The Impact of a Ketogenic Diet on Late-Stage Pancreatic Carcinogenesis in Mice: Efficacy and Safety Studies.

Background: High-fat diets (HFDs) have been associated with an increased risk of pancreatic cancer. In contrast, ketogenic diets (KDs) have been shown to display anti-tumor characteristics. The objective of this work was to evaluate the efficacy of a KD on late-stage pancreatic carcinogenesis in a genetically modified mouse model of pancreatic cancer [LSL-; -Cre (KC) mice], as well as its liver safety, and to compare it to that of an HFD.

Comparison of macrolitter and meso- and microplastic pollution on French riverbanks and coastal beaches using citizen science with schoolchildren.

Rivers are the major source of anthropogenic litter entering the ocean, especially plastic debris that accumulates in all ecosystems around the world and poses a risk to the biota. Reliable data on distribution, abundance, and types of stranded plastics are needed, especially on riverbanks that have received less attention than coastal beaches. Here, we present the citizen science initiative Plastique à la loupe (Plastic under the magnifier), which compares for the first time the distribution of different litter sizes (macrolitter and meso- and microplastics) over 81 riverbanks and 66 coastal beaches sampled in France between 2019 and 2021.

Monitoring misuse and abuse of psychoactive substances in France: Insights from substance abuse treatment facilities through the OPPIDUM program.

The OPPIDUM program was first created in 1990. It is an annual, repeated, cross-sectional, nationwide, multicenter program. Data are provided directly from users of psychoactive substances (PAS) seen in substance abuse treatment facilities.

A pilot case-control study on the fecal microbiota of pediatric functional abdominal pain-not otherwise specified and the role of early life stress.

Gut microbial features and the role of early life stress in pediatric functional abdominal pain-not otherwise specified (FAP-NOS) have never been investigated before. Here, we hypothesize that early life stress is more prevalent in FAP-NOS compared to healthy controls and that fecal microbial profiles and related metabolites differ between groups. In an international multicenter case-control study, FAP-NOS patients ( = 40) were compared to healthy controls ( = 55).

Stratification of human gut microbiomes by succinotype is associated with inflammatory bowel disease status.

Background: The human gut microbiome produces and consumes a variety of compounds that interact with the host and impact health. Succinate is of particular interest as it intersects with both host and microbiome metabolism. However, which gut bacteria are most responsible for the consumption of intestinal succinate is poorly understood.

Microbially-produced folate forms support the growth of Roseburia intestinalis but not its competitive fitness in fecal batch fermentations.

Background: Folate (vitamin B9) occurs naturally mainly as tetrahydrofolate (THF), methyl-tetrahydrofolate (M-THF), and formyl-tetrahydrofolate (F-THF), and as dietary synthetic form (folic acid). While folate auxotrophy and prototrophy are known for several gut microbes, the specific folate forms produced by gut prototrophs and their impact on gut auxotrophs and microbiota remain unexplored.

Methods: Here, we quantified by UHPLC-FL/UV folate produced by six predicted gut prototrophs (Marvinbryantia formatexigens DSM 14469, Blautia hydrogenotrophica 10507 , Blautia producta DSM 14466, Bacteroides caccae DSM 19024, Bacteroides ovatus DSM 1896, and Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron DSM 2079 ) and investigated the impact of different folate forms and doses (50 and 200 µg/l) on the growth and metabolism of the gut auxotroph Roseburia intestinalis in pure cultures and during fecal anaerobic batch fermentations (48 h, 37 °C) of five healthy adults.

Pharmacologic Management of the Sequelae of Traumatic Brain Injuries.

The Psychiatric Consultation Service at Massachusetts General Hospital sees medical and surgical inpatients with comorbid psychiatric symptoms and conditions. During their twice-weekly rounds, Dr Stern and other members of the Consultation Service discuss diagnosis and management of hospitalized patients with complex medical or surgical problems who also demonstrate psychiatric symptoms or conditions. These discussions have given rise to rounds reports that will prove useful for clinicians practicing at the interface of medicine and psychiatry.

Patterns of Pregabalin Users from Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities: Results from the French OPPIDUM Program from 2008 to 2022.

Introduction: In recent years, pregabalin has received growing attention due to its abuse liability. The aim of this study was to further characterize patterns of pregabalin users from substance abuse treatment facilities and detect changes in users profile over the study period.

Methods: The data source was the Observation des Produits Psychotropes Illicites ou Détournés de leur Utilisation Médicamenteuse (OPPIDUM) program, an annual, repeated, cross-sectional, nationwide, multicenter survey that collects consumption data from patients with substance use disorders.

Colonization and Biodegradation Potential of Fungal Communities on Immersed Polystyrene vs. Biodegradable Plastics: A Time Series Study in a Marina Environment.

Plastic pollution of the ocean is a major environmental threat. In this context, a better understanding of the microorganisms able to colonize and potentially degrade these pollutants is of interest. This study explores the colonization and biodegradation potential of fungal communities on foamed polystyrene and alternatives biodegradable plastics immersed in a marina environment over time, using the Brest marina (France) as a model site.

