Transdiagnostic Perspective of Impulsivity and Compulsivity in Obesity: From Cognitive Profile to Self-Reported Dimensions in Clinical Samples with and without Diabetes.

Impulsive and compulsive behaviors have both been observed in individuals with obesity. The co-occurrence of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D) is more strongly associated with impulsivity, although there are no conclusive results yet. A multidimensional assessment of impulsivity and compulsivity was conducted in individuals with obesity in the absence or presence of T2D, compared with healthy, normal-weight individuals, with highly impulsive patients (gambling disorders), and with highly compulsive patients (anorexia nervosa). Decision making and novelty seeking were used to measure impulsivity, and cognitive flexibility and harm avoidance were used for compulsivity. For impulsivity, patients with obesity and T2D showed poorer decision-making ability compared with healthy individuals. For compulsivity, individuals with only obesity presented less cognitive flexibility and high harm avoidance; these dimensions were not associated with obesity with T2D. This study contributes to the knowledge of the mechanisms associated with diabetes and its association with impulsive-compulsive behaviors, confirming the hypothesis that patients with obesity and T2D would be characterized by higher levels of impulsivity.

Interplay between cognition and weight reduction in individuals following a Mediterranean Diet: Three-year follow-up of the PREDIMED-Plus trial.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Some cognitive profiles might facilitate successful weight loss and its maintenance. Also, weight reductions may result in cognitive benefits. However, little work to date has examined the interactions between cognition and weight changes in the context of interventions with the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet). We studied the within-subject longitudinal relationships between cognition, body mass index (BMI), physical activity (PA), and quality of life (QoL), in older adults following a MedDiet. METHODS: The PREDIMED-Plus is a primary prevention trial testing the effect of a lifestyle intervention program with an energy-restricted MedDiet (er-MedDiet), weight-loss goals and PA promotion on cardiovascular disease. The PREDIMED-Plus-Cognition sub-study included 487 participants (50% women, mean age 65.2 ± 4.7 years), with overweight/obesity, metabolic syndrome and normal cognitive performance at baseline. A comprehensive neurocognitive test battery was administered at baseline and after 1 and 3 years. RESULTS: Baseline higher performance in verbal memory (OR = 1.5; 95%CI 1.0, 2.1), visuoconstructive praxis and attention (OR = 1.5; 95%CI 0.9, 2.3), and inhibition (OR = 1.3; 95%CI 0.9, 1.9) were associated with a higher odd of achieving at least 8% weight loss after 3 years follow-up in participants randomized to the intervention group. There were moderate improvements in specific tests of memory and executive functions during follow-up. Higher adherence to the er-MedDiet was associated with greater improvements in memory. Women exhibited lower rates of change in global cognition, PA and QoL. Moreover, improvements in memory correlated with reductions in BMI after 1 year (ßSTD = -0.14) and with improvements in PA after 3 years (ßSTD = 0.13). Finally, participants who experienced greater improvements in executive functions and global cognition also experienced greater improvements in their QoL. CONCLUSIONS: This study refines the understanding of the determinants and mutual interrelationships between longitudinally-assessed cognitive performance and weight loss, adding further evidence to the cognitive benefits associated with better adherence to a MedDiet. Our results also suggest that weight loss interventions tailored to the cognitive profile and gender of participants are promising avenues for future studies.

World-Wide FINGERS Network: A global approach to risk reduction and prevention of dementia.

Reducing the risk of dementia can halt the worldwide increase of affected people. The multifactorial and heterogeneous nature of late-onset dementia, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), indicates a potential impact of multidomain lifestyle interventions on risk reduction. The positive results of the landmark multidomain Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER) support such an approach. The World-Wide FINGERS (WW-FINGERS), launched in 2017 and including over 25 countries, is the first global network of multidomain lifestyle intervention trials for dementia risk reduction and prevention. WW-FINGERS aims to adapt, test, and optimize the FINGER model to reduce risk across the spectrum of cognitive decline-from at-risk asymptomatic states to early symptomatic stages-in different geographical, cultural, and economic settings. WW-FINGERS aims to harmonize and adapt multidomain interventions across various countries and settings, to facilitate data sharing and analysis across studies, and to promote international joint initiatives to identify globally implementable and effective preventive strategies.

Reduced Plasma Orexin-A Concentrations are Associated with Cognitive Deficits in Anorexia Nervosa.

Orexins/hypocretins are neuropeptides implicated in numerous processes, including food intake and cognition. The role of these peptides in the psychopathology of anorexia nervosa (AN) remains poorly understood. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the associations between plasma orexin-A (OXA) concentrations and neuropsychological functioning in adult women with AN, and a matched control group. Fasting plasma OXA concentrations were taken in 51 females with AN and in 51 matched healthy controls. Set-shifting was assessed using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), whereas decision making was measured using the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). The AN group exhibited lower plasma OXA levels than the HC group. Lower mean scores were obtained on the IGT in AN patients. WCST perseverative errors were significantly higher in the AN group compared to HC. In both the AN and HC group, OXA levels were negatively correlated with WCST non-perseverative errors. Reduced plasma OXA concentrations were found to be associated with set-shifting impairments in AN. Taking into consideration the function of orexins in promoting arousal and cognitive flexibility, future studies should explore whether orexin partly underpins the cognitive impairments found in AN.

