Clostridium butyricum MIYAIRI 588 (CBM 588) is a probiotic bacterium that has previously been used to prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea. However, the underlying mechanism by which CBM 588 protects the gut epithelial barrier remains unclear. Here, we show that CBM 588 increased the abundance of Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, and Lactococcus species in the gut microbiome and also enhanced the intestinal barrier function of mice with antibiotic-induced dysbiosis. Additionally, CBM 588 significantly promoted the expansion of IL-17A-producing gdT cells and IL-17A-producing CD4 cells in the colonic lamina propria (cLP), which was closely associated with changes in the intestinal microbial composition. Additionally, CBM 588 plays an important role in controlling antibiotic-induced gut inflammation through upregulation of anti-inflammatory lipid metabolites such as palmitoleic acid, 15d-prostaglandin J 2 , and protectin D 1 . This study reveals a previously unrecognized mechanism of CBM 588 and provides new insights into gut epithelial barrier protection with probiotics under conditions of antibiotic-induced dysbiosis.

Short peptide helices have attracted attention as suitable building blocks for soft functional materials, but they are rarely seen in crystalline materials. A new artificial nanoassembly of short peptide helices in the crystalline state is presented in which peptide helices are arranged three-dimensionally by metal coordination. The folding and assembly processes of a short peptide ligand containing the Gly-Pro-Pro sequence were induced by silver(I) coordination in aqueous alcohol, and gave rise to a single crystal composed of polyproline II helices. Crystallographic studies revealed that this material possesses two types of unique helical nanochannel; the larger channel measures more than 2 nm in diameter. Guest uptake properties were investigated by soaking the crystals in polar solutions of guest molecules; anions, organic chiral molecules, and bio-oligomers are effectively encapsulated by this peptide-folded porous crystal, with moderate to high chiral recognition for chiral molecules.

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BackgroundHigh-density linkage maps facilitate the mapping of target genes and the construction of partial linkage maps around target loci to develop markers for marker-assisted selection (MAS). MAS is quite challenging in conifers because of their large, complex, and poorly-characterized genomes. Our goal was to construct a high-density linkage map to facilitate the identification of markers that are tightly linked to a major recessive male-sterile gene (ms1) for MAS in C. japonica, a species that is important in Japanese afforestation but which causes serious social pollinosis problems.ResultsWe constructed a high-density saturated genetic linkage map for C. japonica using expressed sequence-derived co-dominant single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, most of which were genotyped using the GoldenGate genotyping assay. A total of 1261 markers were assigned to 11 linkage groups with an observed map length of 1405.2 cM and a mean distance between two adjacent markers of 1.1 cM; the number of linkage groups matched the basic chromosome number in C. japonica. Using this map, we located ms1 on the 9th linkage group and constructed a partial linkage map around the ms1 locus. This enabled us to identify a marker (hrmSNP970_sf) that is closely linked to the ms1 gene, being separated from it by only 0.5 cM.ConclusionsUsing the high-density map, we located the ms1 gene on the 9th linkage group and constructed a partial linkage map around the ms1 locus. The map distance between the ms1 gene and the tightly linked marker was only 0.5 cM. The identification of markers that are tightly linked to the ms1 gene will facilitate the early selection of male-sterile trees, which should expedite C. japonica breeding programs aimed at alleviating pollinosis problems without harming productivity.

Pollinosis caused by Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) is a widespread social problem in Japan. To date, 23 male-sterile C. japonica trees have been selected in Japan to address pollinosis, from which four male-sterility loci (MS1, MS2, MS3, and MS4) have been identified from test crossing results. For efficient breeding of male-sterile C. japonica trees, more male-sterile individuals and individuals heterozygous for male-sterile genes are required. Therefore, we aimed to develop DNA markers for marker-assisted selection of four types of male-sterile genes from populations without a family structure. First, for four families exhibiting segregation of each male-sterile locus (MS1, MS2, MS3, and MS4), genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphism and insertion/deletion (indel) genotyping was performed using the Axiom myDesign Targeted Genotyping Array method. Four high-density linkage maps for mapping the MS1, MS2, MS3, and MS4 families were constructed, which included 4923, 1722, 1896, and 2247 markers, respectively. In these maps, 15, 4, 2, and 2 markers were located 0.0, 3.3, 1.1, and 0.0 cM from the MS1, MS2, MS3, and MS4 loci, respectively. Second, for the markers located 0.0 cM from a male-sterile locus (i.e., MS1 and MS4), to clarify the most tightly linked markers, we calculated the prediction rate of male-sterile gene genotypes from marker genotypes for 78 trees. The markers with the highest prediction rates were AX-174127446 (0.95) for MS1 and AX-174121522 (1.00) for MS4. The AX-174121522 marker was considered to be suitable for selecting trees homozygous or heterozygous for the MS4 gene from plus-trees without a pollination test, which requires a large amount of time and effort. The nearest markers to the male-sterile loci found in this study may facilitate the isolation of male-sterile genes in C. japonica via combination with the draft genomic sequence that is currently being collated.

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We examined the antioxidant effects of polyphenol/anthocyanin-rich potato (Solanum tuberosum cv. Shadow-Queen) flakes in male rats fed a highcholesterol diet. The rats were served either a high-cholesterol (0·5 % cholesterol plus 0·125 % sodium cholate) diet, or a high-cholesterol diet containing a mixture of 243 g a-maize starch/kg supplemented with one of the following (per kg diet): 300 g medium purple potato (ShadowQueen), 300 g white potato (Solanum tuberosum cv. Toyoshiro) or 300 g dark purple sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas cv. Ayamurasaki) flakes for 28 d. We analysed thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) levels in the serum and liver, and antioxidant enzyme activities in the liver. At this dosage, TBARS levels in the serum and liver of the Shadow-Queen and Ayamurasaki groups were significantly lower than those in the control and Toyoshiro groups. The serum urate levels in all the flake groups were significantly lower than that in the control group. The hepatic glutathione levels in the Shadow-Queen and Ayamurasaki groups were significantly higher than in the control and Toyoshiro groups. The activities of hepatic glutathione reductase and glutathione S-transferase in the Shadow-Queen and Ayamurasaki groups were significantly greater than those in the control group. These results show that modulation of antioxidant enzymes and oxidative status in the serum and liver by the purple potato flake diet (Shadow-Queen) containing polyphenols/anthocyanins may play an important role in the protection against adverse effects related to oxidative damage in rats fed a high-cholesterol diet.