Probiotics have potential to improve host immunity; however, there is less evidence showing their efficacy against infections and nutritional status in the elderly. We conducted a double-blinded feeding trial in the elderly to elucidate the effect of fermented milk containing Lactobacillus johnsonii La1 (LC1 w ) on infections and nutritional status. Twenty-four completely enterally fed elderly in-patients aged over 70 years were randomly assigned into two groups. All subjects were administered 3768 kJ (900 kcal)/d of total enteral nutrition (EN) through tube feeding for 12 weeks. Subjects in the LC1 group were administered 373 kJ (89 kcal)/d of LC1 fermented milk after feeding of 3395 kJ (811 kcal)/d of EN for 12 weeks. In the control group, 373 kJ/d of the same EN was replaced from the fermented milk. In the LC1 group, the percentage of days with infections during the run-in observation period was 15·4 (SD 17·3) %, which significantly decreased to 5·7 (SD 8·1) % during the intervention period (P¼ 0·018), and the reduction was larger than that of the control group (P¼ 0·047). Blood Hb increased (P, 0·05), and there was a tendency towards an increase in serum albumin and a decrease in TNF-a (a pro-inflammatory cytokine) in the LC1 group. There was a trend towards an increase in blood phagocytic activity (a natural immunity marker) in the subjects whose initial level was low in the LC1 group. There were no changes in those parameters in the control group. Administration of fermented milk containing the probiotic L. johnsonii La1 may contribute to suppressing infections by improving nutritional and immunological status in the elderly.

articles integrative PhysiologyMethods and Procedures Mice C57BL/6J mice (4 weeks old; males: n = 24, females: n = 32) used in this study were purchased from Sankyo Laboratories (Tokyo, Japan). They were allowed free access to water and food, and were kept in a light-, temperature-, and humidity-controlled environment throughout the experiment (12-12 h light-dark cycle; temperature 23 ± 1 °C; 55 ± 5% relative humidity).This study was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at Japan Women's University, and the animals were maintained in accordance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals guideline of the General Administrative Agency of the Japanese Cabinet. dietThe animals were fed two types of diet throughout the study. They were fed either the control diet (AIN-93G: American Institute of Nutrition 93G), or an HF diet (AIN-93G supplemented with lard), which consisted of 29% lard ad libitum as shown in Table 1.

Objectives: To evaluate the utility of the Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA) in assessing nutritional, physical and psychosocial functions in community-living elderly individuals. Design: A cross-sectional study of elderly individuals investigated in August 2007 and August-September 2008. Nutritional status was assessed using serum biomarkers, anthropometric measurements and the MNA. Physical function was assessed by measuring grip strength and both usual and maximum walking speeds. The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) was used to measure the individual's depressive state. Setting: Elder-care facilities in Tokyo, Japan. Subjects: Community-living elderly individuals aged $65 years (n 130). Results: The MNA evaluation classified twenty-seven (20?8 %) individuals as being at risk for malnutrition (MNA score #23?5); these at-risk individuals included a high proportion of the elderly aged $75 years. MNA scores correlated with nutritional biomarkers (total protein, albumin, cholinesterase, Hb) and anthropometric measurements (triceps skinfold, subscapular skinfold, mid-arm muscle area) and exhibited a strong correlation with grip strength and GDS score. Multivariate analysis revealed that grip strength, GDS score, marital status and maximum walking speed are strong predictors of MNA score. Conclusions: The MNA is considerably useful in providing a comprehensive assessment of nutritional status in elderly, community-living Japanese. However, larger-scale epidemiological studies are needed to determine the utility and the appropriate cut-off point of the MNA as a screen for risk of malnutrition. Keywords Community-living elderly Mini-Nutritional Assessment Grip strength DepressionThe proportion of elderly people is increasing markedly around the world. In Japan today, 22?1 % of the total population is $65 years of age, and this statistic is estimated to exceed 33?7 % in 2035. Moreover, the population of very old people (aged $75 years) is expanding to 10?2 % (1) . This demographic shift will change healthcare problems, and continued good health of the elderly population will remain a major challenge in public health (2) . Malnutrition is a common health problem in the elderly, causing a decline in the quality of life. Particularly in community-living elderly, chronic malnutrition is a widespread, but often unrecognized, problem that goes untreated. The prevalence of risk of malnutrition (RM) in the elderly living at home is 24 (SD 0?4) % in a previous review (3) . Reports suggest that 30 % of Japanese community-living elderly individuals are at RM, and 50 % have multiple health problems requiring medical treatment (4) . Increasing health-care expenditures among the elderly is also becoming a serious global socio-economic problem. The assessment of malnutrition risk among the community-living elderly is important for early intervention and prevention, which may contribute to the improvement of the social economy. Nutritional status in the elderly is influenced by various factors, including physical and psychosoc...

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Long-term feeding of high-fat diet and high-fat plus high-sucrose diet similarly induced severe obesity in C57BL/6J mice. Not only T-cell, but also B-cell function may be impaired in mice made severely obese by the high-fat or high-fat plus high-sucrose diets.

Edited by Gerald W. HartAdipose tissue plays critical roles in obesity and related diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Previous reports suggest that glycans, the most common posttranslational modifications, are involved in obesity-related diseases, but what type of glycan regulates adipogenesis during obesity remains unclear. In this study, we first quantified the mRNA levels of 167 genes (encoding 144 glycosyltransferases and 23 related enzymes) in visceral adipose tissues (VATs) from control mice and high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice. We found that a gene encoding ␤-galactoside ␣2,6-sialyltransferase-1 (St6gal1), a key enzyme responsible for the biosynthesis of ␣2,6-linked sialic acid in N-linked glycans, was most down-regulated in VATs from obese mice. We confirmed the reduction in ␣2,6-sialic acid in VATs from obese mice and differentiated adipocyte model 3T3-L1 cells. Using proteomic analysis, integrin-␤1 was identified as one of the target ␣2,6-sialylated proteins in adipose tissues, and phosphorylation of its downstream molecule focal adhesion kinase was found to be decreased after HFD feeding. St6gal1 overexpression in differentiating 3T3-L1 cells inhibited adipogenesis with increased phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase. Furthermore, St6gal1 knockout mice exhibited increased bodyweight and VAT weight after HFD feeding. The down-regulation of St6gal1 during adipogenesis was canceled by treatment with a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, suggesting an involvement of epigenetic DNA methylation in St6gal1 silencing. Our findings suggest that ST6GAL1 has an inhibitory role in adipogenesis through integrin-␤1 activation, providing new insights into the roles and regulation mechanisms of glycans in adipocytes during obesity.

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