Quantitative whole-tissue 3D imaging reveals bacteria in close association with mouse jejunum mucosa.

Because the small intestine (SI) epithelium lacks a thick protective mucus layer, microbes that colonize the thin SI mucosa may exert a substantial effect on the host. For example, bacterial colonization of the human SI may contribute to environmental enteropathy dysfunction (EED) in malnourished children. Thus far, potential bacterial colonization of the mucosal surface of the SI has only been documented in disease states, suggesting mucosal colonization is rare, likely requiring multiple perturbations.

Metabolic multistability and hysteresis in a model aerobe-anaerobe microbiome community.

Major changes in the microbiome are associated with health and disease. Some microbiome states persist despite seemingly unfavorable conditions, such as the proliferation of aerobe-anaerobe communities in oxygen-exposed environments in wound infections or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. Mechanisms underlying transitions into and persistence of these states remain unclear.

Publisher Correction: A quantitative sequencing framework for absolute abundance measurements of mucosal and lumenal microbial communities.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

A quantitative sequencing framework for absolute abundance measurements of mucosal and lumenal microbial communities.

A fundamental goal in microbiome studies is determining which microbes affect host physiology. Standard methods for determining changes in microbial taxa measure relative, rather than absolute abundances. Moreover, studies often analyze only stool, despite microbial diversity differing substantially among gastrointestinal (GI) locations.

Self-reinoculation with fecal flora changes microbiota density and composition leading to an altered bile-acid profile in the mouse small intestine.

Background: The upper gastrointestinal tract plays a prominent role in human physiology as the primary site for enzymatic digestion and nutrient absorption, immune sampling, and drug uptake. Alterations to the small intestine microbiome have been implicated in various human diseases, such as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and inflammatory bowel conditions. Yet, the physiological and functional roles of the small intestine microbiota in humans remain poorly characterized because of the complexities associated with its sampling.

High-molecular-weight polymers from dietary fiber drive aggregation of particulates in the murine small intestine.

Unlabelled: The lumen of the small intestine (SI) is filled with particulates: microbes, therapeutic particles, and food granules. The structure of this particulate suspension could impact uptake of drugs and nutrients and the function of microorganisms; however, little is understood about how this suspension is re-structured as it transits the gut. Here, we demonstrate that particles spontaneously aggregate in SI luminal fluid ex vivo.

[Blood Levels of Proprotein Convertase Subtilisin/Kexin Type 9 (PCSK9) in Men from Different Population Groups and Its Relation to Unfavorable Long-Term Prognosis].

Aim: of the study was to investigate blood levels of proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) in men from different population subgroups, their associations with cardiovascular risk factors and with unfavorable 7-years long-term prognosis.

Material And Methods: The study included three subgroups of men from a population sample of residents of Novosibirsk, 44-73 years old, not receiving lipid-lowering drugs: subgroup of population proper (183 men), subgroup with hypercholesterolemia (46 men), and subgroup with hypocholesterolemia (18 men). Blood level of PCSK9 was determined by ELISA using the test-systems "Human Proprotein Convertase 9/PCSK9 Immunoassay".

Influence of leptin and GABA-receptor agonist and antagonist on neurons of the hypothalamic infundibular nucleus in the chicken.

In birds and mammals, the neuroendocrine regulation of energy balance is conserved in many aspects. Despite significant similarities between the two groups, differences in the regulatory mechanisms were detected. The present study was performed to carry out investigations of the influence of human leptin and GABA-receptor agonist and antagonist on the firing rate of neurons of the Nucleus infundibuli hypothalami in brain slices from juvenile chickens.

Temporary prenatal hyperglycemia leads to postnatal neuronal 'glucose-resistance' in the chicken hypothalamus.

Prenatal exposures may have a distinct impact for long-term health. Exposure to maternal 'diabesity' during pregnancy increases offspring 'diabesity' risk, e.g.

Acquired alterations of hypothalamic gene expression of insulin and leptin receptors and glucose transporters in prenatally high-glucose exposed three-week old chickens do not coincide with aberrant promoter DNA methylation.

Background: Prenatal exposures may have a distinct impact for long-term health, one example being exposure to maternal 'diabesity' during pregnancy increasing offspring 'diabesity' risk. Malprogramming of the central nervous regulation of body weight, food intake and metabolism has been identified as a critical mechanism. While concrete disrupting factors still remain unclear, growing focus on acquired epigenomic alterations have been proposed.

Rapid fucosylation of intestinal epithelium sustains host-commensal symbiosis in sickness.

Systemic infection induces conserved physiological responses that include both resistance and 'tolerance of infection' mechanisms. Temporary anorexia associated with an infection is often beneficial, reallocating energy from food foraging towards resistance to infection or depriving pathogens of nutrients. However, it imposes a stress on intestinal commensals, as they also experience reduced substrate availability; this affects host fitness owing to the loss of caloric intake and colonization resistance (protection from additional infections).

Therapeutic angiogenesis using genetically engineered human endothelial cells.

