Biofortification and Localization of Zinc in Wheat Grain

Zinc (Zn) deficiency associated with low dietary intake is a well-documented public health problem, resulting in serious health and socioeconomic problems. Field experiments were conducted with wheat to test the role of both soil and foliar application of ZnSO4 in Zn concentration of whole grain and grain fractions (e.g., bran, embryo and endosperm) in 3 locations. Foliar application of ZnSO4 was realized at different growth stages (e.g., stem elongation, boot, milk, dough stages) to study the effect of timing of foliar Zn application on grain Zn concentration. The rate of foliar Zn application at each growth stage was 4 kg of ZnSO4 3 7H2O ha-1. Laser ablation (LA)-ICP-MS was used to follow the localization of Zn within grain. Soil Zn application at a rate of 50 kg of ZnSO4 3 7H2O ha-1 was effective in increasing grain Zn concentration in the Zn-deficient location, but not in the locations without soil Zn deficiency. In all locations, foliar application of Zn significantly increased Zn concentration in whole grain and in each grain fraction, particularly in the case of high soil N fertilization. In Zn-deficient location, grain Zn concentration increased from 11 mg kg-1 to 22 mg kg-1 with foliar Zn application and to 27 mg kg-1 with a combined application of ZnSO4 to soil and foliar. In locations without soil Zn deficiency, combination of high N application with two times foliar Zn application (e.g., at the booting and milk stages) increased grain Zn concentration, on average, from 28 mg kg-1 to 58 mg kg-1. Both ICP-OES and LA-ICP-MS data showed that the increase in Zn concentration of whole grain and grain fractions was pronounced when Zn was sprayed at the late growth stage (e.g., milk and dough). LA-ICP-MS data also indicated that Zn was transported into endosperm through the crease phloem. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that the timing of foliar Zn application is of great importance in increasing grain Zn in wheat, especially in the endosperm part that is the predominant grain fraction consumed in many countries. Providing a large pool of Zn in vegetative tissues during the grain filling (e.g., via foliar Zn spray) is an important practice to increase grain Zn and contribute to human nutritio

7th Drug hypersensitivity meeting: part two

No abstract availabl

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Enhanced osteogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells by self-assembled peptide hydrogel functionalized with glutamic acid templated peptides

PubMed: 32615018Self-assembling peptide (SAP) hydrogel has been shown to be an excellent biological material for three-dimensional cell culture and stimulatie cell migration and differentiation into the scaffold, as well as for repairing bone tissue defects. Herein, we designed one of the SAP scaffolds KLD (KLDLKLDLKLDL) through direct coupling to short bioactive motif O1 (EEGGC) and O2 (EEEEE) of which bioactivity on osteogenic differentiation was previously demonstrated and self-assembled in different concentrations (0.5%, 1%, and 2%). Our aim was to enhance osteogenesis and biomineralization of injectable SAP hydrogels with controlled mechanical properties so that the peptide hydrogel also becomes capable of being injected to bone defects. The molecular integration of the nanofibrous peptide scaffolds was observed using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The rheological properties and degradation profile of SAP hydrogels were evaluated to ensure stability of SAPs. Compared with pure KLD scaffold, we found that these designed bioactive peptide scaffolds significantly promoted hMSCs proliferation depicted by biochemical analysis of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, total calcium deposition. Moreover, key osteogenic markers of ALP activity, collagen type I (COL-1), osteopontin (OP), and osteocalcin (OCN) expression levels determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunofluorescence analysis were also significantly increased with the addition of glutamic acid residues to KLD. We demonstrated that the designed SAP scaffolds promoted the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs. Our results suggest that these designed bioactive peptide scaffolds may be useful for promoting bone tissue regeneration. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Araştirma Kurumu, TÜBITAK: 117S429Authors acknowledge funding from T?B?TAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) through the Research Project 117S429

Comparison of four different treatment regimes in hirsutism related to polycystic ovary syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common endocrinological problem associated with hirsutism. The objective of this study was to compare four different treatment modalities for hirsutism related to this syndrome. Pelvic ultrasonography was performed on all patients who were referred to our Reproductive Endocrinology Outpatient Clinic because of complaints of hirsutism. After exclusion of hyperandrogenism caused by endocrine abnormalities other than polycystic ovary syndrome, 141 patients were included in the study. Patients were divided into four groups in regard to the drug chosen for treatment. Group 1 (n = 48) received low-dose combined oral contraceptive. Group 2 (n = 65) was treated with cyproterone acetate 100 mg daily for the first 10 days of a 21-day cycle with an oral contraceptive containing 2 mg cyproterone acetate, Group 3 (n = 12) with spironolactone (100-200 mg daily) and Group 4 (n = 16) with ketoconazole (400 mg daily). All patients were followed frequently with respect to side-effects, hirsutism scoring, and lipid and hormonal levels. All four drug regimens were effective in the treatment of hirsutism related to polycystic ovary syndrome, but the most effective seemed to be ketoconazole. The decrement level in hirsutism scoring was the largest in the ketoconazole group, followed by the cyproterone, oral contraceptive and spironolactone groups (34.6 ± 2.2%, 20.1 ± 2.7%, 18.1 ± 2.7% and 12.8 ± 3.7%, respectively, p < 0.05). Although high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol levels increased in all groups, this increment was smaller in Group 4 than in Groups 1 and 2 (5.1 ± 2.8%, 34.1 ± 5.5% and 29.1 ± 4.9%, respectively, p < 0.05), but not statistically different from that in Group 3 (22.3 ± 5.9%). The free testosterone levels decreased after treatment in all groups, but the decrement ratios did not differ significantly among groups, although the decrease in free testosterone levels with treatment seemed to be higher in the ketoconazole group than in Groups 1, 2 and 3 (57.0 ± 2.5%, 22.7 ± 10.2%, 26.7 ± 6.5% and 9.5 ± 19.9%, respectively). In conclusion, ketoconazole seems to be an excellent alternative to more-recognized therapies, but its effect on lipoprotein profile requires further study, because the hyperandrogenism, and the other problems related to hyperandrogenism besides hirsutism, should also be treated

A novel source of calcium: effects of calcium pidolate concentration on egg quality in aged laying quails (Coturnix coturnix Japonica)

Calcium content in the diet can affect egg quality and production in aged birds. Calcium pidolate is a new form of calcium supplementation in poultry diets, which favours the absorption of this mineral. The current study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary calcium pidolate concentration in the diets of aged laying Japanese quails. A total of 120 female quails (27 weeks old) were assigned to four treatment groups, each with six replicates of 5 quails per pen. In the 10-week trial, quail diets were supplemented with calcium pidolate at four concentrations (0, 0.25, 0.50, and 1.00 g/kg), providing 25.1 g/kg, 25.4 g/kg, 25.8 g/kg, and 26.5 g/kg calcium, respectively. As a result of this study, body weight (BW), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) did not change with the concentration of calcium pidolate (p>0.05). In contrast, albumen and yolk index decreased as calcium pidolate level increased (p<0.05). Moreover, calcium pidolate at a concentration of 0.50 g/kg resulted in the greatest egg production, eggshell breaking strength and eggshell thickness (p<0.05), while above these levels the factors studied were negatively affected. According to these results, the optimal concentration of calcium pidolate in the diets of aged laying quails was 0.50 g/kg