Whole grain intake and insulin sensitivity: evidence from observational studies.

Observational studies have found that diets rich in whole-grain foods are associated with improved insulin sensitivity. The improved insulin sensitivity may be mediated in part by magnesium and dietary fiber, two nutrients found in whole-grain foods. By incorporating whole-grain foods into the diet, therefore, insulin sensitivity might be improved.

Dietary phylloquinone intake as a potential marker for a heart-healthy dietary pattern in the Framingham Offspring cohort.

Abstract Associations were evaluated among self-reported dietary intakes of phylloquinone (vitamin K-1), lifestyle characteristics, and intermediary markers of cardiovascular disease risk in a population-based cohort of men and women. Dietary phylloquinone intakes were assessed by food frequency questionnaire in 1,338 men and 1,603 women (mean age, 54 years) participating in the Framingham Heart Study. Cross-sectional associations with lifestyle characteristics and lipid profiles, including total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride concentrations, were estimated across increasing quintile categories of phylloquinone intakes.

Carbohydrate nutrition, insulin resistance, and the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the relation between carbohydrate-related dietary factors, insulin resistance, and the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.

Research Design And Methods: We examined cross-sectional associations between carbohydrate-related dietary factors, insulin resistance, and the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in 2,834 subjects at the fifth examination (1991-1995) of the Framingham Offspring Study. Homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was calculated using the following formula (fasting plasma insulin x plasma glucose)/22.

Engineering of dendrimer surfaces to enhance transepithelial transport and reduce cytotoxicity.

Purpose: To evaluate the cytotoxicity, permeation, and transport mechanisms of PAMAM dendrimers and surface-modified cationic PAMAM dendrimers using monolayers of the human colon adenocarcinoma cell line, Caco-2.

Methods: Cytotoxicity was determined using the MTT assay. The effect of dendrimers on monolayer integrity was determined from measurements of transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) and [14C]mannitol apparent permeability coefficient (Papp).

The influence of surface modification on the cytotoxicity of PAMAM dendrimers.

The influence of surface modification on the cytotoxicity of PAMAM dendrimers was examined using Caco-2 cells. Dendrimers were modified by conjugating either lauroyl chains or polyethylene glycol (PEG) 2000 onto the surface of cationic PAMAM dendrimers (G2, G3, G4). The cytotoxicity of unmodified dendrimers towards Caco-2 cells was appreciably higher for cationic (whole generation) compared with anionic (half generation) dendrimers and for both types increased with increasing size (generation) and concentration.

Phthalocyanine-based nanoporous network polymers.

Network polymers exhibiting large surfaces areas (450-950 m2 g-1) are prepared by the phthalocyanine-forming reaction of a bis(phthalonitrile) monomer containing a rigid spirocyclic linking group.

Whole-grain intake is favorably associated with metabolic risk factors for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease in the Framingham Offspring Study.

Background: The influence of whole grains on cardiovascular disease risk may be mediated through multiple pathways, eg, a reduction in blood lipids and blood pressure, an enhancement of insulin sensitivity, and an improvement in blood glucose control.

Objective: The objective was to examine the association between diets rich in whole- or refined-grain foods and several metabolic markers of disease risk in the Framingham Offspring Study cohort.

Design: Whole-grain intake and metabolic risk markers were assessed in a cross-sectional study of 2941 subjects.

Dietary and nondietary determinants of vitamin K biochemical measures in men and women.

Few epidemiological studies that rely on the food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) for dietary assessment have measured biomarkers of vitamin K intake to independently confirm associations between self-reported dietary vitamin K intake and disease risk. Associations were examined between two sensitive biomarkers of vitamin K status, plasma phylloquinone and serum percent undercarboxylated osteocalcin (%ucOC), and self-reported usual phylloquinone intake as estimated from a FFQ. The influence of other dietary and nondietary factors on plasma phylloquinone concentrations was also examined.

Effects of a hydrogenated form of vitamin K on bone formation and resorption.

Background: Hydrogenation of vegetable oils affects blood lipid and lipoprotein concentrations. However, little is known about the effects of hydrogenation on other components, such as vitamin K. Low phylloquinone (vitamin K1) intake is a potential risk factor for bone fracture, although the mechanisms of this are unknown.

Use of biological markers to validate self-reported dietary intake in a random sample of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer United Kingdom Norfolk cohort.

Background: The validity of dietary assessment methods should be established before diet-disease associations are reported.

Objective: Our objective was to validate a 7-d food diary and a food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) against independent biomarkers of intake in urine (nitrogen, potassium, and sodium) and blood (plasma ascorbic acid).

Design: A total of 146 healthy middle-aged men and women were recruited from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer UK Norfolk cohort, a free-living cohort of approximately 25000 persons.

Whole grain intake and risk of ischemic stroke in women.

