Glycemic Carbohydrate: An International Perspective

Attention to the different types of carbohydrates and their role in health and disease is relatively recent. FAO and WHO jointly published a report on carbohydrates in human nutrition in 1998, with a number of recommendations about increasing carbohydrate intake as a sound approach to the prevention of obesity. The glycemic index (GI) was recommended as a means of classifying foods on the basis of their potential for raising blood glucose; this concept was based on the understanding that the state of hyperglycemia that is observed following the intake of certain high-GI carbohydrate foods could constitute a risk factor for diseases of lifestyle.     

Dietary sources of energy and macronutrient intakes among Flemish preschoolers

This study aims to identify major food sources of energy and macronutrients among Flemish preschoolers as a basis for evaluating dietary guidelines. Three-day estimated diet records were collected from a representative sample of 696 Flemish preschoolers (2.5-6.5 years old; participation response rate: 50%). For 11 dietary constituents, the contribution of 57 food groups was computed by summing the amount provided by the food group for all individuals divided by the total intake of the respective nutrient for all individuals. Bread (12%), sweet snacks (12%), milk (6%), flavoured milk drinks (9%), and meat products (6%) were the top five energy contributors. Sweet snacks were among the top contributors to energy, total fat, all fatty acids, cholesterol, and complex and simple carbohydrates. Fruit juices and flavoured milk drinks are the main contributors to simple carbohydrates (respectively 14% and 18%). All principal food groups like water, bread and cereals, vegetables, fruit, milk and spreadable fats were under-consumed by more than 30% of the population, while the food groups that were over-consumed consisted only of low nutritious and high energy dense foods (sweet snacks, sugared drinks, fried potatoes, sauces and sweet spreads). From the major food sources and gaps in nutrient and food intakes, some recommendations to pursue the nutritional goals could be drawn: the intake of sweet snacks and sugar-rich drinks (incl. fruit juices) should be discouraged, while consumption of fruits, vegetables, water, bread and margarine on bread should be encouraged.     

Fibre intake among the Belgian population by sex-age and sex-education groups and its association with BMI and waist circumference

The objectives of the present study were to assess total dietary fibre intake and the main contributors to fibre intake in the Belgian population by sex-age and sex-education groups and to investigate its relationship with BMI and waist circumference (WC). The participants of the Belgian food consumption survey (2004) were randomly selected. Information about food intake was collected using two repeated, non-consecutive 24 h recall interviews. A total of 3083 individuals ( ≥ 15 years; 1546 men and 1537 women) completed both interviews. The main contributors to total fibre intake (17·8 g/d) were cereals and cereal products (34 %; 5·9 g/d), potatoes and other tubers (18·6 %; 3·3 g/d), fruits (14·7 %; 2·8 g/d) and vegetables (14·4 %; 2·6 g/d). Legume fibre intake was extremely low (0·672 %; 0·139 g/d). In all sex-age and sex-education groups, total fibre intake was below the recommendations of the Belgian Superior Health Council. Men (21 g/d) consumed significantly more fibre than women (17·3 g/d) (P < 0·001). Lower educated men and higher educated women reported the highest fibre intake. A significant inverse association was found between total fibre intake and WC (β = - 0·118, P < 0·001). Fruit-derived fibre was positively associated with WC (β = 0·731, P = 0·001). In summary, total fibre intake was inversely associated with WC, whereas fruit-derived fibre intake was positively associated with WC in the Belgian population.     

West Nile virus surveillance in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana

West Nile virus (WNV) was detected for the first time in Louisiana in the fall of 2001. Surveillance data collected from East Baton Rouge Parish in 2002 were examined to establish baseline data on WNV activity, to support the current design of disease surveillance programs, and to target vector control efforts in the parish. The first indications of WNV activity were from a dead Northern Cardinal collected in February and from a live male cardinal sampled on 14 March. In mosquito pools, WNV was first detected on June 11. The onset of the first human case and the first detection of WNV in sentinel chickens occurred concurrently on June 24. The number of reported human cases and minimum infection rates in mosquitoes peaked in July. WNV prevalence in wild birds increased in late August and was highest in December. WNV-positive wild birds and mosquito pools were detected an average of 31 and 59 days in advance of the onset date of reported human cases, respectively, within 5 km of the residence of a human case. Antibodies to WNV were detected in sera from 7 (Northern Cardinal, House Sparrow, Northern Mockingbird, Blue Jay, Hermit Thrush, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and White-throated Sparrow) of the 42 wild bird species tested. Wild bird serology indicated WNV activity during the winter. Out of 18 mosquito species tested, the only species found positive for WNV was Culex quinquefasciatus, a result suggesting that this species was the primary epizootic/epidemic vector.     

Job stress and depression symptoms in middle-aged workers--prospective results from the Belstress study

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore the prospective relation between job stress and symptoms of depression within a cohort study. METHODS: Altogether 2821 workers were involved in the longitudinal Belstress study (Belgian job stress study); there were two measurements with a mean follow-up time of 6.6 years. Job stress was assessed by the Job Content Questionnaire. Depression symptoms were assessed by the Iowa form of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale. Baseline and repeated exposures to job stress were related to the development of high levels of depression symptoms through logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Within a population free of high depression scores at baseline, job stress increased the risk of developing high levels of depression symptoms after a mean follow-up time of 6.6 years. Independent associations were found for low decision latitude, high job strain, and isolated strain among women, but not among men. The adjusted association with high job strain among men was borderline significant. Repeated high job strain was associated with a more elevated risk of developing high levels of depression symptoms among both the women and the men. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study confirm that job stress is a risk factor for developing symptoms of depression. Stronger associations were found for women. The impact of high job strain among both men and women was more harmful when there was repeated exposure.     

