| 1. |
- Tierney, W., et al.
(författare)
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A creative destruction approach to replication : Implicit work and sex morality across cultures
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0022-1031 .- 1096-0465. ; 93
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- How can we maximize what is learned from a replication study? In the creative destruction approach to replication, the original hypothesis is compared not only to the null hypothesis, but also to predictions derived from multiple alternative theoretical accounts of the phenomenon. To this end, new populations and measures are included in the design in addition to the original ones, to help determine which theory best accounts for the results across multiple key outcomes and contexts. The present pre-registered empirical project compared the Implicit Puritanism account of intuitive work and sex morality to theories positing regional, religious, and social class differences; explicit rather than implicit cultural differences in values; self-expression vs. survival values as a key cultural fault line; the general moralization of work; and false positive effects. Contradicting Implicit Puritanism's core theoretical claim of a distinct American work morality, a number of targeted findings replicated across multiple comparison cultures, whereas several failed to replicate in all samples and were identified as likely false positives. No support emerged for theories predicting regional variability and specific individual-differences moderators (religious affiliation, religiosity, and education level). Overall, the results provide evidence that work is intuitively moralized across cultures.
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| 2. |
- Vieira-Silva, S., et al.
(författare)
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Statin therapy is associated with lower prevalence of gut microbiota dysbiosis
- 2020
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 581:7808, s. 310-315
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Microbiome community typing analyses have recently identified the Bacteroides2 (Bact2) enterotype, an intestinal microbiota configuration that is associated with systemic inflammation and has a high prevalence in loose stools in humans1,2. Bact2 is characterized by a high proportion of Bacteroides, a low proportion of Faecalibacterium and low microbial cell densities1,2, and its prevalence varies from 13% in a general population cohort to as high as 78% in patients with inflammatory bowel disease2. Reported changes in stool consistency3 and inflammation status4 during the progression towards obesity and metabolic comorbidities led us to propose that these developments might similarly correlate with an increased prevalence of the potentially dysbiotic Bact2 enterotype. Here, by exploring obesity-associated microbiota alterations in the quantitative faecal metagenomes of the cross-sectional MetaCardis Body Mass Index Spectrum cohort (n=888), we identify statin therapy as a key covariate of microbiome diversification. By focusing on a subcohort of participants that are not medicated with statins, we find that the prevalence of Bact2 correlates with body mass index, increasing from 3.90% in lean or overweight participants to 17.73% in obese participants. Systemic inflammation levels in Bact2-enterotyped individuals are higher than predicted on the basis of their obesity status, indicative of Bact2 as a dysbiotic microbiome constellation. We also observe that obesity-associated microbiota dysbiosis is negatively associated with statin treatment, resulting in a lower Bact2 prevalence of 5.88% in statin-medicated obese participants. This finding is validated in both the accompanying MetaCardis cardiovascular disease dataset (n = 282) and the independent Flemish Gut Flora Project population cohort (n=2,345). The potential benefits of statins in this context will require further evaluation in a prospective clinical trial to ascertain whether the effect is reproducible in a randomized population and before considering their application as microbiota-modulating therapeutics. © 2020, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.
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| 3. |
- Belda, E., et al.
(författare)
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Impairment of gut microbial biotin metabolism and host biotin status in severe obesity: effect of biotin and prebiotic supplementation on improved metabolism
- 2022
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Ingår i: Gut. - : BMJ. - 0017-5749 .- 1468-3288. ; 71:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives Gut microbiota is a key component in obesity and type 2 diabetes, yet mechanisms and metabolites central to this interaction remain unclear. We examined the human gut microbiome's functional composition in healthy metabolic state and the most severe states of obesity and type 2 diabetes within the MetaCardis cohort. We focused on the role of B vitamins and B7/B8 biotin for regulation of host metabolic state, as these vitamins influence both microbial function and host metabolism and inflammation. Design We performed metagenomic analyses in 1545 subjects from the MetaCardis cohorts and different murine experiments, including germ-free and antibiotic treated animals, faecal microbiota transfer, bariatric surgery and supplementation with biotin and prebiotics in mice. Results Severe obesity is associated with an absolute deficiency in bacterial biotin producers and transporters, whose abundances correlate with host metabolic and inflammatory phenotypes. We found suboptimal circulating biotin levels in severe obesity and altered expression of biotin-associated genes in human adipose tissue. In mice, the absence or depletion of gut microbiota by antibiotics confirmed the microbial contribution to host biotin levels. Bariatric surgery, which improves metabolism and inflammation, associates with increased bacterial biotin producers and improved host systemic biotin in humans and mice. Finally, supplementing high-fat diet-fed mice with fructo-oligosaccharides and biotin improves not only the microbiome diversity, but also the potential of bacterial production of biotin and B vitamins, while limiting weight gain and glycaemic deterioration. Conclusion Strategies combining biotin and prebiotic supplementation could help prevent the deterioration of metabolic states in severe obesity.
