Objective: To examine the expression of selected transcription factors involved in adipogenesis and genes related to lipid metabolism in abdominal subcutaneous and omental fat tissue. Research design and methods: We obtained subcutaneous and omental adipose tissue samples from 40 women undergoing abdominal hysterectomies (age: 4775 years; BMI 27.975.3 kg/m 2 ). We measured isolated adipocyte size and metabolism, and detailed measures of body fat accumulation and body fat distribution were obtained (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography, respectively). Results: Adipocyte size of both subcutaneous and omental fat were increased with higher body fat mass values, with similar regression slopes in each compartment. In contrast, with higher body fat mass values, fat accumulation was progressively higher in the subcutaneous than in the visceral fat compartment, suggesting hyperplasia in the subcutaneous fat compartment. Messenger RNA levels of CEBPa, PPARg2, SREBP1c and genes related to lipid metabolism (LPL, FABP4, DGAT1, DGAT2, PLIN and HSL) were significantly higher in subcutaneous than in omental fat tissue (Pp0.001 for all). Only subcutaneous expression of these genes tracked with obesity levels as reflected by significant positive associations between subcutaneous fat CEBPa, SREBP1c and DGAT2 expression and total body fat mass (r ¼ 0.37, r ¼ 0.41, r ¼ 0.57, respectively, Pp0,05), fat percentage (r ¼ 0.40, r ¼ 0.39, r ¼ 058, respectively, Pp0,05) and subcutaneous adipose tissue area (r ¼ 0.36, r ¼ 0.38, r ¼ 0.58, respectively, Pp0,05). Omental adipose tissue expression levels of these genes were not significantly related to adiposity measures. Conclusions: These results show that in obese women, hyperplasia is predominant in the subcutaneous fat depot, whereas fat cell hypertrophy is observed both in the omental and subcutaneous compartments.

ObjectiveThe objective of the current study was to compare the responses to different ex vivo immunogenic challenges between immune cells derived from metabolically healthy subjects with obesity and subjects with obesity and type 2 diabetes.Research design and methodsWe recruited 10 metabolically healthy subjects with obesity (Edmonton Obesity Staging System (EOSS) stage 0) and 9 subjects with obesity and type 2 diabetes (EOSS stage 2) aged between 21 years and 70 years and matched for body mass index. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated and immune cell phenotypes and ex vivo cytokine production after phytohaemagglutinin (PHA, a T cell mitogen) stimulation were determined. Neutrophil oxidative burst activity was assessed in whole blood.ResultsPBMCs from subjects with stage 2 obesity produced significantly less interleukin (IL)-2, IL-6 and tumour necrosis factor α after PHA stimulation than PBMCs from subjects with stage 0 obesity (all, p<0.05). Subjects with stage 2 obesity also had higher proportions of cytotoxic T cells, activated helper T cells (CD4+CD278+) and inflammatory monocytes (CD14+CRTh2+, all p<0.05). Poststimulation, neutrophils from subjects with stage 2 obesity produced significantly more free radicals, were larger and more granular and had a lower stimulation index (all p<0.05).ConclusionsOur results suggest that compared with obese individuals metabolically healthy individuals with obesity and type 2 diabetes have an impaired neutrophil function and T cell response on challenge despite having a T cell population expressing more activation markers which may be partly responsible for the increased prevalence of infection reported in this population.

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Background: Recent data from cross-sectional studies suggest that consumption of dairy products is inversely associated with low-grade systemic inflammation, but a cause-and-effect relation can be confirmed only with results from randomized controlled trials. Objective: We reviewed the results of randomized controlled nutritional intervention studies that have assessed the impact of dairy product consumption (ie, milk, yogurt, and/or cheese) on biomarkers of inflammation in adults (aged $18 y). Design: We performed a systematic literature search in PubMed in April 2012, which was limited to randomized controlled trials in humans published in English. Studies that included pregnant or lactating women or that did not include a low-dairy control intervention were excluded. Results: Eight trials that were conducted in overweight or obese adults were included in the review. The only study that had identified change in the inflammatory profile as its primary outcome measure showed that dairy food consumption improved pro-and antiinflammatory biomarker concentrations compared with the low-dairy control diet.

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Summary1. The functional responses of roe deer were examined using 11 plant species. A technique to discriminate between encounter-and handling-limited processes was used, and it can be concluded that the functional response applicable to patch browsing by roe deer is governed not by the rate of encounter but by the rate of oral processing. 2. The large differences between plant species were due to variations in both parameters of the functional response: h , the time lost in biting, and R max , the maximum processing rate. Removing the thorns from three of the species affected these parameters differently, according to the size and density of thorns. 3. Animals took larger bites from larger patches (branches), and bite mass declined as patch exploitation progressed, implying that animals were selecting the larger items to eat first. It was demonstrated experimentally that depletion of the larger bites does occur first, and it was concluded that prey selection is an important component of herbivore foraging behaviour. 4. The gain curves for deer feeding on the different plant species are calculated as being virtually linear. Patch depression did not, in general, occur because increasing bite rate compensated for declining bite mass. Our mechanistic approach is contrasted with other approaches to describing the gain curve in the literature. 5. A priori and empirical grounds are presented for rejecting the hypothesis that resource exploitation by browsing mammals is governed by optimal patch use. Diet optimization, involving a trade-off between diet quality and quantity, offers a better explanation of herbivore foraging behaviour.