1,720,970 research outputs found
Autism Spectrum Disorder: From Experimental Models to Probiotic Application with a Special Focus on Lactiplantibacillus plantarum
No full textBackground/Objectives: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) encompasses several neurodevelopmental disorders, whose onset is correlated to genetic and environmental factors. Although the etiopathogenesis is not entirely clear, the involvement of inflammatory processes, the endocannabinoid system, and alterations in the permeability and composition of the intestinal microbiota are known to occur. Methods: This review systematically explores the literature available to date on the most widely used murine models for the study of ASD, the main biomarkers investigated for the diagnosis of ASD, and the therapeutic potential of probiotics, with a particular focus on the use of strains of Lactiplantibacillus (Lpb.) plantarum in in vivo models and clinical trials for ASD. Results: Several studies have demonstrated that targeting multifactorial biomarkers in animal models and patients contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the complex mechanisms underlying ASD. Moreover, accumulating evidence supports the beneficial effect of probiotics, including Lpb. plantarum, as a promising alternative therapeutic strategy, capable of modulating gut–brain axis communication. Conclusions: Probiotic supplementation, particularly with selected Lpb. plantarum strains, is emerging as a potential complementary approach for ameliorating ASD-related gastrointestinal and behavioral symptoms. However, further large-scale clinical studies are essential to validate their efficacy and determine optimal treatment protocols and dietary strategies
Microbiota characterization and in vitro assessment of the anti-inflammatory activity of Kefir
No full textKefir is a widely recognized health-promoting fermented beverage, produced through the symbiotic activity of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), acetic acid bacteria (AAB) and yeasts. This study aimed at characterizing the microbial kefir’s community and to assess its potential anti- inflammatory properties at the intestinal level. To this end, a comparison was made between a commercially kefir and a lab-scale artisanal kefir, including its associated grains. To quantify the microbial populations, both culture-dependent and culture-independent methods (qPCR) were employed. Following microbial profiling, the study further explored the potential anti- inflammatory effects of the kefir samples by evaluating the expression of inflammation-related genes in an inflamed intestinal epithelial cell model (NCM460). Specifically, the expression levels of cytokines involved in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), namely IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IL-17A, and IL-23, were measured after exposure to the different kefir samples, subjected to a simulated in vitro digestion (INFOGEST). Microbial analysis revealed a higher abundance of LAB and yeasts in both the artisanal kefir beverage and its grains, compared to commercial kefir. Moreover, other bacteria such as Leuconostoc spp. and Acetobacter spp., as well as the yeasts Pichia kluyveri and Saccharomyces spp. were detected, underscoring the microbial diversity of these samples. Interestingly, the artisanal kefir beverage and its associated grains exhibited a greater ability to reduce the expression of pro- inflammatory cytokines compared to commercial kefir, showing a significant anti- inflammatory potential. Overall, these findings support the hypothesis that kefir’s microbial composition contributes to its anti-inflammatory effects on the intestinal epithelium. The observed anti-inflammatory activity highlights the need for further research into the specific microorganisms and metabolites responsible for this bioactivity, which could ultimately guide the development of targeted functional food formulations aimed at gut health and inflammation management
A proteomic insight reveals the role of food-associated Lactiplantibacillus plantarum C9O4 in reverting intestinal inflammation
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Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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