Assessment of Body Composition in Oncologic Patients: Experimental Survey on the Role of Bioimpedentiometric Analysis.

Overall survival of oncologic patients is strongly influenced by the incidence of malnutrition, with subsequent loss of muscle mass until sarcopenia. In this respect, the assessment of body composition has a pivotal role in order to manage the clinical consequences of muscle loss. AIM: This study focuses on the body composition assessment in oncologic patients, following a diet plan in order to detect and contrast neoplastic cachexia. MATERIALS AND METHOD: 35 oncologic patients were enrolled and divided into two groups: 24 responders (R) and 11 non-responders (NR). Anthropometric data were collected and body composition was assessed through bioimpedentiometry. All patients received an individualized normocaloric diet. Energetic content was assigned on the basis of individual basal metabolic rate estimated by BIA. All patients were revaluated by anthropometry and bioimpedentiometry 3 and 6 months thereafter. RESULTS: Comparing the two male groups R and NR after 6 months, the former maintained almost the same confidence interval, unlike the latter whose interval increased, indicating a light worsening both of body composition and of clinical conditions. Furthermore, in the same male responder group, an improvement of the phase angle (PhA), a positive prognostic factor, was found, with an average weight loss between 2,6 - 3 kg of fat mass (FM). Besides, data show how the R female group maintained the confidence interval unlike the NR female group, whose confidence interval remarkably increased, therefore indicating an important alteration of body composition and subsequently a clinical conditions worsening. Finally, comparing the NR male group with the NR female group after 6 months, a remarkable worsening of body composition (marker of tissue decay and damage) could be noticed in the latter group. CONCLUSION: After 6 months, NR patients show worse results (both in the body composition and in the clinical conditions) compared to the responders, with particularly worse results in females, probably because of a genetically determined sex-related smaller muscle cells and inferior muscular strength. A multidimensional assessment of oncologic patient is necessary, with a special attention to nutritional evaluation and body composition monitoring, in order to avoid malnutrition and subsequent further clinical worsening.

Impact of chocolate on the cardiovascular health.

The antioxidants such as polyphenols, especially flavonols, present in large quantitites in cocoa, cause vasodilation, modulate inflammatory markers and cardiovascular health, and possess a range of protective cardiovascular effects. On the other hand, overconsumption of chocolate can lead to tachyarrhythmias, supraventricular tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation due to its caffeine content. This review describes both the cardioprotective and adverse effects of chocolate and its constituents.

Novel Therapeutic Strategies Against Cancer: Marine-derived Drugs May Be the Answer?

Marine ecosystem represents a wide and untapped reservoir of biologically active metabolites. Most of the sponges, seaweeds, crustaceans, fish species and their associated microorganisms have evolved chemical means in order to defend themselves against predation and to survive in the complex marine environment. Such chemical and biological adaptation produced many bioactive substances with beneficial effects on human health, including potential anticancer agents. With further exploration of sea and ocean environment, several marine bioactives have been identified with promising anticancer activity. More than one hundred novel bioactive compounds with antitumor activity and their synthetic derivative substances displayed in vitro cytotoxic property on neoplastic cell lines and are currently gaining great attention for further evaluations and in vivo applications. This review highlights novel marine molecules and compounds which have been able to inhibit different cancer species in the recent years and aims to describe research on new natural antineoplastic agents obtained from sea world.

Resveratrol and anti-atherogenic effects.

The role of inflammation and oxidative stress in atherosclerosis development has been increasingly well recognized over the past decade. Inflammation has a significant role at all stages of atherosclerosis, including initiation, progression and plaque formation. Resveratrol is a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound found in grape products, berry fruits and red wine. Its ability to behave therapeutically as a component of red wine has attracted wide attention. Accumulating evidence suggests that it is a highly pleiotropic molecule that modulates numerous targets and molecular functions. Epidemiological studies indicate that the Mediterranean diet, rich in resveratrol, is associated with a reduced risk of atherosclerosis. Resveratrol is believed to decrease circulating low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, reduce cardiovascular disease risk; it reduces lipid peroxidation, platelet aggregation and oxidative stress. Resveratrol is considered a safe compound, since no significant toxic effects have been demonstrated after administration of a broad range of concentrations, and an effective anti-atherogenic agent.

