Unique trans-kingdom microbiome structural and functional signatures predict cognitive decline in older adults.

The prevalence of age-related cognitive disorders/dementia is increasing, and effective prevention and treatment interventions are lacking due to an incomplete understanding of aging neuropathophysiology. Emerging evidence suggests that abnormalities in gut microbiome are linked with age-related cognitive decline and getting acceptance as one of the pillars of the Geroscience hypothesis. However, the potential clinical importance of gut microbiome abnormalities in predicting the risk of cognitive decline in older adults is unclear. Till now the majority of clinical studies were done using 16S rRNA sequencing which only accounts for analyzing bacterial abundance, while lacking an understanding of other crucial microbial kingdoms, such as viruses, fungi, archaea, and the functional profiling of the microbiome community. Utilizing data and samples of older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI; n = 23) and cognitively healthy controls (n = 25). Our whole-genome metagenomic sequencing revealed that the gut of older adults with MCI harbors a less diverse microbiome with a specific increase in total viruses and a decrease in bacterial abundance compared with controls. The virome, bacteriome, and microbial metabolic signatures were significantly distinct in subjects with MCI versus controls. Selected bacteriome signatures show high predictive potential of cognitive dysfunction than virome signatures while combining virome and metabolic signatures with bacteriome boosts the prediction power. Altogether, the results from our pilot study indicate that trans-kingdom microbiome signatures are significantly distinct in MCI gut compared with controls and may have utility for predicting the risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia- debilitating public health problems in older adults.

Practical School Nutrition Program May Reduce Food Neophobia.

The study's purpose was to evaluate an intervention to reduce fruit and vegetable food neophobia and influence attitudes and behaviors among children using a four-month, non-experimental, before-and-after intervention. Participants were children aged 5-11 years in an intervention school (IS) and a control school (CS). Children were offered fruit or vegetable samples weekly utilizing school-specific psychosocial and educational practices to encourage participation. The outcomes of interest included attitudes measured using a written survey-based food neophobia scale (FNS), behavioral observations, and an oral survey. The post-intervention IS FNS score was significantly lower compared to pre-intervention (p = 0.04). Repeated-measures ANOVA revealed a statistically significant overall effect of time (p = 0.006). School type-time interaction was not significant (p = 0.57). Pre-intervention observational data showed the proportions finishing and taking another fruit and vegetable sample were higher in the CS (p < 0.001 for both). Post-intervention, the proportions taking the vegetable (p = 0.007) and the fruit (p < 0.001) were higher in the IS. The percentage tasting the vegetable was higher in the CS (p = 0.009). Offering samples of produce in school lunchrooms may reduce food neophobia. This intervention is an inexpensive program that volunteers can quickly implement.

Anthropometrics to Identify Overweight Children at Most Risk for the Development of Cardiometabolic Disease.

BACKGROUND: Sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) is a novel anthropometric that correlates more strongly with visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and cardiometabolic disease risk in adults compared with body mass index (BMI). However, little research has evaluated this measurement in children. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate SAD as a measure of cardiometabolic risk compared with other anthropometrics in overweight/obese children. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional subset analysis of 8- to 12-year-old overweight/ obese children. SAD was compared to BMI, waist circumference (WC), BMI z-score, and percent body fat to determine which measurement was most closely associated with cardiometabolic risk factors. A total cardiometabolic risk score comprising all biochemical markers and blood pressure was also compared to these same anthropometrics. RESULTS: Overweight/obese children (n = 145, mean age 10 ± 1.4 years, mean BMI percentile 97.9 ± 0.02) were included in the analysis. SAD correlated with the greatest number of biochemical markers/blood pressure values including triglycerides (r = .18, P = .03), HgbA1c (r = .21, P = .01), and systolic blood pressure (r = .38, P < .0001). SAD was more strongly correlated to total risk score (r = .25, P = .002) than WC (r = .22, P = .006), BMI (r = .17, P = .04), BMI-z (r = .18, P = .03), and percent body fat (r = .18, P = .03). CONCLUSION: This is the first study to evaluate SAD in overweight/obese American children as a marker of cardiometabolic disease risk. The results suggest a slightly stronger correlation between SAD and cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight/obese children; however, all correlations were weak. As this was a pilot study, additional research is needed prior to recommending the use of this measurement in clinical practice.