Nutraceuticals in Disease Prevention

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular and Translational Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (18 February 2022) | Viewed by 10691

Special Issue Editor

1. Department of Family Medicine, Chungbuk National University Hospital, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
2. Department of Family Medicine, Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
Interests: chemoprevention of cancer; cancer survivorship; hospice; palliative care; clinical nutrition; nutraceuticals; health promotion

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, “Nutraceutical Approach for Health Promotion”, will mainly focus on nutrition (minerals, vitamins, amino acids, and hormones) and food that can be used for health promotion and disease prevention.

Nutraceuticals are defined as any food component for medicinal purposes. They include minerals, vitamins, amino acids, fatty acids, and hormones, in addition to foods. These are used as an alternative to conventional medicines that promote quality of life and nutritional values of foods and prolong life expectancy. Nutraceuticals can play a role in immune modulator, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, cancer-preventive, cardioprotective, organoprotective, and detoxifying agents.

The global market size of nutraceuticals is steadily increasing. It is essential that scientific evidence be provided by researchers to avoid misuse and use of products with poor evidence.

Dr. Hee-Taik Kang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomedicines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • clinical nutrition
  • nutraceuticals
  • health promotion
  • detoxification
  • metabolism
  • prevention
  • chemoprevention

Published Papers (4 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Other

19 pages, 4168 KiB  
Article
Cadmium-Induced Kidney Injury in Mice Is Counteracted by a Flavonoid-Rich Extract of Bergamot Juice, Alone or in Association with Curcumin and Resveratrol, via the Enhancement of Different Defense Mechanisms
by Santa Cirmi, Alessandro Maugeri, Antonio Micali, Herbert Ryan Marini, Domenico Puzzolo, Giuseppe Santoro, Jose Freni, Francesco Squadrito, Natasha Irrera, Giovanni Pallio, Michele Navarra and Letteria Minutoli
Biomedicines 2021, 9(12), 1797; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomedicines9121797 - 30 Nov 2021
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 2223
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) represents a public health risk due to its non-biodegradability and long biological half-life. The main target of Cd is considered the kidney, where it accumulates. No effective treatment for Cd poisoning is available so that several therapeutic approaches were proposed to [...] Read more.
Cadmium (Cd) represents a public health risk due to its non-biodegradability and long biological half-life. The main target of Cd is considered the kidney, where it accumulates. No effective treatment for Cd poisoning is available so that several therapeutic approaches were proposed to prevent damages after Cd exposure. We evaluated the effects of a flavonoid-rich extract of bergamot juice (BJe), alone or in association with curcumin (Cur) and resveratrol (Re), in the kidney of mice exposed to cadmium chloride (CdCl2). Male mice were administered with CdCl2 and treated with Cur, Re, or BJe alone or in combination for 14 days. The kidneys were processed for biochemical, structural and morphometric evaluation. Cd treatment significantly increased urea nitrogen and creatinine levels, along with tp53, Bax, Nos2 and Il1b mRNA, while reduced that of Bcl2, as well as glutathione (GSH) content and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity. Moreover, Cd caused damages to glomeruli and tubules, and increased Nrf2, Nqo1 and Hmox1 gene expression. Cur, Re and BJe at 40 mg/kg significantly improved all parameters, while BJe at 20 mg/kg showed a lower protective effect. After treatment with the associations of the three nutraceuticals, all parameters were close to normal, thus suggesting a new potential strategy in the protection of renal functions in subjects exposed to environmental toxicants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutraceuticals in Disease Prevention)
Show Figures

Figure 1

17 pages, 3002 KiB  
Article
Vitamin-Containing Antioxidant Formulation Reduces Carcinogen-Induced DNA Damage through ATR/Chk1 Signaling in Bronchial Epithelial Cells In Vitro
by J.P. Jose Merlin, Graham Dellaire, Kieran Murphy and H.P. Vasantha Rupasinghe
Biomedicines 2021, 9(11), 1665; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomedicines9111665 - 11 Nov 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2247
Abstract
Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate worldwide and is often diagnosed at late stages, requiring genotoxic chemotherapy with significant side effects. Cancer prevention has become a major focus, including the use of dietary and supplemental antioxidants. Thus, we investigated the ability of [...] Read more.
Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate worldwide and is often diagnosed at late stages, requiring genotoxic chemotherapy with significant side effects. Cancer prevention has become a major focus, including the use of dietary and supplemental antioxidants. Thus, we investigated the ability of an antioxidant formulation (AOX1) to reduce DNA damage in human bronchial epithelial cells (BEAS-2B) with and without the combination of apple peel flavonoid fraction (AF4), or its major constituent quercetin (Q), or Q-3-O-d-glucoside (Q3G) in vitro. To model smoke-related genotoxicity, we used cigarette-smoke hydrocarbon 4-[(acetoxymethyl)nitrosamino]-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNKOAc) as well as methotrexate (MTX) to induce DNA damage in BEAS-2B cells. DNA fragmentation, γ-H2AX immunofluorescence, and comet assays were used as indicators of DNA damage. Pre-exposure to AOX1 alone or in combination with AF4, Q, or Q3G before challenging with NNKOAc and MTX significantly reduced intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and DNA damage in BEAS-2B cells. Although NNKOAc-induced DNA damage activated ATM-Rad3-related (ATR) and Chk1 kinase in BEAS-2B cells, pre-exposure of the cells with tested antioxidants prior to carcinogen challenge significantly reduced their activation and levels of γ-H2AX (p ≤ 0.05). Therefore, AOX1 alone or combined with flavonoids holds promise as a chemoprotectant by reducing ROS and DNA damage to attenuate activation of ATR kinase following carcinogen exposure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutraceuticals in Disease Prevention)
Show Figures

