The effect of minimal dietary changes with raisins in NAFLD patients with non-significant fibrosis: a randomized controlled intervention.

Aiming at investigating the potential effect of minimal dietary changes in NAFLD patients with non-significant fibrosis, 55 patients with NAFLD were enrolled in a randomized controlled clinical trial. Patients were assigned into two isocaloric dietary treatment groups for 24 weeks: (a) nutritional counseling (Control arm, N = 27), (b) nutritional counseling with currants included (two fruit servings, 36 g per day), substituting snacks of similar caloric content (Currant arm, N = 28). Clinical tests, anthropometrics, inflammatory and oxidative stress markers were conducted pre- and post-intervention.

Meta-analyses identify 13 loci associated with age at menopause and highlight DNA repair and immune pathways.

To newly identify loci for age at natural menopause, we carried out a meta-analysis of 22 genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in 38,968 women of European descent, with replication in up to 14,435 women. In addition to four known loci, we identified 13 loci newly associated with age at natural menopause (at P < 5 × 10(-8)). Candidate genes located at these newly associated loci include genes implicated in DNA repair (EXO1, HELQ, UIMC1, FAM175A, FANCI, TLK1, POLG and PRIM1) and immune function (IL11, NLRP11 and PRRC2A (also known as BAT2)).

The role of vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms in the bone mineral density of Greek postmenopausal women with low calcium intake.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of common vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene polymorphisms on the bone mineral density (BMD) of Greek postmenopausal women. Healthy postmenopausal women (n=578) were recruited for the study. The BMD of the lumbar spine and hip was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry with the Lunar DPX-MD device.

Does a short breastfeeding period protect from FTO-induced adiposity in children?

Context: A number of studies have reported replicable associations between common genetic loci and obesity indices. One of these loci is the fat mass and obesity associated locus (FTO). We aimed to assess whether breastfeeding mediated the known association between FTO and indices of body fatness.

Low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 5 polymorphisms are associated with bone mineral density in Greek postmenopausal women: an interaction with calcium intake.

The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 5 (LRP5) has been shown to play a significant role in bone biology. This study aimed to assess the association of four common polymorphisms of the LRP5 gene with bone mineral density (BMD) and possible genexcalcium intake interactions in Greek postmenopausal women. For this observational cross-sectional association study, healthy postmenopausal women (N=578) were recruited (between December 2006 and January 2008) and genotyped for four polymorphisms (rs1784235, rs491347, rs4988321, and rs4988330) in the LRP5 gene.

Expression of inflammatory molecules and associations with BMI in children.

Background: Adipose tissue secrets several adipokines that have been proposed to be enrolled in many inflammatory pathways. Our aim was to investigate the adipokine expression in adipose tissue and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in children.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-one (17 males and 14 females) healthy children aged 10.

Twenty-four novel mutations identified in a cohort of 85 patients by direct sequencing of the SLC3A1 and SLC7A9 cystinuria genes.

Mutations in the SLC3A1 and SLC7A9 genes cause cystinuria (OMIM 220100), an autosomal recessive disorder of amino acid transport and reabsorption in the proximal renal tubule and in the epithelial cells of the gastrointestinal tract. In an attempt to characterize the molecular defect in the SLC3A1 and SLC7A9 genes, we analyzed a cohort of 85 unrelated subjects clinically diagnosed as affected by cystinuria on the basis of stone formation, prevalently of Italian and Greek origin. Analysis of all coding region and exon-intron junctions of the SLC3A1 and SLC7A9 genes by using direct sequencing method allowed us to identify 62 different mutations in 83 out of 85 patients accounting for 90.

Apolipoprotein polymorphisms and familial hypercholesterolemia.

The majority of apolipoproteins known to play a major role in lipid metabolism were identified over 20 years ago, and nine of them (APOA1, -A2, -A4, -B48, -B100, -C1, -C2, -C3 and -E) have long been known to be most relevant to the regulation of lipoproteins. Polymorphisms of genes encoding apolipoproteins influence plasma levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL), very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) chylomicrons or triglycerides. Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), an autosomal dominant disorder, is caused by mutations mainly located in the low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) gene, or more rarely within the apolipoprotein B-100 gene or the gene encoding a secreted proteinase PSCK9.

Natural antioxidant compounds in risk factors for CVD.

The benefits of drug treating hypertension, hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemias in terms of reduction of CVD morbidity and mortality are well established. However, there is epidemiological evidence that consumption of certain foods results to a reduction in myocardial infarction markers. Given in many reviews is the impact of dietary antioxidants pertained to LDL oxidation and to vascular endothelial dysfunction.

Genes, diet and type 2 diabetes mellitus: a review.

Diabetes mellitus is widely recognized as one of the leading causes of death and disability. While insulin insensitivity is an early phenomenon partly related to obesity, pancreatic beta-cell function declines gradually over time even before the onset of clinical hyperglycemia. Several mechanisms have been proposed to be responsible for insulin resistance, including increased non-esterified fatty acids, inflammatory cytokines, adipokines, and mitochondrial dysfunction, as well as glucotoxicity, lipotoxicity, and amyloid formation for beta-cell dysfunction.

Chios mastic treatment of patients with active Crohn's disease.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of mastic administration on the clinical course and plasma inflammatory mediators of patients with active Crohn's disease (CD).

Methods: This pilot study was conducted in patients with established mild to moderately active CD, attending the outpatient clinics of the hospital, and in healthy controls. Ten patients and 8 controls were recruited for a 4-wk treatment with mastic caps (6 caps/d, 0.

Management of a patient with a null low-density lipoprotein receptor mutation: a case report.

