Hasil untuk "Biotechnology"

M. Eigen, R. Rigler

K. Horikoshi

M. Schena, R. Heller, Thomas P. Theriault et al.

Advances in microarray technology enable massive parallel mining of biological data, with biological chips providing hybridization-based expression monitoring, polymorphism detection and genotyping on a genomic scale. Microarrays containing sequences representative of all human genes may soon permit the expression analysis of the entire human genome in a single reaction. These 'genome chips' will provide unprecedented access to key areas of human health, including disease prognosis and diagnosis, drug discovery, toxicology, aging, and mental illness. Microarray technology is rapidly becoming a central platform for functional genomics.

A. Singh, J. V. Van Hamme, O. Ward

B. Goodner, Gregory Hinkle, S. Gattung et al.

R. Margesin, F. Schinner

N. T. Eriksen

R. van der Heijden, D. I. Jacobs, W. Snoeijer et al.

Julian N. Rosenberg, G. Oyler, L. Wilkinson et al.

M. Gittelman, B. Kogut

L. Barsanti, P. Gualtieri

Sungbo Cho, Sungbo Cho, Robie Vasquez et al.

IntroductionEnvironmentally friendly pork production is crucial to the pig industry, where the enhancement of growth performance and feed efficiency with reduced environmental impacts is favored. This study aimed to evaluate the effect that protease supplementation in a low crude protein diet has on the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, nitrogen retention, and gut microbiome in growing pigs.MethodsEighty pigs (Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc; 24.72 kg) were selected, and based on initial body weight and sex, randomly allocated to one of the following dietary treatments: H, 16% crude protein (CP) diet; L, 14% CP diet; L+E1, low CP diet + 0.1% protease; and L+E2, low CP diet + 0.2% protease. Each treatment comprised four replicates with five pigs per pen. ResultsPigs fed a low CP diet with protease supplementation showed a significantly higher body weight, average daily gain, and feed conversion ratio than those fed a high CP diet. In addition, ammonia emissions were lower in the L+E2 group than in the L group. Based on microbiome analysis, the L+E1 and L+E2 groups showed an increased Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidota ratio and elevated expression of pathways related to carbohydrate metabolism, coinciding with higher concentrations of short-chain fatty acids, such as butyrate and propionate, which support intestinal health. Additionally, the predicted function of the microbiota of pigs fed protease exhibited reduced nitrogen and sulfur metabolism, suggesting a potential reduction in excreted odorous compounds. DiscussionThese findings highlight the role of protease in enhancing growth performance and feed efficiency by modulating gut microbial composition and metabolic functions and reducing noxious gas emissions. Also, potential feed-cost savings are inferred from lower CP formulation.

STEVEN J. ZWEIG

E. Sayers, Tanya Barrett, Dennis A. Benson et al.

In addition to maintaining the GenBank® nucleic acid sequence database, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) provides analysis and retrieval resources for the data in GenBank and other biological data made available through the NCBI Web site. NCBI resources include Entrez, the Entrez Programming Utilities, MyNCBI, PubMed, PubMed Central (PMC), Entrez Gene, the NCBI Taxonomy Browser, BLAST, BLAST Link (BLink), Primer-BLAST, COBALT, Electronic PCR, OrfFinder, Splign, ProSplign, RefSeq, UniGene, HomoloGene, ProtEST, dbMHC, dbSNP, dbVar, Epigenomics, Cancer Chromosomes, Entrez Genomes and related tools, the Map Viewer, Model Maker, Evidence Viewer, Trace Archive, Sequence Read Archive, Retroviral Genotyping Tools, HIV-1/Human Protein Interaction Database, Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), Entrez Probe, GENSAT, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals (OMIA), the Molecular Modeling Database (MMDB), the Conserved Domain Database (CDD), the Conserved Domain Architecture Retrieval Tool (CDART), IBIS, Biosystems, Peptidome, OMSSA, Protein Clusters and the PubChem suite of small molecule databases. Augmenting many of the Web applications are custom implementations of the BLAST program optimized to search specialized data sets. All of these resources can be accessed through the NCBI home page at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

Nadia Boutaleb

Sung-Sook Choi, Jae-Eun Lee, Hyo-Jun Lee et al.

