Food & Nutrition Research https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr <p>As one of the first Open Access journals in its field,&nbsp;<em>Food &amp; Nutrition Research&nbsp;</em>(FNR) offers an important forum for researchers to exchange the latest results from research on human nutrition broadly and food-related nutrition in particular. FNR is widely indexed by relevant services and databases, including PubMed Central/PubMed, Scopus, Science Citation Index, with an&nbsp;<strong>Impact Factor of 3.89 (2020)</strong>.</p> en-US <p><span style="color: #4b7d92;">Authors retain copyright of their work, with first publication rights granted to SNF Swedish Nutrition Foundation. Read the full <a href="https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/oapolicy">Copyright- and Licensing Statement</a>.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> anneli.hovstadius@snf.ideon.se (The Food & Nutrition Research Editorial Team) veronica.svard@openacademia.net (Veronica Svärd) Tue, 24 Jan 2023 14:14:40 -0800 OJS 3.1.2.4 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 60 Transportation of whey protein-derived peptides using Caco-2 cell model and identification of novel cholesterol-lowering peptides https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9079 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The increasing morbidity and mortality of cardiovascular disease have become a major factor in human death. Serum cholesterol is considered to be an important risk factor for inducing coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases. To screen intestinal absorbable functional small peptides with cholesterol-lowering activity by enzymatic hydrolysis of whey protein and develop cholesterol-based functional food that may become a substitute for chemically synthesized drugs, providing new ideas for diseases caused by high cholesterol.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study aimed to evaluate the cholesterol-lowering activity of intestinal absorbable whey protein-derived peptides hydrolyzed by alkaline protease, trypsin and chymotrypsin, respectively.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Method</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The whey protein hydrolysates acquired by enzymatic hydrolysis under optimal conditions were purified by a hollow fiber ultrafiltration membrane with a molecular weight cutoff of 10 kDa. The fractions obtained by Sephadex G-10 gel filtration chromatography were transported through a Caco-2 cell monolayer. The transported peptides were detected in the basolateral aspect of Caco-2 cell monolayers using ultra- performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS).</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;His-Thr-Ser-Gly-Tyr (HTSGY), Ala-Val-Phe-Lys (AVFK) and Ala-Leu-Pro-Met (ALPM) were unreported peptides with cholesterol-lowering activity. The cholesterol-lowering activities of the three peptides did not change significantly during simulated gastrointestinal digestion.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study not only provides theoretical support for the development of bioactive peptides that can be directly absorbed by the human body, but also provides new treatment ideas for hypercholesterolemia.</p> Feifan Liu, Mingzhen Liu, Tao Zhang, Xuan Zhao, Xiaozhi Wang, Weimei Kong, Li Cui, Haibo Luo, Lili Guo, Yuxing Guo Copyright (c) 2023 Feifan Liu, Mingzhen Liu, Tao Zhang, Xuan Zhao, Xiaozhi Wang, Weimei Kong, Li Cui, Haibo Luo, Lili Guo, Yuxing Guo https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9079 Thu, 25 May 2023 12:42:24 -0700 Diallyl trisulfide induces pro-apoptotic autophagy via the AMPK/SIRT1 signalling pathway in human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cell line https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8981 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Liver cancer is associated with a high mortality rate worldwide. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) constitutes a large proportion of primary liver cancers, and most of its alterations currently remain untreatable. Diallyl trisulfide (DATS), the main chemical constituent of allicin, affects tumour development by regulating cell apoptosis. Allicin-induced autophagy could contribute to apoptosis in HepG2 cells. We rigorously examined the autophagy-related mechanism of allicin-induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells. We treated HepG2 cells with DATS to explore the effect of DATS on pro-apoptotic autophagy in HepG2 cell lines and examine its specific molecular mechanism.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;HepG2 cells were treated with various concentrations of DATS for 24 and 48 h. Subsequently, cell viability was measured using the cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and cell clone formation assay. The HepG2 cell apoptosis was measured using Hoechst 33258 staining and western blotting. Autophagy and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/NAD-dependent deacetylase sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) signalling pathway were detected using western blotting.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Our results indicated that DATS inhibited HepG2 cell growth. Moreover, the ability of DATS to promote apoptosis in HepG2 cells increased with increasing concentration. We verified the phenomenon of DATS-induced autophagy in HepG2 cells and demonstrated that DATS treatment upregulated the protein expression of LC3-II/I. By measuring the expression of potential autophagy stimulators, we documented that DATS could induce pro-apoptotic autophagy by activating the AMPK/SIRT1 signalling pathway.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;DATS induced pro-apoptotic autophagy via the AMPK/SIRT1 signalling pathway in the human HCC HepG2 cell line. Our findings further implicate allicin as a potential therapeutic agent against liver tumours in clinical settings, providing a basis for combining allicin with an autophagy agonist for treating liver cancer.</p> Shuoshuo Sun, Xiyu Liu, Xiao Wei, Shaohong Zhang, Weimin Wang Copyright (c) 2023 Shuoshuo Sun, Xiyu Liu, Xiao Wei, Shaohong Zhang, Weimin Wang https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8981 Fri, 19 May 2023 23:40:36 -0700 <em>Allium macrostemon</em> whole extract ameliorates obesity-induced inflammation and endoplasmic reticulum stress in adipose tissue of high-fat diet-fed C57BL/6N mice https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9256 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Obesity is a major risk factor for metabolic syndrome and a serious health concern worldwide. Various strategies exist to treat and prevent obesity, including dietary approaches using bioactive ingredients from natural sources.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study aimed to investigate the anti-obesity effect of whole-plant&nbsp;<em>Allium macrostemon</em>&nbsp;(also called as long-stamen chive) extract (AME) as a potential new functional food.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;C57BL/6N mice were divided into three groups and fed either a control diet (CD), high-fat diet (HFD), or HFD with AME treatment (200 mg/kg BW daily) for 9 weeks. The mice in the CD and HFD groups were treated with vehicle control.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;AME supplementation reduced HFD-induced body weight gain, fat mass, and adipocyte size. AME suppressed peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ and fatty acid synthase mRNA expression, indicating reduced adipogenesis and lipogenesis in adipose tissue. In addition, AME lowered inflammation in adipose tissue, as demonstrated by the lower number of crown-like structures, mRNA, and/or protein expression of macrophage filtration markers, as well as pro-inflammatory cytokines, including F4/80 and IL-6. Endoplasmic reticulum stress was also alleviated by AME administration in adipose tissue. Several phenolic acids known to have anti-obesity effects, including ellagic acid, protocatechuic acid, and catechin, have been identified in AME.