In situ Skeletal Growth Rates of the Solitary Cold-Water Coral Tethocyathus endesa From the Chilean Fjord Region

Cold-water corals (CWC) can be found throughout a wide range of latitudes (79°N–78°S). Since they lack the photosymbiosis known for most of their tropical counterparts, they may thrive below the euphotic zone. Consequently, their growth predominantly depends on the prevalent environmental conditions, such as general food availability, seawater chemistry, currents, and temperature. Most CWC communities live in regions that will face CaCO3 undersaturation by the end of the century and are thus predicted to be threatened by ocean acidification (OA). This scenario is especially true for species inhabiting the Chilean fjord system, where present-day carbonate water chemistry already reaches values predicted for the end of the century. To understand the effect of the prevailing environmental conditions on the biomineralization of the CWC Tethocyathus endesa, a solitary scleractinian widely distributed in the Chilean Comau Fjord, a 12-month in situ experiment was conducted. The in situ skeletal growth of the test corals was assessed at two sites using the buoyant weight method. Sites were chosen to cover the naturally present carbonate chemistry gradient, with pH levels ranging between 7.90 ± 0.01 (mean ± SD) and 7.70 ± 0.02, and an aragonite saturation (Ωarag) between 1.47 ± 0.03 and 0.98 ± 0.05. The findings of this study provide one of the first in situ growth assessments of a solitary CWC species, with a skeletal mass increase of 46 ± 28 mg per year and individual, at a rate of 0.03 ± 0.02% day. They also indicate that, although the local seawater chemistry can be assumed to be unfavorable for calcification, growth rates of T. endesa are comparable to other cold-water scleractinians in less corrosive waters (e.g., Lophelia pertusa in the Mediterranean Sea).

Lower Limb Muscle Strength and Muscle Mass Are Associated With Incident Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis: A Longitudinal Cohort Study

Recent literature suggests that sarcopenia, often represented by low lower limbs muscle mass and strength, can be considered a potential risk factor for knee osteoarthritis (OA), but the available literature is still limited. We therefore aimed to investigate whether sarcopenia is associated with a higher risk of radiographic (ROA) and symptomatic knee OA (SxOA) in a large cohort of North American people in the context of the OA initiative. Sarcopenia at baseline was diagnosed in case of low skeletal muscle mass (i.e., lower skeletal mass index) and poor performance in the chair stands test. The outcomes of interest for this study included ROA (radiographical osteoarthritis) if a knee developed a Kellgren and Lawrence (KL) grade ≥2 at follow-up, and SxOA (symptomatic osteoarthritis) defined as new onset of a combination of painful knee OA. Altogether, 2,492 older participants (mean age: 68.4 years, 61.4% females) were included. At baseline, sarcopenia was present in 6.1% of the population. No significant difference in ROA prevalence was observed between those with and without sarcopenia (p=0.76), whilst people with sarcopenia reported a significant higher prevalence of SxOA (p<0.0001). Using a logistic regression analysis, adjusting for potential confounders at baseline and the diagnosis of sarcopenia during follow-up, sarcopenia was associated with a higher incidence of knee SxOA (odds ratio, OR=2.29; 95%CI [confidence interval]: 1.42-3.71; p=0.001), but not knee ROA (OR=1.48; 95%CI: 0.53-4.10; p=0.45). In conclusion, sarcopenia could be associated with a higher risk of negative knee OA outcomes, in particular symptomatic forms.

