Research progress on natural ß-glucan in intestinal diseases.

ß-Glucan, an essential natural polysaccharide widely distributed in cereals and microorganisms, exhibits extensive biological activities, including immunoregulation, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumor properties, and flora regulation. Recently, increasing evidence has shown that ß-glucan has activities that may be useful for treating intestinal diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and colorectal cancer. The advantages of ß-glucan, which include its multiple roles, safety, abundant sources, good encapsulation capacity, economic development costs, and clinical evidence, indicate that ß-glucan is a promising polysaccharide that could be developed as a health product or medicine for the treatment of intestinal disease. Unfortunately, few reports have summarized the progress of studies investigating natural ß-glucan in intestinal diseases. This review comprehensively summarizes the structure-activity relationship of ß-glucan, its pharmacological mechanism in IBD and colorectal cancer, its absorption and transportation mechanisms, and its application in food, medicine, and drug delivery, which will be beneficial to further understand the role of ß-glucan in intestinal diseases.

Study on malnutrition. III. Biochemical assessment of the dietary treatment and evolution of the illness.

During the course of a malnutrition study, the efficiency of two diets has been followed by clinical observations and biochemical tests. The diets were adapted to the physiological state of 25 patients (16 children, 6 young mothers, 1 adolescent and 2 men) undergoing treatment in a rural hospital at Yasa-Bonga, Zaïre. One group of patients was examined after two weeks of treatment (6 children, 2 mothers), the other group after two months (8 children, 5 adults). In order to study the evolution of the illness, 9 children and 3 young mothers were examined regularly after the return to their villages every 6 months for 2-4 years. The patients responded positively to both diets. After two months of treatment they had clinically recovered, except for the most serious cases. After two weeks of treatment a deficiency in electrolytes, low levels of prealbumin and a net increase in transferrin were noted. After 2 months of treatment the children had regained their normal growth (hydroxyproline index), and most of the biochemical parameters had reached their normal value despite a few deficiencies in electrolytes, phosphorus and magnesium. However, the prealbumin level remained low, particularly amongst children suffering from relapses. In a few cases the activities of cholinesterase (CHE) and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (gamma-GT) remained low, which was taken as a sign of poor response to treatment. Generally, the adults responded more slowly to treatment than the children. Regular examinations carried out on certain patients on their return to the villages permitted 2 groups to be distinguished: the first one was composed of patients recuperating well due to good social conditions; the second group of patients suffered from relapses due to lack of hygiene and of rudimentary knowledge of nutrition, and above all severe social problems. The condition of the liver of all these patients was very important; it could be estimated by the determination of the serum levels of prealbumin and the activities of CHE, gamma-GT and isoenzymes of gamma-GT.

[Nutritional evaluation and use of a nutritional complement in children undergoing periodical hemodialysis]. / Valoración nutricional y uso de un complemento alimenticio en niños en hemodiálisis periódica

Six uremic dhildren in periodic hemodialysis with protein-calorie malnutrition were studied. Three of them were given diet supplementation with a compound constituted by carbohydrates and essential amino acids. Evaluation at ,3 and 6 months with somatometry, rutine laboratory analysis, intravenous glucose tolerance test and plasma amino acid determinations, showed that patients with diet supplementation had a slight increase in height and body weight, improved glucose in tolerance, that was initialy detected, and an abnormal pattern of plasma amino acids not modified during the study. Patients without diet supplementation showed no changes in height, body weight, glucose tolerance and plasma amino acids. These results suggest that diet supplementation with carbohydrates and amino acids is useful to improve nutrition in uremic children on hemodialysis, but it is neccesary to study more patients.