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;By suppressing adipose tissue expansion and inflammation, AME is a potential functional food for the prevention and/or treatment of obesity and its complications.</p> Juhae Kim, Joo-Yeon Lee, Choon Young Kim Copyright (c) 2023 Choon Young Kim, Juhae Kim, Joo-Yeon Lee https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9256 Thu, 18 May 2023 14:00:39 -0700 Iodine concentration in tap water, mineral water, and coffee https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9517 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Sufficient iodine intake is important for thyroid function and, particularly, among women of reproductive age. Water is a universal component of the diet and could be an important source of iodine. Iodine concentration in drinking water varies geographically. It is therefore of nutritional interest to explore the variation and the contribution of iodine from water and beverages.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To analyze the iodine concentrations in tap water, mineral waters, and coffee from different regions of Norway.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Samples of tap water were obtained from different regions of Norway. Six brands of mineral water and several samples of coffee brews were sampled. The iodine concentration was determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS).</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Iodine concentration in tap water varied from below Limit of Quantification to 0.8 μg/100 mL. Five out of six brands of mineral water had low concentrations of iodine, and one brand had a concentration of 38 μg/100 mL. Iodine concentrations in black coffee brews were similar to the tap water. Adding milk or plant-based milk alternatives increased the iodine concentration.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Discussion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Overall, iodine concentrations in tap water were generally low; however, variations were observed both for inland and coastal regions. A trend was seen for higher iodine concentrations in coastal region compared with inland region. For the average habitual iodine intake in Norway, tap water may not contribute significantly. One brand of mineral water could have considerable impact on iodine intake. Coffee does not contribute substantially more to iodine intake than tap water, unless the brew is added with milk or plant-based milk alternatives that contain iodine.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study adds new information about iodine dietary sources in Norway. While tap water and black coffee have limited impact due to generally low concentrations, one mineral water brand may contribute significantly to iodine intake.</p> Monica Hauger Carlsen, Ellen Kielland, Maria Wik Markhus, Lisbeth Dahl Copyright (c) 2023 Monica Hauger Carlsen, Ellen Kielland, Maria Wik Markhus, Lisbeth Dahl https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9517 Mon, 08 May 2023 08:04:26 -0700 <em>Euonymus alatus</em> (Thunb.) Siebold leaf extract enhanced immunostimulatory effects in a cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppressed rat model https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9422 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;<em>Euonymus alatus</em>&nbsp;(Thunb.) Siebold (EA) is a medicinal plant used in some Asian countries to treat various diseases, including cancer, hyperglycemia, diabetes, urticaria, dysmenorrhea, and arthritis. Owing to the wide range of pharmacological applications of EA, various roles of EA are being studied.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;We evaluated the immune-enhancing effect of EA treatment in a cyclophosphamide (Cy)-induced immunosuppressed rat model.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;We analyzed the immune enhancement effect of EA on macrophages by western blotting. In addition, cell viability and natural killer (NK) cell activity were analyzed in splenocytes following EA treatment. For&nbsp;<em>in vivo</em>&nbsp;studies, analysis of weekly body weight, spleen weight, immune cell count, cytokine levels, and spleen histological findings was performed following EA administration in Cy-induced immunocompromised rats.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;EA significantly increased cell viability and phospho-nuclear factor-kappa B and phospho-extracellular signal-regulated kinase protein levels in the macrophages. EA significantly increased NK cell activity in splenocytes compared with the control group. In Cy-induced immunosuppressed rats, EA administration increased spleen tissue weight and the contents of leukocytes, lymphocytes, granulocytes, intermediate cells, and plasma cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α and interferon-γ). In addition, improvement in the damaged spleen tissue was observed.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusions</em>:</strong>&nbsp;These findings confirm that EA exerts an immune-enhancing effect, thereby suggesting its potential as an immunostimulatory agent or functional food.</p> Dong Yeop Shin, Byeong Soo Kim, Hak Yong Lee, Young Mi Park, Yong Wan Kim, Min Jung Kim, Hye Jeong Yang, Mi Seong Kim, Jun Sang Bae Copyright (c) 2023 Dong Yeop Shin, Byeong Soo Kim, Hak Yong Lee, Young Mi Park, Yong Wan Kim, Min Jung Kim, Hye Jeong Yang, Mi Seong Kim, Jun Sang Bae https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9422 Wed, 19 Apr 2023 13:08:38 -0700 Evaluation and prioritization of food environment policies in Norway using the Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI) https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9117 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Government policies promoting healthier food environments can contribute to healthier diets and prevent obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To assess the level of implementation of internationally recommended food environment policies in Norway and establish prioritised actions to create healthier food environments.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI) was adapted to the Norwegian context. It comprised 45 good practice indicators of government food environment policy and infrastructure support. Systematically compiled evidence of relevant policies was verified by government officials and formed the basis for assessing the level of implementation of these policies compared against international best practice benchmarks. The assessment was done by a national non-government expert panel (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 35). The experts thereafter proposed and prioritized policy actions for government implementation.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Most indicators were rated at a medium or high degree of implementation in both the policy action (69%) and the infrastructure support (77%) components. No indicators were rated as having ‘none or very little implementation’. Among the 14 recommended policy actions, active use of price regulation to increase the price of unhealthy foods and decrease the price of healthy foods was the highest priority. Other top priorities were ensuring healthy food environments in public settings and introducing free school meals. Demonstrating knowledge-based and coherent political leadership in public health nutrition policies was the highest priority among the 11 recommended infrastructure support actions.