The Effect of Coconut "Genjah Salak" (Cocos Nucifera L) Water and Isotonic Drinks on Blood Glucose Levels

Introduction: Since years ago the first coconut water has been used as tradicional medicine to cure various diseases. The content of glucose, electrolytes, vitamins, and proteins in the coconut water can serve as a replacement of body fluitds, as an energy source, and rehydration enhancer. Today there are a lot of isotonic drinks products marketed in the community. The drinks usually contain glucose, sodium, and potassium. Isotonic drinks are used in this study is almost the same composition with coconut "genjah salak" water.Objective: to know when the glucose levels increase and decrease after administration of coconut "genjah salak" water and the provision of isotonic drinks. The results of this study is expected to initiate the development of natural isotonic beverage as the replacement of body fluidsMethod: The research method is the human clinical trials testing using double-blind cross-over design of the experiment. The measured parameter is the measurement of glucose tolerance in the body per 15 minutes for 2 hours after the administration of coconut "genjah salak" water and the provision of isotonic drinks without doing physical activities during the measurement. Resullt: The glucose levels in the group given coconut "genjah salak" water and the group given isotonic drinks significantly increased, compared with the control group at the 15th , 30th and 45th minutes, but from 60th to 120th minutes there were no significant differences in the confidence level of α 0.05. Coconut "genjah salak" water group significantly increase at the 30th, 45th, and 60th minutes, compared with isotonic drinks at the confidence level of α 0.05. Conclusion: consuming coconut water can maintain and improve glucose levels required to replace body fluids. The body takes about 15-30 minutes to absorb the drinks in order to work effectively, so it is recommended to consume coconut water or isotonic drinks approximately 15-30 minutes before doing physical activities

Effectiveness of a multifaceted podiatry intervention to prevent falls in community dwelling older people with disabling foot pain: randomised controlled trial

Objective To determine the effectiveness of a multifaceted podiatry intervention in preventing falls in community dwelling older people with disabling foot pain

Prenatal development is linked to bronchial reactivity: epidemiological and animal model evidence

Chronic cardiorespiratory disease is associated with low birthweight suggesting the importance of the developmental environment. Prenatal factors affecting fetal growth are believed important, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. The influence of developmental programming on bronchial hyperreactivity is investigated in an animal model and evidence for comparable associations is sought in humans. Pregnant Wistar rats were fed either control or protein-restricted diets throughout pregnancy. Bronchoconstrictor responses were recorded from offspring bronchial segments. Morphometric analysis of paraffin-embedded lung sections was conducted. In a human mother-child cohort ultrasound measurements of fetal growth were related to bronchial hyperreactivity, measured at age six years using methacholine. Protein-restricted rats' offspring demonstrated greater bronchoconstriction than controls. Airway structure was not altered. Children with lesser abdominal circumference growth during 11-19 weeks' gestation had greater bronchial hyperreactivity than those with more rapid abdominal growth. Imbalanced maternal nutrition during pregnancy results in offspring bronchial hyperreactivity. Prenatal environmental influences might play a comparable role in humans

Acute Effects of Decaffeinated Coffee and the Major Coffee Components Chlorogenic Acid and Trigonelline on Glucose Tolerance

OBJECTIVE: Coffee consumption has been associated with lower risk of type 2 diabetes. We evaluated the acute effects of decaffeinated coffee and the major coffee components chlorogenic acid and trigonelline on glucose tolerance. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We conducted a randomized crossover trial of the effects of 12 g decaffeinated coffee, 1 g chlorogenic acid, 500 mg trigonelline, and placebo (1 g mannitol) on glucose and insulin concentrations during a 2-h oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in 15 overweight men. RESULTS Chlorogenic acid and trigonelline ingestion significantly reduced glucose (−0.7 mmol/l, P = 0.007, and −0.5 mmol/l, P = 0.024, respectively) and insulin (−73 pmol/l, P = 0.038, and −117 pmol/l, P = 0.007) concentrations 15 min following an OGTT compared with placebo. None of the treatments affected insulin or glucose area under the curve values during the OGTT compared with placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Chlorogenic acid and trigonelline reduced early glucose and insulin responses during an OGTT

