Functional Foods and Lifestyle Approaches for Diabetes Prevention and Management.

Functional foods contain biologically active ingredients associated with physiological health benefits for preventing and managing chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). A regular consumption of functional foods may be associated with enhanced anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, insulin sensitivity, and anti-cholesterol functions, which are considered integral to prevent and manage T2DM. Components of the Mediterranean diet (MD)-such as fruits, vegetables, oily fish, olive oil, and tree nuts-serve as a model for functional foods based on their natural contents of nutraceuticals, including polyphenols, terpenoids, flavonoids, alkaloids, sterols, pigments, and unsaturated fatty acids.

Erratum: Large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies five loci for lean body mass.

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML version of this article.

The Effect of a 2-Year Intervention Consisting of Diet, Physical Exercise, Cognitive Training, and Monitoring of Vascular Risk on Chronic Morbidity-the FINGER Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: To verify whether a multidomain intervention lowers the risk of developing new chronic diseases in older adults.

Methods: Multicenter, double-blind randomized controlled trial started in October 2009, with 2-year follow-up. A total of 1260 people aged 60 to 77 years were enrolled in the Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER).

Exome-wide association study of plasma lipids in >300,000 individuals.

We screened variants on an exome-focused genotyping array in >300,000 participants (replication in >280,000 participants) and identified 444 independent variants in 250 loci significantly associated with total cholesterol (TC), high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and/or triglycerides (TG). At two loci (JAK2 and A1CF), experimental analysis in mice showed lipid changes consistent with the human data. We also found that: (i) beta-thalassemia trait carriers displayed lower TC and were protected from coronary artery disease (CAD); (ii) excluding the CETP locus, there was not a predictable relationship between plasma HDL-C and risk for age-related macular degeneration; (iii) only some mechanisms of lowering LDL-C appeared to increase risk for type 2 diabetes (T2D); and (iv) TG-lowering alleles involved in hepatic production of TG-rich lipoproteins (TM6SF2 and PNPLA3) tracked with higher liver fat, higher risk for T2D, and lower risk for CAD, whereas TG-lowering alleles involved in peripheral lipolysis (LPL and ANGPTL4) had no effect on liver fat but decreased risks for both T2D and CAD.

Multidomain lifestyle intervention benefits a large elderly population at risk for cognitive decline and dementia regardless of baseline characteristics: The FINGER trial.

Introduction: The 2-year Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER) multidomain lifestyle intervention trial (NCT01041989) demonstrated beneficial effects on cognition. We investigated whether sociodemographics, socioeconomic status, baseline cognition, or cardiovascular factors influenced intervention effects on cognition.

Methods: The FINGER recruited 1260 people from the general Finnish population (60-77 years, at risk for dementia).

New Blood Pressure-Associated Loci Identified in Meta-Analyses of 475 000 Individuals.

Background: Genome-wide association studies have recently identified >400 loci that harbor DNA sequence variants that influence blood pressure (BP). Our earlier studies identified and validated 56 single nucleotide variants (SNVs) associated with BP from meta-analyses of exome chip genotype data. An additional 100 variants yielded suggestive evidence of association.

Genetic determinants of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration during pregnancy and type 1 diabetes in the child.

Objective: The in utero environment plays an important role in shaping development and later life health of the fetus. It has been shown that maternal genetic factors in the metabolic pathway of vitamin D associate with type 1 diabetes in the child. In this study we analyzed the genetic determinants of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) concentration during pregnancy in mothers whose children later developed type 1 diabetes and in control mothers.

Effects of acarbose on cardiovascular and diabetes outcomes in patients with coronary heart disease and impaired glucose tolerance (ACE): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: The effect of the α-glucosidase inhibitor acarbose on cardiovascular outcomes in patients with coronary heart disease and impaired glucose tolerance is unknown. We aimed to assess whether acarbose could reduce the frequency of cardiovascular events in Chinese patients with established coronary heart disease and impaired glucose tolerance, and whether the incidence of type 2 diabetes could be reduced.