The importance of body composition assessment in the rehabilitation process

Introduction. This personal study provides several aspects of the importance of body composition assessment in rehabilitation process in order to manage fat mass (FM), fat-free mas imbalances (FFM), pre-sarcopenia status, sarcopenia and risks association and to improve global functionality. Health outcomes and risk estimations regarding fat mass and skeletal muscle mass (SMM) plays a major role and should be integrated into the rehabilitation process routine in order to avoid functional impairment and physical disability by applying specific kinetic programs. Material and method. A number of 14 subjects classified as outpatients who have received physical therapy at home- kinesiotherapy for post-fracture / dislocation status of the lower limbs in accordance with the medical recommendations and legislation in force. At the end of the rehabilitation phase, the body composition was measured using bio impedance in order to adjust the next step of the active rehabilitation. The measurements were obtained with a completely bioelectrical impedance analyzer (BIA). Single frequency BIA (SF-BIA) was used. For each subject major body compartments determined as FFM (including bone mineral tissue, total body water-TBW and visceral protein), SMM and FM were measured as a tissue-system by means of linear empirical equations stored in the system memory together with personal physical data. IBM SPSS software version 25 was used for statistical analysis. Results and discussions. Four age groups determined as follows: 21.43% for 18-39 years, 50-69 years, >70 years each and 35.71% for 40-49 years, based on the rate of muscle loss, because its integrity is essential for rehabilitation program. From the 14 subjects there are 57.14 % men and 42.86% women, from urban environment 78.57% and rural 21.43%. Mean Age is 48.79 years ± 18.792 Std. Deviation. Fat mass from BIA recorded 21.43% cases low and normal each, and high/very high 57.14% of total cases. Consequently, of BMI (body mass index) association, 57.14% are at normal weight, 35.71% overweight and with obesity and 7.14% underweight. One Sample Chi-Square test applied to BMI Type Associate with FM reveals the statistical significance, < .05(.014). Fat-free mass index (FFMI), fat mass index (FMI), skeletal mass index (SMI) were computed by adjusted with height square. FMI somatotype components results are 64.3% adipose cases, 21.4% intermediate and 14.3% lean. One Sample Chi-Square test applied to FMI Types reveals the statistical significance < .05(.046). Regression equation of standard BMI and FMI with scatter plots for 77.8% of cases was computed in the present study. FFMI somatotype components recorded 57.1% intermediate cases, 21.4% slender and solid each. Regression equation of standard BMI and FFMI with scatter plots for 57.4% of cases was computed. Three patients exceeded 15 seconds at the chair stand test so probable sarcopenia was identified. From BIA were extracted the value for the skeletal mass and SMI was calculated by height adjusted: 13 (92.86%) cases have normal values and one (7.14%) case have optimal value. Regression equation of standard BMI and SMI with scatter plots for 66.4% of cases was computed. Pearson correlation (CI =99%) denotes strong statistical relationship between BMI and FMI (r=0.882), FFMI (r=0.815), Age (r=0.659), Water (r=-0.693). FMI also correlates strongly with Age (r= 0.707), Water (r=-0.925) and Proteins values (r=-0.819). FFMI also correlates strongly with SMI (r=0.984). Water correlates with Protein (r=0.848, CI = 99%). Beta regression analysis strongly correlates SMI prediction with FFMI (ß=0.731), Water (ß=0.138) and Protein (ß=-0.370) for p<0.05. Anova significance of .000 (CI=99%) with applicability of 99.8% of the cases (R2 =0.998) proved that constant predictors: Water (%), FFMI, Proteins (%), FMI, BMI interact to influence SMM variability. 64.25% of subjects recorded an insufficient water level and 71.43% of subjects recorded an insufficient proteins level. Body composition evaluation should be integrated into routine clinical practice for the initial assessment and sequential follow-up and the strongest point of BIA is the possibility to replace invasive laboratory analysis with a quick, noninvasive test that can be carried out in a medical office. Body composition evaluation should be performed at the different stages of the disease, during the course of treatments and the rehabilitation phase. Conclusions. For each patient specific kinetic program will be developed. FMI increase (64.3% adipose cases) denotes the risk of metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance. Consequently, resistive and concentric exercises will be applied. For FFMI loss (57.1% intermediate cases, 21.4% slender) and SMI increasing (92.86% cases have normal values but not optimal ones, 21.43% pre-sarcopenia detected by positive chair test) resistance, eccentric/concentric exercises should be applied. All kinetic programs will be preceded by warm-up and followed by stretching taking into account cardiac reserve for each patient. Maximal/sub-maximal force exercises will be used age-related. Additional water (64.25% of subjects recorded an insufficient water level) and proteins levels (71.43% of subjects recorded an insufficient proteins level) must be balanced by nutritional support in accordance with rehabilitation consult and current physician approval in the interdisciplinary team. BIA may be an important supporting tool for health professionals in order to customize the rehabilitation programs for each patient. Keywords: body composition, rehabilitation, bioelectrical impedance, fat-free mass index, fat mass index, skeletal muscle index,

