Sources and Bioactive Properties of Conjugated Dietary Fatty Acids

The group of conjugated fatty acids known as conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) isomers have been extensively studied with regard to their bioactive potential in treating some of the most prominent human health malignancies. However, CLA isomers are not the only group of potentially bioactive conjugated fatty acids currently undergoing study. In this regard, isomers of conjugated α‐linolenic acid, conjugated nonadecadienoic acid and conjugated eicosapentaenoic acid, to name but a few, have undergone experimental assessment. These studies have indicated many of these conjugated fatty acid isomers commonly possess anti‐carcinogenic, anti‐adipogenic, anti‐inflammatory and immune modulating properties, a number of which will be discussed in this review. The mechanisms through which these bioactivities are mediated have not yet been fully elucidated. However, existing evidence indicates that these fatty acids may play a role in modulating the expression of several oncogenes, cell cycle regulators, and genes associated with energy metabolism. Despite such bioactive potential, interest in these conjugated fatty acids has remained low relative to the CLA isomers. This may be partly attributed to the relatively recent emergence of these fatty acids as bioactives, but also due to a lack of awareness regarding sources from which they can be produced. In this review, we will also highlight the common sources of these conjugated fatty acids, including plants, algae, microbes and chemosynthesis.     

Raman Spectroscopic Barcode Use for Differentiation of Vegetable Oils and Determination of Their Major Fatty Acid Composition

In this study, differentiation of vegetable oils and determination of their major fatty acid (FA) composition were performed using Raman spectral barcoding approach. Samples from seven different sources (sunflower, corn, olive, canola, mustard, soybean and palm) were analyzed using Raman spectroscopy. Second derivative of the spectral data was utilized to generate unique barcodes of oils. Chemometric analyses, namely, principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least square (PLS) methods were used for data analysis. PCA was applied for classification of the samples according to the differences in their levels arising from their barcode data. A successful differentiation based on second derivative barcodes of Raman spectra (2D‐BRS) of vegetable oils was obtained. In addition, PLS method was applied on 2D‐BRS in order to determine the major FA composition of these samples. Coefficient of determination values for palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic, α‐linolenic, cis‐11 eicosenoic, erucic and nervonic acids were in the range of 0.970–0.989. Limit of detection and limit of quantification values were found to be satisfactory (0.09–8.09 and 0.30–26.95 % in oil) for these fatty acids . Advantages of both chemometric analysis and spectral barcoding approach have been utilized in the present study. Taking the second derivative of the Raman spectra has minimized background variability and sensitivity to intensity fluctuations. Spectral conversion to the barcodes has further increased the quality of information obtained from Raman spectra and also made it possible to improve the visualization of the data. Converting Raman spectra of oils into barcodes enables simpler presentation of the valuable information, and still allows further analysis such as classification of vegetable oils and prediction of their major fatty acids with high accuracy.     

Fatty Acids,Tocopherols, Tocotrienols,Phytosterols, Carotenoids,and Squalene in Seed Oils of Hyptis suaveolens,Leonotis nepetifolia,and Ocimum sanctum

The oil yield and composition of fatty acids, tocopherols, tocotrienols, sterols, carotenoids, and squalene in the seeds of three species—Hyptis suaveolens, Leonotis nepetifolia, Ocimum sanctum—belonging to the Lamiaceae family, are studied. The oil yields are 12.1%, 16.1%, and 29.0% in O. sanctum, H. suaveolens, and L. nepetifolia, respectively. The unsaturated fatty acids are a predominant group (86.8–92.1%) in all three investigated plants; however, the profile for each species is unique. The main fatty acid differs as follows: H. suaveolens—linoleic acid (85.8%), L. nepetifolia—oleic acid (58.3%), and O. sanctum—α‐linolenic (48.6%). γ‐Tocopherol accounts for over 97%, 90%, and 93% of the total tocochromanol content (sum of tocopherols and tocotrienols) in H. suaveolens, L. nepetifolia, and O. sanctum, respectively. Two tocotrienol homologues, α and γ, are detected only in L. nepetifolia. β‐Sitosterol is the main detected sterol (38–59%) in all three species. High levels of campesterol (18–20%), Δ5‐stigmasterol (9–21%), and Δ5‐avenasterol (7–12%) are also detected. Squalene is detected only in O. sanctum (45.8 mg/100 g oil). The content of sterols, tocochromanols, and carotenoids in the investigated Lamiaceae plant seed oils ranges between 279.5–576.3, 54.5–66.7, and 0.3–3.1 mg/100 g oil, respectively. Practical Applications: Lamiaceae plants are of medicinal interest due to the presence of a broad spectrum of bioactive molecules. The present study demonstrates that seeds of the species H. suaveolens, L. nepetifolia, and O. sanctum are rich sources of bioactive compounds of lipophilic nature. There is limited knowledge associated with the composition of tocopherols, tocotrienols, sterols, carotenoids, and squalene. The results of the studied medicinal plants may enhance future targeted applications in various sectors.     

