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Objective: Prevention would be the ideal public health strategy to face the current obesity epidemic. Adoption of healthy lifestyles during the first years of college or university could prevent the onset of weight gain associated with this period of acquired independence and eventually decrease the incidence of obesity. Design: Randomized-controlled trial over a period of 2 years. The subjects received an educational/behavioral intervention (small group seminars) designed to help maintain a healthy lifestyle or no specific intervention (control group). Subjects: One-hundred and fifteen non-obese freshmen in a Faculty of Medicine. Measurements: Anthropometric measurements, physical activity level, fitness level, food intake and lipid profile were recorded at predetermined intervals. Results: The control group gained weight, whereas the intervention group lost a slight amount of weight over 2 years. The difference between the two groups was 1.3 kg at the end of the follow-up, the trend of weight gain differing between the two groups during the 2-year intervention period (P=0.04). There was no detectable difference in fitness, physical activity level or total caloric intake between the two groups during follow-up. However, plasma triglyceride levels increased in the control group and decreased in the intervention group (P = 0.04). Conclusion: In this randomized-controlled trial, a small-group seminar educational/behavioral intervention successfully prevents weight gain in normal weight young healthy university students. Such small absolute changes in body composition and lipid profile, if maintained over a prolonged period, could result in significant long-term health benefits for the general population (ClinicalTrial.gov registration number: NCT00306449).

Ribosome biogenesis centres both physically and functionally on the activity of the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. Ribosome assembly occurs co-transcriptionally on these genes, requires the coordinated expression and assembly of many hundreds of proteins and is finely tuned to cell and organism growth. This review presents contemporary understanding of the mode and the means of rRNA gene transcription and how growth factors, oncogenes and tumour suppressors regulate this transcription. It is argued that transcription elongation is a key mechanism regulating rRNA gene transcription. This unorthodox view provides a logical framework to explain the co-transcriptional phase of ribosome biogenesis.

The ANATOMIX beamline at Synchrotron SOLEIL, operational since 2018, is dedicated to hard X-ray full-field tomography techniques. Operating in a range of photon energies from approximately 5 to 50 keV, it offers both parallel-beam projection microtomography, in absorption and phase contrast, and nanotomography using a zone-plate transmission X-ray microscope. With these methods, the beamline covers a range of spatial resolution from 20 nm to 20 µm, expressed in terms of useful pixel size. The variable beam size of up to 40 mm allows users to image large objects. Here we describe the microtomography instrumentation of the beamline.

Background Over 70 % of people who undergo bariatric surgery (BS) develop excess skin (ES). The physical and psychosocial consequences of ES may become a barrier to the practice of physical activity (PA), which is highly recommended to optimize the results of BS. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of ES on the practice of PA in women who have undergone BS. Methods Questionnaires administered to 26 women having undergone BS 2 ± 0.2 years before (BMI = 29.1 ± 0.8 kg/m 2 ) evaluated the impacts of ES, the practice of PA, physical self-perception, and physical exercise beliefs. We also used the 6-min walking test and muscular endurance tests to evaluate physical fitness and photographs with anatomical markers to quantify ES. Results Of the women, 76.9 % declared mobility limitations due to ES during the practice of PA and 45.2 % stated avoiding PA because of ES which caused flapping and unwelcome stares from others. The women who stated that they avoided PA because of ES had significantly lower physical self-perception and physical fitness and reported experiencing more embarrassment during PA despite no significant difference in the magnitude of ES ( p  = 0.06), BMI, daily life inconveniences, and energy expenditure compared to those women who did not avoid PA. Conclusion Although ES after BS is a barrier to the practice of PA for some women, it does not in itself prevent the regular practice of PA. The main reason women with ES avoid PA seems to have less to do with the magnitude of ES itself and more with psychosocial inconveniences.

Obesity has now reached epidemic proportions. Epidemiological studies in the past decades have shown that adults gain weight and adiposity from the early twenties until their sixties. In the paediatric population, growing numbers of children and adolescents put on unhealthy weight. Many environmental, socio-economical and biological determinants that predispose to weight gain have been identified thus far. The aim of the present review is to summarize the current knowledge on the role of the circulating levels of adipokines and other entero-insular hormones and biological markers of obesity to predict weight gain in humans. The review focuses on relationship between hormonal and biochemical markers (insulin, insulin-like growth factors, gastrointestinal hormones, leptin, adiponectin, resistin, inflammatory proteins and cytokines) and weight gain in prospective studies. The complex relationships displayed by these hormonal factors with future weight gain in humans are critically reviewed and integrative models are proposed. Overall, most of the studies reported to date made adjustments for baseline body mass index but failed to consider dietary intake and physical activity as confounding factors. Outstanding questions are raised and new directions for future prospective studies are proposed in order to improve our understanding of the role of biological determinants of energy balance and development of obesity in humans.

