Risk assessment of rare earth elements, antimony, barium, boron, lithium, tellurium, thallium and vanadium in teas.

In recent years, a great intensification in the use of various elements especially in modern technology can be observed. However, the anthropogenic activities, including industrialisation, urbanisation or intensive agriculture, have led to the release of many of the elements into the environment. The consequence of the accumulation of the elements both in soil and water systems is their presence in the food chain.

Non-viral siRNA transfection of primary mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs): Assessment of tyrosine-modified PEI and PPI efficacy and biocompatibility.

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells derived from different sources and able to differentiate into distinct cell lineages. For their possible biomedical application, the "tuning" of MSCs also involves the specific knockdown of defined target genes. A major limitation, however, is the notoriously low transfection efficacy especially of primary MSCs.

Reduction of Graft-versus-Host-Disease in NOD.Cg-Prkdc Il2rg/SzJ (NSG) Mice by Cotransplantation of Syngeneic Human Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is one of the major complications following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, which remains the sole curative therapy for many malignant diseases of the hematopoietic system. The immunomodulatory potential of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) to treat GVHD is currently being tested in various preclinical and clinical trials. Because the results of the preclinical and clinical trials on the use of MSCs to treat GVHD have not been consistent, we analyzed the potential beneficial effects of syngeneic versus allogenic treatment, culture expansion of MSCs, and various MSC cell doses and time points of MSC transplantation in a murine GVHD model.

Dietary exposure to selected chemical contaminants in fish for the Danish population.

The exposure to selected chemical contaminants from fish has been calculated for the Danish population, both for adults (15-75 years of age) and children (4-14 years of age). The Danish mean consumption of fish is 21 g person day for adults and 12 g person day for children. Fish consumption is the main food group contributor for exposure to mercury and dioxins and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCDD/F and DL-PCB) for the Danish population.

Suggestion for a subdivision of processed meat products on the Danish market based on their content of carcinogenic compounds.

Carcinogenic effects in humans are ascribed to processed meat by organisations such as International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research. However, the term 'processed meat' covers a heterogenic group of products whose content of potential hazards differ considerably. To improve estimates of associations between processed meat intake and cancer risk we investigated ways to divide processed meat into subgroups that more precisely reflects its carcinogenic characteristics.

Human bocavirus is detected in human placenta and aborted tissues.

Background: To date, four human bocaviruses (HBoV) have been described. The most closely related viruses (bovine and canine parvoviruses) are associated with miscarriage in their hosts. The objective of this retrospective study was to determine the frequency of HBoV DNA in miscarriage.

Apple pomace improves gut health in Fisher rats independent of seed content.

The mechanism behind the cholesterol lowering effects of apple pomace, a polyphenol- and fibre rich by-product in apple juice production, was investigated. Groups of male F344 rats were fed a control feed or the same feed with 2.1% or 6.

Effects of oily fish intake on cardiovascular risk markers, cognitive function, and behavior in school-aged children: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Most children in Western populations do not meet recommendations for fish consumption. Oily fish is an important source of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA), which reduce blood pressure and plasma triacylglycerol in adults and may affect cognitive development and behavior. However, to our knowledge, the potential effects of oily fish on cardiometabolic health, cognitive function, and behavior in children have not been investigated.

Primary-like human hepatocytes genetically engineered to obtain proliferation competence display hepatic differentiation characteristics in monolayer and organotypical spheroid cultures.

Primary human hepatocytes are in great demand during drug development and in hepatology. However, both scarcity of tissue supply and donor variability of primary cells create a need for the development of alternative hepatocyte systems. By using a lentivirus vector system to transfer coding sequences of Upcyte® proliferation genes, we generated non-transformed stable hepatocyte cultures from human liver tissue samples.

Effect of increased intake of fish and mussels on exposure to toxic trace elements in a healthy, middle-aged population.

Fish and shellfish are rich in essential nutrients, but are also a source of exposure to environmental contaminants. We aimed to investigate the effect of increased fish and mussel intake on mercury, arsenic, lead and cadmium blood concentrations. We randomly assigned 102 healthy men and women (all non-smokers) aged 48-76 years to an intervention group (n = 51) or a control group (n = 51).

Experimental productivity rate optimization of rare earth element separation through preparative solid phase extraction chromatography.

Separating individual rare earth elements from a complex mixture with several elements is difficult and this is emphasized for the middle elements: Samarium, Europium and Gadolinium. In this study we have accomplished an overloaded one-step separation of these rare earth elements through preparative ion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography with an bis (2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid impregnated column and nitric acid as eluent. An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry unit was used for post column element detection.

Modelling and optimisation of preparative chromatographic purification of europium.

A model commonly used to describe the separation of biomolecules was used to simulate the harsh environment when eluting neodymium, samarium, europium and gadolinium with a hot acid. After calibration, the model was used to optimise the preparative separation of europium, as this is the most valuable of the four elements. A kinetic dispersive model with a Langmuir mobile phase modulator isotherm was used to describe the process.

Optimization of preparative chromatographic separation of multiple rare earth elements.

This work presents a method to optimize multi-product chromatographic systems with multiple objective functions. The system studied is a neodymium, samarium, europium, gadolinium mixture separated in an ion exchange chromatography step. A homogeneous Langmuir Mobile Phase Modified model is calibrated to fit the experiments, and then used to perform the optimization task.

Effects of apples and specific apple components on the cecal environment of conventional rats: role of apple pectin.

Background: Our study was part of the large European project ISAFRUIT aiming to reveal the biological explanations for the epidemiologically well-established health effects of fruits. The objective was to identify effects of apple and apple product consumption on the composition of the cecal microbial community in rats, as well as on a number of cecal parameters, which may be influenced by a changed microbiota.

Results: Principal Component Analysis (PCA) of cecal microbiota profiles obtained by PCR-DGGE targeting bacterial 16S rRNA genes showed an effect of whole apples in a long-term feeding study (14 weeks), while no effects of apple juice, purée or pomace on microbial composition in cecum were observed.

Effects of an onion by-product on bioactivity and safety markers in healthy rats.

Onions are excellent sources of bioactive compounds including fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) and polyphenols. An onion by-product was characterised in order to be developed as a potentially bioactive food ingredient. Our main aim was to investigate whether the potential health and safety effects of this onion by-product were shared by either of two derived fractions, an extract containing the onion FOS and polyphenols and a residue fraction containing mainly cell wall materials.

Dietary carbohydrate source influences molecular fingerprints of the rat faecal microbiota.

Background: A study was designed to elucidate effects of selected carbohydrates on composition and activity of the intestinal microbiota. Five groups of eight rats were fed a western type diet containing cornstarch (reference group), sucrose, potato starch, inulin (a long- chained fructan) or oligofructose (a short-chained fructan). Fructans are, opposite sucrose and starches, not digestible by mammalian gut enzymes, but are known to be fermentable by specific bacteria in the large intestine.

The effect of antioxidant supplementation on hepatitis C viral load, transaminases and oxidative status: a randomized trial among chronic hepatitis C virus-infected patients.

Objective: To assess the effect of antioxidant supplementation on hepatitis C viral load, transaminases and oxidative status.

Methods: We performed a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial to assess the effect of antioxidant supplementation on serum alanine aminotransferase, plasma hepatitis C viral load as well as oxidative and antioxidant markers in patients with hepatitis C virus infection. The participants received a daily dose of ascorbic acid (500 mg), D-alpha-tocopherol (945 IU) and selenium (200 microg) or placebo tablets for 6 months.

Sucrose and IQ induced mutations in rat colon by independent mechanism.

Sucrose-rich diets have repeatedly been observed to have co-carcinogenic actions in colon and liver of rats and to increase the number of 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ) induced aberrant crypt foci in rat colon. To investigate a possible interaction between sucrose and IQ on the genotoxicity in rat liver and colon, we gave Big Blue rats a diet containing sucrose (0%, 3.45% or 13.

The 6-a-day study: effects of fruit and vegetables on markers of oxidative stress and antioxidative defense in healthy nonsmokers.

Background: Fruit and vegetables contain both nutritive and nonnutritive factors that might contribute to redox (antioxidant and prooxidant) actions.

Objective: We investigated the relative influence of nutritive and nonnutritive factors in fruit and vegetables on oxidative damage and enzymatic defense.

Design: A 25-d intervention study with complete control of dietary intake was performed in 43 healthy male and female nonsmokers who were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups.

Dietary elevated sucrose modulation of diesel-induced genotoxicity in the colon and liver of Big Blue rats.

Earlier studies have indicated that sucrose possesses either co-carcinogenic or tumor-promoter effects in colon carcinogenesis induced by genotoxic carcinogens. In this study we investigated the role of sucrose on diesel exhaust particle (DEP)-induced genotoxicity in the colonic mucosa and liver. Big Blue rats were fed with DEP (0.

Dietary low-dose sucrose modulation of IQ-induced genotoxicity in the colon and liver of Big Blue rats.

Earlier studies have indicated that sucrose increases 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ)-induced aberrant crypt foci in the colon. In this study, we investigated the role of sucrose in IQ-induced genotoxicity of the colon mucosa and liver. Big Blue rats were fed with IQ (20 ppm in feed) and/or sucrose (3.

Personal PM2.5 exposure and markers of oxidative stress in blood.

Ambient particulate air pollution assessed as outdoor concentrations of particulate matter less than or equal to 2.5 micro m in diameter (PM(2.5)) in urban background has been associated with cardiovascular diseases at the population level.

Inhalation of ozone induces DNA strand breaks and inflammation in mice.

Ozone (O3) is a well-known oxidant pollutant present in photochemical smog. Although ozone is suspected to be a respiratory carcinogen it is not regulated as a carcinogen in most countries. The genotoxic and inflammatory effects of ozone were investigated in female mice exposed to ozone for 90 min.

A sucrose-rich diet induces mutations in the rat colon.

A sucrose-rich diet has repeatedly been observed to have cocarcinogenic actions in the colon and liver of rats and to increase the number of aberrant crypt foci in rat colon. To investigate whether sucrose-rich diets might directly increase the genotoxic response in the rat colon or liver, we have added sucrose to the diet of Big Blue rats, a strain of Fischer rats carrying 40 copies of the lambda-phage on chromosome 4. Dietary sucrose was provided to the rats for 3 weeks at four dose levels including the background level in the purified diet [3.