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We compared histological structure of the orbital and subcutaneous adipose tissue. Quantitative morphometry showed that the mean diameter of adipocytes and their volume density in the orbital adipose tissue were significantly lower than in the subcutaneous fat, while volume density of vessels and elements of the connective tissue in the orbital adipose tissue was higher. Previously known and revealed here differences in the structure of orbital and subcutaneous adipose tissue do not answer the question, whether subcutaneous adipose tissue can be used for replacement of the orbital tissue deficit.

Background: To provide adequate workspace between the viscera and abdominal wall, insufflation with carbon dioxide is a common practice in laparoscopic surgeries. An insufflation pressure of 15 mmHg is considered to be safe in patients, but all insufflation pressures create perioperative and postoperative physiologic effects. As a composition of viscoelastic materials, the abdominal wall should distend in a predictable manner given the pressure of the pneumoperitoneum. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the relationship between degree of abdominal distention and the insufflation pressure, with the goal of determining factors which impact the compliance of the abdominal wall., Methods: A prospective, IRB-approved study was conducted to video record the abdomens of patients undergoing insufflation prior to a laparoscopic surgery. Photo samples were taken every 5 s, and the strain of the patient's abdomen in the sagittal plane was determined, as well as the insufflator pressure (stress) at bedside. Patients were insufflated to 15 mmHg. The relationship between the stress and strain was determined in each sample, and compliance of the patient's abdominal wall was calculated. Subcutaneous fat thickness and rectus abdominus muscle thickness were obtained from computed tomography scans. Correlations between abdominal wall compliances and subcutaneous fat and muscle content were determined., Results: Twenty-five patients were evaluated. An increased fat thickness in the abdominal wall had a direct exponential relationship with abdominal wall compliance (R 2  = 0.59, p < 0.05). There was no correlation between muscle and fat thickness., Conclusion: All insufflation pressures create perioperative and postoperative complications. The compliance of patients' abdominal body walls differs, and subcutaneous fat thickness has a direct exponential relationship with abdominal wall compliance. Thus, insufflation pressures can be better tailored per the patient. Future studies are needed to demonstrate the clinical impact of varying insufflation pressures.

The objective of this study was to estimate the genetic-quantitative relationships between the beef fatty acid profile with the carcass and meat traits of Nellore cattle. A total of 1826 bulls finished in feedlot conditions and slaughtered at 24 months of age on average were used. The following carcass and meat traits were analysed: subcutaneous fat thickness (BF), shear force (SF) and total intramuscular fat (IMF). The fatty acid (FA) profile of the Longissimus thoracis samples was determined. Twenty-five FAs (18 individuals and seven groups of FAs) were selected due to their importance for human health. The animals were genotyped with the BovineHD BeadChip and, after quality control for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), only 470,007 SNPs from 1556 samples remained. The model included the random genetic additive direct effect, the fixed effect of the contemporary group and the animal's slaughter age as a covariable. The (co)variances and genetic parameters were estimated using the REML method, considering an animal model (single-step GBLUP). A total of 25 multi-trait analyses, with four traits, were performed considering SF, BF and IMF plus each individual FA. The heritability estimates for individual saturated fatty acids (SFA) varied from 0.06 to 0.65, for monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) it varied from 0.02 to 0.14 and for polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) it ranged from 0.05 to 0.68. The heritability estimates for Omega 3, Omega 6, SFA, MUFA and PUFA sum were low to moderate, varying from 0.09 to 0.20. The carcass and meat traits, SF (0.06) and IMF (0.07), had low heritability estimates, while BF (0.17) was moderate. The genetic correlation estimates between SFA sum, MUFA sum and PUFA sum with BF were 0.04, 0.64 and -0.41, respectively. The genetic correlation estimates between SFA sum, MUFA sum and PUFA sum with SF were 0.29, -0.06 and -0.04, respectively. The genetic correlation estimates between SFA sum, MUFA sum and PUFA sum with IMF were 0.24, 0.90 and -0.67, respectively. The selection to improve meat tenderness in Nellore cattle should not change the fatty acid composition in beef, so it is possible to improve this attribute without affecting the nutritional beef quality in zebu breeds. However, selection for increased deposition of subcutaneous fat thickness and especially the percentage of intramuscular fat should lead to changes in the fat composition, highlighting a genetic antagonism between meat nutritional value and acceptability by the consumer.

Background: Laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy (LADG) has been widely accepted for the treatment for gastric cancer. The aim of the present study was to explore the impact of abdominal shape parameters on gastric antrum cancer patients' short-term surgical outcomes of LADG with D2 lymph node dissection in both genders, including the number of lymph nodes retrieved and surgical safety index., Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of 177 gastric antrum cancer patients, who underwent LADG between April 2009 and January 2016. The abdominal shape parameters, including abdominal anterior-posterior diameter (APD), transverse diameter (TD), xiphoid process of the sternum-navel distance (XND), and thickness of subcutaneous fat (SCF) at the umbilicus level, were calculated by preoperative abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans. The effects of abdominal shape parameters on the short-term surgical outcomes of LADG were analyzed., Results: In male patients undergoing LADG and D2 lymph node dissection, the number of retrieved lymph nodes was significantly lower in patients with APD ≥17.3 cm (P = 0.005), TD ≥27.4 cm (P = 0.029), SCF ≥1.2 cm (P = 0.014), and BMI ≥22.2 (P = 0.008), whereas in female patients, these were statistically insignificant (P > 0.05). APD, TD, SCF, and BMI were negatively correlated with the number of retrieved lymph nodes in male patients. There was no significant difference in the number of lymph nodes retrieved between high-XND group and low-XND group in either gender. Operation time was significantly shorter in male patients with XND < 17.0 cm (P = 0.044) and in female patients with SCF < 2.15 cm (P = 0.013). Intraoperative blood loss and postoperative complication rate were not significantly different between high- and low-APD groups, high- and low-TD groups, high- and low-XND groups, and high- and low-SCF groups in either gender. Compared with male patients, SCF and TD were significantly higher in female patients. In addition, a higher incidence rate of hypertension was observed in patients of both genders with large APD and SCF, although statistically significant only in male patients., Conclusions: LADG with D2 lymph node dissection can effectively achieve the lymph node dissection requirement of radical distal gastrectomy for patients with various abdominal shapes. It is worth noting that APD, TD, and SCF can impact on lymph node dissection of LADG in male patients. Nevertheless, in female patients, abdominal shape do not impact on lymph node dissection of LADG. Moreover, LADG with D2 lymph node dissection is proved to be safe for various abdominal shape in both genders, even for abdominal obese patients.