In a recent prospective study, whole grain intake was associated with a reduced risk of ischemic stroke. Refined grain, however, did not elicit such protection. Given the potential health benefits associated with whole grain diets, further exploration on the effects of whole grains on health and risk of chronic disease is warranted.

Epidemiological assessment of diet: a comparison of a 7-day diary with a food frequency questionnaire using urinary markers of nitrogen, potassium and sodium.

Background: Validation studies of dietary instruments developed for epidemiological studies have typically used some form of diet record as the standard for comparison. Recent work suggests that comparison with diet record may overestimate the ability of the epidemiological instrument to measure habitual dietary intake, due to lack of independence of the measurement errors. The degree of regression dilution in estimating diet-disease association may therefore have been correspondingly underestimated.

The synthesis and glass-forming properties of phthalocyanine-containing poly(aryl ether) dendrimers.

The synthesis, structural characterisation and properties of a number of phthalocyanine-containing dendrimers are described. Peripheral substitution of phthalocyanine (Pc) with four poly(aryl ether) dendritic wedges (1st, 2nd or 3rd generation) produces materials whose properties are dominated both by the columnar self-association of the Pc core and by the glass-forming character of the dendritic substituents. Asymmetric Pcs containing a single poly(aryl ether) dendron display a columnar mesophase, the structure of which can be frozen into an anisotropic glass at room temperature.

Gene-nutrient interactions: dietary behaviour associated with high coronary heart disease risk particularly affects serum LDL cholesterol in apolipoprotein E epsilon4-carrying free-living individuals.

Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) genotype influence on the relationship between dietary risk factors for cardiovascular disease and blood serum lipid levels was investigated in 132 free-living individuals participating in the European Prospective Investigation of Cancer (EPIC) study. All subjects (age 40-69) were clinically healthy and provided information on their usual diet. ApoE genotype and serum lipid concentrations were determined in all subjects.

Polyamidoamine Starburst dendrimers as solubility enhancers.

The solubility of the hydrophobic drug ibuprofen has been compared in an aqueous solution of polyamidoamine (PAMAM) G4 dendrimer and sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS). The PAMAM G4 dendrimer solution significantly enhanced the solubility of ibuprofen compared to 2% SDS solution. It was found that the solubility of ibuprofen in dendrimer solution was directly proportional to dendrimer concentration and inversely proportional to temperature.

Antioxidants and breast cancer.

A recent prospective study found that consumption of fruits and vegetables high in specific carotenoids and vitamins reduced breast cancer risk among premenopausal women. This observed protection might not be due to the anticarcinogenic mechanism of a single nutrient. Further prospective studies relating blood and dietary micronutrients to breast cancer risk are warranted.

Silicon Phthalocyanines with Axial Dendritic Substituents.

Nonscattering glasses that are indefinitely stable with respect to crystallization can be prepared from the title compounds. In these solid solutions, the dendritic substituents effectively suppress interactions between the phthalocyanine units (see the structure depicted on the right).

Relationships between dietary intakes and fasting plasma concentrations of fat-soluble vitamins in humans.

Dietary intakes of retinol equivalents, alpha-tocopherol equivalents, vitamin D and phylloquinone were estimated from three sets of 4-d weighed diet records and compared to three corresponding fasting plasma concentrations of retinol, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, alpha-tocopherol, and phylloquinone measured in 34 healthy adults over 20 wk. The magnitude of the correlation between dietary vitamin intake and its corresponding biochemical measure is in part determined by the reproducibility of each of the measures, so within-to-between subject variance ratios were calculated for both dietary intakes and plasma concentrations. Phylloquinone was the only fat-soluble vitamin with a significant correlation between dietary intake and fasting plasma concentration (r = 0.

Surface modification of the biomedical polymer poly(ethylene terephthalate).

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to characterize modified surfaces of a biomedically important polymer, poly(ethylene terephthalate). Several modification schemes were investigated and direct silanization with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane was found to be the optimum procedure, resulting in an aminated surface. Surface coverage of up to 100% was achieved with retention of the polymeric structural integrity.

Facilitation of endothelial cell growth on hydroxylated ePTFE vascular grafts.

The authors have modified ePTFE by hydroxylating the surface using aluminum deposition and removal with sodium hydroxide. This process has no effect on the microfibrillar structure, but reduces the hydrophobicity of ePTFE. There were significantly greater numbers of rat aortic endothelial cells on the surface of modified as compared to control ePTFE after 14 days (469 +/- 44 vs.

Improved biocompatibility of silicone rubber by removal of surface entrapped air nuclei.

Biomaterials activate the complement system which is important since C3a promotes platelet aggregation and release, and C5a activates neutrophils that may augment coagulation. Tiny air nuclei (microbubbles) are found in the surface roughness of biomaterials on exposure to a liquid, therefore two interfaces exist: (a) a blood/biomaterial, and (b) a blood/air interface. Experiments were carried out that documented that air bubbles activate complement and augment in vitro platelet aggregation in human plasma.