Wild Wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum) – A replacement for salt (as sodium chloride) in bread products

To evaluate the effect of Seagreens Human Food Quality Wild Wrack Seaweed (Ascophyllum nodosum) as a replacement for salt in bread products

Ascophyllum nodosum enriched bread reduces subsequent energy intake with no effect on post-prandial glucose and cholesterol in healthy, overweight males. A pilot study.

The consumption of seaweed isolates (such as alginate) has been shown to successfully reduce energy intake and modulate glycaemic and cholesterolaemic responses. To date, the effect of adding whole seaweed to bread has not been widely investigated. This study aims to investigate the acceptability of Ascophyllum nodosum enriched bread, and measure its effect on energy intake and nutrient absorption in overweight, healthy males. Results from the acceptability study, (79 untrained sensory panellists) indicated that it is acceptable to incorporate seaweed (Ascophyllum nodosum) into a staple food such as bread when up to 20g are added to a 400g wholemeal loaf. A single blind cross over trial (n=12 males, aged 40.1±12.5 years; BMI 30.8±4.4 kg/m2) was used to compare energy intake and nutrient uptake after a breakfast meal using the enriched bread against the control bread. Consumption of the enriched bread led to a significant reduction (16.4%) in energy intake at a test meal 4 hours after breakfast. Differences between treatment arms for area under the curve, peak values, and time of peak for blood glucose and cholesterol were not significant. Further investigation of potential mechanisms of action is warranted

The potential health benefits of seaweed and seaweed extract

Edible seaweeds have historically been consumed by coastal populations across the globe. Today, seaweed is still part of the habitual diet in many Asian countries. Seaweed consumption also appears to be growing in popularity in Western cultures, due both to the influx of Asian cuisine as well as notional health benefits associated with consumption. Isolates of seaweeds (particularly viscous polysaccharides) are used in an increasing number of food applications in order to improve product acceptability and extend shelf-life. Epidemiological evidence suggests regular seaweed consumption may protect against a range of diseases of modernity. The addition of seaweed and seaweed isolates to foods has already shown potential to enhance satiety and reduce the postprandial absorption rates of glucose and lipids in acute human feeding studies, highlighting their potential use in the development of anti-obesity foods. As seaweeds and seaweed isolates have the potential to both benefit health and improve food acceptability, seaweeds and seaweed isolates offer exciting potential as ingredients in the development of new food products. This review will outline the evidence from human and experimental studies that suggests consumption of seaweeds and seaweed isolates may impact on health (both positively and negatively). Finally, this review will highlight current gaps in knowledge in this area and what future strategies should be adopted for maximising seaweed's potential food uses

Dietary seaweed and human health

Seaweed as an ingredient is growing in popularity largely due to its perceived health-giving properties supported by findings from epidemiological studies. Increased seaweed consumption has been linked to reduced risk of various diseases however there is a paucity of evidence for health benefits derived from robust randomised controlled trials (RCT). Emerging data from short-term RCT involving seaweed isolates are promising. Further investigation of seaweed as a wholefood ingredient is warranted. This review aims to highlight the food uses and potential health benefits of seaweeds

An improved fungal mounting technique for Nomarski microscopy

The 'sellotape technique' of Butler and Mann (1959) with lactophenol cotton blue stain is widely used in these laboratories for the production of non-permanent fungal mounts for class examination using bright field microscopy. The technique allows very little disturbance of fungal structure for identification and taxonomic work. The major drawbacks of this technique for permanent mounts are the fact that the tape itself is not inert and the adhesive reacts with the lactophenol forming droplets which cover the field of view (Onions et al., l98l). The stressed nature of the tape also gives rise to problems due to interference patterns during Nomarski microscopy. The increasing use of diflerential interference contrast(Nomarski) microscopy in mycological studies prompted a re-evaluation of techniques used in the preparation of fungal mounts. Other types of nonstressed tapes were found but these proved not to be sticky enough to pick up fungal structures from agar media cleanly and without undue damage. The technique described below uses a silicone based adhesive in conjunction with the slightly modified polyvinyl alcohol mountant of Salmon (1954), updated by Omar et al. (1918), and represents a modification and improvement of the technique described by Bretz and Berry (1964)

Protein factors and 5' flanking sequences involved in the expression of the mouse myelin basic protein gene.