The perception of work stressors is related to reduced parasympathetic activity

Purpose  

The aim was to examine the perception of work stressors in relation to ambulatory measures of heart rate variability (HRV).     

The cannabinoid CB1 receptor inverse agonist, rimonabant, modifies body weight and adiponectin function in diet-induced obese rats as a consequence of reduced food intake

The cannabinoid CB1 receptor inverse agonist rimonabant induces hypophagia and body weight loss. Reduced body weight may potentially be due to decreased food intake or to direct metabolic effects of drug administration on energy expenditure. This study uses a paired-feeding protocol to quantify the contributions of energy intake to rimonabant-induced body weight loss. Diet-induced obese (DIO) rats were dosed with rimonabant (3, 10 mg/kg PO once daily) and matched with pair-fed controls. Food intake and body weight were measured daily. Blood samples and adipose tissue were collected on day 15 for measurement of plasma adiponectin and adiponectin mRNA levels. DIO rats treated with rimonabant and pair-fed controls showed very similar changes in body weight. Although tolerance developed to the anorectic effect of rimonabant, total food intake was significantly decreased over the 14-day study period and fully accounted for the observed reductions in body weight. Adiponectin mRNA and plasma adiponectin were elevated in vehicle-treated chow-fed animals compared to obese controls, and did not differ between rimonabant-treated and pair-fed animals. The similarities between rimonabant-treated and pair-fed animals in body weight loss and the absence of differences in measures of adiponectin activity between drug-treated and pair-fed animals suggest that the outcomes of this experiment were solely mediated by the drug-induced reduction in food intake.     

Allopregnanolone and ganaxolone increase the firing activity of dorsal raphe nucleus serotonergic neurons in female rats

Accumulating evidence suggest a reciprocal interaction between neurosteroids, especially 5alpha-pregnan-3alpha-ol,20-one (3alpha,5alpha-THP, allopregnanolone), and the serotonergic (5-HT) system. Both 5-HT and neurosteroids seem to play an important role in the pathophysiology of major depression. We have previously shown that a 7-d treatment with 3alpha,5alpha-THP drastically increases the spontaneous firing activity of dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) 5-HT neurons in female rats. This study was thus undertaken to better characterize this modulation and to assess the effects of ganaxolone, a synthetic analogue of 3alpha,5alpha-THP. Female rats received 50 microg/kg.d of 3alpha,5alpha-THP or ganaxolone for 3 and 7 days. Others received 3alpha,5alpha-THP concomitantly with the antiprogestin RU486 (50 microg/kg.d, each), which was also administered alone. Acute experiments were also carried out with a single injection of 3alpha,5alpha-THP (1 microg/kg). Finally, both 3alpha,5alpha-THP and ganaxolone (50 microg/kg.d) were administered along with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) citalopram (10 mg/kg.d). In-vivo extracellular unitary recordings of 5-HT neurons from the DRN, revealed that 3alpha,5alpha-THP and ganaxolone increased their firing activity after 3 and 7 d of treatment. A 7-d treatment with RU486 had the same effect. Furthermore, an increase could be seen as soon as after 30-60 min following a single injection with 3alpha,5alpha-THP. Interestingly, both 3alpha,5alpha-THP and ganaxolone prevented the citalopram-induced reduction in firing activity after 3-d treatments. These data demonstrate the ability of 3alpha,5alpha-THP and ganaxolone to positively modulate the firing activity of DRN 5-HT neurons in female rats. Moreover, these results suggest that these neuroactive steroids might represent interesting adjuvants in the treatment of mood disorders in female patients.     

Searching for new antimalarial therapeutics amongst known drugs

The need to discover and develop new antimalarial therapeutics is overwhelming. The annual mortality attributed to malaria, currently approximately 2.5 million, is increasing due primarily to widespread resistance to currently used drugs. One strategy to identify new treatment alternatives for malaria is to examine libraries of diverse compounds for the possible identification of novel scaffolds. Beginning with libraries of drug or drug-like compounds is an ideal starting point because, in the case of approved drugs, substantial pharmacokinetic and toxicologic data should be available for each compound series. We have employed a high-throughput screen of the MicroSource Spectrum and Killer Collections, a library of known drugs, bioactive compounds, and natural products. Our screening assay identifies compounds that inhibit growth of Plasmodium falciparum cultured in human erythrocytes. We have identified 36 novel inhibitors of P. falciparum, of which 19 are therapeutics, and five of these drugs exhibit effective 50% inhibitory concentrations within similar ranges to therapeutic serum concentrations for their recently indicated uses: propafenone, thioridazine, chlorprothixene, perhexiline, and azlocillin. The findings we report here indicate that this is an effective strategy to identify novel scaffolds and therefore aid in antimalarial drug discovery efforts.     

Cannabinoid-Induced Immune Suppression and Modulation of Antigen-Presenting Cells

The study of marijuana cannabinoid biology has led to many important discoveries in neuroscience and immunology. These studies have uncovered a new physiological system, the endocannabinoid system, which operates in the regulation of not only brain function but also the regulation of the immune system. Studies examining the effect of cannabinoid-based drugs on immunity have shown that many cellular and cytokine mechanisms are suppressed by these agents leading to the hypothesis that these drugs may be of value in the management of chronic inflammatory diseases. In this report, we review current information on cannabinoid ligand and receptor biology, mechanisms involved in immune suppression by cannabinoids with emphasis on antigen-presenting cells, and preclinical and clinical models analyzing the therapeutic potential of cannabinoid-based drugs.