Figure 1

24 pages, 2624 KiB  
Article
Concurrent Prebiotic Intake Reverses Insulin Resistance Induced by Early-Life Pulsed Antibiotic in Rats
by Teja Klancic, Isabelle Laforest-Lapointe, Jolene Wong, Ashley Choo, Jodi E. Nettleton, Faye Chleilat, Marie-Claire Arrieta and Raylene A. Reimer
Biomedicines 2021, 9(1), 66; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomedicines9010066 - 12 Jan 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2817
Abstract
Pulsed antibiotic treatment (PAT) early in life increases risk of obesity. Prebiotics can reduce fat mass and improve metabolic health. We examined if co-administering prebiotic with PAT reduces obesity risk in rat pups weaned onto a high fat/sucrose diet. Pups were randomized to [...] Read more.
Pulsed antibiotic treatment (PAT) early in life increases risk of obesity. Prebiotics can reduce fat mass and improve metabolic health. We examined if co-administering prebiotic with PAT reduces obesity risk in rat pups weaned onto a high fat/sucrose diet. Pups were randomized to (1) control [CTR], (2) antibiotic [ABT] (azithromycin), (3) prebiotic [PRE] (10% oligofructose (OFS)), (4) antibiotic + prebiotic [ABT + PRE]. Pulses of antibiotics/prebiotics were administered at d19–21, d28–30 and d37–39. Male and female rats given antibiotics (ABT) had higher body weight than all other groups at 10 wk of age. The PAT phenotype was stronger in ABT males than females, where increased fat mass, hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance were present and all reversible with prebiotics. Reduced hypothalamic and hepatic expression of insulin receptor substrates and ileal tight junction proteins was seen in males only, explaining their greater insulin resistance. In females, insulin resistance was improved with prebiotics and normalized to lean control. ABT reduced Lactobacillaceae and increased Bacteroidaceae in both sexes. Using a therapeutic dose of an antibiotic commonly used for acute infection in children, PAT increased body weight and impaired insulin production and insulin sensitivity. The effects were reversed with prebiotic co-administration in a sex-specific manner. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutraceuticals in Disease Prevention)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Other

Jump to: Research

0 pages, 1351 KiB  
Systematic Review
Role of Dietary Carotenoids in Frailty Syndrome: A Systematic Review
by Roberta Zupo, Fabio Castellana, Sara De Nucci, Annamaria Sila, Simona Aresta, Carola Buscemi, Cristiana Randazzo, Silvio Buscemi, Vincenzo Triggiani, Giovanni De Pergola, Claudia Cava, Madia Lozupone, Francesco Panza and Rodolfo Sardone
Biomedicines 2022, 10(3), 632; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/biomedicines10030632 - 09 Mar 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2420
Abstract
Unbalanced diets and altered micronutrient intake are prevalent in the aging adult population. We conducted a systematic review to appraise the evidence regarding the association between single (α-carotene, β-carotene, lutein, lycopene, β-cryptoxanthin) or total carotenoids and frailty syndrome in the adult population. The [...] Read more.
Unbalanced diets and altered micronutrient intake are prevalent in the aging adult population. We conducted a systematic review to appraise the evidence regarding the association between single (α-carotene, β-carotene, lutein, lycopene, β-cryptoxanthin) or total carotenoids and frailty syndrome in the adult population. The literature was screened from study inception to December 2021, using six different electronic databases. After establishing inclusion criteria, two independent researchers assessed the eligibility of 180 retrieved articles. Only 11 fit the eligibility requirements, reporting five carotenoid entries. No exclusion criteria were applied to outcomes, assessment tools, i.e., frailty constructs or surrogates, recruitment setting, general health status, country, and study type (cohort or cross-sectional). Carotenoid exposure was taken as either dietary intake or serum concentrations. Cross-sectional design was more common than longitudinal design (n = 8). Higher dietary and plasma levels of carotenoids, taken individually or cumulatively, were found to reduce the odds of physical frailty markedly, and the evidence showed consistency in the direction of association across all selected studies. Overall, the methodological quality was rated from moderate (27%) to high (73%). Prevention of micronutrient deficiencies has some potential to counteract physical decline. Considering carotenoids as biological markers, when monitoring micronutrient status, stressing increased fruit and vegetable intake may be part of potential multilevel interventions to prevent or better manage disability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutraceuticals in Disease Prevention)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop