title: The in vitro susceptibility of Campylobacter spp. to the antibacterial effect of manuka honey

authors: Lin, Shih-Min (Sam)

subjects: biology

abstract: We report the antimicrobial effect of manuka honey against Campylobacter spp. isolated by a diagnostic laboratory from specimens from a community in New Zealand. The isolates were differentiated according to species level using multiplex PCR. C. jejuni (20 strains) and C. coli (7 strains) were identified. The clinical isolates identified and type culture collection strains of these species were subjected to testing to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of manuka honey using a microdilution technique. The MIC of the manuka honey against all of the Campylobacter tested was found to be around 1% (v/v) honey. The low MIC values suggest that honey might still inhibit the growth of campylobacteria after dilution by fluid in the gut, but the actual concentration of honey that can be achieved in the intestine is unknown. Therefore, clinical investigation is required to establish the efficacy of honey against Campylobacter spp. in the gut environment.

text: The in vitro susceptibility of Campylobacter spp. to the antibacterial effect of manuka honey We report the antimicrobial effect of manuka honey against Campylobacter spp. isolated by a diagnostic laboratory from specimens from a community in New Zealand. The isolates were differentiated according to species level using multiplex PCR. C. jejuni (20 strains) and C. coli (7 strains) were identified. The clinical isolates identified and type culture collection strains of these species were subjected to testing to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of manuka honey using a microdilution technique. The MIC of the manuka honey against all of the Campylobacter tested was found to be around 1% (v/v) honey. The low MIC values suggest that honey might still inhibit the growth of campylobacteria after dilution by fluid in the gut, but the actual concentration of honey that can be achieved in the intestine is unknown. Therefore, clinical investigation is required to establish the efficacy of honey against Campylobacter spp. in the gut environment.

year: 2009

title: Bioactive properties of proline-rich peptides derived from dairy milk and colostrum

authors: Tock, Adriënne

abstract: Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) is a serine exopeptidase that cleaves dipeptides from the N-terminus, preferably when proline occupies the penultimate position. This enzyme plays a key role in maintaining glucose homeostasis by degrading insulin secreting incretins, such as gastric inhibitory peptide and glucagon-like peptide 1, thereby reducing insulin secretion. Consequently, inhibiting DPP4 activity has become a major strategy for mitigating the effects of Type 2 diabetes mellitus. A functional food approach involves inhibiting this enzyme with DPP4-inhibiting peptides that are generated from dairy products. Milk and colostrum are associated with various health benefits, largely due to the presence of many bioactive peptides. A significant portion of these are proline-rich peptides (PRPs), some of which exhibit DPP4 inhibitory properties. While many DPP4-inhibitory dairy peptides have been identified or predicted through ‘in silico’ analysis, the variations across different species and between milk and colostrum have yet to be explored.   

This research identified new PRPs in cow, goat, sheep, and deer milk and colostrum and demonstrated that some of these peptides have DPP4-inhibitory activity. Peptide identification and characterisation were performed using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, a new resin-based DPP4-binding procedure, and in vitro DPP4 inhibition assays. PRPs represented 20-30% of the identified peptides within each sample, with sheep colostrum reaching 35%. Peptides from deer had the lowest alignment with the Cervidae proteome, likely due to database incompleteness. Exact peptide sequence overlap among all samples was minimal. Peptides were chosen for DPP4 inhibition assays based on the resin pull-down assay results, presence of proline in the penultimate position, abundance, length, and origin. Out of the 21 selected peptides, 14 showed over 50% inhibition at 250 µM. Interestingly, these peptides revealed that greater proline content did not reliably predict DPP4 inhibition, which is contradictory to reports in the literature. The top six DPP4-inhibiting peptides were selected for IC50 determination, with values ranging from 46.7 to 103.2 µM. Even though these peptides were all less potent than the reference peptide inhibitor Diprotin A (IC50 of 2.69 ± 1.09 µM, n = 6), they all showed high abundance of at least 105. Additionally, most peptides represented novel sequences that were not previously reported in the literature as DPP4-inhibiting peptides. Pooled peptide fractions from each sample did not show inhibition at the tested concentration, although permeate from a dairy plant showed 34.41% ± 8.27 (n = 3) DPP4 inhibition at only 1.5% w/w of the permeate concentration. AlphaFold 3 predictions revealed that these peptides and Diprotin A docked at similar positions within the DPP4 active site. These findings provide the basis for future studies on interspecies differences, application of novel binding assays to find DPP4 inhibitors, and further exploration of dairy peptides as potential DPP4 inhibitors.

