University College Cork

About: University College Cork is a education organization based out in Cork, Ireland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Irish. The organization has 12056 authors who have published 28452 publications receiving 958414 citations. The organization is also known as: Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh & National University of Ireland, Cork.

Recent developments in understanding the role of the gut microbiota in brain health and disease.

Abstract: There is a growing appreciation of the role of the gut microbiota in all aspects of health and disease, including brain health. Indeed, roles for the bacterial commensals in various psychiatric and neurological conditions, such as depression, autism, stroke, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease, are emerging. Microbiota dysregulation has been documented in all of these conditions or in animal models thereof. Moreover, depletion or modulation of the gut microbiota can affect the severity of the central pathology or behavioral deficits observed in a variety of brain disorders. However, the mechanisms underlying such effects are only slowly being unraveled. Additionally, recent preclinical and clinical evidence suggest that targeting the microbiota through prebiotic, probiotic, or dietary interventions may be an effective "psychobiotic" strategy for treating symptoms in mood, neurodevelopmental disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases.

High pressure processing of shellfish: A review of microbiological and other quality aspects

Abstract: Many commercially important shellfish are filter feeders and, as a consequence, concentrate microbes from the surrounding waters. Shellfish may be relayed or depurated to reduce the level of microbial contamination, but the efficiency of these purification practices, particularly in relation to viruses and indigenous marine bacteria, is questionable. Therefore additional processing is necessary to ensure the safety of shellfish for human consumption. In recent years high pressure (HP) processing has been investigated as an alternative method for food preservation. HP technology allows inactivation of microorganisms while maintaining sensory and nutritional properties of foods. Currently, HP processing has several commercial food applications, including oysters. As well as enhancing safety and extending shelf-life, HP treatment has the additional advantage of shucking or opening shellfish, making this technology particularly beneficial to the shellfish processing industry and consumers alike. Industrial relevance High pressure (HP) processing is increasingly being used in the commercial processing of oysters, due to its minimal effects on sensory and nutritional quality, the opening or shucking of oysters during treatment, and the reduction of levels of Vibrio vulnificus , a pathogen of concern particularly in the US. However, little is known of the efficacy of HP treatment in reducing other pathogens in shellfish such as human enteric viruses, which are the predominant cause of shellfish-borne disease. This article reviews the inactivation of microorganisms of importance to shellfish, particularly viruses, the commercial HP processing of oysters and the advantages of HP technology as they pertain to the seafood industry.

High-Pressure Processing of Foods: An Overview

Abstract: Publisher Summary The application of any new technology presents significant challenges to food technologists and food researchers. High-pressure (HP) processing offers the food industry a technology that can achieve the food safety of heat pasteurization while meeting consumer demand for fresher-tasting minimally-processed foods. In addition, other favorable organoleptic, nutritional, and rheological properties of foods have been demonstrated following HP, in comparison to heat processing. The retention of color, aroma, and the preservation of nutritive components are enormous benefits for both food processing industry and consumers. Also, from a food processing/engineering perspective, key advantages of high-pressure applications of food systems are the independence of size and geometry of the sample during processing, possibilities for low temperature treatment, and the availability of a waste-free, environment-friendly technology. Application of HP can inactivate microorganisms and enzymes and modify structures while having little or no effects on nutritional and sensory quality aspects of foods. HP food processing today is being used on an ever-increasing commercial basis. Opportunities clearly exist for innovative applications and new food product development. HP can affect the functionality of protein and carbohydrate molecules often in unique ways, which may allow optimization of food manufacturing processes and production of novel foods. The range of commercially available HP-processed products is relatively small at present, but there are opportunities for further development and production of a wide range of HP-treated products.

Magnetic core-shell nanoparticles for drug delivery by nebulization

Abstract: Aerosolized therapeutics hold great potential for effective treatment of various diseases including lung cancer. In this context, there is an urgent need to develop novel nanocarriers suitable for drug delivery by nebulization. To address this need, we synthesized and characterized a biocompatible drug delivery vehicle following surface coating of Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with a polymer poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA). The polymeric shell of these engineered nanoparticles was loaded with a potential anti-cancer drug quercetin and their suitability for targeting lung cancer cells via nebulization was evaluated. Average particle size of the developed MNPs and PLGA-MNPs as measured by electron microscopy was 9.6 and 53.2 nm, whereas their hydrodynamic swelling as determined using dynamic light scattering was 54.3 nm and 293.4 nm respectively. Utilizing a series of standardized biological tests incorporating a cell-based automated image acquisition and analysis procedure in combination with real-time impedance sensing, we confirmed that the developed MNP-based nanocarrier system was biocompatible, as no cytotoxicity was observed when up to 100 μg/ml PLGA-MNP was applied to the cultured human lung epithelial cells. Moreover, the PLGA-MNP preparation was well-tolerated in vivo in mice when applied intranasally as measured by glutathione and IL-6 secretion assays after 1, 4, or 7 days post-treatment. To imitate aerosol formation for drug delivery to the lungs, we applied quercitin loaded PLGA-MNPs to the human lung carcinoma cell line A549 following a single round of nebulization. The drug-loaded PLGA-MNPs significantly reduced the number of viable A549 cells, which was comparable when applied either by nebulization or by direct pipetting. We have developed a magnetic core-shell nanoparticle-based nanocarrier system and evaluated the feasibility of its drug delivery capability via aerosol administration. This study has implications for targeted delivery of therapeutics and poorly soluble medicinal compounds via inhalation route.

16S rRNA gene sequencing of mock microbial populations-impact of DNA extraction method, primer choice and sequencing platform

Abstract: Next-generation sequencing platforms have revolutionised our ability to investigate the microbiota composition of complex environments, frequently through 16S rRNA gene sequencing of the bacterial component of the community. Numerous factors, including DNA extraction method, primer sequences and sequencing platform employed, can affect the accuracy of the results achieved. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of these three factors on 16S rRNA gene sequencing results, using mock communities and mock community DNA. The use of different primer sequences (V4-V5, V1-V2 and V1-V2 degenerate primers) resulted in differences in the genera and species detected. The V4-V5 primers gave the most comparable results across platforms. The three Ion PGM primer sets detected more of the 20 mock community species than the equivalent MiSeq primer sets. Data generated from DNA extracted using the 2 extraction methods were very similar. Microbiota compositional data differed depending on the primers and sequencing platform that were used. The results demonstrate the risks in comparing data generated using different sequencing approaches and highlight the merits of choosing a standardised approach for sequencing in situations where a comparison across multiple sequencing runs is required.