B Acad Nat Med Paris
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B Acad Nat Med Paris · Oct 2006
[Public health education in France: challenges and future perspectives].
Public health difers from other fields of health education by its vast scope and by the diversity of its target populations. University training in public health is currently ensured in France by more than 300 permanent lecturers with significant research activity. ⋯ Currently, university training is poorly organized and coordinated in France. The creation of the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Santo Publique provides an opportunity to reorganize the training infrastructure and calls for a reassessment of the place of universities in public health education.
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In addition to aging, obesity is one of the most common underlying causes of osteoarthritis (OA). Mechanical loading, together with biochemical and systemic factors linked to altered lipid metabolism, are thought to contribute to the onset of OA. It has been suggested that OA is a systemic metabolic disease associated with lipid disorders affecting joint homeostasis. ⋯ Indeed, their relative levels in joints differ from that found in plasma. In particular, leptin levels are increased and adiponectin and resistin levels are reduced This hypothesis is supported by--leptin overexpression in OA cartilage and its correlation with the degree of cartilage destruction,--abundant leptin synthesis by osteophytes, and--the high leptin levels found in OA joints from female patients. This link between OA and adipokines provides new leads regarding the prevention of OA and the identification of new drug targets.