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Strontium (Sr) is an element naturally present in the human skeleton and is acquired through dietary means. Exposure to strontium has been linked to both harmful and beneficial effects on skeletal health. Recently, the administration of strontium has been shown to induce a therapeutic effect of increasing bone strength and bone mineral density in women suffering from post-menopausal osteoporosis. The advent of this new therapy has warranted the continued development of an energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) system that may be used as a diagnostic tool for non-invasive measuring and monitoring of in vivo bone strontium levels. This device is currently housed at McMaster University and has been previously optimized to measure bone strontium in vivo. One shortcoming with this system is the inability to quantify absolute amounts of bone strontium in vivo due to Sr x-ray absorption by soft-tissue overlying bone. This work describes an attempt to examine several imaging modalities to determine which modality may provide overlying tissue thickness readings with an acceptable range of accuracy to correct for Sr x-ray absorption. A performance comparison between magnetic resonance imaging, x-ray computed tomography, 8, 25 and 55 MHz ultrasound, in estimating the tissue thickness of seven cadaver fingers, illustrated that 55 MHz ultrasound provided a superior range of accuracy at 3.2%. It further indicated that the currently used 8 MHz ultrasound may be used to accurately estimate tissue thickness, though with a diminished accuracy of 6.6%. EDXRF measurements were performed on cadaver fingers ex vivo. Analysis of results indicated that quantification might be achieved if signals are normalizated to the 35 keV coherent scatter peak and correction of both soft-tissue absorption of Sr x-rays and differences in 125I excitation source activity are carried out. Four EDXRF measurements were performed on a strontium citrate supplemented individual starting six months after Sr medicating had begun. Analysis of strontium levels revealed that bone strontium was already at a plateau by the first measurement and that these levels did not change in the 6 months following. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

In this thesis, we describe the development of a method to delete and to clone specific large regions from the 1700 kilobase pExo megaplasmid of Rhizobium meliloti. In principal, the region to be cloned is flanked by FRT sites, which direct site specific recombination by the Flp recombinase. Targeting constructs were designed to include part of the IS50 from Tn5, the FRT site, an origin of transfer (oriT), and a replication origin from RK2 or the F plasmid. These constructs were directed to known Tn5-derivative insertion sites in the pExo megaplasmid. A plasmid which expresses the Flp recombinase constitutively in R. meliloti was made, and the transfer of this plasmid to FRT-flanked megaplasmid regions was shown to result in the deletion of the intervening DNA. We demonstrated that the pExo megaplasmid DNA regions could be captured in Escherichia coli, however in this case, the megaplasmid excision event appears to be directed by the oriT sites rather than the FRT sites. We present strong evidence that a specific 50 kb region contains the oriV of the pExo megaplasmid; R. meliloti strains deleted for this region could not be isolated, and this region was found to replicate autonomously in Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Preliminary sequence analysis has revealed strong homology within this region to genes encoding the RepABC replication proteins of several Rhizobium and Agrobacterium plasmids. / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