text: Bioactive properties of proline-rich peptides derived from dairy milk and colostrum Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) is a serine exopeptidase that cleaves dipeptides from the N-terminus, preferably when proline occupies the penultimate position. This enzyme plays a key role in maintaining glucose homeostasis by degrading insulin secreting incretins, such as gastric inhibitory peptide and glucagon-like peptide 1, thereby reducing insulin secretion. Consequently, inhibiting DPP4 activity has become a major strategy for mitigating the effects of Type 2 diabetes mellitus. A functional food approach involves inhibiting this enzyme with DPP4-inhibiting peptides that are generated from dairy products. Milk and colostrum are associated with various health benefits, largely due to the presence of many bioactive peptides. A significant portion of these are proline-rich peptides (PRPs), some of which exhibit DPP4 inhibitory properties. While many DPP4-inhibitory dairy peptides have been identified or predicted through ‘in silico’ analysis, the variations across different species and between milk and colostrum have yet to be explored.   

This research identified new PRPs in cow, goat, sheep, and deer milk and colostrum and demonstrated that some of these peptides have DPP4-inhibitory activity. Peptide identification and characterisation were performed using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, a new resin-based DPP4-binding procedure, and in vitro DPP4 inhibition assays. PRPs represented 20-30% of the identified peptides within each sample, with sheep colostrum reaching 35%. Peptides from deer had the lowest alignment with the Cervidae proteome, likely due to database incompleteness. Exact peptide sequence overlap among all samples was minimal. Peptides were chosen for DPP4 inhibition assays based on the resin pull-down assay results, presence of proline in the penultimate position, abundance, length, and origin. Out of the 21 selected peptides, 14 showed over 50% inhibition at 250 µM. Interestingly, these peptides revealed that greater proline content did not reliably predict DPP4 inhibition, which is contradictory to reports in the literature. The top six DPP4-inhibiting peptides were selected for IC50 determination, with values ranging from 46.7 to 103.2 µM. Even though these peptides were all less potent than the reference peptide inhibitor Diprotin A (IC50 of 2.69 ± 1.09 µM, n = 6), they all showed high abundance of at least 105. Additionally, most peptides represented novel sequences that were not previously reported in the literature as DPP4-inhibiting peptides. Pooled peptide fractions from each sample did not show inhibition at the tested concentration, although permeate from a dairy plant showed 34.41% ± 8.27 (n = 3) DPP4 inhibition at only 1.5% w/w of the permeate concentration. AlphaFold 3 predictions revealed that these peptides and Diprotin A docked at similar positions within the DPP4 active site. These findings provide the basis for future studies on interspecies differences, application of novel binding assays to find DPP4 inhibitors, and further exploration of dairy peptides as potential DPP4 inhibitors.

year: 2025

title: Te whakaako i te reo Māori i te kura auraki tuarua i Aotearoa nei: Kei tua o te awe māpere. The teaching of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools in New Zealand: Beyond the mask.

authors: Nock, Sophie

subjects: language curricula

abstract: He taonga te reo Māori nō tuawhakarere, nō tuauriuri, whāioio, nā te atua i homai kia poipoia e te iwi Māori hei reo kōrero mō te hunga kaingākau, mō te hunga kāore anō kia whānau noa.  Ahakoa ia he toimaha tonu te hauora o te reo Māori, nā te mahi tūkino (a ētahi).  I roto i ngā tau whā tekau kua ara ake ngā momo rongoā hei whakahauora, hei whakatairanga i te reo Māori, nā, ko Te Kōhanga Reo tērā, ko te Kura Kaupapa Māori tērā, ko Te Wharekura tērā, aha atu, aha atu.  Ka mutu, i te tau 1987 i whakamanahia ai te reo Māori hei reo tūturu o tēnei whenua.  Ahakoa he aha e mea ana te Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga ehara i te mea me whai wāhi te reo Māori hei reo ako i roto i ngā kura tuarua puta noa i te motu.  Engari, ko te raruraru kua whai wāhi kē ētahi atu reo o te ao, kaua ko te reo Māori.  Kāti, i te tau 2009 i tatū ai Te Aho Arataki Marau mō te Ako i Te Reo Māori, ā, ki reira whai wāhi ai te reo Māori.  Nā, ko tā te kura tuarua mahi he tautoko mārika i te reo Māori, mā te whakaako i te reo Māori, e tika ana me pērā, nā te mea, ko te nuinga o ngā tamariki Māori e haere ana ki a ia ako ai.  Mōhio pai i whakapeto ngoi ngā kaiwhakaako reo Māori me te matatau anō o ētahi ki te reo hoki, engari, ki tā te pūrongo rangahau a Te Tari Arotake Mātauranga kīhai i tino eke panuku ngā mahi whakaako.  Ko ngā tino take, ko te whakangungu kaiwhakaako, ko te tautoko me te whakahaere a te kura hoki.

