Kagawa University

About: Kagawa University is a education organization based out in Takamatsu, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Cancer & Population. The organization has 6028 authors who have published 11918 publications receiving 224111 citations. The organization is also known as: Kagawa Daigaku.

D-Psicose Is a Rare Sugar That Provides No Energy to Growing Rats

Abstract: D-Psicose (D-ribo-2-hexulose), a C-3 epimer of D-fructose, is present in small quantities in commercial carbohydrate complexes and agricultural products. We have previously reported that D-psicose supplements in diets suppressed hepatic lipogenic enzyme activity. The lower fat accumulation in rats fed D-psicose may be due to lower lipogenesis in the liver. The present study examined the energy available in D-psicose for rat growth. Male Wistar rats received 7g daily of a basal diet to which fixed amounts of sucrose, D-fructose, or D-psicose (0.5-2.0g) were added for 20 d. Body weight gain and body energy gain increased with increases in sucrose and D-fructose, but not with D-psicose. One gram of sucrose, D-fructose, and D-psicose produced a net energy gain of 2.29, 1 and 0.007 kcal, respectively. The efficiency of energy deposition from D-psicose was 0.3% that of sucrose. The energy value of D-psicose was effectively zero. These results suggest that D-psicose is a rare sugar providing zero energy that may be useful in sweeteners for obese people as an aid for weight reduction.

IgA regulates the composition and metabolic function of gut microbiota by promoting symbiosis between bacteria.

Abstract: Immunoglobulin A (IgA) promotes health by regulating the composition and function of gut microbiota, but the molecular requirements for such homeostatic IgA function remain unknown. We found that a heavily glycosylated monoclonal IgA recognizing ovalbumin coats Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (B. theta), a prominent gut symbiont of the phylum Bacteroidetes. In vivo, IgA alters the expression of polysaccharide utilization loci (PUL), including a functionally uncharacterized molecular family provisionally named Mucus-Associated Functional Factor (MAFF). In both mice and humans, MAFF is detected predominantly in mucus-resident bacteria, and its expression requires the presence of complex microbiota. Expression of the MAFF system facilitates symbiosis with other members of the phylum Firmicutes and promotes protection from a chemically induced model of colitis. Our data reveal a novel mechanism by which IgA promotes symbiosis and colonic homeostasis.

Efficient and Reproducible Myogenic Differentiation from Human iPS Cells: Prospects for Modeling Miyoshi Myopathy In Vitro

Abstract: The establishment of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) has enabled the production of in vitro, patient-specific cell models of human disease. In vitro recreation of disease pathology from patient-derived hiPSCs depends on efficient differentiation protocols producing relevant adult cell types. However, myogenic differentiation of hiPSCs has faced obstacles, namely, low efficiency and/or poor reproducibility. Here, we report the rapid, efficient, and reproducible differentiation of hiPSCs into mature myocytes. We demonstrated that inducible expression of myogenic differentiation1 (MYOD1) in immature hiPSCs for at least 5 days drives cells along the myogenic lineage, with efficiencies reaching 70–90%. Myogenic differentiation driven by MYOD1 occurred even in immature, almost completely undifferentiated hiPSCs, without mesodermal transition. Myocytes induced in this manner reach maturity within 2 weeks of differentiation as assessed by marker gene expression and functional properties, including in vitro and in vivo cell fusion and twitching in response to electrical stimulation. Miyoshi Myopathy (MM) is a congenital distal myopathy caused by defective muscle membrane repair due to mutations in DYSFERLIN. Using our induced differentiation technique, we successfully recreated the pathological condition of MM in vitro, demonstrating defective membrane repair in hiPSC-derived myotubes from an MM patient and phenotypic rescue by expression of full-length DYSFERLIN (DYSF). These findings not only facilitate the pathological investigation of MM, but could potentially be applied in modeling of other human muscular diseases by using patient-derived hiPSCs.