Nutrition & Metabolism

BACKGROUND: Type 1 diabetes is believed to be an autoimmune condition, characterized by destruction of insulin-producing cells, due to the detrimental inflammation in pancreas. Growing evidences have indicated the important role of type I interferon in the development of type 1 diabetes. METHODS: Trex1-deficient rats were generated by using CRISPR-Cas9. The fasting blood glucose level of rat was measured by a Roche Accuchek blood glucose monitor. The levels of insulin, islet autoantibodies, and interferon-β were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay...

BACKGROUND: Interplay between gut microbiota and heart, termed "gut-heart" axis, has a crucial role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Our previous study showed that lycopene possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-atherosclerotic effects, but its link to the gut microbiota is poorly understood. Herein, we surmised that lycopene could regulate the gut microbiota, exert anti-atherosclerotic effect by regulating the "gut-heart" axis. METHODS: Male ApoE-/- mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) with or without lycopene (0...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize potential mechanisms of fisetin on hepatic insulin resistance (IR) using network pharmacology and in vitro validation. METHODS: Putative targets of fisetin were retrieved from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology database, whereas the potential genes of hepatic IR were obtained from GeneCards database. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed according to the intersection targets of fisetin and hepatic IR using the Venn diagram...

BACKGROUND: This study investigated the effect of uteroplacental insufficiency (UPI) on renal development by detecting metabolic alterations in the kidneys of rats with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). METHODS: On gestational day 17, pregnant Sprague Dawley rats were selected and allocated randomly to either the IUGR group or the control group. The IUGR group received a protocol involving the closure of bilateral uterine vessels, while the control group underwent a sham surgery...

BACKGROUND: Serum retinol (SR) and retinol-binding protein (RBP) are commonly used indicators, but they are affected by infections and inflammation. This study aimed to assess the sensitivity and specificity of VA indicators to detect vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in 36-59-month-old children living in a rural area in Burkina Faso. METHODS: In a community-based study, two cross-sectional surveys were carried out from November 2016 to September 2017 in the health district of Dandé in Burkina Faso...

BACKGROUND: Whether and to what extent serum uric acid (SUA) mediates the association between combined lifestyle behaviors and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the role of SUA in the relationship between healthy lifestyle scores (HLS) and the incidence of T2DM. METHODS: This prospective study used data from Zhejiang Metabolic Syndrome cohort. A HLS (5-point scale including healthy waist circumference (WC), never smoking, high physical activity, healthy diet and moderate alcohol intake) was estimated in 13,919 participants, who had SUA at baseline examination in 2009-2014, and were followed-up to 2021-2022 to ascertain incident of T2DM...

BACKGROUND: The association between weight change during early adulthood and cardiometabolic diseases remains uncertain in Chinese population. Whether the association varies with comprehensive cardiovascular health (CVH) in midlife assessed by "Life's Essential 8" has not been characterized. We aim to examine the associations of early adulthood weight change and midlife "Life's Essential 8" CVH status with cardiometabolic outcomes in a Chinese cohort. METHODS: The study participants were from the China Cardiometabolic Disease and Cancer Cohort (4 C) Study...

Evidence from epidemiologic studies on the association of circulating betaine levels with the incident risk of cancer has been inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the prospective association of serum betaine concentrations with the risk of cancer. We performed two, nested, case-control studies utilizing data from the "H-type Hypertension Prevention and Control Public Service Project" (HHPCP) and the China Stroke Primary Prevention Trial (CSPPT), with 2782 participants (1391 cancer cases and 1391 matched controls) in the discovery cohort, and 228 participants (114 cancer cases and 114 matched controls) in the validation cohort...

Dementia is a highly prevalent and costly disease characterised by deterioration of cognitive and physical capacity due to changes in brain function and structure. Given the absence of effective treatment options for dementia, dietary and other lifestyle approaches have been advocated as potential strategies to reduce the burden of this condition. Maintaining an optimal nutritional status is vital for the preservation of brain function and structure. Several studies have recognised the significant role of nutritional factors to protect and enhance metabolic, cerebrovascular, and neurocognitive functions...

