Minor patterns in gut virome and bacterial community composition distinguish pediatric IBD patients from healthy controls. Probiotics are associated with bacterial microbiota composition. These exploratory results need confirmation in larger studies.

Objective To assess whether individual obesity risk factors, present during gestation and the first 6 months of life, can be combined into a simple prognostic model that has the ability to accurately predict childhood obesity at age 5 years in a high-risk cohort. Study design 201 Latina women were recruited during pregnancy and their infants followed longitudinally. Ten risk factors for childhood obesity were included in an initial logistic model; a second reduced model was created via stepwise deletion (confirmed with nonparametric conditional random forest classifier), after which 5 risk factors remained. From each model, an obesity risk equation was derived and an obesity risk score was generated for each patient. Derived algorithms were assessed using discrimination, calibration and via predictive statistics. Results 56 of 166 children (32%) followed through age 5 years met criteria for childhood obesity. Discrimination accuracy for both derivation models was excellent, and after optimism-corrected bootstrapping, both models showed meaningful clinical performance. Both models were adequately calibrated, showed strong sensitivity and negative predictive value at conservatively set obesity risk thresholds, and displayed excellent specificity amongst those classified as highest risk. Birth weight z-score and change in weight-for-age z-score between birth and 6 months were the risk factors with the strongest contribution to the obesity risk score. Conclusions Obesity risk algorithms are reliable in their prediction of childhood obesity and have the potential to be integrated into the electronic medical record. These models could provide a filter for directing early prevention resources to children with high obesity risk, but should be evaluated in a larger external dataset.

BackgroundBisphenol-A (BPA) is a ubiquitous chemical and recognized endocrine disruptor associated with obesity and related disorders. We explored the association between BPA levels and suspected non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).MethodsUnweighted analyses were used to study the relationship between urinary BPA levels and suspected NAFLD (alanine aminotransferase (ALT).> 30 U/L, body mass index (BMI) Z-score > 1.064 and evidence of insulin resistance) using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data (2003–2010) on 12–19 year olds. Unweighted and weighted analyses were used to evaluate the risk with only elevated ALT.ResultsWe included 944 adolescents with urinary BPA and fasting laboratory tests from a total of 7168 adolescents. Risk of suspected NAFLD was increased in the second quartile of BPA levels (1.4–2.7 ng/mL) when compared to the first (< 1.4 ng/mL) (Odds Ratio (OR) 4.23, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.44–12.41). The ORs for the third and second quartiles were positive but did not reach statistical significance. The association was stronger in Hispanics (n = 344) with BPA levels in the second (OR 6.12, 95% C.I. 1.62–23.15) quartile and when limiting the analyses to overweight/obese adolescents (n = 332), in the second (OR 5.56, 95% C.I. 1.28–24.06) and fourth BPA quartiles (OR 6.85, 95% C.I. 1.02–46.22) compared to the first quartile. BPA levels were not associated with ALT elevation.ConclusionsThe risk of suspected NAFLD is increased in participants in higher quartiles of BPA exposure, particularly in those of Hispanic ethnicity. Further studies are required to fully understand the potential role of BPA in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12940-018-0356-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.