The gut microbiome: a core regulator of metabolism Fujisaka, Shiho; Watanabe, Yoshiyuki; Tobe, Kazuyuki
Journal of Endocrinology/Journal of endocrinology,
03/2023, Letnik:
256, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
The human body is inhabited by numerous bacteria, fungi, and viruses, and each part has a unique microbial community structure. The gastrointestinal tract harbors approximately 100 trillion strains ...comprising more than 1000 bacterial species that maintain symbiotic relationships with the host. The gut microbiota consists mainly of the phyla Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Of these, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes constitute 70-90% of the total abundance. Gut microbiota utilize nutrients ingested by the host, interact with other bacterial species, and help maintain healthy homeostasis in the host. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that a breakdown of the microbial structure and its functions, known as dysbiosis, is associated with the development of allergies, autoimmune diseases, cancers, and arteriosclerosis, among others. Metabolic diseases, such as obesity and diabetes, also have a causal relationship with dysbiosis. The present review provides a brief overview of the general roles of the gut microbiota and their relationship with metabolic disorders.
Objectives Prompt assessment of consciousness levels is vitally important during the emergency care of stroke patients. The Japan Coma Scale (JCS) is a one-axis coma scale published in 1974 with ...outstanding simplicity. The hypothesis is that JCS is sufficient to predict stroke outcome. The aim of the study was to verify the predictability of JCS, which should help JCS attain international recognition. Design A cohort study. Setting A prefectural stroke registry. Participants We analysed 13 788 stroke patients identified from January 1999 to December 2009 inclusive in the entire Kyoto prefecture and registered in the Kyoto Stroke Registry (KSR). Main outcome measures We investigated the relationship between consciousness levels, based on JCS at stroke onset and activities of daily living (ADL) at 30 days or deaths within 30 days in a large population-based stroke registry. We calculated Spearman's coefficient for the correlation between JCS and the ADL scale, generated estimated survival curves by the Kaplan-Meier method and finally compared HRs for death within 30 days after onset, comparing patients with different conscious levels based on JCS. Results A total of 13 406 (97.2%) patients were graded based on JCS. JCS correlated to the ADL scale with Spearman's correlation coefficient of 0.61. HRs for death within 30 days were 1 (reference) (95% CIs), 5.55 (4.19 to 7.37), 9.54 (7.16 to 12.71) and 35.21 (26.10 to 44.83) in those scored as JCS0, JCS1, JCS2 and JCS3, respectively. Conclusions Using a single test of eye response, JCS has outstanding merits as a coma scale, that is, simplicity and applicability. The present study adds predictability for early outcome in stroke patients. JCS is valuable, especially in an emergency setting, when a prompt assessment of consciousness levels is needed.
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) originating from the interstitial cells of Cajal in the muscularis propria are the most common mesenchymal tumor of the gastrointestinal tract. Multiple ...modalities, including computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography, ultrasonography, digital subtraction angiography, and endoscopy, have been performed to evaluate GISTs. CT is most frequently used for diagnosis, staging, surveillance, and response monitoring during molecularly targeted therapy in clinical practice. The diagnosis of GISTs is sometimes challenging because of the diverse imaging findings, such as anatomical location (esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small bowel, colorectum, appendix, and peritoneum), growth pattern, and enhancement pattern as well as the presence of necrosis, calcification, ulceration, early venous return, and metastasis. Imaging findings of GISTs treated with antineoplastic agents are quite different from those of other neoplasms (e.g. adenocarcinomas) because only subtle changes in size are seen even in responsive lesions. Furthermore, the recurrence pattern of GISTs is different from that of other neoplasms. This review discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each imaging modality, describes imaging findings obtained before and after treatment, presents a few cases of complicated GISTs, and discusses recent investigations performed using CT and MRI to predict histological risk grade, gene mutations, and patient outcomes.
Isomerization and epimerization of fructose to glucose, mannose, allulose, and allose were executed using a subcritical phosphate buffer solution to effectively produce useful monosaccharides. The ...conversion of the substrate and the yield of products were dependent on the reaction temperature, initial pH, initial substrate concentration, and buffer concentration. A high yield of mannose was achieved under the optimal reaction conditions we identified. We subsequently performed the kinetic analysis based on the proposed reaction network, and evaluated the effects of temperature and pH on the reactions. We then estimated the apparent activation energy values for each reaction.
The cerebral vasculature has a complex and hierarchical network, ranging from vessels of a few millimeters to superficial cortical vessels with diameters of a few hundred micrometers, and to the ...microvasculature (arteriole/venule) and capillary beds in the cortex. In standard imaging techniques, it is difficult to segment all vessels in the network, especially in the case of the human brain. This study proposes a hybrid modeling approach that determines these networks by explicitly segmenting the large vessels from medical images and employing a novel vascular generation algorithm. The framework enables vasculatures to be generated at coarse and fine scales for individual arteries and veins with vascular subregions, following the personalized anatomy of the brain and macroscale vasculatures. In this study, the vascular structures of superficial cortical (pial) vessels before they penetrate the cortex are modeled as a mesoscale vasculature. The validity of the present approach is demonstrated through comparisons with partially observed data from existing measurements of the vessel distributions on the brain surface, pathway fractal features, and vascular territories of the major cerebral arteries. Additionally, this validation provides some biological insights: (i) vascular pathways may form to ensure a reasonable supply of blood to the local surface area; (ii) fractal features of vascular pathways are not sensitive to overall and local brain geometries; and (iii) whole pathways connecting the upstream and downstream entire-scale cerebral circulation are highly dependent on the local curvature of the cerebral sulci.
