Biochemical property and gel-forming ability of mackerel (Auxis thazard) surimi prepared by ultrasonic assisted washing

A low gel-forming ability is needed to be encountered using the dark-fleshed fish as a raw material. Optimal washing process can be a principled way of improving the gelling properties because washing is the most important step for surimi production. This study aimed to investigate the effect of ultrasonic-assisted washing (UAW) on the biochemical properties and gel-forming ability of frigate mackerel (Auxis thazard) surimi. Unwashed mince and conventional washing (CW) with 3-cycle of water (10 min per cycle) were compared to UAW for 5 and 10 min per cycle. UAW tended to improve the lipid removal, reduce the TCA-soluble peptide, and increase the surface hydrophobicity of surimi, but it had no influence on the Ca²⁺-ATPase activity, reactive sulfhydryl content, haem protein content, and lipid oxidation. UAW for 5 min per cycle rendered the surimi with the highest gel strength, whiteness, and water holding capacity as well as a regular aggregated network. With this method, the washing time can be reduced to 50% compared to the CW. Therefore, UAW for 5 min per cycle was an alternative approach for the production of mackerel surimi.

Ultrasonic assisted washing (UAW) improved gel-forming ability of mackerel surimi. Washing time can be reduced up to 50% compared to the conventional washing.     

Heterozygous nonsense mutation SATB2 associated with cleft palate, osteoporosis, and cognitive defects

Studies of human chromosomal aberrations and knockout (KO) mice have suggested SATB2 as a candidate gene for a human malformation syndrome of craniofacial patterning and brain development. Of 59 unrelated patients with craniofacial dysmorphism, with or without mental retardation, one 36-year-old man had a nonsynonymous mutation in SATB2. The affected individual exhibited craniofacial dysmorphisms including cleft palate, generalized osteoporosis, profound mental retardation, epilepsy and a jovial personality. He carries a de novo germline nonsense mutation (c.715C>T, p.R239X) in the exon 6 of SATB2. Expression studies showed that the mutant RNA was stable, expected to produce a truncated protein predicted to retain its dimerization domain and exert a dominant negative effect. This new syndrome is the first determined to result from mutation of a gene within the family that encodes nuclear matrix-attachment region (MAR) proteins.     

Clinical effect of a triclosan containing dentifrice on gingivitis during pregnancy and post-partum

One hundred forty pregnant women 3 months gestation were enrolled in a 9 month, double-blind clinical study to evaluate the effect of 0.3% triclosan/copolymer dentifrice on gingivitis, compared to a placebo dentifrice. Women were stratified into two balanced groups according to their baseline gingivitis scores. They then received oral prophylaxis and were assigned to use either a placebo or the triclosan dentifrice for the next 9 months. The 3, 5 and 9 month results of this study showed that the triclosan dentifrice provided statistically significant reductions in gingivitis of 19.73, 27.91and 38.45%, respectively, compared to the placebo dentifrice.     

Upper airway stimulation vs other upper airway surgical procedures for OSA: a meta-analysis

Sleep and Breathing - The aim was to compare the outcomes of upper airway stimulation (Stim) and other upper airway surgical procedures (Surg) in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)....     

Developing the Thai Siriraj Psoriatic Arthritis Screening Tool and validating the Thai Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool and the Early Arthritis for Psoriatic Patients questionnaire

To validate the Thai language version of the Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool (PEST) and the Early Arthritis for Psoriatic Patients Questionnaire (EARP), as well as also to develop a new tool for screening psoriatic arthritis (PsA) among psoriasis (Ps) patients. This was a cross-sectional study. Ps patients visiting the psoriasis clinic at Siriraj Hospital were recruited. They completed the EARP and PEST. Full musculoskeletal history, examination, and radiography were evaluated. PsA was diagnosed by a rheumatologist’s evaluation and fulfillment of the classification criteria for psoriatic arthritis. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves, sensitivity, and specificity were used to evaluate the performances of the tools. The Siriraj Psoriatic Arthritis Screening Tool (SiPAT) contained questions most relevant to peripheral arthritis, axial inflammation, and enthesitis, selected from multivariate analysis. Of a total of 159 patients, the prevalence of PsA was 78.6 %. The ROC curve analyses of Thai EARP, PEST, and SiPAT were 0.90 (95 % CI 0.84, 0.96), 0.85 (0.78, 0.92), and 0.89 (0.83, 0.95), respectively. The sensitivities of SiPAT, Thai EARP, and PEST were 91.0, 83.0, and 72.0 %, respectively, while the specificities were 69.0, 79.3, and 89.7 %, respectively. All screening questionnaires showed good diagnostic performances. SiPAT could be considered as a screening tool with its desirable properties: higher sensitivity and taking less time. Thai PEST and EARP could possibly be sequentially administered for people with a positive test from SiPAT to reduce the number of false positives.     

