From Maternal Grazing to Barn Feeding During Pre-weaning Period: Altered Gastrointestinal Microbiota Contributes to Change the Development and Function of the Rumen and Intestine of Yak Calves.

Understanding the altered gastrointestinal microbiota is important to illuminate effects of maternal grazing (MG: maternally nursed and grazed) and barn feeding (BF: supplied milk replacer, starter feed, and alfalfa hay) on the performance and immune function of yak calves. Compared with the MG group, the significantly increased body weight, body height, body length, chest girth, and organ development of liver, spleen, and thymus were identified in the BF group, which were resulted from the significantly increased dry matter intake, increased concentrations of propionate, butyrate, isobutyrate, and valerate, increased ruminal pectinase, duodenal α-amylase, jejunal α-amylase and trypsin, and ileal trypsin, and promoted gastrointestinal epithelial development. Furthermore, genera of Sharpea, Sphingomonas, Atopobium, Syntrophococcus, Clostridium_XIVb, Acinetobacter, Oscillibacter, Dialister, Desulfovibrio, Bacteroides, Lachnospiracea_incertae_sedis, and Clostridium_sensu_stricto, which were involved in utilization of non-fibrous carbohydrate and further beneficial to improve the gastrointestinal digestion, development, and immune functions, were significantly increased in the BF group. Meanwhile, the significantly enhanced ruminal epithelial immune functions and intestinal immune functions based on enhanced ruminal immune related pathway, duodenal IL-1ß, jejunal IL-1ß, IL-2, TNF-α, and IFN-γ, and ileal IL-1ß were identified in the BF group, which also may induced by the increased abundance of gastrointestinal microbiota. Overall, barn feeding significantly increased the diversity of species and abundance of microbes which used different carbohydrates and further benefit to the growth and immune function of yak calves.

Dynamics and stabilization of the rumen microbiome in yearling Tibetan sheep.

The productivity of ruminants depends largely on rumen microbiota. However, there are few studies on the age-related succession of rumen microbial communities in grazing lambs. Here, we conducted 16 s rRNA gene sequencing for bacterial identification on rumen fluid samples from 27 Tibetan lambs at nine developmental stages (days (D) 0, 2, 7, 14, 28, 42, 56, 70, and 360, n = 3). We observed that Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria populations were significantly changed during the growing lambs' first year of life. Bacteroidetes abundance increased from 18.9% on D0 to 53.9% on D360. On the other hand, Proteobacteria abundance decreased significantly from 40.8% on D0 to 5.9% on D360. Prevotella_1 established an absolute advantage in the rumen after 7 days of age. The co-occurrence network showed that the different microbial of the rumen presented a complex synergistic and cumbersome relationship. A phylogenetic tree was constructed, indicating that during the colonization process, may occur a phenomenon in which bacteria with close kinship are preferentially colonized. Overall, this study provides new insights into the colonization of bacterial communities in lambs that will benefit the development of management strategies to promote colonization of target communities to improve functional development.

The antiapoptotic effect of galectin-3 in human endometrial cells under the regulation of estrogen and progesterone.

Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a ubiquitously expressed gene involved in many cellular processes, has been recently recognized as a factor related to endometrial receptivity. However, the precise biological function of Gal-3 in the endometrium and its regulation is still unclear. In this study, we detected the antiapoptotic role of Gal-3 in endometrial cells and the expression of Gal-3 regulated by estrogen and progesterone. We found that expression of Gal-3 increased when exposed to the apoptosis inducer staurosporine. Gal-3-silenced endometrial cells were more sensitive to the apoptosis inducer. Estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P4) up-regulated Gal-3 expression, which in turn decreased the apoptotic rate of endometrial cells. Our results strongly suggested that hormonal activation of Gal-3 by E2 and P4 is involved in inhibiting endometrial cell apoptosis, playing key roles in embryo implantation.

Derivation of insulin producing cells from human endometrial stromal stem cells and use in the treatment of murine diabetes.

