ARA Groups Research Articles

Dietary ARA, DHA, and Carbohydrate Ratios Affect the Immune Status of Gilthead Sea Bream Juveniles upon Bacterial Challenge.

This study aims to assess the effects of different dietary n-6/n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid ratios and CHO content in the immune response of gilthead seabream. For that purpose, gilthead sea bream juveniles (initial body weight = 47.5 g) were fed for 84 days with four isoproteic (47% crude protein) and isolipidic (18% crude lipids) diets with high (20%) or low (5%) level of gelatinized starch (HS or LS diets, respectively) and included approximately 2.4% ARA or DHA. At the end of the trial, the DHA-enriched groups presented increased red blood cell (RBC) count, hemoglobin, plasmatic nitric oxide (NO) content, and antiprotease and alternative complement activities. The ARA groups had increased thrombocyte count, and plasmatic bactericidal activity against Vibrio anguillarum was lower in the fish fed the ARA/LS diet. After the feeding trial, the fish were challenged with an intraperitoneal injection (i.p.) of killed Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida (Phdp) and sampled at 4 and 24 h after the challenge. At 4 h after i.p., the ARA groups presented increased plasma total immunoglobulins (Ig) and bactericidal activity against V. anguillarum. In addition, the fish fed the ARA/LS diet presented lower white blood cell (WBC) and alternative complement activity. At 24 h after i.p., the ARA groups presented increased RBC, WBC, and thrombocyte numbers, total IG, plasma peroxidase activity, and casp3 expression in the distal intestine. The HS groups presented increased plasma NO content and bactericidal activity against Phdp and decreased protease, antiprotease activity, and bactericidal activity against V. anguillarum. In conclusion, high dietary DHA levels seemed to improve the immune status of unchallenged gilthead sea bream juveniles, while high dietary ARA levels improved the fish immune response to a bacterial challenge. The energy provided by dietary starch seems to be important to promote a fast response by the fish immune system after a challenge.

Prevalence and predictors of aortic root abscess among patients with left-sided infective endocarditis: a cross-sectional comparative study

BackgroundAortic root abscess (ARA) is a major complication of infective endocarditis that is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Limited data are present about patient characteristics and outcomes in this lethal disease. We aimed to study the clinical and echocardiographic characteristics of patients with ARA compared to patients with left-sided infective endocarditis without ARA. We included patients with a definite diagnosis of left-sided infective endocarditis according to modified Duke’s criteria. The patients were classified into two groups according to the presence of ARA (ARA and NO-ARA groups). All the patients were studied regarding their demographic data, clinical characteristics, laboratory and imaging data, and complications.ResultsWe included 285 patients with left-sided infective endocarditis. The incidence of ARA was 21.4% (61 patients). Underlying heart disease, mechanical prosthesis, bicuspid aortic valve, and prior IE were significantly higher in ARA. The level of CRP was higher in ARA (p = 0.03). ARA group showed more aortic valve vegetations (73.8% vs. 37.1%, p < 0.001), more aortic paravalvular leakage (26.7% vs. 4.5%, p < 0.001), and less mitral valve vegetations (21.3% vs. 68.8%, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that the odds of ARA increased in the following conditions: aortic paravalvular leak (OR 3.9, 95% CI 1.2–13, p = 0.03), mechanical prosthesis (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.5–8.7, p = 0.005), aortic valve vegetations (OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.2–8.0, p = 0.02), and undetected organism (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.1–4.6, p = 0.02), while the odds of ARA decreased with mitral valve vegetations (OR 0.2, 95% CI 0.08–0.5, p = 0.001). We did not find a difference between both groups regarding the incidence of major complications, including in-hospital mortality.ConclusionIn our study, ARA occurred in one fifth of patients with left-sided IE. Patients with mechanical prosthesis, aortic paravalvular leakage, aortic vegetations, and undetected organisms had higher odds of ARA, while patients with mitral vegetations had lower odds of ARA.

