Protein Assimilation, Usage and Storage

Common concerns among athletes regarding protein consumption are the following: what protein type(s) is best suited for their particular needs; what amounts of protein should be consumed for their supplementation; and lastly, what should the timing of protein consumption be, for prime utilization in the body? There is a recommended daily allowance (RDA) by the National Institute of Health (NIH). The NIH recommends that an individual should be ingesting 0.8g/kg of body weight a day. Active individuals who include resistance training into their daily regime may need more than the RDA. The purpose of this study is to determine if 4.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for is adequate, inadequate or in excess for the body to utilize for recovery or muscle hypertrophy during a five (5) week training intervention. This study utilized 2 male subjects that volunteered and were considered trained athletes with a minimum of one-year experience in lifting weights. Prior to testing, each subject signed an informed consent form approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for humans as subjects at Midwestern State University and a physical activity readiness questionnaire (PAR-QTM). Resting measures included: height (cm), weight (kg), body fat analysis through skinfold (3 site, %), anthropometric circumference measures at the abdomen, biceps, hips, gastrocnemius, forearm, upper thigh, mid-thigh and waist. During the intervention, each subject was given 4.4 g/kg/day of protein based on a daily nutritional analysis and supplementation of whey protein. Pre and post strength tests were the following: 1 repetition maximal (RM) bench press, latissimus pull down, squat, leg extension and leg curl. After a 5-week intervention with protein and supervised weight training sessions, all results were recorded and analyzed. Averages from every exercise from each week were charted to be analyzed to see progress throughout the intervention and compared to one another. For both subjects, body weight and all circumference measures increased after the 5 week intervention of training and high protein intake. Additionally, body fat percentage was reduced in both subjects following the intervention. Strength improvements through 1RM testing was shown in both subjects for the following: latissimus pull down, squat, leg extension and leg curl. It is concluded that a 5 week intervention of training and high protein intake facilitates strength and lean muscle mass

Effects of Biochar and Poultry Manure on the Composition of Phosphorus Solubilizing Fungi and Soil Available Phosphorus Concentration in an Oxisol

Introduction: The use of biochar to restore soil fertility is still in the exploratory stages in Ghana and there is paucity of information regarding the effect of biochar on soil biochemical properties. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of biochar solely applied or in combination with poultry manure on the composition of soil phosphorus solubilizing fungi, available P concentration and selected properties of Oxisol in Ghana. Methods: Cocoa husk biochar (CHB), prepared using Lucia biomass pyrolytic stove at a temperature of 400°C was applied solely at 0, 39 and 65 t ha-1 and in combination with 10 t ha-1, poultry manure, to the soil. Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design with three replications. Results: The population of phosphorus solubilizing fungi increased in amended soils significantly (P = .05) above that of the control. The increases in fungal biomass followed; control < biochar < biochar + poultry manure. Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium were dominant genera with few of the microbes in the genera Colletotrichum. The increase in phosphorus solubilizing fungi correlated positively (r = 0.96, P = .05) with increase in available phosphorus. Then again, biochar solely applied or in combination with poultry manure significantly (P = .05) increased pH, total organic carbon and cation exchange capacity. Mineral N however significantly (P = .05) increased only in combined biochar and poultry manure treatments. Conclusion: Biochar solely applied or in combination with poultry manure enhanced phosphorus solubilizing fungal biomass and availability of phosphorus in the soil with combined poultry manure and biochar having the highest influence

The Production of Antibody by Invading B Cells Is Required for the Clearance of Rabies Virus from the Central Nervous System

Every year over 50,000 people die from rabies worldwide, primarily due to the poor availability of rabies vaccine in developing countries. However, even when vaccines are available, human deaths from rabies occur if exposure to the causative virus is not recognized and vaccination is not sought in time. This is because rabies virus immunity induced by the natural infection or current vaccines is generally not effective at removing disease-causing rabies virus from brain tissues. Our studies provide insight into why this is the case and how vaccination can be changed so that the immune response can clear the virus from brain tissues. We show that the type of immune response induced by a live-attenuated rabies virus vaccine may be the key. In animal models, live-attenuated rabies virus vaccines are effective at delivering the immune cells capable of clearing the virus into CNS tissues and promote recovery from a rabies virus infection that has spread to the brain while conventional vaccines based on killed rabies virus do not. The production of rabies-specific antibody by B cells that invade the CNS tissues is important for complete elimination of the virus. We hypothesize that similar mechanisms may promote rabies virus clearance from individuals who are diagnosed after the virus has reached, but not extensively spread, through the CNS

Characterization of invasive and colonizing isolates of Streptococcus agalactiae in East African adults

Ninety-five colonizing isolates and 74 invasive isolates of Streptococcus agalactiae from Kenyan adults were characterized by using capsular serotyping and multilocus sequence typing. Twenty-two sequence types clustering into five clonal complexes were found. Data support the view that S. agalactiae isolates belonging to a limited number of clonal complexes are invasive in adults worldwide

Understanding Change in Romantic Relationship Expectations of International Female Students from Turkey

