Stress and human health in diabetes: A report from the 19th Chicago Biomedical Consortium symposium.

Stress and diabetes coexist in a vicious cycle. Different types of stress lead to diabetes, while diabetes itself is a major life stressor. This was the focus of the Chicago Biomedical Consortium's 19th annual symposium, "Stress and Human Health: Diabetes," in November 2022. There, researchers primarily from the Chicago area met to explore how different sources of stress - from the cells to the community - impact diabetes outcomes. Presenters discussed the consequences of stress arising from mutant proteins, obesity, sleep disturbances, environmental pollutants, COVID-19, and racial and socioeconomic disparities. This symposium showcased the latest diabetes research and highlighted promising new treatment approaches for mitigating stress in diabetes.

Vitamin D3 supplementation, bone health and quality of life in adults with diabetes and chronic kidney disease: Results of an open label randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Adults with diabetes (DM) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at risk for vitamin D (vitD) insufficiency, suboptimal bone health and reduced quality of life (QoL) due to limited sunlight exposure, poor vitD intake and CKD. AIMS: This open-labeled, randomized clinical trial, compared the impact of daily (2000 IU/D) verses monthly (40,000 IU/month) vitD3 supplementation over six months on markers of vitD status, bone health and QoL in adults with DM and CKD (stages: 1-4). METHODS: Participants (18-80 years) were randomized to daily (n = 60) or monthly (n = 60) vitD3 for six months. Primary outcomes included: vitD status (25-hydroxyvitD [25(OH)D], 1, 25-dihydroxyvitD [1,25(OH)2D], bone health (bone mineral density [BMD] and serum concentrations of bone-specific alkaline phosphatase [BSAP], osteocalcin [OC], N-telopeptide-type 1-collagen [NTx]) and Fibroblast Growth Factor-23 (FGF-23). Secondary outcomes included QoL (Short Form-36 questionnaire). RESULTS: Adherence by dose allocation over six months was 95.0 ± 5.7% (daily) and 94.1 ± 4.1% (monthly), respectively (p = 0.44); resulting in an overall median [95% CI] increase in serum 25(OH)D of 19 (12-26) nmol/L (p < 0.001). Serum 25(OH)D increased at three (p < 0.001) and six months (p < 0.001) in the daily and monthly groups, respectively. No significant differences over six months between groups were observed in serum concentrations of 1,25(OH)2D, FGF-23, OC and NTx, BMD and QoL measures (p > 0.05). Serum 25(OH)D ≥ 75 nmol/L was associated with significant reductions in BSAP (p = 0.01) and improved physical functioning vs those with concentrations < 75 nmol/L (62.5 ± 26.8 vs 52.7 ± 26.3; p = 0.03) in the monthly and daily groups, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Daily (2000 IU/D) and monthly (40,000 IU/month) vitD3 supplementation for six months in adults with DM and CKD was safe, and resulted in equivalent adherence and improvements in overall vitD status, but only modest changes in markers of bone health and QoL.

Vitamin D Status and Bone Mineral Density is Influenced by Vitamin D Supplementation and Vitamin K1 Intake in Adults with Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease.

PURPOSE: Patients with diabetes (DM) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at increased risk for suboptimal bone health. The study objective was to investigate the relationships between vitamin D (vitD), vitamin K1 (vitK1), and calcium intake with bone mineral density (BMD) and vitamin D status in an ambulatory population with DM and CKD. METHODS: Adults (age 18-80 years; n = 62) with DM and CKD (stages 1-4) were recruited from the Northern Alberta Renal Program. Primary outcome variables included vitD, vitK1, and calcium intake; serum 25(OH)D, 1,25(OH)2D; and BMD as measured by dual X-ray absorptiometry. Statistical significance was determined at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Participants met the estimated average requirement or adequate intake for vitD, vitK1, and calcium intake in 73% (n = 45), 66% (n = 39), and 52% (n = 31), respectively, with a combined intake of micronutrient supplementation and diet. Participants had serum 25(OH)D concentrations ≥75 nmol/L (n = 41), normal BMDs (n = 48), and 66% (n = 41/62) were taking vitD supplements (>1000 IU/D). BMD was positively influenced by serum 25(OH)D. However, serum 25(OH) ≥100 nmol/L was associated with lower BMD (absolute and T-scores) for whole-body and spine (P ≤ 0.05). VitK1 intake (≥200 µg/day) was associated with higher whole-body and femoral-neck BMDs (absoluteand T-scores; P ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSION: VitD status and BMD in adults with DM and CKD was influenced by vitD supplementation and vitK1 intake.

Parental Health Beliefs, Socio-demographics, and Healthcare Recommendations Influence Micronutrient Supplementation in Youth with Celiac Disease.

To identify parental influences affecting micronutrient supplementation in children and adolescents (2-18 years of age) with Celiac Disease (CD), a multi-method (survey, focus groups) study was conducted. A 35-item questionnaire consisting of open- and closed-ended questions was launched nationally via Canadian Celiac Association internet sites. Five focus groups were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide. The survey and semi-structured interview guide content was vetted for face and content validity. Thematic analyses were conducted on the focus group content and open-ended survey questions, and χ(2) and Fischer's exact analysis were performed on closed-ended survey data. Survey respondents were predominantly mothers (97%) of female children (80 F, 49 M) between the ages of 9-12 (31%) with CD, residing in western provinces (55%) with a combined family income ≥$100 000/year (63%). Seventy-seven percent of parental respondent's children or adolescents consumed micronutrient supplements, for 1-5 years (52%), 7 days a week (65%), as both multi-vitamin and single vitamin preparations (40%). Parental influences on child micronutrient use included health beliefs and knowledge, parental supplement use, supplement characteristics, age of child (above or below 13 years), household routines, and provincial residential status (P < 0.05). Parents relied on health professional recommendation (69%; MD, RD) and the internet (21%) as sources of information regarding child micronutrient supplementation. Parental health beliefs and knowledge, socio-demographic factors, and practitioner recommendation influence micronutrient supplement use in children and adolescents with CD.

