Cinnamon Use in Type 2 Diabetes: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE Cinnamon has been studied in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for its glycemic-lowering effects, but studies have been small and show conflicting results. A prior meta-analysis did not show significant results, but several RCTs have been published since then. We conducted an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs evaluating cinnamon’s effect on glycemia and lipid levels. METHODS MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched through February 2012. Included RCTs evaluated cinnamon compared with control in patients with type 2 diabetes and reported at least one of the following: glycated hemoglobin (A1c), fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), or triglycerides. Weighted mean differences (with 95% confidence intervals) for endpoints were calculated using random-effects models. RESULTS In a meta-analysis of 10 RCTs (n = 543 patients), cinnamon doses of 120 mg/d to 6 g/d for 4 to 18 weeks reduced levels of fasting plasma glucose (−24.59 mg/dL; 95% CI, −40.52 to −8.67 mg/dL), total cholesterol (−15.60 mg/dL; 95% CI, −29.76 to −1.44 mg/dL), LDL-C (−9.42 mg/dL; 95% CI, −17.21 to −1.63 mg/dL), and triglycerides (−29.59 mg/dL; 95% CI, −48.27 to −10.91 mg/dL). Cinnamon also increased levels of HDL-C (1.66 mg/dL; 95% CI, 1.09 to 2.24 mg/dL). No significant effect on hemoglobin A1c levels (−0.16%; 95%, CI −0.39% to 0.02%) was seen. High degrees of heterogeneity were present for all analyses except HDL-C (I2 ranging from 66.5% to 94.72%). CONCLUSIONS The consumption of cinnamon is associated with a statistically significant decrease in levels of fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, LDL-C, and triglyceride levels, and an increase in HDL-C levels; however, no significant effect on hemoglobin A1c was found. The high degree of heterogeneity may limit the ability to apply these results to patient care, because the preferred dose and duration of therapy are unclear

Nonlinear rheology of colloidal dispersions

Colloidal dispersions are commonly encountered in everyday life and represent an important class of complex fluid. Of particular significance for many commercial products and industrial processes is the ability to control and manipulate the macroscopic flow response of a dispersion by tuning the microscopic interactions between the constituents. An important step towards attaining this goal is the development of robust theoretical methods for predicting from first-principles the rheology and nonequilibrium microstructure of well defined model systems subject to external flow. In this review we give an overview of some promising theoretical approaches and the phenomena they seek to describe, focusing, for simplicity, on systems for which the colloidal particles interact via strongly repulsive, spherically symmetric interactions. In presenting the various theories, we will consider first low volume fraction systems, for which a number of exact results may be derived, before moving on to consider the intermediate and high volume fraction states which present both the most interesting physics and the most demanding technical challenges. In the high volume fraction regime particular emphasis will be given to the rheology of dynamically arrested states.Comment: Review articl

Transport Phenomena and Structuring in Shear Flow of Suspensions near Solid Walls

In this paper we apply the lattice-Boltzmann method and an extension to particle suspensions as introduced by Ladd et al. to study transport phenomena and structuring effects of particles suspended in a fluid near sheared solid walls. We find that a particle free region arises near walls, which has a width depending on the shear rate and the particle concentration. The wall causes the formation of parallel particle layers at low concentrations, where the number of particles per layer decreases with increasing distance to the wall.Comment: 14 pages, 14 figure

Incubation temperature affects growth and efficacy of white-rot fungi to improve the nutritive value of rice straw

Context: A great body of evidence is available on the in vitro efficacy of white-rot fungi (WRF) to degrade lignin in fibre-rich biomass (e.g. wheat straw, wood chips and rice straw (RS)) and improve the biomass' nutritive value for ruminants. Aims: Determining the impact of incubation temperature of three WRF to improve the nutritional value of rice straw. Methods: Growth of Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, Lentinula edodes and Pleurotus eryngii on RS for 26 days at the following six temperature regimes: continuous at 24°C, 30°C, 35°C and 40°C, and 3 days at 35°C and 40°C, with subsequent days at 24°C. In a follow-up experiment, improvement in fermentability in buffered rumen fluid of RS treated by the three WRF at 24°C and 30°C for up to 8 weeks was investigated. Key results: All three fungi grew at temperatures up to 35°C, with no growth observed at 40°C, with C. subvermispora being more temperature sensitive. There were significant differences in cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin degradation of RS at 24°C and 30°C, with C. subvermispora degrading 69% and 90% of the hemicellulose and lignin respectively at 30°C, greater than at 24°C (55% and 80% respectively). For L. edodes, there were significant differences in cellulose degradation between 24°C and 30°C, with 12% more degradation at 30°C, but not for hemicellulose and lignin. In vitro gas production showed no significant differences between the two incubation temperatures for either of the two fungi. Pleurotus eryngii treatment did not show any improvement in terms of in vitro gas production. Conclusions: Treatment of RS with L. edodes and C. subvermispora, but not P. eryngii, is robust and temperature changes will not have a major impact on their efficacy as long as the temperature remains below 30°C. Implications: Temperature during the incubation of WRF with rice straw needs to be below 30°C for this biotechnology to be applied in practice

