Double blind randomized clinical trial controlled by placebo with an alphalinoleic acid and prebiotic enriched cookie on risk cardiovascular factor in obese patients / Ensayo clínico aletorizado doble ciego controlado con placebo con una galleta enriquecida en ácido alfa linoleico y prebióticos en el patrón de riesgo cardiovascular de pacientes obesos

Introduction: Inulin and FOS are prebiotics with potential benefit in cardiovascular risk factors. Alphalinolenic acid (ALA) is the metabolic precursor of the long chain n-3 fatty acid eicosapentaenoic acid (20: 5n-3),this fatty acid has anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of our study was to evaluate the response of the cardiovascular risk profile in obese patients after inclusion in the diet of an ALA, FOS and inulin enriched-cookie. Material and methods: 36 patients were randomized in both branches: group I (inulin, FOS and ALA enriched cookie) Gullon SL® and group II (control cookie). Previous and after 1 month of the treatment, a nutritional and biochemical study was realized. Results: 15 patients finished the procotol in each group. In group I, a significantly increase in soluble fiber (2.3 ±0.8 g/day vs 7.7 ± 0.8 g/day: p < 0.05) and ALA (0.6 ± 0.5g/day vs 3.8 ± 0.5 g/day; p < 0.05) intakes was detected. In this group a significant decrease of total cholesterol (238.1± 45.3 mg/dl vs 210.5 ± 38.1 mg/dl: p < 0.05), LDL cholesterol(153.6 ± 23.2 mg/dl vs 127.1 ± 27.9 mg/dl: p < 0.05)and C reactive protein (6.6 ± 1.4 mg/dl vs 4.4+7-1.8 mg/dl:p < 0.05) was reached in males. Anthropometric parameters did not change in both groups. The increase in soluble fiber and ALA dietary intakes did not produce any gastrointestinal adverse effect. Conclusion: The increase of 2 grams per day of inulin,3.1 grams per day of FOS and 3.2 grams per day of alphalinolenic (ALA) dietary intakes from an enriched-cookie, improved total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and C reactive protein levels in obese males. As far as we know, this is the first study that has evaluated the effect on risk factors of an ALA enriched cookies (AU)

Introducción: La inulina y los FOS son prebióticos con potenciales efectos beneficiosos a nivel cardiovascular. El acido alfa linolénico (ALA) es el precursor del ácido eicosapentaenoico (20: 5n-3), presentando propiedades antinflamatorias. El objetivo de nuestro trabajo es evaluar la respuesta del perfil de riesgo cardiovascular en pacientes obesos tras la inclusión en la dieta de una galleta enriquecida en inulina, FOS y ALA. Material y métodos: Un total de 36 pacientes fueron randomizados a una de las siguientes ramas: galleta I(enriquecida con inulina, FOS y ALA) y galleta II (galleta control) (Gullón SL). Cada paciente recibió un total de 2 galletas al día (70 gramos de producto). Antes de iniciar el tratamiento y al mes, se realizó una valoración nutricional y analítica. Resultados: Finalizaron el protocolo un total de 15 pacientes en cada grupo. En el grupo I se produjo un aumento significativo en la ingesta de fibra soluble (2,3 ±0,8 g/día vs 7,7 ± 0,8 g/día: p < 0,05) (inulina y FOS), así como ALA (0,6 ± 0,5 g/día vs 3,8 ± 0,5 g/día; p < 0,05). Se detectó en los pacientes varones que recibieron las galletas enriquecidas una disminución significativa de los niveles de colesterol total (238,1 ± 45,3 mg/dl vs 210,5 ±38,1 mg/dl: p < 0,05), LDL colesterol (153,6 ± 23,2 mg/dlvs 127,1 ± 27,9 mg/dl: p < 0,05) y proteína C reactiva (6,6 ±1,4 mg/dl vs 4,4+7-1,8 mg/dl: p < 0,05). No existieron diferencias estadísticamente significativas en las variables antropométricas. El aumento de la ingesta dietética de fibra soluble y ALA en los pacientes de grupo I no supuso ningún efecto secundario a nivel gastrointestinal. Conclusión: El aumento en la ingesta con una galleta enriquecida de 2 gramos al día de inulina, 3,1 gramos de FOS y 3,2 gramos de ALA, mejora en los pacientes obesos varones los niveles de colesterol total, LDL colesterol y proteína C reactiva (AU)

Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on cardiovascular risk factors in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertriglyceridemia: an open study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Epidemiological and interventional studies suggest that a high dietary intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids may confer a protective effect against atherosclerotic disease and reduce serum triglycerides levels. The aim of our study was to investigate the effectivity on triglyceride levels and inflammatory markers of a concentrated of n-3 fatty acids in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertriglyceridaemia. SUBJECTS: A total of 30 patients (16 males and 14 females) with diabetes mellitus type 2 and hypertriglyceridemia (> 200 mg/dl) were included in the study. Patients received two capsules of eicosapentaenoic 465 mg and docosahexanoic 375 mg daily for 12 weeks. RESULTS: Triglycerides levels and non HDL-cholesterol decreased (326 +/- 113.5 vs. 216.4 +/- 57 mg/dl; p < 0.05) and (103.87 +/- 44 vs. 89.6 +/- 14 mg/dl; p < 0.05), respectively. HDL-cholesterol levels increased (39.6 +/- 10.7 vs. 46.4 +/- 8.7 mg/dl; p < 0.05). C reactive protein decreased (5.98 +/- 3.9 vs. 3.9 +/- 1.6 mg/dl; p < 0.05) and TNF-alpha levels decreased (16.24 +/- 5.5 vs. 13.3 +/- 5.8 pg/dl; p < 0.05), without significant changes in IL-6 levels. In conclusion, an n-3 polyunsaturated intervention improved lipid profile and inflammatory markers in patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 and hypertriglyceridaemia.

A propósito de un caso de polidipsia e intoxicación hídrica en un paciente con esquizofrenia / A case of polydipsia and hydric intoxication in a patient with schizophrenia

Se comenta el caso de un varón de 50 años de edad, diagnosticado de esquizofrenia crónica que desarrolla una intensa conducta potómana que motiva ingreso en una unidad de media cerrada. Se ensayan diversos tratamientos, cuyos resultados se discuten en el presente trabajo. Los tratamientos fueron: olanzapina y propranolol; olanzapina y naltrexona y finalmente clozapina y tratamiento conductal con buenos resultados sólo en el último intento. Para determinar la eficacia del tratamiento se utilizó el índice de variación de peso diario (AU)

The mechanism of inhibition of ryanodine receptor channels by imperatoxin I, a heterodimeric protein from the scorpion Pandinus imperator.

We present an in-depth analysis of the structural and functional properties of Imperatoxin I (IpTxi), an approximately 15-kDa protein from the venom of the scorpion Pandinus imperator that inhibits Ca2+ release channel/ryanodine receptor (RyR) activity (Valdivia, H. H., Kirby, M. S., Lederer, W. J., and Coronado, R. (1992) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 89, 12185-12189). A cDNA library was prepared from the venomous glands of this scorpion and used to clone the gene encoding IpTxi. From a single continuous messenger RNA, the information coding for the toxin is translated into two mature polypeptide subunits after elimination of a basic pentapeptide. The IpTxi dimer consists of a large subunit (104-amino acid residues) with phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity covalently linked by a disulfide bond to a smaller (27 amino acid residues), structurally unrelated subunit. Thus, IpTxi is a heterodimeric protein with lipolytic action, a property that is only shared with beta-bungarotoxins, a group of neurotoxins from snake venoms. The enzymatic subunit of IpTxi is highly homologous to PLA2 from bee (Apis mellifera) and lizard (Heloderma horridum) venoms. The small subunit has no significant similarity to any other known peptide, including members of the Kunitz protease inhibitors superfamily that target the lipolytic effect of beta-bungarotoxins. A synthetic peptide with amino acid sequence identical to that of the small subunit failed to inhibit RyR. On the other hand, treatment of IpTxi with p-bromophenacylbromide, a specific inhibitor of PLA2 activity, greatly reduced the capacity of IpTxi to inhibit RyRs. These results suggested that a lipid product of PLA2 activity, more than a direct IpTxi-RyR interaction, was responsible for RyR inhibition.

