Multiple sclerosis (MS) exhibits many of the hallmarks of an inflammatory autoimmune disorder including breakdown of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), the recruitment of lymphocytes, microglia, and macrophages to lesion sites, the presence of multiple lesions, generally being more pronounced in the brain stem and spinal cord, the predominantly perivascular location of lesions, the temporal maturation of lesions from inflammation through demyelination, to gliosis and partial remyelination, and the presence of immunoglobulin in the central nervous system and cerebrospinal fluid. Lymphocytes activated in the periphery infiltrate the central nervous system to trigger a local immune response that ultimately damages myelin and axons. Pro-inflammatory cytokines amplify the inflammatory cascade by compromising the BBB, recruiting immune cells from the periphery, and activating resident microglia. inflammation-associated oxidative burst in activated microglia and macrophages plays an important role in the demyelination and free radical-mediated tissue injury in the pathogenesis of MS. The inflammatory environment in demyelinating lesions leads to the generation of oxygen- and nitrogen-free radicals as well as proinflammatory cytokines which contribute to the development and progression of the disease. Inflammation can lead to oxidative stress and vice versa. Thus, oxidative stress and inflammation are involved in a self-perpetuating cycle.

Edible mushrooms are a good source of antioxidants. Methanol extracts of mushrooms such as Pleurotus sp., Agaricus bisporus, Morchella esculenta, Boletus edulis (approx. 2 mg mL −1 ) showed a high 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activity close to 90%. Water extracts showed even higher antioxidant activity. In this case, B. edulis, Lentinus edodes and Amanita cesarea showed the highest 2,2 -azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) scavenging activity at approx. 0.14 mg mL −1 . Other mushrooms such as Lactarius deliciosus and Cantharellus cibarius showed lower antioxidant activity in both extracts. Oxidative enzymes (peroxidases and polyphenol oxidases) present in the water fractions reduced their antioxidant activity by different extents since the phenols responsible for the antioxidant activity were not only those substrates of the oxidative enzymes. Other phenolic compounds and low-molecular-weight compounds were also involved in the antioxidant activity and differed depending on mushroom species.

The current values for metabolizable energy of macronutrients were proposed in 1910. Since then, however, efforts to revise these values have been practically absent, creating a crucial need to carry out a critical analysis of the experimental methodology and results that form the basis of these values. Presented here is an exhaustive analysis of Atwater's work on this topic, showing evidence of considerable weaknesses that compromise the validity of his results. These weaknesses include the following: (1) the doubtful representativeness of Atwater's subjects, their activity patterns, and their diets; (2) the extremely short duration of the experiments; (3) the uncertainty about which fecal and urinary excretions contain the residues of each ingested food; (4) the uncertainty about whether or not the required nitrogen balance in individuals was reached during experiments; (5) the numerous experiments carried out without valid preliminary experiments; (6) the imprecision affecting Atwater's experimental measurements; and (7) the numerous assumptions and approximations, along with the lack of information, characterizing Atwater's studies. This review presents specific guidelines for establishing new experimental procedures to estimate more precise and/or more accurate values for the metabolizable energy of macronutrients. The importance of estimating these values in light of their possible dependence on certain nutritional parameters and/or physical activity patterns of individuals is emphasized. The use of more precise values would allow better management of the current overweight and obesity epidemic.

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease whose hallmark pathological features include a selective loss of dopaminergic neurons in the midbrain. Ciclooxygenase-2 activity induction and oxidative stress have been implicated in the aetiology of Parkinson's disease and in the 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) animal model of Parkinson disease. Upon administration of fish oil, melatonin and vitamin E, neuroprotective effects on MPTP-induced neurotoxicity have been indicated. The aim of this study was to investigate the time course and compare the potency of these agents alone, on several parameters such as COX-2 and lipid peroxides (LPO) products associated with MPTP neurotoxicity in midbrain homogenates of C57BL/6 mice. Using fish oil (0.0368 g EPA and 0.0184 g DHA, per day), melatonin (10 mg/kg/day), and vitamin E (50 mg/Kg/day) we have now shown that COX-2 activity, LPO and nitrite/nitrate levels were significantly increased in MPTP treated mice (p < 0.001) while fish oil, melatonin and vitamin E treatment were capable of decreasing significantly the outcome of all above noted parameters (p < 0.05). The effect of fish oil on COX-2 activity and nitrite/nitrate levels was more profound than that of vitamin E or melatonin while the latter was more effective on reducing the LPO levels compared to fish oil and vitamin E. In conclusion, the outcome of the neuroprotective effects of these agents is long lasting and of variable potency indicating a different anti-inflammatory mode of action.

Agaricus bisporus, Lentinula edodes and Boletus edulis fruiting bodies were submitted to domestic cooking treatments, in vitro digestion and absorption tests to investigate whether their antioxidant compounds were bioaccesible and bioavailable. Water-soluble antioxidants were more resistant to boiling, frying, grilling and microwaving than methanol-soluble antioxidants. The precise influence of the cooking methodologies was specie-dependent with aqueous cooking being the most drastic treatment. Cooking affected the 2,2¢-Azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activities more than digestion because after intestinal digestion, the antioxidant capacities were higher than grilled mushrooms, probably because other antioxidants were generated or liberated during this step. Caco-2 monolayers absorbed 47.6% of the antioxidant activity of the applied digested extracts from A. bisporus (33.4% in B. edulis) and transformed the applied compounds into other antioxidants, since the bioavailable fraction of L. edodes showed higher antioxidant activity than the applied fraction. Phenolic compounds, not proteins or digestion products from polysaccharides, seemed to be related to the absorbed antioxidant activities.