Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with long-time exposure to obesity, physical inactivity, smoking, and Western diets high in saturated fats, refined sugar, and low in fibres.(1) It is one of the most common chronic liver disease globally with a prevalence of 32% in 2022,(1) and is associated with greater risk of cardiovascular diseases as well as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).(1) Currently, there is no medical treatment against NAFLD, but high consumption of plant-based protein sourced foods appear beneficial.

Legumes are considered an environmentally friendly and healthy protein source, low in saturated fat and energy density, and rich in dietary fibre(2). However, the scientific evidence on the association between legume intake and NAFLD in humans is sparse.(2) This study evaluated substituting red and processed meat, poultry, or fish with legumes on the risk of developing NAFLD.

We analyzed data from 124,194 UK Biobank participants who completed two or more dietary assessments using a 24-hour dietary assessment tool, the Oxford WebQ, developed and validated within the cohort,(3) and provided comprehensive information on covariates. Participants were invited to complete up to five Oxford WebQs from 2009 to 2012.(3)Incident NAFLD cases were identified through linkage to National Health Service registries.

Multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to conduct equal mass food substitution analyses, estimating hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for NAFLD when replacing one 80g serving/week of i) red and processed meat, ii) poultry, iii) or fish with legumes.

Age was the underlying time scale in the analyses. Person-years at risk were calculated from the date of the last completed Oxford WebQ to the date of death, loss to follow-up, diagnosis of NAFLD or NASH, or right censoring, whichever occurred first.

All participants gave written informed consent to participate in the study. The UK Biobank was approved by the National Information Governance Board for Health and Social Care and the National Health Service North West Multicentre Research Ethics Committee (ref 21/NW/0157).

Over a median follow-up period of 10.49 years (IQR: 10.4-10.9 years), 1,201 NAFLD cases were documented. Replacing 80 g/week of red and processed meat or poultry with legumes resulted in 4% and 3% lower rates of NAFLD, respectively (Meat HR: 0.96, 95% CI: 0.94–0.98; Poultry HR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.95; 0.99). However, replacing fish with legumes was not significantly associated with NAFLD risk (HR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.96–1.01). These findings remained consistent after adjusting for BMI.

Replacing red and processed meat or poultry with legumes could modestly reduce the risk of NAFLD. No significant association was observed for replacing fish with legumes.

The 2023 Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR23) emphasize both planetary health and disease prevention through food-based guidelines(1). While previous planetary health diets may not guarantee sufficient micronutrient intake(2), these dietary patterns focusing on human and planetary health have shown positive associations between higher adherence and lower mortality(3). However, the health effects of adhering to the NNR2023 have not been investigated. This study aims to construct a diet score to investigate adherence to NNR2023, micronutrient adherence, and the association with mortality.

We constructed a diet score based on NNR2023 with 15 food components [1]. Points were given proportionally between 0 and 1 points, reflecting the level of compliance with each food component, with a maximum possible score of 15 points. We then followed men aged 45-79 from the Cohort of Swedish Men (n=48,850) (COSM) and women aged 48–83 years from the Swedish Mammography Cohort (n=39,984) (SMC), with extensive information collected on diet and lifestyle in 1997, 2009 and 2019(4). Cases were retrieved through the Swedish Patient Register using the Swedish Personal Identification Number and The Death Register(4). Participants were followed until death or administrative end of follow-up on 31stof December 2019. Micronutrient intake was derived from reported food intake and dichotomized at the recommended intake for vitamins and adequate mineral intake. Multi-variable Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) using age as the underlying timescale.

Participants with the highest adherence to NNR2023 (>10 points, median (10 points), HR 0.77, 95% CI 0.74-0.80) exhibited a lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to those with the lowest adherence (<8 points, median (7.6 points)). Age- and sex-specific micronutrient recommendations for calcium, folate, and magnesium were more likely to be met for those with the highest adherence. However, vitamin D intake was lower in women, and calcium was lower in men under the age of 70. When analyzed as a restricted cubic spline, results indicate lower mortality risk with increasing adherence.

High adherence to NNR2023 is beneficial for achieving adequate micronutrient intake and reducing overall mortality.

A new species of Loimos MacCallum, 1917 is described more than half a century after the last species was described in 1972. The new species was collected from the gills of Rhizoprionodon taylori (Ogilby, 1915) off the Central Queensland coast, Australia, and is the first Loimos species and the first representative of the Loimoinae Price, 1936 known from Oceania. A detailed morphological description and 28S rDNA molecular sequences are provided for the new species. In the molecular phylogeny based on available 28S rDNA sequences for relevant Monocotylidae, the new species grouped together with the only other Loimos sequence available in GenBank, that of the nonugen Loimos sp. from China (OM060238), sister to Loimosina wilsoni Manter, 1944. The estimated genetic divergence between the new species and the nonugen Loimos sp. sequence is low, between 0.0452 and 0.0737, suggesting that the nonugen sequence may represent the new species, or a very closely related congener. Host identity was confirmed by comparing COI sequences with those of known sharks in GenBank. We also provide the first 12S and 16S molecular sequences for this shark species.