Accumulation of cytosolic glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase RNA under biological stress conditions and elicitor treatments in potato.

Plants respond to pathogen infection and environmental stress by regulating the coordinate expression of many stress-related genes. In plants, the expression of the glycolytic enzyme glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) is induced under environmental stress. This work was aimed at investigating whither the expression pattern of cytosolic GAPDH is also modulated upon infection of potato plants (Solanum tuberosum L.) with the late blight fungal agent Phytophthora infestans. Northern blot analysis showed the accumulation of the GAPDH gene transcripts in leaves and stems of inoculated potato plants. When tuber discs were treated with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), an elicitor found in P. infestans, GAPDH gene transcripts level increased. The increase was parallel to that of the hydroxymethyl glutharyl coenzyme A reductase (HMGR), an enzyme involved in pathogen defense reactions. Glucans obtained from P. infestans cell wall acts synergistically with EPA on GAPDH and HMGR gene induction. Salicylic acid, an endogenous signal for inducing systemic acquired resistance, was also effective in stimulating the GAPDH transcript accumulation in potato leaves. These experiments suggest that related multi-component factors, which are part of both primary and secondary metabolism, are probably regulated by similar signal transduction pathways when they are induced under biotic or abiotic stress conditions.

Increased formation and keeping of ribosomes during dietary recovery of mouse kidney.

In the kidney of 5-day protein-depleted mice there is a decrease of 23% in the rRNA mass. When these animals are fed with a complete diet, rRNA content is restored to its normal value after 24 h of refeeding. The mechanisms that underlie this phenomenon were studied. It was found that the activity of rRNA polymerase I in the nuclei of kidneys from refed mice showed an increase of about twofold compared with the activity in normal and protein-depleted nuclei. The in vivo incorporation of a large dose (nontrace) of [14C]orotic acid into rRNA was also twofold enhanced in kidneys from refed mice. Ribosome degradation (measured by the disappearance of radioactivity from either ribosomal proteins or rRNA previously labeled by the injection of NaH14CO3 and [14C]orotic acid to the mice, respectively) stopped during the 1st day after refeeding. The estimation of the difference between the rRNA synthesis rate and the net rRNA increase also demonstrated a decrease in the rRNA degradation rate in refed mice.

[Impact of alcohol consumption on the mineral composition of the body in the rat]. / Algunas repercusiones del consumo de etanol sobre la composición corporal de minerales en la rata.

The influence of consumption of increasing ethanol solutions of 5, 7.5 and 10%/99.5% (v/v), on total body mineral composition, but particularly the ethanol effect on the contents of Ca, P, Mg, Zn, Na and K, for eight weeks was studied in the adult rat. Both females and males voluntarily lower their liquid intake when daily ethanol ingestion is about 1.4 and 1.7 g, respectively. These ethyl ingestions introduce some modifications in male body composition, but not in females, with an increase in the relative water content and a decrease of the carcass dry substance. The latter would be the main reason for the decrease in male body content of Ca, P, Zn, Mg and K, at least from the 7.5% v/v solution. Ca, P and Zn seem to be the most modified elements. Likewise, there are negative influences regarding Na, but they are not clearly evidenced until ethanol consumption reaches 1.9 g per day. Female body weight did not undergo any change, under any tested experimental conditions or their body ashes suffer any deterioration.