Evolve: Language-Driven Engineering in Industrial Practice

In general software projects still, have a very high failure rate. We noticed that one of our projects did not gather pace. It was delayed from the beginning and on the way to fail. After investigating the development process, we located the issue in the chosen architecture of the software. Although the used technology has many advantages, it handicapped the application developers by the cumbersome architecture. The challenge was how we could keep the advantages, but simplify the work of the application developers. We came up with the approach to build a toolkit and family of dedicated Domain-Specific Languages which is developed alongside the project. We called it Evolve, and it is built upon the Language-Driven Engineering paradigm. We were able to salvage the project and establish Evolve in the development process of related applications. With Evolve we successfully brought Language-Driven Engineering to industrial practice. It will play a major role in our future software development

Das Plauderlabor - Gesprächsforschung in der Öffentlichkeit

Schaller B, Hitzler S, Holtkamp C, Kramer J, Schürmann M. Das Plauderlabor - Gesprächsforschung in der Öffentlichkeit. Gesprächsforschung - Online-Zeitschrift zur verbalen Interaktion. 2023;(24)

Gut microbiota and glucometabolic alterations in response to recurrent partial sleep deprivation in normal-weight young individuals

Objective: Changes to the microbial community in the human gut have been proposed to promote metabolic disturbances that also occur after short periods of sleep loss (including insulin resistance). However, whether sleep loss affects the gut microbiota remains unknown. Methods: In a randomized within-subject crossover study utilizing a standardized in-lab protocol (with fixed meal times and exercise schedules), we studied nine normal-weight men at two occasions: after two nights of partial sleep deprivation (PSD; sleep opportunity 02:45–07:00 h), and after two nights of normal sleep (NS; sleep opportunity 22:30–07:00 h). Fecal samples were collected within 24 h before, and after two in-lab nights, of either NS or PSD. In addition, participants underwent an oral glucose tolerance test following each sleep intervention. Results: Microbiota composition analysis (V4 16S rRNA gene sequencing) revealed that after two days of PSD vs. after two days of NS, individuals exhibited an increased Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio, higher abundances of the families Coriobacteriaceae and Erysipelotrichaceae, and lower abundance of Tenericutes (all P < 0.05) – previously all associated with metabolic perturbations in animal or human models. However, no PSD vs. NS effect on beta diversity or on fecal short-chain fatty acid concentrations was found. Fasting and postprandial insulin sensitivity decreased after PSD vs. NS (all P < 0.05). Discussion: Our findings demonstrate that short-term sleep loss induces subtle effects on human microbiota. To what extent the observed changes to the microbial community contribute to metabolic consequences of sleep loss warrants further investigations in larger and more prolonged sleep studies, to also assess how sleep loss impacts the microbiota in individuals who already are metabolically compromised. Author Video: Author Video Watch what authors say about their articles Keywords: Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Insulin resistance, Intestinal microbiome, Short-chain fatty acid, Sleep restrictio

3,5-Diiodo-L-Thyronine (3,5-T2) Exerts Thyromimetic Effects on Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Thyroid Axis, Body Composition, and Energy Metabolism in Male Diet-Induced Obese Mice

Effective and safe antiobesity drugs are still needed in face of the obesity pandemic worldwide. Recent interventions in rodents revealed 3,5-diiodo-L-thyronine (3,5-T2) as a metabolically active iodothyronine affecting energy and lipid metabolism without thyromimetic side effects typically associated with T3 administration. Accordingly, 3,5-T2 has been proposed as a potential hypolipidemic agent for treatment of obesity and hepatic steatosis. In contrast to other observations, our experiments revealed dose-dependent thyromimetic effects of 3,5-T2 akin to those of T3 in diet-induced obese male C57BL/6J mice. 3,5-T2 treatment exerted a negative feedback regulation on the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis, similar to T3. This is demonstrated by decreased expression of genes responsive to thyroid hormones (TH) in pituitary resulting in a suppressed thyroid function with lower T4 and T3 concentrations in serum and liver of 3,5-T2-treated mice. Analyses of hepatic TH target genes involved in lipid metabolism revealed T3-like changes in gene expression and increased type I-deiodinase activity after application of 3,5-T2 (2.5 μg/g body weight). Reduced hepatic triglyceride and serum cholesterol concentrations reflected enhanced lipid metabolism. Desired increased metabolic rate and reduction of different fat depots were, however, compromised by increased food intake preventing significant body weight loss. Moreover, enlarged heart weights indicate potential cardiac side effects of 3,5-T2 beyond hepatic thyromimetic actions. Altogether, the observed thyromimetic effects of 3,5-T2 in several mouse TH target tissues raise concern about indiscriminate administration of 3,5-T2 as powerful natural hormone for the treatment of hyperlipidemia and pandemic obesity

