Sideritis caesarea (SC) Duman, Aytac&Baser is a member of the Lamiaceae family. The present study was designed to investigate the antioxidant properties of the aerial parts of island green tea SC against TCA effects in rats. Biomarkers selected for monitoring antioxidant capacity were the activities of glutathione reductase (GR), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione-S-transferase, catalase (CAT), GSH level and malondialdehyde (MDA) content in various organs of rats. Three experimental groups, A (untreated = control), B (only TCA-treated) and C (TCA+SC-treated), were studied. At the end of the 50 d experiment, the MDA content in tissues increased significantly in group B, whereas no significant changes were observed in group C as compared with that of the control group. Antioxidant enzyme activities such as SOD and CAT increased significantly in the brain, liver and kidneys of group B but decreased significantly in group C as compared with group B. The GSH level and GR activity increased significantly in the brain and liver of group C as compared with the control and TCA-exposed rats. Hence, the study reveals that the constituents present in SC impart protection against chemical-induced oxidative injury that may result in the development of cancer.

The aim of the present study was to establish the optimum inclusion level of laminarin derived from Laminaria digitata on selected microbial populations, intestinal fermentation, cytokine and mucin gene expression in the porcine ileum and colon. A total of twenty-one pigs (mean body weight 17·9 kg) were randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments: T1 – basal (control) diet, T2 and T3 – basal diets supplemented with laminarin included at 300 and 600 parts per million (ppm), respectively. Selected intestinal bacterial populations and volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentrations were measured in the ileum and colon. Relative gene expression levels for specific cytokine and mucin genes were investigated in ileal and colonic tissue in the absence and presence of a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge. There was an up-regulation of MUC2 gene expression at the 300 ppm inclusion level in the ileum. In the colon, there was a significant reduction in the enterobacteriaceae population at the 300 ppm inclusion level (P = 0·0421). Dietary supplementation of 600 ppm laminarin led to a significant increase in MUC2 (P = 0·0365) and MUC4 (P = 0·0401) expression in the colon, and in the total VFA concentration in the caecum (P = 0·0489). A significant increase was also recorded in IL-6 (P = 0·0289) and IL-8 gene expression (P = 0·0245) in LPS-challenged colonic tissue at both laminarin inclusion levels. In conclusion, dietary inclusion of 300 ppm laminarin appears to be the optimum dose in the present study due to the reduction in the enterobacteriaceae populations and enhanced IL-6 and IL-8 cytokine expression in response to an ex vivo LPS challenge.

In vitro gut fermentation systems are relevant tools to study health benefits of foodstuffs. Most of them are commonly used to investigate the degradation of nutrients or the development of gut flora. Using these models, strong cytotoxic effects of the resulting samples on cultured cells were observed. Hence, the aim of the present study was to develop a modified in vitro fermentation model that simulates the whole digestive tract and generates fermented samples that are suitable for testing in cell culture experiments. Wholemeal wheat flour (wwf) was digested and fermented in vitro with a fermentation model using different ox gall concentrations (41·6 and 0·6 g/l). The resulting fermentation supernatants (fs) were characterised for metabolites and biological effects in HT29 cells. The fermentation of wwf increased chemopreventive SCFA and decreased carcinogenic deoxycholic acid (DCA). The strong cytotoxic effects of the fs, which were partly due to cholic acid and DCA, were diminished by lowering the ox gall concentration, allowing the use of the samples in cell culture experiments. In conclusion, an in vitro digestion model, which can be used to study the effects of foodstuffs on chemoprevention and gut health in colon cells, is introduced and its physiological relevance is demonstrated.

