Mapping Quantitative Trait Loci Affecting Biochemical and Morphological Fruit Properties in Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.).

Eggplant berries are a source of health-promoting metabolites including antioxidant and nutraceutical compounds, mainly anthocyanins and chlorogenic acid; however, they also contain some anti-nutritional compounds such as steroidal glycoalkaloids (SGA) and saponins, which are responsible for the bitter taste of the flesh and with potential toxic effects on humans. Up to now, Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) for the metabolic content are far from being characterized in eggplant, thus hampering the application of breeding programs aimed at improving its fruit quality. Here we report on the identification of some QTL for the fruit metabolic content in an F2 intraspecific mapping population of 156 individuals, obtained by crossing the eggplant breeding lines "305E40" × "67/3." The same population was previously employed for the development of a RAD-tag based linkage map and the identification of QTL associated to morphological and physiological traits. The mapping population was biochemically characterized for both fruit basic qualitative data, like dry matter, °Brix, sugars, and organic acids, as well as for health-related compounds such chlorogenic acid, (the main flesh monomeric phenol), the two peel anthocyanins [i.e., delphinidin-3-rutinoside (D3R) and delphinidin-3-(p- coumaroylrutinoside)-5-glucoside (nasunin)] and the two main steroidal glycoalkaloids, solasonine, and solamargine. For most of the traits, one major QTL (PVE ≥10%) was spotted and putative orthologies with other Solanaceae crops are discussed. The present results supply valuable information to eggplant breeders on the inheritance of key fruit quality traits, thus providing potential tools to assist future breeding programs.

Abdominal Fat and Sarcopenia in Women Significantly Alter Osteoblasts Homeostasis In Vitro by a WNT/ ß -Catenin Dependent Mechanism.

Obesity and sarcopenia have been associated with mineral metabolism derangement and low bone mineral density (BMD). We investigated whether imbalance of serum factors in obese or obese sarcopenic patients could affect bone cell activity in vitro. To evaluate and characterize potential cellular and molecular changes of human osteoblasts, cells were exposed to sera of four groups of patients: (1) affected by obesity with normal BMD (O), (2) affected by obesity with low BMD (OO), (3) affected by obesity and sarcopenia (OS), and (4) affected by obesity, sarcopenia, and low BMD (OOS) as compared to subjects with normal body weight and normal BMD (CTL). Patients were previously investigated and characterized for body composition, biochemical and bone turnover markers. Then, sera of different groups of patients were used to incubate human osteoblasts and evaluate potential alterations in cell homeostasis. Exposure to OO, OS, and OOS sera significantly reduced alkaline phosphatase, osteopontin, and BMP4 expression compared to cells exposed to O and CTL, indicating a detrimental effect on osteoblast differentiation. Interestingly, sera of all groups of patients induced intracellular alteration in Wnt/ ß -catenin molecular pathway, as demonstrated by the significant alteration of specific target genes expression and by altered ß -catenin cellular compartmentalization and GSK3 ß phosphorylation. In conclusion our results show for the first time that sera of obese subjects with low bone mineral density and sarcopenia significantly alter osteoblasts homeostasis in vitro, indicating potential detrimental effects of trunk fat on bone formation and skeletal homeostasis.

Negative association between trunk fat, insulin resistance and skeleton in obese women.

AIM: To evaluate the potential interference of trunk fat (TF) mass on metabolic and skeletal metabolism. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 340 obese women (mean age: 44.8 ± 14 years; body mass index: 36.0 ± 5.9 kg/m(2)) were included. Patients were evaluated for serum vitamin D, osteocalcin (OSCA), inflammatory markers, lipids, glucose and insulin (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, HOMA-IR) levels, and hormones profile. Moreover, all patients underwent measurements of bone mineral density (BMD; at lumbar and hip site) and body composition (lean mass, total and trunk fat mass) by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. RESULTS: Data showed that: (1) high TF mass was inversely correlated with low BMD both at lumbar (P < 0.001) and hip (P < 0.01) sites and with serum vitamin D (P < 0.0005), OSCA (P < 0.0001) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1; P < 0.0001) levels; (2) a positive correlation was found between TF and HOMA-IR (P < 0.01), fibrinogen (P < 0.0001) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (P < 0.0001); (3) vitamin D levels were directly correlated with IGF-1 (P < 0.0005), lumbar (P < 0.006) and hip (P < 0.01) BMD; and (4) inversely with HOMA-IR (P < 0.001) and fibrinogen (P < 0.0005).Multivariate analysis demonstrated that only vitamin D was independent of TF variable. CONCLUSION: In obese women, TF negatively correlates with BMD independently from vitamin D levels. Reduced IGF-1 and increased inflammatory markers might be some important determinants that account for this relationship.

Homocysteinemia correlates with plasma thiol redox status in patients with end-stage renal disease.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In end-stage renal disease (ESRD), hyperhomocysteinemia is a common finding associated with increased cardiovascular risk. However, the pathogenic role of homocysteine is still unclear. In vitro studies show that thiol redox status affects endothelial cell functions. We therefore investigated the possible association between homocysteinemia and plasma thiol redox status in ESRD patients. METHODS: Total plasma homocysteine (Hcy), cysteine (Cys) and free thiols (SH) were measured both before and after a dialytic session in 54 ESRD patients receiving (n = 15) or not receiving (n = 39) folate supplementation, and 17 control subjects. RESULTS: High predialysis levels of both Hcy and Cys were found to be negatively correlated with low SH levels both in supplemented (r = -0.680, p < 0.01 and r = -0.624, p < 0.02, respectively) and unsupplemented (r = -0.698, p < 0.001 and r = -0.445, p < 0.01, respectively) patients. Following dialysis, SH values returned to normal and the above correlations were no longer appreciable. CONCLUSION: A strong, folate therapy-insensitive association between homocysteinemia and plasma free thiol levels was found in ESRD patients. These results support a role for oxidative stress in ESRD-related hyperhomocysteinemia and suggest the plasma thiol redox status alteration as a possible pathogenic mechanism underlying the cardiovascular toxicity of hyperhomocysteinemia in these patients.

Reliability of oxidative stress biomarkers in hemodialysis patients: a comparative study.

BACKGROUND: Oxidative stress (OS) is considered to play a major role in the development of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) complications. However, conflicting and inconsistent data have been reported on OS in ESRD patients. Our aim was to investigate the reliability of the most popular non-enzymatic plasma OS biomarkers in ESRD. METHODS: Vitamins A (VitA), E and C (VitC), uric acid, plasma antioxidant and ferric-reducing potential (PAP and PRP), thiols (SH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and lipid hydroperoxides (HPO) were determined before and after dialysis in plasma from 33 ESRD patients on hemodialysis, hemodiafiltration or peritoneal dialysis and 20 control subjects. RESULTS: In ESRD patients, high PRP and normal PAP values were positively correlated with VitC levels. After dialysis, PRP levels decreased, while unchanged PAP levels correlated positively with high VitA and transiently recovered SH values. All patients showed high levels of both MDA and cholesterol-normalized HPO. However, while the former significantly decreased after dialysis, the latter were unaffected by treatment. Paradoxical correlations of MDA with both VitA and HPO were found. CONCLUSIONS: Plasma PRP and MDA levels may be dramatically affected by both uremia and dialysis; their use in ESRD patients may therefore lead to OS misevaluation and should be avoided. More reliable results can be obtained using physiologically relevant OS functional tests, such as PAP, and early biomarkers of OS damage, such as SH and HPO.