Role of Oxidative Stress on the Etiology and Pathophysiology of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Its Relation with the Enteric Nervous System.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting motor neurons in the spinal cord, cerebral cortex, and medulla oblongata. Most patients present a clinical phenotype of classic ALS-with predominant atrophy, muscle weakness, and fasciculations-and survival of 3 to 5 years following diagnosis. In the present review, we performed a literature search to provide an update on the etiology and pathophysiological mechanisms involved in ALS. There are two types of ALS: the familial form with genetic involvement, and the sporadic form with a multifactorial origin. ALS pathophysiology is characterized by involvement of multiple processes, including oxidative stress, glutamate excitotoxicity, and neuroinflammation. Moreover, it is proposed that conditioning risk factors affect ALS development, such as susceptibility to neurodegeneration in motor neurons, the intensity of performed physical activity, and intestinal dysbiosis with involvement of the enteric nervous system, which supports the existing theories of disease generation. To improve patients' prognosis and survival, it is necessary to further deepen our understanding of the etiopathogenesis of ALS.

Changes in Mediterranean dietary pattern of university students: a comparative study between Spain and Algeria / Cambios en el patrón dietético mediterráneo de estudiantes universitarios: un estudio comparativo entre España y Argelia

AIM: Assess and compare the diet quality of university students living in two different Mediterranean countries (Algeria and Spain). METHODS: 303 university students from two different Mediterranean areas (Algeria and Spain) were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The data collection of students' diet and other personal variables was based on a self-reported method; a nutritional evaluation was carried out using the DIAL(R) nutritional software. RESULTS: There were found significant differences in the diets, not only because of gender but also nationality, probably due to inherent cultural and socioeconomic characteristics of each country resulting in variants of Mediterranean diet. CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition education programs based on the promotion of Mediterranean lifestyle must be aimed at all ages, but especially in university stage

OBJETIVO: evaluar y comparar la calidad de la dieta de los estudiantes universitarios que viven en dos países mediterráneos diferentes (Argelia y España). MÉTODO: 303 estudiantes universitarios de dos áreas mediterráneas diferentes (Argelia y España) se inscribieron en este estudio transversal. La recopilación de datos de la dieta de los estudiantes y otras variables personales se recogío mediante en un cuestionario autoinformado; Se realizó una evaluación nutricional utilizando el software nutricional DIAL(R). RESULTADOS: Se encontraron diferencias significativas en las dietas, no solo debido al género sino también a la nacionalidad, probablemente debido a las distintas características culturales y socioeconómicas de cada país que se reflejan en algunas variantes de la dieta mediterránea. CONCLUSIÓN: los programas de educación nutricional basados en la promoción del estilo de vida mediterráneo deben estar dirigidos a todas las edades, pero especialmente en la etapa universitaria

Melatonin and tryptophan counteract lipid peroxidation and modulate superoxide dismutase activity in ringdove heterophils in vivo. Effect of antigen-induced activation and age.

Aging is associated with an increased production of free radicals and alterations in the mechanisms of adaptation to stress. A number of studies have shown a causal connection between age-related oxidant/antioxidant imbalance and the diminution of an organism's melatonin levels in old age. Restoration of this rhythm may contribute to the re-stabilization of cellular homeostasis. The present work was aimed at examining the effect of the administration of melatonin or its precursor, the amino acid tryptophan, on heterophil lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in heterophils from young (4-5 year) and old (12-14 year) ringdoves (Streptopelia risoria) under both basal and antigen-induced (stressful) conditions. Young animals were treated for 3 consecutive days with a single daily oral dose (0.25 mg) of melatonin at 1900 hours while old animals were treated for 3 consecutive days with either an oral dose (2.5 mg) of melatonin at 1900 hours or an oral capsule of 300 mg/kg body weight of L-tryptophan at 0900 hours. Non-treated old animals presented lower circulating levels of melatonin at night and higher levels of malonaldehyde (MDA) both day and night when compared to young birds. In both age groups, LPO levels were lower at night than during the day. Melatonin or tryptophan treatments significantly increased serum melatonin levels, reinforced SOD activity, and reduced MDA levels induced by the antigen. Melatonin and tryptophan may be useful agents for the treatment of disease states and processes in which an excessive production of oxidative damage occurs.