Advances in time-lapse 3D in vivo fluorescence microscopic imaging techniques enables the observation and investigation into the migration of Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) and its role in the central nervous system. However, current practice of image-based OPC motility analysis heavily relies on manual labeling and tracking on 2D max projection of the 3D data, which suffers from massive human labor, subjective biases, weak reproducibility and especially information loss and distortion. Besides, due to the lack of OPC specific genetically encoded indicator, OPCs can only be identified from other oligodendrocyte lineage cells by their observed motion patterns. Automated analytical tools are needed for the identification and tracking of OPCs. In this dissertation work, we proposed an analytical framework, MicTracker (Migrating Cell Tracker), for the integrated task of identifying, segmenting and tracking migrating cells (OPCs) from in vivo time-lapse fluorescence imaging data of high-density cell clusters composed of cells with different modes of motions. As a component of the framework, we presented a novel strategy for cell segmentation with global temporal consistency enforced, tackling the challenges caused by highly clustered cell population and temporally inconsistently blurred boundaries between touching cells. We also designed a data association algorithm to address the violation of usual assumption of small displacements. Recognizing that the violation was in the mixed cell population composed of two cell groups while the assumption held within each group, we proposed to solve the seemingly impossible mission by de-mixing the two groups of cell motion modes without known labels. We demonstrated the effectiveness of MicTracker in solving our problem on in vivo real data. / Doctor of Philosophy / Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) are a type of motile cells in the central nervous system (CNS). OPCs' migration plays a critical role in the repair and re-distribution of myelin sheaths, a structures that helps to accelerate the transmission of electrical signals from neuron to neuron. But the mechanism behind the motility of OPCs is largely unclear. In recent years, advances in genetic fluorescence indicators and time-lapse optical microscopic imaging techniques, especially 3D in vivo imaging, enables neuroscientists to investigate into the puzzle. However, current practice of OPC motility analysis heavily relies on compressing the 3D data into 2D then manually tracking the OPCs, which suffers from not only massive human labor, subjective biases, weak reproducibility and especially information loss and distortion. Automated analytical tools are needed. Due to the limitation of current techniques in fluorescent labeling of cells in live animals, OPCs cannot be distinctively labeled. Instead, in the field of view there are also other irrelevant cells that cannot migrate but locally vibrate. Therefore, the human analyzer or the analytical software is supposed to detect OPCs from a cluster of touching cells containing multiple types of cells by their motion patterns only. In this dissertation, we presented a fully automatic machine learning based algorithm, MicTracker (Migrating Cell Tracker), to identify and track migrating OPCs. The task cannot be straightforwardly solved by existing generic-purpose cell tracking tools due to quite a few special challenges. To tackle the challenges, we also proposed novel methods for two major modules of MicTracker, segmentation and linking, respectively. We demonstrated the effectiveness of MicTracker and its components on real data and compared it with related existing works. The results of experiments showed notable superiority of MicTracker in solving our problem, compared with existing methods.

The health impact of iron (Fe) deficiency or excess on the human body can be severe. Existing clinical methods for assessing body Fe levels have limitations. This thesis focuses on the potential of measuring skin Fe concentrations using X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) to assess body Fe levels. A portable XRF instrument based on a silicon drift detector has been developed. The instrument was calibrated using water-based phantoms, achieving a minimum detection limit of 1.35 ± 0.35 ppm (Fe) with a measurement time of 1800 s and a radiation dose of 1.1 ± 0.1 mSv to the skin surface. The system accuracy was tested by measuring the skin Fe concentrations in 10 pig skin samples that were not loaded with Fe. The measured pig skin Fe ranged from approximately 8 to 14 ppm with an average value of 11 ppm. The XRF measurements were found to compare well with the results from Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectroscopy (ICP-MS) analysis of the same skin samples. The mean difference between the Fe levels as assessed by XRF and ICP-MS was