In the light of grounded theory, the authors explored change in romantic relationship expectations of international students. Twelve female graduate students from Turkey were interviewed and several themes were identified explaining the presence and absence of change in participants’ attitudes toward romantic relationships. The findings are discussed in relation to acculturation and direction for future research is presented

Epidemiology of invasive group B streptococcal disease in infants from urban area of South China, 2011–2014

YesBackground: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in infants in both developed and developing countries. To our knowledge, only a few studies have been reported the clinical features, treatment and outcomes of the GBS disease in China. The severity of neonatal GBS disease in China remains unclear. Population-based surveillance in China is therefore required. Methods: We retrospectively collected data of <3 months old infants with culture-positive GBS in sterile samples from three large urban tertiary hospitals in South China from Jan 2011 to Dec 2014. The GBS isolates and their antibiotic susceptibility were routinely identified in clinical laboratories in participating hospitals. Serotyping and multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) were also conducted for further analysis of the neonatal GBS disease. Results: Total 70 cases of culture-confirmed invasive GBS infection were identified from 127,206 live births born in studying hospitals, giving an overall incidence of 0.55 per 1000 live births (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.44–0.69). They consisted of 49 with early-onset disease (EOD, 0.39 per 1000 live births (95% CI 0.29–0.51)) and 21 with late-onset disease (LOD, 0.17 per 1000 live births (95% CI 0.11–0.25)). The incidence of EOD increased significantly over the studying period. Five infants (4 EOD and 1 LOD) died before discharge giving a mortality rate of 7.1% and five infants (7.1%, 2 EOD and 3 LOD) had neurological sequelae. Within 68 GBS isolates from GBS cases who born in the studying hospitals or elsewhere, serotype III accounted for 77.9%, followed by Ib (14.7%), V (4.4%), and Ia (2.9%). MLST analysis revealed the presence of 13 different sequence types among the 68 GBS isolates and ST-17 was the most frequent sequence type (63.2%). All isolates were susceptible to penicillin, ceftriaxone, vancomycin and linezolid, while 57.4% and 51.5% were resistant to erythromycin and clindamycin, respectively. Conclusions: This study gains the insight into the spectrum of GBS infection in south China which will facilitate the development of the guidance for reasonable antibiotics usage and will provide evidence for the implementation of potential GBS vaccines in the future.Supported by medical and health science and technology projects of Health and Family Planning Commission of Guangzhou Municipality (grant number 20151A010034) and Guangdong provincial science and technology planning projects (grant number 2014A020212520)

CNS Expression of B7-H1 Regulates Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Production and Alters Severity of Theiler's Virus-Induced Demyelinating Disease

The CNS is a unique organ due to its limited capacity for immune surveillance. As macrophages of the CNS, microglia represent a population originally known for the ability to assist neuronal stability, are now appreciated for their role in initiating and regulating immune responses in the brain. Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV)-induced demyelinating disease is a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS). In response to TMEV infection in vitro, microglia produce high levels of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, and are efficient antigen-presenting cells (APCs) for activating CD4+ T cells. However, the regulatory function of microglia and other CNS-infiltrating APCs in response to TMEV in vivo remains unclear. Here we demonstrate that microglia increase expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and phenotypically express high levels of major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-Class I and II in response to acute infection with TMEV in SJL/J mice. Microglia increase expression of the inhibitory co-stimulatory molecule, B7-H1 as early as day 5 post-infection, while CNS-infiltrating CD11b+CD11c−CD45HIGH monocytes/macrophages and CD11b+CD11c+CD45HIGH dendritic cells upregulate expression of B7-H1 by day 3 post-infection. Utilizing a neutralizing antibody, we demonstrate that B7-H1 negatively regulates TMEV-specific ex vivo production of interferon (IFN)-γ, interleukin (IL)-17, IL-10, and IL-2 from CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. In vivo blockade of B7-H1 in SJL/J mice significantly exacerbates clinical disease symptoms during the chronic autoimmune stage of TMEV-IDD, but only has minimal effects on viral clearance. Collectively, these results suggest that CNS expression of B7-H1 regulates activation of TMEV-specific T cells, which affects protection against TMEV-IDD

Child Care Time, Parents’ Well-Being, and Gender: Evidence from the American Time Use Survey

This study used data from the ‘Well Being Module’ of the 2010 American Time Use Survey (N = 1699) to analyze how parents experience child care time in terms of meaning and stress levels. Multivariate multilevel regressions showed clear differences by gender and the circumstances of child care activities. Mothers experienced child care time as more stressful than fathers, and fathers as slightly more meaningful. Interactive child care was experienced as more meaningful and less stressful than routine child care, whereas these differences were stronger among fathers than among mothers. Mothers experienced child care with a minor child as highly meaningful, and with an adolescent as particularly stressful. Fathers experienced child care with an infant as highly stressful, and with an offspring in middle childhood as disproportionally meaningful. The spouse’s presence was moderately associated with higher senses of meaning and lower levels of stress during child care, but these differences were modest, and only visible among fathers. Paid work hours increased mothers’ stress levels during child care activities, but reduced fathers’ stress levels. Meanwhile, nonemployed fathers reported child care time as less meaningful than non-employed mothers. Overall, this study has important scientific and practical implications for `understanding the gendered nature of parents’ child care time and well-being