High folate intake may increase the risk of cancer, especially in the elderly. The present study examined the effects of ageing and dietary folate on uracil misincorporation into DNA, which has a mutagenic effect, in the mouse colon and liver. Old (18 months; n 42) and young (4 months; n 42) male C57BL/6 mice were pair-fed with four different amino acid-defined diets for 20 weeks: folate deplete (0 mg/kg diet); folate replete (2 mg/kg diet); folate supplemented (8 mg/kg diet); folate deplete (0 mg/kg diet) with thymidine supplementation (1·8 g/kg diet). Thymidylate synthesis from uracil requires folate, but synthesis from thymidine is folate independent. Liver folate concentrations were determined by the Lactobacillus casei assay. Uracil misincorporation into DNA was measured by a GC/MS method. Liver folate concentrations demonstrated a stepwise increase across the spectrum of dietary folate levels in both old (P = 0·003) and young (P < 0·001) mice. Uracil content in colonic DNA was paradoxically increased in parallel with increasing dietary folate among the young mice (P trend = 0·033), but differences were not observed in the old mice. The mean values of uracil in liver DNA, in contrast, decreased with increasing dietary folate among the old mice, but it did not reach a statistically significant level (P < 0·1). Compared with the folate-deplete group, thymidine supplementation reduced uracil misincorporation into the liver DNA of aged mice (P = 0·026). The present study suggests that the effects of folate and thymidine supplementation on uracil misincorporation into DNA differ depending on age and tissue. Further studies are needed to clarify the significance of increased uracil misincorporation into colonic DNA of folate-supplemented young mice.

The goal of the present study was to investigate whether subchronic treatment with grape juice concentrate is able to protect liver and peripheral blood cells against cholesterol-induced injury in rats. The effects of the grape juice concentrate treatment on histopathological changes, immunohistochemistry for cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2), and basal and oxidative DNA damage induced by H2O2 using a single-cell gel (comet) assay were evaluated. Male Wistar rats (n 18) were divided into three groups: group 1 – negative control; group 2 – cholesterol at 1 % (w/w) in their diet, treated for 5 weeks; group 3 – cholesterol at 1 % in their chow, treated for 5 weeks, and grape juice concentrate at 222 mg/d in their drinking-water in the final week only. The results indicated that the treatment with grape juice concentrate did not show remarkable differences regarding liver tissue in group 3 compared with group 2. However, grape juice concentrate was able to decrease oxidative DNA damage induced by H2O2 in peripheral blood cells, as depicted by the tail moment results. COX-2 expression in the liver did not show statistically significant differences (P>0·05) between groups. Taken together, the present results suggest that the administration of subchronic grape juice concentrate prevents oxidative DNA damage in peripheral blood cells.

Oral administration of l-arginine has been reported to prevent gut disease in human infants. However, little is known about the effects of dietary arginine supplementation on intestinal development of weaned piglets. In the present study, twenty 21-d-old castrated piglets with 5·3 (sem 0·13) kg body weight (BW) were weaned from sows, individually housed and randomly assigned to one of the two maize- and soyabean meal-based diets supplemented with 0 or 1 % l-arginine. After consuming the diets for 7 d, six pigs were randomly selected from each group to obtain various tissues. Compared with control pigs, dietary supplementation with 1 % l-arginine did not affect feed intake but enhanced (P < 0·05) the relative weight of the small intestine (+33 %), daily BW gain (+38 %) and feed efficiency (+28 %). The villus height of the duodenum, jejunum and ileum in arginine-supplemented piglets was 21, 28 and 25 % greater (P < 0·05) than in the non-supplemented control group. Arginine supplementation increased (P < 0·05) protein levels for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in duodenal, jejunal and ileal mucosae by 14, 39 and 35 %, respectively. Compared with the control group, dietary supplementation with 1 % l-arginine increased (P < 0·05) plasma concentrations of arginine and insulin (+36 %), and decreased (P < 0·05) plasma concentrations of cortisol ( − 33 %), NH3 ( − 21 %) and urea ( − 19 %). These results indicate that arginine supplementation enhances intestinal growth, development and expression of VEGF in early-weaned pigs fed a maize- and soyabean meal-based diet. The findings may have important implications for neonatal pigs under stressful or diseased conditions.

The aim of this 28 d experiment was to examine the physiological response of growing rats to a dietary combination of prebiotic chicory fructans, with polyphenols originating from different parts of the chicory plant, i.e. roots, root peels, seeds and leaves. A total of forty rats were assigned to groups fed the following diets characterised by a similar content of oligofructose and inulin: control, with 10 % of a root extract (a low level of dietary polyphenols, 0·05 %), with 6·5 % of a root peel extract (a medium level of dietary polyphenols, 0·107 %), with a combination of 8 % of a peel extract and 0·8 % of a seed extract (a high level of dietary polyphenols, 0·208 %) and with 2·5 % of a leaf extract (a medium level of dietary polyphenols, 0·106 %, with chicoric acid constituting half of them). Chicory seeds are the richest source of polyphenols, especially abundant in dicaffeoylquinic acids. When applied as a dietary supplement, the mixture of monocaffeoylquinic and dicaffeoylquinic acids, from the extracts made of roots, root peels and seeds, elicited more favourable changes in parameters of the antioxidative status of the body and in the activity of bacterial β-glucuronidase in the faeces and caecal digesta. In turn, the extract from chicory leaves, containing considerable quantities of chicoric acid and polyphenolic glycosides, apart from chlorogenic acids, also triggered desirable changes in the lipid profile of the blood serum. The high concentration of polyphenols in the extracts examined enables their application as dietary supplements to be administered in low doses.