Combined local and systemic immunization is essential for durable T-cell mediated heterosubtypic immunity against influenza A virus

The threat from unpredictable influenza virus pandemics necessitates the development of a new type of influenza vaccine. Since the internal proteins are highly conserved, induction of T cells targeting these antigens may provide the solution. Indeed, adenoviral (Ad) vectors expressing flu nucleoprotein have previously been found to induce short-term protection in mice. In this study we confirm that systemic (subcutaneous (s.c.) immunization rapidly induced heterosubtypic protection predominantly mediated by CD8 T cells, but within three months clinical protection completely disappeared. Local (intranasal (i.n.)) immunization elicited delayed, but more lasting protection despite relatively inefficient immunization. However, by far, the most robust protection was induced by simultaneous, combined (i.n. + s.c.) vaccination, and, notably, in this case clinical protection lasted at least 8 months without showing any evidence of fading. Interestingly, the superior ability of the latter group to resist reinfection correlated with a higher number of antigen-specific CD8 T cells in the spleen. Thus, detailed analysis of the underlying CD8 T cell responses highlights the importance of T cells already positioned in the lungs prior to challenge, but at the same time underscores an important back-up role for circulating antigen-specific cells with the capacity to expand and infiltrate the infected lungs

Changes in plasma hydroxyproline and plasma cell-free DNA concentrations after higher- versus lower-intensity eccentric cycling

Purpose: We examined changes in plasma creatine kinase (CK) activity, hydroxyproline and cell-free DNA (cfDNA) concentrations in relation to changes in maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) torque and delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) following a session of volume-matched higher- (HI) versus lower-intensity (LI) eccentric cycling exercise. Methods: Healthy young men performed either 5 × 1-min HI at 20% of peak power output (n = 11) or 5 × 4-min LI eccentric cycling at 5% of peak power output (n = 9). Changes in knee extensor MVIC torque, DOMS, plasma CK activity, and hydroxyproline and cfDNA concentrations before, immediately after, and 24–72 h post-exercise were compared between groups. Results: Plasma CK activity increased post-exercise (141 ± 73.5%) and MVIC torque decreased from immediately (13.3 ± 7.8%) to 48 h (6.7 ± 13.5%) post-exercise (P \u3c 0.05), without significant differences between groups. DOMS was greater after HI (peak: 4.5 ± 3.0 on a 10-point scale) than LI (1.2 ± 1.0). Hydroxyproline concentration increased 40–53% at 24–72 h after both LI and HI (P \u3c 0.05). cfDNA concentration increased immediately after HI only (2.3 ± 0.9-fold, P \u3c 0.001), with a significant difference between groups (P = 0.002). Lack of detectable methylated HOXD4 indicated that the cfDNA was not derived from skeletal muscle. No significant correlations were evident between the magnitude of change in the measures, but the cfDNA increase immediately post-exercise was correlated with the maximal change in heart rate during exercise (r = 0.513, P = 0.025). Conclusion: Changes in plasma hydroxyproline and cfDNA concentrations were not associated with muscle fiber damage, but the increased hydroxyproline in both groups suggests increased collagen turnover. cfDNA may be a useful metabolic-intensity exercise marker