The apparent distribution coefficients, Kapp, of some sugar alcohols to cation-exchange resins in the sodium-ion form and with divinylbenzene (DVB) contents of 2, 4, 6, and 8% were measured at 25ºC. ...Assuming that the binding constant, B, of ribitol to sodium ion was zero, the swelling pressures, Π, of the resins in sodium-ion form with DVB contents of 2, 4, 6, and 8％ were estimated to be 3.2, 9.4, 12.3, and 25.7 MPa, respectively. From these Π values and Kapp values, the B values of each sugar alcohol were calculated. Because the B value is independent of the degree of cross-linking of the resin, the B values were obtained from the Kapp for resins with different DVB contents and were averaged. Erythritol and sorbitol had almost zero binding affinity to sodium ion. Among the tested sugar alcohols, the B values were in the order of xylitol > d -arabitol, l -arabitol > mannitol.
Aim: The relationship of blood pressure (BP) indexes (systolic blood pressure SBP, diastolic blood pressure DBP, pulse pressure PP, mean arterial pressure MAP) to subclinical cerebrovascular diseases ...(SCVDs) remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the relationship of four BP indexes measured at two visits on SCVDs assessed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in general Japanese men. Methods: In general Japanese men aged 40–79 years (N=616), office BP indexes were measured at two visits (Visits 1 2006–2008 and 2 2010–2014). MRI images obtained on the third visit (2012–2015) were examined for prevalent SCVDs: lacunar infarction, periventricular hyperintensity (PVH), deep subcortical white matter hyperintensity (DSWMH), microbleeds, and intracranial artery stenosis (ICAS). Using a multivariable logistic regression analysis, we computed and estimated the odds ratio of each prevalent SCVD for one standard deviation higher BP indexes. The same analyses were performed using home BP. Results: All four office BP indexes at both visits associated with lacunar infarction. Visit 1 and 2 DBP and Visit 1 MAP associated with PVH and DSWMH, and Visit 1 SBP associated with DSWMH. All Visit 2 BP indexes appear to show stronger association with microbleeds than Visit 1 indexes, and Visit 1 and 2 SBP, PP, and MAP showed similar associations with ICAS. Additional analyses using home BP indexes revealed similar relationships; however, the significance of some relationships decreased. Conclusion: In general Japanese men, BP indexes were associated with most of SCVDs, and BP indexes measured at different periods associated with different SCVDs assessed by MRI.
Acyl ascorbates were synthesized through the condensation of L-ascorbic acid with various fatty acids using an immobilized lipase in water-miscible organic solvent, and their antioxidative properties ...on lipid oxidation in bulk, disperse and microcapsule systems were examined. The optimal conditions for enzymatic synthesis in a batch reaction were determined and the continuous production of acyl ascorbate was conducted using a continuous stirred tank reactor and a plug flow reactor. The oxidative stability of lipid with saturated acyl ascorbate in bulk system increased with increasing acyl chain length, whereas that in the oil-in-water emulsion and microcapsule system depended on the acyl chain length and the concentration of the ascorbate.
Acyl ascorbates were synthesized through the condensation of L-ascorbic acid with various fatty acids using an immobilized lipase in water-miscible organic solvent, and their antioxidative properties ...on lipid oxidation in bulk, disperse and microcapsule systems were examined. The optimal conditions for enzymatic synthesis in a batch reaction were determined and the continuous production of acyl ascorbate was conducted using a continuous stirred tank reactor and a plug flow reactor. The oxidative stability of lipid with saturated acyl ascorbate in bulk system increased with increasing acyl chain length, whereas that in the oil-in-water emulsion and microcapsule system depended on the acyl chain length and the concentration of the ascorbate.
Kinetic Mote Carlo (KMC) simulations are performed to quantify the influence of trap in hydrogen diffusivity in tungsten. As a typical trap, mono-vacancy is considered in the simulation. Experimental ...results reported by Frauenfelder are nicely reproduced when hydrogen concentration and trap concentration expected in the experiment are employed in the simulation. The effective diffusivity of hydrogen is evidently decreased by traps even at high temperatures like 1300 K. These results suggest that only high-temperature experimental data, which are not significantly affected by traps, should be fitted to, in order to derive the true hydrogen diffusivity from experiments. Therefore, we recommend D=1.58×10−7exp(−0.25eV/kT) m2 s−1 as the equation for hydrogen diffusion coefficient in tungsten, which was obtained by fitting only to experimental data at 1500–2400 K by Heinola and Ahlgren, rather than the most cited equation D=4.1×10−7exp(−0.39eV/kT) m2 s−1, which was obtained by fitting to all experimental data at 1100–2400 K including some data that should be affected by traps.
•KMC simulation was performed to quantify the influence of vacancy-type trap in hydrogen diffusivity in tungsten.•The simulation results indicated non-negligible influence of traps even at high temperatures like 1300 K.•D=1.58×10−7exp(−0.25eVkT)m2s-1, derived from experimental data above 1500 K, is recommended as H diffusivity in W.
PDF