Towards Sustainability in University Education. Improving University Graduates Chances of Employability by Participation in a High Achievement Academic Program

This piece of research focusses on the sustainable development goal (SDG) number four of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: quality education. The main objective of this research was to determine whether introducing a High Achievement Academic Program (ARA Groups) at a Spanish public university could enhance its graduates’ employability. According to the existing scientific literature, some variables related to the students’ accomplishments during college are good predictors of future employability: academic performance, participation in international exchanges, and participation in traineeships. In the empirical part of this research, our objective was to compare, using descriptive and bivariate statistical analysis, the behavior of the students of the ARA Groups and the regular ones, regarding a set of variables related to the above-mentioned predictors of employability. The outcomes allow us to conclude that ARA students performed academically better and that they participated more in international exchanges. Participation in business internships did not present significant differences, although ARA students scored higher in the employers’ assessment of the internship. Our results suggest that graduates of this program will be more sought-after by companies, and therefore it contributes positively to one of the key objectives of quality higher education, which is employability, and hence to sustainable development.

Dietary arachidonic acid affects immune function and fatty acid composition in cultured rabbitfish Siganus rivulatus

The marbled spinefoot rabbitfish (Siganus rivulatus) is an economically valuable fish species that has potential for commercial production in aquaculture. To overcome challenges in its sustainable production, a formulated diet is required for imparting health and robustness. This study evaluates the effect of dietary supplementation with arachidonic acid (ARA; 20:4n-6) on growth, survival, immune function and fatty acid composition of red blood cells (RBCs) in rabbitfish. We conducted two feeding trials using juvenile fish (to evaluate growth and survival) and adults (to evaluate immune function and fatty acid incorporation). Fish were fed diets supplemented with three different levels of ARA (in % of total fatty acids): 0.6 (unsupplemented control), 2.6 (moderate) and 4.7 (high). The fish fed with moderate ARA levels exhibited improved (p < 0.05) growth over the control and the high ARA level groups. During an outbreak of Streptococcus iniae, fish fed with moderate ARA survived significantly (p < 0.05) better (89%) than the control and the high ARA groups (59% and 48%, respectively). Moderate ARA supplementation resulted in elevated lysozyme and complement levels in the plasma of rabbitfish. A significant increase in the total serum immunoglobulin levels was observed in both the medium and the high ARA level groups; however, a decrease in antiprotease activity was recorded in the supplemented groups as compared to the control.Fatty acid analysis in fish red blood cells revealed a significant (p < 0.05) increase in the proportion of ARA of total fatty acids in the groups fed with the medium and the high ARA level diets (9.5% and 11.2%, respectively, compared to 7.1% in the control). Concomitantly, there was a decrease in the proportion of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5n-3), dihomo-γ linolenic acid (DGLA; 20:3n-6) and several 18-carbon unsaturated fatty acids in these groups.In conclusion, ARA in rabbitfish feeds improved growth, survival as well as innate and acquired humoral immune functions. Thus ARA supplementation in the diet of this species could be a valuable step towards establishing the commercial culture of rabbitfish.

Associations Between Antral Ovarian Follicle Dynamics and Hormone Production Throughout the Menstrual Cycle as Women Age.