Background To optimize bariatric surgery results, experts recommend regular practice of physical activity. However, no precise recommendations are available for the pre-surgical period. We aimed to evaluate, in this pilot study, the feasibility of a supervised Pre-Surgical Exercise Training (PreSET) and its short-term clinical impacts in subjects awaiting bariatric surgery. Methods In addition to the usual interdisciplinary lifestyle management, eight women and four men [40.8 (37.6–47.5) years old, BMI = 51.4 (43.8–53.1) kg/m 2 ] underwent the PreSET, which combined both endurance and strength training. They were instructed to perform three physical activity sessions per week during 12 weeks, with at least two sessions per week on site and the possibility to complete missed sessions at home. Before and after the PreSET, anthropometric measures, body composition, physical fitness, quality of life, and physical exercise beliefs were assessed. Results The subjects participated in 57.3 % of the total supervised exercise sessions proposed and presented high satisfaction rates. Our program resulted in a significant improvement in weight ( p = 0.007), physical fitness ( p ≤ 0.05), and quality of life score ( p = 0.012) as well as for the emotions, social interactions, and sexual life subscales ( p < 0.03). Fear of injury ( p = 0.028) and embarrassment during physical activity ( p = 0.028) were significantly decreased, whereas no significant change in confidence in athletic ability and in beliefs in exercise benefits were noticed after the program. Conclusions PreSET is feasible in subjects awaiting bariatric surgery and, combined with an interdisciplinary management, results in several short-term benefits.

A fast multimodal scanning X-ray imaging scheme is prototyped at Soleil Synchrotron. It permits the simultaneous acquisition of complementary information on the sample structure, composition and chemistry by measuring transmission, differential phase contrast, small-angle scattering, and X-ray fluorescence by dedicated detectors with ms dwell time per pixel. The results of the proof of principle experiments are presented in this paper.

Older adults are at risk of multiple chronic diseases, most of which could be prevented by engaging in regular physical activity. Frailty is a state of increased vulnerability to diseases. Worsening symptoms of frailty, such as decrease in physical functionality, can compromise health-related quality of life (HR-QOL). Previous findings suggest that frailty moderates the relationship between physical activity and HR-QOL, yet intervention findings are limited, particularly in dose-response analyses. Hence, this study was conducted to test if lower-dose physical activity (120 minutes/week) would provide the same benefits in health outcomes (physical functionality and HR-QOL) as higher-dose physical activity (180 minutes/week). Participants (n=110) were older adults comprising higher-dose, lower-dose, and control groups who were combined from recent randomized controlled trials. Experimental groups participated in a multimodal exercise program in a supervised laboratory setting for 12 weeks. The higher-dose group showed a significant improvement in physical functionality ( =0.23, =0.03) and in overall HR-QOL ( =0.44, =0.001) including its subcategories over the control group. A group × frailty interaction revealed that frail individuals significantly improved in capacity HR-QOL when they exercised at a higher dose ( (1, 49)=4.57, =0.038). This study identifies a positive, predictive relationship between exercise duration and health outcomes (HR-QOL dimensions and frailty) among older adults. Frail individuals in the higher-dose group demonstrated significant recovery of capacity HR-QOL, thus reflecting improvement in their daily activities.

Delivering psychotherapy by videoconference has been studied in a number of clinical trials, but no large controlled trial has involved generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). This multicenter randomized controlled non-inferiority trial was conducted to test if cognitive-behavior psychotherapy delivered by videoconference (VCP) is as effective as cognitive-behavior psychotherapy delivered face-to-face, using a strict margin of tolerance for non-inferiority. A total of 148 adults received a 15-session weekly manualized program. The treatment was based on the intolerance of uncertainty model of GAD. The impact of treatment was assessed using primary (GAD severity), secondary (worry, anxiety, and intolerance of uncertainty) and tertiary (general functioning) variables measured before and after treatment and at 6-month and 12-month follow-ups. Results showed that: (a) the treatment was effective; (b) VCP for GAD was statistically non-inferior to face-to-face psychotherapy on primary, secondary and tertiary measures at all assessment points; (c) change in intolerance of uncertainty significantly predicted change in the primary outcome measure over and above important clinical factors common to all psychotherapies (motivation, working alliance, perceived therapist competence, and client satisfaction). These findings support the use of VCP as a promising treatment option for adults with GAD. Clinical trial registry: ISRCTN#12662027.

PurposeExercise has been shown to have various proximal and distal benefits among older adults such as improving physical fitness, cognitive functioning, and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL). Despite this evidence, limited research has investigated pathway change of these outcomes. The primary purpose of this study was to test if older adults who improved in physical fitness measures from engaging in multicomponent exercise training for 12 weeks predicted change in proximal (cognitive functioning) and distal (HR-QOL) outcomes, respectively.MethodsParticipants (n = 110) were healthy, older adults (M = 72, SD = 7.24) that comprised an exercise-intervention and control group. The intervention consisted of exercising in a supervised laboratory setting for 12 weeks.ResultsStructural equation modeling revealed group type to predict change in physical performance and the maximum walking test with comparable effect sizes. Physical performance in turn predicted improvement in processing speed (β = 0.23, p = 0.013) executive functioning (β = 0.26, p = 0.006), and HR-QOL (β = 0.13, p = 0.031). However, only executive functioning was found to significantly predict HR-QOL (β = 0.49, p < 0.001) over processing speed (p > 0.05).ConclusionsBetween two fitness measures, the physical performance test demonstrated better predictive validity in proximal and distal health outcomes. In addition to physical fitness, older adults who engage in multi-component exercise sessions regularly can improve their executive functioning, which in turn enhances their HR-QOL.