345 research outputs found
The Abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila and its Relationship with Sulphated Colonic Mucins in Health and Ulcerative Colitis
Akkermansia muciniphila utilises colonic mucin as its substrate. Abundance is reduced in ulcerative colitis (UC), as is the relative proportion of sulphated mucin in the mucus gel layer (MGL). It is unknown if these phenomena are related, however reduced sulphated mucins could contribute to reduced abundance, owing to a lack of substrate. The aim of this study was to quantify A. muciniphila within the MGL and to relate these findings with markers of inflammation and the relative proportion of sulphomucin present. Colonic biopsies and mucus brushings were obtained from 20 patients with active UC (AC), 14 with quiescent UC (QUC) and 20 healthy controls (HC). A. muciniphila abundance was determined by RT-PCR. High iron diamine alcian-blue staining was performed for histological analysis. Patients with AC had reduced abundance of A. muciniphila compared to HC and QUC. A positive association was found between A. muciniphila abundance and higher percentage of sulphated mucin (ρ 0.546, p = 0.000). Lower abundances of A. muciniphila correlated with higher inflammatory scores (ρ = 0.294 (p = 0.001)). This study confirms an inverse relationship between A. muciniphila and inflammation and a positive association between A. muciniphila abundance and percentage of sulfated mucin in the MGL
Salcaprozate Sodium (SNAC) Enhances Permeability of Octreotide Across Isolated Rat and Human Intestinal Epithelial Mucosae in Ussing Chambers
Octreotide is approved as a one-month injectable for treatment of acromegaly and neuroendocrine tumours. Oral delivery of the octapeptide is a challenge due mainly to low intestinal epithelial permeability. The intestinal permeation enhancer (PE) salcaprozate sodium (SNAC) has Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) status and is a component of an approved oral peptide formulation. The purpose of the study was to examine the capacity of salcaprozate sodium (SNAC), to increase its permeability across isolated rat intestinal mucosae from five regions and across human colonic mucosae mounted in Ussing chambers. Apical-side buffers were Kreb\u27s-Henseleit (KH), fasted simulated intestinal fluid (FaSSIF-V2), rat simulated intestinal fluid (rSIF), and colonic simulated intestinal fluid (FaSSCoF). The basal apparent permeability coefficient (Papp) of [³H]-octreotide was equally low across rat intestinal regional mucosae in KH, rSIF, and FaSSIF-V2. Apical addition of 20 mM SNAC increased the Papp across rat tissue in KH: colon (by 3.2-fold) \u3e ileum (3.4-fold) \u3e upper jejunum (2.3-fold) \u3e duodenum (1.4-fold) \u3e stomach (1.4-fold). 20 mM and 40 mM SNAC also increased the Papp by 1.5-fold and 2.1-fold respectively across human colonic mucosae in KH. Transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) values were reduced in the presence in SNAC especially in colonic regions. LC-MS/MS analysis of permeated unlabelled octreotide across human colonic mucosae in the presence of SNAC indicated that [³H]-octreotide remained intact. No gross damage was caused to rat or human mucosae by SNAC. Attenuation of the effects of SNAC was seen in rat jejunal mucosae incubated with FaSSIF-V2 and rSIF, and also to some extent in human colonic mucosae using FaSSCoF, suggesting interaction between SNAC with buffer components. In conclusion, SNAC showed potential as an intestinal permeation enhancer for octreotide, but in vivo efficacy may be attenuated by interactions with GI luminal fluid contents
Constitutive basal and stimulated human small bowel contractility is enhanced in obesity
Small bowel contractility may be more prominent in obese subjects, such that there is enhanced nutrient absorption and hunger stimulation. However, there is little evidence to support this. This study examined in vitro small bowel contractility in obese patients versus non-obese patients
Transverse-energy distributions at midrapidity in , Au, and AuAu collisions at --200~GeV and implications for particle-production models
Measurements of the midrapidity transverse energy distribution, d\Et/d\eta,
are presented for , Au, and AuAu collisions at
GeV and additionally for AuAu collisions at
and 130 GeV. The d\Et/d\eta distributions are first
compared with the number of nucleon participants , number of
binary collisions , and number of constituent-quark participants
calculated from a Glauber model based on the nuclear geometry. For
AuAu, \mean{d\Et/d\eta}/N_{\rm part} increases with , while
\mean{d\Et/d\eta}/N_{qp} is approximately constant for all three energies.
