16 research outputs found
RÎle de la Galectin-3 extra cellulaire dans la migration des cellules B à travers les barriÚres du systÚme nerveux central dans le contexte de la sclérose en plaques
La sclĂ©rose en plaques (SEP) est une maladie inflammatoire chronique du systĂšme nerveux central caractĂ©risĂ©e par lâinfiltration de cellules immunitaires et par la prĂ©sence de lĂ©sions dĂ©myĂ©linisantes dans le systĂšme nerveux central (SNC) des patients. Un Ă©vĂ©nement clef dans la maladie est la perte dâintĂ©gritĂ© des barriĂšres protĂ©geant le systĂšme nerveux central (SNC) qui permet la migration des cellules immunitaires, dont les cellules B, vers celui-ci depuis le sang. La migration est contrĂŽlĂ©e par diffĂ©rents paramĂštres dont lâexpression de molĂ©cules favorisant lâadhĂ©sion aux cellules endothĂ©liales constituant les barriĂšres du SNC. Des donnĂ©es protĂ©omiques gĂ©nĂ©rĂ©es par notre laboratoire nous ont permis dâidentifier la galectin-3, une protĂ©ine pro-inflammatoire, comme Ă©tant potentiellement impliquĂ©e dans la migration des cellules B vers le SNC et pouvant influer leur pathogĂ©nicitĂ©. Les rĂ©sultats de ce mĂ©moire montrent que chez les donneurs sains la galectin-3 est exprimĂ©e Ă la surface par les cellules B du sang total ainsi que par les cellules B effectrices in vitro. Elle est Ă©galement prĂ©sente dans le surnageant de ces derniĂšres. De plus, les cellules galectin-3+ expriment davantage de cytokines pro-inflammatoires que les cellules galectin-3- in vitro. Cependant, la stimulation des cellules B effectrices en prĂ©sence de galectin-3 exogĂšne induit une diminution temporaire de lâexpression de lâIL-6 et de lâIFN-Îł. Dâautre part, nous avons dĂ©montrĂ© que la galectin-3 exogĂšne peut se lier Ă la surface des cellules B toutefois elle nâinfluence pas leur migration Ă travers les modĂšles in vitro des barriĂšres du SNC. Nous avons par la suite mis en Ă©vidence que la galectin-3 Ă©tait prĂ©sente dans le liquide cĂ©phalo-rachidien des patients SEP. De plus la concentration en galectin-3 dans le sĂ©rum de ces derniers est plus Ă©levĂ©e que celle des donneurs sains. Enfin nous avons dĂ©montrĂ© que les cellules B des patients SEP exprimaient davantage de galectin-3 Ă la surface que celles des donneurs sains. Pour conclure, les donnĂ©es ne permettent pas de supporter lâhypothĂšse selon laquelle la galectin-3 favorise la migration Ă travers les barriĂšres du SNC. De plus, lâinfluence de la galectin-3 sur la pathogĂ©nicitĂ© des cellules B in vitro semble dĂ©pendre de sa concentration dans le milieu. Mais lâaugmentation de son expression chez les patients suggĂšre une implication dans la SEP.Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (CNS), hallmarks of the disease are an important infiltration of immune cells and demyelinating lesions in the CNS of patients. A key event in the disease is CNS barriersâ loss of integrity that allows the migration of immune cells, including B cells, from the blood to the CNS. Migration is regulated by many parameters, among which, the expression of molecules enabling adhesion to the endothelial cells of the CNS barriers. Proteomic data from our lab identified galectin-3, a pro-inflammatory protein, as potentially involved in B cellsâ migration toward the CNS. Moreover, galectin-3 could add to B cells pathogenicity. Our results show that healthy donorsâ whole blood B cells as well as effector B cells in vitro express galectin-3 on their surface. Moreover, effector B cells are able to secrete galectin-3. In vitro assay revealed that galectin-3+ effector B cells express more pro-inflammatory cytokines than galectin-3- effector B cells. However, a temporary decrease of IL-6 and IFN-Îł expression is induced when effector B cells are treated with galectin-3. Furthermore, exogenous galectin-3 can bind to B cellsâ surface but it doesnât influence their migration through in vitro models of the SNC barriers. In addition, we could detect galectin-3 in MS patientsâ cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum, the latter showed increased concentration compared to healthy donorsâ. Moreover, we evidence that MS patientsâ B cells express more galectin-3 on the cell surface than healthy donorsâ. In conclusion, our results donât support the initial hypothesis that galectin-3 enables B cellsâ migration through CNS barriers and galectin-3âs influence on B cells pathogenicity in vitro seems to depend on its concentration. But galectin-3âs increased expression in MS patients suggests that it could be implicated in the disease
Gender and sociocultural factors in animal source foods (ASFs) access and consumption in lower-income households in urban informal settings of Nairobi, Kenya
BACKGROUND: Gender shapes household decision-making and access for nutritious diets, including animal source foods (ASFs) that impact on child health and nutrition status. However, research shows that the poorest households in the urban informal settlements of Nairobi have low ASFs consumption. This study was conducted to explore further from a qualitative perspective the gender, sociocultural factors affecting household ASF consumption this study.
