Publications by authors named "Alberto R Osella"

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in the world. The increasingly sedentary lifestyle in recent years may have accelerated the development of NAFLD, independent of the level of physical activity.

Objective: The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine the association between leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and time spent sitting (TSS) and the likelihood of developing NAFLD in a sample of men and women aged 18-64 years, from southern Italy.

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Moderate-intensity aerobic exercise improves gastrointestinal (GI) health and alleviates irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms. This study explored its effects on physical capacity (PC) and IBS symptoms in 40 patients from Southern Italy (11 males, 29 females; 52.10 ± 7.

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Background: Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is one the most prevalent causes of chronic liver disease worldwide. In the absence of an approved drug treatment, lifestyle modification is the first intervention strategy. This study aimed to estimate the main effect of two different physical activity (PA) programs, and a Low-Glycemic-Index Mediterranean Diet (LGIMD), or their combined effect on liver fibrosis parameters in subjects with NAFLD.

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Together with its comorbidities, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is likely to rise further with the obesity epidemic. However, the literature's evidence shows how its progression can be reduced by the administration of calorie-restrictive dietary interventions and physical activity regimens. The liver function and the gut microbiota have been demonstrated to be closely related.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study focused on the impact of a Low Glycemic Index Mediterranean Diet (LGIMD) combined with exercise on individuals with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) over one year.
  • Participants included 58 subjects aged 18-65, who experienced significant improvements in their glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels, especially those with moderate and severe NAFLD.
  • The findings suggest that lifestyle changes through diet and exercise can positively affect glucose metabolism and help manage the symptoms of both NAFLD and T2D.
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Exosomes produced by hepatocytes upon lipotoxic insult play a relevant role in pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), suggesting an inflammatory response by the activation of monocytes and macrophages and accelerating the disease progression. In the pathogenesis of NAFLD and liver fibrosis, the endogenous cannabinoids and their major receptors CB1 and CB2 appear to be highly involved. This study aimed at evaluating the expression of cannabinoids receptors (CB1R and CB2R) in plasma-derived exosomes extracted from patients with NAFLD, as well as investigating the in vitro effects of the circulating exosomes in cultured human HepaRG cells following their introduction into the culture medium.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study looked at how a low glycemic index Mediterranean diet (LGIMD) combined with exercise (CEP) affects metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD).
  • 54 participants were monitored over 12 months, and results showed that adherence to the diet and exercise significantly influenced body mass index (BMI) and insulin resistance indicators.
  • The findings indicate that LGIMD/CEP not only improved MAFLD outcomes but also suggested that BMI and insulin resistance are strong predictors of recovery from the disease.
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Dietary patterns based on rich-carbohydrate foods were associated with breast cancer (BC) in Córdoba (Argentina). Nevertheless, the effect of dietary indicators of postprandial blood glucose or insulinemia on this cancer has not been studied. Thus, we hypothesize that higher dietary glycemic and insulinemic indices increase the risk of BC occurrence, with differential effects according to the presence/absence of overweight.

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Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a multifactorial condition that affects 25% of the world's population. There is a clear difference in both geographical distribution and sex in childbearing age. These differences are reduced when women become older and senescence begins.

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Article Synopsis
  • Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasingly common and influenced by the gut-liver axis, with gut microbiota playing a role in its onset and progression.
  • Researchers studied 109 NAFLD patients undergoing various lifestyle interventions, including different diets and exercise programs, to analyze changes in gut microbiota.
  • Results showed significant differences in microbiota, particularly with combined Mediterranean diets and physical activity, and highlighted specific microbial taxa associated with liver health improvement.
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Article Synopsis
  • NAFLD is a liver condition caused by fat accumulation without alcohol use, progressing from initial fat buildup (steatosis) to inflammation and possible liver cancer.
  • Modifications in Wnt/Frizzled signaling, particularly the increased expression of the FZD7 receptor, play a role in liver degeneration associated with NAFLD.
  • A study found that FZD7 levels in exosomes from NAFLD patients were significantly higher than in healthy individuals, but levels normalized after lifestyle changes, suggesting FZD7 could be a useful biomarker for diagnosing and monitoring NAFLD.
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Background: In real life, nutrition goes beyond purely biological domains. Primary prevention is the most efficient approach for reducing the risk of mortality. We aimed to study the association of lifestyle, as measured by a modified World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (mWCRF/AICR) scoring system with all-cause, digestive system disease-related (DSD-related), cardiovascular disease-related (CVD-related), cancer-related and other cause-related mortality using data from two population-based cohort studies conducted in Southern Italy.