Associations between neuropsychological performance and appetite-regulating hormones in anorexia nervosa and healthy controls: Ghrelin's putative role as a mediator of decision-making.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a severe eating disorder accompanied by alterations in endocrinological circuits and deficits in neuropsychological performance. In this study, a series of appetite-regulating hormones (ghrelin, leptin, cholecystokinin, PYY, adiponectin, and visfatin) were measured under fasting conditions in female patients with AN and female healthy controls. All of the participants also underwent a battery of neuropsychological assessment [namely the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), and the Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT)]. As the main finding, we found that higher ghrelin levels predict better performance in the IGT. Ghrelin may be a putative mediator of decision-making, a finding that has not been described so far. The role of ghrelin in decision-making can only be described as speculative, as there are hardly any additional evidence-based data published up to date. Further studies are warranted.

Complementary phenol-enriched olive oil improves HDL characteristics in hypercholesterolemic subjects. A randomized, double-blind, crossover, controlled trial. The VOHF study.

SCOPE: Consumption of olive oil (OO) phenolic compounds (PCs) has beneficial effects on lipid profile. HDL functionality is currently considered to be a more important issue than its circulating quantity. Our aim was to assess whether functional virgin olive oils (FVOOs), one enriched with its own PC (500 ppm; FVOO) and another with OOPC (250 ppm) plus additional complementary PCs from thyme (250 ppm) (total: 500 ppm; FVOOT (functional virgin olive oil with thyme)), could improve HDL functionality related properties versus a virgin OO control (80 ppm; VOO). METHODS AND RESULTS: In a randomized, double-blind, crossover, controlled trial, 33 hypercholesterolemic volunteers received 25 mL/day of VOO, FVOO, and FVOOT during 3 wk. HDL cholesterol increased 5.74% (p < 0.05) versus its baseline after the FVOOT consumption in the participants without hypolipidemic medication. We detected, after FVOOT consumption, an increase in HDL2 -subclass (34.45, SD = 6.38) versus VOO intake (32.73, SD = 6.71). An increment in esterified cholesterol/free cholesterol and phospholipids/free cholesterol in HDL was observed after FVOOT consumption (1.73, SD = 0.56; 5.44, SD = 1.39) compared with VOO intervention (1.53, SD = 0.35; 4.97, SD = 0.81) and FVOO intervention (1.50, SD = 0.33; 4.97, SD = 0.81). Accordingly, lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase mass increased after FVOOT consumption (1228 µg/mL, SD = 130), compared with VOO consumption (1160 µg/mL, SD = 144). An improvement in HDL oxidative-status was reflected after FVOOT consumption versus its baseline, given an increment in the paraoxonase activity (118 × 10(3) U/L, SD = 24). CONCLUSION: FVOOT improves HDL-subclass distribution and composition, and metabolism/antioxidant enzyme activities. FVOOT could be a useful dietary tool in the management of high cardiovascular risk patients.

Hydroxytyrosol administration enhances atherosclerotic lesion development in apo E deficient mice.

Hydroxytyrosol is a phenol found in olive oil. To verify the effect of hydroxytyrosol on the development of atherosclerosis, two groups of apo E deficient male mice on a standard chow diet were used: the control group receiving only water, and the second group an aqueous solution of hydroxytyrosol in order to provide a dose of 10 mg/kg/day to each mouse. This treatment was maintained for 10 weeks. At the moment of sacrifice, blood was drawn and heart removed. Plasma lipids, apolipoproteins and monocyte Mac-1 expression were assayed as well as aortic atherosclerotic areas in both groups. Data showed no significant changes in HDL cholesterol, paraoxonase, apolipoprotein B or triglyceride levels. However, hydroxytyrosol administration decreased apolipoprotein A-I and increased total cholesterol, atherosclerotic lesion areas and circulating monocytes expressing Mac-1. The latter was highly correlated with lesion areas (r = 0.65, P < 0.01). These results indicate that administration of hydroxytyrosol in low cholesterol diets increases atherosclerotic lesion associated with the degree of monocyte activation and remodelling of plasma lipoproteins. Our data supports the concept that phenolic-enriched products, out of the original matrix, could be not only non useful but also harmful. Our results suggest that the formulation of possible functional foods should approximate as much as possible the natural environment in which active molecules are found.

Quantification of the plant-derived hallucinogen Salvinorin A in conventional and non-conventional biological fluids by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry after Salvia divinorum smoking.

A gas chromatography method with mass spectrometric detection is described for the determination of Salvinorin A, the main active ingredient of the hallucinogenic mint Salvia divinorum. The method was validated in plasma, urine, saliva and sweat using 17-alpha-methyltestosterone as internal standard. The analytes were extracted from biological matrices with chloroform/isopropanol (9:1, v/v). Chromatography was performed on a 5% phenyl methyl silicone capillary column and analytes were determined in the selected ion monitoring mode. The method was validated over the concentration range 0.015-5 microg/mL plasma, urine and saliva and 0.01-5 microg/patch in the case of sweat. Mean recoveries ranged between 77.1 and 92.7% for Salvinorin A in different biological matrices, with precision and accuracy always better than 15%. The method was applied to the analysis of urine, saliva and sweat from two consumers after smoking 75 mg plant leaves to verify the presence of the active ingredient of S. divinorum in human biological fluids as a biomarker of plant consumption. Salvinorin A was detected in urine (2.4 and 10.9 ng/mL) and saliva (11.1 and 25.0 ng/mL), but not in sweat patches from consumers.