Food & Function最新文献

The impact of zinc deficiency on systemic mineral homeostasis remains unclear. This study investigated the effects of zinc deficiency on mineral homeostasis by quantifying sixteen minerals across nineteen tissues, along with their intake, excretion, and distribution. Principal component analysis revealed distinct differences in the mineral composition profiles of serum, whole blood, heart, spleen, testis, urine, and feces between the low-zinc and normal-zinc diet groups. Specifically, zinc deficiency enhanced intestinal absorption of Ca, Co, V, Ni, and Mo, and decreased their excretion, leading to elevated concentrations in the blood, heart, kidneys, testes, and cecal contents. Conversely, zinc deficiency increased the excretion of As, Mg, Se, and K, resulting in reduced concentrations of these minerals in the kidneys, testes, spleen, and femur. Additionally, zinc deficiency directly influenced the distribution of Mn, Cr, Cu, Na, and Pb, causing significant alterations in their concentrations across multiple tissues. Correlation analysis revealed that changes in mineral concentrations may contribute to a spectrum of adverse health outcomes. Our findings revealed that zinc deficiency disrupts systemic mineral homeostasis through four key pathways: intake, absorption, distribution, and excretion.

Erucic acid is a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid with reported immunomodulatory activity. This study evaluated its protective effects against cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced immunosuppression in mice. Thirty animals were divided into six groups: normal control, CTX (80 mg kg⁻¹), erucic acid (10 and 20 mg kg⁻¹), levamisole (20 mg kg⁻¹), and an erucic acid-only group (20 mg kg⁻¹). Immune organ indices, hematological parameters, cytokines, oxidative stress markers, IgG levels, and splenic lymphocyte proliferation were measured, along with histological assessment of the spleen and thymus. Network pharmacology was used to predict immune-related targets and docking affinities. CTX reduced the spleen index from 7.26 ± 0.75 mg g⁻¹ to 3.04 ± 0.21 mg g⁻¹ and the thymus index from 3.60 ± 0.32 mg g⁻¹ to 1.50 ± 0.21 mg g⁻¹. Lymphocyte proliferation dropped from 100.0 ± 3.28% to 37.50 ± 3.07%. WBC and RBC counts declined to 2.53 ± 0.30 × 10³ µL⁻¹ and 4.33 ± 0.69 × 10⁶ µL⁻¹, respectively. CTX also lowered IFN-γ (3.50 ± 0.19 to 1.80 ± 0.19 ng mg⁻¹), TNF-α (105.0 ± 5.56 to 52.0 ± 5.56 pg mL⁻¹), and IgG levels (12.00 ± 0.54 to 4.70 ± 0.54 pg mL⁻¹), while increasing MDA (1.42 ± 0.16 to 4.88 ± 0.41 nmol mg⁻¹) and NO (0.10 ± 0.01 to 0.24 ± 0.01 µmol g⁻¹). Erucic acid at a 20 mg kg⁻¹ dose increased the spleen index to 6.63 ± 0.60 mg g⁻¹, the thymus index to 3.00 ± 0.22 mg g⁻¹, and the lymphocyte proliferation to 61.67 ± 3.44%. It improved WBC counts to 4.72 ± 0.29 × 10³ µL⁻¹ and restored IFN-γ (3.28 ± 0.22 ng mg⁻¹), TNF-α (87.0 ± 5.56 pg mL⁻¹), and IgG (9.03 ± 0.87 pg mL⁻¹). Antioxidant markers also improved, with SOD rising from 5.55 ± 0.52 to 10.22 ± 1.02 U mg⁻¹ and GSH from 3.13 ± 0.35 to 6.45 ± 0.46 µmol g⁻¹. Histology showed reduced splenic and thymic damage in treated groups. Docking analysis indicated strong interactions between erucic acid and key immune-regulatory targets. Overall, erucic acid, particularly at a dose of 20 mg kg⁻¹, counteracted cyclophosphamide-induced immune suppression and oxidative stress, with effects comparable to those of levamisole.

