Nutrients

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Focus on Vitamin D, Inflammation and Type 2 Diabetes

by Carlos Eduardo Andrade Chagas, Maria Carolina Borges, Lígia Araújo Martini and Marcelo Macedo Rogero

Nutrients 2012, 4(1), 52-67; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu4010052 - 20 Jan 2012

Cited by 153 | Viewed by 17079

The initial observations linking vitamin D to type 2 diabetes in humans came from studies showing that both healthy and diabetic subjects had a seasonal variation of glycemic control. Currently, there is evidence supporting that vitamin D status is important to regulate some pathways related to type 2 diabetes development. Since the activation of inflammatory pathways interferes with normal metabolism and disrupts proper insulin signaling, it is hypothesized that vitamin D could influence glucose homeostasis by modulating inflammatory response. Human studies investigating the impact of vitamin D supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers of subjects with or at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes are scarce and have generated conflicting results. Based on available clinical and epidemiological data, the positive effects of vitamin D seem to be primarily related to its action on insulin secretion and sensitivity and secondary to its action on inflammation. Future studies specifically designed to investigate the role of vitamin D on type 2 diabetes using inflammation as the main outcome are urgently needed in order to provide a more robust link between vitamin D, inflammation and type 2 diabetes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vitamin D)

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Theobald Palm and His Remarkable Observation: How the Sunshine Vitamin Came to Be Recognized

by Russell W. Chesney

Nutrients 2012, 4(1), 42-51; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu4010042 - 17 Jan 2012

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 10582

Abstract

The seminal discovery that sunlight was important in the prevention of nutritional rickets was made in 1890 by Theobald A. Palm, a medical missionary who contrasted the prevalence of rickets in northern European urban areas with similar areas in Japan and other tropical countries. He surmised that exposure to sunlight prevented rickets. Over the next 40 years his observation led to an understanding of ultraviolet irradiation and its role in vitamin D synthesis. This opened a new era of appreciation for the curative powers of the sun and “the sunshine vitamin”. While Palm’s observations were in some ways obscure, they had a potent effect on the development of photobiology. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vitamin D)

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Open AccessArticle

Combined Fruit and Vegetable Intake Is Correlated with Improved Inflammatory and Oxidant Status from a Cross-Sectional Study in a Community Setting

by Martin M. Root, Megan C. McGinn, David C. Nieman, Dru A. Henson, Serena A. Heinz, R. Andrew Shanely, Amy M. Knab and Fuxia Jin

Nutrients 2012, 4(1), 29-41; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu4010029 - 04 Jan 2012

Cited by 67 | Viewed by 31510

Abstract

Previous studies have examined the relationship between specific nutrient and food intakes with limited markers of either inflammation or oxidant status. The objective of this study was to determine if an increase in combined self-reported fruit and vegetable (F&V) intake in a community setting was associated with improved multiple markers of inflammatory and oxidant status. A community group (N = 1000, age 18–85 years, 61% female) gave two fasted blood samples separated by 12 weeks. Blood inflammatory biomarkers included total leukocytes (WBC), plasma C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-10, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and granulocyte colony stimulating factor. Measured oxidant status markers were ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP), oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and plasma F₂-isoprostanes. The relation of markers across categories of F&V intake was examined. In analyses controlling for other important dietary and lifestyle factors, IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly lower across categories of increasing F&V intakes (p < 0.008). FRAP and ORAC were significantly higher (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.047 respectively) while F₂-isoprostanes was significantly lower (p < 0.0001) across F&V categories. In a community study, several markers of both inflammation and oxidant status were associated in a putatively salutary direction by higher intake of combined F&V, supporting current guidelines suggesting increased F&V consumption for the prevention of chronic diseases. Full article

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Open AccessReview

Vitamin D and Allergic Disease: Sunlight at the End of the Tunnel?

by Anderson P. Jones, Meri K. Tulic, Kristina Rueter and Susan L. Prescott

Nutrients 2012, 4(1), 13-28; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu4010013 - 28 Dec 2011

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 10306

Abstract

A role for vitamin D in the regulation of immune function was first proposed after the identification of Vitamin D Receptors in lymphocytes. It has since been recognized that the active form of vitamin D, 1α,25(OH)2D3, has direct affects on naïve and activated helper T cells, regulatory T cells, activated B cells and dendritic cells. There is a growing body of literature linking vitamin D (serum 25(OH)D, oral intake and surrogate indicators such as latitude) to various immune-related conditions, including allergy, although the nature of this relationship is still unclear. This review explores the findings of epidemiological, clinical and laboratory research, and the potential role of vitamin D in promoting the inappropriate immune responses which underpin the rise in a broad range of immune diseases. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutritional Immunology)

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Muscle Growth and Poultry Meat Quality Issues

by Massimiliano Petracci and Claudio Cavani

Nutrients 2012, 4(1), 1-12; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu4010001 - 22 Dec 2011

Cited by 234 | Viewed by 31081

Abstract

Over the past 50 years the worldwide growing demand of poultry meat has resulted in pressure on breeders, nutritionists and growers to increase the growth rate of birds, feed efficiency, size of breast muscle and reduction in abdominal fatness. Moreover, the shift toward further processed products has emphasized the necessity for higher standards in poultry meat to improve sensory characteristics and functional properties. It is believed that genetic progress has put more stress on the growing bird and it has resulted in histological and biochemical modifications of the muscle tissue by impairing some meat quality traits. The most current poultry meat quality concerns are associated with deep pectoral muscle disease and white striping which impair product appearance, and increased occurrence of problems related with the meat’s poor ability to hold water during processing and storage (PSE-like condition) as well as poor toughness and cohesiveness related to immaturity of intramuscular connective tissue. This paper is aimed at making a general statement of recent studies focusing on the relationship between muscle growth and meat quality issues in poultry. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Foodomics 2011)

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Nutrients, Volume 4, Issue 1 (January 2012) – 5 articles , Pages 1-67

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