Objects: Hepatic and pancreatic fat content become increasingly important for phenotyping of individuals with metabolic diseases. This study aimed to (1) evaluate hepatic fat fractions (HFF) and pancreatic fat fractions (PFF) using (1)H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and the recently introduced fast mDixon method, and to examine body fat effects on HFF and PFF, (2) investigate regional differences in HFF and PFF by mDixon., Materials and Methods: HFF and PFF were quantified by mDixon with two flexible echo times and by single voxel (1)H MRS in 24 healthy subjects. The regional differences of PFF within the pancreas were assessed with mDixon. Abdominal visceral and subcutaneous fat was assessed by T1-weighted MRI at 3T., Results: Both methods correlated well for quantification of HFF (r = 0.98, p < 0.0001) and PFF (r = 0.80, p < 0.0001). However, mDixon showed a higher low limit in HFF and PFF. PFF showed no regional differences using mDixon. In addition, both visceral and subcutaneous fat correlated with pancreatic fat, while only visceral fat correlated with liver fat, employing both (1)H MRS and mDixon., Conclusion: The novel and fast two-point mDixon exhibits a good correlation with the gold-standard (1)H MRS for assessment of HFF and PFF, with limited sensitivity for assessing lower fat content.

GSK-3 plays an important role on numerous cellular processes involved in the regulation of embryonic development, protein synthesis, glycogen metabolism, inflammatory, mitosis and apoptosis. In this study, we obtained the cDNA and promoter sequences of the porcine GSK-3α gene, analyzed its genomic organization and mapped it to SSC6q12 through comparative mapping method. Moreover, the qRT-PCR analysis revealed that porcine GSK-3α gene was widely expressed in many tissues, and a high expression level was observed in the brain and spleen. In addition, seven single-nucleotide polymorphisms were detected in the promoter region of porcine GSK-3α gene. Association analysis revealed that the GSK-3α Hin1I and MspI polymorphisms both had significant associations (p < 0.05) with loin muscle area, average backfat thickness, thorax-waist fat thickness, and buttock fat thickness. These results provide useful information for further investigation on the function of porcine GSK-3α gene.

Background: Genome-wide association studies on body mass index (BMI) have identified an FTO polymorphism (rs9939609) as having the strongest effect., Aim: We examined the effect of FTO genotype on body composition at the age of 6 months using skinfold thickness measurements and dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)., Material/subjects and Methods: This study was embedded in a population-based prospective cohort study from early fetal life onwards. FTO genotype was related to anthropometric measurements (weight and height), subcutaneous fat mass measured by skinfold thickness, and total, truncal, and peripheral fat mass and lean mass measured by DXA. Analyses for skinfold thickness and DXA were performed in 695 and 216 children, respectively., Results: Genotype frequency was TT 40.3%, TA 45.5%, and AA 14.2%. No significant differences between FTO genotypes were found in weight, height or BMI. Furthermore, FTO genotype was not associated with any skinfold thickness. Finally, no associations between FTO genotype and body composition measures (fat and lean mass) assessed by DXA were found., Conclusions: We observed no association between this FTO polymorphism and body composition at the age of 6 months. Longer follow-up studies are necessary to examine at which age and by which mechanisms FTO genotype starts to influence fat mass and body composition.

Background: Visceral obesity has been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy. Waist circumference has been used as a surrogate measure of visceral fat mass; however, subcutaneous fat mass is also correlated with waist circumference. We therefore conducted this cross-sectional study to clarify the relationship between directly measured sizes of visceral and subcutaneous fat and microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM)., Methods: We studied a total of 208 adult Japanese individuals with T2DM, 99 women and 109 men, with a mean +/- standard deviation (SD) age of 56 +/- 13 years. Patients with macroalbuminuria, defined as a urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) >or=300 mg/g creatinine, and those with an estimated glomerular filtration rate <15 ml/min/1.73 m(2) were excluded. Visceral and subcutaneous fat areas were measured by abdominal computed tomography., Results: In the univariate correlational analysis, logarithmically transformed urinary ACR was significantly associated with visceral fat area (r = 0.14, p = 0.047) but not with subcutaneous fat area (r = 0.08, p = 0.237). In the multiple regression analysis with stepwise selection procedure, visceral fat area but not subcutaneous fat area was selected as an independent variable that was statistically associated with urinary ACR., Conclusion: This cross-sectional study suggests that increased visceral but not subcutaneous fat is independently associated with microalbuminuria in Japanese adult patients with T2DM.