The human gastrointestinal tract (GIT) is inhabited by a wide cluster of microorganisms that play protective, structural, and metabolic functions for the intestinal mucosa. Gut microbiota is involved ...in the barrier functions and in the maintenance of its homeostasis. It provides nutrients, participates in the signaling network, regulates the epithelial development, and affects the immune system. Considering the microbiota ability to respond to homeostatic and physiological changes, some researchers proposed that it can be seen as an endocrine organ. Evidence suggests that different factors can determine changes in the gut microbiota. These changes can be both quantitative and qualitative resulting in variations of the composition and metabolic activity of the gut microbiota which, in turn, can affect health and different disease processes. Recent studies suggest that exercise can enhance the number of beneficial microbial species, enrich the microflora diversity, and improve the development of commensal bacteria. All these effects are beneficial for the host, improving its health status. In this paper, we intend to shed some light over the recent knowledge of the role played by exercise as an environmental factor in determining changes in microbial composition and how these effects could provide benefits to health and disease prevention.
On the 31 December 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was informed of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown origin detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. The infection spread ...first in China and then in the rest of the world, and on the 11th of March, the WHO declared that COVID-19 was a pandemic. Taking into consideration the mortality rate of COVID-19, about 5-7%, and the percentage of positive patients admitted to intensive care units being 9-11%, it should be mandatory to consider and take all necessary measures to contain the COVID-19 infection. Moreover, given the recent evidence in different hospitals suggesting IL-6 and TNF-α inhibitor drugs as a possible therapy for COVID-19, we aimed to highlight that a dietary intervention could be useful to prevent the infection and/or to ameliorate the outcomes during therapy. Considering that the COVID-19 infection can generate a mild or highly acute respiratory syndrome with a consequent release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including IL-6 and TNF-α, a dietary regimen modification in order to improve the levels of adiponectin could be very useful both to prevent the infection and to take care of patients, improving their outcomes.
Oxidative stress is a critical factor in the pathogenesis and progression of diabetes and its associated complications. The imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and the body’s ...antioxidant defence mechanisms leads to cellular damage and dysfunction. In diabetes, chronic hyperglycaemia and mitochondrial dysfunction contribute to increased ROS production, further exacerbating oxidative stress. This oxidative burden adversely affects various aspects of diabetes, including impaired beta-cell function and insulin resistance, leading to disrupted glucose regulation. Additionally, oxidative stress-induced damage to blood vessels and impaired endothelial function contribute to the development of diabetic vascular complications such as retinopathy, nephropathy, and cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, organs and tissues throughout the body, including the kidneys, nerves, and eyes, are vulnerable to oxidative stress, resulting in diabetic nephropathy, neuropathy, and retinopathy. Strategies to mitigate oxidative stress in diabetes include antioxidant therapy, lifestyle modifications, and effective management of hyperglycaemia. However, further research is necessary to comprehensively understand the underlying mechanisms of oxidative stress in diabetes and to evaluate the efficacy of antioxidant interventions in preventing and treating diabetic complications. By addressing oxidative stress, it might be possible to alleviate the burden of diabetes and improve patient outcomes.
At the end of 2019, a new coronavirus (COVID-19) appeared on the world scene, which mainly affects the respiratory system, causing pneumonia and multi-organ failure, and, although it starts with ...common symptoms such as shortness of breath and fever, in about 2-3% of cases it leads to death. Unfortunately, to date, no specific treatments have been found for the cure of this virus and, therefore, it is advisable to implement all possible strategies in order to prevent infection. In this context, it is important to better define the role of all behaviors, in particular nutrition, in order to establish whether these can both prevent infection and improve the outcome of the disease in patients with COVID-19. In the literature, it is widely shown that states of malnutrition, overweight, and obesity negatively affect the immune system, leading to viral infections, and several studies have shown that nutritional interventions can act as immunostimulators, helping to prevent viral infections. Even if several measures, such as the assumption of a specific diet regimen, the use of dietary supplements, and other similar interventions, are promising for the prevention, management, and recovery of COVID-19 patients, it is important to highlight that strong data from randomized clinical trials are needed to support any such assumption. Considering this particular scenario, we present a literature review addressing several important aspects related to diet and SARS-CoV-2 infection, in order to highlight the importance of diet and supplementation in prevention and management of, as well as recovery from COVID-19.
