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Food Research International (Ottawa,... Aug 2024Haff disease typically develops after eating contaminated marine or freshwater species, especially fish. Despite still having an unknown etiology, recent reports have...
Investigating the etiology of Haff disease: Optimization and validation of a sensitive LC-MS/MS method for palytoxins analysis in directly associated freshwater and marine food samples from Brazil.
Haff disease typically develops after eating contaminated marine or freshwater species, especially fish. Despite still having an unknown etiology, recent reports have suggested its possible correlation with palytoxins. Therefore, the present work aimed to optimize and perform a validation of a sensitive method using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the analysis of palytoxin and some of its analogs, with the main purpose of investigating their presence in marine and freshwater food samples associated with Haff disease in Brazil. The method optimization was performed using a central composite rotatable design and fish samples fortified with the palytoxin standard. Then, the optimized method was validated for different food matrices, including freshwater and marine fish, mollusks, and crustaceans. The sample preparation involved a solid-liquid extraction using methanol and water, solid-phase extraction using Strata-X cartridges, and on-column palytoxin oxidation. The detection of the main oxidized fragments (amino and amide aldehydes) was achieved by LC-MS/MS with electrospray ionization in positive mode, using a C18 column, as well as acetonitrile and water as mobile phases, both acidified with 0.1 % of formic acid. After optimization and validation, the etiological investigation involved the analysis of 16 Brazilian Haff disease-related food samples (in natura and leftover meals) from 2022. The method was demonstrated to be appropriate for quantitative analysis of freshwater and marine species. So far, it has proven to be one of the most sensitive methods related to palytoxin detection (LOD 10 μg/kg), being able to work in a range that includes the provisional ingestion limit (30 μg/kg). Regarding the Haff disease-related samples analysis, there is a strong indication of palytoxin contamination since the amino aldehyde (common fragment for all palytoxins) was detected in 15 of the 16 samples. Selected results were confirmed using liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS).
Topics: Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Brazil; Acrylamides; Animals; Cnidarian Venoms; Chromatography, Liquid; Seafood; Fresh Water; Food Contamination; Fishes; Reproducibility of Results; Solid Phase Extraction; Limit of Detection; Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Polyether Toxins
PubMed: 38945605
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114585 -
Food Research International (Ottawa,... Aug 2024Synthetic preservatives are widely used in the food industry to control spoilage and growth of pathogenic microorganisms, inhibit lipid oxidation processes and extend... (Review)
Review
Synthetic preservatives are widely used in the food industry to control spoilage and growth of pathogenic microorganisms, inhibit lipid oxidation processes and extend the shelf life of food. However, synthetic preservatives have some side effects that can lead to poisoning, cancer and other degenerative diseases. With the improvement of living standards, people are developing safer natural preservatives to replace synthetic preservatives, including plant derived preservatives (polyphenols, essential oils, flavonoids), animal derived preservatives (lysozyme, antimicrobial peptide, chitosan) and microorganism derived preservatives (nisin, natamycin, ε-polylysine, phage). These natural preservatives exert antibacterial effects by disrupting microbial cell wall/membrane structures, interfering with DNA/RNA replication and transcription, and affecting protein synthesis and metabolism. This review summarizes the natural bioactive compounds (polyphenols, flavonoids and terpenoids, etc.) in these preservatives, their antioxidant and antibacterial activities, and safety evaluation in various products.
Topics: Food Preservatives; Antioxidants; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Food Preservation; Animals; Food Safety; Humans; Flavonoids; Polyphenols; Oils, Volatile; Terpenes
PubMed: 38945593
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114548 -
Lancet (London, England) Jun 2024
Topics: India; Humans; Scorpion Stings; Animals; Scorpions
PubMed: 38944520
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)00884-5 -
Journal of Advanced Research Jun 2024The immunosuppressive capacity of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is dependent on the "license" of several pro-inflammatory factors to express immunosuppressive molecular...
