Cardiac Hypertrophy in Pregnant Rats, Descendants of Fructose-Fed Mothers, an Effect That Worsens with Fructose Supplementation.

The role of fructose consumption in the development of obesity, MetS, and CVD epidemic has been widely documented. Notably, among other effects, fructose consumption has been demonstrated to induce cardiac hypertrophy. Moreover, fructose intake during pregnancy can cause hypertrophy of the maternal heart.

Fructose Consumption Affects Placental Production of HS: Impact on Preeclampsia-Related Parameters.

HS, a gasotransmitter that can be produced both via the transsulfuration pathway and non-enzymatically, plays a key role in vasodilation and angiogenesis during pregnancy. In fact, the involvement of HS production on plasma levels of sFLT1, PGF, and other molecules related to preeclampsia has been demonstrated. Interestingly, we have found that maternal fructose intake (a common component of the Western diet) affects tissular HS production.

Bempedoic Acid Restores Liver HS Production in a Female Sprague-Dawley Rat Dietary Model of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver.

We previously demonstrated that treatment with BemA (bempedoic acid), an inhibitor of ATP citrate lyase, significantly reduces fatty liver in a model of liver steatosis (HFHFr-female Sprague-Dawley rat fed a high-fat high-fructose diet). Since the hepatic production of the gasotransmitter HS is impaired in liver disorders, we were interested in determining if the production of HS was altered in our HFHFr model and whether the administration of BemA reversed these changes. We used stored liver samples from a previous study to determine the total and enzymatic HS production, as well as the expression of CBS (cystathionine β-synthase), CSE (cystathionine γ-lyase), and 3MST (3-mercaptopiruvate sulfurtransferase), and the expression/activity of FXR (farnesoid X receptor), a transcription factor involved in regulating CSE expression.

Maternal fructose boosts the effects of a Western-type diet increasing SARS-COV-2 cell entry factors in male offspring.

Fructose-rich beverages and foods consumption correlates with the epidemic rise in cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. Severity of COVID-19 has been related to these metabolic diseases. Fructose-rich foods could place people at an increased risk for severe COVID-19.