Lactobacillus Species as Probiotics: Isolation Sources and Health Benefits

Recently, the attention to exploring and applying probiotics has been increased. Probiotics are living microscopic organisms that have valuable impacts on health when consumed in adequate amounts. One of the most popular widespread utilized probiotics for many years until now is the Lactobacillus species which exemplifies the hugest heterogeneous group among the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that normally occupy many environments that contain high nutrient levels such as soil, humans, waters, plants, animals and even air without causing any illness. The purpose of this work is to review and demonstrate the wide diversity of lactobacilli isolation sources and related health benefits applications of the strains discovered in order to break the familiar sources of lactobacillus spp., thereby encouraging more research into unconventional sources and opening up opportunities for clinical applications of Lactobacillus spp. As a result, the isolation sources of lactobacillus spp. in this review have been split into two groups based on the environmental condition, including fermented and non-fermented habitats described as lactobacilli probiotic sources. The unique Lactobacilli isolated from various sources are regarded as potential therapies for a variety of illnesses and physiological abnormalities, including immunomodulation, suppression of carcinogenesis, and cholesterol reduction, in addition to their capacity to guard against infections. This will be highly significant for revealing updated information about Lactobacillus spp. that has attracted considerable attention due to its potential application in clinical practices

Reduction in Insulin Mediated ERK Phosphorylation by Palmitate in Liver Cells Is Independent of Fatty Acid Induced ER Stress

Saturated free fatty acids (FFAs) such as palmitate in the circulation are known to cause endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and insulin resistance in peripheral tissues. In addition to protein kinase B (AKT) signaling, extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) has been implicated in the development of insulin resistance. However, there are conflicting data regarding role of ERK signaling in ER stress-induced insulin resistance. In this study, we investigated the effects of ER stress on insulin resistance and ERK phosphorylation in Huh-7 cells and evaluated how oleate prevents palmitate-mediated ER stress. Treatment with insulin resulted in an increase of 38–45% in the uptake of glucose in control cells compared to non-insulin-treated control cells, along with an increase in the phosphorylation of AKT and ERK. We found that treatment with palmitate increased the expression of ER stress genes, including the splicing of X box binding protein 1 (XBP1) mRNA. At the same time, we observed a decrease in insulin-mediated uptake of glucose and ERK phosphorylation in Huh-7 cells, without any change in AKT phosphorylation. Supplementation of oleate along with palmitate mitigated the palmitate-induced ER stress but did not affect insulin-mediated glucose uptake or ERK phosphorylation. The findings of this study suggest that palmitate reduces insulin-mediated ERK phosphorylation in liver cells and this effect is independent of fatty-acid-induced ER stress

Differential Regulation of Glucosylceramide Synthesis and Efflux by Golgi and Plasma Membrane Bound ABCC10

Glucosylceramide (GlcCer) synthesis by the enzyme glucosylceramide synthase (GCS) occurs on the cytosolic leaflet of the Golgi and is the first important step for the synthesis of complex glycosphingolipids (GSLs) that takes place inside the lumen. Apart from serving as a precursor for glycosylation, newly synthesized GlcCer is also transported to the plasma membrane and secreted onto HDL in the circulation. The mechanism by which GlcCer is transported to HDL remains unclear. Recently, we showed that ATP-binding cassette transporter protein C10 (ABCC10) plays an important role in the synthesis and efflux of GlcCer in Huh-7 cells. In this study, we found that treatment of Huh-7 cells with an ABCC10 inhibitor, sorafenib, decreased the synthesis and efflux of GlcCer. However, treatment of cells with cepharanthine reduced only the efflux, but not synthesis, of GlcCer. These results indicate that ABCC10 may regulate the synthesis and efflux of GlcCer differentially in liver cells

ATP-Binding Cassette Protein ABCC10 Deficiency Prevents Diet-Induced Obesity but Not Atherosclerosis in Mice

