B-vitamin deficiency in hospitalized patients with heart failure.

The impact of heart failure and its treatment on specific nutrient requirements is unknown. Furthermore, depletion of water-soluble B vitamins that play key roles in the production of cellular energy in patients with heart failure can contribute to depletion of energy reserves observed in the failing heart. A cross-sectional study recently reported that approximately one third of hospitalized patients with heart failure had tissue levels suggestive of thiamin deficiency (vitamin B-1).

Antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of extracts from a variety of edible seaweeds.

Dietary Laminaria and Porphyra sp. have been reported to reduce the risk of intestinal or mammary cancer in animal studies. Algal anticarcinogenicity may involve effects on cell proliferation and antioxidant activity.

Extracts from dulse (Palmaria palmata) are effective antioxidants and inhibitors of cell proliferation in vitro.

Previously, we reported that a 1-butanol soluble extract of the edible red alga Palmaria palmata, known as dulse, exhibited hydroxyl and stable free radical scavenging activity as well as inhibition of lipid peroxidation, attributed to the reducing activity and polyphenol content of the dulse extract. In the present study, we evaluated the antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of two grades of dulse harvested from Canadian Maritime locations differing in UV radiation exposure (i.e.

Glucagon-like peptide-2 receptor activation in the rat intestinal mucosa.

Glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) increases small intestinal growth and function in rodents and human subjects. GLP-2 exerts its effects through a seven-transmembrane domain, G protein-coupled receptor (GLP-2R), stimulating cAMP generation and activating protein kinase A signaling in heterologous cell lines transfected with the GLP-2R. As intestinal cell lines expressing the GLP-2R have not been identified, we developed methods for studying GLP-2R signaling in the rat small intestinal mucosa in vitro.