Neonatal environment exerts a sustained influence on the development of the intestinal microbiota and metabolic phenotype

The postnatal environment, including factors such as weaning and acquisition of the gut microbiota, has been causally linked to the development of later immunological diseases such as allergy and autoimmunity, and has also been associated with a predisposition to metabolic disorders. We show that the very early-life environment influences the development of both the gut microbiota and host metabolic phenotype in a porcine model of human infants. Farmpiglets were nursed by their mothers for 1 day, before removal to highly controlled, individual isolators where they received formula milk until weaning at 21 days. The experiment was repeated, to create two batches, which differed only in minor environmental fluctuations during the first day. At day 1 after birth, metabolic profiling of serum by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy demonstrated significant, systemic, inter-batch variation which persisted until weaning. However, the urinary metabolic profiles demonstrated that significant inter-batch effects on 3-hydroxyisovalerate, trimethylamine-N-oxide and mannitol persisted beyond weaning to at least 35 days. Batch effects were linked to significant differences in the composition of colonic microbiota at 35 days, determined by 16 S pyrosequencing. Different weaning diets modulated both the microbiota and metabolic phenotype independently of the persistent batch effects. We demonstrate that the environment during the first day of life influences development of the microbiota and metabolic phenotype and thus should be taken into account when interrogating experimental outcomes. In addition, we suggest that intervention at this early time could provide ‘metabolic rescue’ for at-risk infants who have undergone aberrant patterns of initial intestinal colonisation.

Low-grade inflammation, diet composition and health: current research evidence and its translation

The importance of chronic low-grade inflammation in the pathology of numerous age-related chronic conditions is now clear. An unresolved inflammatory response is likely to be involved from the early stages of disease development. The present position paper is the most recent in a series produced by the International Life Sciences Institute's European Branch (ILSI Europe). It is co-authored by the speakers from a 2013 workshop led by the Obesity and Diabetes Task Force entitled ‘Low-grade inflammation, a high-grade challenge: biomarkers and modulation by dietary strategies’. The latest research in the areas of acute and chronic inflammation and cardiometabolic, gut and cognitive health is presented along with the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying inflammation–health/disease associations. The evidence relating diet composition and early-life nutrition to inflammatory status is reviewed. Human epidemiological and intervention data are thus far heavily reliant on the measurement of inflammatory markers in the circulation, and in particular cytokines in the fasting state, which are recognised as an insensitive and highly variable index of tissue inflammation. Potential novel kinetic and integrated approaches to capture inflammatory status in humans are discussed. Such approaches are likely to provide a more discriminating means of quantifying inflammation–health/disease associations, and the ability of diet to positively modulate inflammation and provide the much needed evidence to develop research portfolios that will inform new product development and associated health claims.

NEONATAL HANDLING AND THE MATERNAL ODOR PREFERENCE IN RAT PUPS: INVOLVEMENT OF MONOAMINES AND CYCLIC AMP RESPONSE ELEMENT-BINDING PROTEIN PATHWAY IN THE OLFACTORY BULB

Early-life environmental events, such as the handling procedure, can induce long-lasting alterations upon several behavioral and neuroendocrine systems. However, the changes within the pups that could be causally related to the effects in adulthood are still poorly understood. In the present study, we analyzed the effects of neonatal handling on behavioral (maternal odor preference) and biochemical (cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation, noradrenaline (NA), and serotonin (5-HT) levels in the olfactory bulb (OB)) parameters in 7-day-old male and female rat pups. Repeated handling (RH) abolished preference for the maternal odor in female pups compared with nonhandled (NH) and the single-handled (SH) ones, while in RH males the preference was not different than NH and SH groups. In both male and female pups, RH decreased NA activity in the OB, but 5-HT activity increased only in males. Since preference for the maternal odor involves the synergic action of NA and 5-HT in the OB, the maintenance of the behavior in RH males could be related to the increased 5-HT activity, in spite of reduction in the NA activity in the OB. RH did not alter CREB phosphorylation in the OB of both male and females compared with NH pups. The repeated handling procedure can affect the behavior of rat pups in response to the maternal odor and biochemical parameters related to the olfactory learning mechanism. Sex differences were already detected in 7-day-old pups. Although the responsiveness of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis to stressors is reduced in the neonatal period, environmental interventions may impact behavioral and biochemical mechanisms relevant to the animal at that early age. (C) 2009 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Micronutrient prenatal supplementation prevents the development of hypertension and vascular endothelial damage induced by intrauterine malnutrition