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The overall policies in Norway to promote a healthy diet show a medium to high level of implementation. This study highlights that there is still room for additional improvements in Norwegian policies and infrastructure support to promote healthy food environments.</p> Liv Elin Torheim, Anne Lene Løvhaug, Camilla Sanne Huseby, Sigrun Henjum, Laura Terragni, Maartje Poelman, Janas Harrington, Stefanie Vandevijvere, Gun Roos Copyright (c) 2023 Liv Elin Torheim, Anne Lene Løvhaug, Camilla Sanne Huseby, Sigrun Henjum, Laura Terragni, Maartje Poelman, Janas Harrington, Stefanie Vandevijvere, Gun Roos https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9117 Mon, 17 Apr 2023 13:00:50 -0700 Adolescents’ attitudes, preferences and perceived behaviours regarding healthy eating and whole grains from a gender and health interest perspective https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8988 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A healthy diet is important not only for the growth and development of the human body but also for the prevention of chronic diseases. However, most Swedish adolescents do not follow dietary recommendations, especially the intake of whole grain is very low. To create targeted conditions for healthy food choices amongst adolescents, comprehensive knowledge of factors related to adolescents’ unhealthy and healthy eating is needed.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To investigate adolescents’ attitudes, preferences and perceived behaviours regarding healthy eating, with a specific focus on whole grains and to evaluate differences between genders and between adolescents with higher versus lower health interest.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A total of 1,178 Swedish adolescents responded to a questionnaire about their attitudes, preferences and perceived behabviours towards healthy eating and whole grains, and their general interest in nutrition and health. Results of girls and boys were compared, as well as adolescents with a higher versus lower health interest.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Displays information about healthy eating among adolescents and a comprehensive set of factors that may affect their ability to eat healthier. Overall, adolescents had a positive attitude towards food and health, but less than half felt that they managed to eat healthy. The consumption of different whole grain products was low, although the willingness to eat healthier and more whole grain was high. The most reported barrier to healthy eating, as well as increasing whole grain intake, was the unavailability of tasty healthy products, taste being even more important for adolescents with a low health interest than those with a high interest. Whole grain consumption and factors increasing the willingness of whole grain consumption were most prominent not only in adolescents with high health interest but also in girls compared with boys.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The results show good potential to improve dietary habits amongst adolescents. Taste and availability of healthy products were rated the most important, whilst knowledge about the products’ healthiness was rated the least important, especially amongst those with low health interest. By focusing on the attitudes and preferences of adolescents, the effectiveness may increase of initiatives to improve their dietary habits.</p> Anna Calvén, Karin Jonsson, Karin Wendin, Christel Larsson Copyright (c) 2023 Anna Calvén, Karin Jonsson, Karin Wendin, Christel Larsson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8988 Mon, 10 Apr 2023 22:29:55 -0700 Consumption of meat and dairy substitute products amongst vegans, vegetarians and pescatarians https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9081 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;An increasing number of people adhere to plant-based diets, and the market for plant-based meat and dairy substitute products has been expanding rapidly.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To examine total intake of macronutrients and salt in a sample of Norwegian vegans, vegetarians and pescatarians; the consumption frequency of plant-based meat and dairy substitutes and raw ingredients used in these products; and the contribution to total macronutrient and salt intake from these products.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A cross-sectional design using single 24-h dietary recall to assess the intake of macronutrients, salt and substitute products that the participants (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 158 Norway residents [age 18–60 years]: vegans [<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 83]; vegetarians [<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 47]; pescatarians [<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 28]) consumed. The chi-square test with pairwise comparisons and the Kruskal-Wallis test with post hoc test were used to compare differences between diet groups. Macronutrient and salt intake were assessed relative to the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR).</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Dietary macronutrient intake fell within NNR recommendations, with a favourable distribution of fatty acids and high levels of dietary fibre. Most of the vegans (90%), vegetarians (68%) and pescatarians (64%) consumed meat or dairy substitutes. The main raw ingredient in the substitute products was soy, followed by oats and peas. Overall, substitute products contributed to 12% of total energy and 16% of total salt intake. The substitute products contributed to higher saturated fatty acid (SFA) intake amongst vegans (27% of total SFA intake) compared with vegetarians (10%) and pescatarians (8%). Moreover, substitute products contributed to higher protein intake in vegans (19%) compared with pescatarians (7%).</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Most participants consumed meat or dairy substitute products, suggesting that these products are included regularly in Norwegian plant-based diets. Furthermore, substitute products may contribute to dietary fat, SFA and protein intake amongst vegans.</p> Live Edvardsen Tonheim, Synne Groufh-Jacobsen , Tonje Holte Stea , Sigrun Henjum Copyright (c) 2023 Live Edvardsen Tonheim, Synne Groufh-Jacobsen , Tonje Holte Stea , Sigrun Henjum https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9081 Fri, 31 Mar 2023 14:03:44 -0700 <em>In vitro</em> anti-hepatocellular carcinogenesis of 1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9244 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose (β-PGG) is a polyphenol ellagic compound with a variety of pharmacological effects and has an inhibitory effect on lots of cancers.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To explore the antitumor effects and mechanism of 1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose on human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A network pharmacology method was first used to predict the possible inhibition of hepatocellular carcinoma growth by 1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-galloyl-β-D-glucose (β-PGG) through the p53 signaling pathway. Next, the Cell Counting Kit (CCK-8) assay was performed to evaluate changes in the survival rate of human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells treated with different concentrations of the drug; flow cytometry was used to detect changes in cell cycle, apoptosis, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and intracellular Ca2+ concentration; real-time fluorescence quantification and immunoblotting showed that the expression of P53 genes and proteins associated with the p53 signaling pathway was significantly increased by β-PGG treatment.