Life Sciences Commons^™

Dental Decay In Zambian School Children In Eastern And Southern Provinces, Elizabeth Graham

NUTR/GLST 498b: Global Research Experiences in Nutrition and Health

Introduction: Dental caries is the most prevalent and infectious disease worldwide. Zambia has a high rate of vitamin A deficiency, and this deficiency is associated with dental caries.

Methods: Visual dental checks, interviewing, and anthropometric assessments were done on 781 Zambian primary school children.

Results: Caries rates are 20% among sample populations, males have more decay than females, first molars are the most decayed, a majority use toothbrushes to clean their teeth, and children who eat vitamin A rich foods are less likely to have dental caries.

Discussion: Caries’ rates in the Southern and Eastern provinces are higher than in …

Association Of Diet Qualitymeasured By Three A Priori-Defined Dietary Patterns With Gut Microbiota And Intestinal Permeability Among Obese Individuals, Sarah Eaton, Heather Rasmussen, Weiwen Chai

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Objectives: The human gastrointestinal tract (GI)may play a critical role in the prevention of obesity and metabolic diseases. Considering the importance of a healthy diet for optimal health, this study examined associations of diet quality assessed by three a priori-defined dietary patterns (Healthy Eating Index 2010 [HEI-2010],Mediterranean Eating Pattern for Americans [MEPA], and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension [DASH] with gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) and intestinal permeabilitymarkers in adult obese participants.

Conclusions: Blautia abundance and inversely associated with intestinal permeability markers such as urinary 24-h sucralose levels suggesting diet quality may have positive impact on the human GI …

Barriers To Summer Food Service Program (Sfsp) Implementation Before And After Covid-19: A Qualitative, Collective Case Study, Masoomeh Hajizadeh Oghaz, Falah N. Rashoka, Megan S. Kelley

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Objectives: SFSP, as a federal food assistance program, could ensure that children have sufficient nutritious food during summer. According to a 2016 USDA report, only 0.4–0.6% of eligible children participated in this program in Nebraska, which makes for one of the lowest SFSP participation rates in the U.S. This study aims to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted SFSP implementation in urban and rural settings across the state.

Conclusions: Insights from this study may inform the development of policies that expand food access to vulnerable families. On the organizational level, this includes providing participating kids and their parents …

Γ-Glutamyl Valine, Found In Dry Edible Beans, Is Anti-Diabetic In Db/Db Mice, Bikram Upadhyaya, Kaustav Majumder, Regis Moreau

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Objectives: Dietary γ -glutamyl peptides (γ -GPs) found in dry edible beans exhibit biological activities (antioxidant, anti-inflammatory) with potential benefits against chronic metabolic disorders. γ -GPs are responsible for the desirable Kokumi flavor through allosteric activation of the Calcium Sensing Receptor (CaSR) present in multiple mammalian tissues. In this study, we investigated the metabolic effects of γ -glutamyl valine (γ -EV) in diabetic obese mice.

Conclusions: γ -EV improved the diabetic condition of db/db mice via modulation of glucose and lipid metabolism.

“Many People Have No Idea”: A Qualitative Analysis Of Healthcare Barriers Among Yazidi Refugees In The Midwestern United States, Falah N. Rashoka, Megan S. Kelley, Jeong‑Kyun Choi, Marc A. Garcia, Weiwen Chai, Hazim N. Rashawka

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has shed new light on inequities in healthcare access faced by immigrant and refugee communities. To address ongoing disparities, there is an urgent need for ecological approaches to better understand the barriers that hinder and resources that facilitate access to healthcare. This study investigates barriers to healthcare system access faced by Yazidi refugees in the Midwestern United States.

Methods: Informed by the Interpretative Phenomenological Approach, three focus group meetings with a community advisory board were conducted between September 2019 and January 2020. The nine-member focus group included social workers, healthcare providers, and members of the Yazidi …

Genetically Altered Bovine Milk Exosomes (Bmes) Evade Elimination Bymurine Bone Marrow-Derived Macrophages (Bmdms), Alice Ngu, Janos Zempleni

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Objectives: To develop BMEs that evade elimination by BMDMs.

Conclusions: The elimination of BMEs UNL1 and UNL2 is significantly reduced compared unmodified BMEs in BMDM cultures. This is of great importance when using BMEs for delivering therapeutics.

Intracellular Fate Of Bovine Milk Exosomes In Murine Bone Marrow-Derived Macrophages, Afsana Khanam, Janos Zempleni

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Milk exosomes (MEs) and their microRNA cargos constitute novel bioactive food compounds, and bovine MEs (BMEs) are being considered for use in drug delivery. The internalization of MEs by macrophages and degradation in lysosomes (in all cells) limit biological activities. Here, we determined whether BMEs internalized by murine bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) retrofuse with the intralumenal membrane in the multivesicular body (MVB) for subsequent release into the extracellular space or whether BMEs are destined for degradation in lysosomes.

Conclusions: The retrofusion of BME-derived intralumenal MVBs and secretion of BME into the extracellular space is quantitatively minor in BMDMs. The majority …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On Perceived Barriers And Facilitators To The Healthfulness Of Communities With Low-Income, Elder Varela, Jamie Zeldman, Alison Kuch, Yanli Wang, Mohammad Shushari, Elizabeth L. Hall, Jade Mcnamara, Jesse Stabile Morrell, Terezie Tolar-Peterson, Onikia Brown, Melissa D. Olfert, Lisa Franzen-Castle, Tandalayo Kidd, Sarah Colby, Geoffrey Greene, Karla P. Shelnutt

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic brought new challenges affecting the wellbeing of individuals in communities with low income. Understanding where people live and how those environments can facilitate or hinder living a healthy lifestyle is essential for developing interventions that target behavior change and health promotion. Objective: This study compares Extension Nutrition Educators’ (NEs) perceptions of the barriers and facilitators impacting the healthfulness of the environment of communities with low income in eleven states before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sew Zambia! Home Economics In Primary & Secondary Schools Of The Eastern & Southern Provinces, Clare Schinzel

UCARE Research Products

Introduction: Home Economics (HE) is within the main curriculum for primary school students in Zambia, yet it remains unclear what is included.

Methods: Survey research conducted between May-June 2022 on 6-7th-grade students within 9 Zambian schools. Classroom observations were made, and teachers were interviewed in primary and secondary public schools.

Results: Most know how to cook and sew. Zambian women cook more than men and learn at an older age. Both males and females are trained to sew learning at a much younger age.

Discussion: HE remains critical to learning life skills in Zambia and the curriculum reflects skills related …