While the effect of exercise on white adipose tissue browning and metabolic improvement in rodents is clear, there are few studies in humans with inconclusive results. Thus, the aim of the study was ...to assess whether an exercise intervention promotes subcutaneous adipose tissue browning in humans, and whether this response is associated with metabolic improvement in three groups of individuals defined by body mass index (BMI) (kg/m
). Sedentary adult subjects with different BMI were enrolled in a 12-week bicycle-training program (3 times per week, intensity 70-80% HRmax). Brown and beige gene expression in subcutaneous adipose tissue (scWAT) biopsies, and serum glucose, insulin, lipid, adipokine, and myokine levels were compared before and after the exercise intervention. Thirty-three non-diabetic subjects (mean age 30.4 ± 4.6 years; 57.57% female; 13 normal weight, 10 overweight and 10 with obesity) completed the exercise intervention. Without any significant change in body composition, exercise improved several metabolic parameters, most notably insulin resistance and particularly in the overweight group. Circulating adiponectin, apelin, and irisin exercise-induced changes predicted 60% of the insulin sensitivity improvement. After exercise
scWAT expression significantly increased, along with P2RX5 significant positive staining. These changes are compatible with scWAT browning, however, they were not associated with glucose metabolism improvement. In conclusion, 12-weeks of exercise training produced brown/beige gene expression changes in abdominal scWAT of non-diabetic individuals with different BMI, which did not contribute to the metabolic improvement. However, this result should not be interpreted as a lack of effect of browning on metabolic parameters. These findings suggest that a bigger effect is needed and should not preclude the development of more effective strategies of browning. Furthermore, exercise-induced changes in adiponectin, apelin, and irisin predicted insulin sensitivity improvement, supporting the important role of adipokines and myokines in metabolism homeostasis.
Objective
Irisin is a novel myokine that seems to mediate the beneficial effects of exercise. Levels of circulating irisin before and after an 8‐month physical activity program (PAP) in school‐age ...children were evaluated.
Methods
Irisin and leptin were measured at baseline and at follow‐up among 85 children with different BMI.
Results
Of the 85 children (mean age 8.9; 47% female), 25 children had normal weight, 23 were overweight, and 37 had obesity. We observed no significant difference in irisin serum levels between boys and girls. Irisin was positively associated with BMI before and after the PAP (rbefore = 0.42; rafter = 0.37, P < 0.001), with the highest levels in children with obesity. There was a slight decrease of circulating irisin after PAP, but this decrease was not of statistical significance. We observed a high and positive association between irisin and leptin levels before and after the PAP (rbefore = 0.78; rafter = 0.82, P < 0.001). Moreover, changes in leptin correlated with changes in irisin (r = 0.72, P < 0.001).
Conclusions
Circulating irisin is positively linked to BMI and leptin in school‐age children, supporting the notion that that irisin is produced by adipose tissue. As in previous reports, this study failed to observe changes in irisin levels after exercise, likely because higher irisin levels are produced only during exercise.
Magnesium is a mineral that modulates several physiological processes. However, its relationship with intestinal microbiota has been scarcely studied. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the role ...of dietary magnesium content to modulate the intestinal microbiota of Wistar male rats.
Rats were randomly assigned one of three diets: a control diet (C-Mg; 1000 mg/kg), a low magnesium content diet (L-Mg; 60 mg/kg), and a high magnesium content diet (H-Mg; 6000 mg/kg), for two weeks. After treatment, fecal samples were collected. Microbiota composition was assessed by sequencing the V3-V4 hypervariable region.
The C-Mg and L-Mg groups had more diversity than H-Mg group. CF231, SMB53,
,
and
were enriched in the L-Mg group. In contrast, the phyla
,
,
, and
were overrepresented in the H-Mg group. PICRUSt analysis indicated that fecal microbiota of the L-Mg group were encoded with an increased abundance of metabolic pathways involving carbohydrate metabolism and butanoate metabolism.
Dietary magnesium supplementation can result in intestinal dysbiosis development in a situation where there is no magnesium deficiency. Conversely, low dietary magnesium consumption is associated with microbiota with a higher capacity to harvest energy from the diet.
