Using the Nutri-Score to visualise food reformulation in Germany: the case of breakfast cereals.

Background: The reformulation of commonly consumed foods towards less sugar, fat, and salt is an important public health strategy to improve food choices of consumers and thus address the high prevalence of overweight and obesity. Front-of-pack nutrition labels like the Nutri-Score may drive reformulation and support nutritionally favourable food choices. Breakfast cereals are of special interest in that they tend to be high in sugar and are relatively often targeted at children.

Unfavorable food consumption in children up to school entry age: results from the nationwide German KiESEL study.

Introduction: Evidence points toward the early life being crucial for preventing nutrition-related diseases. As promotion of healthier food preferences in toddlerhood and preschool age might still modulate the trajectories of disease risk, understanding diet in these age groups is necessary. The objective was to analyze food consumption and diet quality of 1-5-year-old children living in Germany in relation to age and sex.

The cysteine-rich virulence factor NipA of Arthrobotrys flagrans interferes with cuticle integrity of Caenorhabditis elegans.

Animals protect themself from microbial attacks by robust skins or a cuticle as in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nematode-trapping fungi, like Arthrobotrys flagrans, overcome the cuticle barrier and colonize the nematode body. While lytic enzymes are important for infection, small-secreted proteins (SSPs) without enzymatic activity, emerge as crucial virulence factors.

Sociodemographic and behavioural differences between frequent and non-frequent users of convenience food in Germany.

Introduction: Convenience foods are a double-edged sword in that they provide quick and easy nutrition but may promote non-communicable diseases related to excess intakes of sugar, fat, and salt. To inform the German national reduction and innovation strategy for less sugar, fat, and salt in processed foods, the present study sought to analyse the consumption frequency of selected convenience foods and to determine sociodemographic and behavioural factors that characterise frequent users.

Methods: In a representative computer-assisted telephone interview survey in the adult German population ( = 3,997) conducted in 2018, consumption frequency of 21 convenience foods was assessed.

Unfavorable nutrient intakes in children up to school entry age: results from the nationwide German KiESEL study.

Background: Nutrition in the first years of life is a cornerstone for child development and long-term health, yet there is a lack of current data on energy and nutrient intake among toddlers and preschoolers in Germany.

Objective: To analyze energy and nutrient intake in toddlers (1- to 2-year-olds) and preschoolers (3- to 5-year-olds) in Germany and compare the results with the Dietary Reference Values (DRVs) by the European Food Safety Authority.

Design: Dietary intake was assessed by weighed food record data (3 + 1 day) of 890 children from the representative cross-sectional Children's Nutrition Survey to Record Food Consumption (KiESEL), carried out in 2014-2017 as a module of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents Wave 2.

Addition of soluble fiber to standard purified diets is important for gut morphology in mice.

Purified diets (PD) increase standardization and repeatability in rodent studies but lead to differences in the phenotype of animals compared to grain-based "chow" diets. PD contain less fiber and are often devoid of soluble fiber, which can impact gut health. Thus, the aim of the present study was to modify the PD AIN93G by addition of soluble fiber, to promote more natural gut development as seen with chow diets.

Beyond Autoxidation and Lipoxygenases: Fatty Acid Oxidation Products in Plant Oils.

For decades, research on oxidation of linoleic acid (LA, C18:2 n6) and α-linolenic acid (ALA, C18:3 n3) in plant oils has focused on autoxidatively formed and lipoxygenase-derived 9-hydro(pero)xy- and 13-hydro(pero)xy-LA and -ALA. Here, using a non-targeted approach, we show that other hydroxy fatty acids are more abundant in plant oils. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses unveiled highly abundant peaks in flaxseed and rapeseed oils.

Surface wax in the ancestral grapevine Vitis sylvestris correlate with partial resistance to Powdery Mildew.

