An enzymatic cow immunity-targeted approach to reducing milk somatic cell count: 3. A comparative field trial

The effectiveness of lysosubtilin and lysozyme, a combination thereof and a combination of these enzyme preparations (each alone and in combination) with vitamins as possible coimmunostimulants, which reduced the milk somatic cell count (SCC), were compared in a field trial. Seventy second to third lactation Lithuanian Black and White cows with a similar milk SCC ([750±200]×10³?cells?ml^?1) and of a similar weight (550±50?kg) were involved in the trial and were randomly allocated into seven groups (n=10). Lysosubtilin and/or lysozyme at doses of 0.02?g?kg?wt^?1 and 0.2?g?kg?wt^?1, respectively, and vitamins A, C and E (if any) at doses twice as high as required for nutritional adequacy were given, except for control group cows, once daily with feed for ten successive days. After four-, seven-, and ten-day periods of giving enzymes (with or without vitamins) a significant reduction of SCC (p<0.001) was observed in the milk of cows that received a combination of lysozyme with vitamins. On the tenth day a significant reduction of SCC (p<0.001) was also observed in the milk of cows that received lysozyme and lysosubtilin (each alone; without vitamins) or lysosubtilin in combination with vitamins. At the end of the trial (on the 15th day) SCC in milk of cows of all of the study groups was significantly lower (p<0.001) when compared with that of the control group.     

Bio-Based Crosslinked Polymers Synthesized from Functionalized Soybean Oil and Squalene by Thiol–Ene UV Curing

The development of polymers photopolymerized from renewable resources are extensively growing as fulfills green chemistry and green engineering principles. With the rapid growth of consumerism, research on innovative starting materials for the preparation of polymers may help to reduce the negative impact of petroleum-based plastic materials on the global ecosystem and on animal and human health. Therefore, bio-based crosslinked polymers have been synthesized from functionalized soybean oil and squalene by thiol–ene ultra-violet (UV) curing. First, thiol–ene UV curing of squalene was performed to introduce thiol functional groups. Then, hexathiolated squalene was used as a crosslinker in click UV curing of acrylated epoxidized soybean oil. Two photoinitiators, 2-hydroxy-2-methylpropiophenone and ethylphenyl (2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl) phosphinate, were tested in different quantities. Rheological properties of the resins were monitored by real-time photorheometry. The characterization of obtained polymers was performed by differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetry, and Shore A hardness measurements. Polymers possessed higher storage modulus, thermal characteristics, Shore A hardness, and lower swelling value when ethylphenyl (2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl) phosphinate was used as photoinitiator.     

Modular kinetic analysis of the adenine nucleotide translocator-mediated effects of palmitoyl-CoA on the oxidative phosphorylation in isolated rat liver mitochondria

To test whether long-chain fatty acyl-CoA esters link obesity with type 2 diabetes through inhibition of the mitochondrial adenine nucleotide translocator, we applied a system-biology approach, dual modular kinetic analysis, with mitochondrial membrane potential (Deltapsi) and the fraction of matrix ATP as intermediates. We found that 5 mumol/l palmitoyl-CoA inhibited adenine nucleotide translocator, without direct effect on other components of oxidative phosphorylation. Indirect effects depended on how oxidative phosphorylation was regulated. When the electron donor and phosphate acceptor were in excess, and the mitochondrial "work" flux was allowed to vary, palmitoyl-CoA decreased phosphorylation flux by 38% and the fraction of ATP in the medium by 39%. Deltapsi increased by 15 mV, and the fraction of matrix ATP increased by 46%. Palmitoyl-CoA had a stronger effect when the flux through the mitochondrial electron transfer chain was maintained constant: Deltapsi increased by 27 mV, and the fraction of matrix ATP increased 2.6 times. When oxidative phosphorylation flux was kept constant by adjusting the rate using hexokinase, Deltapsi and the fraction of ATP were not affected. Palmitoyl-CoA increased the extramitochondrial AMP concentration significantly. The effects of palmitoyl-CoA in our model system support the proposed mechanism linking obesity and type 2 diabetes through an effect on adenine nucleotide translocator.     

Trend in eating habits among Lithuanian school-aged children in context of social inequality: three cross-sectional surveys 2002, 2006 and 2010

Background  

Intermittent monitoring of food intake at the population level is essential for the planning and evaluation of national dietary intervention programs. Social-economic changes in Lithuania have likely affected dietary habits, but only a limited number of temporal studies on food intake trends among young population groups have been published. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in eating habits among Lithuanian school-aged children from 2002 to 2010, and to explore the association of these changes with the respondents' reported socio-economic status (SES).     

Density of nerve fibres in eutopic endometrium in women with endometriosis

Endometriosis is the disease which usually takes a wide range of time to be diagnosed. Recently, the investigators found that endometriosis could be diagnosed using the density of nerve fibers in eutopic endometrium after taking endometrium bioptate. The aim of the article is to summarize the existing literature on density of nerve fibers in eutopic endometrium in women with and without endometriosis. In this review were involved only those studies which used the same exclusion criteria and the same technology to detect nerve fibers in eutopic endometrium. Our review confirmed the position of all studies’ results that detection of specific nerve fibers within eutopic endometrium using minimally invasive endometrial biopsy technique could be widely used in clinical practice to diagnose endometriosis with high specificity and sensitivity.     

