Inflammaging in Endemic Areas for Infectious Diseases.

Immunosenescence is marked by a systemic process named inflammaging along with a series of defects in the immunological activity that results in poor responses to infectious agents and to vaccination. Inflammaging, a state of low-grade chronic inflammation, usually leads to chronic inflammatory diseases and frailty in the elderly. However, some elderly escape from frailty and reach advanced age free of the consequences of inflammaging. This process has been called immunological remodeling, and it is the hallmark of healthy aging as described in the studies of centenarians in Italy. The biological markers of healthy aging are still a matter of debate, and the studies on the topic have focused on inflammatory versus remodeling processes and molecules. The sub-clinical inflammatory status associated with aging might be a deleterious event for populations living in countries where chronic infectious diseases are not prevalent. Nevertheless, in other parts of the world where they are, two possibilities may occur. Inflammatory responses may have a protective effect against these infectious agents. At the same time, the long-term consequences of protective immune responses during chronic infections may result in accelerated immunosenescence in these individuals. Therefore, the biological markers of healthy aging can vary according to environmental, cultural, and geographical settings that reflect worldwide, and in a non-biased, non-westernized perspective, the changes that we experience regarding our contacts with microorganisms and the outcomes of such contacts.

Body fat percentage in adolescents with phenylketonuria and associated factors.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the percentage of body fat (% BF) in adolescents with PKU and to relate it to protein consumption, physical activity level, body mass index (BMI), sexual maturity and metabolic control. METHOD: This is a cross-sectional study conducted with 94 adolescents between 10 and 20 years of age, with early diagnosis and continuous treatment. Bioimpedance, weight measurements, height and BMI calculation were performed. Questionnaires were applied to quantify protein ingestion and establish the level of physical activity. Sexual maturity was assessed using the Tanner criteria. The annual mean of serum phenylalanine was used as a control parameter of the disease. A multivariate linear regression analysis was performed. RESULTS: Overweight, obesity, the female sex and the percentage of protein consumption explain 94.1% of the % BF of the patients (p < .05). The overweight prevalence was 19.1%. It was verified that 96.7% of the sample were sedentary. Only 50 (53.2%) of the adolescents had good treatment compliance, and no relationship was found between this variable and the % BF (p = .706). CONCLUSIONS: Being female and presenting high BMI values are important factors associated with % BF in phenylketonuric adolescents. Disease control and protein consumption do not seem to influence the body composition.