Cell therapy holds promise as a method for the treatment of ischemic disease. However, one significant challenge to the efficacy of cell therapy is poor cell survival in vivo. Here we describe a non-viral, gene therapy approach to improve the survival and engraftment of cells transplanted into ischemic tissue.

Spatiotemporal effects of a controlled-release anti-inflammatory drug on the cellular dynamics of host response.

In general, biomaterials induce a non-specific host response when implanted in the body. This reaction has the potential to interfere with the function of the implanted materials. One method for controlling the host response is through local, controlled-release of anti-inflammatory agents.

Polymer surface functionalities that control human embryoid body cell adhesion revealed by high throughput surface characterization of combinatorial material microarrays.

High throughput materials discovery using combinatorial polymer microarrays to screen for new biomaterials with new and improved function is established as a powerful strategy. Here we combine this screening approach with high throughput surface characterization (HT-SC) to identify surface structure-function relationships. We explore how this combination can help to identify surface chemical moieties that control protein adsorption and subsequent cellular response.

A high throughput micro-array system of polymer surfaces for the manipulation of primary pancreatic islet cells.

We developed a high throughput micro-arrayed polymer system for the study of polymer surfaces for islet cell culture. A micro-arrayed library with 496 different polymers was synthesized and used to examine attachment and insulin expression of islet cells. While most polymers were not supportive, several related polymers were identified as suitable ("hit's").

Combinatorial development of biomaterials for clonal growth of human pluripotent stem cells.

Both human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells can self-renew indefinitely in culture; however, present methods to clonally grow them are inefficient and poorly defined for genetic manipulation and therapeutic purposes. Here we develop the first chemically defined, xeno-free, feeder-free synthetic substrates to support robust self-renewal of fully dissociated human embryonic stem and induced pluripotent stem cells. Material properties including wettability, surface topography, surface chemistry and indentation elastic modulus of all polymeric substrates were quantified using high-throughput methods to develop structure-function relationships between material properties and biological performance.

Combinatorial extracellular matrices for human embryonic stem cell differentiation in 3D.

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are promising cell sources for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Scaffolds for ESC-based tissue regeneration should provide not only structural support, but also signals capable of supporting appropriate cell differentiation and tissue development. Extracellular matrix (ECM) is a key component of the stem cell niche in vivo and can influence stem cell fate via mediating cell attachment and migration, presenting chemical and physical cues, as well as binding soluble factors.

Nanoparticulate cellular patches for cell-mediated tumoritropic delivery.

The targeted delivery of therapeutics to tumors remains an important challenge in cancer nanomedicine. Attaching nanoparticles to cells that have tumoritropic migratory properties is a promising modality to address this challenge. Here we describe a technique to create nanoparticulate cellular patches that remain attached to the membrane of cells for up to 2 days.

Lipid-like Nanoparticles for Small Interfering RNA Delivery to Endothelial Cells.

Here we develop nanoparticles composed of lipid-like materials (lipidoids) to facilitate non-viral delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) to endothelial cells (ECs). Nanoparticles composed of siRNA and lipidoids with small size (~200 nm) and positive charge (~34 mV) were formed by self assembly of lipidoids and siRNA. Ten lipidoids were synthesized and screened for their ability to facilitate the delivery of siRNA into ECs.

Genetic engineering of human stem cells for enhanced angiogenesis using biodegradable polymeric nanoparticles.

Stem cells hold great potential as cell-based therapies to promote vascularization and tissue regeneration. However, the use of stem cells alone to promote angiogenesis remains limited because of insufficient expression of angiogenic factors and low cell viability after transplantation. Here, we have developed vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) high-expressing, transiently modified stem cells for the purposes of promoting angiogenesis.

[Symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux and quality of life: population study].

Aim: To study prevalence of symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in a free living population and to evaluate quality of life (QOL) in this disease.

Material And Methods: The gastroenterological symptoms and QOL were studied in a representative sample of adult population of 495 males and 548 females aged 45-70 years using a validated questionnaire, SF-36 questionnaire.

Results: GER symptoms were seen in 17.

[A comparative study of the dynamics of deep burns healing in using medullary allogenic fibroblast-like mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow immobilized on biodegrading membranes or taken from cultural plastic].

Transplantation of suspention of allogenic fibroblast-like mesenchymal stem cells (AFMSC) of the bone marrow and AFMSC immobilized on the biodegradable membrane (BM) stimulates healing of deep burn wounds compared to control (without cell transplantation) because these cells produce biologically active substances into the wound. AFMSC immobilized on BM activate repair processes in the wounds earlier. This may be due to their higher functional activity created in the monolayer by adequate intercellular interactions.

[The epidemiology of ischemic heart disease in men and women 25 to 54 in relation to their levels of physical activity].

A one-stage populational study of a random representative sample of the nonorganized community of Novosibirsk was carried out within the framework of the WHO CINDI and MONICA projects. There were 1235 men and 1113 women aged 25-54 years. The prevalence of coronary heart disease and the main risk factors was studied in quartiles of energy losses distribution during occupational physical activity (OPA) and physical activity at leisure (PAL).