High efficiency protoplast isolation from in vitro cultures and hairy roots of Maesa lanceolata

In vitro cultures of the medicinal plant Maesa lanceolata were established to enable the cultivation of plant material for the production of protoplasts. Callus cultures were initiated using leaves collected from shoot cultures and the root tips from hairy root cultures obtained upon Agrobacterium rhizogenes transformation. For the isolation of protoplast, the different explant material of M. lanceolata was exposed to an enzyme mixture consisting of 1.5% cellulase, 0.5% macerozyme R-10 and 0.5 M mannitol. About 6 x 106 protoplasts g-1 fresh weight were obtained from leaf material and 5 x 105 protoplasts g-1 fresh weight from callus. To obtain high amounts of hairy root protoplasts, the cultures were pretreated with the auxin indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) that stimulated the formation of novel root tips. Using the dissected root tips as starting material, 8 x 105 protoplasts g-1 fresh weight were obtained per preparation. The protoplast isolation method will enable further studies on the transformation and fusion of protoplasts from M. lanceolata

Towards a Translational Approach to Food Addiction: Implications for Bulimia Nervosa

Purpose of review: In recent years, the food addiction hypothesis of loss-of-control eating has gained traction in the field of eating disorders. In particular, the neural process of food addiction plays a dominant role in the recently formulated “addictive appetite” model of bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. Nonetheless, several components of the food addiction hypothesis, including the presence of withdrawal and tolerance effects, as well as the proposition that some foods possess “addicting” properties, remain highly controversial. In response, the current review synthesises existing evidence for withdrawal and tolerance effects in people with bulimia nervosa. Recent findings: The recent development of a validated tool to measure withdrawal from highly processed foods will aid in measuring withdrawal symptoms and testing hypotheses related to withdrawal in the context of food addiction. We subsequently describe preclinical and human evidence for a central insulin- and dopamine-mediated pathway by which recurrent loss-of-control binge eating is maintained in bulimia nervosa. Summary: Evidence in populations with bulimia nervosa and loss-of-control eating provides preliminary support for the role of food addiction in the maintenance of bulimia nervosa. Future longitudinal research is needed to develop a clearer profile of illness progression and to clarify the extent to which dysregulation in glucose metabolism contributes to food craving and symptom maintenance in bulimia nervosa

The many faces of Creole: Revisiting the links between language, positionality and youth culture in Guadeloupe, 2000-2020

The aim of this study is to demonstrate the extent to which socio-economic context and individual positionality affect how a group of young people aged between 10 and 15 perceive, use and interact with French and Creole language and culture in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, in 2020. In order to achieve this we carried out surveys and interviews with 91 pupils at Collège Nestor de Kermadec which were designed to discover how this group of young people strategize language and culture in their daily lives. While theories such as diglossia or the Creole continuum suggest that French and Creole have fixed roles, often associated with social class in this former colony turned French department, we argue that these theories no longer fully represent how language and culture are perceived, used and engaged with in this space. Using Salikoko Mufwene’s ‘ecology of language’ concept and Pierre Bourdieu’s ‘habitus’ theory to illuminate our findings, we argue that changes to the sociolinguistic environment between 2000 and 2020, such as globalisation and the influx of global media and technologies, and the particular position of individuals within Guadeloupean society, mean that perceptions and uses of, as well as engagement with language and culture are characterised by plurality, hybridity and multiplicity. We found that while some areas of society remain dominated by French language and culture, in some subsystems, social networks and spaces Creole enables speakers to gain social esteem. As such, the subsystems, social networks and spaces that speakers participate in influence how they strategize language and culture. Moreover, these findings allow us to explore other questions surrounding how power relations are reflected, refracted and enacted in Guadeloupe through language and culture, and also investigate how the relationship between language, culture and identity alters in accordance with ecological and personal transformations

Effects of weight stigma in news media on physical activity, dietary and weight loss intentions and behaviour

Objectives: To investigate the effect of weight stigma in news media on (a) intentions to increase physical activity (PA), improve diet quality and lose weight, and (b) changes in PA, diet quality and body mass index (BMI) over one month, in (i) women of all weight categories and (ii) a subsample of women living with obesity. Methods: UK-based women (N = 172; subgroup with obesity N = 81) were assigned to read an experimental (weight stigma; N = 75) or control (smoking stigma; N = 97) news article. Questionnaires were administered immediately after, and one month subsequently to collect information on BMI, PA, diet quality, intentions, past stigma, and diet and PA self-efficacy. Logistic and linear regression analyses were used to assess the effect of weight stigma on all outcome variables. Results: In the whole sample, there was no significant effect of weight stigma on any primary or secondary outcome. In women with obesity, there was no significant effect of weight stigma on diet quality (0.26 units, 95% CI: −0.36 to 0.87) or PA (−1.83 units, 95% CI: −11.11 to 7.44) at follow up, but exposure to weight stigma was associated with a significant increase in BMI at 1-month follow-up (1.15 kg/m2, 95% CI: 0.38 to 1.92) compared with the control group. Conclusions: In people with obesity, exposure to weight-stigmatising media may contribute to increased BMI over time. Larger trials with longer follow-up are needed to confirm these findings.</br

Phenotypes induced by NM causing α-skeletal muscle actin mutants in fibroblasts, Sol 8 myoblasts and myotubes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Nemaline myopathy is a neuromuscular disorder characterized by the presence of nemaline bodies in patient muscles. 20% of the cases are associated with α-skeletal muscle actin mutations. We previously showed that actin mutations can cause four different biochemical phenotypes and that expression of NM associated actin mutants in fibroblasts, myoblasts and myotubes induces a range of cellular defects.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>We conducted the same biochemical experiments for twelve new actin mutants associated with nemaline myopathy. We observed folding and polymerization defects. Immunostainings of these and eight other mutants in transfected cells revealed typical cellular defects such as nemaline rods or aggregates, decreased incorporation in F-actin structures, membrane blebbing, the formation of thickened actin fibres and cell membrane blebbing in myotubes.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results confirm that NM associated α-actin mutations induce a range of defects at the biochemical level as well as in cultured fibroblasts and muscle cells.</p

Convergence and constraint in the cranial evolution of mosasaurid reptiles and early cetaceans

peer reviewedThe repeated return of tetrapods to aquatic life provides some of the best-known examples of convergent evolution. One comparison that has received relatively little focus is that of mosasaurids (a group of Late Cretaceous squamates) and archaic cetaceans (the ancestors of modern whales and dolphins), both of which show high levels of craniodental disparity, similar initial trends in locomotory evolution, and global distributions. Here we investigate convergence in skull ecomorphology during the initial aquatic radiations of these groups. A series of functionally informative ratios were calculated from 38 species, with ordination techniques used to reconstruct patterns of functional ecomorphospace occupation. The earliest fully aquatic members of each clade occupied different regions of ecomorphospace, with basilosaurids and early russellosaurines exhibiting marked differences in cranial functional morphology. Subsequent ecomorphological trajectories notably diverge: mosasaurids radiated across ecomorphospace with no clear pattern and numerous reversals, whereas cetaceans notably evolved toward shallower, more elongated snouts, perhaps as an adaptation for capturing smaller prey. Incomplete convergence between the two groups is present among megapredatory and longirostrine forms, suggesting stronger selection on cranial function in these two ecomorphologies. Our study highlights both the similarities and divergences in craniodental evolutionary trajectories between archaic cetaceans and mosasaurids, with convergences transcending their deeply divergent phylogenetic affinities