Background: Powdery Mildew of Grapevine belongs to the major diseases in viticulture and requires intensive use of fungicides. Genetic introgression of resistance factors from wild grapes from North America and, recently, China, has been successful, but wine made from those varieties is still confronted with low consumer acceptance, due to differences in taste.

Results: The current work explores the potential of Vitis vinifera sylvestris, the wild ancestor of domesticated Grapevine, with respect to containing Erysiphe necator, the causative agent of Powdery Mildew.

-Hydroxy, -Epoxy, and -dihydroxy Fatty Acids Increase during Deep-Frying.

Deep-frying of food is a common cooking technique causing thermal oxidation of fatty acids (FA). Here, we investigated for the first time the formation of hydroxy-, epoxy- and dihydroxy-FA derived from oleic, linoleic (LA), and α-linolenic acid (ALA) during frying. Potato chips were fried in high-oleic sunflower oil for 4 × 5 cycles on 2 days, and the oil was comprehensively analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

Chemical Stability and Bioactivity of tanshinone I, tanshinone IIA, cryptotanshinone and dihydrotanshinone in in vitro test systems.

Danshen Si Wu is a Traditional Chinese Medicine used for menopausal complains. Beside tanshinone IIA (Tan IIA), Danshen also contains tanshinone I (Tan I), cryptotanshinone (CT) and dihydrotanshinone (DT). The aim of this study was to compare the biological activity of these tanshinones and to determine their cytotoxicity and genotoxicity.

First review on the selenium status in Germany covering the last 50 years and on the selenium content of selected food items.

Introduction: Selenium is important for human health. However, the selenium status and selenium intake of the German population has not been recorded in a representative study so far.

Material And Methods: Thus, literature from the last 50 years was screened in a systematic way and the results of various studies were pulled together to shed light on the selenium status of the German population.

The Core Human Microbiome: Does It Exist and How Can We Find It? A Critical Review of the Concept.

The core microbiome, which refers to a set of consistent microbial features across populations, is of major interest in microbiome research and has been addressed by numerous studies. Understanding the core microbiome can help identify elements that lead to dysbiosis, and lead to treatments for microbiome-related health states. However, defining the core microbiome is a complex task at several levels.

Formation of B- and M-group aflatoxins and precursors by Aspergillus flavus on maize and its implication for food safety.

Aflatoxins count to the most toxic known mycotoxins and are a threat to food safety especially in regions with a warm and humid climate. Contaminated food reaches consumers globally due to international trade, leading to stringent regulatory limits of aflatoxins in food. While the formation of aflatoxin (AF) B by the filamentous fungus Aspergillus flavus is well investigated, less is known about the formation kinetics of its precursors and further aflatoxins.

Gut Microbiome Composition in Obese and Non-Obese Persons: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Whether the gut microbiome in obesity is characterized by lower diversity and altered composition at the phylum or genus level may be more accurately investigated using high-throughput sequencing technologies. We conducted a systematic review in PubMed and Embase including 32 cross-sectional studies assessing the gut microbiome composition by high-throughput sequencing in obese and non-obese adults. A significantly lower alpha diversity (Shannon index) in obese versus non-obese adults was observed in nine out of 22 studies, and meta-analysis of seven studies revealed a non-significant mean difference (-0.

Analysis of the competitiveness between a non-aflatoxigenic and an aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus strain on maize kernels by droplet digital PCR.

Non-aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus strains are used as a biocontrol system on maize fields to decrease the aflatoxin biosynthesis of aflatoxigenic A. flavus strains. A.

Identification and Characterization of Human Observational Studies in Nutritional Epidemiology on Gut Microbiomics for Joint Data Analysis.

In any research field, data access and data integration are major challenges that even large, well-established consortia face. Although data sharing initiatives are increasing, joint data analyses on nutrition and microbiomics in health and disease are still scarce. We aimed to identify observational studies with data on nutrition and gut microbiome composition from the Intestinal Microbiomics (INTIMIC) Knowledge Platform following the findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) principles.