Invited Commentary: Mixing multiple imputation and bootstrapping for variance estimation.

In 2023, Martinez et al. examined trends in the inclusion, conceptualization, operationalization and analysis of race and ethnicity among studies published in US epidemiology journals. Based on a random sample of papers (N=1,050) published from 1995-2018, the authors describe the treatment of race, ethnicity, and ethnorace in the analytic sample (N=414, 39% of baseline sample) over time. Between 32% and 19% of studies in each time stratum lacked race data; 61% to 34% lacked ethnicity data. The review supplies stark evidence of the routine omission and variability of measures of race and ethnicity in epidemiologic research. Informed by public health critical race praxis (PHCRP), this commentary discusses the implications of four problems the findings suggest pervade epidemiology: 1) a general lack of clarity about what race and ethnicity are; 2) the limited use of critical race or other theory; 3) an ironic lack of rigor in measuring race and ethnicity; and, 4) the ordinariness of racism and white supremacy in epidemiology. The identified practices reflect neither current publication guidelines nor the state of the knowledge on race, ethnicity and racism; therefore, we conclude by offering recommendations to move epidemiology toward more rigorous research in an increasingly diverse society.

Conducting density-sampled case-control studies using survey data with complex sampling designs: A simulation study.

PURPOSE: Population-based surveys are possible sources from which to draw representative control data for case-control studies. However, these surveys involve complex sampling that could lead to biased estimates of measures of association if not properly accounted for in analyses. Approaches to incorporating complex-sampled controls in density-sampled case-control designs have not been examined. METHODS: We used a simulation study to evaluate the performance of different approaches to estimating incidence density ratios (IDR) from case-control studies with controls drawn from complex survey data using risk-set sampling. In simulated population data, we applied four survey sampling approaches, with varying survey sizes, and assessed the performance of four analysis methods for incorporating survey-based controls. RESULTS: Estimates of the IDR were unbiased for methods that conducted risk-set sampling with probability of selection proportional to survey weights. Estimates of the IDR were biased when sampling weights were not incorporated, or only included in regression modeling. The unbiased analysis methods performed comparably and produced estimates with variance comparable to biased methods. Variance increased and confidence interval coverage decreased as survey size decreased. CONCLUSIONS: Unbiased estimates are obtainable in risk-set sampled case-control studies using controls drawn from complex survey data when weights are properly incorporated.

Actomyosin-Mediated Tension Orchestrates Uncoupled Respiration in Adipose Tissues.

The activation of brown/beige adipose tissue (BAT) metabolism and the induction of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) expression are essential for BAT-based strategies to improve metabolic homeostasis. Here, we demonstrate that BAT utilizes actomyosin machinery to generate tensional responses following adrenergic stimulation, similar to muscle tissues. The activation of actomyosin mechanics is critical for the acute induction of oxidative metabolism and uncoupled respiration in UCP1+ adipocytes. Moreover, we show that actomyosin-mediated elasticity regulates the thermogenic capacity of adipocytes via the mechanosensitive transcriptional co-activators YAP and TAZ, which are indispensable for normal BAT function. These biomechanical signaling mechanisms may inform future strategies to promote the expansion and activation of brown/beige adipocytes.