The Independent Role of Body Mass Index (BMI) and Severity of Depressive Symptoms on Biological Changes of Women Affected by Overweight/Obesity.

Background: Both obesity and depression are medical conditions associated with severe disability and biological abnormalities. Our aim was to study associations between Body Mass Index (BMI), depression and biological changes in women affected by overweight or obesity. Methods: Depressive symptoms were evaluated by the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) questionnaire in 200 women affected by overweight/obesity (mean age of the sample 52.7 ± 12.9 years, BMI 33.8 ± 5.5 kg/m2). A blood sample was obtained for evaluation of biochemical (oxytocin and vitamin D), inflammatory and epigenetic (methylation of clock genes) parameters. Multivariable linear regression models were used to study the association between BMI or severity of depressive symptoms (BDI-II scores) with different biomarkers. Results: BMI was found to be associated with severity of depressive symptoms (p = 0.050). Severity of obesity resulted to be associated with lower plasma levels of oxytocin (p = 0.053), vitamin D deficiency (p = 0.006) and higher plasma levels of IFN-γ (p = 0.004), IL-6 (p = 0.013), IL-7 (p = 0.013), TNF-alpha (p = 0.036) and chemokine ligand 3 (CCL3) (p = 0.013, R2 = 0.03). Severity of depression was significantly associated with more methylation of clock genes CRY1 (p = 0.034, R2 = 0.16) and CRY2 (p = 0.019, R2 = 0.47). More severe depression together with higher levels of IL-8 strongly predicted lower methylation of CLOCK gene (p = 0.009); Conclusions: Different biological abnormalities have been found to be independently associated with BMI and severity of depressive symptoms in women affected by overweight/obesity. The complex interplay between overweight, depression and biological changes will have to be better clarified by future studies.

Shift work and serum 25-OH vitamin D status among factory workers in Northern Italy: Cross-sectional study.

Low levels of vitamin D are related to muscle weakness, poor balance, and higher risk of falls, and can therefore have a major impact on performance and safety at work. Little knowledge exists on the association between work environment and vitamin D status. This study evaluates vitamin D status in shift workers. In this cross-sectional study, led during early springtime, 96 male shift workers at an engineering factory in Northern Italy, and 100 male daily workers operating nearby, participated. 25-OH vitamin D concentration, anthropometric indexes, fasting glycemia and triglycerides were detected. 51 shift workers underwent anamnesis collection on lifestyle and habits and determination of heel bone mineral density. Vitamin D levels were lower in shift workers than daily ones (13.4 ± 5.3 ng/mL versus 21.9 ± 10.7 ng/mL, p < 0.001). Linear regression analysis adjusted for age, body mass index and smoking habits confirms a statistically significant association between shift work and vitamin D levels (p < 0.0001). An association trend between cigarette smoking and low vitamin D values was found. No significant association was detected between the heel bone mineral density values and vitamin D levels or smoking habits. In conclusion, this cross-sectional study highlights the high prevalence of vitamin D deficit among shift workers compared with daily ones.

Nutrients intake is associated with DNA methylation of candidate inflammatory genes in a population of obese subjects.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential association between dietary nutrients and alterations in DNA methylation in a set of five candidate genes, including CD14, Et-1, iNOS, HERV-w and TNFα, in a population of overweight/obese subjects. We evaluated possible associations between gene methylation and clinical blood parameters, including total cholesterol (TC), low- and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C and HDL-C), triglyceride and homocysteine levels. We employed validated methods to assess anthropometric, clinical and dietary data, as well as pyrosequencing to evaluate DNA methylation of the five candidate genes in 165 overweight/obese subjects. There was no association between body mass index and DNA methylation of the five candidate genes in this group of subjects. Positive associations were observed between TNFα methylation and blood levels of LDL-C (ß = 0.447, p = 0.002), TC/HDL-C (ß = 0.467, p = 0.001) and LDL-C/HDL-C (ß = 0.445, p = 0.002), as well as between HERV-w methylation and dietary intakes of ß-carotene (ß = 0.088, p = 0.051) and carotenoids (ß = 0.083, p = 0.029). TNFα methylation showed negative associations with dietary intakes of cholesterol (ß = -0.278, p = 0.048), folic acid (ß = -0.339, p = 0.012), ß-carotene (ß = -0.332, p = 0.045), carotenoids (ß = -0.331, p = 0.015) and retinol (ß = -0.360, p = 0.008). These results suggest a complex relationship among nutrient intake, oxidative stress and DNA methylation.