Experimental and computational aspects of bioactive proteins from animal venoms: an insight into pharmacological properties and drug discovery

Editoria

Early Life Exposure to Fructose and Offspring Phenotype: Implications for Long Term Metabolic Homeostasis

The consumption of artificially sweetened processed foods, particularly high in fructose or high fructose corn syrup, has increased significantly in the past few decades. As such, interest into the long term outcomes of consuming high levels of fructose has increased significantly, particularly when the exposure is early in life. Epidemiological and experimental evidence has linked fructose consumption to the metabolic syndrome and associated comorbidities—implicating fructose as a potential factor in the obesity epidemic. Yet, despite the widespread consumption of fructose-containing foods and beverages and the rising incidence of maternal obesity, little attention has been paid to the possible adverse effects of maternal fructose consumption on the developing fetus and long term effects on offspring. In this paper we review studies investigating the effects of fructose intake on metabolic outcomes in both mother and offspring using human and experimental studies

Plasma neurofilament light in behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia compared to mood and psychotic disorders

OBJECTIVE: Blood biomarkers of neuronal injury such as neurofilament light (NfL) show promise to improve diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders and distinguish neurodegenerative from primary psychiatric disorders (PPD). This study investigated the diagnostic utility of plasma NfL to differentiate behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD, a neurodegenerative disorder commonly misdiagnosed initially as PPD), from PPD, and performance of large normative/reference data sets and models. METHODS: Plasma NfL was analysed in major depressive disorder (MDD, n = 42), bipolar affective disorder (BPAD, n = 121), treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS, n = 82), bvFTD (n = 22), and compared to the reference cohort (Control Group 2, n = 1926, using GAMLSS modelling), and age-matched controls (Control Group 1, n = 96, using general linear models). RESULTS: Large differences were seen between bvFTD (mean NfL 34.9 pg/mL) and all PPDs and controls (all < 11 pg/mL). NfL distinguished bvFTD from PPD with high accuracy, sensitivity (86%), and specificity (88%). GAMLSS models using reference Control Group 2 facilitated precision interpretation of individual levels, while performing equally to or outperforming models using local controls. Slightly higher NfL levels were found in BPAD, compared to controls and TRS. CONCLUSIONS: This study adds further evidence on the diagnostic utility of NfL to distinguish bvFTD from PPD of high clinical relevance to a bvFTD differential diagnosis, and includes the largest cohort of BPAD to date. Using large reference cohorts, GAMLSS modelling and the interactive Internet-based application we developed, may have important implications for future research and clinical translation. Studies are underway investigating utility of plasma NfL in diverse neurodegenerative and primary psychiatric conditions in real-world clinical settings

Courtship and marriage rituals of selected Filipino-Chinese

This study described and identified the changes in the courtship and marriage rituals of the Filipino-Chinese. This was done through the comparison of the past and present courtship and marriage rituals of Chinese Couples with the use of the variables age and ethnicity.This study is descriptive in nature. The purposive sampling technique was used. The subjects for this study were composed of 12 Chinese couples who were divided into 6 groups in accordance with the variables used. Two matchmakers and two astrologers were also included to supplement the data gathered from the proceeding. An in-depth interview was employed in gathering the data with a self-constructed questionnaire to facilitate the process.The outcome of this study showed that some changes occurred as a result of contact with other culture and ideas and that most young Chinese couple adhere to their cultural practices simply to acquire favorable reactions from their ethnic group

Editorial: Experimental and computational aspects of bioactive proteins from animal venoms: an insight into pharmacological properties and drug discovery

Editorial on the Research Topic Experimental and computational aspects of bioactive proteins from animal venoms: an insight into pharmacological properties and drug discover

Controlling chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting with Neurokinin-1 receptor antagonists in patients on AC-based chemotherapy - are we there yet?

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) are distressing side effects of chemotherapy. Neurokinin-1 receptor antagonists (NK1-RAs) have been incorporated in the contemporary management of CINV. However, clinical studies on NK1-RAs have shown mixed results in reducing CINV risk. Most studies focused on the use of aprepitant (APR) and casopitant (CAS) in breast cancer patients receiving AC-type (doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide) chemotherapy. In this study, we compared the study design and clinical efficacies of these NK1-RAs in reducing CINV risk. Among the selected eight studies, 4 APR Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs), 2 APR Observational Studies (OSs) and 2 CAS RCTs were identified. Patient-related characteristics such as the proportion of females (60.0% - 100.0%), age (46.5 - 59.5 years), histories of motion (5.6% - 47.0% in NK1-RA arms) and morning sicknesses (14.2% - 45.0% in NK1-RA arms) and types of antiemetic regimens; as well as chemotherapy-related characteristics such as the proportion of patients on AC chemotherapy (15.0% - 100.0%) varied greatly. In terms of efficacies, both APR and CAS improved overall CR and vomiting in majority of the studies. None of the studies, however, demonstrated that NK1-RA could provide adequate nausea control. To conclude, NK1-RAs are effective in improving vomiting and overall CR, but not useful in controlling nausea or attaining CC, the ideal CINV endpoint. A shift in paradigm is needed for future CINV research. As healthcare providers continue to strive for optimum CINV control in their patients, we hope this review can help them make better informed clinical decisions

