Methods: SWAN included a baseline measurement of women in midlife ( mean age = 45.7 years) and eight follow-up visits during which waist circumference ( WC) and body mass index (BMI) were measured. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire retrospectively assessed emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, and emotional and physical neglect in childhood. Results: Analyses of covariance showed Foretinib purchase that women with a history of any abuse/neglect, and specifically physical and sexual abuse, had significantly higher WC and BMI at baseline than women with no abuse history. A significant interaction

between abuse and BMI showed that among women with Selleck CHIR-99021 BMI of <30, any abuse/neglect and certain subtypes of abuse predicted greater increases in WC over time. Additional analyses showed that Trait Anger scores and sex hormone-binding globulin ( SHBG) attenuated cross-sectional relationships between abuse/neglect and WC and

BMI. Conclusion: This study suggests that abused/neglected women seem to have greater anger and lower levels of SHBG, which are associated with adiposity in midlife.”
“We have recently reported that a group of human adenoviruses (HAdVs) uses desmoglein 2 (DSG2) as a receptor for infection. Among these are the widely distributed serotypes HAdV-B3 and HAdV-B7, as well as a newly emerged strain derived from HAdV-B14. These serotypes do not infect rodent cells and could not up until now be studied in small-animal

models. We therefore generated transgenic mice containing the human DSG2 locus. These mice expressed human DSG2 (hDSG2) at a level and in a pattern similar to those found for humans and nonhuman primates. As an initial application of hDSG2-transgenic mice, we used a green fluorescent Bcl-w protein (GFP)-expressing HAdV-B3 vector (Ad3-GFP) and studied GFP transgene expression by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry subsequent to intranasal and intravenous virus application. After intranasal application, we found efficient transduction of bronchial and alveolar epithelial cells in hDSG2-transgenic mice. Intravenous Ad3-GFP injection into hDSG2-transgenic mice resulted in hDSG2-dependent transduction of epithelial cells in the intestinal and colon mucosa. Our findings give an explanation for clinical symptoms associated with infection by DSG2-interacting HAdVs and provide a rationale for using Ad3-derived vectors in gene therapy.”
“Background

Limited information is available regarding genetic contributions to valvular calcification, which is an important precursor of clinical valve disease.