This study was conceived to evaluate the effects of three different diets on body composition, metabolic parameters, and serum oxidative status. We enrolled three groups of healthy men (omnivores, ...vegetarians, and vegans) with similar age, weight and BMI, and we observed a significant decrease in muscle mass index and lean body mass in vegan compared to vegetarian and omnivore groups, and higher serum homocysteine levels in vegetarians and vegans compared to omnivores. We studied whether serum from omnivore, vegetarian, and vegan subjects affected oxidative stress, growth and differentiation of both cardiomyoblast cell line H9c2 and H‐H9c2 (H9c2 treated with H2O2 to induce oxidative damage). We demonstrated that vegan sera treatment of both H9c2 and H‐H9c2 cells induced an increase of TBARS values and cell death and a decrease of free NO2− compared to vegetarian and omnivorous sera. Afterwards, we investigated the protective effects of vegan, vegetarian, and omnivore sera on the morphological changes induced by H2O2 in H9c2 cell line. We showed that the omnivorous sera had major antioxidant and differentiation properties compared to vegetarian and vegan sera. Finally, we evaluated the influence of the three different groups of sera on MAPKs pathway and our data suggested that ERK expression increased in H‐H9c2 cells treated with vegetarian and vegan sera and could promote cell death. The results obtained in this study demonstrated that restrictive vegan diet could not prevent the onset of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases nor protect by oxidative damage.
This study was conceived to evaluate the effects of three different diets on body composition, metabolic parameters, and serum oxidative status, and growth and differentiation of cardiomyoblast cell line H9c2 treated with H2O2 (H‐H9c2). We demonstrated that the vegan diets induced a decrease in muscle mass index and lean body mass. Therefore our data showed that the omnivorous sera have major antioxidant and differentiation property compared to vegetarian and vegan sera. The results obtained in this study demonstrated that restrictive vegan diet could not prevent the onset of metabolic and cardiovascular diseases nor protect by oxidative damage.
Brain mitochondrial dysfunction is involved in the development of neurological and neurodegenerative diseases. Mitochondria specifically located at synapses play a key role in providing energy to ...support synaptic functions and plasticity, thus their defects may lead to synaptic failure, which is a common hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases. High-Fat Diet (HFD) consumption increases brain oxidative stress and impairs brain mitochondrial functions, although the underlying mechanisms are not completely understood. The aim of our study is to analyze neuroinflammation and mitochondrial dysfunctions in brain cortex and synaptosomal fraction isolated from a mouse model of diet-induced obesity. Male C57Bl/6 mice were divided into two groups fed a standard diet or HFD for 18 weeks. At the end of the treatment, inflammation (detected by ELISA), antioxidant state (measured by enzymatic activity), mitochondrial functions and efficiency (detected by oxidative capacity and Seahorse analysis), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) pathway (analyzed by western blot) were determined in brain cortex and synaptosomal fraction. In HFD animals, we observed an increase in inflammatory parameters and oxidative stress and a decrease in mitochondrial oxidative capacity both in the brain cortex and synaptosomal fraction. These alterations parallel with modulation of BDNF, a brain key signaling molecule that is linking synaptic plasticity and energy metabolism. Neuroinflammation HFD-dependent negatively affects BDNF pathway and mitochondrial activity in the brain cortex. The effect is even more pronounced in the synaptic region, where the impaired energy supply may have a negative impact on neuronal plasticity.