The physiological origins of age-related changes in hormone production during the menstrual cycle are uncertain. The objective of the study was to test the hypothesis that changes in antral follicle dynamics are associated with changes in hormone production as women age. A prospective, observational study was conducted in ovulatory women of midreproductive age (MRA; 18-35 y; n = 10) and advanced reproductive age (ARA; 45-55 y; n = 20). The numbers and diameters of all follicles of 2 mm or greater were quantified ultrasonographically every 1-3 days for one interovulatory interval; the growth profiles of individually identified follicles of 4 mm or greater were tabulated. Blood samples were assayed for FSH, LH, estradiol, progesterone, inhibin A and B, and anti-Mullerian hormone. Fifty percent of women in both the MRA and ARA groups developed one to two luteal-phase dominant follicles (LPDFs). MRA women with typical LPDFs had greater luteal-phase inhibin B (44.2 vs 17.0 ng/L) and estradiol (91.3 vs 51.7 ng/L) compared with those without LPDFs (P < .05). Luteal-phase estradiol was greater (184 vs 79 ng/L), inhibin B was greater (25.3 vs 12.7 ng/L), and progesterone was lower (6.98 vs 13.8 μg/L) in ARA women with atypical vs no LPDFs (P < .01). Changes in antral follicle dynamics are associated with changes in hormone production as women age. The development of LPDFs in women of MRA was associated with elevated luteal-phase estradiol. A similar but exaggerated elevation in late luteal-early follicular-phase estradiol, accompanied by lower progesterone, was observed in ARA women with atypically large and persistent LPDFs.

Age-related changes in major ovarian follicular wave dynamics during the human menstrual cycle

Changes in antral follicle count, hormone production, and menstrual cyclicity as women age are well documented. However, age-related changes in ovarian follicular wave dynamics in women are not understood. The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that major follicular wave dynamics (ie, those in which a dominant follicle develops) differ in women with age. A prospective, cross-sectional, observational study was conducted in 58 women of mid-reproductive age (MRA; 18-35 y; n = 27), late reproductive age (LRA; 36-44 y; n = 10), and advanced reproductive age (ARA; 45-55 y; n = 21). The number and diameters of all follicles ≥ 2 mm were quantified ultrasonographically every 2 to 3 days for one complete interovulatory interval (IOI). Only ovulatory cycles were evaluated. Antral follicle count and major follicular wave dynamics during the IOI were compared among age groups using SPSS version 19.0 (α = 0.05). One (36/58, 62%) or two (22/58, 38%) major follicular waves were observed during the IOI in all women evaluated. The prevalence of follicular-phase dominant follicles (FPDFs) and luteal-phase dominant follicles (LPDFs) was not different among the MRA, LRA, and ARA groups (FPDFs: 27/27 [100%], 10/10 [100%], and 20/21 [95%], respectively; LPDFs: 10/17 [37%], 3/10 [30%], and 10/21 [48%], respectively; P > 0.050). All FPDFs were ovulatory. One LPDF ovulated during menses in the ARA group; all other LPDFs in the MRA, LRA, and ARA groups were anovulatory. On average, LPDFs emerged earlier relative to ovulation (days -6, -2, and -2; P = 0.049), grew longer (11, 3, and 6 d; P = 0.005), and developed to a larger diameter (24, 11, and 11 mm; P = 0.032) in the ARA group versus the MRA and LRA groups. In follicular-phase major waves, there was a tendency for a greater prevalence of polyovulation as women aged (ARA 3/21 [14%] vs MRA 0/27 [0%]; P = 0.070). One or two major follicular waves develop during the IOI, irrespective of age. The prevalence of LPDFs (range, 30%-50%) and FPDFs (range, 95%-100%) during the IOI does not differ with age. However, the growth dynamics of major waves change as women age. On average, LPDFs emerge earlier, grow for a longer period, and grow to a larger diameter in ovulatory women of advanced versus mid or late reproductive age. There is a greater tendency for polyovulation in the follicular-phase major wave as women age.