Polyphenols exert beneficial effects in atherosclerosis. The crucial step in atherosclerosis is the recruitment of monocytes to the subendothelial space, induced by endothelial adhesion molecules through the activation of factors such as NF-κB. We studied the effect of a dealcoholised lager beer (DLB) and a dealcoholised dark beer (DDB) on atherosclerotic lesions, and the underlying mechanisms. Dealcoholised beers were administered in the diet (42 ml/kg body weight per d) to 4-week-old male apoE knockout (apoE − / − ) mice for 20 weeks. The atherosclerotic lesions in the thoracic aorta were reduced by 44 % (P = 0·003) and 51 % (P < 0·001) in DLB- and DDB-treated mice, respectively. Also, the mRNA expressions of the endothelial adhesion molecules in the total aorta were decreased: P-selectin showed a 17 % (P = 0·004) reduction in DDB-treated mice; vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) was decreased by 20 % (P = 0·012) and 32 % (P = 0·001) in DLB- and DDB-treated mice, respectively; intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) showed a 14 % (P = 0·014) reduction in DLB-treated mice. The protein expressions of these molecules and NF-κB were studied in the aortic root. P-selectin was decreased by 37 % (P = 0·012) in DDB-treated mice; VCAM-1 was reduced by 48 % (P = 0·001) and 54 % (P < 0·001) in DLB- and DDB-treated mice, respectively; ICAM-1 was decreased by 25 % (P = 0·028) and 30 % (P = 0·018) in DLB- and DDB-treated mice, respectively; NF-κB was reduced by 46 % (P = 0·042) in DDB-treated mice. In conclusion, dealcoholised beers protected apoE − / −  mice against atherosclerosis, through the modulation of endothelial adhesion molecules, possibly induced by NF-κB.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the relationship between energy expenditure (EE), biochemical and anthropometric nutritional status and severity scales in critically ill children. We performed a prospective observational study in forty-six critically ill children. The following variables were recorded before starting nutrition: age, sex, diagnosis, weight, height, risk of mortality according to the Paediatric Risk Score of Mortality (PRISM), the Revised Paediatric Index of Mortality (PIM2) and the Paediatric Logistic Organ Dysfunction (PELOD) scales, laboratory parameters (albumin, total proteins, prealbumin, transferrin, retinol-binding protein, cholesterol and TAG, and nitrogen balance) and EE measured by indirect calorimetry. The results showed that there was no relationship between EE and clinical severity evaluated using the PRISM, PIM2 and PELOD scales or with the anthropometric nutritional status or biochemical alterations. Finally, it was concluded that neither nutritional status nor clinical severity is related to EE. Therefore, EE must be measured individually in each critically ill child using indirect calorimetry.

Brains from ovariectomised (ovx) rats can display features similar to those observed in menopausal women with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and oestrogen seems to play a key role. Preliminary studies on young coconut juice (YCJ) have reported the presence of oestrogen-like components in it. The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of YCJ on the AD pathological changes in the brains of ovx rats. Rat groups included sham-operated, ovx, ovx+oestradiol benzoate (EB) and ovx+YCJ. Brain sections (4 μm) were taken and were immunostained with β-amyloid (Aβ) 1–42, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) (an intermediate neurofilament of astrocytes) and Tau-1 antibodies. Aβ 1–42, GFAP and Tau-1 are considered as reliable biomarkers of amyloidosis, astrogliosis and tauopathy (neurofibrillary tangles), respectively, which in turn are characteristic features associated with AD. The serum oestradiol (E2) level was measured using a chemiluminescent immunoassay technique. YCJ restored the serum E2 to levels significantly (P < 0·001) higher than that of the ovx group, and even that of the sham group. Aβ deposition was significantly (P < 0·0001) reduced in the cerebral cortex of the YCJ group, as compared with the ovx group and with the sham and ovx+EB groups (P < 0·01). A similar trend was observed in relation to GFAP expression in the cerebral cortex and to Tau-1 expression in the hippocampus. This is a novel study demonstrating that YCJ could have positive future implications in the prevention and treatment of AD in menopausal women.