Carrot (<i>Daucus carota</i> L.) is a widely consumed root vegetable, yet its aerial parts, including leaves and stems, are typically discarded as agricultural by-products, despite their potential biological value. This study comparatively evaluated the antioxidant and immunomodulatory properties of carrot aerial and root parts extracted using hot water or 50% ethanol. Four extracts were prepared: aerial part hot-water (AP-W), aerial part ethanol (AP-E), underground part hot-water (UP-W), and underground part ethanol (UP-E). The total phenolic content (TPC, expressed as gallic acid equivalents; GAE) and total flavonoid content (TFC, expressed as quercetin equivalents; QE) were quantified using the Folin–Ciocalteu and aluminum nitrate colorimetric methods, respectively. Antioxidant capacities were determined by ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging assays, cytotoxicity was assessed in RAW 264.7 macrophages via the MTT assay, nitric oxide (NO) levels were measured using the Griess reaction, and cytokine (IL-6, TNF-α) concentrations were analyzed by ELISA. Among the extracts, AP-E exhibited the highest TPC (28.3 ± 0.3 µg GAE/mg extract) and TFC (18.2 ± 2.3 µg QE/mg extract), corresponding to the strongest ABTS (92.3 ± 2.5%) and DPPH (72.4 ± 7.3%) radical scavenging activities. None of the extracts demonstrated cytotoxicity below 400 µg/mL. Under basal conditions, AP-W and UP-W significantly enhanced NO production (9.5 ± 1.3 µM and 7.7 ± 1.2 µM, respectively), while co-treatment with LPS markedly reduced NO levels in AS-E (2.3 ± 0.2 µM). Consistently, AP-W and UP-W elevated cytokine secretion (IL-6: 3462.1 ± 349.7 pg/mL and 1749.4 ± 55.4 pg/mL; TNF-α: 15,245.2 ± 771.0 pg/mL and 14,719.1 ± 329.8 pg/mL), whereas AP-E (400 µg/mL) significantly suppressed IL-6 (3938.6 ± 268.7 pg/mL) and TNF-α (11,869.0 ± 721.1 pg/mL) under LPS-stimulated conditions. Collectively, these results indicate that hot-water extracts of carrot parts exert immunostimulatory activity, whereas ethanol extracts possess potent anti-inflammatory potential. The aerial parts of carrots, often regarded as waste biomass, exhibit comparable or superior bioactivities to the roots, underscoring their potential utility as promising functional food ingredients.

Mohamed Afifi, Mohamed Afifi, Muhammad Uba Abdulazeez et al.

Road traffic crashes are the leading cause of injuries, disabilities, and fatalities for children and young adults. Extremity joint injuries have been identified as one of the contributing factors to chronic disabilities among children in road crashes. However, our knowledge on the biomechanics of the pediatric upper and lower extremity joints remains limited. Understanding the biomechanics of the upper and lower extremity joints is essential to provide important information for developing enhanced protection against extremity joint injuries for children involved in road crashes. The protocol developed in this study will be used for assessing the following biomechanical properties of the pediatric upper and lower extremity joints: 1) active and passive ranges of motion (AROM and PROM), 2) muscle strength, and 3) joint stiffness. The joints included in the protocol are shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee and ankle. Joint-specific settings and testing procedures are provided for assessing the range of motion (ROM) using goniometry and the muscle strength as well as joint stiffness using isokinetic dynamometry. A sample of 200 healthy children will be recruited from selected schools in Al Ain city, United Arab Emirates for the assessment. Descriptive statistical analyses will be conducted to characterize the biomechanical properties with regards to age, gender, and ethnicity. To determine the influence of anthropometric and demographic factors on ROM, strength, and stiffness, a series of multiple regression analyses will be performed to identify the factors that best predict ROM, strength, and stiffness.

Mariana Gomes, Maria João Ramalho, Joana A. Loureiro et al.

<b>Background/Objectives</b>: The blood–brain barrier (BBB) poses a major obstacle to delivering therapeutic agents to the central nervous system (CNS), driving the need for innovative drug delivery strategies. Among these, nanoparticles (NPs) have gained attention due to their ability to enhance drug transport, improve bioavailability, and enable targeted delivery. <b>Methods</b>: This paper explores various surface modification strategies employed to optimize NP-mediated drug delivery across the BBB. Specifically, the functionalization of NPs with ligands such as transferrin (Tf), lactoferrin (Lf), protamine, and insulin is discussed, each demonstrating unique mechanisms for enhancing brain-targeting efficiency. In addition, this work provides a comprehensive overview of recent scientific advancements and market strategies aimed at accelerating the adoption of low-cost, surface-modified nanoparticles, ultimately improving patient access to effective CNS treatments. <b>Conclusions</b>: Preclinical and in vitro studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of these modifications in increasing drug retention and bioavailability in brain tissues. Additionally, while ligand-conjugated NPs hold significant promise for neuropharmacology, their clinical translation is often hindered by regulatory and economic constraints. Lengthy approval processes can slow market entry, but cost–benefit analyses indicate that surface-modified NPs remain financially viable, particularly as scalable manufacturing techniques and some ligands are cost-efficient.

Raffaella Maria Ribatti, Luciana de Gennaro, Alessia Daponte et al.

Abstract Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) are a significant public health concern with complex etiologies involving genetic, environmental, and psychological factors. Here, we present BioSUD, a biobank that, by integrating genomic data with comprehensive phenotypic assessments, including sociodemographic, psychosocial, and addiction-related variables, was designed to investigate the etiology of SUDs within the Southern Italian population. We assessed a cohort of 1,806 participants (1,508 controls and 298 individuals with SUD diagnosis). Genomic analyses of the newly generated genotypes showed a predominantly Southern Italian ancestry for the BioSUD cohort. Admixture analysis reveals a complex history of genetic admixture in Southern Italian populations, exhibiting Southern European, African, and other ancestries. This results in significant genetic variation, potentially limiting the applicability of translational studies primarily based on Northern European ancestries. From a social and psychological perspective, individuals with SUDs exhibited lower socioeconomic status, increased exposure to adverse experiences, and compromised familial and peer relationships relative to controls. These results show that the BioSUD cohort is valuable for studying SUD-associated complex behavioral traits.