family members and health-related behaviors

The aim of this study was to clarify the associations of family members living together with health-related behaviors in Japanese young workers. The participants were 300 men and women aged 20-39 years in 2015 who had a job. A web-based self-administered questionnaire on status of partnering and parenting, number of family members living together, dietary habits, drinking habit, smoking habit, self-rated health, employment status, working time and commuting time was conducted through Internet. Multiple logistic regression analysis and general linear models were used to assess the association of family members living together with health-related behaviors. The multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval, p-value) for current drinking in unmarried participants living with their parents compared to unmarried participants living alone was 0.35 (0.13-0.93, p=0.036). The adjusted means of frequency of breakfast skipping and frequency of eating out showed a trend for inverse associations with the presence of a partner and children. However, those associations disappeared after adjustment for age of youngest child. The findings suggest that the presence of parents might affect drinking behavior and that age of youngest child living together might affect the frequency of breakfast skipping in young Japanese workers

ノビレチンは17型ヘルパーT細胞の分化調節により、実験的自己免疫性脳脊髄炎の発症を抑制する

Multiple sclerosis is an organ-specific autoimmune disease that targets the myelin antigen in the central nervous system. Nobiletin is a dietary polymethoxylated flavonoid found in citrus fruits. In this study, we investigated how nobiletin affects the disease state and immune responses to myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis mice. Nobiletin was administered orally from 14 days before immunization until the end of the experiment, and clinical scores were determined. The production levels of interleukin-17A and interferon-γ were measured in a culture supernatant of splenocytes stimulated with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein. In addition, flow cytometric analysis was performed to examine the effect of nobiletin on T cell differentiation in vitro. Admin­istration of nobiletin significantly decreased the clinical score and interleukin-17A production in splenocytes. Furthermore, in vitro analysis showed that nobiletin significantly suppressed Th17 cell differentiation and interleukin-17A production in a dose-dependent manner. The results suggest that nobiletin attenuates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis severity through modulation of Th17 cell differentiation

コウリン ケッショウ ト シン ケッカン シッカン

Hyperphosphatemia has been known as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease particularly inchronic kidney disease patients. Hyperphosphatemia can be involved in the calcification of vascularsmooth muscle cells, resulting in M¨onkeberg medial calcific sclerosis which is a type of arteriosclerosis.However, it has not been clarified whether hyperphosphatemia can deteriorate endothelialfunction and can be a risk factor of atherosclerosis. Our recent study demonstrated that hyperphosphatemiaincreased oxidative stress and decreased nitric oxide production in endothelial cells.In addition, hyperphosphatemia attenuated endothelium-dependent vasodilation reaction. Theseobservations suggest that hyperphosphatemia may cause endothelial dysfunction, and be an importantfactor for progression of atherosclerosis as well as vascular calcification. Positive associationbetween hyperphosphatemia and cardiovascular disease may be explained by the dual harmfuleffects of phosphorus on the vessels

エイヨウ ト メンエキ キノウ : ヒヒッス エイヨウソ テイエイヨウ ジョウタイ カエイヨウ ジョウタイ ト メンエキ

It is known that nutritional state crucially affects immune function. In recent years, the contributionof the diet to the optimal working of the immune system has become wildly appreciatedand the influence of different dietary components on specific aspects of immune function has beenextensively studied. Soy isoflavone genistein suppresses antigen-specific immune response inBALB/c mice and suppresses development of atopic-like dermatitis in NC/Nga mice. In other soyisoflavone equol enhances antigen-specific IgE production via IL-13-mediated pathway. Further,equol exacerbates colitis of dextran sulfate sodium-treated mice. Therefore, immune stimulatoryeffects are strikingly different among soy isoflavones. In this reviews, in addition of the isoflavone,we overview the effects of dietary nucleic acid and protein-deficiency on antigen-specific immuneresponses. Furthermore, we present hot topics researches in the field of obesity and T cellfunction

Polymethoxyflavonids and T helper 17 cells

We examined the effects of polymethoxyflavonoids (PMFs) on T helper (Th) 17 cell differentiation in vitro and in vivo. Five different PMFs including nobiletin (NOB), sudachitin (SUD), demethoxysudachitin, heptamethoxyflavone and natsudaidain were used for the in vitro study, and effects of those flavonoids on Th17 responses were investigated. NOB and heptamethoxyflavone significantly suppressed the proliferation response, but SUD, demethoxysudachitin and natsudaidain did not suppress the proliferation response. All of the five flavonoids decreased IL-17A production. Mice with experimentally induced autoimmune encephalomyelitis were used as an in vivo Th17 differentiation model. We focused on two flavonoids, NOB and SUD, and examined the effects of those flavonoids. NOB significantly suppressed Th17 cell proliferation and cytokine responses, but SUD only decreased proliferation responses. The results suggest that the suppressive effect of NOB on Th17 response in vivo is stronger than that of SUD

