Valorization of spent barley grains: isolation of protein and fibers for starch-free noodles and its effect on glycemic response in healthy individuals

Spent barley grains (SBG) were valorized into a spent barley protein and fibers (SBPF) ingredient. The ingredient was utilized to formulate SBPF-derived starchless noodles with a negligible glycemic response (GR) in healthy individuals, a significant reduction of 93.16% (SD = 8.07) postprandial GR after consumption when compared to conventional starch-based noodles. Their nutritional content, visual analog scale, textural property, and palatability were also evaluated. The SBPF-derived starchless noodles showed comparable hardness and springiness to the conventional starch-based noodles, but their cohesiveness and chewiness were improved. There was no significant difference in appetite and hunger ratings between the two types of foods. The overall palatability ratings for both foods were comparable. The SBPF-derived noodles were a source of nutrients (such as protein and fibers). This study has considerable potential for the development of functional food and food as medicine industries

Expression of slow skeletal troponin I in adult transgenic mouse heart muscle reduces the force decline observed during acidic conditions

Acidosis in cardiac muscle is associated with a decrease in developed force. We hypothesized that slow skeletal troponin I (ssTnI), which is expressed in neonatal hearts, is responsible for the observed decreased response to acidic conditions. To test this hypothesis directly, we used adult transgenic (TG) mice that express ssTnI in the heart. Cardiac TnI (cTnI) was completely replaced by ssTnI either with a FLAG epitope introduced into the N-terminus (TG-ssTnI*) or without the epitope (TG-ssTnI) in these mice. TG mice that express cTnI were also generated as a control TG line (TG-cTnI). Non-transgenic (NTG) littermates were used as controls.We measured the force-calcium relationship in all four groups at pH 7.0 and pH 6.5 in detergent-extracted fibre bundles prepared from left ventricular papillary muscles. The force-calcium relationship was identical in fibre bundles from NTG and TG-cTnI mouse hearts, therefore NTG mice served as controls for TG-ssTnI* and TG-ssTnI mice. Compared to NTG controls, the force generated by fibre bundles from TG mice expressing ssTnI was more sensitive to Ca2+. The shift in EC50 (the concentration of Ca2+ at which half-maximal force is generated) caused by acidic pH was significantly smaller in fibre bundles isolated from TG hearts compared to those from NTG hearts. However, there was no difference in the force-calcium relationship between hearts from the TG-ssTnI* and TG-ssTnI groups.We also isolated papillary muscles from the right ventricle of NTG and TG mouse hearts expressing ssTnI and measured isometric force at extracellular pH 7.33 and pH 6.75. At acidic pH, after an initial decline, twitch force recovered to 60 ± 3 % (n = 7) in NTG papillary muscles, 98 ± 2 % (n = 5) in muscles from TG-ssTnI* and 96 ± 3 % (n = 7) in muscles from TG-ssTnI hearts. Our results indicate that TnI isoform composition plays a crucial role in the determination of myocardial force sensitivity to acidosis

A common variant mapping to CACNA1A is associated with susceptibility to exfoliation syndrome

Exfoliation syndrome (XFS) is the most common recognizable cause of open-angle glaucoma worldwide. To better understand the etiology of XFS, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 1,484 cases and 1,188 controls from Japan and followed up the most significant findings in a further 6,901 cases and 20,727 controls from 17 countries across 6 continents. We discovered a genome-wide significant association between a new locus (CACNA1A rs4926244) and increased susceptibility to XFS (odds ratio (OR) = 1.16, P = 3.36 × 10(-11)). Although we also confirmed overwhelming association at the LOXL1 locus, the key SNP marker (LOXL1 rs4886776) demonstrated allelic reversal depending on the ancestry group (Japanese: OR(A allele) = 9.87, P = 2.13 × 10(-217); non-Japanese: OR(A allele) = 0.49, P = 2.35 × 10(-31)). Our findings represent the first genetic locus outside of LOXL1 surpassing genome-wide significance for XFS and provide insight into the biology and pathogenesis of the disease