Effects of potassium ions on dentine sensitivity in man

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of applying 500 mmol/l KCl at a pressure of 150 mm Hg above atmospheric to exposed dentine on pain sensation evoked by probing and air blast stimuli in human subjects. DESIGN: The experiments were carried out on 14 pairs of premolars in 14 human subjects (aged 17-30 years). Dentine was exposed at the tip of the buccal cusp, etched with acid and covered with saline, then 500 mmol/l KCl in Ringer's was applied at a pressure of 150 mm Hg for 4 min. Mechanical probing and air-drying stimuli were performed before and 2, 10, 20, 30 min after applying the KCl solution. The subject indicated the intensity of any pain produced on a visual analogue scale (VAS). Pulpal blood flow was recorded with a laser Doppler flow meter. Exactly the same procedure was carried out on the contralateral tooth except that 500 mmol/l NaCl in Ringer's was used in place of the KCl solution. RESULTS: The pain responses to mechanical probing and air blast stimuli were significantly reduced during the first 10 min after applying the KCl but not the NaCl solution. Pulpal blood flow did not change significantly after either treatment. CONCLUSION: Potassium ions, when applied to exposed dentine at a pressure of 150 mm Hg above atmospheric, produced temporary block of impulse conduction in sensory nerve endings in the dentine or pulp.     

Effect of the topical application of 50% lignocaine hydrochloride on the sensitivity of dentine in man

ObjectiveTo determine the effect of topical applications of 50% (w/v) lignocaine HCl on the sensitivity of human dentine.DesignThe experiments were carried out on 12 premolars scheduled for extraction as part of orthodontic treatment in nine subjects (ages: 16–29 years). Dentine was exposed by cutting a cavity at the tip of the buccal cusp of each tooth, and etched with 35% phosphoric acid. The sensitivity of the exposed dentine to probing and air-blast stimuli was assessed before and after applying either 50% (w/v) lignocaine HCl solution or distilled water to the exposed dentine for 10 min. Changes in the sensitivity of the dentine were monitored for up to 160 min. The subject indicated the intensity of any pain produced by marking a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS).ResultsBefore treatment, both forms of stimulus evoked pain in all the teeth. The median VAS score with probing was 40 mm and, with air-blast stimulation, 30 mm. 50% lignocaine HCl produced a progressive fall in these scores and after 30 min there was no response to either probing or air-blast stimulation. The responses started to return 30–160 min after the lignocaine had been washed off. Water had no effect.ConclusionsLignocaine will diffuse into exposed dentine and block the pain evoked by probing and air-blast stimuli provided that a sufficiently steep diffusion gradient is created. A topical application of a 50% (w/v) solution of lignocaine HCl for 10 min will anaesthetise dentine within 30 min.     

Non-specific accumulation of glycosphingolipids in GNE myopathy

Background

UDP-GlcNAc 2-epimerase/ManNAc 6-kinase (GNE) is a bifunctional enzyme responsible for the first committed steps in the synthesis of sialic acid, a common terminal monosaccharide in both protein and lipid glycosylation. GNE mutations are responsible for a rare autosomal recessive neuromuscular disorder, GNE myopathy (also called hereditary inclusion body myopathy). The connection between the impairment of sialic acid synthesis and muscle pathology in GNE myopathy remains poorly understood.

Methods

Glycosphingolipid (GSL) analysis was performed by HPLC in multiple models of GNE myopathy, including patients’ fibroblasts and plasma, control fibroblasts with inhibited GNE epimerase activity through a novel imino sugar, and tissues of Gne^M712T/M712T knock-in mice.

Results

Not only neutral GSLs, but also sialylated GSLs, were significantly increased compared to controls in all tested models of GNE myopathy. Treatment of GNE myopathy fibroblasts with N-acetylmannosamine (ManNAc), a sialic acid precursor downstream of GNE epimerase activity, ameliorated the increased total GSL concentrations.

Conclusion

GNE myopathy models have increased total GSL concentrations. ManNAc supplementation results in decrease of GSL levels, linking abnormal increase of total GSLs in GNE myopathy to defects in the sialic acid biosynthetic pathway. These data advocate for further exploring GSL concentrations as an informative biomarker, not only for GNE myopathy, but also for other disorders of sialic acid metabolism.