Differential kinetics and distribution of antibodies in serum and nasal and vaginal secretions after nasal and oral vaccination of humans

Although nasal vaccination has emerged as an interesting alternative to systemic or oral vaccination, knowledge is scarce about the immune responses after such immunization in humans. In the present study, we have compared the kinetics and organ distribution of the antibody responses after nasal and oral vaccination. We immunized female volunteers nasally or orally with cholera toxin B subunit (CTB) and determined the specific antibody levels in serum and nasal and vaginal secretions, as well as the number of circulating antibody-secreting cells, before immunization and 1, 2, 3, 6, and 26 weeks thereafter. Nasal vaccination induced 9-fold CTB-specific immunoglobulin A (IgA) and 56-fold specific IgG antibody increases in nasal secretions, whereas no significant IgA increase was seen after oral vaccination. Both oral and nasal vaccination resulted in 5- to 6-fold CTB-specific IgA and 20- to 30-fold specific IgG increases in vaginal secretions. Strong serum responses to CTB were also induced by both routes of vaccination. A notable difference between nasal and oral vaccination was that the nasal route elicited a specific antibody response with a later onset but of much longer duration than did the oral route. We conclude from this study that the nasal route is superior to the oral route for administering at least nonliving vaccines against infections in the upper respiratory tract, whereas either oral or nasal vaccination might be used for eliciting antibody responses in the female genital tract.     

Effects of carbon content and solidification rate on thermal conductivity of grey cast iron

The thermal conductivity or diffusivity of pearlitic grey irons with various carbon contents is investigated by the laser flash method. The materials are cast in controlled thermal environments and produced in three dissimilar cooling rates. The cooling rate together with the carbon content largely influence the thermal conductivity of grey iron. Linear relationships exist between the thermal conductivity and the carbon content, the carbon equivalent and the fraction of former primary solidified austenite transformed into pearlite. The work shows that optimal thermal transport properties are obtained at medium cooling rates. Equations describing the thermal conductivity of pearlite,solidified as pre-eutectic austenite, and the eutectic of grey iron are derived. The thermal conductivity of pearlitic grey iron is modeled at both room temperature and elevated temperature with good accuracy.     

Socially shared regulation of learning in CSCL: understanding and prompting individual- and group-level shared regulatory activities

The field of computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) is progressing instrumentally and theoretically. Nevertheless, few studies examine the effectiveness and efficiency of CSCL with respect to cognitive, motivational, emotional, and social issues, despite the fact that the role of regulatory processes is critical for the quality of students’ engagement in collaborative learning settings. We review the four earlier lines in developing support in CSCL and show how there has been a lack of work to support individuals in groups to engage in, sustain, and productively regulate their own and the group’s collaborative processes. Our aim is to discuss how our conceptual work in socially shared regulation of learning (SSRL) contributes to effective and efficient CSCL, what tools are presently available, and what the implications of research on these tools are for future tool development.     

Impact of rye-based evening meals on cognitive functions,mood and cardiometabolic risk factors: a randomized controlled study in healthy middle-aged subjects

Background

Whole grain (WG) intake is associated with reduced risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, whereas type 2 diabetes increases the risk of cognitive decline and dementia. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of short-term intervention with WG rye on cognitive functions, mood and cardiometabolic risk markers in middle-aged test subjects.

Method

Rye-based breads were provided to 38 healthy test subjects (aged 52-70y) during three consecutive days in a crossover study design, using white wheat flour bread (WWB) as a reference. The rye-based bread consisted of a WG rye kernel/flour mixture (1:1 ratio) supplemented with resistant starch type 2 (RS2) (RB?+?RS2). The last bread portion was ingested at 2100 h, and cognitive function, mood and cardiometabolic risk markers were determined the following morning, 11???14 h post intake.

Results

In comparison to WWB, the RB?+?RS2 product increased ratings of mood parameters (valance, P?<?0.001; activation P?<?0.05). No differences were seen in the cognitive tests depending on intervention (P?>?0.05). RB?+?RS2 increased insulin sensitivity (P?<?0.05), fasting levels of gut hormones (PYY, P?<?0.05; GLP-2, P?<?0.01) and fasting concentrations of plasma acetate, butyrate and total SCFA (P?<?0.001). In contrast, fasting levels of IL???1β were decreased (P?<?0.05). Insulin sensitivity was positively correlated with working memory test performance (P?<?0.05).

Conclusions

This study display novel findings regarding effects of WG rye products on mood, and glucose and appetite regulation in middle-aged subjects, indicating anti-diabetic properties of WG rye. The beneficial effects are suggested to be mediated through gut fermentation of dietary fiber in the RB?+?RS2 product.

Trial registration

The study was retrospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, register number NCT03275948. Registered September 8 2017.

     

Alienation and drinking motivations among adolescent females.

188 female and 140 male 9th–12th graders in a small Wyoming community completed measures of alienation, drinking motivations, and positive social and personal psychological functions of drinking. Among females, problem-related drinking motivations correlated positively with alienation, whereas social-convivial motivations correlated negatively with this attribute. No comparable correlations were found among the males. It is concluded that important sex differences in the dynamics of problem drinking are worthy of additional study. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Satellite derived crop calendar for canal operation schedule in Bhadra project command area,India

Spatial information on crop calendars in the command areas of irrigation systems is useful to irrigation engineers in order to achieve chronological synchronization between water delivery pattern and crop life cycle. Such synchronization is vital for efficient use of water. The capability of satellite remote sensing technology to generate spatial crop calendar information in an irrigated command area and its usefulness in the evaluation of water delivery patterns are demonstrated in this paper. The study pertains to the major crop paddy during the rabi season (December to June) of 1992-93, in the Bhadra project command area of Karnataka state, India. Analyses of multidate Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) profiles of paddy crop generated from Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellite data for each distributary command reveal three distinct growth patterns in the study area with each pattern characterized by a particular crop calendar. The spatial variability in crop calendar over the total command area has thus been derived. The ground truth data obtained in crop cutting experiments (CCEs) validate the satellite derived crop calendar. Distributary wise, water delivery data have been studied in conjunction with the satellite derived crop calendar to determine whether the existing pattern of water delivery covers the required length of crop life cycle in the command area. It was found that the water supply was stopped about 30 days before harvesting in some distributaries and in some about 20-30 days before harvesting. A list of distributaries with greater lags between cessation of water supply and crop harvest was provided to irrigation system engineers to aid their plans for providing a reliable and predictable irrigation service. This is possible either through reorganization of canal operation schedule or through educating farmers about the need for adjusting their agricultural activities to match water supply patterns.     

Detection of Pinosylvins in Solid Wood of Scots Pine Using Fourier Transform Raman and Infrared Spectroscopy

Abstract

Diffuse reflectance Fourier transform infrared (DRIFT) and near infrared (NIR) FT-Raman spectroscopy were used to detect pinosylvins in the wood of Pinus sylvestris L. trees. NIR FT-Raman spectroscopy offered the possibility of revealing pinosylvins simply by visual inspection of Raman spectra whereas DRIFT spectra needed a more complicated evaluation. Pinosylvin and resin acids from Scots pine were examined as to the possibility of their being the cause of observed spectral differences between sapwood and heartwood. Since pinosylvins are important compounds for the decay resistance of Scots pine wood, the detection of pinosylvins with Raman spectroscopy might be used to assess durability of wood products.