Myelin Basic Protein is a major structural protein of vertebrate myelin. The gene that codes for MBP is contained within the golli-MBP complex. This gene complex consists of two overlapping transcription units, golli and MBP, which are regulated by two distinct promoters. The golli unit is expressed in cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage (Central Nervous System), neurons, B and T lymphocytes, testis and thymus. However, the MBP unit is expressed exclusively in oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells (Peripheral Nervous System). The expression of the MBP unit is regulated mainly at the level of transcription by proteins that bind in a specific manner to DNA sequences located within its promoter region. The identification of these proteins and DNA sequences is essential to understanding the mechanisms that regulate the transcription of the MBP unit.This project was initiated by the isolation of the putative promoter region of the mouse myelin basic protein (MBP) gene. To achieve this the Hind III - Sac I fragment of pEX1 plasmid was subcloned in the vector pBluescript. The cloned insert, which corresponds to the region between nucleotides -1319 and +227 relative to the transcription start site of the mouse MBP gene, was subsequently sequenced manually using the chain termination method. Sequence analysis revealed a number of putative binding sites for transcription factors. The region -609 to -577 was selected for further studies because work published by other groups suggested that it contains a cell-type specific (for oligodendrocytes) transcription activator. The presence of protein factors specifically binding to the region -609 to -577 was demonstrated by electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA).For this purpose, nuclear extracts were prepared from rodent brain or established glial cell lines e.g. C6 glioma cells. Extracts from tissues and cell lines, which do not express myelin basic protein e.g., HeLa cells served as a control. Nuclei were isolated by Dounce homogenisation of cultured cells or brain tissue. The proteins were then isolated by high salt extraction of the nuclei followed by ammonium sulphate fractionation.Putative protein(s) binding to the region located between nucleotides -609 to -577 of the myelin basic protein gene promoter were identified using the yeast one-hybrid system. This assay is based on the interaction between a specific protein DNA binding domain and the target DNA sequence. Proteins are expressed as fusions to the GAL4 activation domain (AD) in the yeast reporter strain in which the target sequence has been inserted upstream of the HIS3 gene minimal promoter. Binding of AD fusions to the target sequence increases activity of the HIS3 promoter enabling growth on medium lacking histidine. In this work a yeast reporter strain containing four copies of the -609 to -577 region tandemly repeated upstream of the HIS3 gene minimal promoter was constructed. A library containing rat brain cDNAs fused to the activation domain of GAL4 was screened using this strain as a host. Seven clones were obtained on medium lacking histidine in the presence of 30 mM 3-aminotriazole. DNA from these clones was automatically sequenced and analysed for sequence homology with known transcription factors by comparing the nucleotide and protein sequences to EMBL/Genbank and Swissprot/Swall databases using theFastA and Blast search tools. From the results of the homology searches the clones were identified as follows: the activating transcription factor 2 (ATF-2), the pituitary specific positive transcription factor 1 (Pit-1) or general transcription factor 2i, the E2F family transcription factor, the PASK protein and two of the clones were identified as c-jun. One clone, however, remains unidentified and this could be a novel transcription factor

Exercise referral scheme participant characteristics, referral mode and completion status