not significant, measuring at 2.5 ± 4.6 ppm. Synchrotron µXRF mapping of 25 μm thick pig skin sections at a spatial resolution of 20 µm revealed Fe ‘hot spots’ through the skin, predominantly in the dermis, that were attributed to small blood vessels. The synchrotron map also showed that the Fe distribution in the skin peaks near the outer skin surface. Measurements by the system of this skin distribution were modelled using the Monte Carlo code EGS5 and indicated that if a highly elevated Fe layer is present at the surface, correction factors may be necessary for accurate estimation of skin surface Fe levels by the XRF system. The performance of the system was tested using rat skin samples obtained from animals dosed in vivo with varying amounts of Fe. The system was able to distinguish between skin samples from normal rats and rats dosed with 80 mg Fe2+ and between rats dosed with 80 mg Fe2+ and 160 mg Fe2+ (p = 0.001 and p=0.002, respectively). The instrument also exhibited a significant linear relationship between the measured rat skin Fe concentration and rat Fe dose (R2 = 0.84, p < 0.0001). Furthermore, the measurements were validated against a laboratory XRF system, a bulk tissue measurement system (R2 = 0.85, p < 0.0001). Overall, the work in this thesis highlights the promise of using portable XRF for precise and non-intrusive measurement of skin Fe levels in both Fe overload and Fe deficiency conditions. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

[ES] Esta tesis aborda la caracterización y posible utilización de la goma de alholva (Trigonella foenum-graecum) (FSG, por sus siglas en inglés) en la nutrición de gazapos durante el período posterior al destete como una alternativa al uso de antimicrobianos, centrándose en el comportamiento de la goma extraída con diferentes niveles de fibra dietaria, tanto in vitro como in vivo. En el primer experimento, a partir de una dieta basal comercial de conejo, se formularon tres dietas experimentales con niveles graduales de inclusión de FSG (0, 0.25, 0.50%) administrados a tres grupos de conejos desde el destete a los 31 días hasta el sacrificio a los 94 días. Se estudió el efecto de las dietas experimentales sobre la digestibilidad fecal en dos edades (38-41 días y 56-59 días), además de los parámetros de fermentación cecal al final del experimento. Por otro lado, a partir de la misma dieta comercial de conejo, se formularon cinco dietas experimentales que contenían 0. 0.125, 0.25, 0.50 y 100% de FSG, que se sometieron a incubación in vitro con inóculo cecal de conejo durante 72 h. Se midieron la producción de gas y las variables de fermentación. La digestibilidad fecal aparente y los parámetros de fermentación cecal no se vieron afectados significativamente por la inclusión in vivo de FSG hasta 0.5%. Sin embargo, los animales alimentados con FSG mostraron valores de pH cecal más bajos. La inclusión gradual en la dieta de FSG aumentó la concentración in vitro de ácidos grasos volátiles (VFA, por sus siglas en inglés), mientras que el FSG puro aumentó la producción asintótica de gas y la tasa máxima de degradación del sustrato y disminuyó el tiempo de incubación en el que se forma la mitad de la cantidad asintótica de gas. La incubación in vitro de FSG puro disminuyó el valor del pH, la concentración de ácido láctico y la concentración de N-NH3, y aumentó la de VFA. En el segundo experimento, el FSG se caracterizó para determinar su composición química, su contenido de galactosa y manosa y su potencial como prebiótico. Se evaluaron tanto FSG puro como niveles graduales (0, 5, 10, 15 y 20 g/kg) incluidos en dietas ricas en fibra soluble (SF, por sus siglas en inglés) de pulpa de remolacha (incluida al 10%) y dietas ricas en fibra insoluble (IF, por sus siglas en ingles) de semilla de uva desengrasada (incluida al 10%). Se sometieron a digestión enzimática con pepsina y pancreatina y luego sus fracciones indigestibles se sometieron a fermentación usando inóculo cecal. Se midieron las fracciones no digestibles después de la digestión enzimática, así como las fracciones no fermentables y las variables de fermentación después del tiempo de incubación (48 h). La FSG se compone principalmente de galactosa y manosa (630 g/kg) en una proporción de 1: 1 y un nivel moderado de proteínas (223 g/kg). El FSG puro se vio poco afectado por la