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Objectives:Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) are dietary FODMAPs (fermentable carbohydrates) associated with triggering gastrointestinal symptoms in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial aimed to assess whether oral α-galactosidase co-ingestion with foods high in GOS and low in other FODMAPs would reduce symptoms.Methods:Patients meeting the Rome III criteria for IBS who were hydrogen-producers on breath testing were recruited. Participants were treated with full-dose (300 GALU (galactosidic units) α-galactosidase) and half-dose enzyme (150 GALU α-galactosidase), and placebo (glucose) in a random order with ≤14 days washout between arms. Following a 3-day low FODMAP run-in period, participants consumed provided diets high in GOS for a further 3-days. Gastrointestinal symptoms were measured daily using a 100 mm visual-analogue-scale, and breath samples taken hourly on the second last day with hydrogen content analysed as area-under-the-curve.Results:Thirty-one patients with IBS (20 IBS-D, 4 IBS-C, 7 IBS-M) completed the study. The addition of high GOS foods resulted in a significant increase in overall symptoms with 21 patients exhibiting GOS-sensitivity (>10 mm increase for overall symptoms). Of those, full-dose enzyme reduced overall symptoms (median 24. 5(IQR 17.5–35.8) vs. 5.5(1.5–15.0) mm; P=0.006) and bloating (20.5(9.5–42.0) vs. 6.5(2.0–15.8); P=0.017). Breath hydrogen production was minimal with no differences seen between placebo and full-dose (P=0.597).Conclusions:Oral α-galactosidase taken with high GOS foods provides a clinically significant reduction in symptoms in GOS-sensitive individuals with IBS. This strategy can be translated into practice to improve tolerance to high GOS foods as an adjunct therapy to the low FODMAP diet.

The current paper presents a novel method for the production of body-fitting customized seat profiles utilizing the following digital methods: three-dimensional laser scanning, reverse engineering and rapid manufacturing (RM). Seat profiles were manufactured in order to influence the comfort characteristics of an existing ejector seat manufactured by Martin Baker Aircraft Ltd. The seat, known as the Navy Aircrew Common Ejection Seat (NACES), was originally designed with a generic profile. This paper shows the replacement of this profile with shapes captured from fast jet pilots. Pressure mapping of occupied seats, has shown that the pressure distribution under the buttocks can be influenced using body-fitting design and thus comfort is directly affected. The paper discusses the relevance of RM with respect to mass customization and personalization and, in addition, recognizes RM as a next generation manufacturing system (NGMS) capable of satisfying increasingly diverse products and lower volume production. A generic customization process is reviewed to identify areas of technical difficulty and key issues in the cost-effective customization of products.

Rapid Manufacturing (RM) is increasingly becoming a viable manufacturing process due to dramatic advantages that are achievable in the area of design complexity. Through the exploration of the design freedom afforded by RM, this paper introduces the concept and novel research area of RM textiles. The paper highlights the design and manufacturing possibilities applied to textiles when considering additive manufacturing techniques, the current limitations of conventional Computer Aided Design (CAD) software when creating RM textile three-dimensional (3D) data and the potential use of dedicated ‘textile CAD’. A methodology for the generation of 3D conformal RM textile articles is presented in addition to the initial investigation of ‘efficient manufacture’ by the collapsing of RM textile structures into their lowest potential energy state. The work concludes that through the utilization of RM it is entirely possible to manufacture a structure that incorporates drape and free movement properties directly comparable with conventional textiles.