Objective: There is recent evidence that exercise referral schemes (ERSs) are beginning to permit self-referral access. Notwithstanding this, to date it is unknown whether key referral characteristics, such as age, gender and socioeconomic status are associated with a greater likelihood of self-referring to an ERS, and whether self-referral participants are more or less likely to complete schemes, than traditional healthcare referrals. Design/Setting: This study presents an evaluation and cross-sectional exploration of key participant referral characteristics of those (n = 647) who signed up to ‘Active West Lancs’; a 12-week ERS in the northwest of England. Methods: Chi-square analysis, tests of difference and binary logistic regression were conducted to explore associations between key referral characteristics and (1) the likelihood of accessing Active West Lancs via a self- or healthcare-referral and (2) the likelihood of completion.Results: Fifty-six percent of participants accessed the scheme via self-referral. These participants were more likely to be women, to report a musculoskeletal primary health condition, to access a specific site and to do so during spring. The scheme had an overall completion rate of 42.2. Participants who were older, resided in less socioeconomically deprived neighbourhoods, and accessed a specific site were more likely to complete. Self-referral participants were not more or less likely to complete than those who enrolled via healthcare-referral. Conclusions: These data do not directly identify a clear benefit or detriment to Active West Lancs’ incorporation of self-referral participants. Notwithstanding this, enabling self-referral ERS access may widen scheme participation opportunities among those reluctant to seek referral from a healthcare provider and reduce the administrative burden for healthcare providers themselves

Adolescent time use and mental health: a cross-sectional, compositional analysis in the Millennium Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of 24-hour time-use compositions with mental health in a large, geographically diverse sample of UK adolescents. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, secondary data analysis. SETTING: Millennium Cohort Study (sixth survey), a UK-based prospective birth cohort. PARTICIPANTS: Data were available from 4642 adolescents aged 14 years. Analytical samples for weekday and weekend analyses were n=3485 and n=3468, respectively (45% boys, 85% white ethnicity). PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary outcome measures were the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ, socioemotional behaviour), Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ, depressive symptoms) and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE, self-esteem). Behavioural exposure data were derived from 24-hour time-use diaries. RESULTS: On weekdays, participants spent approximately 54% of their time in sleep, 3% in physical activity, 9% in school-related activities, 6% in hobbies, 11% using electronic media and 16% in domestic activities. Predicted differences in SDQ, MFQ and RSE were statistically significant for all models (weekday and weekend) that simulated the addition or removal of 15 min physical activity, with an increase in activity being associated with improved mental health and vice versa. Predicted differences in RSE were also significant for simulated changes in electronic media use; an increase in electronic media use was associated with reduced self-esteem. CONCLUSION: Small but consistent associations were observed between physical activity, electronic media use and selected markers of mental health. Findings support the delivery of physical activity interventions to promote mental health during adolescence, without the need to specifically target or protect time spent in other activities

Physical education contributes to total physical activity levels and predominantly in higher intensity physical activity categories

Children’s engagement in physical activity of a vigorous intensity or higher is more effective at promoting cardiorespiratory fitness than moderate physical activity. It remains unclear how higher intensity physical activity varies between days when schoolchildren participate in physical education (PE) and non-PE days. The purpose of this study was to assess how PE contributes to sedentary behaviour and the intensity profile of physical activity accumulated on PE days compared to non-PE days. Fifty-three schoolchildren (36 girls, 11.7 ± 0.3 years) completed five-day minute-by-minute habitual physical activity monitoring using triaxial accelerometers to determine time spent sedentary (<1.5 Metabolic Equivalent of Tasks (METs)) and in light (1.5–2.9 METs), moderate (3–5.9 METs), vigorous (6–8.9 METs), hard (9–11.9 METs) and very hard intensity (≥12 METs) physical activity on PE days and non-PE days. Sedentary time was higher on non-PE days than on PE days (mean difference: 62 minutes, p < 0.001). Hard and very hard intensity physical activity was significantly higher on PE days compared with non-PE days (mean total difference: 33 minutes, all significant at p < 0.001). During the PE lesson, boys spent more time in hard (p < 0.01) and very hard (p < 0.01) physical activity compared to girls. Schoolchildren spent significantly more time in higher intensity physical activity and significantly less time sedentary on PE days than on non-PE days. As well as reducing sedentary behaviour, the opportunity to promote such health-promoting higher intensity physical activity in the school setting warrants further investigation