Two Interventions to Improve Knowledge of Scientific and Dissemination Articles in First-Year University Students

The representations of science in mass media have shown a significant increase in the last years. However, mass media dissemination activities can extend to pseudoscience due to the fact that not all scientific news are published with the same rigour. Thus, we aimed to develop two theoretical-practical interventions among first-year university students with the purpose of improving their knowledge about scientific studies and original scientific sources, as well as to critically analyze dissemination of scientific research in media. The interventions had a positive impact on knowledge about scientific information sources, particularly Pubmed, in addition to reducing the number of incorrect features linked to both scientific and dissemination articles, suggesting the importance of interventions focused on misconceptions. However, students showed knowledge of correct features of scientific articles, independently of our intervention, and they made more mistakes when attributing incorrect features to scientific articles when compared to dissemination ones

The Relationship between Choline Bioavailability from Diet, Intestinal Microbiota Composition, and Its Modulation of Human Diseases

© 2020 by the authors.Choline is a water-soluble nutrient essential for human life. Gut microbial metabolism of choline results in the production of trimethylamine (TMA), which, upon absorption by the host is converted into trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) in the liver. A high accumulation of both components is related to cardiovascular disease, inflammatory bowel disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and chronic kidney disease. However, the relationship between the microbiota production of these components and its impact on these diseases still remains unknown. In this review, we will address which microbes contribute to TMA production in the human gut, the extent to which host factors (e.g., the genotype) and diet affect TMA production, and the colonization of these microbes and the reversal of dysbiosis as a therapy for these diseases.This work was supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (PSI2017-83893-R to J.L.A.) and the Ministry of Economy and Business (PSI2015-73111-EXP to J.L.A., PSI2017-90806-REDT to J.L.A. and AGL2017-83653R to M.G.) (Spain). S.A. was the recipient of a postdoctoral Juan de la Cierva Contract (Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, Ref. IJCI-2017-32156).Peer reviewe

The gut–microbiota–brain changes across the liver disease spectrum

Gut microbiota dysbiosis plays a significant role in the progression of liver disease, and no effective drugs are available for the full spectrum. In this study, we aimed to explore the dynamic changes of gut microbiota along the liver disease spectrum, together with the changes in cognition and brain metabolism. Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into four groups reflecting different stages of liver disease: control diet (NC); high-fat, high-cholesterol diet (HFHC), emulating non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; control diet + thioacetamide (NC + TAA), simulating acute liver failure; and high-fat, high-cholesterol diet + thioacetamide (HFHC + TAA) to assess the effect of the superimposed damages. The diet was administered for 14 weeks and the thioacetamide was administrated (100 mg/kg day) intraperitoneally over 3 days. Our results showed changes in plasma biochemistry and liver damage across the spectrum. Differences in gut microbiota at the compositional level were found among the experimental groups. Members of the Enterobacteriaceae family were most abundant in HFHC and HFHC + TAA groups, and Akkermansiaceae in the NC + TAA group, albeit lactobacilli genus being dominant in the NC group. Moreover, harm to the liver affected the diversity and bacterial community structure, with a loss of rare species. Indeed, the superimposed damage group (HFHC + TAA) suffered a loss of both rare and abundant species. Behavioral evaluation has shown that HFHC, NC + TAA, and HFHC + TAA displayed a worsened execution when discriminating the new object. Also, NC + TAA and HFHC + TAA were not capable of recognizing the changes in place of the object. Furthermore, working memory was affected in HFHC and HFHC + TAA groups, whereas the NC + TAA group displayed a significant delay in the acquisition. Brain oxidative metabolism changes were observed in the prefrontal, retrosplenial, and perirhinal cortices, as well as the amygdala and mammillary bodies. Besides, groups administered with thioacetamide presented an increased oxidative metabolic activity in the adrenal glands. These results highlight the importance of cross-comparison along the liver spectrum to understand the different gut–microbiota–brain changes. Furthermore, our data point out specific gut microbiota targets to design more effective treatments, though the liver–gut–brain axis focused on specific stages of liver disease.This work was supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities (PSI2017-83893-R), the Ministry of Economy and Business (PSI2017-90806-REDT), the Ministry of Economy and Competitivity (PID2020-117259RB-I00/AEI/10.13039/501100011033), and the Principality of Asturias (FICYT AYUD/2021/51378). SA was the recipient of a postdoctoral Juan de la Cierva contract (Ministry of Science and Innovation, Ref. IJCI-2017-32156)

Neurobehavioural dysfunction in NAFLD is associated with hyperammonemia, gut dysbiosis, metabolic and functional brain regional deficits

Trabajo presentado en el 48th Annual General Meeting of the European Brain and Behaviour Society, celebrado en Praga (República Checa), del 21 al 24 de septiembre d 201

Akkermansia muciniphila and environmental enrichment reverse cognitive impairment associated with high-fat high-cholesterol consumption in rats

