Gut

Faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is an important therapeutic option for Clostridium difficile infection. Promising findings suggest that FMT may play a role also in the management of other disorders associated with the alteration of gut microbiota. Although the health community is assessing FMT with renewed interest and patients are becoming more aware, there are technical and logistical issues in establishing such a non-standardised treatment into the clinical practice with safety and proper governance. In view of this, an evidence-based recommendation is needed to drive the practical implementation of FMT. In this European Consensus Conference, 28 experts from 10 countries collaborated, in separate working groups and through an evidence-based process, to provide statements on the following key issues: FMT indications; donor selection; preparation of faecal material; clinical management and faecal delivery and basic requirements for implementing an FMT centre. Statements dev...

The commensal microbiota, host immunity and metabolism participate in a signalling network, with diet influencing each component of this triad. In addition to diet, many elements of a modern lifestyle influence the gut microbiota but the degree to which exercise affects this population is unclear. Therefore, we explored exercise and diet for their impact on the gut microbiota. Since extremes of exercise often accompany extremes of diet, we addressed the issue by studying professional athletes from an international rugby union squad. Two groups were included to control for physical size, age and gender. Compositional analysis of the microbiota was explored by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Each participant completed a detailed food frequency questionnaire. As expected, athletes and controls differed significantly with respect to plasma creatine kinase (a marker of extreme exercise), and inflammatory and metabolic markers. More importantly, athletes had a higher diversity of gut micro-...

Decreased gut microbial gene richness (MGR) and compositional changes are associated with adverse metabolism in overweight or moderate obesity, but lack characterisation in severe obesity. Bariatric surgery (BS) improves metabolism and inflammation in severe obesity and is associated with gut microbiota modifications. Here, we characterised severe obesity-associated dysbiosis (ie, MGR, microbiota composition and functional characteristics) and assessed whether BS would rescue these changes. Sixty-one severely obese subjects, candidates for adjustable gastric banding (AGB, n=20) or Roux-en-Y-gastric bypass (RYGB, n=41), were enrolled. Twenty-four subjects were followed at 1, 3 and 12 months post-BS. Gut microbiota and serum metabolome were analysed using shotgun metagenomics and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Confirmation groups were included. Low gene richness (LGC) was present in 75% of patients and correlated with increased trunk-fat mass and comorbidities (type ...

Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are the principal forms of inflammatory bowel disease. Both represent chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, which displays heterogeneity in inflammatory and symptomatic burden between patients and within individuals over time. Optimal management relies on understanding and tailoring evidence-based interventions by clinicians in partnership with patients. This guideline for management of inflammatory bowel disease in adults over 16 years of age was developed by Stakeholders representing UK physicians (British Society of Gastroenterology), surgeons (Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland), specialist nurses (Royal College of Nursing), paediatricians (British Society of Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition), dietitians (British Dietetic Association), radiologists (British Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology), general practitioners (Primary Care Society for Gastroenterology) and pat...

This is the third of six proposed papers to appear in  GED.  Since SRT can be understood in quaternions, a 4 spin phase wave in Quaternion space is proposed to explain the complex quaternions that Furey uses to elucidate her use of Octonions to predict the standard model. At present this paper reconciles Quantum with General relativity as it Predicts G from the creation of the particulate that likely forms the basic matter substrate from which all the particles in the Standard model will flow. The DSM model predicts ALL the forces as a product of the the Centripetal force of the spinning particulate and the last force will be reconciled when the phase wave from Quaternion space to Octonion space is described mechanically.  Note that the editor presents a matrix explanation of how these Quaternion spins manifest themselves in Octonion space by implementing a multi dimensional expansion to the Pauli matrices to arrive at the Octonion representation of Pauli in hypercomplex space. Please note that the version submitted to the Siberian Math conference listed below was submitted with the equation which ultimately predicts G as a compression of physical space (where a Planck length is a unitless compression factor of True Free Space (TFS)  in THE Universe to create massive particles in OUR Universe) as this variable density piece of string mutates into the particles we currently embrace in Standard model. GED has chosen to elucidate this in an up coming paper.

The stomach is traditionally regarded as a hollow muscular sac that initiates the second phase of digestion. Yet this simple view ignores the fact that it is the most sophisticated endocrine organ with unique physiology, biochemistry, immunology and microbiology. All ingested materials, including our nutrition, have to negotiate this organ first, and as such, the stomach is arguably the most important segment within the GI tract. The unique biological function of gastric acid secretion not only initiates the digestive process but also acts as a first line of defence against food-borne microbes. Normal gastric physiology and morphology may be disrupted by Helicobacter pylori infection, the most common chronic bacterial infection in the world and the aetiological agent for most peptic ulcers and gastric cancer. In this state-of-the-art review, the most relevant new aspects of the stomach in health and disease are addressed. Topics include gastric physiology and the role of gastric dys...

When tryptophan is taken up by the body, some is used for the synthesis of sero-tonin. As well as having neuroregulatory effects, serotonin is also the precursor for the synthesis of N-acetylserotonin (NAS) and melatonin, which form the melatonergic pathways. The melatonergic pathways are associated with many of the changes that are thought to be important in the pathophysi-ology of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, and major depressive disorder. As well as being produced by the pineal gland at night, and thereby contributing to the circadian rhythm, melatonin is also very highly produced in other organs and tissues, including the gut, where CONTENTS