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Background and Aims: The "Life's Simple 7" (LS7) metrics were developed by the American Heart Association (AHA) to assess and promote cardiovascular health in the American population. The purpose of this study was to assess the overall cardiovascular health of French-speaking adults from the Province of Quebec using the LS7 score.Methods and Results: A total of 777 age and sex-representative participants of five different administrative regions in the Province of Quebec (387 men and 390 women; mean age ± SEM: 41.9 ± 0.1 years) were included in these analyses. Metrics of the LS7 score (smoking, physical activity, diet, body mass index, blood pressure, fasting total cholesterol and blood glucose) were analysed to generate a final score ranging from 0 to 7. Only 0.5% of participants met all criteria for ideal cardiovascular health. The diet metric showed the lowest prevalence of "ideal" scores (4.8%) whereas not smoking was the metric with the highest prevalence (88.1%). Women had a higher LS7 score than men, while age and education level (negative and positive association, respectively; p < 0.0001) were also associated with the LS7 score.Conclusion: Consistent with studies conducted among other populations, very few French-speaking adults from the Province of Quebec achieve an ideal cardiovascular health. These data indicate that further public health efforts aimed at promoting the LS7 metrics, focusing primarily on diet, are urgently needed. Specific groups, including older adults and those with lower levels of education, should be targeted when developing cardiovascular health promotion interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Obesity is frequently associated with eating disorders, and evidence indicates that both conditions are influenced by genetic factors. However, little is known about the genes influencing eating behaviors. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to identify genes associated with eating behaviors. DESIGN: Three eating behaviors were assessed in 660 adults from the Quebec Family Study with the use of the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire. A genome-wide scan was conducted with a total of 471 genetic markers spanning the 22 autosomes to identify quantitative trait loci for eating behaviors. Body composition and macronutrient and energy intakes were also measured. RESULTS: Four quantitative trait loci were identified for disinhibition and susceptibility to hunger. Of these, the best evidence of linkage was found between a locus on chromosome 15q24-q25 and disinhibition (P <0.0058) and susceptibility to hunger (P <0.0001). After fine-mapping, the peak linkage was found between markers D15S206 and D15S201 surrounding the neuromedin beta (NMB) gene. A missense mutation (p.P73T) located within the NMB gene showed significant associations with eating behaviors and obesity phenotypes. The T73T homozygotes were 2 times as likely to exhibit high levels of disinhibition (odds ratio: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.07, 2.89; P=0.03) and susceptibility to hunger (odds ratio: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.15, 3.06; P=0.01) as were the P73 allele carriers. Six-year follow-up data showed that the amount of body fat gain over time in T73T subjects was >2 times that than in P73P homozygotes (3.6 compared with 1.5 kg; P <0.05). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that NMB is a very strong candidate gene of eating behaviors and predisposition to obesity. Copyright © 2004 American Society for Clinical Nutrition [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The discovery linking the genes BRCA1&2 to familial breast cancer played an important role in the clinical practice of geneticists and physicians. The availability of genetic tests for BRCA gene mutations prompted cancer geneticists to give information about genetic risk and to assess many women with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer to inform them of preventive measures. These consist mainly of breast self-examination, mammography screening, chemoprevention and prophylactic surgery (mastectomy, oophorectomy). This paper examines clinical practices related to hereditary breast cancer testing and introduces a number of results from a survey carried out, between 1996 and 1998, in three clinics located in Montreal (Quebec, Canada), Marseilles (France) and Manchester (Great Britain). Results show substantial differences in the way cancer geneticists deal with environmental risk factors, breast and ovarian cancer testing, and chemoprevention and prophylactic surgery. Differences across cities persist in the multivariate analysis, suggesting that attitudes towards preventive measures may be partially explained by cultural factors. Different dimensions of culture are discussed including the social representation of health and risk, the interpretation of scientific evidence and the role of innovation leadership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite widespread use over the past 20 years, prenatal diagnosis (PND) remains a controversial technique because of the moral