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Phytanic acid is one of the branched‐chain fatty acids in the human diet. Humans incorporate it into their bodies through the ingestion of ruminant meat and milk since these animal products contain the 3RS, 7R, 11R‐isomer, as naturally occurring phytanic acid (nPA). Although phytanic acid has been reported to have health‐promoting effects such as immunomodulatory effects, these findings were obtained mostly from in vitro cell‐based experiments. In this study, the in vivo anti‐inflammatory effects of nPA were investigated using a mouse model of dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)‐induced colitis. Mice were fed diets containing 0%, 0.05%, or 0.1% nPA for 4 weeks. During the fourth week, acute colitis was induced by administration of a 3% DSS solution. The intake of 0.05% and 0.1% nPA inhibited DSS‐induced body weight loss in mice, and showed improvement of histopathological changes in colon epithelium. nPA also inhibited the production of proinflammatory cytokines, especially macrophage‐related cytokines such as interleukin‐1β in the colon. These results suggest that nPA exerts anti‐inflammatory effects under in vivo physiological conditions. Practical application: There is a growing demand for fatty acids possessing distinct nutritional and physical characteristics in the realms of health, nutrition, and food‐related applications. The present study demonstrated that a branched‐chain fatty acid, phytanic acid, exerts anti‐inflammatory activity under not only in vitro but also in vivo conditions, using a commonly used mouse model of human inflammatory bowel disease. Our findings encourage further studies to determine whether phytanic acid elicits beneficial properties in humans, and suggest that phytanic acid enrichment can be a novel product strategy in the food market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the research described here was to investigate the in vitro immunomodulatory effects of 3 RS , 7 R , 11 R -phytanic acid (3 RS -PHY) from the perspective of efficacy against autoimmune diseases. 3 RS -PHY is a milk component with strong agonist activity at the peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR). As PPAR is a therapeutic target for several human diseases, 3 RS -PHY intake may have possible health benefits. Recently, we chemically synthesized a preparation of 3 RS -PHY and demonstrated that 3 RS -PHY inhibited T-cell production of interferon (IFN)-γ. However, the overall immunomodulatory effects were not evaluated. In this study, mouse splenocytes, purified T-cells and B-cells were stimulated by mitogens and incubated with 3 RS -PHY, followed by evaluation of cytokine and antibody production. A macrophage-like cell line J774.1 was also incubated with 3 RS -PHY to evaluate nitric oxide production. 3 RS -PHY decreased mRNA levels not only of IFN-γ but also of interleukin (IL)-2, IL-10 and IL-17A in splenocytes and similar effects were confirmed at the protein level. In addition, 3 RS -PHY had a direct action on T-cells with preferential inhibitory effects on Th1 and Th17 cytokines such as IFN-γ and IL-17A. Furthermore, 3 RS -PHY suppressed antibody secretion by B-cells and nitric oxide production by J774.1 almost completely, indicating that 3 RS -PHY is a bioactive fatty acid with anti-inflammatory properties. These findings encourage further investigations, including in vivo experiments, to evaluate whether 3 RS -PHY actually shows the potential to prevent autoimmune diseases, and provide basic information to produce milk and dairy products with an increased 3 RS -PHY concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent in vitro evidence suggests that the phytol-derived fatty acids, phytanic acid (PA) and pristanic acid (PrA), are components of animal products with the potential to cause both beneficial and harmful effects on human health. In this study, we investigated the in vivo tissue accumulation of PA and PrA and the changes in tissue lipid profiles, using mice fed a phytol-containing diet. After 4 weeks of treatment with a diet containing 1.0% phytol, plasma, adipose tissue, liver, and brain were collected and their lipid profiles were biochemically and gas-chromatographically determined. Dietary phytol caused PA and PrA accumulation in the adipose tissue and liver but not in the brain, and reduced plasma and liver triacylglycerol levels. Phytol intake also decreased the fatty acid concentrations in the adipose tissue, especially polyunsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic acid, but increased the concentrations of these fatty acids in the liver. However, dietary phytol had a low impact on the brain lipid profile. This study suggests that dietary phytol intake caused accumulation of PA and PrA and modified lipid profiles in the adipose tissue and liver, but that the brain is an insusceptible tissue to dietary phytol-induced changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Autophagy is a bulk degradation system for intracellular proteins which contributes to skeletal muscle homeostasis, according to previous studies in humans and rodents. However, there is a lack of information on the physiological role of autophagy in the skeletal muscle of meat animals. This study was planned as a pilot study to investigate changes in expression of two major autophagy-related genes, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3ß (MAP1LC3B) and autophagy related 7 (ATG7) in fattening beef cattle, and to compare them with skeletal muscle growth. Methods: Six castrated Japanese Black cattle (initial body weight: 503±20 kg) were enrolled in this study and fattened for 7 months. Three skeletal muscles, M. longissimus, M. gluteus medius, and M. semimembranosus, were collected by needle biopsy three times during the observation period, and mRNA levels of MAP1LC3B and ATG7 were determined by quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. The expression levels of genes associated with the ubiquitin-proteasome system, another proteolytic mechanism, were also analyzed for comparison with autophagy-related genes. In addition, ultrasonic scanning was repeatedly performed to measure M. longissimus area as an index of muscle growth. Results: Our results showed that both MAP1LC3B and ATG7 expression increased over the observation period in all three skeletal muscles. Interestingly, the increase in expression of these two genes in M. longissimus was highly correlated with ultrasonic M. longissimus area and body weight. On the other hand, the expression of genes associated with the ubiquitinproteasome system was unchanged during the same period. Conclusion: These findings suggest that autophagy plays an important role in the growth of skeletal muscle of fattening beef cattle and imply that autophagic activity affects meat productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses simulation-based team training in obstetric emergencies for teaching, rehearsing and analyzing the interdisciplinary performance. Simulation training improves skills, communication and patient outcome. Institute of Medicine (IOM), the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization (JCAHO) and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) strongly support the simulation-based team training due to evidence showing reduced human errors.

Allograft rejection is induced by graft tissue infiltration of alloreactive T cells that are activated mainly in secondary lymphoid organs of the host. DOCK2 plays a critical role in lymphocyte homing and immunological synapse formation by regulating the actin cytoskeleton, yet its role in the in vivo immune response remains unknown. We show here that DOCK2 deficiency enables long-term survival of cardiac allografts across a complete mismatch of the major histocompatibility complex molecules. In DOCK2-deficient mice, alloreactivity and allocytotoxicity were suppressed significantly even after in vivo priming with alloantigens, which resulted in reduced intragraft expression of effector molecules, such as interferon-γ, granzyme B. and perforin. This is mediated, at least in part, by preventing potentially alloreactive T cells from recruiting into secondary lymphoid organs. In addition, we found that DOCK2 is critical for CD28-mediated Rac activation and is required for the full activation of alloreactive T cells. Although DOCK2-deficient, alloreactive T cells were activated in vitro in the presence of exogenous interleukin-2, these T cells, when transferred adoptively, failed to infiltrate into the allografts that were transplanted into RAG1-deficient mice. Thus, DOCK2 deficiency attenuates allograft rejection by simultaneously suppressing multiple and key processes. We propose that DOCK2 could be a novel molecular target for controlling transplant rejection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the antioxidant and antimutagenic properties of of South African rooibos tea. Botanical description of rooibos tea; Historical background; Harvest and processing of fermented and unfermented rooibos; Antioxidants in rooibos; Benefits of rooibos for the in vitro and in vivo of live animals; Efficacy of antioxidants present in rooibos on cancer, heart attack and stroke.