BackgroundRegular consumption of the soluble dietary fiber β-glucan is associated with decreased total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and blood glucose. Barley and oat flakes as natural sources of β-glucan were roasted to improve sensory quality. The aim of this study was to investigate whether roasting of barley and oat flakes changes the physiological impact of the β-glucan-rich flakes on glucose and lipid metabolism.MethodA five-armed randomized crossover trial design was used. The intervention study was conducted from May 2018 to May 2019 and included 32 healthy subjects with moderately increased LDL cholesterol (≥2.5 mmol/L). During the 3-week intervention periods, 80 g of roasted or traditional barley or oat flakes, or four slices of white toast bread per day were consumed for breakfast. At the start and the end of each intervention, fasting and postprandial blood was taken. The intervention periods were separated by 3-week wash-out periods.ResultsDuring the interventions with the cereal flakes, TC and LDL cholesterol concentrations were significantly reduced compared to baseline values by mean differences of 0.27–0.33 mmol/L and 0.21–0.30 mmol/L, respectively (p < 0.05), while high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was only reduced after the intervention with barley flakes (p < 0.05). After the intervention period with toast, TC and HDL cholesterol increased (p < 0.05). The fasting levels of triglycerides, fasting blood glucose and insulin did not change in any group. The effects of traditional and roasted varieties on blood lipids did not differ between the groups.ConclusionThe regular consumption of traditional or roasted barley and oat flakes contributes to the management of cardiovascular diseases by improving TC and LDL cholesterol.Clinical trial registrationhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03648112, identifier NCT03648112.

In recent years, there has been a global trend towards a plant-based lifestyle. In the NuEva study, dietary self-reports of 258 participants following one of four diets (Western diet (WD), flexitarians (Flex), vegetarians (VG), and vegans (VN)) were related to fecal microbiome composition. Reduced consumption of animal products (VN < VG < Flex < WD) was associated with a decreased intake of energy (p < 0.05), and an increased intake of soluble and non-soluble dietary fibers (p < 0.05). We observed the lowest average microbiome diversity in vegans and the highest in WD. Compared to WD, VG (p < 0.05) and VN (p < 0.01) differed significantly in their bacterial composition. These data were related to dietary fiber intake. Furthermore, we identified 14 diet-specific biomarkers at the genus level by using LefSe analysis. Of these, 11 showed minimum or maximum counts in WD or VN. While the VN-specific species were inversely associated with cardiovascular risk factors, a positive association was detected for the WD-specific species. Identifying biomarkers for the diets on extreme ends of the spectrum (WD and VN) and their association with cardiovascular risk factors provides a solid evidence base highlighting the potential and the need for the development of personalized recommendations dependent on dietary patterns. Even so, the mechanisms underlying these diet-specific differences in microbiome composition cannot yet be clearly assessed. The elucidation of these associations will provide the basis for personalized nutritional recommendations based on the microbiome.

The aim of the present study was to examine β-glucan production and the potential prebiotic and chemopreventive effects of wheat and rye sourdoughs and breads generated with wild-type and non-β-glucan-forming isogenic mutant strains of Levilactobacillus brevis and Pediococcus claussenii. Sourdough and bread samples were subjected to in vitro digestion and fermentation. Fermentation supernatants (FS) and pellets (FP) were analyzed (pH values, short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), ammonia, bacterial taxa) and the effects of FS on LT97 colon adenoma cell growth, viability, caspase-2 and -3 activity, genotoxic and antigenotoxic effects and on gene and protein expression of p21, cyclin D2, catalase and superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) were examined. Concentrations of SCFA were increased and concentrations of ammonia were partly reduced in the FS. The relative abundance of Bifidobacteriaceae was increased in all FPs. Treatment with FS reduced the growth and viability of LT97 cells and significantly increased caspase-2 and -3 activities without exhibiting genotoxic or antigenotoxic effects. The p21 mRNA and protein levels were increased while that of cyclin D2 was reduced. Catalase and SOD2 mRNA and protein expression were marginally induced. The presented results indicate a comparable chemopreventive potential of wheat and rye sourdoughs and breads without an additional effect of the formed β-glucan.

Isolated micellar casein has been classified as a slow protein because of its slow digestion and amino acid absorption kinetics. These result further in a more moderate and sustained amino acid availability in the plasma and subsequently lower muscle protein synthesis (MPS) rate when, for example, compared with whey. However, the milk matrix with lactose, fat and various minerals may modulate the effect of casein on MPS. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the effects of the ingestion of casein dissolved in bovine milk serum to the ingestion of isolated casein on myofibrillar protein synthesis. In this parallel group randomized trial, 32 healthy older men (age: 71 ± 1 y) received a primed continuous infusion of L-[ring-2 H 5 ]phenylalanine, L-[1-13 C]leucine, and L-[ring-3,5-2 H 2 ]tyrosine and blood and muscle samples were taken to assess myofibrillar fractional synthetic rate (FSR) under basal postabsorptive conditions and after a single bolus of 25 g intrinsically L-[1-13 C]phenylalanine and L-[1-13 C]leucine-labeled casein either in an isolated form (ISO-CAS; n = 16) or dissolved in bovine milk serum (MILK-CAS; n = 16). The ingestion of 25 g of casein significantly (P < 0.05) increased MPS rates in both groups when assessed over the late postprandial period (t = 120-300 min). Ingestion of MILK-CAS and ISO-CAS did not significantly stimulate MPS rates when assessed over the early (t = 0-120 min) and overall (t = 0-300 min) postprandial FSR compared to postabsorptive (t =-120-0 min) FSR. No significant differences were observed between the two groups over the early, late or entire postprandial period (P > 0.05). The ingestion of additional normal milk matrix to micellar casein does not modulate overall myofibrillar protein synthesis rates in older men when compared to the ingestion of micellar casein dissolved in water. Therefore, there is neither a benefit, nor a detrimental effect of ingesting micellar casein within a normal milk matrix instead of the isolated form to increase MPS.