Pancreatic islet cell transplantation is an effective approach to treat type 1 diabetes, however the shortage of cadaveric donors and limitations due to rejection require alternative solutions. Multipotent cells derived from the uterine endometrium have the ability to differentiate into mesodermal and ectodermal cellular lineages, suggesting the existence of mesenchymal stem cells in this tissue. We differentiated human endometrial stromal stem cells (ESSC) into insulin secreting cells using a simple and nontransfection protocol. An in vitro protocol was developed and evaluated by assessing the expression of pan ß-cell markers, followed by confirmation of insulin secretion. PAX4, PDX1, GLUT2, and insulin, were all increased in differentiated cells compared to controls. Differentiated cells secreted insulin in a glucose responsive manner. In a murine model, differentiated cells were injected into the kidney capsules of diabetic mice and human insulin identified in serum. Within 5 weeks blood glucose levels were stabilized in animals transplanted with differentiated cells, however those treated with undifferentiated cells developed progressive hyperglycemia. Mice transplanted with control cells lost weight and developed cataracts while those receiving insulin producing cells did not. Endometrium provides an easily accessible, renewable, and immunologically identical source of stem cells with potential therapeutic applications in diabetes.

The Semmes Weinstein monofilament examination is a significant predictor of the risk of foot ulceration and amputation in patients with diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVE: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is a major complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and is the leading cause of foot ulceration and lower extremity amputations (LEAs). The purpose of this systematic review is to evaluate current evidence regarding the prognostic value of the Semmes Weinstein monofilament examination (SWME) in predicting foot ulceration and LEA in patients with DM. METHODS: The MEDLINE/PubMed database was searched through November 2009 for articles pertaining to diabetic foot and SWME with no language or publication date restrictions. Prognostic studies with original data assessing the predictive value of SWME for foot ulceration or LEA in patients with DM were included in the selection. Data were systematically extracted and analyzed by two independent investigators. Absolute risks and relative risks were determined for each study. RESULTS: Of the 863 studies identified, nine articles were relevant, involving 11,007 patients with DM. Six studies were identified that assessed the prognostic value of SWME regarding diabetic foot ulceration. The relative risk for patients with a positive SWME result versus those with a negative result ranged from 2.5 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.0 to 3.2) to 7.9 (95% CI, 4.4 to 14.3) in the identified studies with follow up between 1 and 4 years. Three of the studies assessed the risk of LEA with a positive SWME result. The relative risk for LEA ranged from 1.7 (95% CI, 1.1 to 2.6) to 15.1 (95% CI, 4.3 to 52.6) with follow-up between 1.5 and 3.3 years. CONCLUSIONS: All nine studies found SWME to be a significant and independent predictor of future foot ulceration or likely of future LEA as well in patients with DM. Therefore, SWME is an important evidence-based tool for predicting the prognosis of patients with diabetic foot, thus enabling improved patient selection for early intervention and management. More research should be conducted to elucidate the relationship between SWME and LEA.

The Semmes Weinstein monofilament examination as a screening tool for diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this systematic review is to evaluate current evidence in the literature on the efficacy of Semmes Weinstein monofilament examination (SWME) in diagnosing diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). METHODS: The PubMed database was searched through August 2008 for articles pertaining to DPN and SWME with no language or publication date restrictions. Studies with original data comparing the diagnostic value of SWME with that of one or more other modalities for DPN in patients with diabetes mellitus were analyzed. Data were extracted by two independent investigators. Diagnostic values were calculated after classifying data by reference test, SWME methodology, and diagnostic threshold. RESULTS: Of the 764 studies identified, 30 articles were selected, involving 8365 patients. There was great variation in both the reference test and the methodology of SWME. However, current literature suggests that nerve conduction study (NCS) is the gold standard for diagnosing DPN. Four studies were identified which directly compared SWME with NCS and encompassed 1065 patients with, and 52 patients without diabetes mellitus. SWME had a sensitivity ranging from 57% (95% confidence interval [CI], 44% to 68%) to 93% (95% CI, 77% to 99%), specificity ranging from 75% (95% CI, 64% to 84%) to 100% (95% CI, 63% to 100%), positive predictive value (PPV) ranging from 84% (95% CI, 74% to 90%) to 100% (95% CI, 87% to 100%), and negative predictive value (NPV) ranging from 36% (95% CI, 29% to 43%) to 94% (95% CI, 91% to 96%). CONCLUSIONS: There is great variation in the current literature regarding the diagnostic value of SWME as a result of different methodologies. To maximize the diagnostic value of SWME, a three site test involving the plantar aspects of the great toe, the third metatarsal, and the fifth metatarsals should be used. Screening is vital in identifying DPN early, enabling earlier intervention and management to reduce the risk of ulceration and lower extremity amputation.