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Reasult</em>:</strong>&nbsp;It was found that β-PGG significantly inhibited survival of HepG2 cells, promoted apoptosis, decreased MMP and intracellular Ca2+ concentration, upregulated P53 gene and protein expression, increased CASP3 expression, and induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study has shown that network pharmacology can accurately predict the target of β-PGG’s anti-hepatocellular carcinoma action. Moreover, it was evident that β-PGG can induce apoptosis in HepG2 cells by activating the p53 signaling pathway to achieve its anti-hepatocellular carcinoma effect&nbsp;<em>in vitro</em>.</p> Yu-han Jiang, Jing-hui Bi, Min-rui Wu, Shi-jie Ye, Lei Hu, Long-jie Li, Yang Yi, Hong-xun Wang, Li-mei Wang Copyright (c) 2023 Yu-han Jiang, Jing-hui Bi, Min-rui Wu, Shi-jie Ye, Lei Hu, Long-jie Li, Yang Yi, Hong-xun Wang, Li-mei Wang https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9244 Mon, 27 Mar 2023 06:53:13 -0700 <em>Lactobacillus plantarum</em> LP45 inhibits the RANKL/OPG signaling pathway and prevents glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9064 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To examine the potential effect of the probiotic strain&nbsp;<em>Lactobacillus plantarum</em>&nbsp;LP45 on osteoporosis and to explore the involved molecular mechanisms.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A rat model of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) was established, which was also orally administered with increasing doses of LP45 for 8 weeks. After the termination of the 8-week treatment, the tibia and femur bones of rats were analyzed for bone histomorphometry, bone mineral content (BMC), and bone mineral density (BMD). Femoral biomechanics were assessed. In addition, levels of osteocalcin, tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5 (TRAP5), osteoprotegerin (OPG), and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL) in the serum and bone marrow were also measured using ELISA, Western blot, and real time-polymerase chain reaction.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;GIO caused obvious defects in tibia and femur bone structures, in terms of tissue/bone volume, trabecular separation, trabecular thickness, and trabecular number, which could be rescued by LP45 dose dependently. The GIO-induced reductions in BMC, BMD, osteoblast surfaces per bone surface (BS), as well as elevated osteoclast surface per BS were largely restored by LP45 administration dose-dependently. LP45 also increased femoral biomechanics of GIO rats. Importantly, LP45 dose-dependently restored the changes of osteocalcin, TRAP5, OPG, and RANKL in the serum as well as bone marrow of GIO rats.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Oral LP45 administration could significantly prevent bone defects in GIO rats, suggesting its potential as a dietary supplement with beneficial effects against osteoporosis, which might involve the RANKL/OPG signaling pathway.</p> Xiaofeng Jiang , Xiaojun Qi , Chao Xie Copyright (c) 2023 Xiaofeng Jiang , Xiaojun Qi , Chao Xie https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9064 Fri, 24 Mar 2023 00:00:00 -0700 <em>Garcinia cambogia</em> water extract alleviates insulin resistance and hepatic lipid accumulation in mice fed a high-fat diet https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8977 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Garcinia cambogia is widely used as a weight-loss supplement, and it is reported to be negatively associated with metabolic diseases including insulin resistance (IR), type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and dyslipidemia.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study aimed to investigate the effect of G. cambogia water extract (GE) on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity, IR, and hepatic lipid accumulation.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;C57BL/6 male mice were fed HFD with or without GE, GED and GEP for 16 weeks, and the mice were subjected to insulin tolerance tests and liver histological analysis. The hydroxycitric acid (HCA) levels of GE, GED, and GEP were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The results showed that GE significantly reduced HFD-induced body weight gain (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.001), alleviated IR (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.01), reduced serum total cholesterol (TC) (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.001), and attenuated HFD-induced hepatic lipid accumulation. To investigate the constituent that was responsible for these effects, we separated GE into the component that dissolved in ethanol (GED) and the component that was precipitated by ethanol (GEP). Further mouse experiments showed that both GED and GEP were effective, but GED (which was used at a dose of 4 g/L) was more effective than GEP (which was used at a lower dose of 1 g/L). The HCA levels in GED and GEP were similar, although less than in GE. HCA may be the effective component in GE.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study provides evidence that G. cambogia can be used as a natural supplement to alleviate IR and hepatic lipid accumulation.</p> Jinya Dong, Wen Li, Xiaocui Du, Xiaofang He, Bin Deng, Hongmei Zheng, Yang Tian, Chongye Fang, Jun Sheng Copyright (c) 2023 Jinya Dong, Wen Li, Xiaocui Du, Xiaofang He, Bin Deng, Hongmei Zheng, Yang Tian, Chongye Fang, Jun Sheng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8977 Tue, 14 Mar 2023 12:22:08 -0700 Can vitamin D status influence the effect of stress on planning and problem-solving? A randomized control trial https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8970 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Nutritional interventions may serve as a stress resilience strategy with important implications for human health.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of vitamin D supplementation throughout wintertime on problem-solving and planning abilities during stressful circumstances.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A total of 77 male inpatients with a mean age of 48 years (range 31–81) and stress-related mental health disorders were randomly assigned into a Vitamin D supplement group (daily intake of 40 μg) or a placebo supplement group (Control) (daily intake of 120 mg olive oil). The intervention period was from January 2018 to May 2018. The means and standard deviations for vitamin D status (25-hydroxyvitamin D3, nmol/L), pre- and post-test, respectively, were 58(21) and 46(15) for the Control group, and 63(18) and 76(21) for the Vitamin D group. Problem-solving and planning abilities were measured by the Tower of London (ToL) task pre- (midwinter) and post- (spring) supplement intervention. The ToL task was performed during exposure to distracting noise.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The results revealed that vitamin D supplementation throughout the winter had a significant effect on number of correct responses on easier (1 and 2 move) ToL problems during stress; the Vitamin D group improved significantly from pre- to post-test, whereas the Control group did not. In addition, the Vitamin D group had significantly more correct responses than the Control group on post-test. The improved performance was not related to a speed-accuracy trade off effect; both groups showed significantly decreased planning times from pre- to post-test. The intervention did not differentially affect task performance on the more difficult (3 to 5 move) ToL problems. For the more demanding problems, IQ seemed to explain most of the variance regarding accuracy. Age explained most of the variance associated with task planning time.