There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

http://www.klinikaikozpont.u-szeged.hu/pedia/images/pdf/CME_TEL/Full-Text/25.pdf

The Hallmarks of Aging

This study describes and validates a new method for metagenomic biomarker discovery by way of class comparison, tests of biological consistency and effect size estimation. This addresses the challenge of finding organisms, genes, or pathways that consistently explain the differences between two or more microbial communities, which is a central problem to the study of metagenomics. We extensively validate our method on several microbiomes and a convenient online interface for the method is provided at http://huttenhower.sph.harvard.edu/lefse/.

/pdf/metagenomic-biomarker-discovery-and-explanation-x530ilzkca.pdf

Metagenomic biomarker discovery and explanation

We have catalogued the protein kinase complement of the human genome (the "kinome") using public and proprietary genomic, complementary DNA, and expressed sequence tag (EST) sequences. This provides a starting point for comprehensive analysis of protein phosphorylation in normal and disease states, as well as a detailed view of the current state of human genome analysis through a focus on one large gene family. We identify 518 putative protein kinase genes, of which 71 have not previously been reported or described as kinases, and we extend or correct the protein sequences of 56 more kinases. New genes include members of well-studied families as well as previously unidentified families, some of which are conserved in model organisms. Classification and comparison with model organism kinomes identified orthologous groups and highlighted expansions specific to human and other lineages. We also identified 106 protein kinase pseudogenes. Chromosomal mapping revealed several small clusters of kinase genes and revealed that 244 kinases map to disease loci or cancer amplicons.

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/298/5600/1912.full.pdf

The Protein Kinase Complement of the Human Genome

An expert panel was convened in October 2013 by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) to discuss the field of probiotics. It is now 13 years since the definition of probiotics and 12 years after guidelines were published for regulators, scientists and industry by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the WHO (FAO/WHO). The FAO/WHO definition of a probiotic--"live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host"--was reinforced as relevant and sufficiently accommodating for current and anticipated applications. However, inconsistencies between the FAO/WHO Expert Consultation Report and the FAO/WHO Guidelines were clarified to take into account advances in science and applications. A more precise use of the term 'probiotic' will be useful to guide clinicians and consumers in differentiating the diverse products on the market. This document represents the conclusions of the ISAPP consensus meeting on the appropriate use and scope of the term probiotic.

/pdf/expert-consensus-document-the-international-scientific-1zd5d1fmxy.pdf

Expert consensus document. The International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics consensus statement on the scope and appropriate use of the term probiotic

The effect of immunosuppression on patch testing: A cross-sectional study in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Su2001 Altered Expression and Activation of the CXCR3/CXCL10 Chemokine System in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Mucosal Biopsy Tissue

Celiac disease and Addison's disease — a clinical pitfall

Pancreatic exocrine function was studied in 13 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and an equal number of normal controls. Pancreatic fluid output and maximum bicarbonate concentrations were similar in both groups. Comparison of PBC patients with and without sicca syndrome revealed no significant differences.

The pancreas, primary biliary cirrhosis and the dry gland syndrome

In patients with oesophagogastric malignancy the incidence of bone marrow micrometastases is reduced by neoadjuvant chemo-radiotherapy. However, micrometastatic cells are still present in a significant proportion of treated patients suggesting, in this subset, resistance of the tumour cell to the chemotherapeutic agents. Detection and isolation of metastatic cells from bone marrow permits the study of in vivo responsiveness to chemoradiotherapy and may be an important resource for the evolution of more effective therapeutic strategies.

Fergus Shanahan

Papers

The effect of immunosuppression on patch testing: A cross-sectional study in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Su2001 Altered Expression and Activation of the CXCR3/CXCL10 Chemokine System in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Mucosal Biopsy Tissue

Celiac disease and Addison's disease — a clinical pitfall

The pancreas, primary biliary cirrhosis and the dry gland syndrome

Bone marrow micrometastases in oesophago-gastric cancer — Evidence for clearance in patients receiving neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy