Namita Rokana

Background: The effect of two adjunct cultures (Lacticaseibacillus casei and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum) on quality parameters of goat milk white brined cheese (GM-WBC) was investigated during ripening. Methods: Three batches of cheese were prepared as control with blend starter culture, GM-WBC(C) with starter culture + L. casei and GM-WBC(P) with starter culture + L. plantarum. The control and experimental samples were analysed for their colour, textural, sensory and microbiological characteristics during 60 days of ripening period. Result: Significant decrease in hardness, adhesiveness, springiness, cohesiveness, chewiness and gumminess led to increased creaminess and smoothness of the product treated with adjunct cultures. Sensory scores were found to improve in adjunct culture treated samples. Significant increase in instrumental colour (L* value) and sensory attributes with increased ripening resulted in consumer acceptability. Microbiological counts of Lactococci and Lactobacilli showed a significant (P less than 0.05) decline in initial days due to its adaptability and then increased, maintaining its viability during all stages of ripening period. While keeping the counts above 106 log cfu/ml for the adjunct treated samples compared to control sample. The overall effect of L. casei was more promising in enhancing textural and sensory attributes as compared to L. plantarum due to its higher proteolytic activity.

The organization of eukaryotic genome in the nucleus, a double-membraned organelle separated from the cytoplasm, is highly complex and dynamic. The functional architecture of the nucleus is confined by the layers of internal and cytoplasmic elements, including chromatin organization, nuclear envelope associated proteome and transport, nuclear–cytoskeletal contacts, and the mechano-regulatory signaling cascades. The size and morphology of the nucleus could impose a significant impact on nuclear mechanics, chromatin organization, gene expression, cell functionality and disease development. The maintenance of nuclear organization during genetic or physical perturbation is crucial for the viability and lifespan of the cell. Abnormal nuclear envelope morphologies, such as invagination and blebbing, have functional implications in several human disorders, including cancer, accelerated aging, thyroid disorders, and different types of neuro-muscular diseases. Despite the evident interplay between nuclear structure and nuclear function, our knowledge about the underlying molecular mechanisms for regulation of nuclear morphology and cell functionality during health and illness is rather poor. This review highlights the essential nuclear, cellular, and extracellular components that govern the organization of nuclei and functional consequences associated with nuclear morphometric aberrations. Finally, we discuss the recent developments with diagnostic and therapeutic implications targeting nuclear morphology in health and disease.

There has been growing interest on probiotics to enhance weight gain and disease resistance in young calves and to improve the milk yield in lactating animals by reducing the negative energy balance during the peak lactation period. While it has been well established that probiotics modulate the microbial community composition in the gastrointestinal tract, and a probiotic-mediated homeostasis in the rumen could improve feed conversation competence, volatile fatty acid production and nitrogen flow that enhances the milk composition as well as milk production, detailed changes on the molecular and metabolic level prompted by probiotic feed additives are still not understood. Moreover, as living biotherapeutic agents, probiotics have the potential to directly change the gene expression profile of animals by activating the signalling cascade in the host cells. Various direct and indirect components of probiotic approaches to improve the productivity of dairy animals are discussed in this review.

Human milk is elixir for neonates and is a rich source of nutrients and beneficial microbiota required for infant growth and development. Its benefits prompted research into probing the milk components and their use as prophylactic or therapeutic agents. Culture‐independent estimation of milk microbiome and high‐resolution identification of milk components provide information, but a holistic purview of these research domains is lacking. Here, we review the current research on bio‐therapeutic components of milk and simplified future directions for its efficient usage. Publicly available databases such as Pubmed, Google scholar were searched for keywords such as probiotics and prebiotics related to human milk, microbiome and milk oligosaccharides. This was further manually curated for inclusion and exclusion criteria relevant to human milk and clinical efficacy. The literature was classified into sub‐groups and then discussed in detail to facilitate understanding. Although, milk research is still in infancy, but it is clear that human milk has many functions including protection of infants by passive immunization through secreted antibodies, transfer of immune regulators, cytokines and bioactive peptides. Unbiased estimates show that the human milk carries a complex community of microbiota which serves as the initial inoculum for establishment of infant gut. Our search effectively screened for evidence that shows that milk also harbors many types of prebiotics such as, human milk oligosaccharides which encourage growth of beneficial probiotics. The milk also trains the naive immune system of the infant by supplying immune cells and stimulatory factors, thereby strengthening mucosal and systemic immune system. Our systematic review would improve understanding of human milk and the inherent complexity and diversity of human milk. The interrelated functional role of human milk components especially the oligosaccharides and microbiome has been discussed which plays important role in human health.

The human gastrointestinal (GI) tract has been bestowed with the most difficult task of protecting the underlying biological compartments from the resident commensal flora and the potential pathogens in transit through the GI tract. It has a unique environment in which several defense tactics are at play while maintaining homeostasis and health. The GI tract shows myriad number of environmental extremes, which includes pH variations, anaerobic conditions, nutrient limitations, elevated osmolarity etc., which puts a check to colonization and growth of non‐friendly microbial strains. The GI tract acts as a highly selective barrier/platform for ingested food and is the primary playground for balance between the resident and uninvited organisms. This review focuses on antimicrobial defense mechanisms of different sections of human GI tract. In addition, the protective mechanisms used by microbes to combat the human GI defense systems are also discussed. Ability to survive this innate defense mechanism determines the capability of probiotic or pathogen strains to confer health benefits or induce clinical events, respectively.

Diabetes and other lifestyle disorders have been recognized as the leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) is a major factor involved in the early pathobiology of diabetes and studies reveal that hyperglycemic conditions in body leads to NF-κB mediated activation of several cytokines, chemokines and inflammatory molecules. NF-κB family comprises of certain DNA-binding protein factors that elicit the transcription of pro-inflammatory molecules. Various studies have identified NF-κB as a promising target for diabetic management. Probiotics have been proposed as bio-therapeutic agents for treatment of inflammatory disorders and many other chronic clinical stages. The precise mechanisms by which probiotics acts is yet to be fully understood, however research findings have indicated their role in NF-κB modulation. The current review highlights NF-κB as a bio-therapeutic target for probable management of type 2 diabetes through probiotic intervention.