Transgenerational effects of early life stress on the fecal microbiota in mice.

Stress in early life can affect the progeny and increase the risk to develop psychiatric and cardiometabolic diseases across generations. The cross-generational effects of early life stress have been modeled in mice and demonstrated to be associated with epigenetic factors in the germline. While stress is known to affect gut microbial features, whether its effects can persist across life and be passed to the progeny is not well defined.

Comparative prebiotic potential of galacto- and fructo-oligosaccharides, native inulin, and acacia gum in Kenyan infant gut microbiota during iron supplementation.

Iron fortification to prevent anemia in African infants increases colonic iron levels, favoring the growth of enteropathogens. The use of prebiotics may be an effective strategy to reduce these detrimental effects. Using the African infant PolyFermS gut model, we compared the effect of the prebiotics short-chain galacto- with long-chain fructo-oligosaccharides (scGOS/lcFOS) and native inulin, and the emerging prebiotic acacia gum, a branched-polysaccharide-protein complex consisting of arabinose and galactose, during iron supplementation on four Kenyan infant gut microbiota.

Inadvertent Injection of Ciprofloxacin Instead of Ropivacaine Through Epidural Catheter.

Patient harm is often due to medication errors related to neuraxial and peripheral misconnection. We report a case of inadvertent injection of ciprofloxacin into the epidural space and discuss the strategies that could prevent such an incident. A 74-year-old woman presented a recurrence of an ovarian cancer.

Traumatic Brain Injuries: Manifestations, Evaluation, Management, and Outcomes.

The Psychiatric Consultation Service at Massachusetts General Hospital sees medical and surgical inpatients with comorbid psychiatric symptoms and conditions. During their twice-weekly rounds, Dr Stern and other members of the Consultation Service discuss diagnosis and management of hospitalized patients with complex medical or surgical problems who also demonstrate psychiatric symptoms or conditions. These discussions have given rise to rounds reports that will prove useful for clinicians practicing at the interface of medicine and psychiatry.

A flexible high-throughput cultivation protocol to assess the response of individuals' gut microbiota to diet-, drug-, and host-related factors.

The anaerobic cultivation of fecal microbiota is a promising approach to investigating how gut microbial communities respond to specific intestinal conditions and perturbations. Here, we describe a flexible protocol using 96-deepwell plates to cultivate stool-derived gut microbiota. Our protocol aims to address gaps in high-throughput culturing in an anaerobic chamber.

Vitamin B12 analogues from gut microbes and diet differentially impact commensal propionate producers of the human gut.

To produce the health-associated metabolite propionate, gut microbes require vitamin B12 as a cofactor to convert succinate to propionate. B12 is sourced in the human gut from the unabsorbed dietary fraction and microbial production. However, experimental data for B12 production by gut microbes is scarce, especially on their produced B12-analogues.

Large-scale vibrating coil magnetometer for the magnetic characterization of bulk superconductors.

This work presents the design and validation of a vibrating coil magnetometer for the characterization of the field dependence of the critical current density of centimeter-sized bulk superconductors as an alternative to the destructive methods typically used. The magnetometer is also shown to be capable of measuring the magnetic moment in an applied field of up to 5 T for diverse magnetic materials, such as soft and hard ferromagnets and high-temperature superconducting pellets. The vibrating coil magnetometer was first optimized using finite element simulations and calibrated using a commercial vibrating sample magnetometer.

Glycerol and reuterin-producing Limosilactobacillus reuteri enhance butyrate production and inhibit Enterobacteriaceae in broiler chicken cecal microbiota PolyFermS model.

Background: Administering probiotic strains of Limosilactobacillus reuteri to poultry has been shown to improve poultry performance and health. Some strains of L. reuteri taxa can produce reuterin, a broad-spectrum antimicrobial compound from glycerol conversion, with high inhibitory activity against enterobacteria.

human gut microbiota fermentation models: opportunities, challenges, and pitfalls.

The human gut microbiota (HGM) plays a pivotal role in health and disease. Consequently, nutritional and medical research focusing on HGM modulation strategies as a means of improving host health is steadily increasing. HGM fermentation models offer a valid complement to human and animal studies when it comes to the mechanistic exploration of novel modulation approaches and their direct effects on HGM composition and activity, while excluding interfering host effects.

Faecalibacterium duncaniae A2-165 growth is strongly promoted by yeast extract and vitamin B5 in cGMP medium.

Several gut microbial species within the Faecalibacterium genus have emerged as promising next-generation probiotics (NGP) due to their multifunctional protective effects against gastrointestinal and systemic disorders. To enable clinical studies and further applications, improved methods for cultivating Faecalibacterium must be developed in compliance with current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations, which is complicated by its oxygen sensitivity and complex nutritional requirements. Different yeast-based nutrients (YBNs), including yeast extracts (YEs) and yeast peptones (YPs), are ubiquitously used when cultivating microbes to supply a broad range of macro- and micronutrients.