The physical environment in family childcare homes and children's physical activity.

BACKGROUND: Family childcare homes (FCCHs) are the second largest provider of childcare in the United States, yet little is known about how this setting influences children's physical activity, particularly related to the physical environment. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine what aspects of the FCCH physical environment facilitate or hinder children's physical activity. METHODS: Data were collected from 166 FCCH providers and 496 preschool-aged children in 2013-2014 as part of the Keys to Healthy FCCHs study. Children's moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was measured using Actigraph GT3X+ accelerometers. Wear data from the childcare day were isolated, and cut-points were applied in order to calculate children's minutes of MVPA per hour. FCCH-level estimates of child MVPA per hour were calculated. Indoor and outdoor physical environment characteristics were assessed during a 2-day observation using the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation modified for FCCHs. General linear models were used to examine the relationship between indoor, portable play equipment, and outdoor FCCH physical environment characteristics and children's MVPA per hour. RESULTS: Only indoor play space was significantly associated with children's MVPA (ß = 0.33; p = .034), indicating that when provided with more indoor space for active play, children were more physically active. No significant associations were noted between portable play equipment or the outdoor environment and children's MVPA. CONCLUSIONS: Indoor space was the only physical environment characteristic associated with children's MVPA, suggesting that teaching FCCH providers how to best utilize their indoor play space for active play may be a way to promote children's physical activity. Futures studies should explore the impact of other environmental characteristics of the FCCH (e.g., provider practices and policies) on children's physical activity.

Social marketing approaches to nutrition and physical activity interventions in early care and education centres: a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: Social marketing is a promising planning approach for influencing voluntary lifestyle behaviours, but its application to nutrition and physical activity interventions in the early care and education setting remains unknown. METHODS: PubMed, ISI Web of Science, PsycInfo and the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health were systematically searched to identify interventions targeting nutrition and/or physical activity behaviours of children enrolled in early care centres between 1994 and 2016. Content analysis methods were used to capture information reflecting eight social marketing benchmark criteria. RESULTS: The review included 135 articles representing 77 interventions. Two interventions incorporated all eight benchmark criteria, but the majority included fewer than four. Each intervention included behaviour and methods mix criteria, and more than half identified audience segments. Only one-third of interventions incorporated customer orientation, theory, exchange and insight. Only six interventions addressed competing behaviours. We did not find statistical significance for the effectiveness of interventions on child-level diet, physical activity or anthropometric outcomes based on the number of benchmark criteria used. CONCLUSION: This review highlights opportunities to apply social marketing to obesity prevention interventions in early care centres. Social marketing could be an important strategy for early childhood obesity prevention efforts, and future research investigations into its effects are warranted.

Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein-2A-induced DeltaNp63alpha expression is associated with impaired epithelial-cell differentiation.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is an oncogenic gamma-herpes virus associated with malignancies that develop in both lymphoid and epithelial cells including nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The EBV protein, latent membrane protein 2A (LMP2A), is expressed in NPC and can modulate epithelial proliferation, transformation and differentiation, and as such may promote malignancy. A key regulator of epithelial-cell differentiation is the transcription factor p63, a member of the p53 family. This study examines the potential contribution of p63 to LMP2A-mediated inhibition of epithelial-cell differentiation. Stable expression of LMP2A increased the protein level and stability of the DeltaNp63alpha isoform and in two epithelial cell lines, LMP2A interacted with DeltaNp63alpha under stable- and transient-expression systems. LMP2A and DeltaNp63alpha were localized to the cytoplasm and nuclear membrane and co-immunoprecipitated in the same fractions. Following induction of epithelial-cell differentiation by calcium, expression of differentiation markers was impaired in both DeltaNp63alpha- and LMP2A-expressing cells. Induction of p63alpha, association of p63alpha with LMP2A and impairment of differentiation required the PY and immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) signaling motif of LMP2A. By associating with and being regulated by LMP2A, DeltaNp63alpha may function as a unique regulator of LMP2A effects on epithelial differentiation and contribute to EBV-associated epithelial cancers.