Children’s rights in a digital world – can COVID-19 move governments from evidence to action?

In this blog, Sonia Livingstone, Kristen Hope-Burchill and Konstantinos Papachristou examine the significant impact of the pandemic on children’s digital lives and how governments can develop and implement policies to protect their rights

The impact of food additives, artificial sweeteners and domestic hygiene products on the human gut microbiome and its fibre fermentation capacity

Purpose This study investigated the effect of food additives, artificial sweeteners and domestic hygiene products on the gut microbiome and fibre fermentation capacity. Methods Faecal samples from 13 healthy volunteers were fermented in batch cultures with food additives (maltodextrin, carboxymethyl cellulose, polysorbate-80, carrageenan-kappa, cinnamaldehyde, sodium benzoate, sodium sulphite, titanium dioxide), sweeteners (aspartame-based sweetener, sucralose, stevia) and domestic hygiene products (toothpaste and dishwashing detergent). Short-chain fatty acid production was measured with gas chromatography. Microbiome composition was characterised with 16S rRNA sequencing and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results Acetic acid increased in the presence of maltodextrin and the aspartame-based sweetener and decreased with dishwashing detergent or sodium sulphite. Propionic acid increased with maltodextrin, aspartame-based sweetener, sodium sulphite and polysorbate-80 and butyrate decreased dramatically with cinnamaldehyde and dishwashing detergent. Branched-chain fatty acids decreased with maltodextrin, aspartame-based sweetener, cinnamaldehyde, sodium benzoate and dishwashing detergent. Microbiome Shannon α-diversity increased with stevia and decreased with dishwashing detergent and cinnamaldehyde. Sucralose, cinnamaldehyde, titanium dioxide, polysorbate-80 and dishwashing detergent shifted microbiome community structure; the effects were most profound with dishwashing detergent (R2 = 43.9%, p = 0.008) followed by cinnamaldehyde (R2 = 12.8%, p = 0.016). Addition of dishwashing detergent and cinnamaldehyde increased the abundance of operational taxonomic unit (OTUs) belonging to Escherichia/Shigella and Klebsiella and decreased members of Firmicutes, including OTUs of Faecalibacterium and Subdoligranulum. Addition of sucralose and carrageenan-kappa also increased the abundance of Escherichia/Shigella and sucralose, sodium sulphite and polysorbate-80 did likewise to Bilophila. Polysorbate-80 decreased the abundance of OTUs of Faecalibacterium and Subdoligranulum. Similar effects were observed with the concentration of major bacterial groups using qPCR. In addition, maltodextrin, aspartame-based sweetener and sodium benzoate promoted the growth of Bifidobacterium whereas sodium sulphite, carrageenan-kappa, polysorbate-80 and dishwashing detergent had an inhibitory effect. Conclusions This study improves understanding of how additives might affect the gut microbiota composition and its fibre metabolic activity with many possible implications for human health

Sol-Gel Derived Mg-Based Ceramic Scaffolds Doped with Zinc or Copper Ions: Preliminary Results on Their Synthesis, Characterization, and Biocompatibility

Glass-ceramic scaffolds containing Mg have shown recently the potential to enhance the proliferation, differentiation, and biomineralization of stem cells in vitro, property that makes them promising candidates for dental tissue regeneration. An additional property of a scaffold aimed at dental tissue regeneration is to protect the regeneration process against oral bacteria penetration. In this respect, novel bioactive scaffolds containing Mg2+ and Cu2+ or Zn2+, ions known for their antimicrobial properties, were synthesized by the foam replica technique and tested regarding their bioactive response in SBF, mechanical properties, degradation, and porosity. Finally their ability to support the attachment and long-term proliferation of Dental Pulp Stem Cells (DPSCs) was also evaluated. The results showed that conversely to their bioactive response in SBF solution, Zn-doped scaffolds proved to respond adequately regarding their mechanical strength and to be efficient regarding their biological response, in comparison to Cu-doped scaffolds, which makes them promising candidates for targeted dental stem cell odontogenic differentiation and calcified dental tissue engineering

Application of next generation sequencing in cardiology: current and future precision medicine implications

Inherited cardiovascular diseases are highly heterogeneous conditions with multiple genetic loci involved. The application of advanced molecular tools, such as Next Generation Sequencing, has facilitated the genetic analysis of these disorders. Accurate analysis and variant identification are required to maximize the quality of the sequencing data. Therefore, the application of NGS for clinical purposes should be limited to laboratories with a high level of technological expertise and resources. In addition, appropriate gene selection and variant interpretation can result in the highest possible diagnostic yield. Implementation of genetics in cardiology is imperative for the accurate diagnosis, prognosis and management of several inherited disorders and could eventually lead to the realization of precision medicine in this field. However, genetic testing should also be accompanied by an appropriate genetic counseling procedure that clarifies the significance of the genetic analysis results for the proband and his family. In this regard, a multidisciplinary collaboration among physicians, geneticists, and bioinformaticians is imperative. In the present review, we address the current state of knowledge regarding genetic analysis strategies employed in the field of cardiogenetics. Variant interpretation and reporting guidelines are explored. Additionally, gene selection procedures are accessed, with a particular emphasis on information concerning gene-disease associations collected from international alliances such as the Gene Curation Coalition (GenCC). In this context, a novel approach to gene categorization is proposed. Moreover, a sub-analysis is conducted on the 1,502,769 variation records with submitted interpretations in the Clinical Variation (ClinVar) database, focusing on cardiology-related genes. Finally, the most recent information on genetic analysis's clinical utility is reviewed

Inflammation associated ethanolamine facilitates infection by Crohn's disease-linked adherent-invasive Escherichia coli

Background: The predominance of specific bacteria such as adherent-invasive Escherichia coli (AIEC) within the Crohn's disease (CD) intestine remains poorly understood with little evidence uncovered to support a selective pressure underlying their presence. Intestinal ethanolamine is however readily accessible during periods of intestinal inflammation, and enables pathogens to outcompete the host microbiota under such circumstances. Methods: Quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) to determine expression of genes central to ethanolamine metabolism; transmission electron microscopy to detect presence of bacterial microcompartments (MCPs); in vitro infections of both murine and human macrophage cell lines examining intracellular replication of the AIEC-type strain LF82 and clinical E. coli isolates in the presence of ethanolamine; determination of E. coli ethanolamine utilization (eut) operon transcription in faecal samples from healthy patients, patients with active CD and the same patients in remission following treatment. Results: Growth on the intestinal short chain fatty acid propionic acid (PA) stimulates significantly increased transcription of the eut operon (fold change relative to glucose: >16.9; p-value 4.72; P 15.64; P < .01). Interpretation: Our data indicates a role for ethanolamine metabolism in selecting for AIEC that are consistently overrepresented in the CD intestine. The increased E. coli metabolism of ethanolamine seen in the intestine during active CD, and its decrease during remission, indicates ethanolamine use may be a key factor in shaping the intestinal microbiome in CD patients, particularly during times of inflammation. Fund: This work was funded by Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) grants BB/K008005/1 & BB/P003281/1 to DMW; by a Tenovus Scotland grant to MJO; by Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity, Nestle Health Sciences, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Catherine McEwan Foundation grants awarded to KG; and by a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) fellowship (NE/L011956/1) to UZI. The IBD team at the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow are supported by the Catherine McEwan Foundation and Yorkhill IBD fund. RKR and RH are supported by NHS Research Scotland Senior fellowship awards