Aims: The premise that intrauterine malnutrition plays an important role in the development of cardiovascular and renal diseases implies that these disorders can be programmed during fetal life. Here, we analyzed the hypothesis that supplementation with mixed antioxidant vitamins and essential mineral in early life could prevent later elevation of blood pressure and vascular and renal dysfunction associated with intrauterine malnutrition. Main methods: For this, female Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups on day 1 of pregnancy: control fed standard chow ad libitum; restricted group fed 50% of the ad libitum intake and a restricted plus micronutrient cocktail group treated daily with a combination of micronutrient (selenium, folate, vitamin C and vitamin E) by oral gavage. Key findings: In adult offspring, renal function and glomerular number were impaired by intrauterine malnutrition. and the prenatal micronutrient treatment did not prevent it. However, increased blood pressure and reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilation were prevented by the micronutrient prenatal treatment. Intrauterine malnutrition also led to reduced NO production associated with increased superoxide generation, and these parameters were fully normalized by this prenatal treatment. Significance: Our current findings indicate that programming alterations during fetal life can be prevented by interventions during the prenatal period, and that disturbance in availability of both antioxidant vitamins and mineral may play a crucial role in determining the occurrence of long-term cardiovascular injury. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Efeito da restrição alimentar qualitativa precoce sobre o desempenho, as características do trato gastrintestinal e a carcaça de frangos de corte

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar os efeitos da restrição alimentar qualitativa precoce sobre o desempenho, as características do trato gastrintestinal e a carcaça de frangos de corte. Um total de 975 pintos de corte de um dia da linhagem Ross, 15 parcelas com 30 machos cada e 15 parcelas com 35 fêmeas, foi distribuído em delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado, em esquema fatorial 5 x 2 (forma de restrição x sexo), com três repetições por tratamento. As formas de restrição estudadas foram: 1 - testemunha, sem diluição; 2 -diluição com 15% de calcário; 3 - diluição com 30% de calcário; 4 - diluição com 15% de casca de arroz; e 5 - diluição com 30% de casca de arroz. Os frangos foram alimentados ad libitum com ração padrão, no período de 1 a 7 dias e de 15 a 45 dias de idade. A restrição alimentar por diluição das rações, conforme cada tratamento, foi aplicada do 8º ao 14º dia de idade. Para o período de restrição alimentar, foram formuladas rações com níveis normais de minerais e vitaminas, reduzindo-se os outros nutrientes, conforme a diluição. Os frangos submetidos à restrição alimentar qualitativa precoce, pela diluição com 15% de calcário e, 15 ou 30% de casca de arroz, apresentaram ganho compensatório, com bom desempenho final. Entretanto, a restrição com 30% de calcário foi muito severa, prejudicando o desempenho. Houve alteração nas características do trato gastrintestinal com a restrição alimentar, porém houve recuperação até o momento do abate. Os frangos submetidos à restrição alimentar qualitativa precoce apresentaram menor deposição de gordura e maior deposição de proteína na carcaça em comparação ao controle.

Maternal separation stress in male mice: long-term increases in alcohol intake

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Ontogênese comportamental de Callithix jacchus em ambiente natural

In most primates, the mother is primarily responsible for care in early life of the infants, since, as in other mammals, infants depend on their mother to nutritional conditions. However, unlike most of them, in some species, infants are also dependent on other individuals with respect to transportation, supervision, and food sharing. To understand the distribution of care to offspring is essential to understand the social dynamics of the group. Several studies conducted in the natural environment, during the infant have been studied mainly through the careful transport of the infants. Our study approached the different forms of care to infants (transport, supervision and food sharing) and the development of behavioral repertoire throughout all phases of infant and juvenile seeking to better understand how to establish the development and survival of offspring of Callithrix jacchus, in natural environment. The seasonality in the caatinga was striking in this study and the collection had two distinct seasons for each of the sets observed, one dry and one rainy. These environmental changes seem to have influenced the distribution of activities in animal development. Yet the greater availability of resources in the rainy season seems to have been the main factor influencing the pattern of activities. Results will be presented in two manuscripts

The placenta as a barrier for toxic and essential elements in paired maternal and cord blood samples of South African delivering women

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Post-larval morphology, growth, and development of Uca cumulanta Crane, 1943 (Crustacea, Decapoda, Ocypodidae) under laboratory conditions