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Vitamin D supplementation seemed to improve resilience to stress, but it was limited to performance of easier tasks</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> Anita L. Hansen, Gina Ambroziak, David M. Thornton, James C. Mundt, Rachel E. Kahn, Lisbeth Dahl, Leif Waage, Daniel Kattenbraker, Bjørn Grung Copyright (c) 2023 Anita L. Hansen, Gina Ambroziak, David M. Thornton, James C. Mundt, Rachel E. Kahn, Lisbeth Dahl, Leif Waage, Daniel Kattenbraker, Bjørn Grung https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8970 Mon, 13 Mar 2023 12:14:27 -0700 Immature ginger reduces triglyceride accumulation by downregulating Acyl CoA carboxylase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase-1 genes in 3T3-L1 adipocytes https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9126 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Obesity is the underlying risk factor for major metabolism complications, including non-alcoholic-fatty liver disease, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular disease. The adipose tissue is a vital endocrine organ that plays a role in the synthesis and storage of lipid and, therefore, is a contributory factor to the development and progression of obesity. A growing interest in nutraceuticals suggests that natural products can alleviate the risk factors and may be effective in mitigating obesity.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Aim</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The objective of this study was to examine the underlying mechanisms of immature ginger on adipocyte differentiation and lipogenesis in a 3T3-L1 cellular model.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Ginger samples, extracted in 80% methanol, were dried and resuspended in DMSO at 50 μg/mL as stock solution. For analysis, the extracted samples were further diluted in media. Effects on adipogenesis were evaluated by determining lipid droplet and triglyceride accumulation, whereas effects on lipogenesis were determined by measuring triglyceride contents and fatty acid profile. The expression of key regulatory genes involved in adipogenesis and lipogenesis was also determined.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Our data indicate that the intracellular lipid accumulation decreased significantly by 15 or 25% on treatment with 25 or 50 μg/mL of ginger extract. Consistent with these data, significantly reduced triglyceride levels by 30 or 50% were observed on 25 or 50 μg/mL treatment with ginger extracts, respectively. In addition, ginger treatment significantly inhibited the differentiation-induced&nbsp;<em>de novo</em>&nbsp;lipogenesis and Δ9 desaturase activity. Furthermore, ginger treatment reduced adipogenesis genes,&nbsp;<em>C/ebpβ</em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>C/ebpδ</em>, expression by 47 or 64%, respectively, but significantly increased&nbsp;<em>Pparγ</em>&nbsp;expression by 60% and adiponectin by 75%. Ginger extracts had no effect on&nbsp;<em>Fas</em>&nbsp;genes but reduced lipogenesis genes, acyl CoA carboxylase (<em>Acc</em>) expression by two-fold, and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxy kinase 1 (<em>Pepck1)</em>&nbsp;expression by 50%.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Our findings suggest immature ginger can potentially inhibit lipogenesis pathways by limiting the channeling of glucose carbon in fatty acid synthesis by inhibiting the expression of ACC and glycerol production via inhibiting the expression of PEPCK, which consequently inhibits triglyceride formation.</p> Haiwen Li, Ahmed Reza Rafie, Anwar Hamama, Rafat A. Siddiqui Copyright (c) 2023 Rafat A. Siddiqui, Haiwen Li, Ahmed Reza Rafie, Anwar Hamama https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9126 Thu, 02 Mar 2023 13:17:12 -0800 Inositol hexaphosphate promotes intestinal adaptation in short bowel syndrome via an HDAC3-mediated epigenetic pathway https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8694 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Short bowel syndrome (SBS) has high morbidity and mortality rates, and promoting intestinal adaptation of the residual intestine is a critical treatment. Dietary inositol hexaphosphate (IP6) plays an important role in maintaining intestinal homeostasis, but its effect on SBS remains unclear. This study aimed at investigating the effect of IP6 on SBS and clarified its underlying mechanism.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Forty male Sprague–Dawley rats (3-week-old) were randomly assigned into four groups (Sham, Sham + IP6, SBS, and SBS + IP6 groups). Rats were fed standard pelleted rat chow and underwent resection of 75% of the small intestine after 1 week of acclimation. They received 1 mL IP6 treatment (2 mg/g) or sterile water daily for 13 days by gavage. Intestinal length, levels of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3), histone deacetylase 3 (HDAC3) activity, and proliferation of intestinal epithelial cell-6 (IEC-6) were detected.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;IP6 treatment increased the length of the residual intestine in rats with SBS. Furthermore, IP6 treatment caused an increase in body weight, intestinal mucosal weight, and IEC proliferation, and a decrease in intestinal permeability. IP6 treatment led to higher levels of IP3 in feces and serum, and higher HDAC3 activity of the intestine. Interestingly, HDAC3 activity was positively correlated with the levels of IP3 in feces (<em>r</em>&nbsp;= 0.49,&nbsp;<em>P</em>&nbsp;= 0.01) and serum (<em>r</em>&nbsp;= 0.44,&nbsp;<em>P</em>&nbsp;= 0.03). Consistently, IP3 treatment promoted the proliferation of IEC-6 cells by increasing HDAC3 activity&nbsp;<em>in vitro</em>. IP3 regulated the Forkhead box O3 (FOXO3)/Cyclin D1 (CCND1) signaling pathway.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;IP6 treatment promotes intestinal adaptation in rats with SBS. IP6 is metabolized to IP3 to increase HDAC3 activity to regulate the FOXO3/CCND1 signaling pathway and may represent a potential therapeutic approach for patients with SBS.</p> Weipeng Wang, Ying Wang, Ying Lu, Xinbei Tian, Shanshan Chen, Bo Wu, Jun Du, Yongtao Xiao, Wei Cai Copyright (c) 2023 Weipeng Wang, Ying Wang, Ying Lu, Xinbei Tian, Shanshan Chen, Bo Wu, Jun Du, Yongtao Xiao, Wei Cai https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8694 Thu, 02 Feb 2023 05:20:39 -0800 Inhibition of castration-resistant prostate cancer growth by genistein through suppression of AKR1C3 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9024 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death among males in America. The patients’ survival time is significantly reduced after prostate cancer develops into castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). It has been reported that AKR1C3 is involved in this progression, and that its abnormal expression is directly correlated with the degree of CRPC malignancy. Genistein is one of the active components of soy isoflavones, and many studies have suggested that it has a better inhibitory effect on CRPC.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study aimed to investigate the antitumor effect of genistein on CRPC and the potential mechanism of action.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><img src="FNR-67-9024-F1.jpg" alt="FNR-67-9024-F1.jpg"></p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A xenograft tumor mouse model established with 22RV1 cells was divided into the experimental group and the control group, and the former was given 100 mg/kg.bw/day of genistein, with 22RV1, VCaP, and RWPE-1 cells cultured in a hormone-free serum environment and treated with different concentrations of genistein (0, 12.5, 25, 50, and 100 μmol/L) for 48 h. Molecular docking was used to elucidate the molecular interactions between genistein and AKR1C3.