Improved Mitochondrial Function with Diet-Induced Increase in Either Docosahexaenoic Acid or Arachidonic Acid in Membrane Phospholipids

Mitochondria can depolarize and trigger cell death through the opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP). We recently showed that an increase in the long chain n3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n3) and depletion of the n6 PUFA arachidonic acid (ARA; 20:4n6) in mitochondrial membranes is associated with a greater Ca2+ load required to induce MPTP opening. Here we manipulated mitochondrial phospholipid composition by supplementing the diet with DHA, ARA or combined DHA+ARA in rats for 10 weeks. There were no effects on cardiac function, or respiration of isolated mitochondria. Analysis of mitochondrial phospholipids showed DHA supplementation increased DHA and displaced ARA in mitochondrial membranes, while supplementation with ARA or DHA+ARA increased ARA and depleted linoleic acid (18:2n6). Phospholipid analysis revealed a similar pattern, particularly in cardiolipin. Tetralinoleoyl cardiolipin was depleted by 80% with ARA or DHA+ARA supplementation, with linoleic acid side chains replaced by ARA. Both the DHA and ARA groups had delayed Ca2+-induced MPTP opening, but the DHA+ARA group was similar to the control diet. In conclusion, alterations in mitochondria membrane phospholipid fatty acid composition caused by dietary DHA or ARA was associated with a greater cumulative Ca2+ load required to induced MPTP opening. Further, high levels of tetralinoleoyl cardiolipin were not essential for normal mitochondrial function if replaced with very-long chain n3 or n6 PUFAs.

Positive Bronchial Responses To D. Pteronyssinus In Subjects With Confirmed Local Allergic Rhinitis

Local allergic rhinitis (LAR) is characterized by positive responses to nasal challenge with allergens in absence of systemic atopy. Subjects with LAR frequently show other co-morbidities including asthma. The possible role of allergens in the bronchial symptoms of subjects with LAR has not been addressed. Twenty subjects with confirmed LAR with D. Pteronyssinus (DP) and asthmatic symptoms (LARA), 20 subjects with allergic rhinitis with DP and asthmatic symptoms (ARA) and 10 healthy subjects as control group (CG) were recruited. Bronchial challenge was performed with DP extract at 4 μg/ml. Metacholine challenge and induced sputum were performed prior to and 24 hours after challenge. Cell populations and Th1/Th2 cytokines in sputum were evaluated by flow cytometry, and ECP and triptase in sputum by CAP method. Forty percent of LARA and all ARA subjects had positive responses to bronchial challenge with DP. PC20 values decreased in both groups 24 hours after challenge (p<0.05). Sputum ECP values also increased after challenge in both LARA and ARA groups (16.8±14.5 vs. 20.1±21 and 52±69 vs, 95±98, respectively). Also, an increase in sputum eosinophils was observed (LARA: 6.9±11 vs. 14.2±7.3, ARA: 3.7±3 vs. 7.2±6). LARA subjects had higher values of IL5,IL8, IL10, IL12 and IFN-gamma at baseline compared to ARA and controls, but no significant variations after challenge. Positive responses to D. Pteronyssinus were observed in the lower airways of subjects with clear history of asthmatic symptoms. Similar methacholine responses and increases in ECP and eosinophil levels were observed in both LARA and ARA groups.

Pharmacologic pupil dilation as a predictive test for the risk for intraoperative floppy-iris syndrome

To evaluate the effect of α1-adrenergic receptor antagonists (α1-ARAs) on pupil diameter and determine whether the diameter predicts intraoperative floppy-iris syndrome (IFIS). Ophthalmology Section, Palermo University, Palermo, Italy. Prospective cohort study. Male outpatients taking tamsulosin, α(1)-ARAs, or no α(1)-ARAs having phacoemulsification were recruited. Pupils were measured 1 month preoperatively, immediately preoperatively, and postoperatively under mesopic low (0.4 lux) and high (4.0 lux) illumination after pharmacologic dilation. The IFIS severity was graded. Each group comprised 50 patients. Pharmacologic dilation in both α(1)-ARA groups was statistically significantly less than in the no α1-ARA group 1 month preoperatively, immediately before surgery, and postoperatively (P=.001, P<.0005, and P<.0005, respectively). The IFIS incidence differed significantly between the tamsulosin and other α(1)-ARA groups and the no α1-ARA group (P<.0005 and P=.017, respectively) and between the tamsulosin group and the other α1-ARA group (P=.027). On regression analysis, the hazard ratio for overall IFIS incidence was 3.8 in the other α(1)-ARA group (P=.012) and 10.1 in the tamsulosin group (P<.0005). Pupil size was inversely related to IFIS incidence and severity (P<.0005). A dilated pupil of 7.0 mm or smaller had 73% sensitivity and 95% specificity for predicting IFIS (P=.0001). Pupil dilation was inhibited by α(1)-ARAs, in particular tamsulosin. For a pupil 7.0 mm or smaller, the risk for IFIS existed regardless of α(1)-ARAs treatment, which surgeons should take into consideration.