Extracts of citrus Sudachi peel attenuate body weight gain in C57BL/6 mice fed a high-fat diet

Citrus Sudachi is the special local product of Tokushima Prefecture, and over 98% of Sudachi consumed in Japan every year is produced in Tokushima Prefecture. In this study, we evaluated the function of sudachi peel extract (SPE) using an animal model of obesity. C57BL/6 mice were fed a high-fat diet containing 1% SPE powder. Treatment with SPE significantly decreased body weight compared to that of mice fed a high-fat diet. A significant difference in body weight was observed between the control and SPE groups from 7 weeks after the start of the experiment, the significant difference continued until the end of the 14-week experiment. Reduction of blood glucose levels following insulin administration in SPE-treated mice was grater than that in control mice. Determination of mRNA expression in adipose tissue showed that the expression level of TNF-α in the SPE group was significantly decreased compared to that on the control group. These results suggest that SPE potentially has the ability to attenuate body weight gain

Advantage of a low glycemic index and low phosphate diet on diabetic nephropathy and aging-related diseases

Diabetic nephropathy is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in Japan and other Westernized countries. Over 50% of the ESRD patients die from cardiovascular events. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) in ESRD patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are implicated in the endothelial dysfunction caused by hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension, and in the vascular calcification of intimal and medial arterial blood vessels caused by hyperphosphatemia. Therefore, dietary control of hyperglycemia and hyperphosphatemia should play an important role in the management of ESRD patients with DM. Furthermore, recent findings suggest that high concentrations of serum phosphate, even if within the normal range, may be a risk factor for CVD and mortality. An in vivo study using klotho knockout mice and fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23) knockout mice has revealed that correction of hyperphosphatemia and hypervitaminosis D could ameliorate the premature aging-like phenotype. A low glycemic index and low phosphate diet may provide an advantage in the prevention of aging-related diseases in healthy individuals as well as in those with chronic kidney disease

Dietary diversity and healthy lifestyle

The aim of this study was to clarify the characteristics of lifestyle and health awareness according to dietary diversity in a Japanese worksite population. The participants were 1,312 men and women aged 20 to 63 years who were living in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan during the period 2012-2013. We obtained anthropometric data and information on lifestyle characteristics using a self-administered questionnaire. Dietary intake was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire, and dietary diversity was determined using the Quantitative Index for Dietary Diversity (QUANTIDD). The characteristics of lifestyle and health awareness according to quartiles of the QUANTIDD score were assessed using the chi-square test and a general linear model. The higher the QUANTIDD score was, the larger were the proportions of participants who knew the appropriate amount of dietary intake and participants who referred to nutritional component information when choosing and / or buying food. Among participants with higher QUANTIDD scores, the proportion of participants who considered their current diet was good was high in women, whereas the proportion of participants who wanted to improve their diet in the future was high in men. Those results indicate that higher dietary diversity was related to better characteristics of lifestyle and awareness of health

Comparison of energy metabolism in Insulin-Dependent and Non-Insulin-Dependent diabetes mellitus

To compare the metabolic consequences of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), glycemic control and energy metabolism were evaluated in 18 children displaying IDDM and 19 NIDDM adult patients. With rising concentrations of fasting blood glucose (FBG), hemoglobin A1C and free fatty acid, the percentage of the ratio of resting energy expenditure (REE) to predicted REE expressed as %REE increased and the respiratory quotient (RQ) decreased. The linear regression between RQ and FBG showed the same gradient in IDDM and NIDDM although the RQ in IDDM was always 0.07 lower than that in NIDDM given various FBG concentrations. Those patients whose RQ values were less than 0.7, indicating ketone body production, included 8 (44%) IDDM and 2 (11%) NIDDM patients. These results may explain the relatively greater manifestation of ketoacidosis in IDDM

Treatment with buckwheat bran extract prevents the elevation of serum triglyceride levels and fatty liver in KK-Ay mice.

Buckwheat powder or protein has been shown to decrease the total serum cholesterol level in non-diabetic mice or rats. However, the lipid-lowering effect of buckwheat bran extract (BBE) in diabetic mice has not been fully elucidated. KK-Ay mice that received six-week treatment with BBE showed decreased body weight and liver weight compared to those of control (vehicle) mice. However, there was no significant difference in food intake. BBE treatments prevented liver triglyceride accumulation and decreased the serum level of triglycerides. In addition, mRNA expression levels lipogenic enzyme genes, fatty acid synthase, acetyl-coenzyme a oxidase and stearyl-coenzyme a desaturase 1, but not those of β-oxidized enzyme genes, were decreased in BBE-treated mice. Level of transcription factors ChREBP and SREBP1c, transcripts of lipogenic genes, were also decreased in BBE-treated mice. These results suggest that chronic treatment with BBE derivatives could have beneficial effects on hypertriglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus