Relationship of Diet to Gut Microbiota and Inflammatory Biomarkers in People with HIV

While changes in microbiome composition have been associated with HIV, the effect of diet and its potential impact on inflammation remains unclear. Methods: Twenty-seven people living with HIV (PWH) on antiretroviral therapy (ART) were studied. A comprehensive dietary analysis was performed and two types of dietary patterns were determined. We explored the associations of each dietary pattern with gut microbiota and plasma inflammatory biomarkers. Results: We appreciated two dietary patterns, Mediterranean-like (MEL) and one Western-like (WEL). Compared to participants with the WEL pattern, participants with MEL pattern showed higher abundance of Lachnospira (p-value = 0.02) and lower levels of the inflammatory biomarkers D-dimer (p-value = 0.050) and soluble TNF-alpha receptor 2 (sTNFR2) (p-value = 0.049). Men who have sex with men (MSM) with MEL pattern had lower abundance of Erysipelotrichaceae (p-value < 0.001) and lower levels of D-dimer (p-value = 0.026) than MSM with WEL pattern. Conclusion: MEL pattern favours Lachnospira abundance, and protects against Erysipelotrichaceae abundance and higher levels of the inflammatory biomarkers D-dimer and sTNFR2, precursors of inflammatory processes in HIV-infected patients. Our study contributes to understanding the determinants of a healthier diet and its connections with gut microbiota and inflammation

Prácticas alimentarias de los adolescentes de Cantabria

Objetivo. Analizar determinadas prácticas alimentarias en adolescentes escolarizados en centros de educación pública de Cantabria, participantes en el Proyecto "Promoción de Hábitos Saludables en Adolescentes desde el Ámbito Educativo". Sujetos. Se realizó un estudio transversal, analizando una muestra de 1.101 adolescentes: 568 (51,6%) varones y 533 (48,4%) mujeres, de edades comprendidas entre los 10 y los 17 años, escolarizados en dieciséis centros de enseñanza primaria y secundaria, mediante un cuestionario autocumplimentado. Resultados. Los adolescentes suelen realizar entre cuatro (41,5%) y cinco (31,6%) ingestas diarias. Durante los días de colegio, el 34% emplea entre diez y quince minutos en desayunar, y entre 30 y 35 minutos en comer (33,5%) y cenar (23%). Un elevado porcentaje (49,4%) de adolescentes desayunaba en soledad durante los días lectivos. Las principales ingestas alimenticias se realizan en el hogar. Las bebidas no alcohólicas (53,6%) y los dulces (42%) son los principales destinos de su dinero de bolsillo. En la casi totalidad de los hogares, es la madre la que se encarga de la compra de los alimentos, de la preparación de las comidas y de decidir tanto el almuerzo como la merienda. La pizza (72,6%) y las patatas fritas (70,8%) son los alimentos considerados más ricos entre los analizados, mientras que el perrito caliente (49,4%) y la hamburguesa (48,5%) son considerados como los menos sanos. El 58,6% de los encuestados cena viendo la televisión. Conclusión. En el estudio del comportamiento alimentario es necesario analizar la influencia de otros factores que, en muchas ocasiones, están detrás de las recomendaciones dietéticas y que casi siempre son ignorados. Prácticas alimentarias como las analizadas en el presente estudio, permiten, cuando estas se desarrollan de forma adecuada, una mejora sustancial en la salud alimentaria y nutricional de las personas

Cytotoxic effects induced by combination of heliantriol B2 and dequalinium against human leukemic cell lines

Natural occurring compounds are considered an important source of antitumoral agents. In the present study, the cytotoxic potential of three pentacyclic triterpenes isolated from Chuquiraga erinacea (Asteraceae), against the human leukemic cell lines NB4 and K562 was assessed. Heliantriol B2 (HB2) showed the highest cytotoxic activity after 24 h treatment showing IC 50 values of 1.98 ± 0.12 μm and 3.52 ± 0.14 μm for NB4 and K562 cells, respectively. This activity was higher than that of the reference compound dequalinium (DQA). Apoptosis and necrosis induced by HB2 in both NB4 and K562 cell lines were analysed by Annexin V/PI labeling. Mitochondrial alterations including reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and mitochondrial transmembrane potential (Δψm) were also tested. The results demonstrated that HB2 induced cell death by apoptosis and necrosis and showed enhanced cytotoxic effects in combination with DQA. Besides, HB2 induced ROS overproduction in NB4 cells and a slight decrease of Δψm. Consequently, our findings prompt further studies on the HB2 mechanism of action and its selectivity to tumor cells in order to assess the potential of HB2 as an agent for cancer treatment. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Fil: Vela Gurovic, Maria Soledad. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Química del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Química. Instituto de Química del Sur; Argentina. Universidad de Alcalá; EspañaFil: Díaz Lanza, A. María. Universidad de Alcalá; EspañaFil: Boyano Adánez, María Del Carmen. Universidad de Alcalá; EspañaFil: Estañ Omaña, M. Cristina. Universidad de Alcalá; EspañaFil: Gañán Gõmez, Irene. Universidad de Alcalá; EspañaFil: Murray, Ana Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Química del Sur. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Química. Instituto de Química del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Sancho Lõpez, Pilar. Universidad de Alcalá; Españ

Evaluation of the Lysyl Oxidase Like 2 (LOXL2) inhibitory activity of pimaranes and their glycosyl derivatives

Lysyl oxidase (LOX) and LOX-like 1-4 (LOXL 1-4) enzymes catalyze the cross-linking of elastin and collagen in the extracellular matrix, facilitating cell migration and invasion. The inhibition of these enzymes, particularly LOXL2, has been suggested as a therapeutic strategy to prevent breast cancer metastasis. BAPN is the first known LOX inhibitor and is a phytochemical compound derived from sweet peas (Lathyrus odoratus L.). In this work, new natural LOXL2 inhibitors were searched from Aeollanthus rydingianus, a medicinal plant rich in bioactive products. Five pimarane diterpenoids, two isolated from the plant (1 and 4) and three derivatives (2, 3 and 5) were tested. These compounds have been described for their bioactive properties such as antitumor, an-ti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antibacterial activities. In this regard, we intended to explore the mechanisms of these compounds by studying their effects on LOXL2 activity. Two pimarane diterpenoids showed a mild LOXL2 inhibitory activity as evaluated by an Amplex Ultra Red-based technique. The cytotoxicity of the most active compound (pimarane 1) was analyzed by the MTT assay in the MDA-MB-231 cell line, representative of triple-negative breast cancer. This compound decreased cell viability as single agent and increased the cytotoxic effect of doxorubicin. Its gly-coconjugate (pimarane 2) was considerably more toxic, probably due to a higher uptake by cancer cells