Degradation of skeletal mass in locally advanced oesophageal cancer between initial diagnosis and recurrence

Background The prognostic value of a low skeletal mass index (SMI) has been investigated in locally advanced oesophageal (LAE) cancer at diagnosis. However, nothing is known about its evolution and clinical impact between initial diagnosis and recurrence. Methods A total of 89 patients treated for LAE cancer between January 2009 and December 2019 were included in this study. Computed tomography (CT) scans before treatment and at recurrence were evaluated. SMI and other body composition parameters were analysed by the L3 scan method. Results Participants were aged 66.0 (36.0–86) years. The incidence of low SMI increased by 12.3% between diagnosis and recurrence (70.7% vs. 83.0%, respectively) over a median follow-up of 16.9 (1.7–101.6) months. Patients with high SMI at diagnosis showed loss of muscle mass (58.0 vs. 55.2 cm2/m2, respectively; P < 0.001) and decreased body mass index (BMI) (27.9 vs. 26.3 kg/m2, respectively; P = 0.05), but fat mass was increased (68.9 vs. 72.0 cm2/m2, respectively; P = 0.01). Patients with low SMI at diagnosis showed no significant changes in body composition parameters and no improvement of SMI, even with nutritional support. Low SMI (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.8; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02–3.16) was an independent predictor (P = 0.041) of high nutritional risk index (HR: 1.79; 95% CI: 1.03–3.11; P = 0.039) at diagnosis. Conclusions The percentage of patients with a low SMI increased during follow-up. Our data suggest that an assessment of skeletal muscle parameters and nutrition support may be more useful in patients with a high SMI.

CT pectoralis muscle area is associated with DXA lean mass and correlates with emphysema progression in a tobacco-exposed cohort

IntroductionMuscle loss is an important extrapulmonary manifestation of COPD. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is the method of choice for body composition measurement but is not widely used for muscle mass evaluation. The pectoralis muscle area (PMA) is quantifiable by CT and predicts cross-sectional COPD-related morbidity. There are no studies that compare PMA with DXA measures or that evaluate longitudinal relationships between PMA and lung disease progression.MethodsParticipants from our longitudinal tobacco-exposed cohort had baseline and 6-year chest CT (n=259) and DXA (n=164) data. Emphysema was quantified by CT density histogram parenchymal scoring using the 15th percentile technique. Fat-free mass index (FFMI) and appendicular skeletal mass index (ASMI) were calculated from DXA measurements. Linear regression model relationships were reported using standardised coefficient (β) with 95% CI.ResultsPMA was more strongly associated with DXA measures than with body mass index (BMI) in both cross-sectional (FFMI: β=0.76 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.86), p<0.001; ASMI: β=0.76 (95% CI 0.66 to 0.86), p<0.001; BMI: β=0.36 (95% CI 0.25 to 0.47), p<0.001) and longitudinal (ΔFFMI: β=0.43 (95% CI 0.28 to 0.57), p<0.001; ΔASMI: β=0.42 (95% CI 0.27 to 0.57), p<0.001; ΔBMI: β=0.34 (95% CI 0.22 to 0.46), p<0.001) models. Six-year change in PMA was associated with 6-year change in emphysema (β=0.39 (95% CI 0.23 to 0.56), p<0.001) but not with 6-year change in airflow obstruction.ConclusionsPMA is an accessible measure of muscle mass and may serve as a useful clinical surrogate for assessing skeletal muscle loss in smokers. Decreased PMA correlated with emphysema progression but not lung function decline, suggesting a difference in the pathophysiology driving emphysema, airflow obstruction and comorbidity risk.