INTRODUCTION
The immunosuppressive capacity of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is dependent on the "license" of several pro-inflammatory factors to express immunosuppressive molecular profiles, which determines the therapeutic efficacy of MSCs in immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. Of those, interferon-γ (IFN-γ) is a key inducer for the expression of immunosuppressive molecular profiles; however, the mechanism underlying this effect is unknown.
OBJECTIVES
To elucidate the regulation mechanism and biological functions of N-methyladenosine (mA) modification in the immunosuppressive functions by the IFN-γ-licensing MSCs.
METHODS
Epitranscriptomic microarray analysis and MeRIP-qPCR assay were performed to identify the regulatory effect of WTAP in the IFN-γ-licensing MSCs. RIP-qPCR, western blot, qRT-PCR and RNA stability assays were used to determine the regulation of WTAP/mA/YTHDF1 signaling axis in the expression of immunosuppressive molecules. Further, functional capacity of T cells was tested using flow cytometry, and both DSS-induced colitis mice and CIA mice were constructed to clarify the effect of WTAP and YTHDF1 in MSC-mediated immunosuppression.
RESULTS
We identified that IFN-γ increased the mA methylation levels of immunosuppressive molecules, while WTAP deficiency abolished the IFN-γ-induced promotion of mA modification. IFN-γ activated ERK signaling, which induced WTAP phosphorylation. Additionally, the stabilization of WTAP post-transcriptionally increased the mRNA expression of immunosuppressive molecules (IDO1, PD-L1, ICAM1, and VCAM1) in an mA-YTHDF1-dependent manner; this effect further impacted the immunosuppressive capacity of IFN-γ licensing MSCs on activated T cells. Notably, WTAP/YTHDF1 overexpression enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of IFN-γ licensing MSCs and restructures the ecology of inflammation in both colitis and arthritis models.
CONCLUSION
Our results showed that mA modification of IDO1, PD-L1, ICAM1, and VCAM1 mRNA mediated by WTAP-YTHDF1 is involved in the regulation of IFN-γ licensing MSCs immunosuppressive abilities, and shed a light to enhance the clinical therapeutic potential of IFN-γ-licensing MSCs.
PubMed: 38944238
DOI: 10.1016/j.jare.2024.06.019 -
Food Chemistry Jun 2024Diacylglycerol (DAG) has garnered attention for its safe and nutritious qualities, and its utilization in emulsion systems to encapsulate hydrophobic bioactives is...
Diacylglycerol (DAG) has garnered attention for its safe and nutritious qualities, and its utilization in emulsion systems to encapsulate hydrophobic bioactives is anticipated to enhance their bioaccessibility. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the influence of DAG oil as a carrier on the stability and digestive characteristics of nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) containing lycopene (LYC). The results indicated that DAG oil demonstrated superior storage and heating stability in comparison to triacylglycerol (TAG) oil. Furthermore, NLCs formulated with DAG oil exhibited a faster rate of lipolysis (>76.3%) and higher loading capacity (1.48%), resulting in an approximate 11% enhancement in the bioaccessibility of LYC (reaching up to 31.4%). DAG oils show considerable potential for enhancing and prolonging the properties and bioactivity of NLC carriers, thereby boosting bioaccessibility. The incorporation of DAG oil in food systems holds promise for enriching their functionality over traditional TAG oil.
PubMed: 38943966
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.140219 -
Scientific Reports Jun 2024Oxyberberine (OBB) is a significant natural compound, with excellent hepatoprotective properties. However, the poor water solubility of OBB hinders its release and...