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is one of the most prevalent diseases globally. A high-fat, high-cholesterol (HFHC) diet leads to an early NASH model. It has been suggested that gut microbiota mediates the effects of diet through the microbiota–gut–brain axis, modifying the host’s brain metabolism and disrupting cognition. Here, we target NASH-induced cognitive damage by testing the impact of environmental enrichment (EE) and the administration of either Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) or Akkermansia muciniphila CIP107961 (AKK). EE and AKK, but not LGG, reverse the HFHC-induced cognitive dysfunction, including impaired spatial working memory and novel object recognition; however, whereas AKK restores brain metabolism, EE results in an overall decrease. Moreover, AKK and LGG did not induce major rearrangements in the intestinal microbiota, with only slight changes in bacterial composition and diversity, whereas EE led to an increase in Firmicutes and Verrucomicrobia members. Our findings illustrate the interplay between gut microbiota, the host’s brain energy metabolism, and cognition. In addition, the findings suggest intervention strategies, such as the administration of AKK, for the management of the cognitive dysfunction related to NASH.This work was supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities [PSI2017-83893-R to JLA] and the Ministry of Economy and Business [PSI2017-90806-REDT to JLA and AGL2017-83653R to MG] (Spain). S.A was the recipient of a postdoctoral Juan de la Cierva Contract (Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, [Ref. IJCI- 2017-32156]. The funders had no role in the study design or data collection

Akkermansia muciniphila

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is one of the most prevalent diseases globally. A high-fat, high-cholesterol (HFHC) diet leads to an early NASH model. It has been suggested that gut microbiota mediates the effects of diet through the microbiota–gut–brain axis, modifying the host’s brain metabolism and disrupting cognition. Here, we target NASH-induced cognitive damage by testing the impact of environmental enrichment (EE) and the administration of either Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) or Akkermansia muciniphila CIP107961 (AKK). EE and AKK, but not LGG, reverse the HFHC-induced cognitive dysfunction, including impaired spatial working memory and novel object recognition; however, whereas AKK restores brain metabolism, EE results in an overall decrease. Moreover, AKK and LGG did not induce major rearrangements in the intestinal microbiota, with only slight changes in bacterial composition and diversity, whereas EE led to an increase in Firmicutes and Verrucomicrobia members. Our findings illustrate the interplay between gut microbiota, the host’s brain energy metabolism, and cognition. In addition, the findings suggest intervention strategies, such as the administration of AKK, for the management of the cognitive dysfunction related to NASH.This work was supported by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities [PSI2017-83893-R to JLA] and the Ministry of Economy and Business [PSI2017-90806-REDT to JLA and AGL2017-83653R to MG] (Spain). S.A was the recipient of a postdoctoral Juan de la Cierva Contract (Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, [Ref. IJCI- 2017-32156]. The funders had no role in the study design or data collection

Eje microbiota-hígado-cerebro posible diana de actuación para la mejora cognitiva asociada al daño hepático

Resumen trabajo presentado en el XII Workshop Sociedad Española de Microbiota, Probióticos y Prebióticos (SEMiPyP) y I Congreso Sociedad Iberoamericana de Microbiota, Probióticos y Prebióticos (SIAMPYP), celebrado de forma virtual del 15 al 18 de septiembre de 2021.El daño hepático (DH) es uno de los principales problemas de salud en las sociedades occidentales. Este DH varía en un continuo y se desconoce el impacto que produce sobre la microbiota intestinal (MI), la cual está estrechamente ligada a la función hepática y del sistema nervioso. De hecho, en pacientes con DH se ha observado un deterioro cognitivo, pero los mecanismos subyacentes a dicho daño cerebral aún son desconocidos. El objetivo de este trabajo fue estudiar el papel del eje microbiota-hígado-cerebro en diferentes estadíos del DH. Metodología. Se trabajó con cuatro grupos de DH en ratas Sprague-Dawley macho: un grupo de hígado graso con dieta alta en grasa y colesterol (HFHC), un grupo de DH agudo mediante la administración de tioacetamida (TAA), un grupo con DH crónico (HFHC+TAA) y un grupo control con dieta normal (NC). En todos los grupos experimentales se analizó la histología hepática, el estado cognitivo con pruebas in vivo, la actividad metabólica cerebral mediante la medida del citocromo-c-oxidasa y la MI mediante secuenciación del gen ribosómico 16S y los ácidos grasos de cadena corta (AGCC) por GC. Resultados. Todos los animales fueron normopeso durante el estudio y sin afectación motora. Se observaron cambios hepáticos con esteatosis y fibrosis en los grupos de DH. A nivel cognitivo, estos grupos mostraron un retraso en la adquisición de la memoria de reconocimiento y de trabajo, que se reflejó en cambios en diferentes áreas de la corteza cerebral. Cambios en diversidad, composición y en los AGCC, fueron observados en la MI de los grupos con DH. Conclusiones. Este trabajo ponen de manifiesto la interrelación del eje hígado-intestino-cerebro. Estos resultados establecen claras dianas de actuación para el desarrollo de estrategias de intervención destinadas a la mejora de los problemas cognitivos asociados al DH a través de la modulación de la MI

Fotobiomodulación y el eje cerebro-intestino: ¿una herramienta no invasiva para modular la microbiota intestinal?

Trabajo presentado al XIV WorkShop de la Sociedad Española de Microbiota, Probióticos y Prebióticos, celebrado en Pamplona (España) del 8 al 10 de marzo de 202

Neurobehavioural assessment of non alcoholic fatty liver disease

Trabajo presentado en el III International Congress of Psychobiology, celebrado en Granada (España), del 29 al 31 de mayo de 201