The effect of microbiota composition and its health on bone tissue is a novel field for research. However, their associations with bone mineral density (BMD) have not been established in ...postmenopausal women. The present study investigates the relation of diet, the microbiota composition, and the serum metabolic profile in postmenopausal women with normal-BMD or with low-BMD. Ninety-two Mexican postmenopausal women were classified into normal-BMD (n = 34) and low-BMD (n = 58). The V4 hypervariable region was sequenced using the Miseq platform. Serum vitamin D was determined by chemiluminescence immunoassay. Serum concentrations of acyl-carnitines and amino acids were determined by electrospray tandem mass spectrometry. Diet was assessed by a food frequency questionnaire. The low-BMD group had fewer observed species, higher abundance of γ-Proteobacteria, lower consumption of lycopene, and lower concentrations of leucine, valine, and tyrosine compared with the normal-BMD group. These amino acids correlated positively with the abundance of Bacteroides. Lycopene consumption positively correlated with Oscillospira and negatively correlated with Pantoea genus abundance. Finally, the intestinal microbiota of women with vitamin D deficiency was related to Erysipelotrichaceae and Veillonellaceae abundance compared to the vitamin D non-deficient group. Associations mediated by the gut microbiota between diet and circulating metabolites with low-BMD were identified.
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) represents the main metabolic alteration during pregnancy. The available methods for diagnosing GDM identify women when the disease is established, and pancreatic ...beta-cell insufficiency has occurred.The present study aimed to generate an early prediction model (under 18 weeks of gestation) to identify those women who will later be diagnosed with GDM.
A cohort of 75 pregnant women was followed during gestation, of which 62 underwent normal term pregnancy and 13 were diagnosed with GDM. Targeted metabolomics was used to select serum biomarkers with predictive power to identify women who will later be diagnosed with GDM.
Candidate metabolites were selected to generate an early identification model employing a criterion used when performing Random Forest decision tree analysis. A model composed of two short-chain acylcarnitines was generated: isovalerylcarnitine (C5) and tiglylcarnitine (C5:1). An analysis by ROC curves was performed to determine the classification performance of the acylcarnitines identified in the study, obtaining an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.934 (0.873-0.995, 95% CI). The model correctly classified all cases with GDM, while it misclassified ten controls as in the GDM group. An analysis was also carried out to establish the concentrations of the acylcarnitines for the identification of the GDM group, obtaining concentrations of C5 in a range of 0.015-0.25 μmol/L and of C5:1 with a range of 0.015-0.19 μmol/L.
Early pregnancy maternal metabolites can be used to screen and identify pregnant women who will later develop GDM. Regardless of their gestational body mass index, lipid metabolism is impaired even in the early stages of pregnancy in women who develop GDM.
Background and Objectives: Metabolic-dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease or MASLD is the main cause of chronic liver diseases in children, and it is estimated to affect 35% of children ...living with obesity. This study aimed to identify metabolic phenotypes associated with two advanced stages of MASLD (hepatic steatosis and hepatic steatosis plus fibrosis) in Mexican children with obesity. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional analysis derived from a randomized clinical trial conducted in children and adolescents with obesity aged 8 to 16 years. Anthropometric and biochemical data were measured, and targeted metabolomic analyses were carried out using mass spectrometry. Liver steatosis and fibrosis were estimated using transient elastography (Fibroscan® Echosens, Paris, France). Three groups were studied: a non-MASLD group, an MASLD group, and a group for MASLD + fibrosis. A partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) was performed to identify the discrimination between the study groups and to visualize the differences between their heatmaps; also, Variable Importance Projection (VIP) plots were graphed. A VIP score of >1.5 was considered to establish the importance of metabolites and biochemical parameters that characterized each group. Logistic regression models were constructed considering VIP scores of >1.5, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were estimated to evaluate different combinations of variables. Results: The metabolic MASLD phenotype was associated with increased concentrations of ALT and decreased arginine, glycine, and acylcarnitine (AC) AC5:1, while MASLD + fibrosis, an advanced stage of MASLD, was associated with a phenotype characterized by increased concentrations of ALT, proline, and alanine and a decreased Matsuda Index. Conclusions: The metabolic MASLD phenotype changes as this metabolic dysfunction progresses. Understanding metabolic disturbances in MASLD would allow for early identification and the development of intervention strategies focused on limiting the progression of liver damage in children and adolescents.
Scope
Hyperglucagonemia contributes to hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes (T2D). Previously, we have found that soy protein normalized fasting hyperglucagonemia in obese Zucker (fa/fa) rats, ...sensitizing the HSL‐lipolytic signaling pathway in white adipose tissue (WAT), however the mechanism remains unknown.