Methods: The Acarbose Cardiovascular Evaluation (ACE) trial was a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 4 trial, with patients recruited from 176 hospital outpatient clinics in China.

Impact of common genetic determinants of Hemoglobin A1c on type 2 diabetes risk and diagnosis in ancestrally diverse populations: A transethnic genome-wide meta-analysis.

Background: Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is used to diagnose type 2 diabetes (T2D) and assess glycemic control in patients with diabetes. Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 18 HbA1c-associated genetic variants. These variants proved to be classifiable by their likely biological action as erythrocytic (also associated with erythrocyte traits) or glycemic (associated with other glucose-related traits).

Termination of pregnancy and sterilisation in women with childhood-onset type 1 diabetes.

Aims/hypothesis: The aim of this study was to explore the association between type 1 diabetes and reproductive health indicators in women, focusing on termination of pregnancy and sterilisation.

Methods: We conducted a registry-based cohort study involving 2281 women with childhood-onset type 1 diabetes, matched for age and birthplace with women without diabetes: two control participants for each woman with diabetes. We compared the frequencies of termination of pregnancy and sterilisation over a 25 year period between women with type 1 diabetes and women without, and estimated standardised incidence ratios (SIRs).

Nutrient intake and dietary changes during a 2-year multi-domain lifestyle intervention among older adults: secondary analysis of the Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability (FINGER) randomised controlled trial.

Advancing age increases the risk for diseases and health concerns like cognitive decline, constituting a major public health challenge. Lifestyle, especially healthy diet, affects many risk factors related to chronic diseases, and thus lifestyle interventions among older adults may be beneficial in promoting successful ageing. We completed a randomised 2-year multi-domain lifestyle intervention trial aiming at prevention of cognitive decline among 631 participants in the intervention and 629 in the control group, aged 60-77 years at baseline.

Correction: Genome-wide physical activity interactions in adiposity - A meta-analysis of 200,452 adults.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.

Comparison of relationships between four common anthropometric measures and incident diabetes.

Aims: First, to conduct a detailed exploration of the prospective relations between four commonly used anthropometric measures with incident diabetes and to examine their consistency across different population subgroups. Second, to compare the ability of each of the measures to predict five-year risk of diabetes.

Methods: We conducted a meta-analysis of individual participant data on body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-hip and waist-height ratio (WHtR) from the Obesity, Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease Collaboration.

Baseline Telomere Length and Effects of a Multidomain Lifestyle Intervention on Cognition: The FINGER Randomized Controlled Trial.

Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a biomarker of aging, and it is associated with lifestyle. It is currently unknown whether LTL is associated with the response to lifestyle interventions. The goal is to assess whether baseline LTL modified the cognitive benefits of a 2-year multidomain lifestyle intervention (exploratory analyses).

Novel Blood Pressure Locus and Gene Discovery Using Genome-Wide Association Study and Expression Data Sets From Blood and the Kidney.

Elevated blood pressure is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and has a substantial genetic contribution. Genetic variation influencing blood pressure has the potential to identify new pharmacological targets for the treatment of hypertension. To discover additional novel blood pressure loci, we used 1000 Genomes Project-based imputation in 150 134 European ancestry individuals and sought significant evidence for independent replication in a further 228 245 individuals.

Large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies five loci for lean body mass.

Lean body mass, consisting mostly of skeletal muscle, is important for healthy aging. We performed a genome-wide association study for whole body (20 cohorts of European ancestry with n = 38,292) and appendicular (arms and legs) lean body mass (n = 28,330) measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry or bioelectrical impedance analysis, adjusted for sex, age, height, and fat mass. Twenty-one single-nucleotide polymorphisms were significantly associated with lean body mass either genome wide (p < 5 × 10) or suggestively genome wide (p < 2.

ANGPTL8 (betatrophin) role in diabetes and metabolic diseases.

