplastics are found in all oceanic environments and represent a growing concern for researchers and managers of marine environments. A systematic review was carried out to investigate the accumulation of microplastics (MPs) in filter feeders, focusing on the potential relationship between the feeding mechanism and MPs’ accumulation. The accumulation of microplastics was compared among marine benthic filter feeders that use different filtering mechanisms. Rayyan® software was employed to screen the articles, and data extraction was subsequently carried out. The review followed well-structured protocol PRISMA 2020 guidelines to guarantee methodological rigor and minimize biases. Due to the high heterogeneity (Higgins I2 test, I2 > 95%) of data methodologies, a narrative synthesis was used as the output of the review. Most publications report microplastics in mollusks (oysters, mussels, and clams), and bivalves were the group most studied (76.67%). Sponges (91 to 612 items g – 1 DW) and polychaetes (1 to 880 items g–1 WW) had the highest number of MPs. Although it is possible to establish relationships between feeding mechanisms and MPs accumulation, using distinct methodologies makes comparing the results of different studies difficult, leading to an urgent call for standardizing methods for microplastic studies in marine organisms.
Morphological examination of recently collected barnacle specimens confirms the presence of Tesseropora atlantica (Cirripedia, Balanomorpha, Tetraclitidae) along the coastlines of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, the easternmost islands of the Canary Archipelago. This constitutes the first documented occurrence of T. atlantica in the Canary Islands and establishes a new southern range limit for this relict species in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Additionally, 16S and COI mitochondrial gene sequences were obtained for the first time for this species, allowing comparisons with related taxa. The study also explores plausible hypotheses concerning the species’ arrival in the Canary Islands.
During puberty, sex-specific processes shape distinct mental health outcomes. However, research on puberty and psychosis has been limited, and the findings are conflicting.
Aims
To explore how puberty status and timing and oestradiol levels influence psychotic experiences and whether they interact with genetic and exposomic vulnerabilities to schizophrenia in female adolescents.
Method
We analysed data from female participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study at baseline (n = 5673) and two annual follow-up assessments. Psychotic experiences were assessed using the Prodromal Psychosis Scale and puberty status with the Pubertal Development Scale. Age at menarche and salivary oestradiol concentration were recorded. Exposomic vulnerability to schizophrenia (ES-SCZ) and polygenic risk score for schizophrenia (PRS-SCZ) were calculated. Longitudinal mixed logistic regression models were used to test associations of psychotic experiences with hormone levels and puberty status. Age of menarche was analysed using second follow-up data.
Results
Earlier menarche (odds ratio 0.68, 95% CI: 0.59 to 0.78) and higher oestradiol concentration (odds ratio = 1.08, 95% CI: 1.01 to 1.16) were associated with greater likelihood of psychotic experiences, as were mid-pubertal (odds ratio 1.41, 95% CI: 1.18 to 1.69) and late to post-pubertal (odds ratio 2.23, 95% CI: 1.74 to 2.86) compared with pre-pubertal stage. ES-SCZ and PRS-SCZ were associated with greater likelihood of psychotic experiences. No significant interactions of puberty factors with ES-SCZ or PRS-SCZ were detected.
Conclusions
Physical and hormonal puberty factors have critical roles in development of psychosis. The absence of interaction effects could be attributed to the age range of the cohort. Further research during follow-ups is essential.
This study aims to determine the age and growth of Anguilla anguilla from Lake Bafa, Türkiye. A total of 128 samples of European eel were purchased from a small-scale fisherman who caught them in Lake Bafa in November 2016 and 2017, using 34-mm mesh size and 15-m-long fyke nets. The total length (TL) and total weight were measured, and the sex, age, and life stage were identified. The mean TL for females was 54.1 ± 10.1 (36.1–76.2) cm, and for males 43.6 ± 3.7 (35.7–47.8) cm. Yellow and silver eel mean TLs were 48.9 ± 6.6 (35.7–63.7) and 61.9 ± 10.8 (39.9–77.2) cm, respectively, and for pooled data 53.3 ± 10.3 (35.7–77.2) cm. The growth for pooled samples was positive allometric. The age of eels varied from 2 to 9 years. The Von Bertalanffy growth parameters for pooled specimens were determined as L∞ = 71.9 cm, K = 0.25, and t0 = −0.11. The sex ratio (M:F = 1:11.2) was biased in favour of females. It is inferred from this and other studies that eels in Türkiye have comparable length and age distributions in similar habitats.
This article examines the ways that alternative musicians in Lebanon tactically engage in corporate collaborations as a mode of aspirational cartography. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, it explores three artists’ entanglements with Red Bull, underscoring the imaginative, ethical, and aesthetic manoeuvres musicians undertake in pursuit of alternative futures through strategic corporate affiliation. I build on Appadurai’s theory of aspiration in order to argue that in cases like Lebanon, aspiration is a cartographic undertaking through which musicians sonically map and shape spaces of possibility. In the absence of governmental support or infrastructure for the arts, transnational corporations take on developmental roles, allowing artists to leverage personal relationships, material resources, and aesthetic and creative control in pursuit of possibility.