Minimal data are available regarding the cumulative effects of healthy lifestyle behaviours on cardiometabolic risk. The objective of the present study was to examine a combination of healthy lifestyle behaviours associated with cardiometabolic risk reduction. The analysis was based on a cross-sectional study of 1454 participants from the population-based Lipid Research Clinic's Princeton Follow-up Study. The healthy lifestyle factors included fruit and vegetable intake ≥ 5 servings/d, meat intake ≤ 2 servings/d, never smoking, consuming 2–6 alcoholic drinks/week, television (TV) viewing time ≤ 2 h/d and moderate to vigorous physical activity ≥ 4 h/week. The combination of healthy lifestyle behaviours was strongly and negatively associated with the presence of cardiometabolic risk, as well as with a composite cardiometabolic risk score after adjustment for race, age, generation and sex. With each additional healthy lifestyle factor, cardiometabolic risk decreased by 31 % (OR 0·69; 95 % CI 0·61, 0·78). A higher healthy lifestyle score was associated with a lower prevalence of cardiometabolic risk (P for trend < 0·001). Compared with individuals having 0–1 healthy lifestyle behaviours, those with 5 or 6 healthy lifestyle behaviours had a 70 % lower prevalence of cardiometabolic risk (OR 0·30; 95 % CI 0·13, 0·67). Healthy lifestyle behaviours including sufficient fruit and vegetable intake, less meat intake, less TV viewing time, abstinence from smoking, modest alcohol intake and regular exercise are associated with reduced cardiometabolic risk.

In a previous clinical study, a probiotic formulation (PF) consisting of Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175 (PF) decreased stress-induced gastrointestinal discomfort. Emerging evidence of a role for gut microbiota on central nervous system functions therefore suggests that oral intake of probiotics may have beneficial consequences on mood and psychological distress. The aim of the present study was to investigate the anxiolytic-like activity of PF in rats, and its possible effects on anxiety, depression, stress and coping strategies in healthy human volunteers. In the preclinical study, rats were daily administered PF for 2 weeks and subsequently tested in the conditioned defensive burying test, a screening model for anti-anxiety agents. In the clinical trial, volunteers participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised parallel group study with PF administered for 30 d and assessed with the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL-90), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Perceived Stress Scale, the Coping Checklist (CCL) and 24 h urinary free cortisol (UFC). Daily subchronic administration of PF significantly reduced anxiety-like behaviour in rats (P < 0·05) and alleviated psychological distress in volunteers, as measured particularly by the HSCL-90 scale (global severity index, P < 0·05; somatisation, P < 0·05; depression, P < 0·05; and anger–hostility, P < 0·05), the HADS (HADS global score, P < 0·05; and HADS-anxiety, P < 0·06), and by the CCL (problem solving, P < 0·05) and the UFC level (P < 0·05). L. helveticus R0052 and B. longum R0175 taken in combination display anxiolytic-like activity in rats and beneficial psychological effects in healthy human volunteers.

Assessment of eating habits (EH) through closed questions could be an alternative tool to assess diet as a predictor of weight change in epidemiological studies. The aim was to assess the association between baseline EH and the risk of weight gain or becoming overweight/obese in a Spanish dynamic prospective cohort (the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra Project) of 10 509 participants. The baseline questionnaire included ten short questions with two possible answers: yes or no. We calculated a baseline EH score, categorised in quartiles, positively weighting answers on more fruit, vegetables, fish and fibre and less meat, sweets and pastries, fat, butter, fatty meats and added sugar in drinks. Reducing the consumption of meat or fat and removing fat from meat were significantly associated with lower weight gain. The partial correlation coefficient between EH score and weight change was − 0·033 (P = 0·001). We observed 1063 cases of incident overweight/obesity among 7217 participants without overweight/obesity at baseline. Trying to eat more fruit, fish or fibre and less meat was inversely significantly associated with incident overweight/obesity. Those participants in the upper quartile of the score were at a 38 % (adjusted OR 0·62; 95 % CI 0·48, 0·81) lower risk of developing overweight/obesity during the follow-up compared with those in the lower quartile. However, the receiver-operating characteristic curves for the model with and without the EH score were materially identical. Despite the apparent significant inverse association, this score had a low predictive value for future weight gain and for incident overweight/obesity in a Mediterranean population, although some EH were independently and positively associated with weight gain.