Diabetes is a major disease worldwide that is reaching epidemic levels. Its increased prevalence as well as its association with a high number of complications such as cardiovascular diseases, nephropathy, and retinopathy makes it an important disease for investigation. ANGPTL8 is a recently identified hormone that has been associated with two functionally important processes in the development of type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance as well as lipid metabolism.

Associations of CAIDE Dementia Risk Score with MRI, PIB-PET measures, and cognition.

Background: CAIDE Dementia Risk Score is the first validated tool for estimating dementia risk based on a midlife risk profile.

Objectives: This observational study investigated longitudinal associations of CAIDE Dementia Risk Score with brain MRI, amyloid burden evaluated with PIB-PET, and detailed cognition measures.

Methods: FINGER participants were at-risk elderly without dementia.

The Prognostic Value of Fasting Plasma Glucose, Two-Hour Postload Glucose, and HbA in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease: A Report From EUROASPIRE IV: A Survey From the European Society of Cardiology.

Objective: Three tests are recommended for identifying dysglycemia: fasting glucose (FPG), 2-h postload glucose (2h-PG) from an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and glycated hemoglobin A (HbA). This study explored the prognostic value of these screening tests in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).

Research Design And Methods: FPG, 2h-PG, and HbA were used to screen 4,004 CAD patients without a history of diabetes (age 18-80 years) for dysglycemia.

Genetic variants associated with warfarin dosage in Kuwaiti population.

Assessing the distinct prevalence or absence of genetic variants associated with differential response to the anticoagulant medication of warfarin in different population groups is actively pursued by pharmacogenomics community. Populations from Arabian Peninsula are underrepresented in such studies. By way of examining exome- and genome-wide genotype data from 1395 Arab individuals in Kuwait, we report distinct occurrence of warfarin response-related variants rs12460590_A/CYP2A7, rs2108622_T/CYP4F2, rs2884737_C/VKORC1 and distinct absence of rs11150606_C/PRSS53 in Kuwaiti population.

An Expanded Genome-Wide Association Study of Type 2 Diabetes in Europeans.

To characterize type 2 diabetes (T2D)-associated variation across the allele frequency spectrum, we conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association data from 26,676 T2D case and 132,532 control subjects of European ancestry after imputation using the 1000 Genomes multiethnic reference panel. Promising association signals were followed up in additional data sets (of 14,545 or 7,397 T2D case and 38,994 or 71,604 control subjects). We identified 13 novel T2D-associated loci ( < 5 × 10), including variants near the , , and genes.

Fasting serum hippuric acid is elevated after bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) consumption and associates with improvement of fasting glucose levels and insulin secretion in persons at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Scope: Urinary hippuric acid has been proposed as a biomarker for fruit, vegetable, and polyphenol consumption. We assessed how serum hippuric acid changes after a bilberry-enriched diet (BB; high anthocyanin intake) and another berry diet including strawberries, raspberries, and cloudberries (SRC; lower anthocyanin intake) and how these changes associate with insulin and glucose metabolism.

Methods And Results: Hippuric acid was measured with LC-QTOF-MS metabolite profiling analysis from fasting serum samples at baseline and after an 8-week intervention in 47 individuals with features of the metabolic syndrome who were randomized to either a BB diet (n = 15), an SRC diet (n = 20) or a control diet (n = 12).

A Genome-Wide Association Study of IVGTT-Based Measures of First-Phase Insulin Secretion Refines the Underlying Physiology of Type 2 Diabetes Variants.

Understanding the physiological mechanisms by which common variants predispose to type 2 diabetes requires large studies with detailed measures of insulin secretion and sensitivity. Here we performed the largest genome-wide association study of first-phase insulin secretion, as measured by intravenous glucose tolerance tests, using up to 5,567 individuals without diabetes from 10 studies. We aimed to refine the mechanisms of 178 known associations between common variants and glycemic traits and identify new loci.