A High Prevalence of Intracranial Stenosis in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease and the Diagnostic Value of Transcranial Duplex Sonography

Background: According to the data from the population-based Rotterdam study, intracranial carotid artery calcification detected by computed tomography is very common and contributed to 75% of all strokes. The aim of the present study was to estimate the prevalence of intracranial stenosis (IS) using noninvasive transcranial color-coded duplex sonography (TCCS) in neurologically asymptomatic patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: Three hundred and eighty-nine patients with angiographically-confirmed, severe CAD were included prospectively. All of them were examined using extracranial and TCCS. Results: Out of 389 patients (age 66.7 ± 9.2, 39-88), 237 (61%) were diagnosed with 3 vessels disease and 152 patients (39%) with left stem disease with/without 3 vessels damage. Transcranial sonography revealed at least 1 IS in 63.6% of echo positive patients (220/346). IS was found in 127 (61.4%) patients with 3 vessels disease, 20 patients (58.8%) with isolated left stem disease, and 73 patients (69.5%) with 3 vessels and left stem disease (P?=?.305). In the case of significant (≥50%) extracranial internal carotid artery stenosis, intracranial stenosis were detected in 84.8% (50 of 59), in the case of mild (<50%) stenosis, in 59.2% (170 of 287), P < .001. Conclusions: It was found that two thirds of patients with advanced CAD have a silent IS. TCCS is a reliable method for the evaluation of intracranial atherosclerosis in such patients in order to gain useful information about cerebrovascular disease as a risk factor for stroke.     

Breast cancer measurements with magnetic resonance imaging,ultrasonography, and mammography

Summary In 1986, the National Cancer Institute published its cancer control objectives for the nation, which included projected reductions in breast cancer mortality. The reductions were estimated to be 25.0% from reducing fat, 16.0% from expanding use of breast cancer screening services, and 14.3% from expanding access to state-of-the-art breast cancer treatment. During the same decade, the U.S. population aged and became significantly more ethnically diverse, and accompanying this increase in ethnic diversity was endemic poverty, disproportionately experienced by black and Hispanic minorities. These populations may be seen as medically underserved. With respect to breast cancer, as well as many other cancers, the medically underserved are understudied, not well understood by many in the medical and academic research community, and attended by health care institutions that are under-funded and often do not have the resources necessary to ensure access to state-of-the-art cancer screening, clinical follow-up, diagnosis, and treatment. At the same time, medically underserved women are more likely to be diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer, and some groups (e.g. black women) bear the greatest breast cancer mortality burden in the nation. In this special issue of Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, eight papers describe what we know and what we don't about breast cancer prevention and control in medically underserved populations.     

CD31+, CD38+, CD44+, and CD103+ lymphocytes in peripheral blood,bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and lung biopsy tissue in sarcoid patients and controls

BackgroundThe mechanisms driving the transition from inflammation to fibrosis in sarcoidosis patients are poorly understood; prognostic features are lacking. Immune cell profiling may provide insights into pathogenesis and prognostic factors of the disease. This study aimed to establish associations in simultaneous of lymphocyte subset profiles in the blood, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and lung biopsy tissue in the patients with newly diagnosed sarcoidosis.MethodsA total of 71 sarcoid patients (SPs) and 20 healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled into the study. CD31, CD38, CD44, CD103 positive T lymphocytes in blood and BALF were analysed. Additionally, the densities of CD4, CD8, CD38, CD44, CD103 positive cells in lung tissue biopsies were estimated by digital image analysis.ResultsMain findings: (I) increase of percentage of CD3⁺CD4⁺CD38⁺ in BALF and blood, and increase of percentage of CD3⁺CD4⁺CD44⁺ in BALF in Löfgren syndrome patients comparing with patients without Löfgren syndrome, (II) increase of percentage of CD3⁺CD4⁺103⁺ in BALF and in blood in patients without Löfgren syndrome (comparing with Löfgren syndrome patients) and increase of percentage of CD3⁺CD4⁺103⁺ in BALF and in blood in more advanced sarcoidosis stage. (III) Increasing percentage of BALF CD3⁺CD4⁺CD31⁺ in sarcoidosis patients when comparing with controls independently of presence of Löfgren syndrome, smoking status or stage of sarcoidosis. Several significant correlations were found.ConclusionsLymphocyte subpopulations in blood, BALF, and lung tissue were substantially different in SPs at the time of diagnosis compared to HCs. CD3⁺CD4⁺CD31⁺ in BALF might be a potential supporting marker for the diagnosis of sarcoidosis. CD3⁺CD4⁺CD38⁺ in BALF and blood and CD3⁺CD4⁺CD44⁺ in BALF may be markers of the acute immune response in sarcoidosis patients. CD4⁺CD103⁺ T-cells in BALF and in blood are markers of the persistent immune response in sarcoidosis patients and are potential prognostic features of the chronic course of this disease.