Chemostratigraphy of the Tamengo Formation (Corumbá Group, Brazil): A contribution to the calibration of the Ediacaran carbon-isotope curve

The Corumbá Group, cropping out in the southern Paraguay Belt in Brazil, is one of the most complete Ediacaran sedimentary archives of palaeogeographic, climatic, biogeochemical and biotic evolution in southwestern Gondwana. The unit hosts a rich fossil record, including acritarchs, vendotaenids ( Vendotaenia, Eoholynia), soft-bodied metazoans ( Corumbella) and skeletal fossils ( Cloudina, Titanotheca). The Tamengo Formation, made up mainly of limestones and marls, provides a rich bio- and chemostratigraphic record. Several outcrops, formerly assigned to the Cuiabá Group, are here included in the Tamengo Formation on the basis of lithological and chemostratigraphical criteria. High-resolution carbon isotopic analyses are reported for the Tamengo Formation, showing (from base to top): (1) a positive δ 13C excursion to +4‰ PDB above post-glacial negative values, (2) a negative excursion to −3.5‰ associated with a marked regression and subsequent transgression, (3) a positive excursion to +5.5‰, and (4) a plateau characterized by δ 13C around +3‰. A U-Pb SHRIMP zircon age of an ash bed interbedded in the upper part of the δ 13C positive plateau yielded 543 ± 3 Ma, which is considered as the depositional age ( Babinski et al., 2008a). The positive plateau in the upper Tamengo Formation and the preceding positive excursion are ubiquitous features in several successions worldwide, including the Nama Group (Namibia), the Dengying Formation (South China) and the Nafun and Ara groups (Oman). This plateau is constrained between 542 and 551 Ma, thus consistent with the age of the upper Tamengo Formation. The negative excursion of the lower Tamengo Formation may be correlated to the Shuram–Wonoka negative anomaly, although δ 13C values do not fall beyond −3.5‰ in the Brazilian sections. Sedimentary breccias occur just beneath this negative excursion in the lower Tamengo Formation. One possible interpretation of the origin of these breccias is a glacioeustatic sea-level fall, but a tectonic interpretation cannot be completely ruled out.

Investigating the behavioral and self-report constructs of impulsivity domains using principal component analysis

