The meaning that people with severe mental illnesses ascribe to e-health in encounters with healthcare professionals - A repeat interview study

This study sought to explore the meaning that people with severe mental illnesses attribute to e-health solutions regarding user involvement and encounters with healthcare professionals. A qualitative design with a social phenomenological approach was applied, and data were collected via repeat interviews. Using a purposive sampling strategy, eight people with severe mental illness were interviewed two times between August 2021 to May 2022, at three different treatment sites in southern Denmark. To be included, participants needed to be 18-65 years of age, diagnosed with severe mental illness (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or depression), and using an e-health solution in collaboration with a health professional. The interviews lasted between 20 and 70 min and were audio recorded and then transcribed. The data were analysed with Braun and Clarke's 6-step thematic analysis. Participants experienced the use of an e-health solution as helpful for structuring their everyday lives, and e-health used together with healthcare professionals was considered to have a positive impact on the collaboration. The participants experienced feeling involved and in control when e-health solutions were used, which engaged them in their treatment. Furthermore, the participants found it important to have had some in-person meetings with healthcare professionals to build trust before the e-health solutions could be implemented successfully. E-health solutions used in collaboration with a trusted healthcare professional whom the participants had met in person tended to affect treatment engagement positively.

Effects of short-term high-fat overfeeding on genome-wide DNA methylation in the skeletal muscle of healthy young men

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS

Energy-dense diets that are high in fat are associated with a risk of metabolic diseases. The underlying molecular mechanisms could involve epigenetics, as recent data show altered DNA methylation of putative type 2 diabetes candidate genes in response to high-fat diets. We examined the effect of a short-term high-fat overfeeding (HFO) diet on genome-wide DNA methylation patterns in human skeletal muscle.

METHODS

Skeletal muscle biopsies were obtained from 21 healthy young men after ingestion of a short-term HFO diet and a control diet, in a randomised crossover setting. DNA methylation was measured in 27,578 CpG sites/14,475 genes using Illumina's Infinium Bead Array. Candidate gene expression was determined by quantitative real-time PCR.

RESULTS

HFO introduced widespread DNA methylation changes affecting 6,508 genes (45%), with a maximum methylation change of 13.0 percentage points. The HFO-induced methylation changes were only partly and non-significantly reversed after 6-8 weeks. Alterations in DNA methylation levels primarily affected genes involved in inflammation, the reproductive system and cancer. Few gene expression changes were observed and these had poor correlation to DNA methylation.

CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION

The genome-wide DNA methylation changes induced by the short-term HFO diet could have implications for our understanding of transient epigenetic regulation in humans and its contribution to the development of metabolic diseases. The slow reversibility suggests a methylation build-up with HFO, which over time may influence gene expression levels.