Using the concept of food as medicine to mitigate inflammation in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis.

The most common kidney replacement therapy (KRT) worldwide is hemodialysis (HD), and only 5%-10% of patients are prescribed peritoneal dialysis (PD) as KRT. Despite PD being a different method, these patients also present particular complications, such as oxidative stress, gut dysbiosis, premature aging, and mitochondrial dysfunction, leading to an inflammation process and high cardiovascular mortality risk. Although recent studies have reported nutritional strategies in patients undergoing HD with attempts to mitigate these complications, more information must be needed for PD patients. Therefore, this review provides a comprehensive analysis of recent studies of nutritional intervention to mitigate inflammation in PD patients.

Consumption of oils and anthocyanins may positively modulate PPAR-γ expression in chronic noncommunicable diseases: A systematic review.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ) plays a central role in health and is an essential cardioprotective factor because of its effect on lipid and glucose metabolism, inflammation, and oxidative stress. We hypothesized that nutritional strategies positively regulate PPAR-γ expression in patients with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). A systematic search was conducted using PubMed, Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), and LILACS databases from May 2020 to January 2021. Eligibility criteria included placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials in adults with chronic diseases involving nutritional strategies, which performed PPAR-γ analysis (majority on mononuclear cells) before and after the intervention. The exclusion criteria included studies published more than 10 years ago, studies not published in English or Spanish, theses, reviews, and other study designs. The review was developed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Methodological quality was assessed based on 7 criteria obtained from the Cochrane Handbook. A total of 7 studies were included that reported the effects of different nutritional strategies (such as anthocyanins, fish oil, Berberis vulgaris juice, ketogenic diet, flaxseed oil, olive oil) on 346 patients with NCDs (such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and cancer) between 18 and 85 years of age. These results suggest that anthocyanins, flaxseed oil, and olive oil may function as putative PPAR-γ agonists.

Effect of cranberry supplementation on toxins produced by the gut microbiota in chronic kidney disease patients: A pilot randomized placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) have an imbalance in the gut microbiota that can lead to increase levels of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and uremic toxins such as indoxyl sulfate (IS), p-cresyl sulfate (p-CS), and indole-3 acetic acid (IAA). Among the therapeutic options for modulating gut microbiota are the bioactive compounds such as polyphenols present in cranberry, fruit with potential antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. This clinical trial focuses on evaluating the effects of supplementation with a dry extract of cranberry on plasma levels of LPS and uremic toxins in non-dialysis CKD patients. METHODS: It was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Patients were randomized into two groups: the cranberry group received 500 mg of dry cranberry extract (2 times daily), and the placebo group received 500 mg of corn starch (2 times daily) for two months. LPS plasma levels were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and uremic toxins (IS, p-CS, and IAA) by high-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection. Anthropometric measurements and food intake using the 24-h food recall technique were also evaluated before and after the intervention. RESULTS: Twenty-five participants completed two months of supplementation: 12 patients in the cranberry group (8 women, 56.7 ± 7.5 years, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 39.2 ± 21.9 mL/min); 13 patients in the placebo group (9 women, 58.8 ± 5.1 years, eGFR of 39.7 ± 12.9 mL/min). As expected, there was a negative association between glomerular filtration rate and p-CS and IS plasma levels at the baseline. No change was observed in the uremic toxins and LPS levels. CONCLUSION: Cranberry dry extract supplementation for two months did not reduce the LPS and uremic toxins plasma levels produced by the gut microbiota in non-dialysis CKD patients.

From the distinctive smell to therapeutic effects: Garlic for cardiovascular, hepatic, gut, diabetes and chronic kidney disease.

Garlic, a member of the Allium family, widely used in cooking for many centuries, displays well described antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, as a result of its constituent organosulfur compounds, such as alliin, allicin, ajoene S-allyl-cysteine, diallyl sulfide and diallyl disulfide, among others. Although garlic has demonstrated beneficial effects in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, its efficacy as a therapeutic intervention in chronic kidney disease remains to be proven. This review thus focuses on the potential benefits of garlic as a treatment option in chronic kidney disease. and its ability to mitigate associated cardiovascular complications and gut dysbiosis.

Pesquisa sobre a contaminação de hortaliças por ovos e larvas de nematódeos e cistos de protozoários como método de estudo / Research on the contamination of vegetables with eggs and larvae of nematodes and protozoa cysts as study method

Objetivou-se descrever uma prática de ensino integrada à pesquisa que poderá ser desenvolvida tanto em escolas de ensino fundamental e médio quanto em universidades. A pesquisa foi realizada de 2002 a 2011 como atividade prática da disciplina de Parasitologia aplicada ao curso de Nutrição. Cada equipe de trabalho recebeu um roteiro prático (projeto) com as instruções para a realização da pesquisa de enteroparasitos em hortaliças. Estas foram processadas pela técnica de sedimentação espontânea utilizando-se um aparato desenvolvido com material reciclável. A observação do sedimento corado com lugol foi realizada entre lâmina e lamínula. Constatou-se contaminação em dez espécies de hortaliças com 36,4 por cento (56/154) de positividade; destas, 48,8 por cento para larvas de helmintos, 23,3 por cento para cistos de protozoários e 13,9 por cento para ovos de helmintos. A aceitação dos alunos em relação à atividade prática foi expressiva (98,4 por cento). Esta prática vem contribuindo para a formação do acadêmico, dinamizando e incentivando o estudo da Parasitologia e alertando aos futuros profissionais da saúde sobre o fato de que a veiculação de parasitos em hortaliças consumidas in natura constitui uma questão de segurança alimentar e, consequentemente, de saúde pública...

The objective of the present study was to describe a teaching practice integrated with research that could be developed in primary and junior high schools and universities. The research was carried out from 2002 to 2011 as a practical activity of Parasitology applied to the Nutrition Course. Each work team received a practical plan (project) with instructions to carry out enteroparasite research in vegetables. The vegetables were processed using the principle of the spontaneous sedimentation technique with a device developed with recycled material. The sediment was observed between a slide and a lugol-stained slide. Contamination was found in ten vegetable species with 36.4 percent (56/154) positivity. Of these, 48.8 percent were helminths, 23.3 percent protozoan cysts and 13.9 percent helminth eggs. Student evaluation of the practical activity was positive with 98.4 percent acceptance. This practice has contributed to the education of academics, enlivening and encouraging the study of parasitology and alerting future health professionals that parasites carried in vegetables eaten raw are a concern for food safety and consequently, public health...