Association between circulating CCL2 levels and modifiable behaviors in overweight and obese adolescents: a cross-sectional pilot study.

Background: We evaluated the relationship between an early inflammatory biomarker, chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2), and other clinical biomarkers and lifestyle behaviors, in overweight/obese adolescents at high risk of developing cardiometabolic derangements.

Methods: We collected anthropometric measurements, clinical biomarkers, and three 24-h dietary recalls from 21 vocational high school students (91% male), 14-19 years, with body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m2. Pearson's or Spearman's correlation coefficients were used to examine relationships.

trans-Cinnamaldehyde stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis through PGC-1α and PPARβ/δ leading to enhanced GLUT4 expression.

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by insulin resistance and chronic hyperglycemia, and is increasing in incidence and severity. This work explored the effects of trans-cinnamaldehyde (CA) on carbohydrate metabolism, mitochondrial content, and related metabolic gene and protein expression in cultured myotubes treated with various concentrations of CA for up to 24 h. CA treatment increased myotube myocyte enhancer factor 2 (MEF2) along with glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) content.

Irisin, a unique non-inflammatory myokine in stimulating skeletal muscle metabolism.

Exercise offers several benefits for health, including increased lean body mass and heightened energy expenditure, which may be partially attributable to secretory factors known as myokines. Irisin, a recently identified myokine, was shown to increase metabolic rate and mitochondrial content in both myocytes and adipocytes; however, the mechanism(s) of action still remain largely unexplained. This work investigated if irisin functions by acting as an inflammatory myokine leading to cellular stress and energy expenditure.

Effect of novel dietary supplement on metabolism and .

Obesity is an increasingly prevalent and preventable morbidity with multiple behavioral, surgical and pharmacological interventions currently available. Commercial dietary supplements are often advertised to stimulate metabolism and cause rapid weight and/or fat loss, although few well-controlled studies have demonstrated such effects. We describe a commercially available dietary supplement (purportedly containing caffeine, catechins, and other metabolic stimulators) on resting metabolic rate in humans, and on metabolism, mitochondrial content, and related gene expression .

Increased meal frequency attenuates fat-free mass losses and some markers of health status with a portion-controlled weight loss diet.

Increased meal frequency (MF) may be associated with improvements in blood markers of health and body composition during weight loss; however, this claim has not been validated. The purpose of the study was to determine if either a 2-meal (2 MF) or 6-meal frequency (6 MF) regimen can improve body composition and blood-based markers of health while consuming a portion-controlled equihypocaloric diet. Eleven (N=11) obese women (52 ± 7 years, 101.

Effect of post-exercise caffeine and green coffee bean extract consumption on blood glucose and insulin concentrations.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of ingesting caffeine and green coffee bean extract on blood glucose and insulin concentrations during a post-exercise oral glucose tolerance test.

Methods: Ten male cyclists (age: 26 ± 5 y; height: 179.9 ± 5.

NAFLD Susceptibility Genes and their Association with Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity in a New Mexico Population.

Objective: Genome-wide association studies have identified single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that increase the risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). One purpose of this study was to determine the frequencies of NAFLD susceptibility SNPs in a non-Hispanic white and Hispanic population who attended a clinic in northeast Albuquerque, NM. Another goal was to determine associations with selected indicators in this New Mexican population.

Dietary stimulators of GLUT4 expression and translocation in skeletal muscle: a mini-review.

Chronic insulin resistance can lead to type II diabetes mellitus, which is also directly influenced by an individual's genetics as well as their lifestyle. Under normal circumstances, insulin facilitates glucose uptake in skeletal muscle and adipose tissue by stimulating glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) translocation and activity. GLUT4 activity is directly correlated with the ability to clear elevated blood glucose and insulin sensitivity.

Effects of commercially available dietary supplements on resting energy expenditure: a brief report.

Commercially available dietary products advertised to promote weight loss are an underresearched but heavily purchased commodity in the United States. Despite only limited evidence, interest in dietary supplements continues to increase. This work uniquely summarizes the current evidence evaluating the efficacy of several over-the-counter thermogenic products for their effects on resting energy expenditure.

Dietary stimulators of the PGC-1 superfamily and mitochondrial biosynthesis in skeletal muscle. A mini-review.

Mitochondrial dysfunction has been linked to many diseases including metabolic diseases such as diabetes. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1 (PGC-1) is a superfamily of transcriptional co-activators which are important precursors to mitochondrial biosynthesis found in most cells including skeletal muscle. The PGC-1 superfamily consists of three variants all of which are directly involved in controlling metabolic gene expression including those regulating fatty acid oxidation and mitochondrial proteins.

Medical weight loss versus bariatric surgery: does method affect body composition and weight maintenance after 15% reduction in body weight?

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate body composition changes in fat mass (FM) to lean body mass (LBM) ratios following 15% body weight loss (WL) in both integrated medical treatment and bariatric surgery groups.

Methods: Obese patients (body mass index [BMI] 46.6 ± 6.

Potential role of meal frequency as a strategy for weight loss and health in overweight or obese adults.

Improved dietary strategies for weight loss are necessary to decrease metabolic disease risk in overweight or obese adults. Varying meal frequency (MF; i.e.

Leucine treatment enhances oxidative capacity through complete carbohydrate oxidation and increased mitochondrial density in skeletal muscle cells.

Leucine has been largely implicated for increasing muscle protein synthesis in addition to stimulating mitochondrial biosynthesis. Limited evidence is currently available on the effects and potential benefits of leucine treatment on skeletal muscle cell glycolytic and oxidative metabolism. This work identified the effects of leucine treatment on oxidative and glycolytic metabolism as well as metabolic rate of human and murine skeletal muscle cells.