Tryptophan modulates cell viability, phagocytosis and oxidative metabolism in old ringdoves.

The decrease of melatonin with age contributes to immunosenescence. Its restoration via tryptophan may have immuno-enhancing effects. Therefore, we determined the effect of tryptophan administration on circulating serotonin, melatonin, cell viability, phagocytic function and levels of free radical generation of blood heterophils from old ringdoves (Streptopelia risoria), aged 11-13 years. The animals received a single oral capsule of l-tryptophan 1 hr after the onset of the light period. The tryptophan treatment significantly increased serum melatonin and serotonin levels, cell viability, phagocytosis index and phagocytosis percentage. Superoxide anion levels decreased significantly with respect to vehicle values, with the nocturnal reduction being greater than that which occurred during the light period. This suggests that orally administered tryptophan at the beginning of the day enhanced heterophil viability, phagocytic response and detoxification of superoxide anion radicals deriving from this immune function, as a result of the immunoregulatory action of melatonin and serotonin.

Orally administered melatonin improves nocturnal rest in young and old ringdoves (Streptopelia risoria).

Melatonin possesses chronobiotic properties, which affects sleep/wake rhythms. We investigated a 7-day administration of melatonin (0.25, 2.5 and 5 mg/kg body weight) on the activity/rest rhythms of a diurnal animal (the ringdove, Streptopelia risoria), aged 2-3 (young) and 10-12 (old) years, and its possible relationship with the serum levels of melatonin and serotonin. Total nocturnal and diurnal activity pulses were logged at basal, during, and up to 7 days after the treatments. The animals received 0.1 ml of melatonin orally 1 hr before lights off. The results showed that the administration of whichever melatonin dose decreased both diurnal and nocturnal old ringdove activity, the reduction being larger at night. The young animals also reduced their nocturnal activity with all three melatonin concentrations, whereas their diurnal activity only decreased with the 2.5 and 5 mg/kg body weight treatments. We chose those treatments that gave the best results in terms of nocturnal rest and the least affected diurnal activity (0.25 mg/kg body weight and 2.5 mg/kg in the young and old animals, respectively). Serum melatonin was measured by radioimmunoassay and serotonin by ELISA. In both age groups, the treatment increased both nocturnal and diurnal melatonin levels, with the effect continuing until 1 day after the last dose. Serum serotonin levels were unaffected by the treatments in either age group. The treatment restored the amplitude of the serum melatonin rhythm in the old animals to that of the young group. In summary, treatment with melatonin may be appropriate to improve nocturnal rest, and beneficial as a therapy for sleep disorders.

Tryptophan increases nocturnal rest and affects melatonin and serotonin serum levels in old ringdove.

The sleep promoting functions of melatonin have gained wide scientific attention due to the ability of this indole to provide relief from sleep inefficiency and the temporal relationship between its nocturnal rise in the blood and the "opening of the sleep gate" at night. However, little is known about the effects exerted by its precursor, the amino acid tryptophan. We studied the effect of a 7-day administration of two concentrations of tryptophan (125 and 300 kg b.w.) on the activity/rest rhythms of ringdove, aged 2-3 (young) and 10-12 (old) years, and on the serum levels of serotonin and melatonin. Activity pulses were logged before, during, and up to 5 days after the treatments. The animals received 125 or 300 mg/kg b.w. per animal/day at 09:00 h or at 19:00 h. Subsequently we chose the treatment which gave the best results in terms of nocturnal rest without affecting diurnal activity, i.e., 300 mg/kg b.w. administered to old animals at 09:00 h, 1 h after lights on, for the serotonin and melatonin measurements. During this treatment, the nocturnal and diurnal levels and amplitudes of serotonin and melatonin were all significantly higher than the corresponding levels before and after the treatment. In sum, our results point to an improvement of nocturnal rest in this animal model of old ringdove when administering 300 mg/kg tryptophan 1 h after lights on.