MagNetUS is a network of scientists and research groups that coordinates and advocates for fundamental magnetized plasma research in the USA. Its primary goal is to bring together a broad community of researchers and the experimental and numerical tools they use in order to facilitate the sharing of ideas, resources and common tasks. Discussed here are the motivation and goals for this network and details of its formation, history and structure. An overview of associated experimental facilities and numerical projects is provided, along with examples of scientific topics investigated therein. Finally, a vision for the future of the organization is given.

The response tensor is derived for a relativistically streaming, strongly magnetized, one-dimensional Jüttner distribution of electrons and positrons, referred to as a pulsar plasma. This is used to produce a general treatment of wave dispersion in a pulsar plasma. Specifically, relativistic streaming, the spread in Lorentz factors in a pulsar rest frame and cyclotron resonances are taken into account. Approximations to the response tensor are derived by making approximations to relativistic plasma dispersion functions appearing in the general form of the response tensor. The cold-plasma limit, the highly relativistic limit and limits related to cyclotron resonances are considered. The theory developed in this paper has applications to generalized Faraday rotation in pulsars and magnetars.

A total of 435 freshly dropped faecal samples were collected from 11 randomly selected ostrich farms during September and November 2002 to determine the prevalence of Libyostrongylus douglassii (ostrich wireworm) in the highveld region of Zimbabwe. Samples, which consisted of 339 samples from breeder birds and 96 samples from pre-slaughter grower birds were screened for nematode eggs using the modified McMaster technique before being individually cultured in an incubator at 28°C. Cultures were examined for the presence of L. douglassii third stage larvae (L3). Using faecal egg counts, eight of 11 farms (72.7%) were positive for L. douglassii in breeders but no eggs were detected in the growers. The faecal culture method detected wireworm larvae in the breeding stock of all farms that were surveyed (100%) and five of the eight farms (62.5%) which had grower birds. Libyostrongylus douglassii was detected in all farms (100%) based on the faecal culture method. Libyostrongylus douglassii was detected for the first time in 7 of 11 farms (64%) surveyed. Data from questionnaires designed to assess farm management practices showed that four out of seven (57.1%) of the ostrich producers were unaware of the importance of wireworms in ostriches. The farms did not have a regular deworming programme for their birds and no faecal samples were sent routinely to the veterinary laboratory for screening of wireworms. Wireworm infections were not taken into consideration by farmers during buying and selling of birds.

We study the dynamics of a cavitation bubble near beds of sand of different grain sizes. We use high-speed imaging to observe the motion of the bubble and the sand for different values of the stand-off parameter $\gamma$ (dimensionless bubble-boundary distance) between 0.3 and 5.3. Compared with a rigid boundary, we find that a granular boundary leads to bubbles with shorter lifetimes and reduced centroid displacements. Above $\gamma \approx 1.3$, the behaviour of the bubble is almost independent of the granularity of the sand. When the stand-off parameter lies between $0.6$ and $1.3$, a mound of sand develops beneath the bubble, which can force the latter to assume a conical shape as it collapses. For $\gamma \lesssim 0.6$, the bubble develops a bell-shaped form, leading to the formation of thin and surprisingly fast micro-jets ($v_{jet} > 1000\,{\rm m}\,{\rm s}^{-1}$). Moreover, between $\gamma \approx 1.3$ and $\gamma \approx 0.3$, granular jets erupt from the sand surface following the bubble collapse. We additionally develop a simple numerical model, based on the boundary integral method, to predict the dynamics of a cavitation bubble near a bed of sand, which we replace by an equivalent liquid. The simulations are remarkably consistent with experimental observations for values of $\gamma$ down to $1.3$. We also show how the anisotropy parameter $\zeta$, a dimensionless version of the Kelvin impulse, can be adapted for the case of a nearby bed of sand and predict the displacement of the bubble centroid for $\zeta \lesssim 0.08$.

This paper discusses how the activities during which people gather to create, perform, and transmit imbalu circumcision music and dance at Namasho Cultural Site (NCS) become a platform for the Bagisu of the Balutseshe clan to tutor boys about society’s gender ideology, social histories, and rituals of the sacred swamp, thus turning the place into a communal classroom for imparting this knowledge. Due to the changing context of contemporary Bagisu, I argue for efforts to archive these events to make them accessible by future generations in order to uphold imbalu performances as a mechanism of knowledge production and dissemination.