digestión enzimática, ya que solo se disolvieron 145 g/kg. Sin embargo, desapareció casi por completo (984 g/kg) durante el proceso de fermentación. En consecuencia, FSG aumentó la concentración de VFA, disminuyó el valor de pH y la concentración de N-NH3. La inclusión gradual de FSG en las dietas de conejos afectó la digestión de algunos nutrientes, como las fracciones fibrosas, el almidón y las proteínas, además de aumentar la fracción fermentada en la dieta SF, pero sin ningún efecto relevante en el perfil de fermentación. En el tercer experimento, se formularon cuatro dietas de acuerdo con un diseño factorial 2 x 2: una dieta convencional de conejo (C), la misma dieta C suplementada con 10 g / kg de FSG, una dieta de bajo riesgo (LR, por sus siglas en inglés) y la misma dieta LR suplementada con 10 g/kg de FSG. Las dietas C y LR se diferenciaban en el nivel de SF y proteína bruta (CP, por sus siglas en inglés) (104 vs 205 y 156 vs 121 g/kg de SF y CP respectivamente para dietas C y LR). Doscientos dieciséis conejos de la línea LP se alojaron en jaulas individuales, se dividieron aleatoriamente entre los cuatro tratamientos y se les permitió el libre acceso al alimento y al agua. La mortalidad, la morbilidad, el índice de riesgo sanitario (HRi, por sus siglas en inglés), la ingestión diaria de pienso (DFI, por sus siglas en inglés), la ganancia media diaria (ADG, por sus siglas en inglés) y el índice de conversión alimenticia (FCR, por sus siglas en inglés) se controlaron hasta los 63 días de edad. El coeficiente de digestibilidad aparente total del tracto digestivo (CTTAD, por sus siglas en inglés) de los nutrientes se determinó en doce conejos por tratamiento, entre los 49 y 53 días de edad y finalmente se midió el ambiente cecal a los 63 días de edad. La inclusión de FSG en la dieta a 10 g/kg de alimento no afectó al rendimiento durante el cebo ni al CTTAD de los nutrientes, pero aumentó ligeramente la digestibilidad de la fibra neutrodetergente (NDF, por sus siglas en inglés) y la fibra ácido-detergente (ADF, por sus siglas en inglés) en las dietas C. Del mismo modo, los parámetros cecales no se vieron afectados por la inclusión de FSG, excepto la concentración de ácido caproico en las dietas C. Sin embargo, las dietas LR disminuyeron la mortalidad, HRi, DFI, ADG y CTTAD de materia orgánica y CP pero aumentaron FCR y CTTAD de NDF y ADF con respecto a las dietas C. Además, las dietas LR aumentaron la concentración de VFA, la proporción de ácido acético, isobutírico e isovalérico mientras que disminuyeron la materia seca del contenido cecal, NNH3 y la proporción de ácidos butírico, caproico y valérico. En resumen, la FSG responde perfectamente a las dos primeras condiciones para ser un prebiótico, ya que no es digestible por las enzimas gastrointestinales antes del ciego y es altamente fermentado una vez que alcanza el ciego. Parece afectar selectivamente a la microbiota cecal debido a su efecto sobre la concentración de VFA y N-NH3, además de su efecto sobre la proporción de caproico y valérico en dietas convencionales. FSG podría aumentar la viscosidad de la digesta limitando la solubilización de algunos nutrientes como el almidón y la proteína. FSG parece ser más efectivo en dietas comerciales convencionales que en dietas de bajo riesgo. Finalmente, se confirmó que las dietas con alto nivel de SF y bajo de CP podrían ser una buena herramienta contra la enteropatía epizoótica del conejo (ERE, por sus siglas en inglés) en un sistema de producción no medicado, a costa de peores parámetros de crecimiento. / [EN] This thesis tackles the possible characterisation and utilisation of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) seed gum (FSG) in the nutrition of young rabbits during the post-weaning period as an alternative to antimicrobials uses. The study was focussed on the behaviour of the extracted gum with different dietary fibre levels, both in vitro and in vivo. In a first trial, starting from a basal commercial rabbit diet, three experimental diets were formulated with gradual levels of inclusion of FSG (0, 0.25, 0.50 %) given to three groups of rabbits starting from weaning at 31 days old to slaughter 94 days old. The effect of the experimental diets was studied on the faecal digestibility of the diet in two ages (38-41 days and 56-59days) and on the caecal fermentation