and organizational dilemmas that it raises in many countries. In order to assess attitudes to PND within the Canadian medical profession, a survey was carried out involving over 3000 physicians offering PND (general practitioners, obstetricians, pediatricians, and radiologists). Several scales were developed to measure (1) physicians' willingness to broaden access to PND, (2) acceptability of abortion when a fetal anomaly is diagnosed, and (3) physicians' directiveness in regard to abortion. This article discusses results concerning the attitudes and opinions of male and female physicians toward prenatal diagnosis, which differed on the three scales. Female physicians are more liberal than their male colleagues with regard to access to amniocentesis and selective abortion and have a less directive relationship with their patients. These tendencies are similar to those observed in prior studies. They are particularly marked for general practitioners and radiologists. Various explanatory hypotheses are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• 11B solid-state NMR studies on Sc 2 Ir 6-x Ni x B vs temperature and Ni substitution. • We present an atomic-level view of the lattice via quadrupolar interactions and paramagnetic effects upon Ir replacement. • NMR highlights short-range ordering and structural displacement that is not visible by XRD. • Nanoscale phase separation of ordered and disordered phases was studied by solid-state NMR. Intermetallic borides, such as the Sc 2 Ir 6- x Ni x B (x = 0–6) series, exhibit technologically relevant physicochemical properties, that are all associated to boron ordering. X-ray diffraction has not yet fully investigated the effect of Ir substitution by Ni on the boron arrangement of these borides, primarily due to its weak scattering factor. Herein we employ 11B-NMR to probe the boron ordering of Sc 2 Ir 6- x Ni x B series at atomic scale, overcoming limitations on low- Z materials. Across the Ni-substitution range, the spectral parameters and spin-lattice relaxation rates (T 1 − 1) were responsive to changes in crystal symmetry and valence charges. The spectral analysis and T 1 − 1 vs. x reveal that Ni substitution causes phase separation at the nanoscale between ordered and disordered borides. For x = 3, T 1 − 1 is T -independent, indicating a relaxation mechanism caused by paramagnetic centers whereas x = 5 follows a T2 -dependence that is consistent with band structure predictions of a reduction in the density of states, correlated with sharp features near the Fermi level. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of one-dimensional trigonal arrangements of chromium atoms (Cr 3 ) in the structure of TiCrIr 2 B 2 leads to a magnetic transition near ambient temperature. Herein we report an investigation of the nature of electronic and magnetic properties of TiCrIr 2 B 2 via ab initio calculations together with 11 B NMR Knight shift ( K ) and spin-lattice relaxation rate (1/ T 1 ) analysis. The presence of a characteristic rectangular powder pattern below 280 K, absence of a Korringa relation, strong enhancement of 1/ T 1 .T at low temperatures and weak temperature dependence of K indicate competition between antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic spin fluctuations in the itinerant d -band electrons, in agreement with ab initio calculations. One-dimensional trigonal arrangements of magnetically active elements in intermetallic compounds, as is found in TiCrIr 2 B 2 , are quite rare and could lead to exotic phenomena such as spin-chirality and quantum criticality in low-dimensional frustrated lattices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Recent findings suggest that DNA methylation, a well-known epigenetic mechanism, is involved in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) metabolism and increased cardiovascular disease risk. The aim of this study was thus to assess whether DNA methylation within key genes of lipoprotein metabolism is associated with blood lipid profile variability. Methods and results: Ninety-eight untreated familial hypercholesterolaemia patients (61 men and 37 women) were recruited for leucocyte DNA methylation analyses at the LDLR, CETP, LCAT and LPL gene promoter loci using bisulfite pyrosequencing. LPL DNA methylation was correlated with HDL-C (r = 0.22; p = 0.031) and HDL particle size (r = 0.47, p = 0.013). In both sex, CETP DNA methylation was negatively associated with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels (r < −0.32; p < 0.05). In men, CETP DNA methylation was associated with HDL-C (r = −0.36; p = 0.006), HDL-triglyceride levels (r = 0.59; p < 0.001) and HDL particle size (r = −0.44, p = 0.019). In visceral adipose tissue from 30 men with severe obesity, the associations between LPL DNA methylation, HDL-C (r = −0.40; p = 0.03) and LPL mRNA levels (r = −0.61, p < 0.001) were confirmed. Conclusion: CETP and LPL DNA methylation levels are associated with blood lipid profile, suggesting that further studies of epipolymorphisms should most certainly contribute to a better understanding of the molecular bases of dyslipidemia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]