Methods and results
Zucker (fa/fa) rats were fed casein or soy protein diet in combination with soybean or coconut oil. Glucagon receptor (GR) was increased at the plasma membrane of adipocytes of rats fed soy protein compared to those fed casein, without changes in total GR abundance. The protein abundance of Rab4, a GTPase involved in GR fast recycling, was dramatically up‐regulated in adipocytes of rats fed soy protein. The proportion of GR bound to Rab4 or to RAMP2, involved in promoting GR ligand‐binding and G protein selectivity, increased when soy protein was combined with soybean oil as fat source. In rats fed soy protein with coconut oil, Rab11 levels, a protein involved in the slow recycling of GR, was also increased.
Conclusion
Soy protein increases GR recycling to the membrane of adipocytes and its ligand‐binding and G protein selectivity, suggesting, it could be used in T2D dietary treatment to reestablish glucagon sensitivity in WAT, leading to the regulation of circulating glucagon levels.
Soy protein consumption in comparison to casein, increases the localization of the glucagon receptor at the plasma membrane in adipocytes of obese rats, mainly through a more efficient recycling process that is modulated by the type of fat consumed. The fast recycling process of the receptor is induced with soybean oil, whereas the slow recycling process with coconut oil.
M1 macrophages involved in pro-inflammatory processes can be induced by low-density lipoproteins (LDL), giving rise to foam cells. In the atheroma plaque, it has been identified that males present ...more advanced lesions associated with infiltration. Therefore, our study aims to investigate sex-related changes in the transcriptome of M1 macrophages during the internalization process of LDL particles.
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy male and female subjects were separated using Hystopaque, and monocytes were isolated from PBMCs using a positive selection of CD14+ cells. Cells were stimulated with LDL 10 µg/mL, and the transcriptional profile of M1 macrophages performed during LDL internalization was determined using a Clariom D platform array.
Chromosome Y influences the immune system and inflammatory responses in males expressing 43% of transcripts in response to LDL treatment. Males and females share 15 transcripts, where most correspond to non-coding elements involved in oxidative stress and endothelial damage.
During LDL internalization, male monocyte-derived M1 macrophages display more marked proinflammatory gene expression. In contrast, female M1 macrophages display a more significant number of markers associated with cell damage.
Spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 (SCA7), a neurodegenerative disease characterized by cerebellar ataxia and retinal degeneration, is caused by an abnormal CAG repeat expansion in the
gene coding region. ...The onset and severity of SCA7 are highly variable between patients, thus identification of sensitive biomarkers that accurately diagnose the disease and monitoring its progression are needed. With the aim of identified SCA7-specific metabolites with clinical relevance, we report for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, a metabolomics profiling of circulating acylcarnitines and amino acids in SCA7 patients. We identified 21 metabolites with altered levels in SCA7 patients and determined two different sets of metabolites with diagnostic power. The first signature of metabolites (Valine, Leucine, and Tyrosine) has the ability to discriminate between SCA7 patients and healthy controls, while the second one (Methionine, 3-hydroxytetradecanoyl-carnitine, and 3-hydroxyoctadecanoyl-carnitine) possess the capability to differentiate between early-onset and adult-onset patients, as shown by the multivariate model and ROC analyses. Furthermore, enrichment analyses of metabolic pathways suggest alterations in mitochondrial function, energy metabolism, and fatty acid beta-oxidation in SCA7 patients. In summary, circulating SCA7-specific metabolites identified in this study could serve as effective predictors of SCA7 progression in the clinics, as they are sampled in accessible biofluid and assessed by a relatively simple biochemical assay.
Mexico is experiencing an epidemiological and nutritional transition period, and Mexican children are often affected by the double burden of malnutrition, which includes undernutrition (15.3% of ...children) and obesity (13.6%). The gut microbiome is a complex and metabolically active community of organisms that influences the host phenotype. Although previous studies have shown alterations in the gut microbiota in undernourished children, the affected bacterial communities remain unknown. The present study investigated and compared the bacterial richness and diversity of the fecal microbiota in groups of undernourished (
= 12), obese (
= 12), and normal-weight (control) (
= 12) Mexican school-age children. We used next-generation sequencing to analyze the V3-V4 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene, and we also investigated whether there were correlations between diet and relevant bacteria. The undernourished and obese groups showed lower bacterial richness and diversity than the normal-weight group. Enterotype 1 correlated positively with dietary fat intake in the obese group and with carbohydrate intake in the undernourished group. The results showed that undernourished children had significantly higher levels of bacteria in the
phylum and in the
family than obese children, while the
phylum was overrepresented in the obese group. The level of
correlated negatively with energy consumption and positively with leptin level. This is the first study to examine the gut microbial community structure in undernourished and obese Mexican children living in low-income neighborhoods. Our analysis revealed distinct taxonomic profiles for undernourished and obese children.
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