METHODS: To explore further on the topic of study, an exploratory qualitative study was carried out to establish the factors that influence access, allocation and consumption of animal source foods (ASFs) by households in urban informal settings of Nairobi. Nineteen focus group discussions with men and women were conducted to enable in-depth exploration of ASFs consumption.
RESULTS: Gender influences decision-making of household ASFs dietary intake. Gendered power dynamics prevail with men as breadwinners and household heads often determining the food access and consumption of ASFs. Women are increasingly accessing short-term waged-based incomes in urban informal settings and now play a role in food and nutrition security for their households. This enforces the idea that women's decision-making autonomy is an important aspect of women empowerment, as it relates to women's dietary diversity and subsequently, better household nutritional status. As evidenced in this study, if a woman has bargaining power based on accessing incomes to support their household food needs, she will not jeopardize food security. The mobile digital money platform was key in enabling access to resources to access food. Use of trust to access food on credit and purchasing smaller packaged quantities of food were also enablers to access of food/ASFs
Nanotherapeutic Modulation of Human Neural Cells and Glioblastoma in Organoids and Monocultures
Inflammatory processes in the brain are orchestrated by microglia and astrocytes in response to activators such as pathogen-associated molecular patterns, danger-associated molecular patterns and some nanostructures. Microglia are the primary immune responders in the brain and initiate responses amplified by astrocytes through intercellular signaling. Intercellular communication between neural cells can be studied in cerebral organoids, co-cultures or in vivo. We used human cerebral organoids and glioblastoma co-cultures to study glia modulation by dendritic polyglycerol sulfate (dPGS). dPGS is an extensively studied nanostructure with inherent anti-inflammatory properties. Under inflammatory conditions, lipocalin-2 levels in astrocytes are markedly increased and indirectly enhanced by soluble factors released from hyperactive microglia. dPGS is an effective anti-inflammatory modulator of these markers. Our results show that dPGS can enter neural cells in cerebral organoids and glial cells in monocultures in a time-dependent manner. dPGS markedly reduces lipocalin-2 abundance in the neural cells. Glioblastoma tumoroids of astrocytic origin respond to activated microglia with enhanced invasiveness, whereas conditioned media from dPGS-treated microglia reduce tumoroid invasiveness. Considering that many nanostructures have only been tested in cancer cells and rodent models, experiments in human 3D cerebral organoids and co-cultures are complementary in vitro models to evaluate nanotherapeutics in the pre-clinical setting. Thoroughly characterized organoids and standardized procedures for their preparation are prerequisites to gain information of translational value in nanomedicine. This study provides data for a well-characterized dendrimer (dPGS) that modulates the activation state of human microglia implicated in brain tumor invasiveness
Consumer perceptions of food safety in animal source foods choice and consumption in Nairobi's informal settlements.
