Untargeted metabolomics to reveal red versus white meat‐associated gut metabolites in a prudent and western dietary context

Scope: To improve understanding of the epidemiological link between red and processed meat consumption and chronic diseases, more insight in the formation of metabolites during meat digestion is warranted.Methods and results: Untargeted MS-based metabolomics was applied to explore the impact of red and processed meat consumption (compared to chicken), combined with a prudent or Western dietary pattern. A pig feeding study (n=32), as a sentinel for humans, was conducted in a 2×2 factorial design for four weeks. The luminal content of the small intestine and colon of the pigs were collected to determine their metabolic fingerprints. Seventy-six unique metabolites (38 in small intestine, 32 in colon, and 6 in both intestinal compartments) contributing tothe distinct gut metabolic profiles of pigs fed either chicken or red and processed meat were (tentatively) identified. Consumption of red and processed meat resulted in higher levels of short-and medium-chain acylcarnitines and 3-dehydroxycarnitine, irrespective of dietary context, whereas long-chain acylcarnitines and monoacylglycerols were specifically associated with the red and processed-Western diet.Conclusion: The identification of red and processed meat-associated gut metabolites in this study contributes to the understanding of meat digestion in a complex but controlled dietary context and its potential health effect

Impact of red versus white meat consumption in a prudent or Western dietary pattern on the oxidative status in a pig model

Human diets contain a complex mixture of antioxidants and pro-oxidants that contribute to the body's oxidative status. In this study, 32 pigs were fed chicken versus red and processed meat in the context of a prudent or Western dietary pattern for 4 weeks, to investigate their oxidative status. Lipid oxidation products (malondialdehyde, 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal, and hexanal) were higher in the chicken versus red and processed meat diets (1.7- to 8.3-fold) and subsequent in vitro (1.3- to 1.9-fold) and in vivo (1.4 to 3-fold) digests (P < 0.001), which was presumably related to the higher polyunsaturated fatty acid content in chicken meat and/or the added antioxidants in processed meat. However, diet had only a marginal or no effect on the systemic oxidative status, as determined by plasma oxygen radical absorbance capacity, malondialdehyde, glutathione, and glutathione peroxidase activity in blood and organs, except for alpha-tocopherol, which was higher after the consumption of the chicken-Western diet. In conclusion, in contrast to the hypothesis, the consumption of chicken in comparison to that of the red and processed meat resulted in higher concentrations of lipid oxidation products in the pig intestinal contents; however, this was not reflected in the body's oxidative status

Meat lipids, NaCl and carnitine : do they unveil the conundrum of the association between red and processed meat intake and cardiovascular diseases? : Invited review

The assessment of the actual contribution of red or processed meat to increasing the risk of suffering cardiovascular diseases (CVD) requires identification of specific harmful components and their underlying pathological mechanisms. In regards to CVD, meat lipids and their oxidation products have been recurrently studied due to their implications on lipid metabolism, hypercholesterolemia, obesity, and risk of suffering vascular events such as stroke. The impact of excess NaCl intake on increasing blood pressure is well-established and processed meat products have been recognized as a major contributor to dietary sodium in developed countries. Recent evidence has also suggested carnitine from red meat, as a precursor for trimethylamine-N-oxide, which has been shown to cause atherosclerosis, may increase the risk of suffering CVD in experimental animals. The present review aims to provide an updated overview, including evidence, controversies and unresolved questions on both the epidemiology and mechanisms relating red and processed meat consumption to CVD

Copper Status of Free Ranging Cattle: What’s Hidden Behind? A Pilot Study at the Gilgel Gibe Catchment, Ethiopia

Copper (Cu) deficiency is known to be a major risk for cattle health and production. The widespread problem is due to low absorption rates in the rumen, low Cu concentrations in the natural diet and the presence of dietary Cu antagonists, such as S, Mo and Fe (Suttle 2010). Cattle in the tropics are even more prone to shortage of this mineral, given that the animals are often extensively kept and largely dependent on natural pasture for mineral supply (McDowell and Arthington, 2005). More specifically, in Ethiopia, Cu deficiency was previously described in zebu (Bos indicus) cattle by several authors (e.g. Dermauw et al.). Similar to other minerals, Cu is part of the soil-plant-animal chain, with many factors influencing Cu concentrations at every level. In our study, the overall goal was to investigate the possible influence of certain environment and management factors on dietary concentrations of Cu and antagonists and Cu status in free ranging cattle