Nutrition
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Plant-based therapies have been used in medicine throughout recorded history. Information about the therapeutic properties of plants often can be found in local cultures as folk medicine is communicated from one generation to the next. The aim of this study was to identify native Louisiana plants from Creole folk medicine as a potential source of therapeutic compounds for the treatment of insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and related disorders. ⋯ An interdisciplinary approach to screening botanical sources of therapeutic agents can be successfully applied to identify native plants used in folk medicine as potential sources of therapeutic agents in treating insulin resistance in skeletal muscle or inflammatory processes associated with obesity-related insulin resistance.
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The aims of the following experiments were to characterize antidiabetic in vitro and in vivo activity of the polyphenol-rich aqueous extract of Rutgers Scarlet Lettuce (RSL). ⋯ RSLE demonstrated antidiabetic effects in vitro and in vivo and may improve metabolic syndrome conditions of fatty liver and glucose metabolism.
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Urea cycle disorders (UCDs) most often involve inherited deficiencies in genes that code for enzymes normally used by the urea cycle to breakdown nitrogen. UCDs lead to serious metabolic complications, including severe neurologic decompensation related to hyperammonemia. ⋯ Early, specialized nutrition therapy is a fundamental aspect of treating hyperammonemic crises in patients with UCD. The case presented here demonstrates the importance of early recognition of UCD and appropriate interventions with nutrition support.
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Botanical compounds and extracts are widely used as nutritional supplements for the promotion of health or the prevention of disease. An extract of Artemisia dracunculus (PMI 5011) has been shown to improve insulin action, yet the precise mechanism is not known. The aim of this study is to demonstrate that the mechanism by which PMI 5011 and two related Artemisia extracts improve insulin action is associated with a down-regulation of de novo lipogenesis (DNL) in the liver and an increase in DNL in the adipose tissue. ⋯ These results suggest that botanicals may not affect fractional DNL in animals on a high-fat diet. However, there were decreases in long-chain fatty acids and in glycerol coming from the newly synthesized triglycerides in plasma.
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Comparative Study
Comparison of the anticatabolic effects of leucine and Ca-β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate in experimental models of cancer cachexia.
Loss of skeletal muscle is the most debilitating feature of cancer cachexia, and there are few treatments available. The aim of this study was to compare the anticatabolic efficacy of L-leucine and the leucine metabolite β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (Ca-HMB) on muscle protein metabolism, both in vitro and in vivo. ⋯ These results favor the clinical feasibility of using Ca-HMB over high doses of leucine for the treatment of cancer cachexia.