BACKGROUND: Animal-source foods (ASFs) are high-quality nutrient-dense products key to reducing stunting and micronutrient deficiencies. However, their consumption among the poorest households in urban informal settlements is low. Several drivers beyond price, including health considerations have been reported to drive ASF choice and consumption among consumers. This current study explores consumer perceptions of food safety associated with animal source foods (ASFs) consumption in urban informal settlements with a view to unpacking the health considerations driving their choice and consumption. METHODS: Coupled households with children 6-59âmonths formed the study sample. The Food Environments Working Group (FEWG) Framework of the Agriculture and Nutrition for Health academy (ANH) was used to guide the study which utilized qualitative methods namely, 60 in-depth interviews (IDIs), 19 focus group discussions, and 19 key informant interviews (KIIs) complemented by unstructured observations. Data were transcribed and analysed according to emerging themes. RESULTS: Consumer perceptions of food safety are driven by concerns about food production, processing, handling, storage and the health risks associated with consumption of the ASFs. For all the ASFs, lack of traceability of source, unhygienic environments in which they were sold and health risks around consuming too much or improperly cooked products were key perceptions from the community. To mitigate against food safety risks, consumers used strategies such as boiling the ASFs, purchasing their products from trusted retailers, avoiding vendors in unhygienic environments and reducing the amount and frequency of consumption of ASFs or totally avoiding their consumption. These consumer perceptions are increasingly influencing the ASFs choice and consumption in low-income populations besides other drivers. Notably, given limited incomes that influence their purchasing power and the need for nutritious diets that included ASFs, the dilemma of quality vis-a-vis quantity persists and consumers still accessed and consumed these ASF products to supplement their diets. CONCLUSIONS: To enhance food safety for ASFs, as well as assure consumer access to safe ASFs from informal markets, there is need to contextualize the value chain as informed by consumer perceptions on food safety as these influence their ASFs choice and consumption
The Seventh Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
This paper describes the Seventh Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
(SDSS), marking the completion of the original goals of the SDSS and the end of
the phase known as SDSS-II. It includes 11663 deg^2 of imaging data, with most
of the roughly 2000 deg^2 increment over the previous data release lying in
regions of low Galactic latitude. The catalog contains five-band photometry for
357 million distinct objects. The survey also includes repeat photometry over
250 deg^2 along the Celestial Equator in the Southern Galactic Cap. A
coaddition of these data goes roughly two magnitudes fainter than the main
survey. The spectroscopy is now complete over a contiguous area of 7500 deg^2
in the Northern Galactic Cap, closing the gap that was present in previous data
releases. There are over 1.6 million spectra in total, including 930,000
galaxies, 120,000 quasars, and 460,000 stars. The data release includes
improved stellar photometry at low Galactic latitude. The astrometry has all
been recalibrated with the second version of the USNO CCD Astrograph Catalog
(UCAC-2), reducing the rms statistical errors at the bright end to 45
milli-arcseconds per coordinate. A systematic error in bright galaxy photometr
is less severe than previously reported for the majority of galaxies. Finally,
we describe a series of improvements to the spectroscopic reductions, including
better flat-fielding and improved wavelength calibration at the blue end,
better processing of objects with extremely strong narrow emission lines, and
an improved determination of stellar metallicities. (Abridged)Comment: 20 pages, 10 embedded figures. Accepted to ApJS after minor
correction
Gender and sociocultural factors in animal source foods (ASFs) access and consumption in lower-income households in urban informal settings of Nairobi, Kenya
Background
Gender shapes household decision-making and access for nutritious diets, including animal source foods (ASFs) that impact on child health and nutrition status. However, research shows that the poorest households in the urban informal settlements of Nairobi have low ASFs consumption. This study was conducted to explore further from a qualitative perspective the gender, sociocultural factors affecting household ASF consumption this study.
Methods
To explore further on the topic of study, an exploratory qualitative study was carried out to establish the factors that influence access, allocation and consumption of animal source foods (ASFs) by households in urban informal settings of Nairobi. Nineteen focus group discussions with men and women were conducted to enable in-depth exploration of ASFs consumption.
Results
Gender influences decision-making of household ASFs dietary intake. Gendered power dynamics prevail with men as breadwinners and household heads often determining the food access and consumption of ASFs. Women are increasingly accessing short-term waged-based incomes in urban informal settings and now play a role in food and nutrition security for their households. This enforces the idea that womenâs decision-making autonomy is an important aspect of women empowerment, as it relates to womenâs dietary diversity and subsequently, better household nutritional status. As evidenced in this study, if a woman has bargaining power based on accessing incomes to support their household food needs, she will not jeopardize food security. The mobile digital money platform was key in enabling access to resources to access food. Use of trust to access food on credit and purchasing smaller packaged quantities of food were also enablers to access of food/ASFs
Consumer perceptions of food safety in animal source foods choice and consumption in Nairobiâs informal settlements
