Effect of green-lipped mussel (Perna canaliculus) supplementation on faecal microbiota, body composition and iron status markers in overweight and obese postmenopausal women: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

The present study aimed to determine the effect of whole meat GSM powder on gut microbiota abundance, body composition and iron status markers in healthy overweight or obese postmenopausal women. This was a 3-months trial involving forty-nine healthy postmenopausal women with body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 35 kg/m2 who were randomly assigned to receive 3 g/d of either GSM powder (n 25) or placebo (n 24). The gut microbe abundance, serum iron status markers and body composition were measured at the baseline and the end of the study. The between-group comparison at the baseline showed a lower abundance of Bacteroides and Clostridium XIVa in the GSM group compared with the placebo (P = 0⋅04). At the baseline, the body fat (BF)% and gynoid fat% were higher in the GSM group compared with the placebo (P < 0⋅05). No significant changes were found in any of the outcome measures, except for ferritin levels that showed a significant reduction over time (time effect P = 0⋅01). Some trend was observed in bacteria including Bacteroides and Bifidobacterium which tended to increase in the GSM group while their abundance decreased or remained at their baseline level in the control group. Supplementation with GSM powder did not result in any significant changes in gut microbe abundance, body composition and iron markers compared with placebo. However, some commensal bacteria such as Bacteroides and Bifidobacteria tended to increase following supplementation with GSM powder. Overall, these findings can expand the knowledge surrounding the effects of whole GSM powder on these outcome measures in healthy postmenopausal women.

Green-lipped (greenshell™) mussel (Perna canaliculus) extract supplementation in treatment of osteoarthritis: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: Intervention studies using New Zealand green-lipped or greenshell™ mussel (GSM) (Perna canaliculus) extract in osteoarthritis (OA) patients have shown effective pain relief. This systematic review summarises the efficacy of GSM extracts in the treatment of OA. METHODS: A literature search of the three databases EMBASE, MEDLINE, and Scopus was performed to identify relevant articles published up to March 2020. Inclusion criteria were clinical trials published in English measuring the effect of supplementation of whole or a lipid extract from GSM on pain and mobility outcomes in OA patients. RESULTS: A total of nine clinical trials were included in systematic review, from which five studies were considered appropriate for inclusion in a forest plot. Pooled results showed that GSM extracts (lipid extract or whole powder) provide moderate and clinically significant treatment effects on a visual analogue scale (VAS) pain score (effect size: - 0.46; 95% CI - 0.82 to - 0.10; p = 0.01). The whole GSM extract improved gastrointestinal symptoms in OA patients taking anti-inflammatory medications. The GSM extract was considered to be generally well tolerated in most of the studies. CONCLUSION: The overall analysis showed that GSM provided moderate and clinically meaningful treatment effects on OA pain. However, the current evidence is limited by the number and quality of studies, and further larger and high-quality studies are needed to confirm the effectiveness and to identify the optimal GSM format. Nevertheless, it is worth considering using GSM extracts especially for patients seeking alternative pain relief treatments with fewer side effects compared to conventional treatment.

Effects of vitamin D supplementation on advanced glycation end products signaling pathway in T2DM patients: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double blind clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Several researches have recommended vitamin D possible health benefits on diabetic complications development, but a few number of studies have been accomplished on the molecular and cellular mechanisms. Certain cellular pathways modification and also some transcription factors activation may protect cells from hyperglycemia condition induced damages. This study purpose was to determine the vitamin D supplementation effect on some key factors [advanced glycation end products (AGEs) signaling pathway] that were involved in the diabetic complications occurrence and progression for type-2 diabetes participants. METHODOLOGY: 48 type-2 diabetic patients (T2DM) randomly divided into two groups (n = 24 per group), receiving: 100-µg vitamin D or placebo for 3 months. At this study beginning and the end, the receptor expression for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) and glyoxalase I (GLO1) enzyme from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and AGEs and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) serum levels were measured by the use of real-time PCR and ELISA methods, respectively. RESULTS: This study results demonstrated that vitamin D supplementation could down-regulate RAGE mRNA [fold change = 0.72 in vitamin D vs. 0.95 in placebo) P = 0.001)]. In addition, no significant changes were observed for GLO1 enzyme expression (P = 0.06). This study results also indicated that vitamin D serum level significantly increased in vitamin D group (P < 0.001). Moreover, AGES and TNF-α serum levels significantly reduced in vitamin D group, but they were remained unchanged in the placebo group. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, vascular complications are more frequent in diabetic patients, and vitamin D treatment may prevent or delay the complications onset in these patients by AGEs serum level and RAGE gene expression reducing.Trial registration NCT03008057. Registered December 2016.

Effects of vitamin D supplementation on circulatory YKL-40 and MCP-1 biomarkers associated with vascular diabetic complications: A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial.