BACKGROUND: The gut microbiome is a salient contributor to the development of obesity, and diet is the greatest modifier of the gut microbiome, which highlights the need to better understand how specific diets alter the gut microbiota to impact metabolic disease. Increased dietary fiber intake shifts the gut microbiome and improves energy and glucose homeostasis. Dietary fibers are found in various plant-based flours which vary in fiber composition. However, the comparative efficacy of specific plant-based flours to improve energy homeostasis and the mechanism by which this occurs is not well characterized...

Riboflavin, or vitamin B2, is an essential nutrient that serves as a precursor to flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and flavin mononucleotide (FMN). The binding of the FAD and/or FMN cofactors to flavoproteins is critical for regulating their assembly and activity. There are over 90 proteins in the human flavoproteome that regulate a diverse array of biochemical pathways including mitochondrial metabolism, riboflavin transport, ubiquinone and FAD synthesis, antioxidant signalling, one-carbon metabolism, nitric oxide signalling and peroxisome oxidative metabolism...

BACKGROUND: The optimization of glucose control in type-1 diabetes is challenged by postprandial glycemic variability. This study aimed to compare the postprandial glycemic effects of carbohydrate counting and the modified fat-protein unit (FPU) algorithms following meals with different protein and fat emphases in adults with type-1 diabetes. METHODS: Thirty adults with type-1 diabetes aged 18 to 45 years participated in a randomized crossover trial. In a random order, participants consumed four test meals with equivalent energy and different macronutrient emphases on four separate mornings...

BACKGROUND: Dietary intake during early life may be a modifying factor for cardiometabolic risk (CMR). Metabolomic profiling may enable more precise identification of CMR in adolescence than traditional CMR scores. We aim to assess and compare the prospective associations between an obesogenic dietary pattern (DP) score at age 13 years with a novel vs. traditional CMR score in adolescence and young adulthood in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). METHODS: Study participants were ALSPAC children with diet diary data at age 13...

BACKGROUND: Insulin resistance (IR) in hepatocytes endangers human health, and frequently results in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Research on m6 A methylation of RNA molecules has gained popularity in recent years; however, the molecular mechanisms regulating the processes of m6 A modification and IR are not known. The cytochrome P450 (CYP450) enzyme system, which is mainly found in the liver, is associated with the pathogenesis of NAFLD. However, few studies have been conducted on CYP450 related m6 A methylation...

Healthy dietary patterns are associated with lower inflammation and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and adherence can be measured using diet quality scores. Inflammation is traditionally measured with C-reactive protein (hsCRP), however there is interest in novel pro-inflammatory markers platelet-activating factor (PAF) and lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2 ) that are specifically involved in endothelial dysfunction and inflammation. This cross-sectional study investigated the association between PAF, Lp-PLA2 , hsCRP, and six diet scores...

BACKGROUND: In this prospective cohort study, we aimed to evaluate the association between dietary carbohydrates, whole grains, refined grains, and simple sugar with the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and assess the effect of weight change on these associations. METHODS: This study was conducted within the framework of the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS). We included 1915 healthy participants with complete demographic, anthropometric and dietary measurements, among whom 591 developed MetS during 8...

BACKGROUND: Macrosomia (birthweight ≥ 4 kg or ≥ 4.5 kg) is strongly associated with a predisposition to childhood obesity, which in turn is linked with adverse cardiometabolic health. Despite this, there is a lack of longitudinal investigation on the impact of high birthweight on cardiometabolic outcomes in youth. The preteen period represents an important window of opportunity to further explore this link, to potentially prevent cardiometabolic profiles worsening during puberty...

BACKGROUND: Higher dietary quality, including increased vegetable consumption, was associated with a reduced risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS). However, specific vegetable consumption in the development of MetS remains obscure. Our study aimed to investigate the correlation between starchy and non-starchy vegetables and MetS. METHODS: Secondary data analysis from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 1999-2018). MetS was defined by National Cholesterol Education Program-Adult treatment Panel III (NCEP ATPIII) and dietary consumption was assessed by trained staff using two 24-h diet recall methods...

Conjugated linoleic acids (CLAs) are polyunsaturated fatty acids primarily found in dairy products and ruminant animal products such as beef, lamb, and butter. Supplementation of CLAs has recently become popular among athletes due to the variety of health-promoting effects, including improvements in physical performance. Preclinical and some clinical studies have shown that CLAs can reduce inflammation and oxidative stress and favorably modulate body composition and physical performance; however, the results of previously published clinical trials are mixed...