ObjectivesTo investigate the effect of partially defatted Granulated Brazil nut (GBN) on biomarkers of oxidative stress and antioxidant status of hypertensive and dyslipidemic patients on nutrition and drug approaches.MethodsNinety one hypertensive and dyslipidemic subjects of both genders (51.6 % men), mean age 62.1 ± 9.3 years, performed a randomized crossover trial, double-blind, placebo controlled. Subjects received a diet and partially defatted GBN 13 g per day (≈227.5 μg/day of selenium) or placebo for twelve weeks with four-week washout interval. Anthropometric, laboratory and clinic characteristics were investigated at baseline. Plasma selenium (Se), plasma glutathione peroxidase (GPx3) activity, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), 8-epi PGF2α and oxidized LDL were evaluated at the beginning and in the end of each intervention.ResultsGBN intake significantly increased plasma Se from 87.0 ± 16.8 to 180.6 ± 67.1 μg/L, increased GPx3 activity in 24,8 % (from 112.66 ± 40.09 to 128.32 ± 38.31 nmol/min/mL, p < 0,05), and reduced 3.25 % of oxidized-LDL levels (from 66.31 ± 23.59 to 60.68 ± 20.88 U/L, p < 0.05). An inverse association between GPx3 and oxidized LDL levels was observed after supplementation with GBN by simple model (β -0.232, p = 0.032) and after adjustment for gender, age, diabetes and BMI (β -0.298, p = 0.008). There wasn’t association between GPx3 and 8-epi PGF2α (β -0.209, p = 0.052) by simple model.ConclusionThe partially defatted GBN intake has a potential benefit to increase plasma selenium, increase enzymatic antioxidant activity of GPx3 and to reduction oxidation in LDL in hypertensive and dyslipidemic patients.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01990391; November 20, 2013.

LSCI appears to be a promising noninvasive technique for evaluating systemic microvascular endothelial function.

Laser speckle contrast imaging identifies endothelial-dependent and endothelial-independent microvascular dysfunction in individuals presenting with EOCAD, and thus could be valuable as an early peripheral marker of atherothrombotic disease.

ObjectiveThyroid hormones can lower levels of atherogenic lipoproteins, and selenium is important in thyroid hormone homeostasis. We aimed to investigate the effects of a healthy diet associated with the Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) in dyslipidemic and hypertensive patients.MethodsThis study was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial. Seventy-seven dyslipidemic and hypertensive patients already receiving lipid-lowering drugs received either a dietary treatment associated with partially defatted Brazil nut flour (13 g/day providing 227,5 μg of selenium/day),or with dyed cassava flour as a placebo. All patients received a personalized dietary guideline with nutritional recommendations for dyslipidemia and hypertension and were followed for 90 days.ResultsThe Brazil nut group showed reductions in total cholesterol (−20.5 ± 61.2 mg/dL, P = 0.02), non HDL-cholesterol (−19.5 ± 61.2 mg/dL, P = 0.02) and Apo A-1 (−10.2 ± 26.7 mg/dL, P = 0.03) without significant alterations in the Apo B/Apo A-1 ratio. The placebo group showed a reduction in FT3 levels (−0.1 ± 0.4, P = 0.03) and increased Lp(a) levels (5.9 ± 18.0 mg/dL, P = 0.02). There were no statistical differences in blood pressure and serum lipids between Brazil nut and placebo group.ConclusionsSupplementation with Brazil nuts seems to favor the maintenance of FT3 levels and contributes to lipemia reduction in hypercholesterolemic and euthyroid patients. Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT01990391

