The microbiome , that is the pool of micro-organism living in our bodies generally live harmoniously with us, and form a second genome. Reports in Science, a team from the International Human Microbiome Consortium (Nelson et al. and Qin et al describe the genome sequence of the bacterial species from the human microbiome. The contribution…
Read more\ Skyrmion makeover Celebrating the treasures of topological twists. Sometimes a scientific idea falls into obscurity as researchers turn their attention elsewhere, yet contains such mathemati¬cal beauty that it is revived again and again. Such is the story of the skyrmion: a concept that has had several makeovers since it was first formulated in the…
Read moreThe kidney contribute to glucose homeostasis in three waysGluconeogenesis 15-55 g per dayUtilisation of 25-35 g glucose a dayReabsorption of glucoseIn healthy adults 180 g of glucose is filtered by he kidneys each 24 h through sodium-glucose transporter 2 (SGLT2) in proximal tubulesHanefeld, Forst 2010 Dapagliflozin an SGLT2 inhibitor, for diabetes Lancet vol 375 pp…
Read moreThe is an epidemic of obesity and diabetes in the Asia Pacific region. The Pacific Island diet has shifted from one based on traditional root crops and sea food to one relying on energy dense and nutritionally poor imported food.Obesity i.e. BMI greater than 30kg/m2 is found in 30-75 % of different populations in this…
Read moreVitamin A supplementation in children aged 6 months to 5 years has been shown to reduce mortality by 24- 30 %. The benefit of supplementing young infants less than 6 months of age is less obvious. It may be that the lack of beneficial effects could be due to differences in the effect of supplements…
Read moreThis study looks for the dietary predictor of visceral adipose tissue area in overweight young adults. A total of 109 young adults (fifty males and fifty-nine females) ate ad libitum in a university cafeteria for 14 d. All food and beverages con¬sumed in the cafeteria were measured using observer-recorded weighed plate waste. Food consumption ontside…
Read moreThere is insufficient information about the combined effects on breast cancer incidence of low-penetrance genetic susceptibility polymorphisms and environmental factors (reproductive, behavioural, and anthropometric risk factors for breast cancer). This study looks for evidence of gene-environment interactions, and compared genotypic relative risks for breast cancer across the other risk factors in a large UK prospective…
Read moreA ribosome in action The manufacture of proteins by ribosomes involves complex interactions of diverse nucleic-acid and protein ligands. Single-molecule studies allow for the first time, scientists to follow the synthesis of full-length proteins in real time. This is clearly demonstrated in articles by Bakmann and Uemera et al in Nature 15th April 2010 .Protein…
Read moreMarine algae contain sulphated polysaccharides that are absent in terrestrial plants. These unique polymers are used as a carbon source by marine heterotrophic bacteria that produce specific CAZymes. In comparison to the accumulating knowledge on the degradation of plant polysaccharides little is known about the enzymes acting on polysaccharides from marine edible algae such as…
Read moreSpin found in more than half of abstract conclusions in reports of negative trials. How often are negative trials made to look positive, and how is this done? A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association tried to answer these questions by examining all reports of parallel group trials with non-signif¬icant results on…
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