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Ontogenetic shifts in the digestive tube and diet of Bryconamericus stramineus Eigenmann, 1908 (Osteichthyes, Characidae)

Aim: Studies on feeding of early life stages are very important to the understanding of the biology and trophic ecology of fish species. Therefore, the aim of this work is to describe the development of the digestive tube, and to characterize the diet of larvae and juveniles of Bryconamericus stramineus Eigenmann, 1908 of the upper Parana River floodplain; Methods: Larvae were obtained from, monthly samples during nychthemeral cycles with four-hour interval between samplings from February/91 to February/92, utilizing a conical-cylindrical plankton net; Results: At the preflexion stage, larvae at approximately 4.00 mm SL, showed a morphologically undifferentiated straight tube, with the anterior region more dilated. At the flexion stage a differentiation in the anterior region of the digestive tube occurs, with the intestine wall getting thicker (8.30 mm SL). The formation of pyloric caeca occurs at 9.00 mm SL. At the postflexion stage the first loop is formed at 9.25 mm SL and the second loop at about 10.00 mm SL. Bryconamericus stramineus consumed mainly cladocerans, also ingesting copepods, rotifers, nematodes, algae, insects and inorganic particles. Along the development, there was an increase in the number of food items and a diversification in the number of consumed taxa; Conclusions: Changes in the diet of B. stramineus larvae were not observed, being them zooplanktivores during all the initial development. However, an increase of large preys, such as insects larvae, was observed at the end of the larval period and in juveniles, suggesting a tendency towards invertivory. Larvae and juveniles preferentially fed during the night.

Vivências e repercussões psíquicas da mulher na gestação de risco: um estudo sobre a pré eclâmpsia e o vínculo materno-filial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Distribuição espacial dos decapoditos e caranguejos juvenis num estuário tropical

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

ONTOGENETIC DEVELOPMENT OF SENSORY STRUCTURES ON THE ANTENNULES AND ANTENNAE OF THE GIANT RIVER PRAWN MACROBRACHIUM ROSENBERGII (DE MAN)

In this study the occurrence of sensory structures on the antennules and antennae of the giant river prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii (De Man) during postembryonic ontogenetic development were examined. Larvae and postlarvae were obtained from hatchery recirculating tanks, juveniles from indoor nursery tanks, and adults from earthen grow-out ponds. The animals were fixed with Karnovsky fixative and dissected. Antennules and antennae were removed, metal-coated, and photodocumented using a scanning electron microscope. The antennules have aesthetascs and simple plumose and pappose setae; the antennae have simple, plumose and pappose setae. These structures increase in density, covered surface, and distribution during ontogeny and should be related to chemoreception and mechanoreception. The antennular statocyst that appears during larval stage VII of the giant river prawn has an array of sensory structures that enable the perception of chemical and tactile stimuli beginning with its early life stages. The ontogenetic changes observed allow an inference that initial-stage larvae, advance-stage larvae, juveniles, and adults have different capacities to exploit the environment.

Percepção do cirurgião-dentista sobre formação profissional e dificuldades de inserção no mercado de trabalho

Introduction: The evaluation of the perception of graduates is an essential strategy to support the political project educational in universities. Objective: This study aimed to verify the perception of dentists which are working in the labor market, about the difficulties of professional insertion after the graduation, positives and negatives aspects and suggestions regarding the training received. Methodology: This is a qualitative survey conducted with graduates of the years 2000 to 2010, of dentistry course from a Brazilian Public University. A self-administered questionnaire was sent by mail/email to all graduates in the period. The data were transcribed and subjected to content analysis, divided into pre-analysis, characterized by carefully reading floating, material exploration, guidelines for finding the analysis itself. Result: The categories related to the difficulties in early life were: getting a job/workplace, adequate working conditions and low pay, insecurity and confrontation obtained the academic and lack of administrative experience. The perceived positive aspects for the training were: good infrastructure and reputation of the university, integrating teaching-research, teacher-student relationship. The negative aspects comprised the following categories: administrative preparation, lack of integration between content theoretical/ practical, concepts used in the labor market. The suggestions presented are consistent with the difficulties to the beginning of professional life and the negative aspects. Conclusion: The professionals have faced the saturation of the labor market and different reality from those found in academic life. Despite the positive aspects, graduates suggest changes in the course conducted.

Efeitos da exposição gestacional, lactacional e juvenil às dietas com deficiência e suplementação de zinco e suscetibilidade a carcinogênese da mama em fêmeas Sprague-Dawley

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)