Excess plasma lipid levels are a risk factor for various cardiometabolic disorders. Studies have shown that improving dyslipidemia lowers the progression of these disorders. In this study, we investigated the role of ATP-binding cassette transporter C10 (ABCC10) in regulating lipid metabolism. Our data indicate that deletion of the Abcc10 gene in male mice results in lower plasma and intestinal triglycerides by around 38% and 36%, respectively. Furthermore, deletion of ABCC10 ameliorates diet-induced obesity in mice and leads to a better response during insulin and glucose tolerance tests. Unexpectedly, ABCC10 deficiency does not affect triglyceride levels or atherosclerosis in ApoE-deficient mice. In addition, our studies demonstrate low oleate uptake by enterocytes (~25–30%) and less absorption (~37%) of triglycerides in the small intestine of ABCC10 knockout mice. Deletion of the Abcc10 gene also alters several lipid metabolism genes in the intestine, suggesting that ABCC10 regulates dietary fat absorption, which may contribute to diet-induced obesity in mice

Deletion of retinoic acid-related orphan receptor gamma reduces body weight and hepatic lipids in mice by modulating the expression of lipid metabolism genes

Aim: Retinoic acid-related orphan receptor γ (RORγ) functions as a ligand-dependent transcription factor and its loss has been shown to affect the circadian expression of lipid metabolism genes. However, its effect on body weight gain and hepatic lipids is not well understood. In this study, we investigated the impact of Rorγ gene deletion on changes in body weight and hepatic lipids.Methods: Body weight and lipids were analyzed in the plasma and liver. Expression of lipid metabolism genes in the liver was evaluated in wild type and Rorγ knockout mice.Results: We show that deletion of RORγ results in reduced body weight and fewer lipids in the liver. Analysis of gene expression showed that deletion of Rorγ resulted in an overall lower expression of genes and transcription factors involved in lipid biosynthesis. We observed a decrease in the gene expression of cholesterol biosynthesis, efflux, and esterification but an increase in bile acid synthesis. There was a decrease in fatty acid and triglycerides biosynthesis genes and an increase in the fatty acid uptake genes. The decrease in the expression of lipid biosynthesis genes was accompanied by the decrease in the sterol response element binding protein (Srebp) genes. We observed an increase in the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (Ppara) and a decrease in the expression of acetyl-CoA carboxylase 2 (Acc2) genes.Conclusion: Our data suggest that RORγ regulates body weight and lipid metabolism genes and its modulation may be beneficial for the management of obesity and related lipid metabolic disorders

Association of Advanced Lipoprotein Subpopulation Profiles with Insulin Resistance and Inflammation in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Plasma lipoproteins exist as several subpopulations with distinct particle number and size that are not fully reflected in the conventional lipid panel. In this study, we sought to quantify lipoprotein subpopulations in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to determine whether specific lipoprotein subpopulations are associated with insulin resistance and inflammation markers. The study included 57 patients with T2DM (age, 61.14 ± 9.99 years; HbA1c, 8.66 ± 1.60%; mean body mass index, 35.15 ± 6.65 kg/m2). Plasma lipoprotein particles number and size were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Associations of different lipoprotein subpopulations with lipoprotein insulin resistance (LPIR) score and glycoprotein acetylation (GlycA) were assessed using multi-regression analysis. In stepwise regression analysis, VLDL and HDL large particle number and size showed the strongest associations with LPIR (R2 = 0.960; p = 0.0001), whereas the concentrations of the small VLDL and HDL particles were associated with GlycA (R2 = 0.190; p = 0.008 and p = 0.049, respectively). In adjusted multi-regression analysis, small and large VLDL particles and all sizes of lipoproteins independently predicted LPIR, whereas only the number of small LDL particles predicted GlycA. Conventional markers HbA1c and Hs-CRP did not exhibit any significant association with lipoprotein subpopulations. Our data suggest that monitoring insulin resistance-induced changes in lipoprotein subpopulations in T2DM might help to identify novel biomarkers that can be useful for effective clinical intervention

Study the effect of simple extraction techniques to synthesizing promising antimicrobial bio-capped copper oxide nanoparticles

