Circulatory Metabolite Ratios as Indicators of Lifestyle Risk Factors Based on a Greek NAFLD Case-Control Study.

An ensemble of confounding factors, such as an unhealthy diet, obesity, physical inactivity, and smoking, have been linked to a lifestyle that increases one's susceptibility to chronic diseases and early mortality. The circulatory metabolome may provide a rational means of pinpointing the advent of metabolite variations that reflect an adherence to a lifestyle and are associated with the occurrence of chronic diseases. Data related to four major modifiable lifestyle factors, including adherence to the Mediterranean diet (estimated on MedDietScore), body mass index (BMI), smoking, and physical activity level (PAL), were used to create the lifestyle risk score (LS). The LS was further categorized into four groups, where a higher score group indicates a less healthy lifestyle. Drawing on this, we analyzed 223 NMR serum spectra, 89 MASLD patients and 134 controls; these were coupled to chemometrics to identify "key" features and understand the biological processes involved in specific lifestyles. The unsupervised analysis verified that lifestyle was the factor influencing the samples' differentiation, while the supervised analysis highlighted metabolic signatures. Τhe metabolic ratios of alanine/formic acid and leucine/formic acid, with AUROC > 0.8, may constitute discriminant indexes of lifestyle. On these grounds, this research contributed to understanding the impact of lifestyle on the circulatory metabolome and highlighted "prudent lifestyle" biomarkers.

Herbal distillates: A new era of grape marc distillates with enriched antioxidant profile.

Grape marc distillates are traditional alcoholic beverages, produced mostly in the Mediterranean countries. The present study proposes the enrichment of a Greek traditional grape marc distillate (tsikoudia) with selected herbs to enhance its natural antioxidants and functional properties. Total phenolic content, the antiradical and antioxidant activities, as well as the phenolic and sugar profiles using NMR and FT-IR spectroscopy were evaluated. The enrichment of distillates with Syzygium aromaticum L., Jasminum officinale L. and Eucalyptus globulus Labill. exhibited the highest total phenolic content as well as the highest antioxidant and antiradical activities, whereas the lowest values were observed with Hippophae rhamnoides L. and Lycium Barbarum Mill. The implementation of NMR and FT-IR spectroscopies attested to the presence of phenolic compounds and of specific carbohydrates in herbal distillates, postulating their migration from selected herbal species to tsikoudia and probably contributing to their organoleptic characteristics. The target of this approach leads to new added-value distillates with enhanced characteristics.