parameters at the end of the experiment. On the other hand, starting from the same commercial rabbit diet five experimental diets were formulated containing 0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.50 and 100% of FSG that were submitted to in vitro incubation with rabbit caecal inoculum during 72h. Gas production and fermentation traits were measured. Apparent faecal digestibility and caecal fermentation parameters were not significantly affected by the in vivo inclusion of FSG up to 0.5%. However, animals fed with FSG showed lower caecal pH values. Gradual dietary inclusion of FSG increased in vitro concentration of volatile fatty acids (VFA), while pure FSG increased the asymptotic gas production and the maximum substrate degradation rate and decreased the time after incubation at which half of the asymptotic amount of gas is formed. In vitro incubation of pure FSG decreased pH value, lactic acid concentration and N-NH3 concentration and increased that of VFA. In a second trial, FSG was characterised determining its chemical composition, galactose and mannose content and prebiotic potential. Pure FSG and gradual levels of FSG (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 g/kg), included both in diets rich in soluble fibre (SF) from beet pulp (included at 10%) or in diets rich in insoluble fibre (IF) from defatted grape seeds (included at 10 %), were evaluated. They were submitted to enzymatic digestion with pepsin and pancreatin and then their indigestible fractions were submitted to fermentation using caecal inoculum. The indigestible fractions after enzymatic digestion were measured, as well as the nonfermentable fractions and the fermentation traits after incubation time (48 h). FSG was mostly composed of galactose and mannose (630 g/kg) in 1:1 ratio and a moderate protein level (223 g/kg). Pure FSG was weakly affected by enzymatic digestion, only 145 g/kg was dissolved. However, it was almost entirely disappeared (984 g/kg) during the fermentation process. Consequently, FSG increased VFA concentration and decreased both pH value and N-NH3 concentration. Th gradual inclusion of FSG in rabbit’s diets affected some nutrients digestion such as the fibre fractions, starch and protein, besides to increase the fermentation fraction in SF diet but without any relevant effect on the fermentation profile. In a last third trial, four diets were formulated according to 2 x 2 factorial design: a conventional rabbit diet (C), the same C diet supplemented by 10 g/kg of FSG, a low-risk diet (LR), and the same LR diet supplemented by 10 g/kg of FSG. C and LR diets differed in SF and crude protein levels (CP) (104 vs 205 and 156 vs 121 g/kg of SF and CP respectively for C and LR diets). Two hundred and sixteen weaned rabbits (28 days of age) of the LP line were allocated in individual cages and divided randomly between the four treatments and allowed free access to feed and water. Mortality, morbidity, health risk index (HRi), daily feed intake (DFI), average daily gain (ADG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were controlled until 63 days of age. Coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) of nutrients, on twelve rabbits per treatment, was determined from 49 to 53 days of age and finally, caecal environment was measured at 63 days of age. FSG dietary inclusion at 10 g/kg did not affect performance or CTTAD of nutrients but did slightly increased neutral-detergent fibre (NDF) and acid-detergent fibre (ADF) digestibility in C diets. Similarly, caecal parameters were not affected by FSG except caproic acid concentration in C diets. Nevertheless, LR diets decreased mortality, HRi, DFI, ADG and CTTAD of organic matter and CP but increased FCR and CTTAD of NDF and ADF respect to C diets. Moreover, LR diets increased VFA concentration, the proportion of acetic, isobutyric and isovaleric while decreased the dry matter of the caecal content, N-NH3 and the proportion of butyric, caproic and valeric acids. To summarise, FSG perfectly responds to the two first conditions to be prebiotic, being not digestible by gastrointestinal enzymes before the caecum and highly fermented once reached the caecum. It seems to affect selectively caecal microbiota due to its effect on VFA and N-NH3 concentration besides to its effect on caproic and valeric proportions in conventional