In vitro fermentability of xylo-oligosaccharide and xylo-polysaccharide fractions with different molecular weights by human faecal bacteria

Xylo-oligosaccharides and xylo-polysaccharides (XOS, XPS) produced by autohydrolysis of the fibre from oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) were purified using gel filtration chromatography to separate the XOS and XPS from the crude autohydrolysis liquor. Six mixed fractions of refined XOS and XPS with average degree of polymerisation (avDP) of 4-64 were obtained. These were characterised in terms of their composition and size by HPLC, MALDI-ToF-MS (selected fractions) and carbohydrate gel electrophoresis (PACE). They were assessed in batch culture fermentations using faecal inocula to determine their ability to modulate the human faecal microbiota in vitro by measuring the bacterial growth, organic acid production and the XOS assimilation profile. The gut microbiota was able to utilise all the substrates and there was a link between the XOS/XPS degree of polymerisation with the fermentation properties. In general, XOS/XPS preparations of lower avDP promote better Bifidobacterium growth and organic acid production

Ultrashort pulse characterization by spectral shearing interferometry with spatially chirped ancillae

We report a new version of spectral phase interferometry for direct electric field reconstruction (SPIDER), which enables consistency checking through the simultaneous acquisition of multiple shears and offers a simple and precise calibration method. By mixing the test pulse with two spatially chirped ancilla fields we generate a single-shot interferogram which contains multiple shears, the spectral amplitude of the test pulse, and the reference phase, which is accurate for broadband pulses. All calibration parameters - shear, upconversion-frequency and reference phase position - can be accurately obtained from a single calibration trace.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figure

Corticospinal Activity During A Single-Leg Stance In People With Chronic Ankle Instability

Purpose: The aim of the study was to determine whether corticospinal excitability and inhibition of the tibialis anterior during single-leg standing differs among individuals with chronic ankle instability (CAI), lateral ankle sprain copers, and healthy controls. Methods: Twenty-three participants with CAI, 23 lateral ankle sprain copers, and 24 healthy control participants volunteered. Active motor threshold (AMT), normalized motor-evoked potential (MEP), and cortical silent period (CSP) were evaluated by transcranial magnetic stimulation while participants performed a single-leg standing task. Results: Participants with CAI had significantly longer CSP at 100% of AMT and lower normalized MEP at 120% of AMT compared to lateral ankle sprain copers (CSP100%: p = 0.003, MEP120%: p = 0.044) and controls (CSP 100%: p = 0.041, MEP120%: p = 0.006). Conclusion: This investigation demonstrated altered corticospinal excitability and inhibition of the tibialis anterior during single-leg standing in participants with CAI. Further research is needed to examine the effects of corticospinal maladaptations to motor control of the tibial anterior on postural control performance in those with CAI

Corticospinal Activity during a Single-Leg Stance in People with Chronic Ankle Instability

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to determine whether corticospinal excitability and inhibition of the tibialis anterior during single-leg standing differs among individuals with chronic ankle instability (CAI), lateral ankle sprain copers, and healthy controls. METHODS: Twenty-three participants with CAI, 23 lateral ankle sprain copers, and 24 healthy control participants volunteered. Active motor threshold (AMT), normalized motor-evoked potential (MEP), and cortical silent period (CSP) were evaluated by transcranial magnetic stimulation while participants performed a single-leg standing task. RESULTS: Participants with CAI had significantly longer CSP at 100% of AMT and lower normalized MEP at 120% of AMT compared to lateral ankle sprain copers (CSP100%: p = 0.003; MEP120%: p = 0.044) and controls (CSP100%: p = 0.041; MEP120%: p = 0.006). CONCLUSION: This investigation demonstrated altered corticospinal excitability and inhibition of the tibialis anterior during single-leg standing in participants with CAI. Further research is needed to examine the effects of corticospinal maladaptations to motor control of the tibial anterior on postural control performance in those with CAI

Comparison of the dietary fibre composition of old and modern durum wheat (Triticum turgidum spp. durum) genotypes

It has been suggested that intensive breeding has led to decreased contents of health-promoting components in modern wheats. We therefore compared the contents and compositions of the major dietary fibre components, arabinoxylan and β-glucan, in semolina and wholemeal flour of old and modern Italian durum wheats. No differences in total arabinoxylan content were observed but the modern varieties had higher proportions of soluble arabinoxylan in wholemeals and of β-glucan in semolina. The study therefore provides no evidence that intensive breeding has had negative effects on the contents of dietary fibre components in durum wheat. However, comparison of material grown over two years indicated that the content and composition of arabinoxylan and β-glucan were more stable in the older than in the modern genotypes. The identification of modern cultivars with high viscosity associated with a high content of β-glucan suggests that they are good sources of fibre for human health