Nō reira, ko te whāinga matua o tēnei rangahau kia tirohia me pēhea e whakaako ai te reo Māori ki te kura tuarua, (kaua i ngā wharekura) i Aotearoa.  Mai i te rau tau tekau mā waru ka tātaria ētahi o ngā kōrero whanake e hāngai pū ana ki te whakaako me te ako i (t)ētahi atu reo, ko ia te wāhanga tuarua.  Whai muri mai i tērā (kei te wāhanga tuatoru) ko ngā patapatai me ngā uiuitanga, ā, ko tā te patapatai he kukume mai i ngā whakapono, i ngā whakaaro, i ngā waiaro o te hunga kaiwhakaako, ko tā te uiuitanga e whakatātūtū i te rētotanga o te kaupapa.  Ka mutu, i whārikihia ngā whakakitenga, ngā whakahoki kōrero ki taua wāhanga.  I te mutunga iho i whakapau kaha ngā kaiwhakaako ki te whakatutuki i ngā mahi, ahakoa ngā piki me ngā heke.  Kei ngā wāhanga e rua (4 & 5) ngā kōrero mō ngā tūmomo rauemi e whakamahia ana e ngā kaiwhakaako, arā, ko ngā momo pukapuka (4) me ngā tūmomo rauemi o te ipurangi nā Te Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga i whakarato (5).  E kī ana ngā whakaputanga, tuatahi, kīhai aua rauemi i tino whakaatu mai i ngā momo whanaketanga i roto i ngā tau whā tekau neke atu mō te whakaako i te reo tuarua, hou rānei, tuarua, kāhore hoki i tino hāngai pū ēnei rauemi ki te Marau mō te Ako i Te Reo Māori i te kura tuarua me te hāngai anō hoki ki te āhua o te whakaako i te reo mā te ‘Communicative Language Teaching’.  Hei whaiwhai ake i ngā rauemi i tātaria ētahi o ngā karaehe reo (te wāhanga 6) mā ngā wehewehetanga matua o te whakaako reo.  Mai i taua tātaritanga i kitea mai ētahi raruraru, tuatahi, kāhore ngā tauira/akonga i whai wāhi ki te kōrero (i roto tonu i te karaehe), tuarua, kāhore e taea te whakawhitiwhiti kōrero ki a rātou anō, tuatoru, kāhore rātou i te mahi tahi anō hoki.  Hei whakakapi ake i tēnei rangahau, kei te wāhanga whakamutunga (7) te whakakaokao mai o ngā whakakitenga katoa, me te whakatakoto o ngā tūtohutanga kia anga whakamua ai. 

It has been acknowledged that te reo Māori is a taonga and, as such, is subject to the protections guaranteed under the terms of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.  Since 1987, it has been an official language of Aotearoa.  Its future is, however, very far from secure and instructed language learning continues to play a significant part in the revitalisation agenda.  Even so, although schools are now required to offer a language other than the language of instruction to pupils in Years 7 to 10, and although over two thirds of Māori students currently attend schools in which English is the main language of instruction, schools are not required to include te reo Māori in their language offering.  In addition, although curriculum guidelines documents for a number of foreign languages have been available for many years, it was not until 2009 that the final version of a curriculum guidelines document for the teaching and learning of te reo Māori in English-medium schools became available.  Furthermore, while there clearly are some extremely competent teachers of the language, Education Review Office (ERO) reports indicate that all is not well so far as the teaching and learning of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools is concerned.  The problems identified relate not to teachers' proficiency in the language but to their limited pedagogical knowledge.  As ERO has indicated, this raises questions about the initial training of teachers of te reo Māori and the ways in which all schools manage and support them. 