Intake of ruminant versus industrial trans fatty acids and risk of coronary heart disease – what is the evidence?

Several studies have reported a positive association between intake of trans fatty acids and risk of heart disease. It has been suggested that trans fatty acids from ruminant sources are less detrimental than trans fatty acids from industrial sources. Legislation or advice on limiting trans fatty acids has, in some instances, been restricted to trans fatty acids from industrial sources. However, comparisons of ruminant and industrial trans fatty acids have been based on few studies using relative intake data (e.g. quintiles of intakes). Therefore, we have reviewed data describing the associations between absolute intake (g eaten per day) of ruminant and industrial trans fatty acids and risk of coronary heart disease, and examined the associations graphically. Where direct comparison is possible, there are no differences in risk of coronary heart disease between total, ruminant and industrial trans fatty acids for intakes up to 2.5 g/d. At higher intakes (more than 3 g/d) total and industrial trans fatty acids are associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease but there is insufficient data available on ruminant trans fatty acids at this level of intake. The scarce data do not support discrimination between ruminant and industrial trans fatty acids in dietary recommendations or legislation.     

Hydrogenation of Vegetable Oils with Minimum trans and Saturated Fatty Acid Formation Over a New Generation of Pd-catalyst

Hydrogenation of sunflower and canola oils over a novel Pd-supported catalyst (pore size of 6.8 nm and BET specific surface area of 837 m²/g) was investigated and compared to commercial nickel catalyst. The formulated catalyst with Pd-loading of 1 wt%, supported on structured silica material was active and selective for the hydrogenation of sunflower and canola oils under mild process conditions. For both oils, the novel Pd supported catalyst exhibited a better selectivity than commercial Ni catalyst at a similar activity with a lower metal loading. For the same iodine value (IV) reduction, the Pd-catalyst produced less saturated fatty acids (SFA) and about the same level of trans fatty acids (TFA), but was more selective towards cis monoenes formation than Ni-catalyst. More importantly, this catalyst produced a reduced level of stearic acid, which at increased levels causes waxy mouth feel of the hydrogenated fat.     

The Contribution of Small Vessel Disease to Neurodegeneration: Focus on Alzheimer’s Disease,Parkinson’s Disease and Multiple Sclerosis

Brain small vessel disease (SVD) refers to a variety of structural and functional changes affecting small arteries and micro vessels, and manifesting as white matter changes, microbleeds and lacunar infarcts. Growing evidence indicates that SVD might play a significant role in the neurobiology of central nervous system (CNS) neurodegenerative disorders, namely Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), and neuroinflammatory diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS). These disorders share different pathophysiological pathways and molecular mechanisms (i.e., protein misfolding, derangement of cellular clearance systems, mitochondrial impairment and immune system activation) having neurodegeneration as biological outcome. In these diseases, the actual contribution of SVD to the clinical picture, and its impact on response to pharmacological treatments, is not known yet. Due to the high frequency of SVD in adult-aged patients, it is important to address this issue. In this review, we report preclinical and clinical data on the impact of SVD in AD, PD and MS, with the main aim of clarifying the predictability of SVD on clinical manifestations and treatment response.     

Metabolic Syndrome and β-Oxidation of Long-Chain Fatty Acids in the Brain,Heart, and Kidney Mitochondria

We present evidence that metabolic syndrome (MetS) represents the postreproductive stage of the human postembryonic ontogenesis. Accordingly, the genes governing this stage experience relatively weak evolutionary selection pressure, thus representing the metabolic phenotype of distant ancestors with β-oxidation of long-chain fatty acids (FAs) as the primary energy source. Mitochondria oxidize at high-rate FAs only when succinate, glutamate, or pyruvate are present. The heart and brain mitochondria work at a wide range of functional loads and possess an intrinsic inhibition of complex II to prevent oxidative stress at periods of low functional activity. Kidney mitochondria constantly work at a high rate and lack inhibition of complex II. We suggest that in people with MetS, oxidative stress is the central mechanism of the heart and brain pathologies. Oxidative stress is a secondary pathogenetic mechanism in the kidney, while the primary mechanisms are kidney hypoxia caused by persistent hyperglycemia and hypertension. Current evidence suggests that most of the nongenetic pathologies associated with MetS originate from the inconsistencies between the metabolic phenotype acquired after the transition to the postreproductive stage and excessive consumption of food rich in carbohydrates and a sedentary lifestyle.     