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| 4. |
- Fromentin, S., et al.
(författare)
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Microbiome and metabolome features of the cardiometabolic disease spectrum
- 2022
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Ingår i: Nature Medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1078-8956 .- 1546-170X. ; 28:2, s. 303-314
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- By studying individuals along a spectrum of cardiometabolic disease and adjusting for effects of lifestyle and medication, this investigation identifies alterations of the metabolome and microbiome from dysmetabolic conditions, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes, to ischemic heart disease. Previous microbiome and metabolome analyses exploring non-communicable diseases have paid scant attention to major confounders of study outcomes, such as common, pre-morbid and co-morbid conditions, or polypharmacy. Here, in the context of ischemic heart disease (IHD), we used a study design that recapitulates disease initiation, escalation and response to treatment over time, mirroring a longitudinal study that would otherwise be difficult to perform given the protracted nature of IHD pathogenesis. We recruited 1,241 middle-aged Europeans, including healthy individuals, individuals with dysmetabolic morbidities (obesity and type 2 diabetes) but lacking overt IHD diagnosis and individuals with IHD at three distinct clinical stages-acute coronary syndrome, chronic IHD and IHD with heart failure-and characterized their phenome, gut metagenome and serum and urine metabolome. We found that about 75% of microbiome and metabolome features that distinguish individuals with IHD from healthy individuals after adjustment for effects of medication and lifestyle are present in individuals exhibiting dysmetabolism, suggesting that major alterations of the gut microbiome and metabolome might begin long before clinical onset of IHD. We further categorized microbiome and metabolome signatures related to prodromal dysmetabolism, specific to IHD in general or to each of its three subtypes or related to escalation or de-escalation of IHD. Discriminant analysis based on specific IHD microbiome and metabolome features could better differentiate individuals with IHD from healthy individuals or metabolically matched individuals as compared to the conventional risk markers, pointing to a pathophysiological relevance of these features.
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| 5. |
- Putaud, J. -P, et al.
(författare)
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A European aerosol phenomenology-3 : Physical and chemical characteristics of particulate matter from 60 rural, urban, and kerbside sites across Europe
- 2010
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Environment. - : Elsevier BV. - 1352-2310 .- 1873-2844. ; 44:10, s. 1308-1320
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper synthesizes data on aerosol (particulate matter, PM) physical and chemical characteristics, which were obtained over the past decade in aerosol research and monitoring activities at more than 60 natural background, rural, near-city, urban, and kerbside sites across Europe. The data include simultaneously measured PM10 and/or PM2.5 mass on the one hand, and aerosol particle number concentrations or PM chemistry on the other hand. The aerosol data presented in our previous works (Van Dingenen et al., 2004; Putaud et al., 2004) were updated and merged to those collected in the framework of the EU supported European Cooperation in the field of Scientific and Technical action COST633 (Particulate matter: Properties related to health effects). A number of conclusions from our previous studies were confirmed. There is no single ratio between PM2.5 and PM10 mass concentrations valid for all sites, although fairly constant ratios ranging from 0.5 to 0.9 are observed at most individual sites. There is no general correlation between PM mass and particle number concentrations, although particle number concentrations increase with PM2.5 levels at most sites. The main constituents of both PM10 and PM2.5 are generally organic matter, sulfate and nitrate. Mineral dust can also be a major constituent of PM10 at kerbside sites and in Southern Europe. There is a clear decreasing gradient in SO42- and NO3- contribution to PM10 when moving from rural to urban to kerbside sites. In contrast, the total carbon/PM10 ratio increases from rural to kerbside sites. Some new conclusions were also drawn from this work: the ratio between ultrafine particle and total particle number concentration decreases with PM2.5 concentration at all sites but one, and significant gradients in PM chemistry are observed when moving from Northwestern, to Southern to Central Europe. Compiling an even larger number of data sets would have further increased the significance of our conclusions, but collecting all the aerosol data sets obtained also through research projects remains a tedious task.
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| 6. |
- Kennedy, K. M., et al.
