scholarly journals Body height and immune efficacy: testing body stature as a signal of biological quality

2017 ◽  
Vol 284 (1859) ◽  
pp. 20171372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bogusław Pawłowski ◽  
Judyta Nowak ◽  
Barbara Borkowska ◽  
Daria Augustyniak ◽  
Zuzanna Drulis-Kawa
Keyword(s):  
Body Height ◽  
Free Testosterone ◽  
Neutrophil Function ◽  
Good Genes ◽  
Western Society ◽  
Morphological Marker ◽  
Biological Quality ◽  
Immune Parameters ◽  
Adult Body ◽  
Body Stature

According to the good genes hypothesis and energy allocation theory, human adult body height may reflect biological quality. An important aspect of this quality is immune system functioning (ISF). The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between ISF and body height in healthy people. The ISF was determined by several important innate (total complement and lysozyme activity, neutrophil function) and adaptive immune parameters (lymphocytes, IgA and IgG, and response to the flu vaccine). Overall, 96 males and 97 females were subjected to flu vaccination, and of these, 35 males and 34 females were subjected to tetanus. Blood samples were collected before and four weeks after vaccination. Immunomodulatory factors, participant's age, body fat, and free testosterone levels, were controlled. There was no association between body height and all analysed immune parameters for both sexes. That might suggest that in Western society, a women's preference for taller men is not related to ‘good genes for immune competence’. We propose the novel Immunity Priority Hypothesis that explains the lack of relationship between adult body stature and ISF. This hypothesis, however, does not contradict the signalling role of a man's body height as a morphological marker of biological quality.

scholarly journals Heritability of Adult Body Height: A Comparative Study of Twin Cohorts in Eight Countries

2003 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 399-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karri Silventoinen ◽  
Sampo Sammalisto ◽  
Markus Perola ◽  
Dorret I. Boomsma ◽  
Belinda K. Cornes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Study ◽  
Body Height ◽  
Adult Body

scholarly journals Detection of 15-bp Deletion Mutation within PLAG1 Gene and Its Effects on Growth Traits in Goats

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 2064
Author(s):  
Zhenyu Wei ◽  
Ke Wang ◽  
Hui Wu ◽  
Zhen Wang ◽  
Chuanying Pan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Growth Traits ◽  
Body Height ◽  
The Body ◽  
Chest Circumference ◽  
Dairy Goat ◽  
Cashmere Goat ◽  
Indel Mutation ◽  
Body Stature ◽  
Body Index

Stature and weight are important growth and development traits for animals, which also significantly affect the productivity of livestock. Polymorphic adenoma gene 1 (PLAG1) is located in the growth-related quantitative trait nucleotides (QTN), and its variation has been determined to significantly affect the body stature of bovines. This study found that novel 15-bp InDel could significantly influence important growth traits in goats. The frequencies of genotypes of the 15-bp mutation and relationship with core growth traits such as body weight, body height, height at hip cross, chest circumference, hip width and body index were explored in 1581 individuals among 4 Chinese native goat breeds. The most frequent genotypes of Shaanbei white Cashmere goat (SWCG), Inner Mongolia White Cashmere goat (IMCG) and Guanzhong Dairy goat (GZDG) were II genotypes (insertion/insertion), and the frequency of ID genotype (insertion/deletion) was found to be slightly higher than that of II genotype in Hainan Black goat (HNBG), showing that the frequency of the I allele was higher than that of the D allele. In adult goats, there were significant differences between 15-bp variation and body weight, chest circumference and body height traits in SWCG (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the locus was also found to be significantly correlated with the body index of HNBG (p = 0.044) and hip width in GZDG (p = 0.002). In regard to lambs, there were significant differences in height at the hip cross of SWCG (p = 0.036) and hip width in IMWC (p = 0.005). The corresponding results suggest that the 15-bp InDel mutation of PLAG1 is associated with the regulation of important growth characteristics of both adult and lamb of goats, which may serve as efficient molecular markers for goat breeding.