Six samples of bio-capped copper oxide nanoparticles were made from two bio-waste extracts: Punica granatum L. peels and Psidium guajava Linn. leaves. Extraction methods included soaking in water or hydroethanol and boiling in water. The samples were characterized using FT-IR, XRD, SEM, and TGA. Results showed organic residue capping on CuO nanoparticles varied based on the extract and capping medium used. The thermal stability of all CuO samples was observed to be high, as recorded from TGA patterns and confirmed by EDX analysis, which showed a high content of copper ranging from 10.1 to 36.1%. TEM analysis revealed an average particle size of less than 20 nm for all six samples, suggesting a similarity in size. The soaking technique produced the most stable bio-capped CuO nanoparticles with a high negative zeta potential value. According to the study, the CuO samples synthesized from aqueous extracts obtained through soaking showed the highest antibacterial activity. This could be attributed to the high oxygen ratio, which was confirmed via EDX analysis. The bio-capped CuO was effective against multidrug- resistant gram-positive bacteria MRSA, and C. albicans. A mechanism was proposed to explain how the capping media affected the antimicrobial activity of the bio-capped CuO nanoparticles.</p

Scalloping of the Liver and Spleen on Preoperative CT-Scan of Pseudomyxoma Peritonei Patients: Impact on Prediction of Resectability, Grade, Morbidity and Survival

Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) is ideally treated by cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), leading to significant morbidity. Beyond the histologic grade, the prognosis lies in the completeness of cytoreduction (CC-score of 0/1 vs. 2/3) and the severe complication rate. The mucinous nature of the peritoneal implants sometimes induces liver and/or spleen scalloping on imaging. The predictive value of scalloping was assessed regarding resectability, grade, survival and severe morbidity. This monocentric, retrospective analysis compared CC-0/1 with CC-2/3 groups regarding liver and spleen scalloping parameters, assessed on pre-operative computed tomography (CT) scan, reviewed for the study. In addition, prognostic factors of severe complications and recurrence-free and overall survivals were explored in the CC-0/1 population. Overall, 129 patients were included (109 CC-0/1, 20 CC-2/3), with 58 (45%) exhibiting scalloping. All patients with splenic scalloping also had a liver one. Scalloping was more frequent (75% vs. 39%), with greater median maximal depth (21 vs. 11 mm) and higher PCI (32 vs. 14) in the CC-2/3 population, but was not predictive of either grade or survival. In CC-0/1 patients, survivals and postoperative complications were not affected by scalloping parameters. Scalloping appeared as a marker of advanced PMP, but was not predictive of grade, severe complications, or long-term outcomes

Cross-continental national nutrition surveys: a narrative review

Abstract Many countries use national nutrition surveys (NNSs) to assess their population’s health and nutrition needs. However, NNS aims, approaches, tools, and measurements vary among countries. To date, there has been no review evaluating the NNSs and their practices worldwide to help conduct future NSSs. Therefore, this narrative review was conducted to 1) explore and tabulate current NNSs in five continents (Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, and Australia) and 2) help lay the foundation for establishing clear guidelines for future NNSs. The NNSs were identified using two approaches. First, an electronic database search was conducted with key terms in PubMed database. Second, a general web-based search on the survey webpages of governmental organizations was conducted using the same key terms to identify eligible surveys. The review included general adult population (≥ 18 years) with a cross-sectional design, excluding NNSs related to household-only surveys, specific age groups, or insufficient sample sizes. A total of 41 NNSs were identified in 37 countries across four continents: Asia (n = 15), Europe (n = 21), North America (n = 3), and Australia (n = 2). Broad differences between the surveys were identified, including survey purposes and designs, definitions of geographic areas and target groups, and dietary assessments. Currently, there are 26 ongoing NNSs, while 15 have ended. Among the ongoing NNSs, the cycles of the surveys were either at regular intervals (n = 8) or irregular intervals (n = 8). Of the 41 surveys, 24-h dietary recalls were used in 27 surveys, while only 6 surveys used diet diaries and 8 surveys relied on FFQs. Some surveys (n = 17) utilized multiple tools to assess dietary intake. Most of the surveys that assessed biochemical status (n = 12) focused on blood glucose, haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and lipid status, whereas some surveys (n = 6) tested for vitamin and mineral status in blood and/or urine samples. The review identified key characteristics, time frames, sampling methods, and dietary and physical assessment methods obtained from different surveys worldwide. The information organized in this review will be important for researchers, policymakers, and public health programme developers in developing and improving NNS