Association between sarcopenia and sleep disorder in older patients with diabetes.

AIM: In the present study, we aimed to examine the association between sarcopenia and sleep disorder in older patients with diabetes using the Japanese version of SARC-F (SARC-F-J). METHODS: Outpatients with diabetes (aged ≥65 years) at the Ise Red Cross Hospital were included in the present study. We used the Japanese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, which is a self-administered questionnaire, to measure sleep disorder. To evaluate sarcopenia, we used SARC-F-J, a self-administered questionnaire, comprising five items. For multiple logistic regression analysis, the dependent variable was sleep disorder and the explanatory variable was sarcopenia, and these were used for calculating the odds ratios of sarcopenia with regard to sleep disorder. RESULTS: In total, 318 patients were included in this study (189 men and 129 women). The prevalence of sarcopenia was 22.5% and that of sleep disorder was 44.8%. Adjusted odds ratios of sarcopenia and sleep disorder were 6.04 in men (95% CI 1.71-21.36, P = 0.005) and 6.33 in women (95% CI 1.91-20.97, P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: We found a statistically significant association between sarcopenia and sleep disorder in older patients with diabetes using SARC-F-J. Therefore, older patients with diabetes should be cautioned regarding sleep disorder if they are diagnosed with sarcopenia. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 399-403.

Impact of a high-cholesterol diet on expression levels of Niemann-Pick C1-like 1 and intestinal transporters in rats and mice.

Niemann-Pick C1-like 1 (NPC1L1), ATP-binding cassette (ABC)G5, and ABCG8 are all involved in intestinal cholesterol absorption. It is unclear whether a high-cholesterol (HC) diet affects the expression of these transporters in rats and mice as well as humans. We examined the effects of an HC diet on their expression in small intestine and the differences between rats and mice in the responsive of this expression to an HC diet. In addition to these transporters, alterations in six representative drug and nutrient transporters (multidrug resistance-associated protein, breast cancer resistance protein, peptide transporter, sodium-glucose linked transporter, glucose transporter, and L-type amino acid transporter) and transcriptional factors such as hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF)4α, sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP)2, and liver X receptor (LXR)α were determined. In rats and mice fed an HC diet for 7 days, the mRNA and protein levels of NPC1L1 in the small intestine were determined by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blotting, respectively. The mRNA levels of ABCG5 and ABCG8, six representative transporters, and transcriptional factors such as HNF4α, SREBP2, and LXR were examined. Significant decreases in the expression levels of NPC1L1 were observed in mice, but not rats, fed the HC diet. The mRNA levels of ABCG5 and ABCG8 were significantly increased in HC rats but not in mice. Only minor changes in the mRNA levels of the other transporters were seen in HC rats and mice. Decreased mRNA levels of HNF4α and SREBP2 in mice could be involved in the reduction in NPC1L1 expression observed upon the introduction of an HC diet. These results indicate that the effects of an HC diet on the expression levels of NPC1L1, ABCG5, and ABCG8 differ between mice and rats.