Obesity is characterized by an energy imbalance and by the accumulation of visceral adipose tissue. The energy balance is controlled by a complex set of balanced physiological systems that provide ...hunger and satiety signals to the brain and regulate the body's ability to consume energy. The central nervous system controls the metabolic state, influencing the activity of other systems and receiving information from them. Heart rate variability (HRV) is the natural variability of the heart rate in response to several factors. HRV is related to the interaction between the SNS and the parasympathetic. In the light of this evidence, the aim of this study is to investigate the possible effects of the two different dietary regimens such as very low-calorie ketogenic diet (VLCKD) vs. low caloric diet (LCD), on the functions of the nervous system, with particular attention to the autonomous control of heart rate variability (HRV). A total of 26 obese subjects underwent diet therapy in order to reduce body weight; they were also randomly divided into two groups: the VLCKD group and the LCD group. Our results showed that in both groups, there is a reduction in heart rate as an indicator of sympathetic activity; we found a statistically significant variation only in the VLCKD group. Therefore, this study supports the notion that the sympathovagal balance can be modulated by a specific diet, but further studies are needed to clarify the molecular pathway undergoing this modulation.
Competition between athletes and an increase in sporting knowledge have greatly influenced training methods while increasing the number of them more and more. As a result, the number of athletes who ...have increased the number and intensity of their workouts while decreasing recovery times is rising. Positive overtraining could be considered a natural and fundamental process when the result is adaptation and improved performance; however, in the absence of adequate recovery, negative overtraining could occur, causing fatigue, maladaptation, and inertia. One of the earliest forms of fatigue is overreaching. It is considered to be an accumulation of training that leads to reduced sports performance, requiring days or weeks to recover. Overreaching, if followed by adequate recovery, can lead to an increase in athletic performance. Nonetheless, if overreaching becomes extreme, combined with additional stressors, it could lead to overtraining syndrome (OTS). OTS, caused by systemic inflammation, leads to central nervous system (CNS) effects, including depressed mood, further inflammation, central fatigue, and ultimately neurohormonal changes. There are therefore not only physiological, biochemical, and immunological but also psychological symptoms or markers that must be considered, independently or together, being intrinsically linked with overtraining, to fully understand OTS. However, to date, there are very few published studies that have analyzed how nutrition in its specific food aspects, if compromised during OTS, can be both etiology and consequence of the syndrome. To date, OTS has not yet been fully studied, and the topic needs further research. The purpose of this narrative review is therefore to study how a correct diet and nutrition can influence OTS in all its aspects, from prevention to treatment.
The ketogenic diet (KD), a diet high in fat and protein but low in carbohydrates, is gaining much interest due to its positive effects, especially in neurodegenerative diseases. Beta-hydroxybutyrate ...(BHB), the major ketone body produced during the carbohydrate deprivation that occurs in KD, is assumed to have neuroprotective effects, although the molecular mechanisms responsible for these effects are still unclear. Microglial cell activation plays a key role in the development of neurodegenerative diseases, resulting in the production of several proinflammatory secondary metabolites. The following study aimed to investigate the mechanisms by which BHB determines the activation processes of BV2 microglial cells, such as polarization, cell migration and expression of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, in the absence or in the presence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) as a proinflammatory stimulus. The results showed that BHB has a neuroprotective effect in BV2 cells, inducing both microglial polarization towards an M2 anti-inflammatory phenotype and reducing migratory capacity following LPS stimulation. Furthermore, BHB significantly reduced expression levels of the proinflammatory cytokine IL-17 and increased levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. From this study, it can be concluded that BHB, and consequently the KD, has a fundamental role in neuroprotection and prevention in neurodegenerative diseases, presenting new therapeutic targets.
Physiological Role of Orexinergic System for Health Villano, Ines; La Marra, Marco; Di Maio, Girolamo ...
International journal of environmental research and public health,
07/2022, Letnik:
19, Številka:
14
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Orexins, or hypocretins, are excitatory neuropeptides involved in the regulation of feeding behavior and the sleep and wakefulness states. Since their discovery, several lines of evidence have ...highlighted that orexin neurons regulate a great range of physiological functions, giving it the definition of a multitasking system. In the present review, we firstly describe the mechanisms underlining the orexin system and their interactions with the central nervous system (CNS). Then, the system’s involvement in goal-directed behaviors, sleep/wakefulness state regulation, feeding behavior and energy homeostasis, reward system, and aging and neurodegenerative diseases are described. Advanced evidence suggests that the orexin system is crucial for regulating many physiological functions and could represent a promising target for therapeutical approaches to obesity, drug addiction, and emotional stress.
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