The overall aim of the research reported here is to investigate the teaching of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools in Aotearoa.  Following a critical review of selected literature on developments in the teaching and learning of additional languages since the end of the 18th Century (Chapter 2), there is a report on a survey (involving questionnaire responses and semi-structured interviews) of a sample of teachers of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools.  That survey focuses on their educational and linguistic backgrounds and their attitudes and approaches to a range of issues associated with the teaching and learning of the language in school settings (Chapter 3).  Overall, the findings indicate that while these teachers are doing their best to provide a high quality educational experience for their students, they are doing so in the face of a number of significant barriers relating, in particular, to the limited nature of the pre-service training they have received, and the range of additional duties they are expected to perform.  In addition, the survey revealed some concerns about the impact of national assessment on teaching and learning and about the teaching materials and resources that are available.  The next two chapters report on the analysis of a sample of textbooks which are widely used in secondary schools (Chapter 4) and a sample of resources made available by the Ministry of Education (Chapter 5), the main findings being that these are, in the main, (a) inconsistent with both research-based developments in the teaching of additional languages and the expectations relating to communicative language teaching as outlined in the curriculum guidelines, and (b) that these resources do not align with the new curriculum.  The analysis of a sample of lessons taught in secondary schools follows (Chapter 6).  That analysis, conducted in relation to a number of focus points, reveals some significant problems, including the fact that the students were provided with few opportunities to contribute, to interact with one another, and to engage in genuinely communicative activities.  The final chapter (Chapter 7) provides an overview of the findings and includes some suggestions about a possible way forward.

text: Te whakaako i te reo Māori i te kura auraki tuarua i Aotearoa nei: Kei tua o te awe māpere. The teaching of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools in New Zealand: Beyond the mask. He taonga te reo Māori nō tuawhakarere, nō tuauriuri, whāioio, nā te atua i homai kia poipoia e te iwi Māori hei reo kōrero mō te hunga kaingākau, mō te hunga kāore anō kia whānau noa.  Ahakoa ia he toimaha tonu te hauora o te reo Māori, nā te mahi tūkino (a ētahi).  I roto i ngā tau whā tekau kua ara ake ngā momo rongoā hei whakahauora, hei whakatairanga i te reo Māori, nā, ko Te Kōhanga Reo tērā, ko te Kura Kaupapa Māori tērā, ko Te Wharekura tērā, aha atu, aha atu.  Ka mutu, i te tau 1987 i whakamanahia ai te reo Māori hei reo tūturu o tēnei whenua.  Ahakoa he aha e mea ana te Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga ehara i te mea me whai wāhi te reo Māori hei reo ako i roto i ngā kura tuarua puta noa i te motu.  Engari, ko te raruraru kua whai wāhi kē ētahi atu reo o te ao, kaua ko te reo Māori.  Kāti, i te tau 2009 i tatū ai Te Aho Arataki Marau mō te Ako i Te Reo Māori, ā, ki reira whai wāhi ai te reo Māori.  Nā, ko tā te kura tuarua mahi he tautoko mārika i te reo Māori, mā te whakaako i te reo Māori, e tika ana me pērā, nā te mea, ko te nuinga o ngā tamariki Māori e haere ana ki a ia ako ai.  Mōhio pai i whakapeto ngoi ngā kaiwhakaako reo Māori me te matatau anō o ētahi ki te reo hoki, engari, ki tā te pūrongo rangahau a Te Tari Arotake Mātauranga kīhai i tino eke panuku ngā mahi whakaako.  Ko ngā tino take, ko te whakangungu kaiwhakaako, ko te tautoko me te whakahaere a te kura hoki.

