Faculty Bibliography

OBJECTIVE:To determine trends in the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and 100% fruit juice by California children ages 2 to 11 years from 2003 to 2009. METHODS:This analysis used serial cross-sectional data from the California Health Interview Survey, a telephone survey of households in California. Parents were asked how many servings of SSBs and 100% fruit juice the child consumed the day before. A test of trend was used to evaluate changes in consumption over time. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the independent effects of race/ethnicity, parental education, and household income on beverage consumption. RESULTS:The percentage of children consuming an SSB on the prior day declined from 40% in 2003 to 16% in 2009 (P < .001) among children ages 2 to 5 and from 54% in 2003 to 33% in 2009 (P < .001) among children ages 6 to 11. The percentage of children consuming any SSB decreased for all racial/ethnic groups, although there were disparities with higher consumption among Latinos. Among children ages 2 to 5, consumption of 2 or more servings of 100% fruit juice per day decreased among white children and increased among Latinos. For children ages 6 to 11, consumption of 2 or more servings of 100% fruit juice per day remained stable for white children and increased among Latinos and African Americans. CONCLUSIONS:The decrease in SSB consumption by California children from 2003 to 2009 is a promising trend. The increase in 100% fruit juice consumption among minority children during this period may be an unintended consequence of efforts to reduce SSB consumption.

Transdermal testosterone gels are used in the treatment of hypoandrogenism of males. Virilization due to exposure to testosterone gels has been reported in children resulting in a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warning about secondary exposure to these products. At present, we are unaware of prenatal virilization associated with unintentional testosterone gel exposure. We report prenatal virilization in a female infant due to secondary maternal exposure to the father's testosterone gel. We also describe postnatal virilization of the child's twin sister.

Laminitis is a common debilitating disease in horses that involves painful disruption of the lamellar dermo-epidermal junction within the hoof. This condition is often refractory to conventional anti-inflammatory analgesia and results in unremitting pain, which in severe cases requires euthanasia. The mechanisms underlying pain in laminitis were investigated using quantification of behavioural pain indicators in conjunction with histological studies of peripheral nerves innervating the hoof. Laminitic horses displayed consistently altered or abnormal behaviours such as increased forelimb lifting and an increased proportion of time spent at the back of the box compared to normal horses. Electron micrographic analysis of the digital nerve of laminitic horses showed peripheral nerve morphology to be abnormal, as well as having reduced numbers of unmyelinated (43.2%) and myelinated fibers (34.6%) compared to normal horses. Sensory nerve cell bodies innervating the hoof, in cervical, C8 dorsal root ganglia (DRG), showed an upregulated expression of the neuronal injury marker, activating transcription factor-3 (ATF3) in both large NF-200-immunopositive neurons and small neurons that were either peripherin- or IB4-positive. A significantly increased expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY) was also observed in myelinated afferent neurons. These changes are similar to those reported in other neuropathic pain states and were not observed in the C4 DRG of laminitic horses, which is not associated with innervation of the forelimb. This study provides novel evidence for a neuropathic component to the chronic pain state associated with equine laminitis, indicating that anti-neuropathic analgesic treatment may well have a role in the management of this condition.

Intermittent clamping of the porta hepatis (PHC) is commonly performed during liver surgery to reduce blood loss and has been reported to precondition livers resulting in improved outcome after liver surgery (humans) and transplantation (animals). This study investigated the early expression of cytoprotective stress proteins during ischemia-reperfusion induced by PHC. Liver samples were taken before and after each event in a two-cycle ischemia-reperfusion protocol using 15 minutes of PHC followed by 5 minutes of reperfusion. Liver tissue was analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction for heme oxygenase (HO)-1 and heat shock protein (HSP)-70 mRNA expression. Extracted protein was analyzed by Western blot for HO-1, and HSP-70 and nuclear extracts were analyzed by DNA mobility shift assay for hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)-1alpha and heat shock factor (HSF)-1. Within minutes of PHC, significant increases in HO-1 mRNA expression were detected, and these were maintained throughout the protocol (P < 0.01). Protein expression of HO-1 (P < 0.03) and HO-1 activity (P < 0.05) were similarly increased between the start and end of ischemia- reperfusion (40 minutes). Binding of active HIF-1alpha to its consensus sequence was increased within 15 minutes of the start of the ischemia-reperfusion cycle. Although evidence of the transcriptionally active form of HSF-1 was detected at the same time point, this was not reflected in measurable changes in HSP-70 mRNA or protein. In conclusion, expression of the cytoprotective protein HO-1 is significantly up-regulated in the liver within minutes of PHC. It is likely that HO-1 contributes to the early protective effects of ischemic preconditioning.

Hippocampal principal neurons, granule and pyramidal cells, are known to express type II glucocorticoid receptors (GR) and it is believed that glucocorticoids (GC) mediate at least some of their effects through GR. Under conditions of severe stress and trauma, these principal cells are vulnerable to damage and this mechanism may be exacerbated by GR. The mossy cell, an excitatory dentate gyrus neuron, is also damaged following trauma, with over 50% reported loss in rats after kainate-induced seizures. However, it has not been determined if GC play any role in protecting or exacerbating damage to this important hippocampal cell type. In the present study, we have undertaken an evaluation of the presence of GR in mossy cells of the rat and mouse utilizing an immunocytochemical double-labeling technique. To identify mossy cells in the rat, we utilized an antibody to the glutamate receptor subunit 2/3 (GluR2/3). In addition to GluR2/3 antibodies, in the mouse, an antibody to the calcium-binding protein, calretinin (CR), to identify mossy cells was also employed. Our results show that GR immunoreactivity (IR) was colocalized with GluR2/3-IR in approximately 90% of the rat and the mouse mossy cells. In addition, GR-IR was identified in the CR-IR mossy cells in the mouse hippocampus, whereas the CR-IR interneurons of rat and mouse were negative for GR-IR. The presence of GR on mossy cells may indicate the ability of GC to mediate cellular activity of these cells.