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Genistein inhibits CRPC cell proliferation and in vivo tumorigenesis. The western blot analysis confirmed that the genistein significantly inhibited prostate-specific antigen production in a dose-dependent manner. In further results, AKR1C3 expression was decreased in both the xenograft tumor tissues and the CRPC cell lines following genistein gavage feeding compared to the control group, with the reduction becoming more obvious as the concentration of genistein was increased. When the genistein was combined with AKR1C3 small interfering ribonucleic acid and an AKR1C3 inhibitor (ASP-9521), the inhibitory effect on the AKR1C3 was more pronounced. In addition, the molecular docking results suggested that the genistein had a strong affinity with the AKR1C3, and that it could be a promising AKR1C3 inhibitor.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Genistein inhibits the progression of CRPC via the suppression of AKR1C3.</p> Xiaoping Yu, Jiali Yan, Yulu Li, Jing Chen, Lujie Zheng, Tianyu Fu, Yanfeng Zhu Copyright (c) 2023 Xiaoping Yu, Jiali Yan, Yulu Li, Jing Chen, Lujie Zheng, Tianyu Fu, Yanfeng Zhu https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9024 Tue, 31 Jan 2023 00:00:00 -0800 A proprietary blend of <em>Sphaeranthus indicus</em> flower head and <em>Mangifera indica</em> bark extracts increases muscle strength and enhances endurance in young male volunteers: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8972 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The demand for safe and efficacious botanical formulations to increase muscle mass, strength, and stamina is increasing among athletes and the general population. The nutraceutical supplements of medicinal plant origin exert minimal health concern.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was aimed to evaluate the ergogenic potential of a proprietary, standardized formulation (LI12542F6) of&nbsp;<em>Sphaeranthus indicus</em>&nbsp;flower head and&nbsp;<em>Mangifera indica</em>&nbsp;stem bark extracts.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Forty male participants 18–40 years of age were assigned to receive either a placebo (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 20) or 650 mg/day LI12542F6 (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 20) for 56 days. All participants performed a fixed set of resistance exercises during the intervention. The primary endpoint was the change from baseline muscle strength, assessed by one-repetition maximum (1-RM) bench and leg presses, and handgrip strength. The secondary endpoints included cable pull-down repetitions, time to exhaustion on a treadmill, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), body composition using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), and free testosterone and cortisol levels in serum.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Fifty-six days supplementation of LI12542F6 significantly improved baseline bench press (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.0001), leg press (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.0001), handgrip strength (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.0006), number of repetitions (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.0001), and time to exhaustion (<em>P</em>&nbsp;&lt; 0.0008), compared to placebo. Post-trial, the LI12542F6 group also showed significantly increased MUAC and improved body composition and serum hormone levels. The participants’ hematology, clinical chemistry, and vital signs were within the normal range. No adverse events were observed.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;This study demonstrates that LI12542F6 supplementation significantly increases muscle strength and size and improves endurance in healthy men. Also, LI12542F6 is well-tolerated by the participants.</p> Meher Prasanna Rokkam, Olos Gora, Manikyeswara Rao Konda, Ajay Koushik Copyright (c) 2023 Meher Prasanna Rokkam, Olos Gora, Manikyeswara Rao Konda, Ajay Koushik https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8972 Fri, 27 Jan 2023 14:14:05 -0800 The clinicians’ view of food-related obstacles for treating eating disorders: A qualitative study https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8771 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Good health requires healthy eating. However, individuals with eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa, require treatment to modify their dietary behaviours and prevent health complications. There is no consensus on the best treatment practices and treatment outcomes are usually poor. While normalising eating behaviour is a cornerstone in treatment, few studies have focused on eating and food-related obstacles to treatment.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The aim of the study was to investigate clinicians’ perceived food-related obstacles to treatment of eating disorders (EDs).</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Qualitative focus group discussions were conducted with clinicians involved in eating disorder treatment to get an understanding of their perceptions and beliefs regarding food and eating among eating disorder patients. Thematic analysis was used to find common patterns in the collected material.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;From the thematic analysis the following five themes were identified: (1) ideas about healthy and unhealthy food, (2) calculating with calories, (3) taste, texture, and temperature as an excuse, (4) the problems with hidden ingredients and (5) the challenges of extra food.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Discussion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;All identified themes showed not only connections to each other but also some overlap. All themes were associated with a requirement of control, where food may be perceived as a threat, with the effects of food consumption resulting in a perceived net loss, rather than a gain. This mindset can greatly influence decision making.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusions</em>:</strong>&nbsp;The results of this study are based on experience and practical knowledge that could improve future ED treatments by enhancing our understanding the challenges certain foods pose for patients. The results may also help to improve dietary plans by including and explaining challenges for patients at different stages of treatment. Future studies could further investigate the causes and best treatment practices for people suffering from EDs and other eating disturbances.</p> Billy Langlet, Maria Nyberg, Karin Wendin, Modjtaba Zandian Copyright (c) 2023 Billy Langlet, Maria Nyberg, Karin Wendin, Modjtaba Zandian https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8771 Wed, 25 Jan 2023 10:08:34 -0800 Seed-derived peptide lunasin suppressed breast cancer cell growth by regulating inflammatory mediators, aromatase, and estrogen receptors https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8991 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background:</em></strong>&nbsp;Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in women. Its pathology comprises tumor cells and nearby stromal cells, accompanied by cytokines and stimulated molecules, resulting in a favorable microenvironment for tumor progression. Lunasin is a seed peptide with multiple bioactivities derived from seeds. However, the chemopreventive effect of lunasin on different characteristics of breast cancer has not been fully explored.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective:</em></strong>&nbsp;This study aims to explore the chemopreventive mechanisms of lunasin through inflammatory mediators and estrogen-related molecules in breast cancer cells.