Biomarkers for monitoring intestinal health in poultry : present status and future perspectives

Intestinal health is determined by host (immunity, mucosal barrier), nutritional, microbial and environmental factors. Deficiencies in intestinal health are associated with shifts in the composition of the intestinal microbiome (dysbiosis), leakage of the mucosal barrier and/or inflammation. Since the ban on growth promoting antimicrobials in animal feed, these dysbiosis-related problems have become a major issue, especially in intensive animal farming. The economical and animal welfare consequences are considerable. Consequently, there is a need for continuous monitoring of the intestinal health status, particularly in intensively reared animals, where the intestinal function is often pushed to the limit. In the current review, the recent advances in the field of intestinal health biomarkers, both in human and veterinary medicine are discussed, trying to identify present and future markers of intestinal health in poultry. The most promising new biomarkers will be stable molecules ending up in the feces and litter that can be quantified, preferably using rapid and simple pen-side tests. It is unlikely, however, that a single biomarker will be sufficient to follow up all aspects of intestinal health. Combinations of multiple biomarkers and/or metabarcoding, metagenomic, metatranscriptomic, metaproteomic and metabolomic approaches will be the way to go in the future. Candidate biomarkers currently are being investigated by many research groups, but the validation will be a major challenge, due to the complexity of intestinal health in the field

Suppressing diborane production during the hydrogen release of metal borohydrides: The example of alloyed Al(BH4_4)3_3

Aluminum borohydride (Al(BH$_4$)$_3$) is an example of a promising hydrogen storage material with exceptional hydrogen densities by weight and volume and a low hydrogen desorption temperature. But, unfortunately, its production of diborane (B$_2$H$_6$) gases upon heating to release the hydrogen restricts its practical use. To elucidate this issue, we investigate the properties of a number of metal borohydrides with the same problem and find that the electronegativity of the metal cation is not the best descriptor of diborane production. We show that, instead, the closely related formation enthalpy is a better descriptor and we find that diborane production is an exponential function thereof. We conclude that diborane production is sufficiently suppressed for formation enthalpies of $-$80 kJ/mol BH$_4$ or lower, providing specific design guidelines to tune existing metal borohydrides or synthesize new ones. We then use first-principles methods to study the effects of Sc alloying in Al(BH$_4$)$_3$. Our results for the thermodynamic properties of the Al$_{1-x}$Sc$_x$(BH$_4$)$_3$ alloy clearly show the stabilizing effect of Sc alloying and thus the suppression of diborane production. We conclude that stabilizing Al(BH$_4$)$_3$ and similar borohydrides via alloying or other means is a promising route to suppress diborane production and thus develop viable hydrogen storage materials.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figure

Heme oxygenase-1 as a modulator of intestinal inflammation development and progression

Indexación: Scopus.Heme Oxygenase 1 (HMOX1) is an enzyme that catalyzes the reaction that degrades the heme group contained in several important proteins, such as hemoglobin, myoglobin, and cytochrome p450. The enzymatic reaction catalyzed by HMOX1 generates Fe2+, biliverdin and CO. It has been shown that HMOX1 activity and the by-product CO can downmodulate the damaging immune response in several models of intestinal inflammation as a result of pharmacological induction of HMOX1 expression and the administration of non-toxic amounts of CO. Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, which includes Crohn's Disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC), are one of the most studied ailments associated to HMOX1 effects. However, microbiota imbalances and infections are also important factors influencing the occurrence of acute and chronic intestinal inflammation, where HMOX1 activity may play a major role. As part of this article we discuss the immune modulatory capacity of HMOX1 during IBD, as well during the infections and interactions with the microbiota that contribute to this inflammatory disease. © 2018 Sebastián, Salazar, Coronado-Arrázola, Schultz, Vallejos, Berkowitz, álvarez-Lobos, Riedel, Kalergis and Bueno.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.01956/ful

Taxonomic Features and Comparison of the Gut Microbiome from Two Edible Fungus-Farming Termites (Macrotermes falciger, M. natalensis) Harvested in the Vhembe District of Limpopo, South Africa

Background Termites are an important food resource for many human populations around the world, and are a good supply of nutrients. The fungus-farming ‘higher’ termite members of Macrotermitinae are also consumed by modern great apes and are implicated as critical dietary resources for early hominins. While the chemical nutritional composition of edible termites is well known, their microbiomes are unexplored in the context of human health. Here we sequenced the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene of gut microbiota extracted from the whole intestinal tract of two Macrotermes sp. soldiers collected from the Limpopo region of South Africa. Results Major and minor soldier subcastes of M. falciger exhibit consistent differences in taxonomic representation, and are variable in microbial presence and abundance patterns when compared to another edible but less preferred species, M. natalensis. Subcaste differences include alternate patterns in sulfate-reducing bacteria and methanogenic Euryarchaeota abundance, and differences in abundance between Alistipes and Ruminococcaceae. M. falciger minor soldiers and M. natalensissoldiers have similar microbial profiles, likely from close proximity to the termite worker castes, particularly during foraging and fungus garden cultivation. Compared with previously published termite and cockroach gut microbiome data, the taxonomic representation was generally split between termites that directly digest lignocellulose and humic substrates and those that consume a more distilled form of nutrition as with the omnivorous cockroaches and fungus-farming termites. Lastly, to determine if edible termites may point to a shared reservoir for rare bacterial taxa found in the gut microbiome of humans, we focused on the genus Treponema. The majority of Treponemasequences from edible termite gut microbiota most closely relate to species recovered from other termites or from environmental samples, except for one novel OTU strain, which clustered separately with Treponema found in hunter-gatherer human groups. Conclusions Macrotermes consumed by humans display special gut microbial arrangements that are atypical for a lignocellulose digesting invertebrate, but are instead suited to the simplified nutrition in the fungus-farmer diet. Our work brings to light the particular termite microbiome features that should be explored further as avenues in human health, agricultural sustainability, and evolutionary research

