Changes in Digestive Health, Satiety and Overall Well-Being after 14 Days of a Multi-Functional GI Primer Supplement.

A recent review proposed a role for multi-functional food or supplement products in priming the gut to support both digestive and systemic health. Accordingly, we designed and eva-luated the effect of a multi-functional gastrointestinal (GI) primer supplement on participant-reported measures for digestive health, quality-of-life (e.g.

Relationships between Habitual Polyphenol Consumption and Gut Microbiota in the INCLD Health Cohort.

While polyphenol consumption is often associated with an increased abundance of beneficial microbes and decreased opportunistic pathogens, these relationships are not completely described for polyphenols consumed via habitual diet, including culinary herb and spice consumption. This analysis of the International Cohort on Lifestyle Determinants of Health (INCLD Health) cohort uses a dietary questionnaire and 16s microbiome data to examine relationships between habitual polyphenol consumption and gut microbiota in healthy adults (n = 96). In this exploratory analysis, microbial taxa, but not diversity measures, differed by levels of dietary polyphenol consumption.

Gendered Language in Letters of Recommendation for Applicants to Pulmonary Critical Care Fellowships.

Background: Previous work has demonstrated letters of recommendation for women in academic medicine are shorter and emphasize communal traits over grindstone or agentic traits.

Objective: To determine if there are sex-based differences in letters of recommendation written for applicants applying to pulmonary critical care medicine fellowships and if the sex of the letter writer impacts these differences.

Methods: All fellowship applications submitted to a pulmonary critical care medicine fellowship program in 2020 were included in this study.

Associations between food-specific IgG antibodies and intestinal permeability biomarkers.

Increasing translational evidence suggests that intestinal permeability may be a contributing factor to systemic inflammatory events and numerous pathologies. While associations between IgE-mediated food allergies and increased intestinal permeability have been well-characterized, the relationship between IgG-mediated food sensitivities and intestinal permeability is not well-described in the literature. Thus, we tested for associations between intestinal permeability biomarkers and food-specific IgG antibodies in 111 adults, with and without gastrointestinal symptoms.

Exploring the mechanism of berberine-mediated T cell immunosuppression.

Background: Our previous research revealed a novel function of berberine (BBR), a clinically relevant plant-derived alkaloid, as a suppressor of follicular T helper (T) cell proliferation in secondary lymphoid organs of BBR-treated mice that underwent immunization for collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in DBA1/J mice. Due to the importance of T cell and B cell interactions in the generation of T cell-dependent humoral responses, the suppression of T cell activity may have implications for the general safety of BBR as a prophylactic dietary supplement, and its potential use in antibody-driven autoimmune and hypersensitivity disorders.

Purpose: This research aims to characterize BBR's impact on the activation, differentiation, and proliferation of T cells by examining the expression of key extracellular signaling molecules, as well as the activity of intracellular signaling molecules involved in the Ca-calcineurin-NFAT pathway and STAT3 phosphorylation, following activation.

Associations between Frequency of Culinary Herb Use and Gut Microbiota.

While evidence suggests that culinary herbs have the potential to modulate gut microbiota, much of the current research investigating the interactions between diet and the human gut microbiome either largely excludes culinary herbs or does not assess use in standard culinary settings. As such, the primary objective of this study was to evaluate how the frequency of culinary herb use is related to microbiome diversity and the abundance of certain taxa, measured at the phylum level. In this secondary data analysis of the INCLD Health cohort, we examined survey responses assessing frequency of culinary herb use and microbiome analysis of collected stool samples.

Berberine Delays Onset of Collagen-Induced Arthritis through T Cell Suppression.

There is evidence that berberine (BBR), a clinically relevant plant compound, ameliorates clinically apparent collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in vivo. However, to date, there are no studies involving the use of BBR which explore its prophylactic potential in this model of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study was to determine if prophylactic BBR use during the preclinical phase of collagen-induced arthritis would delay arthritic symptom onset, and to characterize the cellular mechanism underlying such an effect.

Nanoparticles and danger signals: Oral delivery vehicles as potential disruptors of intestinal barrier homeostasis.

Gut immune system homeostasis involves diverse structural interactions among resident microbiota, the protective mucus layer, and a variety of cells (intestinal epithelial, lymphoid, and myeloid). Due to the substantial surface area in direct contact with an "external" environment and the diversity of xenobiotic, abiotic, and self-interactions coordinating to maintain gut homeostasis, there is enhanced potential for the generation of endogenous danger signals when this balance is lost. Here, we focus on the potential generation and reception of damage in the gut resulting from exposure to nanoparticles (NPs), common food and drug additives.