This indicates that the two component ansatz, , which has been used to represent
distributions, is simply a proxy for , and that the term
does not represent a hard-scattering component in distributions. The
distributions of AuAu and Au are then calculated from
the measured distribution using two models that both reproduce
the AuAu data. However, while the number-of-constituent-quark-participant
model agrees well with the Au data, the additive-quark model does not.Comment: 391 authors, 24 pages, 19 figures, and 15 Tables. Submitted to Phys.
Rev. C. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and
previous PHENIX publications are publicly available at
http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm
J/psi suppression at forward rapidity in Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN)=39 and 62.4 GeV
We present measurements of the J/psi invariant yields in sqrt(s_NN)=39 and
62.4 GeV Au+Au collisions at forward rapidity (1.2<|y|<2.2). Invariant yields
are presented as a function of both collision centrality and transverse
momentum. Nuclear modifications are obtained for central relative to peripheral
Au+Au collisions (R_CP) and for various centrality selections in Au+Au relative
to scaled p+p cross sections obtained from other measurements (R_AA). The
observed suppression patterns at 39 and 62.4 GeV are quite similar to those
previously measured at 200 GeV. This similar suppression presents a challenge
to theoretical models that contain various competing mechanisms with different
energy dependencies, some of which cause suppression and others enhancement.Comment: 365 authors, 10 pages, 11 figures, 4 tables. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
C. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and
previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at
http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm
High-pT pi^zero Production with Respect to the Reaction Plane in Au + Au Collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 GeV
Measurements of the azimuthal anisotropy of high-\pT neutral pion neutral
pion production in Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 200 GeV by the PHENIX
experiment are presented. The data included in this paper were collected during
the 2004 RHIC running period and represent approximately an order of magnitude
increase in the number of analyzed events relative to previously published
results. Azimuthal angle distributions of pi^0s detected in the PHENIX
electromagnetic calorimeters are measured relative to the reaction plane
determined event-by-event using the forward and backward beam-beam counters.
Amplitudes of the second Fourier component (v_2) of the angular distributions
are presented as a function of pi^0 transverse momentum p_T for different bins
in collision centrality. Measured reaction plane dependent pi^0 yields are used
to determine the azimuthal dependence of the pi^0 suppression as a function of
p_T, R_AA (Delta phi,p_T). A jet-quenching motivated geometric analysis is
presented that attempts to simultaneously describe the centrality dependence
and reaction plane angle dependence of the pi^0 suppression in terms of the
path lengths of hypothetical parent partons in the medium. This set of results
allows for a detailed examination of the influence of geometry in the collision
region, and of the interplay between collective flow and jet-quenching effects
along the azimuthal axis.Comment: 344 authors, 35 pages text, RevTeX-4, 24 figures, 8 tables. Submitted
to Physical Review
Cross sections and double-helicity asymmetries of midrapidity inclusive charged hadrons in p+p collisions at sqrt(s)=62.4 GeV
Unpolarized cross sections and double-helicity asymmetries of
single-inclusive positive and negative charged hadrons at midrapidity from p+p
collisions at sqrt(s)=62.4 GeV are presented. The PHENIX measurements for 1.0 <
p_T < 4.5 GeV/c are consistent with perturbative QCD calculations at
next-to-leading order in the strong coupling constant, alpha_s. Resummed pQCD
calculations including terms with next-to-leading-log accuracy, yielding
reduced theoretical uncertainties, also agree with the data. The
double-helicity asymmetry, sensitive at leading order to the gluon polarization
in a momentum-fraction range of 0.05 ~< x_gluon ~< 0.2, is consistent with
recent global parameterizations disfavoring large gluon polarization.Comment: PHENIX Collaboration. 447 authors, 12 pages, 5 figures, 5 tables.
Submitted to Physical Review
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