Low molecular weight glutenin subunits (LMW-GS) encoded by the Glu-3 loci are known to contribute to wheat breadmaking quality. However, the specific effect of individual Glu-3 alleles is not well ...understood due to their complex protein banding patterns in SDS-PAGE and tight linkage with gliadins at the Gli-1 locus. Using DNA markers and a backcross program, we developed a set of nine near isogenic lines (NILs) including different Glu-A3/Gli-A1 or Glu-B3/Gli-B1 alleles in the genetic background of the Argentine variety ProINTA Imperial. The nine NILs and the control were evaluated in three different field trials in Argentina. Significant genotype-by-environment interactions were detected for most quality parameters indicating that the effects of the Glu-3/Gli-1 alleles are modulated by environmental differences. None of the NILs showed differences in total flour protein content, but relative changes in the abundance of particular classes of proteins cannot be ruled out. On average, the Glu-A3f, Glu-B3b, Glu-B3g and Glu-B3iMan alleles were associated with the highest values in gluten strength-related parameters, while Glu-A3e, Glu-B3a and Glu-B3iChu were consistently associated with weak gluten and low quality values. The value of different Glu-3/Gli-1 allele combinations to improve breadmaking quality is discussed.
Synthetic hexaploid wheats (2n=6x=42, AABBDD) involving genomes from Triticum turgidum (2n= 4x=28, AABB) and Aegilops tauschii (2n=2x=14, DD) have been produced as a means for introducing desirable ...characteristics into bread wheat. In the present work we describe the genetic variability present at the Glu-D ^sup t^ 1 and Glu-D ^sup t^ 3 loci, encoding high- (HMW) and low-molecular-weight (LMW) glutenin subunits respectively, derived from Ae. tauschii, using electrophoretic and chromatographic methods, in a collection of synthetic hexaploid wheats. A wide variation both in mobility and surface hydrophobicity of HMW glutenin subunits was observed between different accessions of Ae. tauschii used in the production of the synthetic hexaploids. A combination of electrophoretic and chromatographic methods improves the identification of HMW glutenin subunits; in fact subunits with identical apparent mobility were revealed to have a different surface hydrophobicity by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography. None of the Dx5^sup t^ subunits present in Ae. tauschii showed the presence of the extra cysteine residue found in the HMW glutenin subunit Dx5 of Triticum aestivum, as revealed by selective amplification with polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The wide variability and the high number of subunits encoded by the Glu-D ^sup t^ 3 locus suggests that Ae. tauschii may be a rich source for enhancing the genetic variability of glutenin subunits in bread wheat and improving bread-making properties.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Nutrient-dense, acceptable foods are needed in low-resource settings. Rice bran, a global staple byproduct of white rice processing, is rich in amino acids, fibers, and vitamins, when compared to ...other cereal brans. This pilot study examines the nutritional contribution of rice bran to the daily diets of mother-child pairs in rural southwest Guatemala. Thirty households were screened. Mothers (≥18 years) and children (6 to 24 months) completed 24 h dietary recalls at baseline and after 12 weeks (endline) for diet intake and diversity analyses. During biweekly visits for 12 weeks, households with <5 members received 14 packets containing 60 g of heat-stabilized rice bran, and those with ≥5 members received 28 packets. The macro- and micro-nutrient contributions of rice bran and whole, cooked black beans were included in dietary simulation models with average intakes established between the recalls and for comparison with dietary reference intakes (DRIs). A baseline child food frequency questionnaire was administered. The 27 mothers and 23 children with complete recalls were included in analyses. Daily maternal consumption of 10 g/d of rice bran plus 100 g/d of black beans resulted in all achieving at least 50% of the fiber, protein, magnesium, niacin, potassium, and thiamin DRIs. Daily child consumption of 3 g/d of rice bran plus 10 g/d of black beans resulted in all achieving at least 50% of the magnesium, niacin, phosphorous, and thiamine DRIs. For 15/17 food categories, male children had a higher intake frequency, notably for animal-source foods and coffee. Dietary rice bran coupled with black beans could improve nutritional adequacy, especially for fiber and key micro-nutrients, with broader implications for addressing maternal and child malnutrition in low-resource settings.
Emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccum Schrank) is hulled wheat that survives in marginal areas of the Mediterranean Region. The HMW and LMW glutenin subunit composition of 97 accessions of ...emmer wheat from Spain have been analysed by SDS-PAGE. For the HMW glutenin subunits, four allelic variants were detected for the Glu-A1 locus; one of them has not been previously described. For the Glu-B1 locus, three of the nine alleles detected have not been found before. A high degree of variation was evident for the LMW glutenin subunits, and up to 23 different patterns were detected for the B-LMW glutenin subunits. Considering both types of proteins (HMW and LMW), 30 combinations were found between all the evaluated lines. This wide polymorphism can be used to transfer new quality genes to wheat, and to widen its genetic basis.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
Rice bran contains essential nutrients, antioxidants, and bioactives with anti-inflammatory and diarrheal protective properties important for infants. This 6-month randomized controlled trial ...investigated the effects of heat-stabilized rice bran supplementation during Malian infant weaning. Fifty healthy 6-month-old infants were randomized to a rice bran intervention (N = 25) or non-intervention control group (N = 25). Intervention infants received dose-escalating rice bran supplementation for 6 months (1-5 g/day). Monthly infant dried blood spot and anthropometric measurements were collected. Dried blood spot metabolite abundances were compared monthly according to diet for six months. Supplementation resulted in favorable weight-for-age and weight-for-length z-score changes. Non-targeted dried blood spot-based metabolomics identified 796 metabolites, of which 33% had significant fold differences between groups (7-12 months). Lipids and amino acids represented 70.6% of the metabolites identified. Rice bran supplementation during infant weaning significantly modulated the metabolites involved in antioxidant defenses and with neuroactive properties including reduced glutathione, glycine, glutamate, cysteinylglycine, tryptophan betaine, and choline. These findings support rice bran as a weaning ingredient to meet infant nutritional requirements and with the potential to reduce oxidative stress and improve cognitive outcomes. This study provides evidence for dried blood spots as a cost-effective tool to detect infant biomarkers of nutritional and metabolic status.
Scale-up of a-Si:H-based thin film applications such as solar cells, entirely or partly prepared by hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD), requires research on the deposition process in a ...large-area HWCVD system. The influence of gas supply and filament geometry on thickness uniformity has already been reported, but their influence on material quality is systematically studied for the first time. The optimization of deposition parameters for obtaining best material quality in our large-area HWCVD system resulted in an optimum filament temperature,
T
fil≈1600°C, pressure,
p=8
mTorr and silane flow, F(SiH
4)=100
sccm, keeping the substrate temperature at
T
S=200°C. A special gas supply (gas shower with tiny holes of uniform size) and a filament grid, consisting of six filaments with an interfilament distance,
d
fil=4
cm were used. The optimum filament-to-substrate distance was found to be
d
fil–S=8.4
cm. While studying the influence of different
d
fil and gas supply configurations on the material quality, the above-mentioned setup and parameters yield best results for both uniformity and material quality. With the setup mentioned, we could achieve device quality a-Si:H films with a thickness uniformity of ±2.5% on a circular area of 20
cm in diameter. The material, grown at a deposition rate of
r
d≈4
Å/s, was characterized on nine positions of the 30
cm×30
cm substrate area, and revealed reasonable uniformity of the opto-electronic properties, e.g photosensitivity,
σ
Ph/
σ
D=(2.46±0.7)×10
5, microstructure factor,
R=0.17±0.05, defect densities,
N
d(PDS)=(2.06±0.6)×10
17
cm
−3 and
N
d(CPM)=(2.05±0.5)×10
16
cm
−3 (film properties are given as mean values and standard deviations). Finally, we fabricated pin solar cells, with the i-layer deposited on small-area p-substrates distributed over an area of 20
cm×20
cm in this large-area deposition system, and achieved high uniformity of the cell parameters with initial efficiencies of
η=(6.1±0.2)% on the 20
cm×20
cm area.
Native small intestine possesses distinct multi-scale structures (e.g., crypts, villi) not included in traditional 2D intestinal culture models for drug delivery and regenerative medicine. The known ...impact of structure on cell function motivates exploration of the influence of intestinal topography on the phenotype of cultured epithelial cells, but the irregular, macro- to submicron-scale features of native intestine are challenging to precisely replicate in cellular growth substrates. Herein, we utilized chemical vapor deposition of Parylene C on decellularized porcine small intestine to create polymeric intestinal replicas containing biomimetic irregular, multi-scale structures. These replicas were used as molds for polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) growth substrates with macro to submicron intestinal topographical features. Resultant PDMS replicas exhibit multiscale resolution including macro- to micro-scale folds, crypt and villus structures, and submicron-scale features of the underlying basement membrane. After 10 d of human epithelial colorectal cell culture on PDMS substrates, the inclusion of biomimetic topographical features enhanced alkaline phosphatase expression 2.3-fold compared to flat controls, suggesting biomimetic topography is important in induced epithelial differentiation. This work presents a facile, inexpensive method for precisely replicating complex hierarchal features of native tissue, towards a new model for regenerative medicine and drug delivery for intestinal disorders and diseases.