(författare)
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Questioning the fetal microbiome illustrates pitfalls of low-biomass microbial studies
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 613:7945, s. 639-649
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Whether the human fetus and the prenatal intrauterine environment (amniotic fluid and placenta) are stably colonized by microbial communities in a healthy pregnancy remains a subject of debate. Here we evaluate recent studies that characterized microbial populations in human fetuses from the perspectives of reproductive biology, microbial ecology, bioinformatics, immunology, clinical microbiology and gnotobiology, and assess possible mechanisms by which the fetus might interact with microorganisms. Our analysis indicates that the detected microbial signals are likely the result of contamination during the clinical procedures to obtain fetal samples or during DNA extraction and DNA sequencing. Furthermore, the existence of live and replicating microbial populations in healthy fetal tissues is not compatible with fundamental concepts of immunology, clinical microbiology and the derivation of germ-free mammals. These conclusions are important to our understanding of human immune development and illustrate common pitfalls in the microbial analyses of many other low-biomass environments. The pursuit of a fetal microbiome serves as a cautionary example of the challenges of sequence-based microbiome studies when biomass is low or absent, and emphasizes the need for a trans-disciplinary approach that goes beyond contamination controls by also incorporating biological, ecological and mechanistic concepts.
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| 7. |
- Kurilshikov, Alexander, et al.
(författare)
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Large-scale association analyses identify host factors influencing human gut microbiome composition
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 1061-4036 .- 1546-1718. ; 53:2, s. 156-165
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To study the effect of host genetics on gut microbiome composition, the MiBioGen consortium curated and analyzed genome-wide genotypes and 16S fecal microbiome data from 18,340 individuals (24 cohorts). Microbial composition showed high variability across cohorts: only 9 of 410 genera were detected in more than 95% of samples. A genome-wide association study of host genetic variation regarding microbial taxa identified 31 loci affecting the microbiome at a genome-wide significant (P < 5 x 10(-8)) threshold. One locus, the lactase (LCT) gene locus, reached study-wide significance (genome-wide association study signal: P = 1.28 x 10(-20)), and it showed an age-dependent association with Bifidobacterium abundance. Other associations were suggestive (1.95 x 10(-10) < P < 5 x 10(-8)) but enriched for taxa showing high heritability and for genes expressed in the intestine and brain. A phenome-wide association study and Mendelian randomization identified enrichment of microbiome trait loci in the metabolic, nutrition and environment domains and suggested the microbiome might have causal effects in ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis.
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
- D H, Fleisher, et al.
(författare)
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Yield Response of an Ensemble of Potato Crop Models to Elevated CO2 in Continental Europe
- 2021
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Ingår i: European Journal of Agronomy. - : Elsevier BV. - 1161-0301. ; 126
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A multi-model inter-comparison study was conducted to evaluate the performance of ten potato crop models to accurately predict potato yield in response to elevated CO2 (Ce) when calibrated with ambient CO2 data (Ca). Experimental data from seven open-top chambers (OTC) and free-air CO2-enrichment (FACE) facilities across continental Europe were used. Model ensemble percent errors averaged over all datasets for simulated yields were 26.5 % for Ca and 27.2 % Ce data. Metrics such as Wilmott’s index of agreement (IA) and root mean square relative error (RMSRE) ranged broadly among individual models and locations, such that four of the ten models outperformed the median or mean of the ensemble for about half of the Ce datasets. These top performing models were representative of three different model structural groups, including radiation use efficiency, transpiration efficiency, or leaf-level based approaches. Relative response to an increase in CO2 was more accurately modeled than absolute yield responses when averaged across all locations, and within 3.3 kg ppm 1 (or 5%) of observed values. Specific targets in the model structure needed for improvement were not identified due to large and inconsistent variation in the accuracy of yield predictions across locations. However, models with the lowest calibration errors tended to be top performers for Ce predictions as well. Such results suggest calibration is at least as important as model structure. Where possible, modelers using potato models to estimate Ce responses should use Ce calibration data to improve confidence in such predictions.
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| 10. |
- Grossmann, Igor, et al.
(författare)
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Insights into the accuracy of social scientists' forecasts of societal change
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature Human Behaviour. - : Springer Nature. - 2397-3374. ; 7, s. 484-501
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- How well can social scientists predict societal change, and what processes underlie their predictions? To answer these questions, we ran two forecasting tournaments testing the accuracy of predictions of societal change in domains commonly studied in the social sciences: ideological preferences, political polarization, life satisfaction, sentiment on social media, and gender-career and racial bias. After we provided them with historical trend data on the relevant domain, social scientists submitted pre-registered monthly forecasts for a year (Tournament 1; N = 86 teams and 359 forecasts), with an opportunity to update forecasts on the basis of new data six months later (Tournament 2; N = 120 teams and 546 forecasts). Benchmarking forecasting accuracy revealed that social scientists' forecasts were on average no more accurate than those of simple statistical models (historical means, random walks or linear regressions) or the aggregate forecasts of a sample from the general public (N = 802). However, scientists were more accurate if they had scientific expertise in a prediction domain, were interdisciplinary, used simpler models and based predictions on prior data. How accurate are social scientists in predicting societal change, and what processes underlie their predictions? Grossmann et al. report the findings of two forecasting tournaments. Social scientists' forecasts were on average no more accurate than those of simple statistical models.
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