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Effect of Incorporating 1 Avocado Per Day Versus Habitual Diet on Visceral Adiposity: A Randomized Trial.
Lichtenstein, AH, Kris-Etherton, PM, Petersen, KS, Matthan, NR, Barnes, S, Vitolins, MZ, Li, Z, Sabaté, J, Rajaram, S, Chowdhury, S, et al
Journal of the American Heart Association. 2022;(14):e025657
Abstract
Background Excess visceral adiposity is associated with increased risk of cardiometabolic disorders. Short-term well-controlled clinical trials suggest that regular avocado consumption favorably affects body weight, visceral adiposity, and satiety. Methods and Results The HAT Trial (Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial) was a multicenter, randomized, controlled parallel-arm trial designed to test whether consuming 1 large avocado per day for 6 months in a diverse group of free-living individuals (N=1008) with an elevated waist circumference compared with a habitual diet would decrease visceral adiposity as measured by magnetic resonance imaging. Secondary and additional end points related to risk factors associated with cardiometabolic disorders were assessed. The primary outcome, change in visceral adipose tissue volume during the intervention period, was not significantly different between the Avocado Supplemented and Habitual Diet Groups (estimated mean difference (0.017 L [-0.024 L, 0.058 L], P=0.405). No significant group differences were observed for the secondary outcomes of hepatic fat fraction, hsCRP (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein), and components of the metabolic syndrome. Of the additional outcome measures, modest but nominally significant reductions in total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were observed in the Avocado Supplemented compared with the Habitual Diet Group. Changes in the other additional and post hoc measures (body weight, body mass index, insulin, very low-density lipoprotein concentrations, and total cholesterol:high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio) were similar between the 2 groups. Conclusions Addition of 1 avocado per day to the habitual diet for 6 months in free-living individuals with elevated waist circumference did not reduce visceral adipose tissue volume and had minimal effect on risk factors associated with cardiometabolic disorders. Registration URL: https://clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT03528031.
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Mixed Spices at Culinary Doses Have Prebiotic Effects in Healthy Adults: A Pilot Study.
Lu, QY, Rasmussen, AM, Yang, J, Lee, RP, Huang, J, Shao, P, Carpenter, CL, Gilbuena, I, Thames, G, Henning, SM, et al
Nutrients. 2019;11(6)
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An increasing body of evidence suggests that the gut microbiota has a profound impact on human health. While the microbiome of a healthy individual is relatively stable, gut microbial dynamics can be influenced by host lifestyle and dietary choices. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of mixed spices (cinnamon, oregano, ginger, black pepper, and cayenne pepper) at culinary doses consumed over 2 weeks in a standardized 5g capsule on the production of gut microbiota and short-chain fatty acids The study is a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind pilot study carried out with a total of 31 healthy women and men aged between 18 and 65. The subjects were randomly allocated to one of the two intervention groups. Results indicate that daily intake of 5g of mixed spices for 2 weeks in healthy subjects resulted in a significant reduction in the relative abundance of the phylum Firmicutes (bacteria), and a trend of increasing in phylum Bacteroidetes (bacteria) as compared with a matched control group. Authors conclude that a mixture of spices at culinary doses affects the composition of gut microbiota.
Abstract
Spices were used as food preservatives prior to the advent of refrigeration, suggesting the possibility of effects on microbiota. Previous studies have shown prebiotic activities in animals and in vitro, but there has not been a demonstration of prebiotic or postbiotic effects at culinary doses in humans. In this randomized placebo-controlled study, we determined in twenty-nine healthy adults the effects on the gut microbiota of the consumption daily of capsules containing 5 g of mixed spices at culinary doses by comparison to a matched control group consuming a maltodextrin placebo capsule. The 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing data were used for microbial characterization. Spice consumption resulted in a significant reduction in Firmicutes abundance (p < 0.033) and a trend of enrichment in Bacteroidetes (p < 0.097) compared to placebo group. Twenty-six operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were different between the spice and placebo groups after intervention. Furthermore, there was a significant negative correlation between fecal short-chain fatty acid propionate concentration and Firmicutes abundance in spice intervention group (p < 0.04). The production of individual fecal short-chain fatty acid was not significantly changed by spice consumption in this study. Mixed spices consumption significantly modified gut microbiota, suggesting a prebiotic effect of spice consumption at culinary doses.
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Vaccination of patients with cutaneous melanoma with telomerase-specific peptides.
Hunger, RE, Kernland Lang, K, Markowski, CJ, Trachsel, S, Møller, M, Eriksen, JA, Rasmussen, AM, Braathen, LR, Gaudernack, G
Cancer immunology, immunotherapy : CII. 2011;(11):1553-64
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Abstract
PURPOSE A phase I study was conducted to investigate the safety, tolerability, and immunological responses to vaccination with a combination of telomerase-derived peptides GV1001 (hTERT: 611-626) and p540 (hTERT: 540-548) using granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or tuberculin as adjuvant in patients with cutaneous melanoma. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Ten patients with melanoma stages UICC IIb-IV were vaccinated 8 times intradermally with either 60 or 300 nmole of GV1001 and p540 peptide using GM-CSF as adjuvant. A second group of patients received only 300 nmole GV1001 in combination with tuberculin PPD23 injections. HLA typing was not used as an inclusion criterion. Peptide-specific immune responses were measured by delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions, in vitro T cell proliferation assays, and cytotoxicity (51-Chromium release) assays for a selected number of clones subsequently generated. RESULTS Vaccination was well tolerated in all patients. Peptide-specific immune response measured by DTH reactions and in vitro response could be induced in a dose-dependent fashion in 7 of 10 patients. Cloned T cells from the vaccinated patients showed proliferative responses against both vaccine peptides GV1001 and p540. Furthermore, T cell clones were able to specifically lyse p540-pulsed T2 target cells and various pulsed and unpulsed tumor cell lines. CONCLUSION These results demonstrate that immunity to hTERT can be generated safely and effectively in patients with advanced melanoma and therefore encourage further trials.