Using Tetracysteine-Tagged TDP-43 with a Biarsenical Dye To Monitor Real-Time Trafficking in a Cell Model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) has been identified as the major constituent of the proteinaceous inclusions that are characteristic of most forms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and ubiquitin positive frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Wild type TDP-43 inclusions are a pathological hallmark of >95% of patients with sporadic ALS and of the majority of familial ALS cases, and they are also found in a significant proportion of FTLD cases. ALS is the most common form of motor neuron disease, characterized by progressive weakness and muscular wasting, and typically leads to death within a few years of diagnosis. To determine how the translocation and misfolding of TDP-43 contribute to ALS pathogenicity, it is crucial to define the dynamic behavior of this protein within the cellular environment. It is therefore necessary to develop cell models that allow the location of the protein to be defined. We report the use of TDP-43 with a tetracysteine tag for visualization using fluorogenic biarsenical compounds and show that this model displays features of ALS observed in other cell models. We also demonstrate that this labeling procedure enables live-cell imaging of the translocation of the protein from the nucleus into the cytosol

Assessment of a size-based method for enriching circulating tumour cells in colorectal cancer

Circulating tumour cells (CTC) from solid tumours are a prerequisite for metastasis. Isolating CTCs and understanding their biology is essential for developing new clinical tests and precision oncology. Currently, CellSearch is the only FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)-approved method for CTC enrichment but possesses several drawbacks owing to a reliance on the epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) and a resource-intensive nature. Addressing these shortcomings, we optimised an existing size-based method, MetaCell, to enrich CTCs from blood of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. We evaluated the ability of MetaCell to enrich CTCs by spiking blood with CRC cell lines and assessing the cell recovery rates and WBC depletion via immunostaining and gene expression. We then applied MetaCell to samples from 17 CRC patients and seven controls. Recovery rates were \u3e85% in cell lines, with \u3e95% depletion in WBCs. MetaCell yielded CTCs and CTC clusters in 52.9% and 23.5% of the patients, respectively, without false positives in control patients. CTCs and cluster detection did not correlate with histopathological parameters. Overall, we demonstrated that the MetaCell platform enriched CRC cells with high recovery rates and high purity. Our pilot study also demonstrated the ability of MetaCell to detect CTCs in CRC patients

Policy Options for Sustainable Food Consumption – Review and Recommendations for Sweden. Mistra Sustainable Consumption report 1:10

The environmental impact of the average Swede’s diet exceeds the planetary limits for the food system in most areas. Over 15% of consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions come from food in Sweden. Sweden’s agricultural landscape has the largest proportion of European Red List species of all landscape types in Sweden and food imports are associated with high rates of land use, pesticides and veterinary antibiotics in other countries. Our diet is also not sustainable in terms of health – for example, 51% of Swedes are overweight and many of the most common diseases and causes of death are linked to diet.This report identifies and discusses policy instruments that the state and other public actors could introduce to steer food consumption in Sweden towards a more environmentally sustainable diet. Seventeen policy instruments operating either through knowledge and support, changes in relative prices, or regulation and requirements have been identified and previous research on policy effectiveness, costs and acceptance has been mapped out in a way that we hope is clear and easy to understand. Based on the current state of knowledge, we have formulated three recommendations on what public actors could do to accelerate the transition to a more sustainable food system.1.Intensify work in the public sector2.Develop national targets for sustainable food consumption3.Develop and implement effective and attractive policy instrument packagesThe mapping and analysis show that there is a need for research on policy instruments for environmentally sustainable food consumption, particularly when it comes to combinations of instruments. However, there is a sufficient evidence base for the immediate development and implementation of policy instruments to deal with the climate, environmental and health impacts of food. A focus on targets and policy instruments in the food area, as outlined above, is also fully in line with the EU’s new Farm-to-Fork strategy. The policy instruments discussed in the report can probably achieve only part of the huge, transformative changes required to limit the production and consumption of food to planetary limits, but a central issue is how to do this. Part of the answer lies in a change in food consumption and here we believe that we know where the answer lies: public actors ought to develop and implement a variety of policy instruments and systematically evaluate them – it is in this more large-scale implementation that the real need for research lies. The challenge of reducing the environmental impact of food consumption in Sweden is considerable, but there are good opportunities for nudging the trend towards more environment-friendly and health-friendly sustainable food consumption through the deployment of new policy instruments