Magnetic resonance imaging of total body fat

In this study we assessed different magneticresonance imaging (MRI) scanning regimes and examined some of theassumptions commonly made for measuring body fat content by MRI. Wholebody MRI was used to quantify and study different body fat depots in 67 women. The whole body MRI results showed that there was a significant variation in the percentage of total internal, as well as visceral, adipose tissue across a range of adiposity, which could not be predicted from total body fat and/or subcutaneous fat.Furthermore, variation in the amount of total, subcutaneous, andvisceral adipose tissue was not related to standard anthropometricmeasurements such as skinfold measurements, body mass index, andwaist-to-hip ratio. Finally, we show for the first time subjects with apercent body fat close to the theoretical maximum (68%). This studydemonstrates that the large variation in individual internal fatcontent cannot be predicted from either indirect methods or directimaging techniques, such as MRI or computed tomography, on the basis ofa single-slice sampling strategy.

     

Expression of a new porin 'OmpE' by strains of Salmonella enteritidis

Abstract Strains of Salmonella enteritidis expressed a novel porin with a subunit size of 35.5 kDa as shown by SDS-PAGE. This protein was expressed as a major outer membrane protein (MOMP) when grown on nutrient agar, McConkey agar or blood agar, or in Tris-succinate medium; but was only produced in trace amounts when strains were grown in nutrient broth. This OMP was produced by all strains of S. enteritidis examined, regardless of phage type, and expression was not related to the possession of a 38-MDa mouse-virulence plasmid or the ability of strains to make long-chain lipopolysaccharide. This new porin has been tentatively called OmpE.