Nō reira, ko te whāinga matua o tēnei rangahau kia tirohia me pēhea e whakaako ai te reo Māori ki te kura tuarua, (kaua i ngā wharekura) i Aotearoa.  Mai i te rau tau tekau mā waru ka tātaria ētahi o ngā kōrero whanake e hāngai pū ana ki te whakaako me te ako i (t)ētahi atu reo, ko ia te wāhanga tuarua.  Whai muri mai i tērā (kei te wāhanga tuatoru) ko ngā patapatai me ngā uiuitanga, ā, ko tā te patapatai he kukume mai i ngā whakapono, i ngā whakaaro, i ngā waiaro o te hunga kaiwhakaako, ko tā te uiuitanga e whakatātūtū i te rētotanga o te kaupapa.  Ka mutu, i whārikihia ngā whakakitenga, ngā whakahoki kōrero ki taua wāhanga.  I te mutunga iho i whakapau kaha ngā kaiwhakaako ki te whakatutuki i ngā mahi, ahakoa ngā piki me ngā heke.  Kei ngā wāhanga e rua (4 & 5) ngā kōrero mō ngā tūmomo rauemi e whakamahia ana e ngā kaiwhakaako, arā, ko ngā momo pukapuka (4) me ngā tūmomo rauemi o te ipurangi nā Te Tāhūhū o te Mātauranga i whakarato (5).  E kī ana ngā whakaputanga, tuatahi, kīhai aua rauemi i tino whakaatu mai i ngā momo whanaketanga i roto i ngā tau whā tekau neke atu mō te whakaako i te reo tuarua, hou rānei, tuarua, kāhore hoki i tino hāngai pū ēnei rauemi ki te Marau mō te Ako i Te Reo Māori i te kura tuarua me te hāngai anō hoki ki te āhua o te whakaako i te reo mā te ‘Communicative Language Teaching’.  Hei whaiwhai ake i ngā rauemi i tātaria ētahi o ngā karaehe reo (te wāhanga 6) mā ngā wehewehetanga matua o te whakaako reo.  Mai i taua tātaritanga i kitea mai ētahi raruraru, tuatahi, kāhore ngā tauira/akonga i whai wāhi ki te kōrero (i roto tonu i te karaehe), tuarua, kāhore e taea te whakawhitiwhiti kōrero ki a rātou anō, tuatoru, kāhore rātou i te mahi tahi anō hoki.  Hei whakakapi ake i tēnei rangahau, kei te wāhanga whakamutunga (7) te whakakaokao mai o ngā whakakitenga katoa, me te whakatakoto o ngā tūtohutanga kia anga whakamua ai. 

It has been acknowledged that te reo Māori is a taonga and, as such, is subject to the protections guaranteed under the terms of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.  Since 1987, it has been an official language of Aotearoa.  Its future is, however, very far from secure and instructed language learning continues to play a significant part in the revitalisation agenda.  Even so, although schools are now required to offer a language other than the language of instruction to pupils in Years 7 to 10, and although over two thirds of Māori students currently attend schools in which English is the main language of instruction, schools are not required to include te reo Māori in their language offering.  In addition, although curriculum guidelines documents for a number of foreign languages have been available for many years, it was not until 2009 that the final version of a curriculum guidelines document for the teaching and learning of te reo Māori in English-medium schools became available.  Furthermore, while there clearly are some extremely competent teachers of the language, Education Review Office (ERO) reports indicate that all is not well so far as the teaching and learning of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools is concerned.  The problems identified relate not to teachers' proficiency in the language but to their limited pedagogical knowledge.  As ERO has indicated, this raises questions about the initial training of teachers of te reo Māori and the ways in which all schools manage and support them. 

The overall aim of the research reported here is to investigate the teaching of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools in Aotearoa.  Following a critical review of selected literature on developments in the teaching and learning of additional languages since the end of the 18th Century (Chapter 2), there is a report on a survey (involving questionnaire responses and semi-structured interviews) of a sample of teachers of te reo Māori in English-medium secondary schools.  That survey focuses on their educational and linguistic backgrounds and their attitudes and approaches to a range of issues associated with the teaching and learning of the language in school settings (Chapter 3).  Overall, the findings indicate that while these teachers are doing their best to provide a high quality educational experience for their students, they are doing so in the face of a number of significant barriers relating, in particular, to the limited nature of the pre-service training they have received, and the range of additional duties they are expected to perform.  In addition, the survey revealed some concerns about the impact of national assessment on teaching and learning and about the teaching materials and resources that are available.  The next two chapters report on the analysis of a sample of textbooks which are widely used in secondary schools (Chapter 4) and a sample of resources made available by the Ministry of Education (Chapter 5), the main findings being that these are, in the main, (a) inconsistent with both research-based developments in the teaching of additional languages and the expectations relating to communicative language teaching as outlined in the curriculum guidelines, and (b) that these resources do not align with the new curriculum.  The analysis of a sample of lessons taught in secondary schools follows (Chapter 6).  That analysis, conducted in relation to a number of focus points, reveals some significant problems, including the fact that the students were provided with few opportunities to contribute, to interact with one another, and to engage in genuinely communicative activities.  The final chapter (Chapter 7) provides an overview of the findings and includes some suggestions about a possible way forward.

year: 2014