Colonic content: effect of diet, meals, and defecation

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Bendezú, Á., Mego, M., Monclús, E., Merino, X., Accarino, A., Malagelada, J., Navazo, I., Azpiroz, F. Colonic content: effect of diet, meals, and defecation. "Neurogastroenterology and motility", Febrer 2017, vol. 29, núm. 2, which has been published in final form at [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.recursos.biblioteca.upc.edu/doi/10.1111/nmo.12930/full]. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.The metabolic activity of colonic microbiota is influenced by diet; however, the relationship between metabolism and colonic content is not known. Our aim was to determine the effect of meals, defecation, and diet on colonic content. Methods: In 10 healthy subjects, two abdominal MRI scans were acquired during fasting, 1 week apart, and after 3 days on low- and high-residue diets, respectively. With each diet, daily fecal output and the number of daytime anal gas evacuations were measured. On the first study day, a second scan was acquired 4 hours after a test meal (n=6) or after 4 hours with nil ingestion (n=4). On the second study day, a scan was also acquired after a spontaneous bowel movement. Results: On the low-residue diet, daily fecal volume averaged 145 ± 15 mL; subjects passed 10.6 ± 1.6 daytime anal gas evacuations and, by the third day, non-gaseous colonic content was 479 ± 36 mL. The high-residue diet increased the three parameters to 16.5 ± 2.9 anal gas evacuations, 223 ± 19 mL fecal output, and 616 ± 55 mL non-gaseous colonic content (P<.05 vs low-residue diet for all). On the low-residue diet, non-gaseous content in the right colon had increased by 41 ± 11 mL, 4 hours after the test meal, whereas no significant change was observed after 4-hour fast (-15 ± 8 mL; P=.006 vs fed). Defecation significantly reduced the non-gaseous content in distal colonic segments. Conclusion & inferences: Colonic content exhibits physiologic variations with an approximate 1/3 daily turnover produced by meals and defecation, superimposed over diet-related day-to-day variations.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

No harm, no foul: The outcome bias in ethical judgments

We present six studies demonstrating that outcome information biases ethical judgments of others' ethically-questionable behaviors. In particular, we show that the same behaviors produce more ethical condemnation when they happen to produce bad rather than good outcomes, even if the outcomes are determined by chance. Our studies show that individuals judge behaviors as less ethical, more blameworthy, and punish them more harshly, when such behaviors led to undesirable consequences, even if they saw those behaviors as acceptable before they knew its consequences. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that a rational, analytic mindset can override the effects of one's intuitions in ethical judgments. Implications for both research and practice are discussed.outcome bias, unethical behavior, judgment, ethical decision making

The U.S. Motor Vehicle Industry: Confronting a New Dynamic in the Global Economy

[Excerpt] This report provides an in-depth analysis of the 2009 crisis in the U.S. auto industry and its prospects for regaining domestic and global competitiveness. It also analyzes business and policy issues arising from the unprecedented restructurings that occurred within the industry. The starting point for this analysis is June-July 2009, with General Motors Company (GM or new GM) and Chrysler Group LLC (or new Chrysler) incorporated as new companies, having selectively acquired many, but not all, assets from their predecessor companies. The year 2009 was marked by recession and a crisis in global credit markets; the bankruptcy of General Motors Corporation and Chrysler LLC; the incorporation of successor companies under the auspices of the U.S. Treasury; hundreds of parts supplier bankruptcies; plant closings and worker buyouts; the cash-for-clunkers program; and increasing production and sales at year’s end. This report also examines the relative successes of the Ford Motor Company and the increasing presence of foreign-owned original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), foreign-owned parts manufacturers, competition from imported vehicles, and a serious buildup of global overcapacity that potentially threatens the recovery of the major U.S. domestic producers. This report, which establishes a context for examining the industry and analyzes a unique but highly specific period in the U.S. automobile industry’s history, will not be updated

The Efficacy of Administering Fruit-Derived Polyphenols to Improve Health Biomarkers, Exercise Performance and Related Physiological Responses

open access articlePolyphenols are secondary metabolites involved in a myriad of critical processes in plants. Over recent decades, special attention has been paid to the anti-oxidative role of fruit-derived polyphenols in the human diet, with evidence supporting the contribution of polyphenols in the prevention of numerous non-communicable disease outcomes. However, due to the low concentration in biological fluids in vivo, the antioxidant properties of polyphenols seem to be related to an enhanced endogenous antioxidant capacity induced via signaling through the nuclear respiratory factor 2 pathway. Polyphenols also seem to possess anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and have been shown to enhance vascular function via nitric oxide mediated mechanisms. Consequently, there is rationale to support fruit-derived polyphenol supplementation to enhance exercise performance, possibly via improved muscle perfusion. Fruit-derived polyphenol supplementation in exercise studies have included a variety of fruits, e.g., New Zealand blackcurrant, pomegranate, and cherry, in the form of extracts (multicomponent or purified), juices and infusions to varying degrees of benefit. For example, research has yet to link the health-related benefits of black elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) ingestion to exercise performance in spite of the purported health benefits associated with black elderberry provision in vitro and in vivo models, which has been attributed to their high antioxidant capacity and polyphenol content. This review summarizes the existing evidence supporting a beneficial effect of fruit-derived polyphenols on various biological processes and outlines the potential for black elderberry ingestion to improve nitric oxide production, exercise performance, and the associated physiological responses before-, during- and post-exercise