Augmented liver inflammation in a microsomal prostaglandin E synthase 1 (mPGES-1)-deficient diet-induced mouse NASH model

In a subset of patients, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is complicated by cell death and inflammation resulting in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which may progress to fibrosis and subsequent organ failure. Apart from cytokines, prostaglandins, in particular prostaglandin E-2 (PGE(2)), play a pivotal role during inflammatory processes. Expression of the key enzymes of PGE(2) synthesis, cyclooxygenase 2 and microsomal PGE synthase 1 (mPGES-1), was increased in human NASH livers in comparison to controls and correlated with the NASH activity score. Both enzymes were also induced in NASH-diet-fed wild-type mice, resulting in an increase in hepatic PGE(2) concentration that was completely abrogated in mPGES-1-deficient mice. PGE(2) is known to inhibit TNF-alpha synthesis in macrophages. A strong infiltration of monocyte-derived macrophages was observed in NASH-diet-fed mice, which was accompanied with an increase in hepatic TNF-alpha expression. Due to the impaired PGE(2) production, TNF-alpha expression increased much more in livers of mPGES-1-deficient mice or in the peritoneal macrophages of these mice. The increased levels of TNF-alpha resulted in an enhanced IL-1 beta production, primarily in hepatocytes, and augmented hepatocyte apoptosis. In conclusion, attenuation of PGE(2) production by mPGES-1 ablation enhanced the TNF-alpha-triggered inflammatory response and hepatocyte apoptosis in diet-induced NASH

Redox homeostasis and cell cycle activation mediate beta-cell mass expansion in aged, diabetes-prone mice under metabolic stress conditions: Role of thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP)

Overnutrition contributes to insulin resistance, obesity and metabolic stress, initiating a loss of functional beta-cells and diabetes development. Whether these damaging effects are amplified in advanced age is barely investigated. Therefore, New Zealand Obese (NZO) mice, a well-established model for the investigation of human obesity-associated type 2 diabetes, were fed a metabolically challenging diet with a high-fat, carbohydrate restricted period followed by a carbohydrate intervention in young as well as advanced age. Interestingly, while young NZO mice developed massive hyperglycemia in response to carbohydrate feeding, leading to beta-cell dysfunction and cell death, aged counterparts compensated the increased insulin demand by persistent beta-cell function and beta-cell mass expansion. Beta-cell loss in young NZO islets was linked to increased expression of thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP), presumably initiating an apoptosis-signaling cascade via caspase-3 activation. In contrast, islets of aged NZOs exhibited a sustained redox balance without changes in TXNIP expression, associated with higher proliferative potential by cell cycle activation. These findings support the relevance of a maintained proliferative potential and redox homeostasis for preserving islet functionality under metabolic stress, with the peculiarity that this adaptive response emerged with advanced age in diabetes-prone NZO mice

HSP60 reduction protects against diet-induced obesity by modulating energy metabolism in adipose tissue

OBJECTIVE: Insulin regulates mitochondrial function, thereby propagating an efficient metabolism. Conversely, diabetes and insulin resistance are linked to mitochondrial dysfunction with a decreased expression of the mitochondrial chaperone HSP60. The aim of this investigation was to determine the effect of a reduced HSP60 expression on the development of obesity and insulin resistance. METHODS: Control and heterozygous whole-body HSP60 knockout (Hsp60+/−) mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD, 60% calories from fat) for 16 weeks and subjected to extensive metabolic phenotyping. To understand the effect of HSP60 on white adipose tissue, microarray analysis of gonadal WAT was performed, ex vivo experiments were performed, and a lentiviral knockdown of HSP60 in 3T3-L1 cells was conducted to gain detailed insights into the effect of reduced HSP60 levels on adipocyte homeostasis. RESULTS: Male Hsp60+/− mice exhibited lower body weight with lower fat mass. These mice exhibited improved insulin sensitivity compared to control, as assessed by Matsuda Index and HOMA-IR. Accordingly, insulin levels were significantly reduced in Hsp60+/− mice in a glucose tolerance test. However, Hsp60+/− mice exhibited an altered adipose tissue metabolism with elevated insulin-independent glucose uptake, adipocyte hyperplasia in the presence of mitochondrial dysfunction, altered autophagy, and local insulin resistance. CONCLUSIONS: We discovered that the reduction of HSP60 in mice predominantly affects adipose tissue homeostasis, leading to beneficial alterations in body weight, body composition, and adipocyte morphology, albeit exhibiting local insulin resistance