Impulsivity, often defined as a human behavior characterized by the inclination of an individual to act on urge rather than thought, with diminished regard to consequences, encompasses a range of maladaptive behaviors, which are in turn affected by distinct neural systems. Congruent with the above definition, behavioral studies have consistently shown that the underlying construct of impulsivity is multidimensional in nature. However, research to date has been inconclusive regarding the different domains or constructs that constitute this behavior. In addition there is also no clear consensus as to whether self-report and laboratory based measures of impulsivity measure the same or different domains. This study aimed to: (i) characterize the underlying multidimensional construct of impulsivity using a sample with varying degrees of putative impulsivity related to substance misuse, including subjects who were at-risk of substance use or addicted (ARA), and (ii) assess relationships between self-report and laboratory measures of impulsivity, using a principal component-based factor analysis. In addition, our supplementary goal was to evaluate the structural constructs of impulsivity within each group separately (healthy and ARA). We used five self-report measures (Behavioral Inhibition System/Behavioral Activation System, Barratt Impulsivity Scale-11, Padua Inventory, Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scale, and Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire) and two computer-based laboratory tasks (Balloon Analog Risk Task and the Experiential Discounting Task) to measure the aspects of impulsivity in a total of 176 adult subjects. Subjects included healthy controls (n = 89), nonalcoholic subjects with family histories of alcoholism (family history positive; n = 36) and both former (n = 20) and current (n = 31) cocaine users. Subjects with a family history of alcoholism and cocaine abusers were grouped together as 'at-risk/addicted' (ARA) to evaluate our supplementary goal. Our overall results revealed the multidimensional nature of the impulsivity construct as captured optimally through a five-factor solution that accounted for nearly 70% of the total variance. The five factors/components were imputed as follows 'Self-Reported Behavioral Activation', 'Self-Reported Compulsivity and Reward/Punishment', 'Self-Reported Impulsivity', 'Behavioral Temporal Discounting', and 'Behavioral Risk-Taking'. We also found that contrary to previously published reports, there was significant overlap between certain laboratory and self-report measures, indicating that they might be measuring the same impulsivity domain. In addition, our supplemental analysis also suggested that the impulsivity constructs were largely, but not entirely the same within the healthy and ARA groups.

Constraining the timing of basal metazoan radiation using molecular biomarkers and U-Pb isotope dating

Abundant and well-preserved molecular biomarkers are prevalent in sediments and oils of Neoproterozoic-Cambrian age from the Huqf Supergroup, South Oman Salt Basin. Amongst the diverse compound classes present, distinctive free (extractable) and kerogen-bound C_(26) and C_(30) steranes (McCaffrey et al., 1994) produced by marine demosponges provide evidence for the first appearance of multicellular animals (metazoa) in the geological record sometime between the Sturtian (711 Myr) and Marinoan (635 Myr) glaciations. The timing of the sponge biomarker appearance corresponds remarkably well to divergence ages for Demospongiae based on the most recent molecular clocks (minimum evolution estimates) using protein sequences ( Peterson and Butterfield, 2005). These demosponge steranes are potentially the first evidence for the appearance of animals in the fossil record since they predate, by at least 50 Myr, the fossil fauna from the Doushantuo Fm. (Li et al., 1998 and Xiao et al., 1998) now considered younger than 580 Myr (Condon et al., 2005). The sterane biomarkers are found in all formations of the Nafun and Ara Groups and constitute an apparently continuous 100 Myr record of demosponges through the Terminal Neoproterozoic and into the Early Cambrian. The application of lipid biomarkers for constraining the divergence ages of basal metazoa circumvents problems associated with uneven preservation of soft-bodied metazoa and their poor capacity for leaving trace or body fossils.

Arabinogalactan from Western larch, Part III: alkaline degradation revisited, with novel conclusions on molecular structure

Alkaline degradation of larch arabinogalactan (AG) involves rapid peeling of the (1→3)-galactan main chain from the reducing end. The products are the original side chains attached to galactometasaccharinic (GalMS) acids derived from main-chain residues. These products have been separated by GPC and studied by compositional, methylation and NMR analyses. Results confirm that in a typical AG molecule most main-chain residues carry a side chain on C-6. About half of these side chains are β-(1→6)-linked Gal p dimers, and about a quarter are single Gal p residues. The rest contain three or more residues and include most of the Ara (arabinose) found in the polysaccharide. About one-fifth of the original Ara is consumed by the peeling reaction, and Ara groups at the non-reducing end of the main chain are proposed, predominantly as arabinobiosyl groups [β- l-Ara p-(1→3)-L-Ara f-(1→.. In general for the larger side chains abundance decreases with size, while branching and Ara content increase with size. Most terminal Ara f residues occur in three- and four-residue side chains, while most arabinobiosyl groups are found in side chains of more than three residues. The Ara probably occurs only as these monomeric or dimeric groups, and since no Ara is found in side chains smaller than three residues, this implies that there are no Ara branches attached directly to the main chain.