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Design:</em></strong>&nbsp;Estrogen-dependent MCF-7 and independent MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells were used. The β-estradiol was used to mimic physiological estrogen. The gene expression, mediator secretion, cell vitality, and apoptosis impacting breast malignancy were explored.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results:</em></strong>&nbsp;Lunasin did not affect normal MCF-10A cell growth but inhibited breast cancer cell growth, increased interleukin (IL)-6 gene expression and protein production at 24 h, and decreased its secretion at 48 h. In both breast cancer cells, aromatase gene and activity and estrogen receptor (ER)α gene expression were decreased by lunasin treatment, while ERβ gene levels were significantly increased in MDA-MB-231 cells. Moreover, lunasin decreased vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion and cell vitality and induced cell apoptosis in both breast cancer cell lines. However, lunasin only decreased leptin receptor (Ob-R) mRNA expression in MCF-7 cells. Additionally, β-estradiol increased MCF-7-cell proliferation but not the proliferation of other cells; in particular, lunasin still inhibited MCF-7-cell growth and cell vitality in the presence of β-estradiol.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion:</em></strong>&nbsp;Seed peptide lunasin inhibited breast cancer cell growth by regulating inflammatory, angiogenic, and estrogen-related molecules, suggesting that lunasin is a promising chemopreventive agent.</p> Chia-Chien Hsieh, Chi-Hao Wu, Shih-Han Peng, Chia-Hsin Chang Copyright (c) 2023 Chia-Chien Hsieh, Chi-Hao Wu, Shih-Han Peng, Chia-Hsin Chang https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8991 Wed, 25 Jan 2023 10:51:02 -0800 The PPARα/CYP4A14 bile acid pathway is associated with lipid metabolism disorders caused by low birth weight with high-fat diet https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8994 <p style="line-height: 1.5; color: #000000; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Fira Sans', 'Droid Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Purpose:</em></strong>&nbsp;To investigate possible mechanisms underlying the greater susceptibility of lipid metabolism disorders in low birth weight (LBW) mice fed with high-fat diets (HFDs).</p> <p style="line-height: 1.5; color: #000000; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Fira Sans', 'Droid Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods:</em></strong>&nbsp;LBW mice model was established by using the pregnancy malnutrition method. Male pups were selected from LBW and normal-birth weight (NBW) offspring at random. After 3 weeks of weaning, all offspring mice were fed with HFD. Serum triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein (LDL-C), total bile acid (TAB), non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), and mice fecal bile acid profiles were measured. Lipid deposition in liver sections was visualized by Oil Red O staining. The weight ratio of liver, muscle, and adiposity was calculated. Tandem mass tag (TMT) combined with LC-MS/MS was used to determine the differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) of liver tissue in two groups. Bioinformatics was used for further analysis of DEPs to screen key target proteins, and then Western Blot (WB) and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were performed to validate the expressions of DEPs.</p> <p style="line-height: 1.5; color: #000000; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Fira Sans', 'Droid Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results:</em></strong>&nbsp;LBW mice fed with HFD showed more severe lipid metabolism disorders in the childhood. In contrast to the NBW group, the serum bile acids and fecal ω-muricholic acid (ω-MCA) levels in the LBW group were significantly lower. LC-MS/MS analysis showed that downregulated proteins were associated with lipid metabolism, and further analysis found that these proteins are mainly concentrated in peroxisome proliferation-activated receptor (PPAR) and primary bile acid synthesis signaling pathways and are involved in cellular processes and metabolic processes through binding and catalytic functions. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that the level of Cytochrome P450 Family 46 Subfamily A Member 1 (CYP46A1), PPARα, key factors of cholesterol metabolism and bile acid synthesis, as well as downstream molecules Cytochrome P450 Family 4 Subfamily A Member 14 (CYP4A14), and Acyl-Coenzyme A Oxidase 2 (ACOX2) are markedly different in the liver of LBW individuals fed with HFD, and confirmed by WB and RT-qPCR.</p> <p style="line-height: 1.5; color: #000000; font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Fira Sans', 'Droid Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion:</em></strong>&nbsp;LBW mice are more prone to dyslipidemia probably due to downregulated bile acid metabolism-related PPARα/CYP4A14 pathway, resulting in insufficient metabolism of cholesterol to bile acids, which, in turn, leads to elevated blood cholesterol.</p> Fei Zhou, Linquan Yang, Wenwen Sun, Xing Wang, Na Guo, Huijuan Ma, Linlin Yang Copyright (c) 2023 Fei Zhou, Linquan Yang, Wenwen Sun, Xing Wang, Na Guo, Huijuan Ma, Linlin Yang https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8994 Tue, 24 Jan 2023 14:13:31 -0800 Animal versus plant-based protein and risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials and prospective cohort studies https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9003 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objectives</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To systematically review the evidence on the effect of replacing the intake of animal protein with plant protein on cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) and their intermediate risk factors.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Scopus up to 12th May 2022 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or prospective cohort studies that investigated replacement of animal protein with plant protein from foods. Outcomes were CVDs, T2D, and in RCTs also the effects on blood lipids, glycemic markers, and blood pressure. Risk of bias was evaluated with the Cochrane’s RoB2, ROBINS-I, and USDA’s RoB-NObS tools. Random-effects meta-analyses assessed the effects of plant vs. animal proteins on blood lipids in RCTs. The evidence was appraised according to the World Cancer Research Fund’s criteria.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;After screening 15,090 titles/abstracts, full text of 124 papers was scrutinized in detail, from which 13 RCTs and seven cohort studies were included. Eight of the RCTs had either some concern or high risk of bias, while the corresponding evaluation of cohort studies resulted in moderate risk of bias for all seven. Meta-analyses of RCTs suggested a protective effect on total cholesterol (mean difference -0.11 mmol/L; 95% CI -0.22, -0.01) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (-0.14 mmol/L; 95% CI -0.25, -0.02) by replacing animal protein with plant protein. The substitution of animal protein with plant protein (percentage of energy intake) in cohort studies was associated with lower CVD mortality (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 4) and lower T2D incidence (<em>n</em>&nbsp;= 2). The evidence was considered&nbsp;<em>limited-suggestive</em>&nbsp;for both outcomes.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Evidence that the substitution of animal protein with plant protein reduces risk of both CVD mortality and T2D incidence is&nbsp;<em>limited-suggestive</em>. Replacing animal protein with plant protein for aspects of sustainability may also be a public health strategy to lower the risk of CVD mortality and T2D.