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is a leading cause of diarrhea in infants and young children. lysophospholipid (LPL) has been shown to enhance lipid and nutrient absorption while improving intestinal morphology and function in animals. Owing to the close similarity between their gastrointestinal physiology and that of human infants, weaned piglets are widely employed as the animal model for gastrointestinal disease research. This study investigated the effects of dietary LPL (containing 6% active ingredient) supplementation on intestinal health and diarrhea mitigation under ETEC challenge. Thirty-two weaned barrows (Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire, 7.24 ± 0.07 kg BW, 25 days of age) were randomly assigned to four groups based on body weight. The dietary treatments included: (1) basal diet (CON), (2) basal diet + ETEC K88 (CON + ETEC), (3) basal diet + 0.3% LPL (CON + LPL), and (4) basal diet + 0.3% LPL + ETEC K88 (LPL + ETEC). The results demonstrated that LPL significantly improved the apparent total-tract digestibility of nutrients in piglets (P < 0.05) without affecting growth performance (P > 0.05). In addition, LPL significantly reduced diarrhea incidence in piglets before and after ETEC challenge (P < 0.05). LPL effectively ameliorated ETEC-induced intestinal morphological damage, including improvements in villus height and crypt depth (P < 0.05). LPL also upregulated expressions of intestinal barrier-related genes (MUC1, Occludin and LPA2) in different intestinal segments (P < 0.05) while counteracting ETEC-induced CFTR upregulation and MUC2 downregulation. Furthermore, LPL enhanced antioxidant capacity by reducing serum malonaldehyde (MDA) content (P < 0.05) and increasing ileal total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities (P < 0.05), while mitigating inflammatory responses through decreasing serum IL-1β and IL-6 levels (P < 0.05). In summary, LPL enhances nutrient digestion and absorption to alleviate nutritional diarrhea and, via the LPA2/CFTR pathway, preserves intestinal barrier structure and function during ETEC infection while exerting anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects to reduce diarrhea and improve gut health, demonstrating strong translational potential for preventing and treating ETEC induced diarrhea.

Milk proteins undergo both wet and dry heating steps during infant formula production, which can affect their gastro-intestinal digestion, subsequent peptide formation, intestinal transport, and immunoreactivity. Additionally, some milk peptides were previously shown to influence intestinal mucus production. However, the direct link between dry and wet heating of milk proteins, their digestion, and subsequent effects on mucus production, intestinal transport, and immunoreactivity remains unclear. To investigate this, milk proteins remained unheated, or were either wet or dry heated, followed by digestion using an in vitro infant digestion model. Peptides were identified with LC-MS/MS, and assessed for effects on intestinal mucus production with HT29-MTX-E12 cells, intestinal epithelial transport with Caco-2 monocultures and Caco-2/HT29-MTX-E12 cocultures, and immunoreactivity by predicting epitopes and by stimulating primary immature dendritic cells (iDCs) with transported peptides. Results showed that both wet and dry heating affected the HLA-II epitope survival during intestinal digestion, whereas linear IgE epitope survival was unaffected. The digestion-derived peptides did not alter mucus production. Wet heating reduced peptide transport in both cell models, whereas dry heating reduced peptide transport in the monoculture but did not affect peptide transport in the coculture. Moreover, dry heating increased transport of HLA-II epitopes from β-casein and transport of IgE epitopes in the coculture. Transported milk peptides did not affect cytokine production by iDCs. Together, this shows that wet and dry heating affect milk protein digestion, survival of immunoreactive peptides, and their intestinal transport. Further research is needed to clarify their effects on the immunoreactivity of intestinal and transported milk peptides.

Kaempferol, a natural dietary flavonoid, has shown neuroprotective potential. However, its mechanisms of protection against age-related cognitive decline, especially those mediated via the gut–brain axis, are not fully understood. This study investigated the role of kaempferol in alleviating D-galactose-induced brain aging and elucidated its functional mechanisms related to gut microbiota composition, microbial metabolite production, and intestinal barrier integrity. An aging mouse model was induced by D-galactose and subsequently treated with kaempferol. Results revealed that kaempferol significantly ameliorated anxiety-like behaviors and spatial working memory deficits in D-galactose-treated mice. In the hippocampus, it reduced neuronal loss, upregulated synaptic plasticity-related genes (Bdnf and Snap25), and suppressed neuroinflammation through inhibition of microglial activation and the TLR4/Myd88 signaling pathway. Importantly, kaempferol restored intestinal barrier integrity, as indicated by increased expression of colonic MUC2 and tight junction proteins (Zo-1 and Occludin). It also markedly reshaped gut microbiota composition by enriching beneficial genera such as Faecalibaculum and Akkermansia, which correlated with elevated fecal propionate and butyrate levels, and a reduction in serum LPS. Our findings demonstrate that kaempferol mitigates D-galactose-induced cognitive impairment by modulating gut microbiota, increasing beneficial SCFA production, enhancing gut barrier function, and subsequently inhibiting systemic and neuroinflammation. This study provides mechanistic support for kaempferol as a dietary intervention strategy to promote brain health via the gut–brain axis.

