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To assess the effect of rice bran oil emulsified formulation (EMF) on cooked rice, a single-arm open clinical trial and in vitro testing for digestion and glycemic response were performed. Fifteen Japanese men consumed 200 g of packed rice, cooked with or without EMF. Blood samples were collected 0, 30, 60, and 120 min post-consumption and analyzed for glucose, insulin, and triglyceride levels. Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) and sensory evaluation were also performed. A two-step in vitro digestion test, simulating gastric and small intestinal digestion was conducted. EMF-added rice group showed higher insulin response levels at 60 min than the placebo group. Stratification of participants with HbA1c ≥ 5.6 or an insulinogenic index ≤ 0.4 revealed a significant reduction in Cmax glucose levels. A significant correlation was observed between venous and CGM blood glucose levels and no significant sensory differences were observed. The in vitro test revealed significantly lower C∞, equilibrium starch concentrations, with EMF. Clinical trial suggests that EMF may stimulate insulin secretion and reduce blood glucose levels in participants with lower insulin responses. In vitro tests suggest that EMF inhibits glycemic digestion. This trial was registered at the UMIN Center (UMIN000053495; registered 31 January 2024). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in the subcellular localisation of chloroplasts help optimise photosynthetic activity under different environmental conditions. In many plants, this movement is mediated by the blue‐light photoreceptor phototropin. A model organism with simple phototropin signalling that allows clear observation of chloroplasts would facilitate the study of chloroplast relocation movement. Here, we examined this process in the simple thalloid liverwort Apopellia endiviifolia. Transverse sections of the thallus tissue showed uniformly developed chloroplasts and no air chambers; these characteristics enable clear observation of chloroplasts and analysis of their movements under a fluorescence stereomicroscope. At 22°C, the chloroplasts moved to the anticlinal walls of cells next to the neighbouring cells in the dark (dark‐positioning response), whereas they moved towards weak light (accumulation response) and away from strong light (avoidance response). When the temperature was reduced to 5°C, the chloroplasts moved away from weak light (cold‐avoidance response). Hence, both light‐ and temperature‐dependent chloroplast relocation movements occur in A. endiviifolia. Notably, the accumulation, avoidance and cold‐avoidance responses were induced under blue‐light but not under red‐light. These results suggest that phototropin is responsible for chloroplast relocation movement in A. endiviifolia and that the characteristics are similar to those in the model liverwort Marchantia polymorpha. RNA sequencing and Southern blot analysis identified a single copy of the PHOTOTROPIN gene in A. endiviifolia, indicating that a simple phototropin signalling pathway functions in A. endiviifolia. We conclude that A. endiviifolia has great potential as a model system for elucidating the mechanisms of chloroplast relocation movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malodorous emissions are a crucial and inevitable issue during the decomposition of biological waste and contain a high concentration of ammonia. Biofiltration technology is a feasible, low-cost, energy-saving method that reduces and eliminates malodors without environmental impact. In the present study, we evaluated the effectiveness of compost from cattle manure and food waste as deodorizing media based on their removal of ammonia and the expression of ammonia-oxidizing genes, and identified the bacterial and archaeal communities in these media. Ammonia was removed by cattle manure compost, but not by food waste compost. The next-generation sequencing of 16S ribosomal RNA obtained from cattle manure compost revealed the presence of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), including Cytophagia, Alphaproteobacteria, and Gammaproteobacteria, and ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA), such as Thaumarchaeota. In cattle manure compost, the bacterial and archaeal ammonia monooxygenase A (amoA) genes were both up-regulated after exposure to ammonia (fold ratio of 14.2±11.8 after/before), and the bacterial and archaeal communities were more homologous after than before exposure to ammonia, which indicates the adaptation of these communities to ammonia. These results suggest the potential of cattle manure compost as an efficient biological deodorization medium due to the activation of ammonia-oxidizing microbes, such as AOB and AOA, and the up-regulation of their amoA genes.