Vitamin D supplementation and health-related quality of life: a systematic review of the literature.

Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are highly prevalent worldwide and thought to potentiate a variety of chronic disease states, including diabetes, cancer, and depression. Routine vitamin D supplementation is often needed to meet vitamin D requirements. Little is known regarding the effect of vitamin D supplementation on quality of life. The purpose of this article was to systematically review the literature regarding quality-of-life outcomes from vitamin D supplementation in healthy and clinical populations. Clinical trials of vitamin D supplementation, where quality-of-life outcomes were reported, were selected from Medline and Web of Science databases. Inclusion criteria were English language articles available online (published between 1950 and May 2014), primary research articles, studies conducted on human beings, and treatment/supplementation with vitamin D. Articles were excluded if they involved topical vitamin D application or implicit cotreatment with other vitamins (eg, multivitamins). Articles selected for review were examined for process and methodologic quality using validated methodologies. A total of 15 articles met the inclusion criteria for review. Interventions were highly variable in terms of study population (eg, healthy/diseased, children/elderly, and baseline vitamin D status) vitamin D dose, and duration of follow-up. Vitamin D supplementation ranged from 400 IU/day for an average of 7.1 years, to a single 300, 000 IU dose. The main tools used to capture quality of life were adaptations of validated, questionnaires (Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36-item questionnaire and EuroQOL five dimension questionnaire). Vitamin D supplementation was not associated with significant changes in quality of life. Studies that reported changes in quality of life as a result of vitamin D supplementation were in clinical populations on short-term vitamin D. Most articles reviewed displayed poor methodologic quality (eg, no randomization/blinding, dropout description, or vitamin D assessment). Current evidence indicates that vitamin D supplementation may have a small to moderate effect on quality of life when used on a short-term basis in diseased populations. However, the evidence for a beneficial effect of long-term vitamin D supplementation on health-related quality of life is lacking.

"Vitamin D supplementation and bone health in adults with diabetic nephropathy: the protocol for a randomized controlled trial".

BACKGROUND: Suboptimal vitamin D status is highly prevalent in Northern communities, particularly in those patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes and chronic renal disease. Emerging literature suggests that adherence to daily vitamin D supplementation may be an important factor influencing vitamin D status and overall bone health, but compliance with therapies for bone health is a major challenge. It is unknown what level of vitamin D supplementation will ameliorate or improve suboptimal vitamin D status in patients with diabetic nephropathy or contribute to improved bone health, particularly for those living in northern climates. METHODS/DESIGN: The study purpose was to examine two different strategies of vitamin D3 supplementation; daily dosing of 2000 IU per day verses monthly dosing of 40,000 IU per month on markers of vitamin D status, bone health and to examine whether adherence, quality of life and patient satisfaction with the supplementation strategy differs between the two vitamin D strategies in adults diagnosed with diabetic nephropathy. DISCUSSION: The need for RCTs assessing higher doses of vitamin D3 supplementation at varying frequencies of administration and its impact on bone health in adults with diabetes and chronic kidney disease are needed. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01476501.

Genotoxicity of glycidamide in comparison to (+/-)-anti-benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide and alpha-acetoxy-N-nitroso-diethanolamine in human blood and in mammalian V79-cells.

Genotoxic activity of glycidamide (GA) was investigated in comparison to that of the known carcinogens (+/-)-anti-benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide ((+/-)-BPDE) and alpha-acetoxy-N-nitroso-diethanolamine (alpha-A-NDELA), using the hypoxanthine-phosphoribosyl-transferase (hPRT) gene mutation assay with V79 mammalian cells and modified alkaline single cell gel electrophoresis (alkaline comet assay with and without treatment of cells with formamido-pyrimidine-DNA-glycosylase (FPG)) in lymphocytes from human whole blood. As shown earlier, GA induced significant DNA damage in lymphocytes from treated whole blood at > or = 300 microM (4 h) (Baum et al., Mutat. Res. 2005, 580, 61-69). In the present study, using the alkaline comet assay with FPG treatment, increased formation of DNA strand breaks was observed in lymphocytes treated with GA (10 microM; 4 h). alpha-A-NDELA and (+/-)-BPDE were genotoxic at 10-30 microM (1 h). Genotoxic activity of these compounds was not enhanced after FPG treatment. FPG treatment thus offers an enhanced sensitivity of DNA damage detection for genotoxic compounds with preference for N(7)- resp. N(3)-purine alkylation. In the hPRT assay with V79 cells, mutagenic activity of (+/-)-BPDE became significant at > or = 3 microM (24 h). For alpha-A-NDELA significant activity was observed at greater, not dbl 10 microM (24 h). As previously observed, GA was considerably less effective, inducing significant mutagenicity roughly at about 80-300-fold higher concentrations (800 microM; 24 h) (Baum et al., Mutat. Res. 2005, 580, 61-69).