Glucolipid metabolism improvement in impaired glucose tolerance subjects consuming a Quinoa-based diet: a randomized parallel clinical trial

Purpose: To investigate the effects of quinoa on glucose and lipid metabolism, and the prognosis in people with impaired glucose tolerance.Methods: One hundred and thirty-eight patients diagnosed with impaired glucose tolerance following a glucose tolerance test in Guangzhou Cadre Health Management Center were selected and randomly divided into quinoa intervention and control groups, according to the digital table method. After 1 year of follow-up, the differences in blood glucose, blood lipid, glycosylated hemoglobin and other indicators were compared. The disease prognosis between the two groups was also compared.Results: The 2 h postprandial blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, insulin resistance index, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, body mass index, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure after intervention in the quinoa group were significantly lower than before intervention. In contrast, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was higher than before intervention and is statistically significant (p < 0.05). After 1 year of follow-up, the control group’s glycosylated hemoglobin and body mass index are higher than before intervention, and are statistically significant (p < 0.05). The 2 h postprandial blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, insulin resistance index, body mass index, and mean diastolic blood pressure in the quinoa group are statistically significantly lower than in the control group, while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol is higher (p < 0.05). The rate of conversion to diabetes for participants in the quinoa group (7.8%) is statistically significantly lower than in the control group (20.3%) (χ2 = 12.760, p = 0.002). Logistic regression analysis showed that quinoa consumption is a protective factor against delaying the progression of diabetes (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Adding quinoa to staple food intake can reduce postprandial blood glucose, and improve lipid metabolism and insulin resistance, delaying the progression of diabetes in people with impaired glucose tolerance

Dysbiosis of the gut microbiome in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract Fecal samples from participants aged 60–80 were collected and sequenced by a high-throughput second-generation sequencer to explore the structural composition of gut microbiota in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Comparison of gut microbiota between patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and healthy controls, α diversity and β diversity were statistically different. At the genus level, compared with the normal group, the abundance of A Blautia , Fusicatenibacter , Anaerostipes, Lachnospiraceae_ND3007_group, CAG-56, Eggerthella, Lachnospiraceae_FCS020_group and Olsenella were decreased significantly in the LC group. In contrast, the abundance of Escherichia-Shigella, Fusobacterium, Megasphaera , Veillonella, Tyzzerella_4, Prevotella_2 and Cronobacter increased significantly. The KEGG and COG pathway analyses showed that the dysbiosis of gut bacteria in primary liver carcinoma is associated with several pathways, including amino acid metabolism, replication and repair, nucleotide metabolism, cell motility, cell growth and death, and transcription. Age is negatively associated with the abundance of Bifidobacterium. Lachnospiraceae_ ND3007_ group, [Eubacterium]_hallii_group, Blautia, Fuscatenibacter and Anaerostipes are negatively correlated with ALT, AST and GGT levels (p < 0.05), respectively. Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) is positively associated with the abundance of Erysipelatoclostridium, Magasphaera, Prevotella 2, Escherichia-Shigella, Streptococcus and [Eubacterium]_eligens_group (p < 0.05), respectively. A random forest model showed that the genera Eggerthella, Anaerostipes, and Lachnospiraceae_ ND3007_ group demonstrated the best predictive capacity. The area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve of Eggerthella, Anaerostipes and Lachnospiraceae_ ND3007_ group are 0.791, 0.766 and 0.730, respectively. These data are derived from the first known gut microbiome study in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Potentially, specific microbiota can be used as a characteristic index for screening, diagnosis, and prognosis of gut microbiota changes in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and even as a therapeutic clinical target

Markers of insulin resistance associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in non-diabetic population