Few studies have specifically focused on characteristics associated with consumption of combined fatty-salted and fatty-sweetened foods, whereas their identification could be useful for defining effective public health measures. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between demographic, socio-economic, lifestyle and health characteristics and consumption of these types of food in a general sample of French adults. Dietary intake was assessed using a minimum of six 24 h dietary records collected over a 2-year period in 6240 subjects aged 35–60 years who participated in the Supplémentation en VItamines Minéraux et AntioXydants cohort study. Associations of individual characteristics with high and intermediate consumption of fatty-sweetened and fatty-salted foods were assessed using multivariate polytomic logistic regression models. Risk of moderate or high consumption of fatty-salted foods decreased with increasing age. Current smokers, drinkers, individuals with overweight and with hypertension were more likely to consume moderate or high amounts of such foods. Risk of moderate or high consumption of fatty-sweetened foods decreased with increasing age. Women, individuals living as a couple, moderate drinkers and persons with low or medium physical activity level were more likely to consume moderate or high amounts of such foods. Lower educated subjects, current smokers, heavy drinkers and individuals with severe hypertriacylglycerolaemia were less likely to have moderate or high consumption. Consumption of fatty-sweetened and fatty-salted foods varied according to demographic, lifestyle and health characteristics. Common unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, low physical activity and alcohol drinking, associated with high consumption of these food groups, may help to effectively target public health efforts.

The present study reports the Na intake of a representative sample of Spanish young and middle-aged adults aged 18–60 years (n 418, 53·1 % women, selected from the capitals of fifteen provinces and the surrounding semi-urban/rural area), measured with a 24 h urinary Na excretion method. To validate the paper collection of 24 h urine, the correlation between fat-free mass determined by electrical bioimpedance (50·8 (sd 11·3) kg) and that determined via urinary creatinine excretion (51·5 (sd 18·8) kg) was calculated (r 0·633, P < 0·001). Urinary Na excretion correlated with systolic and dyastolic blood pressure data (r 0·243 and 0·153, respectively). Assuming that all urinary Na (168·0 (sd 78·6) mmol/d) comes from the diet, Na excretion would correspond with a dietary salt intake of 9·8 (sd 4·6) g/d, and it would mean that 88·2 % of the subjects had salt intakes above the recommended 5 g/d. Logistic regression analysis, adjusted for sex, age and BMI, showed male sex (OR 3·678, 95 % CI 2·336, 5·791) and increasing BMI (OR 1·069, 95 % CI 1·009, 1·132) (P < 0·001) to be associated with excreting >200 mmol/d urinary Na – a consequence of the higher salt intake in men and in participants with higher BMI. The present results help us to know the baseline salt intake in the Spanish young and middle-aged adult population, and can be used as the baseline to design policies to reduce salt consumption.

Understanding the predictors of developmental changes in adolescent eating behaviours is important for the design of nutrition interventions. The present study examined associations between individual, social and physical environmental factors and changes in adolescent eating behaviours over 2 years. Consumption of fruits, vegetables and energy-dense snacks was assessed using a Web-based survey completed by 1850 adolescents from years 7 and 9 of secondary schools in Victoria, Australia, at baseline and 2 years later. Perceived value of healthy eating, self-efficacy for healthy eating, social modelling and support, and home availability and accessibility of foods were assessed at baseline. Self-efficacy for increasing fruit consumption was positively associated with the change in fruit and vegetable consumption, while self-efficacy for decreasing junk food consumption was inversely associated with the change in energy-dense snack consumption. Home availability of energy-dense foods was inversely associated with the change in fruit consumption and positively associated with the change in energy-dense snack consumption, while home availability of fruits and vegetables was positively associated with the change in vegetable consumption. Perceived value of healthy eating and modelling of healthy eating by mothers were positively associated with the change in fruit consumption. Support of best friends for healthy eating was positively associated with the change in vegetable consumption. Self-efficacy and home availability of foods appear to be consistent predictors of change in fruit, vegetable and energy-dense snack consumption. Future study should assess the effectiveness of methods to increase self-efficacy for healthy eating and to improve home availability of healthy food options in programmes promoting healthy eating among adolescents.