diets. FSG could increase viscosity of digesta limiting the solubilisation of some nutrients such starch and protein. FSG seems to be more effective in conventional commercial diets than in low-risk diets. Finally, it was confirmed that diets with high SF level and low CP could be a good tool against epizootic rabbit enteropathy (ERE) in a nomedicated breeding system at the cost of impaired growth parameters. / [CA] Aquesta tesi aborda la caracterització i possible utilització de la goma de fenigrec (Trigonella foenum-graecum) (FSG, per les sigles en anglès) en la nutrició del conills durant el període posterior al deslletament com una alternativa a l'ús d'antimicrobians, centrant-se en el comportament de la goma extreta amb diferents nivells de fibra dietària, tant in vitro com in vivo. En el primer experiment, a partir d'una dieta basal comercial de conill, es van formular tres dietes experimentals amb nivells graduals d'inclusió de FSG (0, 0.25, 0.50%) administrats a tres grups de conills des del deslletament als 31 dies fins al sacrifici als 94 dies. Es va estudiar l'efecte de les dietes experimentals sobre la digestibilitat fecal en dues edats (38-41 dies i 56-59 dies), a més dels paràmetres de fermentació cecal a la fi de l'experiment. D'altra banda, a partir de la mateixa dieta comercial de conill, es van formular cinq dietes experimentals que contenien 0. 0.125, 0.25, 0,50 i 100% de FSG, que es van sotmetre a incubació in vitro amb inòcul cecal de conill durant 72 h. Es van mesurar la producció de gas i les variables de fermentació. La digestibilitat fecal aparent i els paràmetres de fermentació cecal no es van veure afectats significativament per la inclusió in vivo de FSG fins a 0.5%. No obstant això, els animals alimentats amb FSG van mostrar valors de pH cecal més baixos. La inclusió gradual en la dieta de FSG va augmentar la concentració in vitro d'àcids grassos volàtils (VFA, per les sigles en anglès), mentre que el FSG pur va augmentar la producció asimptòtica de gas i la taxa màxima de degradació del substrat i va disminuir el temps d'incubació en el qual es forma la meitat de la quantitat asimptòtica de gas. La incubació in vitro d'FSG pur va disminuir el valor del pH, la concentració d'àcid làctic i la concentració de N-NH3, i va augmentar la de VFA. En el segon experiment, el FSG es va caracteritzar per determinar la seva composició química, el seu contingut de galactosa i manosa i el seu potencial com prebiòtic. Es van avaluar tant FSG pur com nivells graduals (0, 5, 10, 15 i 20 g/kg) inclosos en dietes riques en fibra soluble (SF, per les sigles en anglès) de polpa de remolatxa (inclosa al 10%) i dietes riques en fibra insoluble (IF, per les sigles en anglès) de llavor de raïm desgreixada (inclosa al 10%). Es van sotmetre a digestió enzimàtica amb pepsina i pancreatina i després les fraccions indigeribles es van sotmetre a fermentació usant inòcul cecal. Es van mesurar les fraccions no digestibles després de la digestió enzimàtica, així com les fraccions no fermentables i les variables de fermentació després del temps d'incubació (48 h). La FSG es compon principalment de galactosa i manosa (630 g/kg) en una proporció de 1: 1 i un nivell moderat de proteïnes (223 g/kg). El FSG pur es va veure poc afectat per la digestió enzimàtica, ja que només es van dissoldre 145 g/kg. No obstant això, va desaparèixer gairebé del tot (984 g/kg) durant el procés de fermentació. En conseqüència, FSG va augmentar la concentració de VFA, va disminuir el valor de pH i la concentració de N-NH3. La inclusió gradual de FSG en les dietes de conills va afectar la digestió d'alguns nutrients, com les fraccions fibroses, el midó i les proteïnes, a més d'augmentar la fracció fermentada en la dieta SF, però sense cap efecte rellevant en el perfil de fermentació. En el tercer experiment, es van formular quatre dietes d'acord amb un disseny factorial 2 x 2: una dieta convencional de conill (C), la mateixa dieta C suplementada amb 10 g/kg de FSG, una dieta de baix risc (LR, per les sigles en anglès) i la mateixa dieta LR suplementada amb 10 g/kg de FSG. Les dietes C i LR es diferenciaven en el nivell de SF i proteïna bruta (CP, per les sigles en anglès) (104 vs 205 i 156 vs 121 g/kg de SF i CP respectivament per a dietes C i LR). Doscents setze conills de la línia LP es van allotjar en gàbies