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Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) affects about 20-30% of the adult population in developed countries and is an increasingly important cause of hepatocellular carcinoma. Liver ultrasound (US) is widely used as a noninvasive method to diagnose NAFLD. However, the intensive use of US is not cost-effective and increases the burden on the healthcare system.

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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in December 2020, the Italian government established a second home confinement during the Christmas holidays. These restrictions offered the opportunity to utilize a well-defined model for observing the consequences of lifestyle changes of healthy individuals. This study aimed at estimating in healthy subjects from Southern Italy the physical activity (PA), the presence and the severity of gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, and the association between the possible worsening of GI health status and the PA levels.

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Weight change is associated with all causes of death, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality and a heterogeneous group of other causes of death. We aimed to estimate the effect of weight change on all causes and cause-specific mortality in a cohort with a high prevalence of deaths due to diseases of the digestive system.MethodsIn this prospective cohort study, 2230 subjects aged 30 to 50 years were examined.

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Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is considered a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome, characterized from pathological changes in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. Its main characteristics are excessive lipid accumulation and oxidative stress, which create a lipotoxic environment in hepatocytes leading to liver injury. Recently, many studies have focused on the identification of the genetic and epigenetic modifications that also contribute to NAFLD pathogenesis and their prognostic implications.

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Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Italian government took security measures to try to limit infections. Restrictive measures included social distancing, home confinement and the closure of all public structures like gyms and swimming pools. The impact of these limitations on health and lifestyle was inevitably negative.

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Background: Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide, and lifestyle modification is the current standard treatment. The aim of the study was to estimate the effect of two different physical activity (PA) programs, a Low Glycemic Index Mediterranean Diet (LGIMD), and their combined effect on the NAFLD score as measured by FibroScan.

Methods: Moderate or severe NAFLD subjects ( = 144) were randomly assigned to six intervention arms during three months.

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Background: The Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) is associated with good health. We aimed to estimate the effect of levels of adherence to the MedDiet on lifespan by performing treatment effects survival analysis.

Methods: A sample of 5250 subjects aged ≥18 years were randomly selected from the electoral list of Castellana Grotte and Putignano (Apulian Region, Italy).

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Background & Aims: Liver ultrasound scan (US) use in diagnosing Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) causes costs and waiting lists overloads. We aimed to compare various Machine learning algorithms with a Meta learner approach to find the best of these as a predictor of NAFLD.

Methods: The study included 2970 subjects, 2920 constituting the training set and 50, randomly selected, used in the test phase, performing cross-validation.

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Background And Aims: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDis) are leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Even after the introduction of pharmacological therapy to lower Cholesterol, there is still a residual risk that may be ascribed to remnant cholesterol (RC). We aimed, by analyzing two prospective cohort studies, to estimate the effect of RC on risk and hazard of cardiovascular deaths (CVDs), while accounting for competing risks such as cancer (CDs) and other-causes deaths (OCDs).

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Background: Elevated fasting remnant cholesterol (REM-C) levels have been associated with an increased cardiovascular risk in patients with metabolic syndrome (Mets) and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD). We aimed to estimate the effect of different diets on REM-C levels in patients with MetS, as well as the association between NAFLD and REM-C.

Methods: This is a secondary analysis of the MEDIDIET study, a parallel-arm Randomized Clinical Trial (RCT).

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Background: Identifying predictive factors that contribute to changes in body weight may well be an interesting approach to the management of obesity.

Objective: This study was firstly aimed at examining the effect of a one-year lifestyle program based on improvements in the habitual diet and increased levels of physical activity on weight loss. Secondly, it was focused on identifying anthropometric, and serum hormonal, metabolic and haematochemical factors which can be associated with the degree of weight loss in Kg.

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Vitamin D improves bone density and latest studies show adherence to Med-Diet as protective on osteoporosis. This observational study aimed at investigating the relationship between 25(OH)D levels and adherence to Med-Diet. Body weight, BMI, WC, glucose, insulin, 25(OH)D, total cholesterol, high- and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, uric acid, and creatinine serum levels and insulin resistance were determined in 284 overweight/obese subjects not taking medications or supplements.

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