The purpose of the present study was to identify the association of the Pro12Ala polymorphism in the PPAR-g2 gene with diabetes, insulinaemia and insulin resistance. A meta-analysis study was carried out based on studies conducted in the last 10 years, using the databases PubMed, ISI Web of Knowledge, High Wire Press and Scielo, and the reference lists of the obtained articles. We included original studies that showed the relationship between the Pro12Ala polymorphism in the PPAR-g2 gene and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), insulinaemia and insulin resistance. Statistical analyses were conducted using the program RevMAn 5.0. The Mantel -Haenszel test was used to estimate the OR and the 95 % CI of the dichotomous variable, while the standardised effect size was used to estimate the average standardised mean difference and 95 % CI of continuous variables. The studies were subgrouped by ethnicity and overweight status. Forty-one studies were analysed, including a global sample of 30 612 subjects. We found a significant association of the Ala allele with the lowest risk of T2DM in Caucasians (OR 0·80; 95 % CI 0·65, 0·98), lower serum insulin (standardised effect size: 2 0·05; 95 % CI 20·09, 2 0·00; P¼0·04), and greater sensitivity to insulin in overweight individuals (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance standardised effect size: 20·07; 95 % CI 2 0·13, 2 0·01; P¼ 0·02). Considering that the Pro12Ala polymorphism in the PPAR-g2 gene is one of the factors related to insulin sensitivity, the present study demonstrated a significant effect of the Ala allele on lower development of T2DM in Caucasians and greater sensitivity to insulin in overweight subjects.

Supplementation with GBNs induced significant increases in the plasma Se concentration and systemic bioavailability of nitric oxide. Nevertheless, GBN supplementation did not lead to any improvement in systemic microvascular reactivity or density in patients with arterial hypertension and dyslipidemia who were undergoing multiple drug therapies.

The expression of selenoproteins, a specific group of proteins that incorporates selenocysteine, is hierarchically regulated by the availability of Se, with some, but not all selenoprotein mRNA transcripts decreasing in abundance with decreasing Se. Selenocysteine insertion into the peptide chain occurs during translation following recoding of an internal UGA stop codon. There is increasing evidence that this UGA recoding competes with premature translation termination, which is followed by nonsense-mediated decay (NMD) of the transcript. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the susceptibility of different selenoprotein mRNAs to premature termination during translation and differential sensitivity of selenoprotein transcripts to NMD are major factors in the selenoprotein hierarchy. Selenoprotein transcript abundance was measured in Caco-2 cells using real-time PCR under different Se conditions and the data obtained fitted to mathematical models of selenoprotein translation. A calibrated model that included a combination of differential sensitivity of selenoprotein transcripts to NMD and different frequency of non-NMD related premature translation termination was able to fit all the measurements. The model predictions were tested using SiRNA to knock down expression of the crucial NMD factor UPF1 (up-frameshift protein 1) and selenoprotein mRNA expression. The calibrated model was able to predict the effect of UPF1 knockdown on gene expression for all tested selenoproteins, except SPS2 (selenophosphate synthetase), which itself is essential for selenoprotein synthesis. These results indicate an important role for NMD in the hierarchical regulation of selenoprotein mRNAs, with the exception of SPS2 whose expression is likely regulated by a different mechanism.

Introduction: Nutritional status has been implicated in the modulation of the immune response, possibly augmenting the pathogenesis of Chagas disease (Cd). We evaluated diet quality and nutritional status in adults and elderly patients with chronic Cd in a tertiary hospital. Methods: A case-control study of Cd patients was conducted, paired for gender, age, and co-morbidities with non-Cd patients. Anthropometric measurements and food frequency questionnaire was used, and diet quality was assessed by the Brazilian Healthy Eating Index-Revised (BHEI-R). The Estimated Average Requirement cut-off points were used to determine the dietary micronutrient adequacy. The Cd group was further grouped according to Los Andes classification. Results: The study participants were 67 ± 10 years old, 73.6% elderly and 63% female. The prevalence of overweight/obesity and abdominal fat was high in both groups; however, Cd group showed a lower prevalence of obesity and increased risk of disease according to waist circumference classification. There was no difference in BHEI-R score between groups (p=0.145). The Cd group had sodium and saturated fat intake above recommendations and low intake of unsaturated fat, vitamin D, E, selenium, magnesium, and dairy products; but higher intake of iron. According to Los Andes classification, group III presented lower intake of whole fruit and dietary fiber. Conclusions: Patients with Cd were overweight and the quality of their diet was unsatisfactory based on the recommended diet components for age and sex.