Dietary fatty acids in gut health: Absorption,metabolism and function

In biological responses, fatty acids (FA) are absorbed and metabolized in the form of substrates for energy production. The molecular structures (number of double bonds and chain length) and composition of dietary FA impact digestion, absorption and metabolism, and the biological roles of FA. Recently, increasing evidence indicates that FA are essentially utilized as an energy source and are signaling molecules that exert physiological activity of gut microbiota and immune responses. In addition, FA could serve as natural ligands for orphan G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), also called free fatty acid receptors (FFAR), which intertwine metabolic and immune systems via multiple mechanisms. The present review explores the recent findings on FA absorption and its impact on gut health, particularly addressing the mechanism by which dietary FA potentially influences intestinal microbiota and epithelial functions. Also, this work attempts to uncover research ideas for devising future strategies for manipulating the composition of dietary FA to regulate gut health and support a normal immune system for metabolic and immune disorders.     

Effects of dietary sodium butyrate on growth,digestive enzymes,body composition and nutrient retention-related gene expression of juvenile yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco)

An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of sodium butyrate (SB) on growth, digestive enzymes, body composition and nutrient retention-related gene expression of juvenile yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco). Five isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets (420 g/kg protein and 90 g/kg lipid) were formulated to contain 0 (control), 250, 500, 1,000 or 2,000 mg/kg SB. Triplicate groups of 40 fish (BW = 1.26 ± 0.01 g) per tank (300-L cylindrical fiberglass tanks) for each diet were fed to apparent satiation twice daily. Stomach, hepatopancreas and intestine samples were obtained for digestive enzymes activities analyses. A real-time quantitative PCR analysis was performed to determine the relative expression of target of rapamycin (TOR) and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) in the hepatopancreas and intestine. Fish fed the diets supplemented with SB at 500 and 1,000 mg/kg showed significantly higher specific growth rate and significantly lower feed conversion ratio compared to the control (P < 0.05). Dietary SB inclusion did not alter activities of intestinal amylase, creatine kinase and sodium–potassium adenosine triphosphatase (Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase), but increased activities of hepatic trypsin, stomachic lipase, intestinal lipase, alkaline phosphatase and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase for fish fed 1,000 mg/kg SB compared to the control (P < 0.05). Intestine length index, intestine somatic index, fold height and muscular thickness of distal intestine were significantly higher in 1,000 mg/kg SB groups compared to the control (P < 0.05). Significantly higher levels of whole-body crude protein, ash, calcium, phosphorus, nutrition retention and relative mRNA of intestinal TOR were observed in 1,000 mg/kg SB group (P < 0.05). Whole-body lipid content and hepatopancreas LPL mRNA expression in 2,000 mg/kg SB group were significantly higher than the control (P < 0.05). Relative mRNA levels of intestinal LPL and hepatopancreas TOR were significantly higher in the 500 mg/kg SB group compared to those in other groups (P < 0.05). The increased growth performance, digestive enzymes and nutrient retention in fish fed the diets supplemented with SB at 500 and 1,000 mg/kg suggests that SB can be a desirable growth promoter as an antibiotic alternative in diets.     

Cd污染下蒌蒿生长和Cd蓄积特性的研究

以白蒿为试材,采用盆栽试验,研究了Cd污染砂土中白蒿的生态适应性以及Cd的蓄积特征。试验证实砂土中20~100mg/kg的CdCO3促进蒌蒿生长、提高叶绿素含量;120~240mg/kg的CdCO3影响蒌蒿生长,但单株干物重、分株数、叶绿素含量未降至对照水平;根、茎、叶中Cd含量与砂土中Cd含量成正比,根的积累最强,根/砂土Cd比值最大7.2倍,平均4.4倍;蒌蒿器官Cd含量顺序为根>茎>叶,根Cd含量最高达532.9mg/kg。     

植物对硒的吸收、转运及代谢机制研究进展

硒元素是人和动物必需的微量元素之一，人体缺硒会引发诸多疾病甚至导致死亡。我国是缺硒大国，全国有2/3的人口处于缺硒地区。目前，食物补硒是提高人体摄硒量的最佳途径，同时也决定着食物链中硒的水平。本文从环境角度介绍了植物对土壤中不同硒元素的吸收利用途径，综述了硒在植物体内的转运和代谢机制，为开发富硒农产品提供参考。     

水稻镉吸收与转运机理的研究进展

长期食用含镉（Cd）的大米会引起一系列的疾病，严重危害人体健康，因此控制稻米镉含量对粮食安全具有重要意义。本文从根部镉吸收、根向茎叶的转运和茎叶向籽粒转运三个角度系统总结，从生理角度综述了这三个重要过程涉及的生理机制，从分子生物学角度总结了相关基因的分子调控机制，归纳并讨论了一些存在争议的问题。深度探讨了调控吸收、转运和籽粒积累这三个过程来降低稻米镉含量的有效措施，分析其原理及实用价值。提出了选育镉低积累品种为最根本最有力的镉污染治理措施，为明确水稻镉污染治理方向提供重要的参考。     

Studies on classification models to discriminate ‘Braeburn’ apples affected by internal browning using the optical properties measured by time-resolved reflectance spectroscopy

This work aimed at studying the feasibility of time-resolved reflectance spectroscopy (TRS) to nondestructively detect internal browning (IB) in ‘Braeburn’ apples through the development of classification models based on absorption (μ_a) and scattering (μ_s′) properties of the pulp.This research was carried out in two seasons: in 2009, apples were measured by TRS at 670 nm and in the 740–1040 nm spectral range on four equidistant points around the equator, whereas in 2010 apples were measured by TRS at 670 nm and at 780 nm on eight equidistant points.The values of the absorption coefficients measured in the 670–940 nm range increased with IB development. On the contrary, μ_s′780 was higher in healthy fruit than in IB ones. The μ_a780 also significantly increased with IB severity, showing high values when IB affected the pulp tissues compared to the core ones. Also μ_a670 changed with IB development, but it was not able to clearly discriminate healthy fruit from IB ones because its value was also affected by the chlorophyll content of the pulp.The absorption and scattering coefficients were used as explanatory variables in the linear discriminant analysis in order to classify each apple tissue as healthy or IB; then the models obtained were used for fruit classification. The best classification performance was obtained in 2010 using μ_a780 and μ_s′780 and considering the IB position within the fruit: 90% of healthy fruit and 71% of IB fruit were correctly classified. By using all the μ_a measured in the 670–1040 nm range plus the μ_s′780, IB fruit classification was slightly better while healthy fruit classification was worse. The better result of 2010 was due to the increased number of TRS measurement points that allowed better exploration of the fruit tissues. However, the asymmetric nature of this disorder makes detection difficult, especially when the disorder is localized in the inner part of the fruit (core) or when it occurs in spots. A different TRS set-up (position and distance of fibers, time resolution) should be studied in order to reach the deeper tissue within the fruit in order to improve browning detection.