Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Sugarcane Response to Aluminum Stress by RNA-Seq.

Some metals are beneficial to plants and contribute to critical physiological processes. Some metals, however, are not. The presence of aluminum ions (Al) can be very toxic, especially in acidic soils.

Metabolic benefits of annatto-extracted tocotrienol on glucose homeostasis, inflammation, and gut microbiome.

Emerging evidence suggests that the gut microbiome plays an important role in the pathophysiology of both obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. We previously reported that dietary annatto-extracted tocotrienol exerts beneficial effects by modulating inflammatory responses in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD). The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that tocotrienol supplementation when combined with an HFD would result in an altered gut microbiota composition.

qEEG Measures of Attentional and Memory Network Functions in Medical Students: Novel Targets for Pharmacopuncture to Improve Cognition and Academic Performance.

Objectives: Attentional and memory functions are important aspects of neural plasticity that, theoretically, should be amenable to pharmacopuncture treatments. A previous study from our laboratory suggested that quantitative electroencephalographic (qEEG) measurements of theta/beta ratio (TBR), an index of attentional control, may be indicative of academic performance in a first-semester medical school course. The present study expands our prior report by extracting and analyzing data on frontal theta and beta asymmetries.

Maternal exercise before and during pregnancy alleviates metabolic dysfunction associated with high-fat diet in pregnant mice, without significant changes in gut microbiota.

Although maternal exercise before and during pregnancy is beneficial, the effects of exercise on microbiota changes during pregnancy are unknown. Here we tested the hypothesis that maternal exercise before and during pregnancy would positively affect glucose homeostasis, pancreatic cell function, and gut microbiota dysbiosis in high-fat diet (HFD) fed dams. Female C57BL/6 mice were fed either a HFD or a low-fat diet (LFD) for 12 weeks.

Olanzapine versus aprepitant for the prophylaxis of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients receiving doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide regimen: A prospective, nonrandomized, open-label study.

Objective: Despite the guideline-directed therapy, complete absence of nausea was noted only in 33% of breast cancer patients on anthracycline-cyclophosphamide regimen. Hence, we sought to compare the efficacy of aprepitant (APT) versus olanzapine (OLP) in preventing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in breast cancer patients on doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide regimen.

Patients And Methods: A prospective, open-label, nonrandomized study was conducted at the Department of Oncology.

Restricted Blood Flow Exercise in Sedentary, Overweight African-American Females May Increase Muscle Strength and Decrease Endothelial Function and Vascular Autoregulation.

Objectives: Exercise with partially restricted blood flow is a low-load, low-intensity resistance training regimen which may have the potential to increase muscle strength in the obese, elderly and frail who are unable to do high-load training. Restricted blood flow exercise has also been shown to affect blood vessel function variably and can, therefore, contribute to blood vessel dysfunction. This pilot study tests the hypothesis that unilateral resistance training of the leg extensors with partially restricted blood flow increases muscle strength and decreases vascular autoregulation.

Effects of Swimming Exercise on Learning and Memory in the Kainate-Lesion Model of Temporal Lobe Epilepsy.

Introduction: An aerobic exercise (Ex) augments neurogenesis and may ameliorate learning and memory deficits in the rat Kainic Acid (KA) model of temporal lobe epilepsy in the short-term but whether it reverses learning and memory deficits after a substantial period of delay remains unclear.

Aim: This study tests the hypothesis that aerobic Ex attenuates the learning and memory deficits associated with kainate seizures in the long-term.

Materials And Methods: A total of 60 rats were subjected to chemical lesioning using KA and to an Ex intervention consisting of a 30 days period of daily swimming for 15 min, immediately after KA lesioning (immediate exposure) or after a 60 days period of normal activity (delayed exposure).

Unique Application of Cryocone to Diagnose Umbilical Pilonidal Cyst.

Patients with umbilical disorders who present with complaints of a mass, pain, tenderness or discharge will typically have a differential diagnosis including umbilical hernias, pyogenic granuloma, endometriosis, Sister Mary Joseph nodule and urachal or epidermoid cysts. We would add the inclusion of pilonidal sinus disease and present the case of a patient with an umbilical pilonidal cyst. The use of a cryocone with lubricating jelly, in this case, proved to be an easy and convenient method that aided in visualization and diagnosis of this fairly uncommon condition.

Differentiation of Overweight from Normal Weight Young Adults by Postprandial Heart Rate Variability and Systolic Blood Pressure.

Introduction: Obesity and cardiovascular disease are inextricably linked and the health community's response to the current epidemic of adolescent obesity may be improved by the ability to target adolescents at highest risk for developing cardiovascular disease in the future. Overweight manifests early as autonomic dysregulation and current methods do not permit differentiation of overweight adolescents or young adults at highest risk for developing cardiovascular disease.

Aim: This study was designed to test the hypothesis that scaling exponents motivated by nonlinear fractal analyses of Heart Rate Variability (HRV) differentiate overweight, otherwise healthy adolescent/young adult subjects at risk for developing prehypertension, the primary forerunner of cardiovascular disease.

Effects of a Dietary Beetroot Juice Treatment on Systemic and Cerebral Haemodynamics- A Pilot Study.

Introduction: Beetroot Juice (BJ) contains dietary nitrates that increase the blood Nitric Oxide (NO) level, decrease Blood Pressure (BP), increase athletic performance and improve cognitive functions but the mechanism remains unclear. Ultrasonographic measurement of middle cerebral artery blood flow velocity with computation of Cerebral Augmentation Index (CAIx) is a measure of the reflected flow signal, modulated by changes in cerebrovascular resistance and compliance.

Aim: This pilot study tests the hypothesis that ingestion of an amount of BJ sufficient to raise the blood NO level two-to three-fold, decreases Transcranial Doppler (TCD) measured CAIx.

Cardiovascular Responses to an Isometric Handgrip Exercise in Females with Prehypertension.

Background: Hypertensive individuals are known to exhibit greater increases in blood pressure during an isometric handgrip exercise (IHE) than their normotensive counterparts.

Aim: This study tests the hypothesis that, compared to normotensive individuals, prehypertensive individuals exhibit an exaggerated response to IHE.

Materials And Methods: In this study, the effects of IHE were compared in matched prehypertensive vs.

Prevalence of Hypertension in Boloor Diabetes Study (BDS-II) and its Risk Factors.

Introduction: Hypertension is a major public health problem in India and worldwide. Since hypertension is often asymptomatic, it commonly remains undetected, leading to serious complications if untreated. Hypertension is one of the leading causes of end stage renal disease.

Evaluation of Culture, Antigen Detection and Polymerase Chain Reaction for Detection of Vaginal Colonization of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) in Pregnant Women.

Background And Objective: Group B Streptococcal infection is an important cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Early detection of perinatal vagino-rectal (VR) carriage of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is important in the management of newborn infections. The objective of the study was to evaluate Culture, antigen detection and Polymerase chain reaction for detection of GBS in Pregnant women.