Volume 13 Issue 8, August 2017

Diabetic ketoacidosis is a worrying complication associated with the use of sodium/glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) or T2DM. A recent analysis of data in the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System by Fadini and colleagues adds to this concern.

Many students experience weight gain during their first year of college, which has been attributed to environmental changes, including eating habits and activity patterns. A new study implicates the endogenous metabolite and sugar substitute, erythritol, as a novel physiological marker predictive of vulnerability to increased adiposity.

In this Review, Foulds et al. posit that endocrine-disrupting chemicals are an unappreciated driver of the development and progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Experimental animal studies supporting this association are discussed, together with the challenges of establishing a causal link in humans.

This Review provides a framework for understanding how ambient temperature affects metabolic, immune and cardiovascular phenotypes in mice, as well as the importance of ambient temperature on modelling of human diseases in these small rodents. Ganeshan and Chawla suggest that warming the mouse might enable more predictive modelling of human diseases and therapies.

Governments and scientific societies regularly update recommendations for intake of vitamin D, especially for those individuals who have limited exposure to sunlight — the main source of vitamin D. Here, Roger Bouillon presents an overview of these guidelines, highlighting common ground and areas of discord.

Osteosarcoma typically occurs during the adolescent growth spurt and is the most common primary cancer of bone. Here, Sharon A. Savage and colleagues discuss how advances in germline and somatic genetics, tumour biology and animal models have enhanced our understanding of osteosarcoma aetiology and could lead to new therapeutic approaches to treat the disease.

The concept of food addiction as an explanation for the rise in obesity has become increasingly popular. In this Opinion article, Graham Finlayson critically evaluates the food addiction hypothesis and highlights several problems with its use.