Speaking and reading habits of NTU undergraduates

54 p.English is the medium of instruction for all the schools in Singapore. Our education system adopts standard Singapore English as the official standard of English. English is also often used in our daily communications.ACCOUNTANC

Early Life Exposure to Fructose Alters Maternal, Fetal and Neonatal Hepatic Gene Expression and Leads to Sex-Dependent Changes in Lipid Metabolism in Rat Offspring.

Fructose consumption is associated with altered hepatic function and metabolic compromise and not surprisingly has become a focus for perinatal studies. We have previously shown that maternal fructose intake results in sex specific changes in fetal, placental and neonatal outcomes. In this follow-up study we investigated effects on maternal, fetal and neonatal hepatic fatty acid metabolism and immune modulation.Pregnant rats were randomised to either control (CON) or high-fructose (FR) diets. Fructose was given in solution and comprised 20% of total caloric intake. Blood and liver samples were collected at embryonic day 21 (E21) and postnatal day (P)10. Maternal liver samples were also collected at E21 and P10. Liver triglyceride and glycogen content was measured with standard assays. Hepatic gene expression was measured with qPCR.Maternal fructose intake during pregnancy resulted in maternal hepatic ER stress, hepatocellular injury and increased levels of genes that favour lipogenesis. These changes were associated with a reduction in the NLRP3 inflammasome. Fetuses of mothers fed a high fructose diet displayed increased hepatic fructose transporter and reduced fructokinase mRNA levels and by 10 days of postnatal age, also have hepatic ER stress, and elevated IL1β mRNA levels. At P10, FR neonates demonstrated increased hepatic triglyceride content and particularly in males, associated changes in the expression of genes regulating beta oxidation and the NLRP3 inflammasome. Further, prenatal fructose results in sex-dependant changes in levels of key clock genes.Maternal fructose intake results in age and sex-specific alterations in maternal fetal and neonatal free fatty acid metabolism, which may be associated in disruptions in core clock gene machinery. How these changes are associated with hepatic inflammatory processes is still unclear, although suppression of the hepatic inflammasome, as least in mothers and male neonates may point to impaired immune sensing

Primer Sequences and Qiagen QuantiTect Primer Assays™.

<p><b>Abbreviations:</b> HPRT, Hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase; BMAL1, brain and muscle arnt-like protein 1; Clock, circadian locomotor output cycles kaput; Cry1 and Cry2, cryptochrome 1 & 2; XBP1s/ XBP1t, x-box binding protein spliced & total; GRP78, 78 kDa glucose-regulated protein or Binding immunoglobulin protein(BiP); SREBP1c, Sterol Regulatory Element-Binding Protein 1c; PER1 and PER2, period 1 & 2 genes; SIRT1, sirtuin 1; <i>NFκB (RelA)</i>, nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells; IL-1β, interleukin 1-beta; NLRP3, NLR family, pyrin domain containing 3, NFKBIA, nuclear factor of kappa light polypeptide gene enhancer in B-cells inhibitor alpha; GLUT5, facilitated glucose/fructose transporter member 5.</p><p>Primer Sequences and Qiagen QuantiTect Primer Assays™.</p

Prenatal fructose exposure increases hepatic lipid content, and modifies transcription factors and fatty acid oxidative enzymes in neonates in a sex dependent manner.

<p>Offspring liver triglyceride levels and SIRT1, SREBP1c, PPARa, mRNA levels at 2 timepoints. Data are presented as means ± S.E.M. All mRNA levels are relative to the geometric mean of housekeeping genes. Two-Way ANOVA Main Effects are indicated in text where the 2 factors are maternal diet (fructose) and offspring sex. Tukey’s <i>post-hoc</i> analyses are indicated by letters, where bars with different letters indicate significance p < 0.05. Control offspring are in open bars, fructose exposed offspring are in black bars. E21: embryonic day 21, P10: postnatal day 10. n = 6 per group per sex.</p