Nutrients

Pancreatic β cells require tightly controlled cholesterol distribution to maintain glucose sensing, insulin-granule trafficking, and regulated exocytosis. ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) exports cellular cholesterol and phospholipids to lipid-poor apolipoprotein A-I and is a central component of β-cell cholesterol homeostasis. β-cell-specific Abca1 deletion causes cholesterol accumula…

Background: Although dietary fat and carbohydrates are major determinants of gut microbiota composition, their interactive effects across changing dietary monosaccharide-to-lard energy ratios remain incompletely understood. This study descriptively examined treatment-level cecal microbiome profiles across dietary gradients in which lard (L) was progressively replaced with glucose (G) or fructose …

Background: Nutritional safety has traditionally focused on preventing excessive nutrient exposure, yet chronic micronutrient inadequacy may also impair physiological function and health resilience. As the European Commission prepares to harmonise maximum permitted levels for food supplements and fortified foods, understanding long-term population intake trends is increasingly important. We asses…

Background: Disturbances in mineral and bone metabolism are common in hemodialysis (HD) patients, increasing the risk of hyperphosphatemia. Dietary phosphorus restriction remains a cornerstone of management, often leading to stringent dietary recommendations. This study aimed to explore whether adopting a Mediterranean-like dietary pattern (Med-LDP), compared to a Western-like dietary pattern (We…

Vitamins are essential micronutrients that regulate numerous physiological responses critical to human health: cellular metabolism, immune function, endocrine signaling, tissue repair, musculoskeletal performance, and more [...]

Background/Objectives: Maternal obesogenic diets may produce persistent developmental alterations in offspring, with response patterns that may differ between males and females. We investigated whether propolis supplementation from preconception through lactation modified metabolic and hepatic outcomes in offspring exposed to a maternal cafeteria diet. Methods: Thirty-two Wistar rat dams received…

Background: Nutritional deterioration is a common consequence of gastrectomy for gastric cancer and may persist despite standardized perioperative care. However, prospective longitudinal evidence describing the early course of postoperative nutritional recovery remains limited. This study aimed to characterize nutritional recovery trajectories following curative gastrectomy and to evaluate the in…

Oral zinc supplementation has emerged as a potential ⁠adjunctive strategy in inflammatory follicular disorders, including ⁠acne vulgaris and hidradenitis suppurativa. Beyond its role as an essential micronutrient, zinc modulates several pathways and biological processes directly ⁠relevant to these diseases, including innate immunity, oxidative stress, neutrophil-driven inflammation, antimicrobial…

Background/Objectives: Oats and barley are β-glucan-rich grains that may reduce risk factors for cardiovascular disease in adults. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of products made with either whole grain barley or whole grain oats on CVD risk factors in adults. Methods: A 6-week, double-blind, parallel-design, randomized, controlled feeding trial was conducted with 68 adults. Sub…

Background/Objectives: For many schoolchildren—particularly those in low-resource areas—the school lunch is the most reliable balanced meal of the day, so its composition is a direct determinant of dietary equity. The aim of this study was to quantify urban–rural disparities in school lunch food composition at national scale and to test whether they persist once county socioeconomic structure is …

Background: Sulfur-containing amino acids (SCAAs) are essential for fetal growth and development, but their metabolism during pregnancy remains poorly understood, with conflicting reports regarding the effect of exercise training. This study investigates the effects of physical activity (PA) interventions on maternal plasma concentrations of SCAAs and their associations with neonatal outcomes. Me…

Background: This study investigated whether caffeinated chewing gum enhances sympathetic activity and improves functional firefighting balance performance after gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) supplementation. Methods: Fourteen active-duty elite firefighters (age: 36 ± 5 years; height: 174 ± 5 cm; BMI: 25.2 ± 1.6 kg/m2) participated in a double-blind randomized crossover trial. The participants co…

Background/Objectives: Adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) has been associated with numerous health benefits, yet it is often suboptimal among university students. Its relationship with academic performance (AP), an outcome with potential long-term implications, has not been quantitatively synthesized in this population. This study aimed to synthesize the available evidence on the assoc…

Background: Branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) is involved in glucose and lipid metabolism and energy homeostasis, but whether its effects on maternal metabolism and offspring growth during lactation depend on dietary protein level remains unclear. Methods: C57BL/6J lactating dams were randomized after delivery to a normal-protein control group (CN, 20% protein), low-protein group (LP, 10% protein)…

Background/Objectives: Professional mixed martial arts (MMA) athletes routinely partake in practices to elicit rapid weight loss before official weigh-in, followed by aggressive rehydration and nutritional recovery before competition. Although weight-cutting strategies have been widely described, there is limited information characterizing nutrient intake, food group selection, and fluid consumpt…

Background: Osteoporosis is a multifactorial skeletal disorder characterized by reduced bone mass, impaired bone remodeling, and an increased risk of fractures, particularly under estrogen-deficient conditions. Artocarpus integer (Thunb.) Merr. contains prenylated flavonoids and chalcone derivatives with diverse biological activities; however, its anti-osteoporotic potential remains largely unexp…

Diabetic retinopathy, diabetic kidney disease, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy remain major causes of visual loss, kidney failure, pain, disability, and reduced quality of life despite improvements in glycemic and cardiovascular risk management. Oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, iron dyshomeostasis, lipid peroxidation, and sterile inflammation are shared features of these complicati…

Background: University students often report suboptimal dietary practices, but overall diet-quality scores may conceal differences in food-group consumption. This study explored whether distinguishable food-consumption profiles could be identified among university students from Chile, Mexico, Spain, and Italy, and examined, exploratorily, the characteristics associated with profile membership. Me…

Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) remains a major cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, with recurrence largely driven by disruption of the gut microbiota and impaired colonization resistance. Bile acids have emerged as key mediators in this process, as primary conjugated bile acids promote C. difficile spore germination, whereas microbiota-derived secondary bile acids can inhibit germi…

Background/Objectives: Sweeteners and sweetness enhancers (S&SEs) have been proposed to impair energy metabolism acutely and over time. Methods: This sub-study investigated the acute effects of a mixture of acesulfame potassium and cyclamate (Ace-K/Cyc) versus water on postprandial substrate oxidation, energy expenditure, and glucose and insulin concentrations at baseline, after a 2-month weight …