Abstract Insulin resistance (IR) plays an important role in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). IR markers are divided into two types: (1) insulin-based IR marker, homeostatic model assessment of IR (HOMA-IR); and (2) non-insulin-based IR markers, such as triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index, TyG index with body mass index (TyG-BMI), triglyceride/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (TG/HDL-c), and metabolic score for IR (METS-IR). The non-insulin-based IR markers are often associated with lipids. The aim of this study was to analyse the association between IR markers and NAFLD in non-diabetic population. Baseline data of NAFLD and non-NAFLD groups were compared. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the relationship between five IR markers and NAFLD risk. The odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of IR markers were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate the ability of different IR markers to detect NAFLD. Subgroup analyses were performed in obese and non-obese subgroups. This study found a positive correlation between NAFLD risk and elevation in five IR markers (HOMA-IR, TyG, TyG-BMI, TG/HDL-c, and METS-IR). In non-obese subjects, the AUC of TyG-BMI was larger than that of the other four IR markers to detect NAFLD. The AUC of HOMA-IR was larger than that of the other four IR markers to detect NAFLD in obese subjects. In non-diabetic population, the five IR markers are associated with the risk of NAFLD, including non-obese and obese NAFLD. TyG-BMI and HOMA-IR can be used to detect non-obese and obese NAFLD, respectively, with better detection ability compared with the other IR markers

Multi-omics analyses of gut microbiota via 16S rRNA gene sequencing, LC-MS/MS and diffusion tension imaging reveal aberrant microbiota-gut-brain axis in very low or extremely low birth weight infants with white matter injury

Abstract Objective The goal of this study was to comprehensively investigate the characteristics of gut microbiota dysbiosis and metabolites levels in very low or extremely low birth weight (VLBW/ELBW) infants with white matter injury (WMI). Methods In this prospective cohort study, preterm infants with gestational age < 32 weeks and weight < 1.5 kg were investigated. Additionally, fecal samples were collected on days zero, 14d and 28d after admission to the intensive care unit. All subjects underwent brain scan via MRI and DTI at a corrected gestational age of 37 ~ 40 weeks. Based on the results of MRI examination, the VLBW/ELBW infants were divided into two groups: WMI and non-WMI. Finally, based on a multi-omics approach, we performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing, LC-MS/MS, and diffusion tension imaging to identify quantifiable and informative biomarkers for WMI. Result We enrolled 23 patients with and 48 patients without WMI. The results of 16S RNA sequencing revealed an increase in the number of Staphylococcus and Acinetobacter species in the fecal samples of infants with WMI, as well as increasing levels of S. caprae and A._johnsonii. LEfSe analysis (LDA ≥ 4) showed that the WMI group carried an abundance of Staphylococcus species including S. caprae, members of the phyla Bacteroidota and Actinobacteriota, and Acinetobacter species. A total of 139 metabolic markers were significantly and differentially expressed between WMI and nWMI. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the WMI group showed significant downregulation of 17 metabolic pathways including biosynthesis of arginine and primary bile acids. The WMI group showed delayed brain myelination, especially in the paraventricular white matter and splenium of corpus callosum. Staphylococcus species may affect WMI by downregulating metabolites such as cholic acid, allocholic acid, and 1,3-butadiene. Gut microbiota such as Acinetobacter and Bacteroidetes may alter white matter structurally by upregulating metabolites such as cinobufagin. Conclusion Based on 16S RNA sequencing results, severe gut microbiota dysbiosis was observed in the WMI group. The results might reveal damage to potential signaling pathways of microbiota-gut-brain axis in gut microbiota. The mechanism was mediated via downregulation of the bile acid biosynthetic pathway

Synthesis and In Vitro Antitumor Activity of Two Mixed-Ligand Oxovanadium(IV) Complexes of Schiff Base and Phenanthroline

Two oxovanadium(IV) complexes of [VO(msatsc)(phen)], (1) (msatsc = methoxylsalicylaldehyde thiosemicarbazone, phen = phenanthroline) and its novel derivative [VO (4-chlorosatsc)(phen)], (2) (4-chlorosatsc = 4-chlorosalicylaldehyde thiosemicarbazone), have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, ES-MS, 1H NMR, and magnetic susceptibility measurements. Their antitumor effects on BEL-7402, HUH-7, and HepG2 cells were studied by MTT assay. The antitumor biological mechanism of these two complexes was studied in BEL-7402 cells by cell cycle analysis, Hoechst 33342 staining, Annexin V-FITC/PI assay, and detection of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm). The results showed that the growth of cancer cells was inhibited significantly, and complexes 1 and 2 mainly caused in BEL-7402 cells G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and induced apoptosis. Both 1 and 2 decreased significantly the ΔΨm, causing the depolarization of the mitochondrial membrane. Complex 2 showed greater antitumor efficiency than that of complex 1