scholarly journals Cultural bias in motor function patterns: Potential relevance for predictive, preventive, and personalized medicine

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Otte ◽  
Tobias Ellermeyer ◽  
Masahide Suzuki ◽  
Hanna M. Röhling ◽  
Ryota Kuroiwa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Personalized Medicine ◽  
Motor Function ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Body Height ◽  
Healthy Adults ◽  
Cultural Bias ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Japanese Adults ◽  
Body Stature ◽  
Motion Assessment

Abstract Background Quantification of motor performance has a promising role in personalized medicine by diagnosing and monitoring, e.g. neurodegenerative diseases or health problems related to aging. New motion assessment technologies can evolve into patient-centered eHealth applications on a global scale to support personalized healthcare as well as treatment of disease. However, uncertainty remains on the limits of generalizability of such data, which is relevant specifically for preventive or predictive applications, using normative datasets to screen for incipient disease manifestations or indicators of individual risks. Objective This study explored differences between healthy German and Japanese adults in the performance of a short set of six motor tests. Methods Six motor tasks related to gait and balance were recorded with a validated 3D camera system. Twenty-five healthy adults from Chiba, Japan, participated in this study and were matched for age, sex, and BMI to a sample of 25 healthy adults from Berlin, Germany. Recordings used the same technical setup and standard instructions and were supervised by the same experienced operator. Differences in motor performance were analyzed using multiple linear regressions models, adjusted for differences in body stature. Results From 23 presented parameters, five showed group-related differences after adjustment for height and weight (R2 between .19 and .46, p<.05). Japanese adults transitioned faster between sitting and standing and used a smaller range of hand motion. In stepping-in-place, cadence was similar in both groups, but Japanese adults showed higher knee movement amplitudes. Body height was identified as relevant confounder (standardized beta >.5) for performance of short comfortable and maximum speed walks. For results of posturography, regression models did not reveal effects of group or body stature. Conclusions Our results support the existence of a population-specific bias in motor function patterns in young healthy adults. This needs to be considered when motor function is assessed and used for clinical decisions, especially for personalized predictive and preventive medical purposes. The bias affected only the performance of specific items and parameters and is not fully explained by population-specific ethnic differences in body stature. It may be partially explained as cultural bias related to motor habits. Observed effects were small but are expected to be larger in a non-controlled cross-cultural application of motion assessment technologies with relevance for related algorithms that are being developed and used for data processing. In sum, the interpretation of individual data should be related to appropriate population-specific or even better personalized normative values to yield its full potential and avoid misinterpretation.

scholarly journals Whole-exome imputation of sequence variants identified two novel alleles associated with adult body height in African Americans

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (24) ◽  
pp. 6607-6615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mengmeng Du ◽  
Paul L. Auer ◽  
Shuo Jiao ◽  
Jeffrey Haessler ◽  
David Altshuler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
African Americans ◽  
Body Height ◽  
Sequence Variants ◽  
Whole Exome ◽  
Adult Body ◽  
Novel Alleles

scholarly journals Growth and Maturation in Development: A Fly’s Perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 1260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renald Delanoue ◽  
Nuria M. Romero
Keyword(s):  
Adult Stage ◽  
Body Height ◽  
Growth Hormones ◽  
Central Processor ◽  
Juvenile Period ◽  
Regulatory Pathways ◽  
Developmental Growth ◽  
Adult Body ◽  
Adult Fitness

In mammals like humans, adult fitness is improved due to resource allocation, investing energy in the developmental growth process during the juvenile period, and in reproduction at the adult stage. Therefore, the attainment of their target body height/size co-occurs with the acquisition of maturation, implying a need for coordination between mechanisms that regulate organismal growth and maturation timing. Insects like Drosophila melanogaster also define their adult body size by the end of the juvenile larval period. Recent studies in the fly have shown evolutionary conservation of the regulatory pathways controlling growth and maturation, suggesting the existence of common coordinator mechanisms between them. In this review, we will present an overview of the significant advancements in the coordination mechanisms ensuring developmental robustness in Drosophila. We will include (i) the characterization of feedback mechanisms between maturation and growth hormones, (ii) the recognition of a relaxin-like peptide Dilp8 as a central processor coordinating juvenile regeneration and time of maturation, and (iii) the identification of a novel coordinator mechanism involving the AstA/KISS system.

scholarly journals Social background, adult body-height and health

1999 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 911-918 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Silventoinen ◽  
E. Lahelma ◽  
O. Rahkonen
Keyword(s):  
Body Height ◽  
Social Background ◽  
Adult Body

scholarly journals Facial attractiveness: Variation, adaptiveness and consequences of facial preferences

2008 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Kościński
Keyword(s):  
Physiological State ◽  
Biological Evolution ◽  
Facial Attractiveness ◽  
Good Genes ◽  
Living Situation ◽  
Biological Quality ◽  
Younger Age ◽  
The Face ◽  
Facial Preferences ◽  
Many Sources

Facial attractiveness: Variation, adaptiveness and consequences of facial preferencesThis review embraces the following topics: intra- and inter-populational variation of facial preferences, relationship between facial attractiveness and mate value, biological and social effects of the perception of facial attractiveness, credibility of the adaptive perspective on facial preferences, and the phylogeny of facial attractiveness. Its main conclusions are as follows: (1) Many sources of inter-individual variation in assessments of facial attractiveness have been identified, e.g., the age, sex, biological quality, physiological state, personality, and living situation of the judge, as well as previously observed faces, physical similarity of the focal face to the judge's face, and acquaintance with and knowledge of the face owner. (2) Inter-populational consistency in perception of facial attractiveness is substantial and possesses both a biological and a cultural basis. (3) Facial attractiveness is a reliable cue to biological quality of the face owner, e.g., better parasite resistance, physical fitness, reproductive fitness, longevity, less mutational load, higher intelligence and better mental health. (4) Facially attractive people have more sexual partners, marry at a younger age, and remain single less frequently. Thereby, they have higher reproductive success than unattractive individuals. (5) As a whole, research supports the thesis that facial preferences are adaptive, that is, they evolved during the course of biological evolution because they assisted an individual in choosing a mate with good genes or a good personality.

scholarly journals Modelling Morquio A syndrome: an anthropometric study of body characteristics and stature

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Różdżyńska-Świątkowska ◽  
Krzysztof Szklanny ◽  
Jolanta Marucha ◽  
Anna Tylki-Szymańska
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Body Height ◽  
Lower Limbs ◽  
Lysosomal Storage ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Morquio A ◽  
Mps Iva ◽  
Characteristic Features ◽  
Body Stature ◽  
Morquio A Syndrome

Abstract Background: Morquio A syndrome, or mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) IVA is an autosomal recessive, life-limiting lysosomal storage disease caused by deficient activity of the enzyme galactosamine-6-sulfatase. Common early symptoms such as abnormalities of body stature can facilitate timely diagnosis. The aim of this study was to create a pattern of face and body stature based on anthropometric measurements taken from a cohort of Polish patients with MPS IVA. Methods: Analysis of 11 somatometric and 14 craniofacial features was performed on 20 patients with MPS IVA, aged from 3 months to 26 years. Diagnosis of MPS IVA was confirmed by enzymatic and molecular analysis. Two-tailed t-tests were used to compare mean values for body length and weight at birth between the MPS IVA patients and the general population. To show the degree and direction of deviation z-scores were calculated and then used to construct a model of an average MPS IVA patient. Results: Mean values for body height and weight at birth were greater for boys than for the general population. The observed pattern of head and body shape indicated that dwarfism occurred with increasing age as a result of relatively short trunk and lower limbs. Skeletal abnormalities included a bell-shaped chest with ratio of chest depth and chest width was significantly above the norm. The head and neck were relatively elongated in comparison to body height and tucked between narrow shoulders. The head was narrow and elongated, while the nose was short with wide nostrils. Conclusions: Multiple measurements – including age ranges – allowed the creation of a model that showed the most characteristic features of the MPS IVA phenotype.

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