</p> Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Linnea Bärebring, Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Bright I. Nwaru, Birna Thorisdottir, Alfons Ramel, Fredrik Söderlund, Jutta Dierkes, Agneta Åkesson Copyright (c) 2023 Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Linnea Bärebring, Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Bright I. Nwaru, Birna Thorisdottir, Alfons Ramel, Fredrik Söderlund, Jutta Dierkes, Agneta Åkesson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9003 Tue, 28 Mar 2023 13:07:49 -0700 Dietary fiber and growth, iron status and bowel function in children 0–5 years old: a systematic review https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9011 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Background</em>:</strong>&nbsp;While dietary fiber intake is low in many children, the current trend to plant-based diets is associated with higher fiber intake in children raised on these diets. As older reports indicate that diets providing high fiber intake in children 0–5 years may affect growth, iron status and bowel function, we summarized the available evidence in this systematic review.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objective</em>:</strong>&nbsp;To identify, critically appraise, and synthesize evidence on the effect of high fiber intake on growth, iron and bowel function in children 0–5 years, with relevance to the Nordic and Baltic countries.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;Following a pre-registered protocol, we searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central of Controlled Trials, and Scopus for clinical trials and prospective cohort studies published until November 2021. Two reviewers independently screened retrieved literature, extracted relevant data, and performed risk of bias assessment. Outcomes were growth, iron metabolism and bowel function in children 0–5 years. We narratively described findings from studies that met inclusion criteria.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;From 5,644 identified records, five articles met the inclusion criteria. Two RCTs had an overall moderate risk of bias, while the three observational studies had serious risk. Overall, we found no robust association between high intake of dietary fiber and growth. In the RCTs, higher intake of fiber had a positive effect on bowel movements and constipation. No studies on fiber intake and iron status were identified.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;">The certainty of the overall evidence was inconclusive for growth and bowel function, while no assessment was made for iron status.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;We found no clear association between high intake of dietary fiber and growth or bowel function in young children living in affluent countries, albeit with only a limited number of studies. There is a lack of studies investigating health effects of high fiber intake in small children.</p> Jutta Dierkes, Bright I. Nwaru, Alfons Ramel, Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Birna Thorisdottir, Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Ulrike Spielau, Fredrik Söderlund, Linnea Bärebring, Agneta Åkesson Copyright (c) 2023 Jutta Dierkes, Bright I. Nwaru, Alfons Ramel, Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Birna Thorisdottir, Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Ulrike Spielau, Fredrik Söderlund, Linnea Bärebring, Agneta Åkesson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/9011 Mon, 27 Mar 2023 09:27:23 -0700 Nuts and seeds consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and their risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8961 <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Objectives</em>:</strong>&nbsp;We aimed to systematically review studies and evaluate the strength of the evidence on nuts/seeds consumption and cardiometabolic diseases and their risk factors among adults.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Methods</em>:</strong>&nbsp;A protocol was pre-registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021270554). We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Scopus up to September 20, 2021 for prospective cohort studies and ≥12-week randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Main outcomes were cardiovascular disease (CVD), coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke and type 2 diabetes (T2D), secondary total-/low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, blood pressure and glycaemic markers. Data extraction and risk of bias (RoB) assessments (using RoB 2.0 and RoB-NObS) were performed in duplicate. Effect sizes were pooled using random-effects meta-analyses and expressed as relative risk (RR) or weighted mean differences with 95% confidence intervals (CI); heterogeneity quantified as&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>. One-stage dose-response analyses assessed the linear and non-linear associations with CVD, CHD, stroke and T2D. The strength of evidence was classified per the World Cancer Research Fund criteria.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Results</em>:</strong>&nbsp;After screening 23,244 references, we included 42 papers from cohort studies (28 unique cohorts, 1,890,573 participants) and 18 RCTs (2,266 participants). In the cohorts, mainly populations with low consumption, high versus low total nuts/seeds consumption was inversely associated with total CVD (RR 0.81; 95% CI 0.75, 0.86;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 67%), CVD mortality (0.77; 0.72, 0.82;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 59.3%), CHD (0.82; 0.76, 0.89;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 64%), CHD mortality (0.75; 0.65, 0.87;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 66.9%) and non-fatal CHD (0.85; 0.75, 0.96;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 62.2%). According to the non-linear dose-response analyses, consumption of 30 g/day of total nuts/seeds was associated with RRs of similar magnitude. For stroke and T2D the summary RR for high versus low intake was 0.91 (95% CI 0.85, 0.97;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 24.8%) and 0.95 (0.75, 1.21;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 82.2%). Intake of nuts (median ~50 g/day) lowered total (−0.15 mmol/L; −0.22, −0.08;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 31.2%) and LDL-cholesterol (−0.13 mmol/L; −0.21, −0.05;&nbsp;<em>I</em><sup>2</sup>&nbsp;= 68.6%), but not blood pressure. Findings on fasting glucose, HbA1c and insulin resistance were conflicting. The results were robust to sensitivity and subgroup analyses. We rated the associations between nuts/seeds and both CVD and CHD as&nbsp;<em>probable</em>. There was limited but&nbsp;<em>suggestive</em>&nbsp;evidence for no association with stroke. No conclusion could be made for T2D.</p> <p style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong><em>Conclusion</em>:</strong>&nbsp;There is a probable relationship between consumption of nuts/seeds and lower risk of CVD, mostly driven by CHD, possibly in part through effects on blood lipids. More research on stroke and T2D may affect the conclusions. The evidence of specific nuts should be further investigated.</p> Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Birna Thorisdottir, Linnea Bärebring, Fredrik Söderlund, Bright I. Nwaru, Ulrike Spielau, Jutta Dierkes, Alfons Ramel, Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Agneta Åkesson Copyright (c) 2023 Erik Kristoffer Arnesen, Birna Thorisdottir, Linnea Bärebring, Fredrik Söderlund, Bright I. Nwaru, Ulrike Spielau, Jutta Dierkes, Alfons Ramel, Christel Lamberg-Allardt, Agneta Åkesson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/8961 Tue, 14 Feb 2023 00:00:00 -0800