Hydrodynamic interactions in colloidal ferrofluids: A lattice Boltzmann study

We use lattice Boltzmann simulations, in conjunction with Ewald summation methods, to investigate the role of hydrodynamic interactions in colloidal suspensions of dipolar particles, such as ferrofluids. Our work addresses volume fractions $\phi$ of up to 0.20 and dimensionless dipolar interaction parameters $\lambda$ of up to 8. We compare quantitatively with Brownian dynamics simulations, in which many-body hydrodynamic interactions are absent. Monte Carlo data are also used to check the accuracy of static properties measured with the lattice Boltzmann technique. At equilibrium, hydrodynamic interactions slow down both the long-time and the short-time decays of the intermediate scattering function $S(q,t)$, for wavevectors close to the peak of the static structure factor $S(q)$, by a factor of roughly two. The long-time slowing is diminished at high interaction strengths whereas the short-time slowing (quantified via the hydrodynamic factor $H(q)$) is less affected by the dipolar interactions, despite their strong effect on the pair distribution function arising from cluster formation. Cluster formation is also studied in transient data following a quench from $\lambda = 0$; hydrodynamic interactions slow the formation rate, again by a factor of roughly two

First Observation of Self-Amplified Spontaneous Emission in a Free-Electron Laser at 109 nm Wavelength

We present the first observation of Self-Amplified Spontaneous Emission (SASE) in a free-electron laser (FEL) in the Vacuum Ultraviolet regime at 109 nm wavelength (11 eV). The observed free-electron laser gain (approx. 3000) and the radiation characteristics, such as dependency on bunch charge, angular distribution, spectral width and intensity fluctuations all corroborate the existing models for SASE FELs.Comment: 6 pages including 6 figures; e-mail: [email protected]

Effectiveness and safety of in vitro maturation of oocytes versus in vitro fertilisation in women with high antral follicle count : Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

This work was supported by Ferring grant number 000323 and sponsored by My Duc Hospital.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Community first responders and responder schemes in the United Kingdom: systematic scoping review

Background: Community First Responder (CFR) schemes support lay people to respond to medical emergencies, working closely with ambulance services. They operate widely in the UK. There has been no previous review of UK literature on these schemes. This is the first systematic scoping review of UK literature on CFR schemes, which identifies the reasons for becoming a CFR, requirements for training and feedback and confusion between the CFR role and that of ambulance service staff. This study also reveals gaps in the evidence base for CFR schemes. Methods: We conducted a systematic scoping review of the published literature, in the English language from 2000 onwards using specific search terms in six databases. Narrative synthesis was used to analyse article content. Results: Nine articles remained from the initial search of 15,969 articles after removing duplicates, title and abstract and then full text review. People were motivated to become CFRs through an altruistic desire to help others. They generally felt rewarded by their work but recognised that the help they provided was limited by their training compared with ambulance staff. There were concerns about the possible emotional impact on CFRs responding to incidents. CFRs felt that better feedback would enhance their learning. Ongoing training and support were viewed as essential to enable CFRs to progress. They perceived that public recognition of the CFR role was low, patients sometimes confusing them with ambulance staff. Relationships with the ambulance service were sometimes ambivalent due to confusion over roles. There was support for local autonomy of CFR schemes but with greater sharing of best practice. Discussion: Most studies dated from 2005 and were descriptive rather than analytical. In the UK and Australia CFRs are usually lay volunteers equipped with basic skills for responding to medical emergencies, whereas in the US they include other emergency staff as well as lay people. Conclusion: Opportunities for future research include exploring experiences and perceptions of patients who have been treated by CFRs and other stakeholders, while also evaluating the effectiveness and costs of CFR schemes

Small Molecule Inhibitors of Staphylococcus aureus RnpA Alter Cellular mRNA Turnover, Exhibit Antimicrobial Activity, and Attenuate Pathogenesis

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is estimated to cause more U.S. deaths annually than HIV/AIDS. The emergence of hypervirulent and multidrug-resistant strains has further amplified public health concern and accentuated the need for new classes of antibiotics. RNA degradation is a required cellular process that could be exploited for novel antimicrobial drug development. However, such discovery efforts have been hindered because components of the Gram-positive RNA turnover machinery are incompletely defined. In the current study we found that the essential S. aureus protein, RnpA, catalyzes rRNA and mRNA digestion in vitro. Exploiting this activity, high through-put and secondary screening assays identified a small molecule inhibitor of RnpA-mediated in vitro RNA degradation. This agent was shown to limit cellular mRNA degradation and exhibited antimicrobial activity against predominant methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) lineages circulating throughout the U.S., vancomycin intermediate susceptible S. aureus (VISA), vancomycin resistant S. aureus (VRSA) and other Gram-positive bacterial pathogens with high RnpA amino acid conservation. We also found that this RnpA-inhibitor ameliorates disease in a systemic mouse infection model and has antimicrobial activity against biofilm-associated S. aureus. Taken together, these findings indicate that RnpA, either alone, as a component of the RNase P holoenzyme, and/or as a member of a more elaborate complex, may play a role in S. aureus RNA degradation and provide proof of principle for RNA catabolism-based antimicrobial therapy