Serum-Induced Expression of Brain Natriuretic Peptide Contributes to Its Increase in Patients with HFpEF

Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels are increased in both patients with heart failure with preserved (HFpEF) and reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), but the reasons for this remain unclear. Our purpose was to examine whether serum-induced BNP (iBNP) expression partly contributes to increased BNP in patients with HFpEF. BNP reporter cardiomyocytes from pBNP-luc-KI mice were stimulated with serum from patients with HFpEF or HFrEF (n = 114 and n = 82, respectively). Luciferase activity was examined as iBNP and the iBNP-to-BNP ratio was evaluated. Patient characteristics and clinical parameters were compared, and multivariate regression analysis was performed to determine independent predictors of the iBNP-to-BNP ratio. Female sex and frequencies of atrial fibrillation, hypertension and the use of a calcium channel blocker (CCB) were higher in HFpEF. The iBNP-to-BNP ratio was significantly higher in HFpEF (26.9) than in HFrEF (16.1, p < 0.001). Multivariate regression analysis identified the existence of HFpEF as an independent predictor of the iBNP-to-BNP ratio after adjusting for all other measurements (β = 0.154, p = 0.032). Age, hemoglobin, CCB usage and deceleration time were also independent predictors (β = 0.167, p = 0.025; β = 0.203, p = 0.006; β = 0.138, p = 0.049; and β = 0.143, p = 0.049, respectively). These results indicate that the elevated BNP in patients with HFpEF is partly due to iBNP from the heart.     

Factors Associated with Mutations: Their Matching Rates to Cardiovascular and Neurological Diseases

Monogenic hypertension is rare and caused by genetic mutations, but whether factors associated with mutations are disease-specific remains uncertain. Given two factors associated with high mutation rates, we tested how many previously known genes match with (i) proximity to telomeres or (ii) high adenine and thymine content in cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) related to vascular stiffening. We extracted genomic information using a genome data viewer. In human chromosomes, 64 of 79 genetic loci involving >25 rare mutations and single nucleotide polymorphisms satisfied (i) or (ii), resulting in an 81% matching rate. However, this high matching rate was no longer observed as we checked the two factors in genes associated with essential hypertension (EH), thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA), and congenital heart disease (CHD), resulting in matching rates of 53%, 70%, and 75%, respectively. A matching of telomere proximity or high adenine and thymine content projects the list of loci involving rare mutations of monogenic hypertension better than those of other CVDs, likely due to adoption of rigorous criteria for true-positive signals. Our data suggest that the factor–disease matching rate is an accurate tool that can explain deleterious mutations of monogenic hypertension at a >80% match—unlike the relatively lower matching rates found in human genes of EH, TAA, CHD, and familial Parkinson’s disease.     

Different Metabolism and Toxicity of TRANS Fatty Acids,Elaidate and Vaccenate Compared to Cis-Oleate in HepG2 Cells

Trans fatty acids (TFAs) are not synthesized in the human body but are generally ingested in substantial amounts. The widespread view that TFAs, particularly those of industrial origin, are unhealthy and contribute to obesity, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes is based mostly on in vivo studies, and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain to be elucidated. Here, we used a hepatoma model of palmitate-induced lipotoxicity to compare the metabolism and effects of the representative industrial and ruminant TFAs, elaidate and vaccenate, respectively, with those of cis-oleate. Cellular FAs, triacylglycerols, diacylglycerols and ceramides were quantitated using chromatography, markers of stress and apoptosis were assessed at mRNA and protein levels, ultrastructural changes were examined by electron microscopy and viability was evaluated by MTT assay. While TFAs were just slightly more damaging than oleate when applied alone, they were remarkably less protective against palmitate toxicity in cotreatments. These differences correlated with their diverse incorporation into the accumulating diacylglycerols and ceramides. Our results provide in vitro evidence for the unfavorable metabolic features and potent stress-inducing character of TFAs in comparison with oleate. These findings strengthen the reasoning against dietary trans fat intake, and they can also help us better understand the molecular mechanisms of lipotoxicity.     