Ubiquinol rescues simvastatin-suppression of mitochondrial content, function and metabolism: implications for statin-induced rhabdomyolysis.

Statin medications diminish cholesterol biosynthesis and are commonly prescribed to reduce cardiovascular disease. Statins also reduce production of ubiquinol, a vital component of mitochondrial energy production; ubiquinol reduction may contribute to rhabdomyolysis. Human rhabdomyosarcoma cells were treated with either ethanol and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) control, or simvastatin at 5 µM or 10 µM, or simvastatin at 5 µM with ubiquinol at 0.

Treatment of human muscle cells with popular dietary supplements increase mitochondrial function and metabolic rate.

Background: Obesity is a common pathology with increasing incidence, and is associated with increased mortality and healthcare costs. Several treatment options for obesity are currently available ranging from behavioral modifications to pharmaceutical agents. Many popular dietary supplements claim to enhance weight loss by acting as metabolic stimulators, however direct tests of their effect on metabolism have not been performed.

Exercise regulation of intestinal tight junction proteins.

Gastrointestinal distress, such as diarrhoea, cramping, vomiting, nausea and gastric pain are common among athletes during training and competition. The mechanisms that cause these symptoms are not fully understood. The stress of heat and oxidative damage during exercise causes disruption to intestinal epithelial cell tight junction proteins resulting in increased permeability to luminal endotoxins.

Conjugated linoleic acid or omega 3 fatty acids increase mitochondrial biosynthesis and metabolism in skeletal muscle cells.

Background: Polyunsaturated fatty acids are popular dietary supplements advertised to contribute to weight loss by increasing fat metabolism in liver, but the effects on overall muscle metabolism are less established. We evaluated the effects of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) or combination omega 3 on metabolic characteristics in muscle cells.

Methods: Human rhabdomyosarcoma cells were treated with either DMSO control, or CLA or combination omega 3 for 24 or 48 hours.

Effects of caffeine on metabolism and mitochondria biogenesis in rhabdomyosarcoma cells compared with 2,4-dinitrophenol.

Purpose: This work investigated if treatment with caffeine or 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) induce expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor coactivator 1 alpha (PGC-1α) and increase both mitochondrial biosynthesis and metabolism in skeletal muscle.

Methods: Human rhabdomyosarcoma cells were treated with either ethanol control (0.1% final concentration) caffeine, or DNP at 250 or 500 μM for 16 or 24 hours.

Physical activity assessed by accelerometry in rural African school-age children and adolescents.

Physical activity (PA) in children/adolescents of both genders from a rural community in Mozambique was estimated by accelerometry and by questionnaire and was compared with PA of Portuguese youth. Total PA, moderate (MPA), vigorous (VPA) and very vigorous (VVPA) were evaluated. Mozambican boys were more active than girls.

Hypoxemia and acute mountain sickness: which comes first?

Hypoxemia is usually associated with acute mountain sickness (AMS), but most studies have varied in time and magnitude of altitude exposure, exercise, diet, environmental conditions, and severity of pulmonary edema. We wished to determine whether hypoxemia occurred early in subjects who developed subsequent AMS while resting at a simulated altitude of 426 mmHg (approximately 16,000 ft or 4880 m). Exposures of 51 men and women were carried out for 8 to 12 h.

Risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diet of urban and rural dwellers in northern Nigeria.

Over the last 30 years, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), including stroke and myocardial infarction, have increased in developing countries. Serum lipids and diet of the Fulani, a rural Nigerian population, were previously studied. Despite their consumption of a diet rich in saturated fat, the overall blood lipid profiles of Fulani men and women are generally favourable.

Effects of sarin on temperature and activity of rats as a model for gulf war syndrome neuroregulatory functions.

Coexposure to subclinical levels of nerve gas and to heat stress may have induced some of the clinical symptoms of the Gulf War Syndrome. We tested the hypothesis that single or repeated subclinical exposure to sarin, particularly under conditions of heat stress, would impair regulation of body temperature and locomotor activity. Male F344 rats were housed at 25 degrees C or under mild heat stress at 32 degrees C and were exposed 1 h/day for 1, 5, or 10 days to 0, 0.

Response of rats to low levels of sarin.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether exposure to levels of sarin causing no overt clinical signs would cause more subtle, adverse health effects that persisted after the exposure ended. Inhalation exposures of male Fischer 344 rats to 0, 0.2, or 0.

Role of fever in disease.

Infection, trauma, and injury result in a stereotypical response that includes loss of food appetite, increased sleepiness, muscle aches, and fever. For thousands of years fever was considered a protective response, and fevers were induced by physicians to combat certain infections. But with the advent of antipyretic drugs, physicians started to reduce fevers, and fever therapy was virtually abandoned.

IL-6 and IL-1 beta in fever. Studies using cytokine-deficient (knockout) mice.

Previous data support the hypothesis that during inflammation, interleukin (IL)-1 beta and IL-6 are involved in fever, in activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, and in the induction of eicosanoids. Most of the pathophysiologic effects of IL-1 beta and Il-6 are mediated by prostaglandins (PGs), modulated by other cytokines, and antagonized by glucocorticoids (GC), a final product of the HPA axis. To further test these relationships, we measured changes in body temperature using biotelemetry in mice deficient in genes for IL-1 beta and/or IL-6 (IL-1 beta knockout [KO] and IL-6 KO) following injection with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to induce systemic inflammation or turpentine to induce local abscess.