Nutrition and metabolism

Aim: To assess serum Cu/Zn SOD (Superoxide Dismutase) concentration in individuals with clinical depression. Subjects and methods: Serum from 36 individuals diagnosed with clinical depression and 18 healthy controls were tested for Cu/Zn SOD serum concentration using ELISAs. Results: Serum Cu/Zn SOD levels of depressed individuals (both with and without secondary anxiety)...

Editorial by Dr Guillemin, Head of the Neuroinflammation Group, University of New South Wales, Department of Pharmacology, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Tryptophan (Trp) is present in the serum, partly bound to albumine and in the free form. The unbound portion of circulating tryptophan has the property of crossing the hematoencephalic barrier and being converted within the brain into serotonin (5-HT) through the enzymatic processes of hydroxylation and decarboxylation. The serotoninergic system...

In recent years tryptophan metabolism and its rate limiting enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) have attracted increasing attention for their potential to modulate immune responses including the regulation of transplantation tolerance. The focus of this review is to discuss some features of IDO activity which particularly relate to hematopoietic stem cell...

Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) catalyzes the initial and rate-limiting step of tryptophan catabolism in a specific pathway, resulting in a series of extracellular messengers collectively known as kynurenines. IDO has been recognized as an authentic regulator of immunity not only in mammalian pregnancy, but also in infection, autoimmunity, inflammation, allergy, transplantation,...

Current formulations for acute tryptophan (Trp) or tyrosine (Tyr) plus phenylalanine (Phe) depletion and loading cause undesirable decreases in ratios of Trp or Tyr + Phe to competing amino acids (CAA), thus undermining the specificities of these tests. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) cause these unintended decreases, and lowering their content...

The acute tryptophan or tyrosine plus phenylalanine depletion and loading tests are powerful tools for studying the roles of serotonin, dopamine and noradrenaline in normal subjects and those with behavioural disorders. The current amino acid formulations for these tests, however, are associated with undesirable decreases in ratios of tryptophan or...

In the United States, approximately 5% of the population is malnourished or has low body weight, which can adversely affect immune function. Malnutrition is more prevalent in older adults and is often a result of energy imbalance from various causes. Dietary supplementation to promote positive energy balance can reverse malnutrition,...

Conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) are of important nutritional and health benefit to human. Food products of animal origin are their major dietary source and their concentration increases with high concentrate diets fed to animals. To examine the effects of diet supplementation on the expression of genes related to lipid...

Background: Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) has been shown to successfully reduce systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) when evaluated in clinically controlled environments but there is a lack of information regarding the efficacy of the original DASH diet when it is applied in a free-living environment. Purpose:...

Hypercholesterolemic diets are associated with oxidative stress that may contribute to hypercholesterolemia by adversely affecting enzymatically-generated oxysterols involved in cholesterol homeostasis. An experiment was conducted to examine whether the cholesterol-lowering effects of the antioxidants selenium and α-tocopherol were related to hepatic oxysterol concentrations. Four groups of male Syrian hamsters (n...

Aim: To assess serum Cu/Zn SOD (Superoxide Dismutase) concentration in autistic children and evaluate its possible relationship to GI Symptoms. Subjects and Methods: Serum from 50 autistic children (31 with chronic digestive disease (most with ileo-colonic lymphoid nodular hyperplasia (LNH) and inflammation of the colorectum, small bowel and/or stomach) and 19...

Background/Aims: We have previously isolated a novel lysosomal cysteine protease, cathepsin Y, which produces a kinin-potenciating octapeptide from rat plasma. The present study aimed to elucidate the influence of protein-restriction on cathepsin Y mRNA expression in tissues of growing rat. Methods: Weaning rats were fed either 20% casein (normal-protein, NP)...

Background: Bipolar disorder is a lifelong problem with imperfect available treatments. Recent research has shown potential benefit of nutritional treatment for mood symptoms. The goal of the current study was to determine whether adults with bipolar disorder reported treatment benefit from consuming a micronutrient formula. Methods: Self-report data were...

Dawn M Richard1, Michael A Dawes1, Charles W Mathias1, Ashley Acheson2, Nathalie Hill-Kapturczak1 and Donald M Dougherty11Neurobehavioral Research Laboratory and Clinic, Department of Psychiatry. 2Research Imaging Center, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, U.S.A.AbstractAn essential component of the human diet, L-tryptophan is critical in a number of...

Dietary acidity is a likely contributor to the development of osteoporosis. Dietary acidosis in an ovine model has effects on trabecular bone that have been previously shown to mimic human osteoporosis. Effects on cortical bone using this model have not been investigated. The objective of this study was to examine...

E.S. Hackett1, J.M. MacLeay1, J.D. Olson2, S.L. Bouzis1, Steve Jackinsky3 and A.S. Turner1 1Small Ruminant Comparative Orthopaedic Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, U.S.A. 2Independent Consultant, Fort Collins, CO. 3Orthopaedic Bioengineering Research Laboratory, College of Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort...

Kentaro Murakami1, Satoshi Sasaki1, Yoshiko Takahashi2, Hitomi Okubo3, Naoko Hirota4, Akiko Notsu5, Mitsuru Fukui6 and Chigusa Date7 1Department of Social and Preventive Epidemiology, School of Public Health, the University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 2Department of Health and Nutrition, School of Home Economics, Wayo Women’s University, Chiba, Japan. 3Department of...

Jennifer Brady, Amber Farrell, Sharon Wong and Rena Mendelson School of Nutrition and Food, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Abstract Background: Food and beverage marketing has been implicated in the childhood obesity “pandemic.” Prior studies have established the negative impact of television advertising on children’s dietary...

G. Márquez-Ruiz, M.C. García-Martínez and F. Holgado Instituto del Frío (CSIC), José Antonio Novais 10, 28040 Madrid. Abstract This paper is focused on the present state-of-the art of modifications and effects of dietary oxidized lipids during their transit along the gastrointestinal tract. A survey of the literature...

Terje Forslund1, Arvo Koistinen1, Jorma Anttinen2, Bodo Wagner3 and Marja Miettinen1 1Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, 2Department of Pathology, 3Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Central Finland Health Care District Hospital, Jyväskylä, Finland. Abstract We present a patient who had ingested sodium bicarbonate for treatment...

Dexter Canoy Research Fellow in Epidemiology and Public Health, Northwest Institute for Bio-Health Informatics, University of Manchester, Manchester, U.K.