Electron energization during merging of magnetized plasmas is studied using the OMEGA and OMEGA EP laser facilities by colliding two plasma plumes, each containing a Biermann-battery self-generated magnetic field. Two neighbouring plasma plumes are produced by intense laser beams, and the anti-parallel Biermann fields merge and reconnect in the process of the plumes’ expansion and collision. To isolate the merging as an acceleration source, the electron energy spectra obtained from two-plume collision shots are compared with the spectra from single-plume shots. Single-plume shots exhibit an energized electron tail with energies up to ${\sim }250\ \textrm {keV}$. The electrons in merging experiments are additionally accelerated by ${\sim }50\text {--}100$ keV compared to single-plume shots.

Populations of northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus; hereafter bobwhite) have been declining across their geographic range in North America, prompting consideration of the role parasites may play. We conducted this study to learn about the helminth fauna in South Texas, a region that supports a sustainable bobwhite population. Helminths were examined from 356 bobwhites collected during the 2014–2015 (n = 124) and 2015–2016 (n = 232) hunting seasons, when increasing trends in precipitation were observed in comparison with the previous two years. Ten helminth species were found, consisting of 14,127 individuals. Of these, all are heteroxenous parasites and three are pathogenic (Dispharynx nasuta, Tetrameres pattersoni and Oxyspirura petrowi). Aulonocephalus pennula numerically dominated the component community (81% prevalence, 99% of the total helminths found), whereas each of the remaining species occurred rarely (≤9% prevalence) and contributed few individuals (≤0.4%) to the helminth community. Prevalence and abundance of A. pennula were not influenced by host age, sex or body mass, but abundance was higher during the 2014–2015 than the 2015–2016 hunting season. Our findings indicate that the helminth community in bobwhites from South Texas can vary during long-term, highly variable precipitation conditions and these communities are more similar to those found in the Rolling Plains of Texas than those found in the eastern part of the bobwhite's geographic range in the US.

The genera Ophiophragmus and Amphiodia are amphiurids that are considered taxonomically difficult due to their great resemblance, few diagnostic characters and synonymy problems. Our aim is to redescribe the species using scanning electron microscopy and morphometry of diagnostic structures, and to provide new information for the identification of these Ophiuroidea. Five Amphiodia spp. and six Ophiophragmus spp. recorded in Brazil were rigorously redescribed. The descriptions include new diagnostic characters derived from external morphology, arm microstructures and morphometry. We also provided comparative analyses of species with shared characters such as Amphiodia riisei and Amphiodia trychna. The geographic and bathymetric distributions of the studied species were updated, and new records are provided. All the information presented may be used in taxonomic, ecological and phylogenetic studies, helping to fill gaps in the knowledge of the biodiversity, ecology and evolution of these Ophiuroidea. Conclusively, all the tools applied here assisted in the identification of genera and species and could be useful in other taxonomic studies of Echinodermata.

Number of mental disorders, evolving as a result of old stress, is characterized of steady increase. Object of the work: determine the role of psychogenic and stress factors in the evolution of clinical forms of mental disorders. 84 patients (10 males and 74 females) from 18 to 64 years old were assessed. Each patient passed the questioning for the development of stress factors, where they specified one or several events of their life, which they qualified as a strong stress. The analysis of obtained data allowed to find out that 6 patients (7,14%) survived a death of child; 14 (16,67%) - death of husband and other members of family; 9 (10,71%) - a severe illness of the family member; 2 (2,38%) – an extremal situation with the life threat; 2 (2,38%) – a rape; 3 (3,57%) – a severe somatic disease; 8 (9,52%) - loss of work; for 7 (8,33%) of the subjects the alcoholization of husband became the main stress. In the most numerous group, consisting of 33 (39,29%) patients, the divorce was a reason for mental disorder. The study allowed to reveal, that the situations of death and illness of the relatives and kindered, divorce and alcoholization of the member of family became the cause of the development of depression (51,19%) and disorder of adaptation (30,95%). The anxious-phobic disorder developed in the patients (14,29%), which have lost the work. In the patients, who have had a severe somatic illness, a hypochondriac (2,38%) and anxious-phobic disorder (0,84%) were diagnosed.

Adolescence is a developing period on the way of forming the final identity. The core of it is the physical identity, which is the starting point and whose expression is the mirror of its internal being. Tattoos, offered as a part of fashion trend, are accepted by a great number of young people, but on the other side, many people remain distant in relation to them.