Background
Malnutrition is prevalent throughout southwest Guatemala, where >40% of children suffer from chronic undernutrition. Evidence supports that assessing a community's awareness and readiness ...to address malnutrition is a critical first step in improving the success of a nutrition intervention program. The objective of this study was to apply the community readiness model (CRM) to assess community readiness to address childhood malnutrition in a rural southwest region of Guatemala.
Methods
Thirteen key respondents of varied social roles and demographics residing in the region were interviewed. Interview questions related to addressing malnutrition were from the following predefined dimensions: Community Efforts, Community Knowledge of Efforts, Leadership, Community Climate, Community Knowledge, and Resources for Efforts. Interview recordings and notes were analyzed and scored according to the CRM guidelines, and a standardized analysis was conducted.
Results
The overall community readiness score was 4.26 (preplanning: awareness of the issue). Community Efforts had a total score of 5 (Preparation: preparing to take action on the issue). Community Knowledge of Efforts, Community Climate, Community Knowledge, and Resources for Efforts Dimensions each had a total score of 4 (Preplanning: awareness of the issue). The overall score for the Leadership dimension was 2 (Denial/resistance: belief that the problem does not exist within the community). These scores demonstrate clear recognition for action to address childhood malnutrition as a problem. However, efforts to combat childhood malnutrition are not yet focused nor detailed for community action.
Conclusions
This rural southwest region of Guatemala recognizes that childhood malnutrition is a problem. However, efforts to address malnutrition are not yet focused or detailed enough to have measurable impact in addressing this issue. For the region to advance the stage of community readiness, it is essential to enhance knowledge of dietary strategies aimed at improving nutrition for children and increase engagement from local leadership.
Understanding a community's readiness to address malnutrition is critical to the design and success of future intervention programs. Using the community readiness model, we determined that a rural southwest region of Guatemala was at the pre‐planning stage, indicating a clear recognition of need for action to address childhood malnutrition.
Telosomic stocks have been extensively used to map genes to chromosome arms and to determine gene-to-centromere genetic distances. It has been suggested that if a chromosome arm is present as a ...telosome, recombination frequencies will be drastically reduced in the centromeric region. However, previous studies have not considered the bias in recombination estimates due to selection against aneuploid gametes produced by failure of pairing at the first meiotic division. Formulas are derived here for adjusting recombination estimates for this bias. Adjusted recombination frequencies between markers located on both sides of the centromeres are analyzed in three different pairs of wheat (Triticum aestivum) isogenic segregating populations involving bibrachial and telocentric chromosomes. Recombination frequencies estimated from crosses involving telocentric chromosomes were not significantly different from recombination frequencies estimated from isogenic crosses involving bibrachial chromosomes. The implications of the present findings for karyotype evolution, and specifically for Robertsonian fissions and fusions, are discussed.
Scope
Legumes consumption has been proven to promote health across the lifespan; cowpeas have demonstrated efficacy in combating childhood malnutrition and growth faltering, with an estimated ...malnutrition prevalence of 35.6% of children in Ghana. This cowpea feeding study aimed to identify a suite of metabolic consumption biomarkers in children and adults.
Methods and Results
Urine and dried blood spots (DBS) from 24 children (9‐21 months) and 21 pregnant women (>18 years) in Northern Ghana are collected before and after dose‐escalated consumption of four cowpea varieties for 15 days. Untargeted metabolomics identified significant increases in amino acids, phytochemicals, and lipids. The carnitine metabolism pathway is represented by 137 urine and 43 DBS metabolites, with significant changes to tiglylcarnitine and acetylcarnitine. Additional noteworthy candidate biomarkers are mansouramycin C, N‐acetylalliin, proline betaine, N2, N5‐diacetylornithine, S‐methylcysteine, S‐methylcysteine sulfoxide, and cis‐urocanate. S‐methylcysteine and S‐methylcysteine sulfoxide are targeted and quantified in urine.
Conclusion
This feeding study for cowpea biomarkers supports the utility of a suite of key metabolites classified as amino acids, lipids, and phytochemicals for dietary legume and cowpea‐specific food exposures of global health importance.
Children and pregnant women from Ghana consumed four different varieties of cowpeas for 15 days to identify a suite of dietary exposure biomarkers. All participants provided urine and dried blood spots(DBS) before and after consumption that are analyzed by two metabolomics platforms. Untargeted metabolomics identified different chemical classes of biomarkers of cowpea intake such as amino acids, lipids, microbial metabolites, and unique phytochemicals. A series of metabolites are reported that can be used for validation in future studies and cohorts following cowpea intake.
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