Resistant starch (RS) is a type of dietary fiber that can improve glucose metabolism, but its effects may be modulated by sex or baseline insulin sensitivity. This study was designed to examine the effect of high-amylose maize resistant starch (HAM-RS2) on insulin sensitivity (SI) in women, and to determine if SI status affects the response to RS. This was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over study. Participants were 40 healthy, non-diabetic women aged 22–67 years in the normal-weight to obese BMI range (20.6–47.4 kg/m2). Two doses of HAM-RS2 were tested, 15 and 30 g per day, administered in the form of cookies. Participants were randomized to the order in which they received the experimental and placebo product. Each arm was 4 weeks, with a 4-week wash-out period in between. SI was assessed at the end of each 4-week arm of product consumption by frequently-sampled, insulin-modified, intravenous glucose tolerance test and minimal modeling. Participants were categorized as being insulin resistant (IR; SI < 7.8) or insulin sensitive (IS; SI ≥ 7.8) based on Gaussian analysis. The effect of treatment arm on SI was examined by mixed-model analysis within IR and IS sub-groups, using all available data. In addition, SI was examined by ANOVA among just those women who completed all three arms of the study with valid SI results. Among IR participants, SI was on average ~16 % higher after the 30 g arm when compared to the control arm by mixed-model analysis (n = 40, P < 0.05), and tended to be 23 % higher by ANOVA among women who completed all arms (n = 23, P = 0.06). HAM-RS2 did not affect SI in IS women. Consumption of HAM-RS2 at 30 g/day in the form of a snack food item was associated with improved insulin sensitivity in women with insulin resistance. NCT01521806 .

Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related deaths in women worldwide. Identification of reliable prognostic indicators and therapeutic targets is critical for improving patient outcome. Cancer in companion animals often strongly resembles human cancers and a comparative approach to identify prognostic markers can improve clinical care across species. Feline mammary tumors (FMT) serve as models for extremely aggressive triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) in humans, with high rates of local and distant recurrence after resection. Despite the aggressive clinical behavior of most FMT, current prognostic indicators are insufficient for accurately predicting outcome, similar to human patients. Given significant heterogeneity of mammary tumors, there has been a recent focus on identification of universal tumor-permissive stromal features that can predict biologic behavior and provide therapeutic targets to improve outcome. As in human and canine patients, collagen signatures appear to play a key role in directing mammary tumor behavior in feline patients. We find that patients bearing FMTs with denser collagen, as well as longer, thicker and straighter fibers and less identifiable tumor-stromal boundaries had poorer outcomes, independent of the clinical variables grade and surgical margins. Most importantly, including the collagen parameters increased the predictive power of the clinical model. Thus, our data suggest that similarities with respect to the stromal microenvironment between species may allow this model to predict outcome and develop novel therapeutic targets within the tumor stroma that would benefit both veterinary and human patients with aggressive mammary tumors.

Streptococcus equi subsp equi (S. equi) is the cause of “equine strangles” which is a highly infectious upper respiratory disease. Detection of S. equi is influenced by site of specimen collection, method of sampling, and type of diagnostic test that is performed. We hypothesized i) that a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay that targets the S. equi-specific eqbE gene would be more sensitive than a realtime PCR assay that targets the S. equi-specific seeI gene and ii) that LAMP of specimens obtained by guttural pouch lavage (GPL) would be more sensitive than LAMP of nasopharyngeal specimens to identify S. equi carriers. A nasopharyngeal flocked swab, nasopharyngeal wash, and GPL specimen was collected from 44 convalescent horses and the eqbE LAMP assay was performed. The seeI realtime PCR assay and aerobic culture were also performed on the GPL specimen. Logistic regression was performed to compare sampling sites and test methods (P-values ≤0.05 were considered significant). One of 41 nasopharyngeal flocked swabs, 6/38 nasopharyngeal wash and 24/44 GPL specimens were positive by eqbE LAMP. 18/44 GPL specimens were positive by seeI PCR and S. equi was isolated from 4/44 of these specimens. Detection of S. equi DNA was 51 times more likely from the GPL samples than nasopharyngeal samples (OR 51.0, P < 0.0001). When eqbE LAMP GPL samples were positive, it was eight times more likely that the guttural pouch had any abnormality on endoscopy (OR 8.2, P ≤ 0.005), almost 20 times more likely that mild empyema was found (OR 19.7, P ≤ 0.002), and eight times more likely that the SeeI PCR was positive for S. equi DNA (OR 8.1, P ≤ 0.006). This study demonstrates that guttural pouch lavage specimens should be used to detect S. equi and that the eqbE LAMP assay was comparable to the seeI PCR.