Comprehensive Transcriptomic Profiling of Murine Osteoclast Differentiation Reveals Novel Differentially Expressed Genes and LncRNAs

Osteoclasts are the sole bone resorbing cells, which undertake opposing roles to osteoblasts to affect skeletal mass and structure. However, unraveling the comprehensive molecular mechanisms behind osteoclast differentiation is necessitated to overcome limitations and scarcity of available data, particularly in relation with the emerging roles of long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) in gene expression. In this study, we performed comprehensive and progressive analyses of the dynamic transcriptomes of murine osteoclasts, generated in vitro. We compared the total RNA-based transcriptomes of murine bone marrow derived cells with differentiated osteoclasts, while focusing on potentially novel genes and LncRNAs, to uncover critical genes and their associated pathways, which are differentially regulated during osteoclast differentiation. We found 4,214 differentially regulated genes during osteoclast differentiation, which included various types of LncRNAs. Among the upregulated protein coding genes not previously associated with osteoclast are Pheta1, Hagh, Gfpt1 and Nol4, while downregulated genes included Plau, Ltf, Sell and Zfp831. Notably, we report Nol4 as a novel gene related to osteoclast activity since Nol4 knockout mice Nol4em1(International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium)J exhibit increased bone mineral density. Moreover, the differentially expressed LncRNAs included antisense and long intergenic non-coding RNAs, among others. Overall, immune-related and metabolism-related genes were downregulated, while anatomical morphogenesis and remodeling-related genes were upregulated in early-differentiated osteoclasts with sustained downregulation of immune-related genes in mature osteoclasts. The gene signatures and the comprehensive transcriptome of osteoclast differentiation provided herein can serve as an invaluable resource for deciphering gene dysregulation in osteoclast-related pathologic conditions.

Sarcopenic obesity is associated with telomere shortening: findings from the NHANES 1999–2002

Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is characterised by the concurrent presence of sarcopenia and excess adiposity. Telomere shortening has been associated with sarcopenia and obesity alone but the association between SO and telomere length (TL) has not been investigated. This study aimed to investigate SO and TL in an adult population. Data were from 5397 individuals (mean age = 44.7 years, 51.3% male) enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Body composition (BC) was assessed by Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry. Two models were used to assess SO: a BC model including four phenotypes derived from the combination of high or low adiposity and muscle mass; and, a truncal fat mass to appendicular skeletal mass ratio (TrFM/ASM). TL was assessed using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and expressed as base pairs. The mean TL, relative to the reference DNA, was calculated and expressed as the mean T/S ratio. A General Linear Model was applied to determine associations between TL for SO. In adjusted analysis, only individuals with SO, defined as the presence of high adiposity-low muscle mass (four-phenotype model), had significantly shorter telomeres (p = 0.05) than the reference group (i.e. low adiposity-high muscle mass), with a mean T/S ratio of 1.02 (95%CI: 0.98–1.05) compared to 1.05 (95%CI: 1.01–1.09), respectively. TrFM/ASM was not associated with TL. Preliminary findings suggest that sarcopenia and obesity may act synergistically to shorten telomeres.

Prognostic Value of Sarcopenia in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Patients Treated with Trifluridine/Tipiracil

Sarcopenia is common in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), increases the risk of treatment-related toxicity and reduces survival. Trifluridine/tipiracil (TT) chemotherapy significantly improved survival in refractory mCRC patients, but the prognostic and predictive role of pretherapeutic sarcopenia and variation in the skeletal muscle index (SMI) during this treatment has not been investigated so far. In this retrospective, observational study, clinical data on mCRC patients treated with TT at six cancer centres in Poland were collected. Computed tomography (CT) scans acquired at the time of initiation of TT (CT1) and on the first restaging (CT2), were evaluated. SMI was assessed based on the skeletal muscle area (SMA) at the level of the third lumbar vertebra. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated from the treatment start. Neither initial sarcopenia nor ≥5% skeletal mass loss (SML) between CT1 and CT2 had a significant effect on PFS in treated patients (p = 0.5526 and p = 0.1092, respectively). In the multivariate analysis, reduced OS was found in patients with ≥5% SML (HR: 2.03 (1.11–3.72), p = 0.0039). We describe the prognostic role of sarcopenia beyond second line treatment and analyze other factors, such as performance status, tumor histological differentiation or carcinoembryonic antigen level that could predict TT treatment response.