A 13-year-old Greek boy with severe dyslipidemia, large tuberous xanthomas over the knees and elbows, Achilles' tendon xanthomas, and a bilateral corneal arcus was referred to the Lipid Clinic. He had a supravalvular aortic stenosis, 50% to 60% stenosis of both carotid arteries, and normal coronary arteries. Familial hypercholesterolemia was clinically diagnosed.

The Pro12Ala polymorphism in PPARgamma2 gene affects lipid parameters in Greek primary school children: A case of gene-to-gender interaction.

Background: In the present study we sought to evaluate the impact of the PPAR-gamma2 Pro12Ala polymorphism on blood lipid levels of primary school children.

Methods: 81 male and 92 female schoolchildren were genotyped. Biochemical, anthropometric, and lifestyle variables were assessed.

Different genes and polymorphisms affecting high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in Greek familial hypercholesterolemia patients.

Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a genetic disorder characterized by high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations that frequently gives rise to premature coronary artery disease. The clinical expression of FH is highly variable, even in patients carrying the same LDL receptor gene mutation. This variability may be due to environmental and other genetic factors.

Polymorphisms associated with apolipoprotein B levels in Greek patients with familial hypercholesterolemia.

Background: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a genetic disorder characterized by high low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations, which frequently gives rise to premature coronary artery disease. The clinical expression of FH is highly variable, even in patients carrying the same LDL receptor (LDLR) gene mutation. This variability may be due to environmental and other genetic factors.

Natriuretic peptide Val7Met substitution and risk of coronary artery disease in Greek patients with familial hypercholesterolemia.

Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP or NPPA) is the precursor protein of the form of amyloidosis called isolated atrial amyloid (IAA), which is related to the increased incidence of cardiac pathological conditions with age. Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) patients are characterized by high concentrations of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), which frequently gives rise to premature coronary artery disease (CAD). However, not all FH patients have the same clinical phenotype.

Familial hypercholesterolemia and response to statin therapy according to LDLR genetic background.

Familial hypercholesterolemia is an autosomal dominant disease defined at the molecular level mainly by the presence of mutations in the low-density lipoprotein receptor gene and is characterized by elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, tendon xanthomas and increased risk of early cardiovascular disease. The type of mutation in the low-density lipoprotein receptor gene has been associated with different phenotype expression and response to statins. Several studies have been undertaken to assess the efficacy of statins and evaluate the influence of mutations on the response to treatment with statins.

Effect of phenols on natural killer (NK) cell-mediated death in the K562 human leukemic cell line.

Cancer disease is a major cause of death in Western societies. Epidemiologically, antioxidant phenols have been associated with diminished incidence of cancer, while experimentally, they have cytotoxic effects on cancer cells. The aim of this study was to clarify whether natural antioxidant phenols render K562 human leukemic cells more susceptible to natural killer (NK) cell apoptosis and/or necrosis.

An association between the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T mutation and inflammation markers related to cardiovascular disease.

Background: Prospective studies have identified many markers of systemic inflammation that are powerful predictors of future cardiovascular events. The methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T genotype, a common polymorphism that induces hyperhomocysteinaemia, has been proposed as a genetic risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In this work, we evaluated the relationship between the levels of inflammation markers and MTHFR genotype among cardiovascular disease free subjects of the ATTICA study.

LDL-receptor mutations in Europe.

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a clinical definition for a remarkable increase of cholesterol serum concentration, presence of xanthomas, and an autosomal dominant trait of either increased serum cholesterol or premature coronary artery disease (CAD). The identification of the low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-receptor (LDLR) as the underlying cause and its genetic characterization in FH patients revealed more insights in the trafficking of LDL, which primarily transports cholesterol to hepatic and peripheral cells. Mutations within LDLR result in hypercholesterolemia and, subsequently, cholesterol deposition in humans to a variable degree.

The IL-6 gene G-174C polymorphism related to health indices in Greek primary school children.

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pleiotropic cytokine expressed in many tissues. A polymorphism in the IL-6 gene, associated with differences in IL-6 transcription rate, has been recently described. Subjects with the -174GG genotype are prone to lipid abnormalities.

Antiatherogenic effect of Pistacia lentiscus via GSH restoration and downregulation of CD36 mRNA expression.

Pistacia lentiscus var. Chia (Anacardiaceae) grows almost exclusively on Chios Island, Greece, and gives a resinous exudate resin used for culinary purposes by Mediterranean people. We investigated the molecular mechanisms through which total polar extract of the resin inhibits oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) cytotoxic effect on peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC).

Molecular characterization of familial hypercholesterolemia in German and Greek patients.

We used the denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) method to define mutations in the promoter region, the 18 exons, and their flanking intronic sequences of the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor gene LDLR, causing familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) phenotype in 100 German and in 100 Greek hypercholesterolemic individuals. In addition, we tested all patients for the presence of mutations in codons 3456-3553 of the gene encoding apolipoprotein B-100 (APOB). Twenty-six aberrant DGGE patterns were identified and subsequently directly sequenced.

Deterioration of natural antioxidant species of vegetable edible oils during the domestic deep-frying and pan-frying of potatoes.

In the present work, virgin olive oil, sunflower oil and a vegetable shortening were used as cooking oils for the deep-frying and pan-frying of potatoes, for eight successive sessions, under the usual domestic practice. Several chemical and physicochemical parameters (acidic value, peroxide value, total polar artefacts, total phenol content and triglyceride fatty acyl moiety composition) were assayed during frying operations in order to evaluate the status of the frying oils, which were found within expected ranges similar to those previously reported. The oil fatty acids were effectively protected from oxidation by the natural antioxidants.