Analysis of free ACh and 5-HT in milk from four different species and their bioactivity on 5-HT(3) and nACh receptors.

Milk is one of the most beneficial aliments and is highly recommended in normal conditions; however, in certain disorders, like irritable bowel syndrome, cow milk and dairy products worsen the gastric symptoms and their use is not recommended. Among the most recognized milk-induced gatrointestinal symptoms are abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, which are processes controlled by cholinergic and serotonergic transmission. Whether the presence of bioavailable ACh and 5-HT in milk may contribute to normal peristalsis, or to the developing of these symptoms, is not known. In this work we attempt to determine whether the content of free ACh and 5-HT is of physiological significance in milk from four different species: cow (bovine), goat, camel and human. Liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used to identify and quantify free ACh and 5-HT in milk, and activation of the serotonergic and cholinergic ionotropic receptors was investigated using electrophysiological experiments. Our principal hypothesis was that milk from these four species had sufficient free ACh and 5-HT to activate their correspondent receptors expressed in a heterologous system. Our results showed a more complex picture, in which free ACh and 5-HT and their ability to activate cholinergic and serotonergic receptors are not correlated. This work is a first step to elucidate whether 5-HT and ACh, at the concentrations present in the milk, can be associated to a direct function in the GI.

Characterization of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalences, genotypes, and clonal relationships of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing strains in 98 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates from Riyadh. The prevalence of ESBLs in these strains was 37·75%. All isolates that were confirmed to have ESBLs were completely resistant to amoxicillin/clavulanate, aztreonam, cefotaxime, ceftazidime, cefoxitin, and gentamicin and were susceptible to tigecycline, colistin, and imipenem. In total, 16·6, 77, and 91·6% of isolates were resistant to amikacin, ciprofloxacin, and piperacillin/tazobactam, respectively. The prevalences of isolates producing the beta-lactamases SHV, CTX-M, and TEM were 91·9, 86·5, and 54·05%, respectively. The most frequent ESBL gene detected was blaCTX-M-15, which was observed in 75% of isolates. Other frequent ESBL genes were blaSHV-12 (29·73% of isolates) and blaSHV-5 (5·4% of isolates); additionally, blaCTX-M-3, blaCTX-M-27, blaCTX-M-57, and blaCTX-M-82 were each detected in one isolate. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis revealed the presence of diverse and unrelated clones. The high prevalence of ESBL producers among the strains examined in our study was not due to the spread of a single clone of bacteria. Clone A was detected in six isolates, indicating intra-hospital spread. Our study documented a high prevalence of the CTX-M-15 product in K. pneumoniae and demonstrated that SHV-12 was also highly prevalent. This study represents the first report of CTX-M-3, CTX-M-27, CTX-M-57, and CTX-M-82 beta-lactamases in K. pneumoniae isolates from Saudi Arabia.

The endogenous GABA bioactivity of camel, bovine, goat and human milks.

GABA orally administered has several beneficial effects on health, including the regulation of hyperglycaemic states in humans. Those effects are similar to the effects reported for camel milk (CMk); however, it is not known whether compounds with GABAergic activity are present in milk from camels or other species. We determined CMk free-GABA concentration by LS/MS and its bioactivity on human GABA receptors. We found that camel and goat milks have significantly more bioavailable GABA than cow and human milks and are able to activate GABAρ receptors. The relationship between GABA and taurine concentrations suggests that whole camel milk may be more efficient to activate GABAρ1 receptors than goat milk. Because GABAρ receptors are normally found in enteroendocrine cells in the lumen of the digestive tract, these results suggest that GABA in camel and goat milk may participate in GABA-modulated functions of enteroendocrine cells in the GI lumen.