Hot beverage consumption has been hypothesized to increase the risk of esophageal cancer; however, its impact on gastric cancer (GC) is still inconclusive. This study aimed to investigate the prospective associations between hot beverage intake and the risk of GC. We examined the association between daily consumption and preferred temperature of hot beverages (tea and coffee) and the incidence of GC in 328 752 UK Biobank participants. The consumption of beverages and preferred temperature were collected using a food frequency questionnaire. We applied Cox proportional hazard regression to estimate the multivariable hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for the association of hot beverage intake and GC risk and further stratified the analysis by anatomical subsites. During a follow-up period of 11.6 years, 523 incident GC cases were identified. Compared with non-drinkers and warm temperature drinkers, drinking over 8 cups per day (HR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.08–2.21) of hot beverages was associated with a higher risk of GC. The risk was further elevated among participants who preferred very hot beverages, the HRs (95% CI) comparing reference were 1.69 (1.06–2.68) for 6–8 cups per day and 2.03 (1.26–3.27) for >8 cups per day. These results remained consistent in subgroups and sensitivity analyses. Our findings provide new evidence that drinking hot or very hot beverages is a risk factor for GC in the UK where drinking hot tea and coffee is common.

Introduction: Previous studies suggest non-linear associations between tea and coffee intake and respiratory health, with lower risks at low-to-moderate intakes but higher, unexplored risks at high intakes. This study aims to investigate associations between tea and coffee intake and the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and adult-onset asthma. Methods: Among 366 869 participants of the UK Biobank, intakes of tea and coffee were derived from both a food frequency questionnaire and from repeated 24 hour diet assessments. Cross-sectional associations with measures of lung function [forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV₁/FVC] and inflammation—represented by the INFLA score—and prospective associations with both incident COPD and adult-onset asthma were examined using multivariable-adjusted linear regression and Cox proportional hazards models, respectively. Results: Compared to not consuming tea or coffee, low intakes (0.5–2 cups per d) were associated with better lung function, lower inflammation, and a lower risk of incident COPD [HR (95% CI); tea: 0.87 (0.81, 0.93) and coffee: 0.86 (0.82, 0.92)] and asthma [coffee: 0.90 (0.85, 0.95)]. A higher risk of COPD was seen for high tea, but not coffee, intakes when analyses were restricted to never smokers, but not when participants with respiratory symptoms at baseline were excluded. Conclusion: Both tea and coffee can be part of a healthy diet when consumed in moderation (∼2 cups per d). The lack of a beneficial association at high intakes may be due to residual confounding from smoking for coffee and, in part, reverse causation for tea.

Correction for ‘Brazilian passion fruit modulates vascular inflammation and gene networks of cholesterol metabolism in overweight individuals’ by Isabella de Araújo Esteves Duarte et al., Food Funct., 2025, 16, 9129–9143, https://doi.org/10.1039/D5FO01438G.

The Pleurotus oyster is a common edible mushroom rich in ergothioneine, a bioactive that has shown benefits to cognition in animals when administered in extract form. The OYSACO study investigated the acute effects of oyster mushroom (OM) on cognition, mood, inflammation and metabolism in healthy older adults. In a cross-over study, 33 participants consumed a noodle soup containing 0.5 (OM0.5), 1 (OM1) and 2 (OM2) servings of OM, and a calorie-matched control soup (OM0), on four separate occasions, each separated by one week. Cognitive function, mood and subjective appetite were assessed at baseline (BL, prior to intervention) and then at 2-, 4- and 6-hours post-consumption. Intervention palatability was recorded after consumption, and a serum sample was taken at 6-hours. Linear Mixed Modelling, with BL as covariate, revealed a significant decline in Positive Affect and concomitant increase in Mental Fatigue over the test day after consuming OM0, while no significant variation in mood was seen throughout the day following OM interventions. Cognitive findings were mixed with no consistent pattern of effects seen following OM interventions compared to OM0. Postprandial inflammatory markers (nitrite, NADPH oxidase 2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase) were significantly lower following OM interventions compared to OM0. Unexpectedly, brain derived neurotrophic factor was found to be dose-dependently lower after consuming OM compared to OM0. Overall, OM interventions helped maintain mood and lower inflammatory markers in healthy older adults, following acute supplementation. Further studies are required to unravel the underlying mechanisms involved.

Osteoporosis, a disorder with reduced bone mass and biomechanical properties, poses a geriatric health challenge. Though natural antioxidants like hydroxytyrosol acetate (HT-ac) have diverse regulatory effects, its impact on bone health is underexplored. This study examined HT-ac's age-specific effects on bone health in murine models. Mice were allocated to control and HT-ac groups, with the latter receiving HT-ac for 20 weeks. Assessments included bone density, microarchitecture, and biomechanical evaluation, alongside gut microbiota analysis and detection of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Results showed HT-ac increased bone mineral content and improved trabecular properties in both age groups. However, young mice exhibited adverse effects including fat accumulation, inflammation, and elevated ROS levels, while such effects were absent in aged mice. Gut microbiota – metabolomic integration revealed HT-ac's osteoprotective effects correlated with gut microbiota changes and L-carnitine upregulation. Taken together, long-term HT-ac offers age-independent osteoprotection via gut microbiota-dependent L-carnitine biosynthesis. The differing outcomes highlight the need for age-specific strategies in osteoporosis intervention.