[1] Better understanding of the role of vegetation in the transport of fluid and pollutants requires improved knowledge of the detailed flow structure within the vegetation. Instead of spatial averaging, this study uses discrete measurements at multiple locations within the canopy to develop velocity and turbulence intensity profiles and observe the changes in the flow characteristics as water travels through a vegetation array simulated by rigid dowels. Velocity data was collected with a one dimensional laser Doppler velocimeter under emergent and submerged flow conditions. The effects of dowel arrangement, density, and roughness were also examined. The results show that the velocity within the vegetation array is constant with depth and the velocity profile is logarithmic above it, however the boundaries are marked by inflection points. The strongest vortices and turbulence intensities can be found there, especially in the region immediately downstream of a dowel. These results support the idea that the flow in the region near the bed and at the top of the dowel array is very unstable leading to the formation of coherent structures and are areas of significant mass and momentum exchange.

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This study investigated the effects of long-term dietary lipids on mature bone mineral content, collagen concentration, crosslink levels, bone marrow and ex vivo prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) biosynthesis, as well as the relationship of PGE2 production to these bone formation parameters. One-month-old male Japanese quail were given a basal diet containing 1 of 4 lipid sources: soybean oil (SBO), hydrogenated soybean oil (HSBO), chicken fat (CF), or menhaden fish oil (FO) at 50 g/kg of the diet. At 8 mo of age, lipid treatments did not affect bone length, diameter, or weight in quail. Quail fed SBO or CF had significantly lower levels of mineral content in tibial bones compared with those given FO. Bone collagen level was significantly higher in quail consuming SBO than those given HSBO or CF. Collagen crosslink concentration was markedly increased in birds provided FO or HSBO compared with those fed SBO or CF. Prostaglandin E2 biosynthesis in bone organ culture and marrow were greatly increased in quail maintained on the SBO or CF diet compared with those given the FO or HSBO diet. Prostaglandin E2 production in the bone microenvironment was negatively correlated with tibial ash and collagen crosslinks but had a positive correlation with tibial collagen levels. These results support our previous findings that long-term exposure to diets high in SBO or CF impaired mature bone mechanical properties and histological characteristics. Further, the results suggest that long-term supplementation of SBO or CF in the diet had a significant adverse effect on mature bone metabolism, and that dietary lipids altered bone metabolism, perhaps partially by controlling the production of local regulatory factor in bone.

The NIAID-funded Biodefense Proteomics Resource Center (RC) provides storage, dissemination, visualization and analysis capabilities for the experimental data deposited by seven Proteomics Research Centers (PRCs). The data and its publication is to support researchers working to discover candidates for the next generation of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics against NIAID's Category A, B and C priority pathogens. The data includes transcriptional profiles, protein profiles, protein structural data and host–pathogen protein interactions, in the context of the pathogen life cycle in vivo and in vitro. The database has stored and supported host or pathogen data derived from Bacillus, Brucella, Cryptosporidium, Salmonella, SARS, Toxoplasma, Vibrio and Yersinia, human tissue libraries, and mouse macrophages. These publicly available data cover diverse data types such as mass spectrometry, yeast two-hybrid (Y2H), gene expression profiles, X-ray and NMR determined protein structures and protein expression clones. The growing database covers over 23 000 unique genes/proteins from different experiments and organisms. All of the genes/proteins are annotated and integrated across experiments using UniProt Knowledgebase (UniProtKB) accession numbers. The web-interface for the database enables searching, querying and downloading at the level of experiment, group and individual gene(s)/protein(s) via UniProtKB accession numbers or protein function keywords. The system is accessible at http://www.proteomicsresource.org/.

This study examined the effects of maternal dietary lipids on fatty acid composition and ex vivo prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) biosynthesis in bone tissues of progeny of Japanese quail. Laying hens were fed a basal diet containing soybean oil (SBO), hydrogenated soybean oil (HSBO), poultry fat (PF), or menhaden fish oil (FO) at 50 g/kg of diet. Fertilized eggs were incubated, and newly hatched quail were used for tibial fatty acid analysis and PGE2 measurement or were fed an identical diet until 2 wk of age. Yolks and tibiae of newly hatched quail from hens fed the SBO diet contained higher levels of total n-6 fatty acids and arachidonic acid [AA; 20:4(n-6)], whereas those from hens consuming the FO diet had increased concentrations of total n-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA; 20:5(n-3)], docosapentaenoic acid [22:5(n-3)], docosahexaenoic acid [DHA; 22:6(n-3)], and total saturated fatty acids (SAT) but greatly reduced amounts of AA in egg yolks and tibiae. The maternal diet containing HSBO resulted in the accumulation of trans 18:1 egg yolks and tibiae of newly hatched quails. At 1 wk of age, the concentrations of EPA, DHA, and trans 18:1 in tibiae still reflected the maternal dietary fatty acid profile. At 2 wk of age, however, differences in fatty acid composition between treatments had disappeared. Addition of FO or HSBO to the maternal diet significantly lowered the ex vivo PGE2 production of tibiae in newly hatched quail compared to those from hens fed SBO or PF diet. These results suggest that maternal dietary lipids may have the potential to influence bone metabolism of embryos by modifying the fatty acid composition of this tissue.

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Prediabetes is a condition affecting 35% of US adults and about 50% of US adults age 65+. Foods rich in polyphenols, including flavanols and other flavonoids, have been studied for their putative beneficial effects on many different health conditions including type 2 diabetes mellitus and prediabetes. Studies have shown that some flavanols increase glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) secretion. GLP-1 is a feeding hormone that increases insulin secretion after carbohydrate consumption, and increased GLP-1 secretion may be responsible for some of the beneficial effects on glycemic control after flavanol consumption. The present study explored the effects of grape powder consumption on metrics of glycemic health in normoglycemic and prediabetic C57BL/6J mice; additionally, the mechanism of action of grape powder polyphenols was investigated. Grape powder significantly reduced (p < 0.01) blood glucose levels following oral glucose gavage after GLP-1 receptor antagonism by exendin-3 (9-39) compared to sugar-matched control, indicating that it was able to attenuate the hyperglycemic effects of GLP-1 receptor antagonism. Grape powder was employed in acute (1.6 g grape powder per kg bodyweight) and long-term high fat diet (grape powder incorporated into treatment diets at 5% w/w) feeding studies in normoglycemic and prediabetic (diet-induced obesity) mice; grape powder did not impove glycemic control in these studies versus sugar-matched control. The mechanisms by which grape powder ameliorates the deleterious effects of GLP-1 receptor antagonism warrant further study.