Current Issue : January - March Volume : 2018 Issue Number : 1 Articles : 5 Articles
Coronary artery disease (CAD) is responsible for more than 7 million deaths worldwide.\nIn the early stages of the development of atherosclerotic plaques, cardiovascular risk factors stimulate\nvascular endothelial cells, initiating an inflammatory process, fundamental in the pathogenesis of\nCAD. The inclusion of potentially cardioprotective foods, such as olive oil, to the diet, may aid\nin the control of these risk factors, and in the reduction of cytokines and inflammatory markers.\nThe present review aims to address the interaction between phenolic compounds present in olive\noil, and inflammation, in the prevention and treatment of CAD. In vitro and in vivo studies\nsuggest that phenolic compounds, such as hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol, and their secoiridoid derivatives,\nmay reduce the expression of adhesion molecules and consequent migration of immune cells, modify\nthe signaling cascade and the transcription network (blocking the signal and expression of the\nnuclear factor kappa B), inhibit the action of enzymes responsible for the production of eicosanoids,\nand consequently, decrease circulating levels of inflammatory markers. Daily consumption of olive\noil seems to modulate cytokines and inflammatory markers related to CAD in individuals at risk for\ncardiovascular diseases. However, clinical studies that have evaluated the effects of olive oil and its\nphenolic compounds on individuals with CAD are still scarce....
Background: Plant essential oils and phenolic compounds are widely used for their medicinal properties. Thus, the\naim of this study is to evaluate the nutritional values, the chemical composition, antioxidant activity and anti-hemolytic\neffects of Pittosporum tobira seeds.\nMethods: The aroma compounds were isolated using two methods (Headspace-solid phase microextraction\n(HS-SPME) and hydrodistillation (HD)) and analyzed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry\n(GC-MS). Bioactive phenolic compounds were identified by mean of high-performance liquid chromatography\n(HPLC-DAD). Reducing power, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) scavenging and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)\nradical scavenging assays were used to investigate antioxidant activity. Anti-hemolytic activity was evaluated\nusing H2O2-induced hemolysis of red blood cells (RBC).\nResults: Oxygenated sesquiterpenes, sesquiterpene hydrocarbons and oxygenated monoterpenes were the\nmost volatile fractions identified by HD and HS-SPME coupled to GC-MS but their quality and amount were\nquite different according to the extraction methodology. The main phenolic compounds identified by HPLC\nwere caffeic acid, followed by cinnamic acid and gallic acid. P. tobira seeds essential oils showed significant\nantioxidant activity in DPPH (IC50 value = 1.5 mg/mL), H2O2 scavenging assay (IC50 value = 159.43 �¼g/mL)\nand reducing power test (IC50 value = 0.982 mg/mL) compared to methanolic extract. Moreover, the results\nrevealed that the essential oil was able to protect RBC from hemolysis induced by H2O2. However, the\nmethanolic extract had no effect on H2O2-induced hemolysis of RBC as compared to the essential oil and\nthe standard vitamin C.\nConclusions: P. tobira may be used as a new natural source of antioxidant with therapeutic application in\ndiseases caused by reactive oxygen species....
Objective: To performa doseââ?¬â??responsemeta-analysis of prospective cohort studies investigating\nthe association between long-term coffee intake and risk of hypertension. Methods: An online systematic\nsearch of studies published up to November 2016 was performed. Linear and non-linear doseââ?¬â??response\nmeta-analyses were conducted; potential evidence of heterogeneity, publication bias, and confounding\neffect of selected variables were investigated through sensitivity and meta-regression analyses.\nResults: Seven cohorts including 205,349 individuals and 44,120 cases of hypertension were included.\nIn the non-linear analysis, there was a 9% significant decreased risk of hypertension per seven cups of\ncoffee a day, while, in the linear doseââ?¬â??response association, there was a 1% decreased risk of hypertension\nfor each additional cup of coffee per day. Among subgroups, therewere significant inverse associations for\nfemales, caffeinated coffee, and studies conducted in the US with longer follow-up. Analysis of potential\nconfounders revealed that smoking-related variables weakened the strength of association between coffee\nconsumption and risk of hypertension. Conclusions: Increased coffee consumption is associated with\na modest decrease in risk of hypertension in prospective cohort studies. Smoking status is a potential\neffect modifier on the association between coffee consumption and risk of hypertension....
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is characterized by excess lipids in hepatocytes,\ndue to excessive fatty acid influx from adipose tissue, de novo hepatic lipogenesis, in addition to\nexcessive dietary fat and carbohydrate intake. Chronic hepatic lipid overload induces mitochondrial\noxidative stress and cellular damage leading the development of NAFLD into a more severe liver\ndisease condition, non-alcoholic steato-hepatitis (NASH). In turn, this can progress to cirrhosis and\nhepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Among others, copper is one of the main bio-metals required for\nthe preponderance of the enzymes involved in physiological redox reactions, which primarily occurs\nduring mitochondrial respiration. Thus, copper homeostasis could be considered a target point for\ncounteracting the progression of NAFLD. Accordingly, many diseases are correlated to unbalanced\ncopper levels and, actually, some clinical trials are examining the use of copper chelating agents.\nCurrently, no pharmacological interventions are approved for NAFLD, but nutritional and lifestyle\nmodifications are always recommended. Fittingly, antioxidant food agents recognized to improve\nNAFLD and its complications have been described in the literature to bind copper. Therefore, this\nreview describes the role of nutrition in the development and progression of NAFLD with a particular\nfocus on copper and copper-binding antioxidant compounds against NAFLD....
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common cardiac arrhythmia that is associated with increased\nrisk for cardiovascular disease and overall mortality. Excessive alcohol intake is a well-known risk\nfactor for AF, but this correlation is less clear with light and moderate drinking. Besides, low doses of\nred wine may acutely prolong repolarization and slow cardiac conduction. Resveratrol, a bioactive\npolyphenol found in grapes and red wine, has been linked to antiarrhythmic properties and may\nact as an inhibitor of both intracellular calcium release and pathological signaling cascades in AF,\neliminating calcium overload and preserving the cardiomyocyte contractile function. However,\nthere are still no clinical trials at all that prove that resveratrol supplementation leads to improved\noutcomes. Besides, no observational study supports a beneficial effect of light or moderate alcohol\nintake and a lower risk of AF. The purpose of this review is to briefly describe possible beneficial\neffects of red wine and resveratrol in AF, and also present studies conducted in humans regarding\nchronic red wine consumption, resveratrol, and AF....
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