Foods to deliver immune-supporting nutrients

Harnessing the fundamental roles of vitamins: the potent anti-oxidants in longevity

Aging is a complex and heterogeneous biological process characterized by telomere attrition, genomic instability, mitochondrial dysfunction, and disruption in nutrient sensing. Besides contributing to the progression of cancer, metabolic disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases, these manifestations of aging also adversely affect organ function. It is crucial to understand these mechanisms and identify interventions to modulate them to promote healthy aging and prevent age-related diseases. Vitamins have emerged as potential modulators of aging beyond their traditional roles in health maintenance. There is an increasing body of evidence that hormetic effects of vitamins are responsible for activating cellular stress responses, repair mechanisms, and homeostatic processes when mild stress is induced by certain vitamins. It is evident from this dual role that vitamins play a significant role in preventing frailty, promoting resilience, and mitigating age-related cellular damage. Moreover, addressing vitamin deficiencies in the elderly could have a significant impact on slowing aging and extending life expectancy. A review of recent advances in the role of vitamins in delaying aging processes and promoting multiorgan health is presented in this article. The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive framework for using vitamins as strategic tools for fostering longevity and vitality. It offers a fresh perspective on vitamins' role in aging research by bridging biological mechanisms and clinical opportunities.

Single-centre, randomised clinical trial of the immunomodulatory mechanisms of daily supplementation of palm tocotrienol-rich fraction in healthy human volunteers following influenza vaccination

Background

Vitamin E from palm oil, known as the tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF), has been shown to have immune-enhancing activity. To date, only one dose of TRF (400 mg daily) has been tested in a clinical trial. The proposed study will evaluate the immune-enhancing activity effects of lower doses (200, 100 and 50 mg) in a clinical trial using an influenza vaccine as the immunological challenge.

Methods

A single-centre, randomised, parallel, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial with balance allocation involving five arms will be conducted. The healthy volunteers recruited will be randomly assigned to one of the arms, and they will be asked to take the respective supplements (400 mg, 200 mg, 100 mg, 50 mg of TRF or placebo) daily with their dinner. The volunteers will receive the influenza vaccine after four weeks. They will be asked to return to the study site four weeks later. A blood sample will be taken for the study at baseline, four and eight weeks. Primary outcome measures will be antibody levels to influenza, blood leucocyte profile and cytokine production. Secondary outcomes will be correlating plasma vitamin E levels with immune responses, plasma proteins and gene expression patterns. The findings from this study will be published in relevant peer-reviewed journals and presented at relevant national and international scientific meetings.

Conclusions

The recent world events have created the awareness of having a healthy and functional immune system. Nutrition plays an important role in helping the immune system to function optimally. This study will show the effects of lower doses of TRF in boosting the immune response of healthy individuals and also elucidate the mechanisms through which TRF exerts its immune-enhancing effects.

Clinical trial registration

Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) [ ACTRN12622000844741] dated 15 June 2022.

Protocol version

2.

Potential of Dietary HDAC2i in Breast Cancer Patients Receiving PD-1/PD-L1 Inhibitors

Breast cancer (BC) is a lethal malignancy with high morbidity and mortality but lacks effective treatments thus far. Despite the introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) (including PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors), durable and optimal clinical benefits still remain elusive for a considerable number of BC patients. To break through such a dilemma, novel ICI-based combination therapy has been explored for enhancing the therapeutic effect. Recent evidence has just pointed out that the HDAC2 inhibitor (HDAC2i), which has been proven to exhibit an anti-cancer effect, can act as a sensitizer for ICIs therapy. Simultaneously, dietary intervention, as a crucial supportive therapy, has been reported to provide ingredients containing HDAC2 inhibitory activity. Thus, the novel integration of dietary intervention with ICIs therapy may offer promising possibilities for improving treatment outcomes. In this study, we first conducted the differential expression and prognostic analyses of HDAC2 and BC patients using the GENT2 and Kaplan-Meier plotter platform. Then, we summarized the potential diet candidates for such an integrated therapeutic strategy. This article not only provides a whole new therapeutic strategy for an HDAC2i-containing diet combined with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors for BC treatment, but also aims to ignite enthusiasm for exploring this field.

Effectiveness of Nutritional Supplements for Attenuating the Side Effects of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines

Supplementation is known to enhance the immune response and reduce infection. Therefore, the association between immune nutrients and vaccine side effects needs to be investigated. Our aim was to analyze the relationship between vaccination side effects and supplement intake among the Italian population. The study included a questionnaire asking for personal data, anthropometric information, COVID-19 infection and immunity response, and COVID-19 vaccination and supplementation. The survey was conducted from 8 February to 15 June 2022. In the study, 776 respondents were included, aged between 18 and 86 (71.3% females). We observed a statistically significant correlation between supplement consumption and side effects at the end of the vaccination cycle (p = 0.000), which was also confirmed by logistic regression (p = 0.02). Significant associations were observed between supplement intake and side effects of diarrhea and nausea at the end of the vaccination cycle (p = 0.001; p = 0.04, respectively). Significant associations were observed between side effects and omega-3 and mineral supplementation at the start of the vaccination cycle (p = 0.02; p = 0.001, respectively), and between side effects and vitamin supplementation at the end of the vaccination cycle (p = 0.005). In conclusion, our study shows a positive impact of supplementation on vaccination response, increasing host immune defenses, and reducing side effects.

Micronutrients to Support Vaccine Immunogenicity and Efficacy

The world has entered the third year of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Vaccination is the primary public health strategy to protect against infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), in addition to other measures, such as mask wearing and social distancing. Vaccination has reduced COVID-19 severity and mortality dramatically. Nevertheless, incidence globally remains high, and certain populations are still at risk for severe outcomes. Additional strategies to support immunity, including potentially enhancing the response to vaccination, are needed. Many vitamins and trace minerals have recognized immunomodulatory actions, and their status and/or supplementation have been reported to correspond to the incidence and severity of infection. Furthermore, a variety of observational and some interventional studies report that adequate micronutrient status or micronutrient supplementation is associated with enhanced vaccine responses, including to COVID-19 vaccination. Such data suggest that micronutrient supplementation may hold the potential to improve vaccine immunogenicity and effectiveness, although additional interventional studies to further strengthen the existing evidence are needed. Positive findings from such research could have important implications for global public health, since deficiencies in several micronutrients that support immune function are prevalent in numerous settings, and supplementation can be implemented safely and inexpensively.

Influence of Nutritional Intakes in Japan and the United States on COVID-19 Infection

The U.S. and Japan are both democratic industrialized societies, but the numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths per million people in the U.S. (including Japanese Americans) are 12.1-times and 17.4-times higher, respectively, than those in Japan. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of diet on preventing COVID-19 infection. An analysis of dietary intake and the prevalence of obesity in the populations of both countries was performed, and their effects on COVID-19 infection were examined. Approximately 1.5-times more saturated fat and less eicosapentaenoic acid/docosahexaenoic acid are consumed in the U.S. than in Japan. Compared with food intakes in Japan (100%), those in the U.S. were as follows: beef 396%, sugar and sweeteners 235%, fish 44.3%, rice 11.5%, soybeans 0.5%, and tea 54.7%. The last four of these foods contain functional substances that prevent COVID-19. The prevalence of obesity is 7.4- and 10-times greater in the U.S. than in Japan for males and females, respectively. Mendelian randomization established a causal relationship between obesity and COVID-19 infection. Large differences in nutrient intakes and the prevalence of obesity, but not racial differences, may be partly responsible for differences in the incidence and mortality of COVID-19 between the U.S. and Japan.