Nutritional and Phytochemical Content of High-Protein Crops

The authors acknowledge support from the Scottish Government’s Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division (RESAS) via their strategic research and partnership programs.Peer reviewedPostprin

Sonographers' experiences of breaking bad news in prenatal ultrasound: a phenomenological analysis

This project is a study of how sonographers break bad news to women during routine prenatal ultrasound scans. The sonographers' position, with respect to breaking bad news, is unique among healthcare professionals. Prenatal scans are designed to detect foetal abnormalities and are offered to all pregnant women as part of a nationwide screening programme in the UK. Ultrasound in pregnancy is, therefore, a medical test, but unlike most medical tests it has become a social ritual in western culture. Many women view the scan as a chance to see and meet their baby for the first time and to take home a picture. They are generally unaware of its screening function, which means that bad news arrives when it is least expected. The news is often divulged in real-time as abnormalities are detected, and this leaves little time for the sonographer to prepare prior to disclosure. What a sonographer does in the few moments following a positive scan result affects how the news is given and ultimately how it is received. A bad experience can leave women suffering long-term psychological effects. This thesis focuses on how sonographers cope in those few moments. The impetus behind this research is paucity of empirical work that has, to date, been carried out from the sonographer's perspective. This means there are few evidence-based guidelines available to assist them in the news-giving process. Current protocols, underpinned by research from the medical profession, suggest that health professionals should prepare to give bad news in advance of meeting the patient. Such advice, however, fails to address the immediate and unexpected nature of bad news in the ultrasound scenario. This project offers an in-depth phenomenological investigation into the experiences of nine sonographers who have been breaking bad news to pregnant women for between eight and twenty five years. Using Heidegger's fundamental ontology as a framework, the five-stage temporal structure of a routine prenatal scan was revealed, offering an insight into how distressing information might be communicated to women in a genuinely empathic manner. This structure suggests that what happens in the moments following the detection of a foetal abnormality depends on a background of phenomena which are revealed only through a sonographer's particular style of scanning and ethical comportment

An investigation into the wild meat trade in Malaysia and its implications for zoonotic disease

Hunting wildlife for food has detrimental effects on many wild animal populations and represents a major threat to biodiversity. The great diversity of zoonotic pathogens identified in wildlife hosts may pose infection risks to humans involved in the wild meat trade. Southeast Asia is a hotspot for zoonotic emerging infectious diseases and the commercialisation of this trade presents challenges to wildlife conservation and public health. This dissertation explores these issues in Malaysia to better understand the consequences of wildlife trade.This study utilises survey data from establishments selling wild meat across Malaysia (collected by TRAFFIC Southeast Asia) in order to identify commonly traded species and uses published information to examine the drivers and impacts of this trade on wildlife populations. A literature review determines the potential zoonotic infection risks and transmission routes to hunters, traders and consumers, focusing the discussion on significant pathogens from commonly available species. The microbial food safety risks of this trade are highlighted by a proposal to conduct a risk assessment on the hazard of Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia. coli (STEC) from wild deer, following Codex Alimentarius Commission guidelines.This dissertation suggests that consumer preferences for wild meat drive the increasingly commercial trade in Malaysia, with wild pig, deer and reptile species being commonly hunted and leading to significant impacts upon some populations. The great variety of traded wildlife can host numerous zoonotic pathogens and several species (e.g. wild ungulates, reptiles and macaques) may harbour multiple pathogens, which can cause human diseases associated with hunting, butchering and consumption. Many bacteria and parasites are transmitted to humans via foodborne routes, which lead to the proposal for a food safety risk assessment on the STEC hazard from wild venison. The review also highlights the lack of pathogen data for certain species and advises further epidemiological research on wildlife and human populations in Malaysia. Overall, the dissertation asserts that the wild meat trade threatens wildlife populations and risks human zoonotic disease in Malaysia, a conclusion of importance for conservation and public health strategies

Identification of damaged proteins in human serum using modified Ehrlich's reagent to target protein-bound pyrroles

Peer reviewedPreprin

Expression of Cellulosome Components and Type IV Pili within the Extracellular Proteome of Ruminococcus flavefaciens 007

Funding: The Rowett Institute receives funding from SG-RESAS (Scottish Government Rural and Environmental Science and Analysis Service). Visit of M.V. was supported by research grants from FEMS and Slovene human resources development and scholarship funds. Parts of this work were funded by grants from the United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF), Jerusalem, Israel – BSF Energy Research grant to E.A.B. and B.A.W. and Regular BSF Research grants to R.L. and B.A.W. – and by the Israel Science Foundation (grant nos 966/09 and 159/07 291/08). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Proteomic and Glucosinolate Profiling of Rapeseed Isolates from Meals Produced by Different Oil Extraction Processes

Acknowledgment This work is part of the Strategic Research 2011–2016 and is funded by the Scottish Government's Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division (RESAS).Peer reviewedPostprin

Binocular vision and foraging in ducks, geese and swans (Anatidae)

Wide variation in visual field configuration across avian species is hypothesized to be driven primarily by foraging ecology and predator detection. While some studies of selected taxa have identified relationships between foraging ecology and binocular field characteristics in particular species, few have accounted for the relevance of shared ancestry. We conducted a large-scale, comparative analysis across 39 Anatidae species to investigate the relationship between the foraging ecology traits of diet or behaviour and binocular field parameters, while controlling for phylogeny. We used phylogenetic models to examine correlations between traits and binocular field characteristics, using unidimensional and morphometric approaches. We found that foraging behaviour influenced three parameters of binocular field size: maximum binocular field width, vertical binocular field extent, and angular separation between the eye-bill projection and the direction of maximum binocular field width. Foraging behaviour and body mass each influenced two descriptors of binocular field shape. Phylogenetic relatedness had minimal influence on binocular field size and shape, apart from vertical binocular field extent. Binocular field differences are associated with specific foraging behaviours, as related to the perceptual challenges of obtaining different food items from aquatic and terrestrial environments

Nutritional B vitamin deficiency alters the expression of key proteins associated with vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration in the aorta of atherosclerotic apolipoprotein E null mice.

Low B vitamin status is linked with human vascular disease. We employed a proteomic and biochemical approach to determine whether nutritional folate deficiency and/or hyperhomocysteinemia altered metabolic processes linked with atherosclerosis in ApoE null mice. Animals were fed either a control fat (C; 4 % w/w lard) or a high-fat [HF; 21 % w/w lard and cholesterol (0/15 % w/w)] diet with different B vitamin compositions for 16 weeks. Aorta tissue was prepared and global protein expression, B vitamin, homocysteine and lipoprotein status measured. Changes in the expression of aorta proteins were detected in response to multiple B vitamin deficiency combined with a high-fat diet (P < 0.05) and were strongly linked with lipoprotein concentrations measured directly in the aorta adventitia (P < 0.001). Pathway analysis revealed treatment effects in the aorta-related primarily to cytoskeletal organisation, smooth muscle cell adhesion and invasiveness (e.g., fibrinogen, moesin, transgelin, vimentin). Combined B vitamin deficiency induced striking quantitative changes in the expression of aorta proteins in atherosclerotic ApoE null mice. Deregulated expression of these proteins is associated with human atherosclerosis. Cellular pathways altered by B vitamin status included cytoskeletal organisation, cell differentiation and migration, oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. These findings provide new insight into the molecular mechanisms through which B vitamin deficiency may accelerate atherosclerosis