AIM: Diabetic patients predispose to vascular diseases such as nephropathy, and retinopathy. Poor adherence to medical treatment and dietary recommendations in uncontrolled diabetes leads to vascular damages. Vitamin D has been extensively studied and found to be protective against diabetes mellitus. YKL-40 and Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) are considered to exert crucial role in diabetes and its complications. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate effects of vitamin D supplementation on serum levels of YKL-40 and MCP-1 involved in the development of diabetic complications. METHODS: For 12 weeks, 48 type 2 diabetic patients enrolled in the trial and randomly were divided into two groups (n = 24 per group), receiving one of the following: 100 µg (4000 IU) vitamin D or placebo. Before and after intervention, serumYKL-40, MCP-1, insulin, IL-6, TNF-α, 25- (OH) vitamin D and HbA1c were measured. RESULTS: Our results revealed that serum levels of 25 (OH) vitamin D significantly increased in vitamin D group (p < 0.001). Vitamin D supplementation also significantly reduced serum YKL-40 levels (-22.7 vs. -2.4 ng/ml; (p-value = 0.003)). There was a significant decline in MCP-1 concentration in intervention group at the end of the study (-45.7 vs. -0.9 pg/ml; (p = 0.001)). Furthermore, there was a significant decrease in IL-6, fasting insulin and HOMA-IR in intervention group after 3 months supplementation. CONCLUSIONS: Daily vitamin D supplementation effectively reduced circulatory YKL-40 and MCP-1 levels in patients with type-2 diabetes and vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D might contribute in reducing diabetic complications via modulating YKL-40 and MCP-1 signaling pathways.

Effects of vitamin D supplementation on depressive symptoms in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients: Randomized placebo-controlled double-blind clinical trial.

AIM: Diabetes increases the odds of depression and depression is often associated with poor glycemic control and complications of diabetes. Vitamin D is also believed to improve glycemic control and ameliorate depressive symptoms. Therefore, we examined effects of vitamin D monotherapy (without antidepressant drugs) on depressive symptoms in Type 2 diabetic patients with mild to moderate depressive symptoms. METHODS: We conducted 12 weeks, placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized trial on 68 subjects with T2DM and mild to moderate depressive symptoms. Subjects received 100 µg (4000 IU) vitamin D (n = 32) or placebo (n = 34) daily. Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II-PERSIAN) was applied for assessment of the severity of depression. Depression scores and metabolic profiles were measured at the beginning and end of trail. RESULTS: after 3 months of vitamin D supplementation, mean values of 25(OH) D increased from 15.5 ±â€¯8.8 to 32.2 ±â€¯8.9 ng/ml (p-value <0.001) in the vitamin D group. Moreover, BDI-II scores decreased from 15.2 ±â€¯9.6 to 9.8 ±â€¯7.2 (p-value <0.001) in the vitamin D group and 15.5 ±â€¯11.2 to 13.7 ±â€¯11.5 (p-value = 0.03) in placebo group. This decrease in BDI-II scores were significant (27.6% vs 10.8%) compared with placebo (p-value = 0.02). In term of metabolic profiles, mean change in level of Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), insulin and triglycerides (TG) were significantly higher in response to the treatment with vitamin D compared to placebo (p-value <0.02). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, supplementation of vitamin D in T2DM patients may protect these patients against the onset of major depressive disorder (MDD), with noticeable favorable effects on measures of metabolic profiles. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT03008057.

Evaluation of serum 25-Hydroxy vitamin D levels in children with autism Spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D plays an important role in etiology of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). We aimed to evaluate the serum 25 - hydroxyl vitamin D level among children with ASDs in Ahvaz city, Iran. METHODS: It was a cross-sectional study which had conducted on 62 subjects in two groups: a case group (n = 31) consisted of ASD children who study in especial schools; and a control group (n = 31) of healthy children who were selected by simple random sampling from regular schools in Ahvaz city, Iran during 2016. Maching between two groups has done regarding Socioeconomic status, type and amount of food intake, place of living and age. The levels of serum 25 - hydroxyl vitamin D were assessed in early morning means fasted state and also measured using ELISA method. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. The significant level was considered < 0.05. RESULTS: In ASD children, the average serum 25-hydroxyvitamine D level was 9.03 ± 4.14 ng/mg. In ASD group, 96.8% (30 subjects) had vitamin D deficiency. In healthy children group, average serum 25-hydroxyvitamine D level was 15.25 ± 7.89 ng/mg. Average serum 25-hydroxyvitamine D level in intervention group was significantly lower than the control group (P > 0.001). Although the parents of patients in control group reported longer exposure to sun (27.42 m per day against 33.06 m per day), no significant difference was observed between these groups in terms of exposure to sun (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A significant difference was observed between serum 25-hydroxyvitamine D levels between the healthy and ASD children. It is recommended to use vitamin D supplement in children with ASDs under medical care.

Higher dietary total antioxidant capacity is inversely related to prediabetes: A case-control study.

OBJECTIVES: Dietary total antioxidant capacity (DTAC) has been proposed as a tool for assessing the intake of antioxidants. The relationship between DTAC and blood glucose levels has been investigated mostly in healthy people. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between DTAC and prediabetes morbidity in a case-control study. METHODS: We examined 300 individuals with and without prediabetes (n = 150/group) who attended a Diabetes Screening Center in Shahreza, Iran. The anthropometric measures, physical activity, and blood glucose levels of all participants were measured. Food intake over the previous year was determined using a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire, and sex-specific, energy-adjusted DTAC was calculated using the U.S. Department of Agriculture's database. Logistic reg/ression was used to model the relationship between DTAC and prediabetes morbidity. RESULTS: The mean DTAC was significantly lower in individuals with prediabetes than in the control group (P < 0.001). Across increasing DTAC quartiles, the participants had lower fasting blood glucose and 2-h postchallenge plasma glucose (Ptrend < 0.02). After adjustment for body mass index; physical activity; education; dietary intake of fiber, fat, energy, and coffee; participants in the fourth quartile of DTAC were less likely to experience prediabetes compared with those in the first quartile (odds ratio, 0.18; 95% confidence interval, 0.07-0.49). CONCLUSION: The DTAC score appears useful when assessing the antioxidant capacity of diet and to better understand the relationship between diet and prediabetes morbidity. Future studies are needed to confirm the findings from the present study in other populations.