Presence of proNGF-Sortilin Signaling Complex in Nigral Dopamine Neurons and Its Variation in Relation to Aging,Lactacystin and 6-OHDA Insults

Growing evidence has shown that proNGF-p75NTR-sortilin signaling might be a crucial factor in neurodegeneration, but it remains unclear if it may function in nigral neurons under aging and disease. The purpose of this study is to examine and quantify proNGF and sortilin expression in the substantia nigra and dynamic changes of aging in lactacystin and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) rat models of Parkinson’s disease using immunofluorescence, electronic microscopy, western blot and FLIVO staining methods. The expression of proNGF and sortilin was abundantly and selectively identified in tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-containing dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra. These proNGF/TH, sortilin/TH-positive neurons were densely distributed in the ventral tier, while they were less distributed in the dorsal tier, where calbindin-D28K-containing neurons were numerously located. A correlated decrease of proNGF, sortilin and TH was also detected during animal aging process. While increase of proNGF, sortilin and cleaved (active) caspase-3 expression was found in the lactacystin model, dynamic proNGF and sortilin changes along with dopamine neuronal loss were demonstrated in the substantia nigra of both the lactacystin and 6-OHDA models. This study has thus revealed the presence of the proNGF-sortilin signaling complex in nigral dopamine neurons and its response to aging, lactacystin and 6-OHDA insults, suggesting that it might contribute to neuronal apoptosis or neurodegeneration during pathogenesis and disease progression of Parkinson’s disease; the underlying mechanism and key signaling pathways involved warrant further investigation.     

Research of a Thermodynamic Function [... formula ...]: Temperature Dependence and Relation to Properties at Infinite Dilution

In this work, we propose the idea of considering (∂p∂x)T, x→0 as an infinite dilution thermodynamic function. Our research shows that (∂p∂x)T,x→0 as a thermodynamic function is closely related to temperature, with the relation being simply expressed as: ln(∂p∂x)T, x→0=AT+B. Then, we use this equation to correlate the isothermal vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE) data for 40 systems. The result shows that the total average relative deviation is 0.15%, and the total average absolute deviation is 3.12%. It indicates that the model correlates well with the experimental data. Moreover, we start from the total pressure expression, and use the Gibbs–Duhem equation to re-derive the relationship between (∂p∂x)T,x→0 and the infinite dilution activity coefficient (γ∞) at low pressure. Based on the definition of partial molar volume, an equation for (∂p∂x)T,x→0 and gas solubility at high pressure is proposed in our work. Then, we use this equation to correlate the literature data on the solubility of nitrogen, hydrogen, methane, and carbon dioxide in water. These systems are reported at temperatures ranging from 273.15 K to 398.15 K and pressures up to 101.325 MPa. The total average relative deviation of the predicted values with respect to the experimental data is 0.08%, and the total average absolute deviation is 2.68%. Compared with the Krichevsky–Kasarnovsky equation, the developed model provides more reliable results.     

Fecal Volatile Organic Compounds and Microbiota Associated with the Progression of Cognitive Impairment in Alzheimer’s Disease

Metabolites produced by an altered gut microbiota might mediate the effects in the brain. Among metabolites, the fecal volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are considered to be potential biomarkers. In this study, we examined both the VOCs and bacterial taxa in the feces from healthy subjects and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients at early and middle stages. Remarkably, 29 fecal VOCs and 13 bacterial genera were differentiated from the healthy subjects and the AD patients. In general, higher amounts of acids and esters were found in in the feces of the AD patients and terpenes, sulfur compounds and aldehydes in the healthy subjects. At the early stage of AD, the most relevant VOCs with a higher abundance were short-chain fatty acids and their producing bacteria, Faecalibacterium and Lachnoclostridium. Coinciding with the development of dementia in the AD patients, parallel rises of heptanoic acid and Peptococcus were observed. At a more advanced stage of AD, the microbiota and volatiles shifted towards a profile in the feces with increases in hexanoic acid, Ruminococcus and Blautia. The most remarkable VOCs that were associated with the healthy subjects were 4-ethyl-phenol and dodecanol, together with their possible producers Clostridium and Coprococcus. Our results revealed a VOCs and microbiota crosstalk in AD development and their profiles in the feces were specific depending on the stage of AD. Additionally, some of the most significant fecal VOCs identified in our study could be used as potential biomarkers for the initiation and progression of AD.