Perceptions and expectations of an artificially intelligent physical activity digital assistant - A focus group study.

Artificially intelligent physical activity digital assistants that use the full spectrum of machine learning capabilities have not yet been developed and examined. This study aimed to explore potential users' perceptions and expectations of using such a digital assistant. Six 90-min online focus group meetings (n = 45 adults) were conducted. Meetings were recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. Participants embraced the idea of a 'digital assistant' providing physical activity support. Participants indicated they would like to receive notifications from the digital assistant, but did not agree on the number, timing, tone and content of notifications. Likewise, they indicated that the digital assistant's personality and appearance should be customisable. Participants understood the need to provide information to the digital assistant to allow for personalisation, but varied greatly in the extent of information that they were willing to provide. Privacy issues aside, participants embraced the idea of using artificial intelligence or machine learning in return for a more functional and personal digital assistant. In sum, participants were ready for an artificially intelligent physical activity digital assistant but emphasised a need to personalise or customise nearly every feature of the application. This poses challenges in terms of cost and complexity of developing the application.

Into the wild: new yeast genomes from natural environments and new tools for their analysis.

Genomic studies of yeasts from the wild have increased considerably in the past few years. This revolution has been fueled by advances in high-throughput sequencing technologies and a better understanding of yeast ecology and phylogeography, especially for biotechnologically important species. The present review aims to first introduce new bioinformatic tools available for the generation and analysis of yeast genomes. We also assess the accumulated genomic data of wild isolates of industrially relevant species, such as Saccharomyces spp., which provide unique opportunities to further investigate the domestication processes associated with the fermentation industry and opportunistic pathogenesis. The availability of genome sequences of other less conventional yeasts obtained from the wild has also increased substantially, including representatives of the phyla Ascomycota (e.g. Hanseniaspora) and Basidiomycota (e.g. Phaffia). Here, we review salient examples of both fundamental and applied research that demonstrate the importance of continuing to sequence and analyze genomes of wild yeasts.

Cartilage resurfacing potential of PLGA scaffolds loaded with autologous cells from cartilage, fat, and bone marrow in an ovine model of osteochondral focal defect.

Current developments in tissue engineering strategies for articular cartilage regeneration focus on the design of supportive three-dimensional scaffolds and their use in combination with cells from different sources. The challenge of translating initial successes in small laboratory animals into the clinics involves pilot studies in large animal models, where safety and efficacy should be investigated during prolonged follow-up periods. Here we present, in a single study, the long-term (up to 1 year) effect of biocompatible porous scaffolds non-seeded and seeded with fresh ex vivo expanded autologous progenitor cells that were derived from three different cell sources [cartilage, fat and bone marrow (BM)] in order to evaluate their advantages as cartilage resurfacing agents. An ovine model of critical size osteochondral focal defect was used and the test items were implanted arthroscopically into the knees. Evidence of regeneration of hyaline quality tissue was observed at 6 and 12 months post-treatment with variable success depending on the cell source. Cartilage and BM-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC), but not those derived from fat, resulted in the best quality of new cartilage, as judged qualitatively by magnetic resonance imaging and macroscopic assessment, and by histological quantitative scores. Given the limitations in sourcing cartilage tissue and the risk of donor site morbidity, BM emerges as a preferential source of MSC for novel cartilage resurfacing therapies of osteochondral defects using copolymeric poly-D,L-lactide-co-glycolide scaffolds.

Enological characterization of Spanish Saccharomyces kudriavzevii strains, one of the closest relatives to parental strains of winemaking and brewing Saccharomyces cerevisiae × S. kudriavzevii hybrids.

Wine fermentation and innovation have focused mostly on Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains. However, recent studies have shown that other Saccharomyces species can also be involved in wine fermentation or are useful for wine bouquet, such as Saccharomyces uvarum and Saccharomyces paradoxus. Many interspecies hybrids have also been isolated from wine fermentation, such as S. cerevisiae × Saccharomyces kudriavzevii hybrids. In this study, we explored the genetic diversity and fermentation performance of Spanish S. kudriavzevii strains, which we compared to other S. kudriavzevii strains. Fermentations of red and white grape musts were performed, and the phenotypic differences between Spanish S. kudriavzevii strains under different temperature conditions were examined. An ANOVA analysis suggested striking similarity between strains for glycerol and ethanol production, although a high diversity of aromatic profiles among fermentations was found. The sources of these phenotypic differences are not well understood and require further investigation. Although the Spanish S. kudriavzevii strains showed desirable properties, particularly must fermentations, the quality of their wines was no better than those produced with a commercial S. cerevisiae. We suggest hybridization or directed evolution as methods to improve and innovate wine.

An arthroscopic approach for the treatment of osteochondral focal defects with cell-free and cell-loaded PLGA scaffolds in sheep.

Osteochondral injuries are common in humans and are relatively difficult to manage with current treatment options. The combination of novel biomaterials and expanded progenitor or stem cells provides a source of therapeutic and immunologically compatible medicines that can be used in regenerative medicine. However, such new medicinal products need to be tested in translational animal models using the intended route of administration in humans and the intended delivery device. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility of an arthroscopic approach for the implantation of biocompatible copolymeric poly-D,L-lactide-co-glycolide (PLGA) scaffolds in an ovine preclinical model of knee osteochondral defects. Moreover this procedure was further tested using ex vivo expanded autologous chondrocytes derived from cartilaginous tissue, which were loaded in PLGA scaffolds and their potential to generate hyaline cartilage was evaluated. All scaffolds were successfully implanted arthroscopically and the clinical evolution of the animals was followed by non invasive MRI techniques, similar to the standard in human clinical practice. No clinical complications occurred after the transplantation procedures in any of the animals. Interestingly, the macroscopic evaluation demonstrated significant improvement after treatment with scaffolds loaded with cells compared to untreated controls.

Molecular identification of yeasts associated with traditional Egyptian dairy products.

This study aimed to examine the diversity and ecology of yeasts associated with traditional Egyptian dairy products employing molecular techniques in yeast identification. A total of 120 samples of fresh and stored Domiati cheese, kariesh cheese, and "Matared" cream were collected from local markets and examined. Forty yeast isolates were cultured from these samples and identified using the restriction-fragment length polymorphism (RFLPs) of 5.8S-ITS rDNA region and sequencing of the domains D1 and D2 of the 26S rRNA gene. Yeasts were identified as Issatchenkia orientalis (13 isolates), Candida albicans (4 isolates), Clavispora lusitaniae (Candida lusitaniae) (9 isolates), Kodamaea ohmeri (Pichia ohmeri) (1 isolate), Kluyveromyces marxianus (6 isolates), and Candida catenulata (7 isolates). With the exception of C. lusitaniae, the D1/D2 26S rRNA gene sequences were 100% identical for the yeast isolates within the same species. Phylogenetic reconstruction of C. lusitaniae isolates grouped them into 3 distinguished clusters. Kariesh cheese was found to be the most diverse in its yeast floras and contained the highest total yeast count compared with other examined dairy products. This was linked to the acidic pH and lower salt content of this cheese, which favor the growth and survival of yeasts in foodstuffs. Stored Domiati cheese also contained diverse yeast species involving isolates of the pathogenic yeast C. albicans. This raises the possibility of dairy products being vehicles of transmission of pathogenic yeasts.