Marine bioactives and potential application in sports.

An enriched diet with antioxidants, such as vitamin E, vitamin C, ß-carotene and phenolic compounds, has always been suggested to improve oxidative stress, preventing related diseases. In this respect, marine natural product (MNP), such as COX inhibitors, marine steroids, molecules interfering with factors involved in the modulation of gene expression (such as NF-κB), macrolides, many antioxidant agents, thermogenic substances and even substances that could help the immune system and that result in the protection of cartilage, have been recently gaining attention. The marine world represents a reserve of bioactive ingredients, with considerable potential as functional food. Substances, such as chitin, chitosan, n-3 oils, carotenoids, vitamins, minerals and bioactive peptides, can provide several health benefits, such as the reduction of cardiovascular diseases, anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic activities. In addition, new marine bioactive substances with potential anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and thermogenic capacity may provide health benefits and performance improvement, especially in those who practice physical activity, because of their increased free radical and Reacting Oxygen Species (ROS) production during exercise, and, particularly, in athletes. The aim of this review is to examine the potential pharmacological properties and application of many marine bioactive substances in sports.

Marine bioactives: pharmacological properties and potential applications against inflammatory diseases.

Inflammation is a hot topic in medical research, because it plays a key role in inflammatory diseases: rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other forms of arthritis, diabetes, heart diseases, irritable bowel syndrome, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, allergies, asthma, even cancer and many others. Over the past few decades, it was realized that the process of inflammation is virtually the same in different disorders, and a better understanding of inflammation may lead to better treatments for numerous diseases. Inflammation is the activation of the immune system in response to infection, irritation, or injury, with an influx of white blood cells, redness, heat, swelling, pain, and dysfunction of the organs involved. Although the pathophysiological basis of these conditions is not yet fully understood, reactive oxygen species (ROS) have often been implicated in their pathogenesis. In fact, in inflammatory diseases the antioxidant defense system is compromised, as evidenced by increased markers of oxidative stress, and decreased levels of protective antioxidant enzymes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). An enriched diet containing antioxidants, such as vitamin E, vitamin C, ß-carotene and phenolic substances, has been suggested to improve symptoms by reducing disease-related oxidative stress. In this respect, the marine world represents a largely untapped reserve of bioactive ingredients, and considerable potential exists for exploitation of these bioactives as functional food ingredients. Substances such as n-3 oils, carotenoids, vitamins, minerals and peptides provide a myriad of health benefits, including reduction of cardiovascular diseases, anticarcinogenic and anti-inflammatory activities. New marine bioactives are recently gaining attention, since they could be helpful in combating chronic inflammatory degenerative conditions. The aim of this review is to examine the published studies concerning the potential pharmacological properties and application of many marine bioactives against inflammatory diseases.

Fucoxantin: a treasure from the sea.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 2.3 billion people will be overweight and 700 million obese in 2015. The reasons for this disastrous trend are attributed to the global tendency toward the reduced magnitude of exercise and physical activity and the increased dietary intake of fats, sugars and calories with reduced amount of vitamins and minerals. To prevent life-style-related diseases, like Metabolic Syndrome (MS), researchers' attention is increasingly focusing on some of the so called "functional foods" which may be useful for their prevention and treatment. One of these functional ingredients is fucoxanthin (FX), a characteristic carotenoid present in edible brown seaweeds, such as Undaria pinnatifida (Wakame), Hijikia fusiformis (Hijiki), Laminaria japonica (Ma-Kombu) and Sargassum fulvellum. The increasing popularity of this molecule is certainly due to its anti-obesity effect, primarily detected by murine studies. These works revealed FX mediated induction of uncoupling protein-1 (UCP-1) in abdominal white adipose tissue (WAT) mitochondria, leading to the oxidation of fatty acids and heat production in WAT. Beyond this important role, in recent studies FX has shown a great antioxidant activity, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic and anti-photoaging properties. The aim of this review is to highlight the main effects of FX on human health.