Background Animal-source foods (ASFs) are high-quality nutrient-dense products key to reducing stunting and micronutrient deficiencies. However, their consumption among the poorest households in urban informal settlements is low. Several drivers beyond price, including health considerations have been reported to drive ASF choice and consumption among consumers. This current study explores consumer perceptions of food safety associated with animal source foods (ASFs) consumption in urban informal settlements with a view to unpacking the health considerations driving their choice and consumption. Methods Coupled households with children 6â59 months formed the study sample. The Food Environments Working Group (FEWG) Framework of the Agriculture and Nutrition for Health academy (ANH) was used to guide the study which utilized qualitative methods namely, 60 in-depth interviews (IDIs), 19 focus group discussions, and 19 key informant interviews (KIIs) complemented by unstructured observations. Data were transcribed and analysed according to emerging themes. Results Consumer perceptions of food safety are driven by concerns about food production, processing, handling, storage and the health risks associated with consumption of the ASFs. For all the ASFs, lack of traceability of source, unhygienic environments in which they were sold and health risks around consuming too much or improperly cooked products were key perceptions from the community. To mitigate against food safety risks, consumers used strategies such as boiling the ASFs, purchasing their products from trusted retailers, avoiding vendors in unhygienic environments and reducing the amount and frequency of consumption of ASFs or totally avoiding their consumption. These consumer perceptions are increasingly influencing the ASFs choice and consumption in low-income populations besides other drivers. Notably, given limited incomes that influence their purchasing power and the need for nutritious diets that included ASFs, the dilemma of quality vis-a-vis quantity persists and consumers still accessed and consumed these ASF products to supplement their diets. Conclusions To enhance food safety for ASFs, as well as assure consumer access to safe ASFs from informal markets, there is need to contextualize the value chain as informed by consumer perceptions on food safety as these influence their ASFs choice and consumption
Recommended from our members
Gender and sociocultural factors in animal source foods (ASFs) access and consumption in lower-income households in urban informal settings of Nairobi, Kenya
Background
Gender shapes household decision-making and access for nutritious diets, including animal source foods (ASFs) that impact on child health and nutrition status. However, research shows that the poorest households in the urban informal settlements of Nairobi have low ASFs consumption. This study was conducted to explore further from a qualitative perspective the gender, sociocultural factors affecting household ASF consumption this study.
Methods
To explore further on the topic of study, an exploratory qualitative study was carried out to establish the factors that influence access, allocation and consumption of animal source foods (ASFs) by households in urban informal settings of Nairobi. Nineteen focus group discussions with men and women were conducted to enable in-depth exploration of ASFs consumption.
Results
Gender influences decision-making of household ASFs dietary intake. Gendered power dynamics prevail with men as breadwinners and household heads often determining the food access and consumption of ASFs. Women are increasingly accessing short-term waged-based incomes in urban informal settings and now play a role in food and nutrition security for their households. This enforces the idea that womenâs decision-making autonomy is an important aspect of women empowerment, as it relates to womenâs dietary diversity and subsequently, better household nutritional status. As evidenced in this study, if a woman has bargaining power based on accessing incomes to support their household food needs, she will not jeopardize food security. The mobile digital money platform was key in enabling access to resources to access food. Use of trust to access food on credit and purchasing smaller packaged quantities of food were also enablers to access of food/ASFs
Nanotherapeutic Modulation of Human Neural Cells and Glioblastoma in Organoids and Monocultures
Inflammatory processes in the brain are orchestrated by microglia and astrocytes in response to activators such as pathogen-associated molecular patterns, danger-associated molecular patterns and some nanostructures. Microglia are the primary immune responders in the brain and initiate responses amplified by astrocytes through intercellular signaling. Intercellular communication between neural cells can be studied in cerebral organoids, co-cultures or in vivo. We used human cerebral organoids and glioblastoma co-cultures to study glia modulation by dendritic polyglycerol sulfate (dPGS). dPGS is an extensively studied nanostructure with inherent anti-inflammatory properties. Under inflammatory conditions, lipocalin-2 levels in astrocytes are markedly increased and indirectly enhanced by soluble factors released from hyperactive microglia. dPGS is an effective anti-inflammatory modulator of these markers. Our results show that dPGS can enter neural cells in cerebral organoids and glial cells in monocultures in a time-dependent manner. dPGS markedly reduces lipocalin-2 abundance in the neural cells. Glioblastoma tumoroids of astrocytic origin respond to activated microglia with enhanced invasiveness, whereas conditioned media from dPGS-treated microglia reduce tumoroid invasiveness. Considering that many nanostructures have only been tested in cancer cells and rodent models, experiments in human 3D cerebral organoids and co-cultures are complementary in vitro models to evaluate nanotherapeutics in the pre-clinical setting. Thoroughly characterized organoids and standardized procedures for their preparation are prerequisites to gain information of translational value in nanomedicine. This study provides data for a well-characterized dendrimer (dPGS) that modulates the activation state of human microglia implicated in brain tumor invasiveness