individuals, es van dividir aleatòriament entre els quatre tractaments i se'ls va permetre el lliure accés a l'aliment i a l'aigua. La mortalitat, la morbiditat, l'índex de risc sanitari (HRi, per les sigles en anglès), la ingestió diària de pinso (DFI, per les sigles en anglès), el guany mitjá diari (ADG, per les sigles en anglès) i l'índex de conversió alimentària (FCR, per les sigles en anglès) es van controlar fins als 63 dies d'edat. El coeficient de digestibilitat aparent total del tracte digestiu (CTTAD, per les sigles en anglès) dels nutrients es va determinar en dotze conills per tractament, entre els 49 i 53 dies d'edat i finalment es va mesurar l'ambient cecal als 63 dies d'edat. La inclusió de FSG en la dieta a 10 g/kg d'aliment no va afectar el rendiment durant l'engreix ni el CTTAD dels nutrients, però va augmentar lleugerament la digestibilitat de la fibra neutre-detergent (NDF, per les sigles en anglès) i la fibra àcid-detergent (ADF, per les sigles en anglès) en les dietes C. De la mateixa manera, els paràmetres cecals no es van veure afectats per la inclusió de FSG, excepte la concentració d'àcid caproic en les dietes C. No obstant això, les dietes LR van disminuir la mortalitat, HRi, DFI, ADG i CTTAD de matèria orgànica i CP però van augmentar FCR i CTTAD de NDF i ADF pel que fa a les dietes C. A més, les dietes LR van augmentar la concentració de VFA, la proporció d'àcid acètic, isobutíric i isovalèric mentre que van disminuir la matèria seca del contingut cecal, N-NH3 i la proporció d'àcids butíric, caproic i valéric. En resum, la FSG respon perfectament a les dues primeres condicions per ser un prebiòtic, ja que no és digestible pels enzims gastrointestinals abans del cec i és altament fermentat un cop que arriba al cec. Sembla afectar selectivament a la microbiota cecal pel seu efecte sobre la concentració de VFA i N-NH3, a més del seu efecte sobre la proporció de caproic i valéric en dietes convencionals. FSG podria augmentar la viscositat de la digesta limitant la solubilització d'alguns nutrients com el midó i la proteïna. FSG sembla ser més efectiu en dietes comercials convencionals que en dietes de baix risc. Finalment, es va confirmar que les dietes amb alt nivell de SF i baix de CP podrien ser una bona eina contra la enteropatia epizoòtica del conill (ERE, per les sigles en anglès) en un sistema de producció no medicat, a costa d'pitjors paràmetres de creixement. / Jihed, Z. (2020). In vitro and in vivo characterization of galactomannanes extracted from fenugreek seeds (Trigonella foenum-graecum) for young rabbit nutrition [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/153714

Yes / In the study of microbial keratitis, in vivo animal models often require a large number of animals, and in vitro monolayer cell culture does not maintain the three-dimensional structure of the tissues or cell-to-cell communication of in vivo models. Here, we propose reproducible ex vivo models of single- and dual-infection keratitis as an alternative to in vivo and in vitro models. / Wellcome Trust

Yes / Understanding skin metabolism is key to improve in vitro to in vivo extrapolations used to inform risk assessments of topically applied products. However, published literature is scarce and usually covers a limited and non-representative number of donors. We developed a protocol to handle and store ex vivo skin samples post-surgery and prepare skin S9 fractions to measure the metabolic activity of Phase II enzymes. Preincubation of an excess of cofactors at 37 °C for fifteen minutes in the S9 before introduction of the testing probe, greatly increased the stability of the enzymes. Using this standardised assay, the rates of sulphation (SULT) and glucuronidation (UGT) of 7-hydroxycoumarin, methylation (COMT) of dopamine and N-acetylation (NAT) of procainamide were measured in the ng/mg protein/h (converted to ng/cm2/h) range in eighty-seven individuals. Glutathione conjugation (GST) of 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene was assessed in a smaller pool of fifty donors; the metabolic rate was much faster and measured over six minutes using a different methodology to express rates in μg/mg protein/min (converted to μg/cm2/min). A comprehensive statistical analysis of these results was carried out, separating donors by age, gender and metabolic rate measured.