Impact of maternal bifidobacteria and the mode of delivery on Bifidobacterium microbiota in infants.

The aim of this study is to examine the influence of maternal intestinal and vaginal bifidobacteria on the colonisation of bifidobacteria in the gut of infants. Faecal samples from 120 healthy pregnant mothers within 1 month of delivery and from their infants at 1 month of age and 98 vaginal swabs from the mothers at the time of delivery were collected at a maternity hospital in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The faecal and vaginal samples were assayed by real-time PCR assays to detect Bifidobacterium species and to estimate the bifidobacterial copy numbers. After adjusting for the numbers of each Bifidobacterium species, delivery mode, and antibiotic use in infants by the age of 1 month, total counts of bifidobacteria in the mothers' faeces were associated with increased copy numbers of bifidobacteria in the faeces of breastfed infants. A caesarean section was also significantly associated with a decrease in the copy numbers of bifidobacteria in the faeces of infants. No significant correlation was found between the bifidobacterial copies of the vaginal swabs and those of the infants' faeces. The intestinal bifidobacterial status of exclusively breastfed infants was significantly positive affected by vaginal delivery and high bifidobacterial copy numbers in their mothers' gut.

Antioxidative activity, polyphenolic content and anti-glycation effect of some Thai medicinal plants traditionally used in diabetic patients.

Ethanolic extracts of 30 Thai medicinal plants, traditionally used as alternative treatments in diabetes, were evaluated for antioxidative activity by the 2,2'-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) method. They were evaluated in vitro for oxidative stress by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) assay in pooled plasma of diabetic patients compared to without treatment of the extracts (control). The extracts were also assayed for protein glycation. The results showed that five plants had strong antioxidant activity: Phyllanthus emblica Linn. (PE), Terminalia chebula Retz. (TC), Morinda citrifolia Linn. (MC), Kaempferia parviflora Wall. (KP) and Houttuynia cordata Thunb.(HC), respectively. Thirty plant extracts were good correlation between total antioxidant activity and antiradical activity by TBARS as well as by glycation (r = 0.856, p<0.01 and r = 0.810, p<0.01). PE had stronger antioxidative activity as well as inhibition of TBARS and glycation than the other plants. The investigation showed that total polyphenol and tannin content of PE and the flavonoid content of HC were the highest. The results imply that these plants are potential sources of natural antioxidants which have free radical scavenging activity and might be used for reducing oxidative stress in diabetes.

Selection of probiotic lactic acid bacteria isolated from fermented plant beverages.

Screening for probiotic bacteria from non-human sources were performed in this study. Three hundred and twenty-seven strains of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) were isolated from 90 samples of Fermented Plant Beverages (FPBs) and pickles collected from around Thailand. Potentially useful probiotic properties were investigated in vitro in parallel with a commercial probiotic strain of Lactobacillus casei, R obtained from a dairy probiotic product in Thailand. An isolate SS2, selected from a fermented star fruit beverage, survived in the human biological barriers (0.15 and 0.30% bile salt, pH values between 3-8, presence or absence of oxygen), resistance to some antibiotics in general use and showed other benefits to the host (antibacterial activity, utilizations of protein and starch). The isolate SS2 had a higher specific growth rate and better inhibitory properties against food borne pathogenic bacteria and spoilage organisms than the commercial probiotic R strain. It also grew well in MRS and the SPY2 medium that is free from animal-derived ingredients, (r>0.8). The isolate SS2 was therefore considered to be a potentially useful probiotic LAB for a non dairy product such as FPBs and was provisionally identified as a strain of Lactobacillus plantarum.

Estimation of the dissociation constants for functional groups on modified and unmodified silica gel supports from the relationship between electroosmotic flow velocity and pH.

Electroosmotic volume flow was directly observed in a simple instrument consisting of 1 cm long a home-made support, packed between two polyethylene frits in the polypropylene tube. Equations relating electroosmotic flow (EOF) velocity and pH for two functional groups on the surface of the solid materials were developed. With these equations, we can estimate the dissociation constants of two different kinds of functional groups on modified silica gel materials simultaneously. The dissociation constants of silanol groups, benzene sulfonic acid groups, and alkyl quaternary ammonium groups on the modified and unmodified silica gel supports were estimated. The estimated pK values of the silanol groups on the silica gel and modified silica gel surfaces are between 4.0 and 4.3. The estimated pK values of the benzene sulfonic acid groups and alkyl quaternary ammonium groups on the surface of the modified silica gel are 2.6 and 8.6, respectively.