Genetic variants in BCMO1 and CD36 are associated with plasma lutein concentrations and macular pigment optical density in humans.

UNLABELLED: Lutein is recovered at high concentration in the human macula lutea. Recent studies suggest that this micronutrient might be implicated in prevention of age-related macular degeneration. OBJECTIVE: to identify genes which affect blood and retina lutein concentrations among candidate genes (intestinal sterol transporters and carotenoid oxygenases). DESIGN: a comparative plus an observational study. PARTICIPANTS: twenty-nine healthy subjects for the comparative study and 622 subjects for the observational study. INTERVENTION AND METHODS: all the participants were genotyped for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the candidate genes. Fasting plasma lutein concentrations were measured in all the participants and after 6 months' supplementation, with either a lutein-rich supplement or a placebo, in the 29 subjects who participated in the comparative study. Macular pigment optical density (MPOD), which is a measure of macula concentration of lutein, was measured before and after the dietary intervention in the 29 subjects. Associations between SNPs and plasma lutein and MPOD were assessed by partial least square (PLS) regression followed by univariate analysis. Observed associations between SNPs and plasma lutein were verified by haplotype-based association analysis in the cohort of 622 subjects. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: plasma lutein levels and MPOD. RESULTS: six SNPs in four genes (ABCG8, BCMO1, CD36, and NPC1L1) explained 25% and 38% of the plasma and MPOD variance, respectively. Subjects with TT at the BCMO1 rs7501331 locus had lower (P < 0.05) plasma lutein than CT subjects. Subjects with CC at the CD36 rs13230419 locus had lower (P < 0.05) plasma lutein than subjects who carried a T allele. The association between CD36 and plasma lutein was confirmed in the cohort of 622 subjects. Subjects with TT at the BCMO1 rs7501331 locus had a higher (P < 0.05) MPOD, and subjects with GG at rs1761667 CD36 locus had a higher (P < 0.05) MPOD than those with an A allele. CONCLUSIONS: these results suggest that BCMO1 and CD36 are implicated in plasma and retina concentrations of lutein and that genetic variants in these genes can modulate blood and retina concentrations of lutein.

Antioxidants intake and dry eye syndrome: a crossover, placebo-controlled, randomized trial.

PURPOSE: To assess whether an orally administered antioxidant dietary supplement could improve the objective clinical signs and alleviate the subjective symptoms of dry eye syndrome. METHODS: Twenty-four subjects diagnosed with dry eye syndrome were randomized in a crossover, double-blind, controlled, randomized study to receive a placebo or an antioxidants combination (Oxybiane) for 12 weeks. In all subjects, break-up time (BUT) test, Schirmer test, ocular symptoms (sore eyes, burning, itching, sensation of foreign object in the eye, photophobia, sticky eyes, and redness), visual comfort, and general well-being were evaluated weekly. RESULTS: After 12 weeks of supplementation with Oxybiane, both the BUT scores (27.3%+/-8.4% with Oxybiane versus 3.61%+/-4.3% with the placebo, p=0.017) and the Schirmer scores (26.9%+/-14.2% with Oxybiane versus -4.7%+/-3.4% with the placebo, p=0.037) were significantly increased. A significantly improvement was also observed considering subjective clinical symptoms such as burning (p=0.031), itching (p=0.027), sensation of foreign body in eye (p=0.030), and redness (p=0.043). CONCLUSIONS. Supplementation with oral antioxidants can improve both tear stability and quantity but also subjective clinical signs.

Beta-galactosidase production by Streptococcus thermophilus is higher in the small intestine than in the caecum of human-microbiota-associated mice after lactose supplementation.

Transit kinetics and survival rates of a bacterial species from yoghurt (i.e. Streptococcus thermophilus strain FBI3) were examined in different digestive compartments of gnotoxenic and human-microbiota-associated mice. The production of the lactose-hydrolysing enzyme (i.e. beta-galactosidase) was also investigated within the digestive tract, using a chromosomal reporter system based on luciferase genes from Photorhabdus luminescens under the control of the plac promoter. In both mice models, S. thermophilus cells transited within 2 h from the stomach to the caecum-colon compartment of the digestive tract where they displayed a survival rate of nearly 100 %. In gnotoxenic mice, luciferase activity was found to increase in the second half of the small intestine and in the caecum-colon compartment when lactose was added to the drinking water provided to the animals. In human-microbiota-associated mice drinking lactose, luciferase activity was similarly increased in the second half of the small intestine but was drastically reduced in the caecum-colon compartment. This feature could be ascribed to the presence of the resident human microbiota.

Anti-inflammatory potential of the probiotic dietary supplement Lactibiane Tolérance: in vitro and in vivo considerations.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Probiotics are live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host. In inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), where major modifications of the intestinal microflora have been reported, there is an increasing interest in modulating the flora with probiotic products. This work addresses the anti-inflammatory potential of Lactibiane Tolérance, a probiotic dietary supplement (mixture of four strains) using in vitro and in vivo approaches. METHODS: Comparison of the four individual strains and the commercial product reconstituted from them was conducted by in vitro tests (cytokine release after 24h stimulation of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC)). The potential immunomodulatory characteristics of Lactibiane Tolérance were determined in vivo in an acute mice model of 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitis. Assessment of colitis included blinded histological and macroscopic scores. RESULTS: We showed that Lactibiane Tolérance has anti-inflammatory properties in vitro by stimulating IL-10 production and in vivo by conferring a significant protective effect in the TNBS-induced colitis model (more than 50% decrease of colitis symptoms, P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that a probiotic dietary supplement, Lactibiane Tolérance, can significantly prevent the initial injury of TNBS and could stimulate the initiation of clinical trials in IBD.