Energy-Based Plasmonicity Index to Characterize Optical Resonances in Nanostructures

Resonances sustained by plasmonic nanoparticles provide extreme electric field confinement and enhancement into the deep subwavelength domain for a plethora of applications. Recent progress in nanofabrication made it even possible to tailor the properties of nanoparticles consisting of only a few hundred atoms. These nanoparticles support both single-particle-like resonances and collective plasmonic charge density oscillations. Prototypical systems sustaining both features are graphene nanoantennas. In pushing the frontier of nanoscience, traditional identification, and classification of such resonances is at stake again. We show that in such nanostructures, the concerted electron cloud oscillation in real space does not necessarily come along with collective dynamics of conduction band electrons in energy space. This unveils an urgent need for a discussion of how a plasmon in nanostructures should be defined. Here, we propose to define it relying on energy space dynamics. The unambiguous identification of the plasmonic nature of a resonance is crucial to find out whether desirable plasmon-assisted features, such as frequency conversion processes, can be expected from a resonance. We elaborate an energy-based figure of merit that classifies the nature of resonances in nanostructures, motivated by tight binding simulations with a toy model consisting of a linear chain of atoms. We apply afterward the proposed figure of merit to a doped hexagonal graphene nanoantenna, which is known to support plasmons in the near infrared and single-particle-like transitions in the visible

Opioid and Non-Opioid Prescribing Rates for Ankle Fractures in Emergency Departments across the United States between 2006 and 2015

This presentation describes the percentage of patients prescribed a controlled and non-controlled medication in an United States Emergency Department for a diagnosed ankle fracture

Kinesin-mediated organelle translocation revealed by specific cellular manipulations.

The distribution of membrane-bound organelles was studied in cultured hippocampal neurons after antisense oligonucleotide suppression of the kinesin-heavy chain (KHC). We observed reduced 3,3'-dihexyloxacarbocyanine iodide (DiOC6(3)) fluorescent staining in neurites and growth cones. In astrocytes, KHC suppression results in the disappearance of the DiOC6(3)- positive reticular network from the cell periphery, and a parallel accumulation of label within the cell center. On the other hand, mitochondria microtubules and microfilaments display a distribution that closely resembles that observed in control cells. KHC suppression of neurons and astrocytes completely inhibited the Brefeldin A-induced spreading and tubulation of the Golgi-associated structure enriched in mannose-6-phosphate receptors. In addition, KHC suppression prevents the low pH-induced anterograde redistribution of late endocytic structures. Taken collectively, these observations suggest that in living neurons, kinesin mediates the anterograde transport of tubulovesicular structures originated in the central vacuolar system (e.g., the endoplasmic reticulum) and that the regulation of kinesin- membrane interactions may be of key importance for determining the intracellular distribution of selected organelles

Loss of TaIRX9b gene function in wheat decreases chain length and amount of arabinoxylan in grain but increases cross-linking

Wheat contains abundant xylan in cell walls of all tissues, but in endosperm there is an unusual form of xylan substituted only by arabinose (arabinoxylan; AX) that has long chains and low levels of feruloylation, a fraction of which is extractable in water (WE-AX). WE-AX acts as soluble dietary fibre but also gives rise to viscous extracts from grain, a detrimental trait for some non-food uses of wheat. Here we show that a glycosyl transferase family 43 wheat gene abundantly expressed in endosperm complements the Arabidopsis irx9 mutant and so name the three homoeologous genes TaIRX9b. We generated wheat lines with a constitutive knock-out of TaIRX9b by stacking loss-of-function alleles for these homeologues from a mutagenized hexaploid wheat population resulting in decreases in grain extract viscosity of 50-80%. The amount and chain length of WE-AX molecules from grain of these triple stack lines was decreased accounting for the changes in extract viscosity. Imaging of immature wheat grain sections of triple stacks showed abolition of immunolabelling in endosperm with LM11 antibody that recognises epitopes in AX, but also showed apparently normal cell size and shape in all cell types, including endosperm. We identified differentially expressed genes from endosperm of triple stacks suggesting that compensatory changes occur to maintain this endosperm cell wall integrity. Consistent with this, we observed increased ferulate dimerisation and increased cross-linking of WE-AX molecules in triple stacks. These novel wheat lines lacking functional TaIRX9b therefore provide insight into control of wheat endosperm cell walls