Diarrheal diseases claim the lives of 1300 children daily, mostly in the developing world. We have developed a simple lateral flow assay capable of detecting and EPEC DNA and RNA rapidly (<15 minutes) at the point-of-need, directly from stool without nucleic acid extraction or molecular amplification. The limit of detection of the method is 1 nM using synthetic DNA target substrates spiked into stool.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of the study was to examine the interrelationships among stress, eating behavior, and adiposity in a cohort of normal- and overweight individuals. Clinical markers of physiological stress (fasting serum cortisol) and adiposity (body mass index [BMI] and percent body fat) were obtained from participants selected for a natural history protocol ( n = 107). Self-reported data on eating behavior (using the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire subscales such as Cognitive Restraint, Disinhibition, and Hunger) and psychological stress (via the Perceived Stress Scale) were evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIrritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder characterized by abdominal pain and bowel dysfunction in the absence of structural abnormality. Diagnosis can be challenging and often leads to extensive medical tests, non-effective therapeutic modalities, and reduced quality of life (QOL). Identifying factors associated with dysfunction have the potential to enhance outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFColonic epithelial health is implicated in a host of gastrointestinal (GI) diseases and disorders. Lysozyme is suspected to play a role in the ability of the epithelium to recover from injury (Abey et al., in press; Gallo, 2012; Rubio, 2014) [1], [2], [3].
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStress is known to perturb the microbiome and exacerbate irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) associated symptoms. Characterizing structural and functional changes in the microbiome is necessary to understand how alterations affect the biomolecular environment of the gut in IBS. Repeated water avoidance (WA) stress was used to induce IBS-like symptoms in rats.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Stress has demonstrated effects on inflammation though underlying cell-cell communication mechanisms remain unclear. We hypothesize that circulating RNAs and extracellular vesicles (EVs) in patients with chronic stress contain signals with functional roles in cell repair.
Methods: Blood transcriptome from patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome versus controls were compared to identify signaling pathways and effectors.
The gene expression platform assay allows for robust and highly reproducible quantification of the expression of up to 800 transcripts (mRNA or miRNAs) in a single reaction. The miRNA assay counts transcripts by directly imaging and digitally counting miRNA molecules that are labeled with color-coded fluorescent barcoded probe sets (a reporter probe and a capture probe). Barcodes are hybridized directly to mature miRNAs that have been elongated by ligating a unique oligonucleotide tag (miRtag) to the 3' end.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNutrition is a factor involved in inflammation and a modulator of risk toward some cancers, and the complexity of linkages between dietary components and epigenetics mechanisms (e.g., DNA methylation, histone modification, chromatin remodeling) may affect the inflammation phenotype and the development of cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIrritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a poorly understood disorder characterized by persistent symptoms, including visceral pain. Studies have demonstrated oral microbiome differences in inflammatory bowel diseases suggesting the potential of the oral microbiome in the study of non-oral conditions. In this exploratory study we examine whether differences exist in the oral microbiome of IBS participants and healthy controls, and whether the oral microbiome relates to symptom severity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAbdominal pain is a chronic condition experienced by approximately 20% of individuals in the United States. The purpose of the study was to assess the validity of the Gastrointestinal Pain Pointer as a measure of abdominal pain intensity. A prospective longitudinal time-series study design was utilized.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Health Perspect
April 2015
Background: Inorganic arsenic species are potent environmental toxins and causes of numerous health problems. Most studies have assumed that arsenic-induced changes in mRNA levels result from effects on gene transcription.
Objectives: We evaluated the prevalence of changes in mRNA stability in response to sodium arsenite in human fibroblasts.
Background And Aims: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs, which regulate gene expression and are thus of interest as diagnostic markers, and as clues to etiology and targets of intervention. This pilot study examined whether circulating miRNAs are differentially expressed in patients with IBS.
Methods: miRNA microarrays (NanoString) were run on the whole blood of 43 participants.