Nutrition
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Restricting-type anorexia nervosa (AN-R), characterized by severe emaciation with long-term food restriction, is often difficult to treat. The present study investigated the overall intelligence quotient (IQ) scores and cognitive functions of patients with AN-R. ⋯ These lower IQ scores could be connected to the psychological and behavioral traits in patients with AN-R. These problems should be considered by medical staff members who seek to treat patients with AN-R successfully.
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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic pain syndrome with unknown etiology. Recent studies have shown evidence demonstrating that mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress may have a role in the pathophysiology of FM. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is an essential electron carrier in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and a strong antioxidant. ⋯ After CoQ10 treatment, the patient reported a significant improvement of clinical symptoms. At the cellular level, CoQ10 treatment restored mitochondrial dysfunction and the mtDNA copy number, decreased oxidative stress, and increased mitochondrial biogenesis. Our results suggest that CoQ10 could be an alternative therapeutic approach for FM.
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Comparative Study
Arginyl-glutamine dipeptide or docosahexaenoic acid attenuate hyperoxia-induced lung injury in neonatal mice.
Supplementation studies of glutamine, arginine, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) have established the safety of each of these nutrients in neonates. However, the potential for a more stable and soluble dipeptide, arginyl-glutamine (Arg-Gln) or DHA, a long-chain ω-3 fatty acid with anti-inflammatory properties, to exert benefits on hyperoxia-induced lung injury has not to our knowledge been investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate whether Arg-Gln dipeptide or DHA could attenuate markers of injury and inflammation in neonatal mouse lungs exposed to hyperoxia. ⋯ The Arg-Gln and DHA, with protective effects on hyperoxic lung injury in neonatal mice, are promising nutritional adjuncts that may prevent lung damage owing to oxygen toxicity in infants.
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Increasing evidence suggests that dietary factors may affect the expression of multiple genes and signaling pathways, which regulate intestinal lipoprotein metabolism. The small intestine is actively involved in the regulation of dietary lipid absorption, intracellular transport, and metabolism and is closely linked to systemic lipid metabolism. Cinnamon polyphenols have been shown to improve glucose, insulin, and lipid metabolism and improve inflammation in cell culture, animal, and human studies. However, little is known of the effects of an aqueous cinnamon extract (CE) on the regulation of genes and signaling pathways related to intestinal metabolism. The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of a CE on the primary enterocytes of chow-fed rats. ⋯ These results demonstrate that the CE regulates genes associated with insulin sensitivity, inflammation, and cholesterol/lipogenesis metabolism and the activity of the mitogen-activated protein kinase signal pathway in intestinal lipoprotein metabolism.
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Editorial Comparative Study
Which are more important: prebiotics or probiotics?