Oxyberberine (OBB) is a significant natural compound, with excellent hepatoprotective properties. However, the poor water solubility of OBB hinders its release and absorption thus resulting in low bioavailability. To overcome these drawbacks of OBB, amorphous spray-dried powders (ASDs) of OBB were formulated. The dissolution, characterizations, and pharmacokinetics of OBB-ASDs formulation were investigated, and its hepatoprotective action was disquisitive in the D-GalN/LPS-induced acute liver injury (ALI) mouse model. The characterizations of OBB-ASDs indicated that the crystalline form of OBB active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) was changed into an amorphous form in OBB-ASDs. More importantly, OBB-ASDs showed a higher bioavailability than OBB API. In addition, OBB-ASDs treatment restored abnormal histopathological changes, improved liver functions, and relieved hepatic inflammatory mediators and oxidative stress in ALI mice. The spray drying techniques produced an amorphous form of OBB, which could significantly enhance the bioavailability and exhibit excellent hepatoprotective effects, indicating that the OBB-ASDs can exhibit further potential in hepatoprotective drug delivery systems. Our results provide guidance for improving the bioavailability and pharmacological activities of other compounds, especially insoluble natural compounds. Meanwhile, the successful development of OBB-ASDs could shed new light on the research process of poorly soluble medicine.
Topics: Animals; Toll-Like Receptor 4; Mice; Biological Availability; Berberine; Male; Solubility; Liver; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury; Disease Models, Animal; Oxidative Stress; Protective Agents; Lipopolysaccharides; Powders; Drug Delivery Systems
PubMed: 38942824
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-65190-2 -
The Lancet. Public Health Jul 2024Overdose is the leading cause of death for people released from prison, and opioid agonist treatment is associated with reductions in mortality after imprisonment....
Estimated effects of opioid agonist treatment in prison on all-cause mortality and overdose mortality in people released from prison in Norway: a prospective analysis of data from the Norwegian Prison Release Study (nPRIS).
BACKGROUND
Overdose is the leading cause of death for people released from prison, and opioid agonist treatment is associated with reductions in mortality after imprisonment. However, few studies have explored the interplay of the potential modifiable risk factors and protective factors for mortality after release from prison. We aimed to describe all-cause mortality and overdose mortality among individuals released from Norwegian prisons during 2000-22 and to identify pre-existing risk factors associated with both types of mortality among these individuals for 6 months.
METHODS
For this prospective analysis, we used data from the Norwegian Prison Release Study (nPRIS), which includes all people in prison in Norway between Jan 1, 2000, and Dec 31, 2022; the Norwegian Cause of Death Registry; the Norwegian Prison Registry; the Norwegian Patient Registry; and Statistics Norway. All prisons in Norway that were open during this period were included. People who did not have a Norwegian personal identification number or were serving their sentence outside of prison units were excluded from this analysis. To identify pre-existing risk factors associated with all-cause and overdose mortality among people released from prison, we left-censored the observation period on Jan 1, 2010, creating a subsample of individuals. We calculated crude mortality rates (CMRs) and corresponding 95% CIs as the number of deaths per 100 000 person-years for several time periods after release. The primary outcomes were all-cause mortality and overdose mortality according to the ICD-10, assessed in all participants and analysed via two separate Cox proportional-hazards models.
FINDINGS
The total nPRIS cohort included 112 877 individuals released from prison in Norway between 2000 and 2022, 11 995 (10·6%) of whom were female and 100 865 (89·4%) of whom were male. We identified 13 004 instances of all-cause mortality and 3085 instances of overdose mortality during the 1 463 035 person-years. The estimated CMR for all-cause mortality was 889 (95% CI 874-904) per 100 000 person-years and for overdose mortality was 211 (203-218) per 100 000 person-years. Among people diagnosed with opioid use disorder before entering prison during 2010-22 (n=6830), provision of opioid agonist treatment was estimated to be associated with reductions in both all-cause mortality (hazard ratio 0·58, 95% CI 0·39-0·85) and overdose mortality (0·51, 0·31-0·82) in the 6 months after leaving prison after adjustment for sociodemographic, prison-related, and clinical characteristics.
INTERPRETATION
In people diagnosed with opioid use disorder released from Norwegian prisons, opioid agonist treatment provided while in prison was a protective factor for both all-cause and overdose mortality at 6 months. Provision of opioid agonist treatment while in prison is crucial in reducing mortality for 6 months after release and should be available to all people in prison who have treatment needs.
FUNDING
South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority and the Research Council of Norway.
Topics: Humans; Norway; Male; Prospective Studies; Female; Adult; Drug Overdose; Prisoners; Middle Aged; Cause of Death; Prisons; Risk Factors; Analgesics, Opioid; Young Adult; Mortality; Registries; Opiate Substitution Treatment; Adolescent
PubMed: 38942554
DOI: 10.1016/S2468-2667(24)00098-7 -
Journal of Physical Activity & Health Jun 2024The clear public messaging from international health authorities is that individuals should "sit less and move more." While it is acknowledged that this guidance needs...
The clear public messaging from international health authorities is that individuals should "sit less and move more." While it is acknowledged that this guidance needs to be tailored to the age of people and also to their health, and abilities, the guidance is not tailored to their current level of physical behaviors. This opinion piece aims to highlight that although people with excessive sitting and insufficient moderate-to-vigorous physical activity should sit more and move less, for other people their health would be promoted by sitting more and moving less. Thus, physical behaviors are not always "poison" or "medicine," but rather the health impact of changes in physical behaviors depends on people's initial levels. Policy, research, and practice implications of this realization are presented. Only tailoring messaging to age and health status could be far from optimal for people with very different current levels of physical behaviors. Policy, research, and practice will be enhanced when the potential for physical behaviors to be either health hindering or health promoting is adequately considered.
PubMed: 38942416
DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2024-0324 -
International Journal of Biological... Jun 2024Transdermal drug delivery refers to the administration of drugs through the skin, after which the drugs can directly act on or circulate through the body to the target... (Review)
Review
Transdermal drug delivery refers to the administration of drugs through the skin, after which the drugs can directly act on or circulate through the body to the target organs or cells and avoid the first-pass metabolism in the liver and kidneys experienced by oral drugs, reducing the risk of drug poisoning. From the initial singular approach to transdermal drug delivery, there has been a shift toward combining multiple methods to enhance drug permeation efficiency and address the limitations of individual approaches. Technological advancements have also improved the accuracy of drug delivery. Optimizing insulin itself also enables its long-term release via needle-free injectors. In this review, the diverse transdermal delivery methods employed in insulin therapy and their respective advantages and limitations are discussed. By considering factors such as the principles of transdermal penetration, drug delivery efficiency, research progress, synergistic innovations among different methods, patient compliance, skin damage, and posttreatment skin recovery, a comprehensive evaluation is presented, along with prospects for potential novel combinatorial approaches. Furthermore, as insulin is a macromolecular drug, insights gained from its transdermal delivery may also serve as a valuable reference for the use of other macromolecular drugs for treatment.
PubMed: 38942414
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.133452 -
Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics Jun 2024Arsenic, an environmental pollutant and poisonous metalloid, has adverse effects on different body organs, including the kidneys. Betaine is a natural nutrient that has...
Arsenic, an environmental pollutant and poisonous metalloid, has adverse effects on different body organs, including the kidneys. Betaine is a natural nutrient that has many beneficial health effects. This research was conducted to examine the impact of betaine on nephrotoxicity caused by inorganic arsenic (NaAsO) in mice. Mice were separated into following groups: control, NaAsO (50 ppm), NaAsO (50 ppm) + betaine (500 mg/kg), and betaine (500 mg/kg). Mice were received NaAsO via drinking water for 8 consecutive weeks and betaine was given to the animals via gavage once daily in the 7th and 8th weeks of the study. Upon completion of the study, the mice were euthanized and samples of serum and kidney were obtained for further evaluations. Administration of NaAsO increased the levels of blood urea nitrogen and creatinine in the serum. It enhanced the amounts of renal malondialdehyde and decreased the total thiol levels, as well as the activity of antioxidant enzymes (catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase). Furthermore, it enhanced the levels of renal inflammatory indicators (tumor necrosis factor-alpha and nitric oxide). Western blot results exhibited an increase in the protein expression of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), and phosphorylated NF-κB in NaAsO-treated mice. Histopathological results also confirmed kidney damage caused by NaAsO. However, treatment with betaine improved NaAsO-related kidney injuries in mice. The results of this work indicated that betaine can attenuate kidney damage caused by NaAsO by inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammation.
PubMed: 38942108
DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2024.110076