Main Human Urinary Metabolites after Genipap (Genipa americana L.) Juice Intake

Characterization and identification of antimicrobial compounds from endophytic Fusarium incarnatum isolated from Cymbidium orchids

This study characterized and identified the antimicrobial compounds from an endophytic fungus (Fusarium incarnatum (C4)) isolated from the orchid, Cymbidium sp. Chromatographic techniques were employed to separate the bioactive compounds from the crude extracts of F. incarnatum (C4). Following bio-guided fractionation, two fractionated extracts (fractions 1 and 2) of F. incarnatum (C4) exhibited antibacterial and antifungal activities against Bacillus cereus (MIC: 0.156 mg/mL) and Ganoderma boninense (MIC: 0.3125 mg/mL), respectively. The active fractions were discovered to comprise of a variety of bioactive compounds with pharmacological importance (alkaloids, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, terpenoids, peptides and fatty acids). Liquid chromatography mass-spectrometry (LCMS) analysis detected the presence of antibacterial (kanzonol N, rifaximin, linoleic acid (d4), cannabisativine, docosanedioic acid, and stearamide) and antifungal components (3-methyl-quinolin-2-ol, prothiocarb, kanzonol N, peganine, 5Z-tridecene, and tetronasin) in fractions 1 and 2, respectively, which may have contributed to the antimicrobial effects. Findings from this study highlighted the important potential of fungal endophytes from medicinal hosts as producers of antimicrobials and antibiotics.

Deep phenotyping and biomarkers of various dairy fat intakes in an 8-week randomized clinical trial and 2-year swine study

Health effects of dairy fats (DF) are difficult to evaluate, as DF intakes are hard to assess epidemiologically and DF have heterogeneous compositions that influence biological responses. We set out to find biomarkers of DF intake and assess biological response to a summer DF diet (R2), a winter DF diet (R3), and a R3 supplemented with calcium (R4) compared to a plant-fat-based diet (R1) in a randomized clinical trial (n=173) and a 2-year study in mildly metabolically disturbed downsized pigs (n=32). Conventional clinical measures were completed by LC/MS plasma metabolomics/lipidomics. The measured effects were modeled as biological functions to facilitate interpretation. DF intakes in pigs specifically induced a U-shaped metabolic trajectory, reprogramming metabolism to close to its initial status after a one-year turnaround. Twelve lipid species repeatably predicted DF intakes in both pigs and humans (6.6% errors). More broadly, in pigs, quality of DF modulated the time-related biological response (R2: 30 regulated functions, primarily at 6 months; R3: 26 regulated functions, mostly at 6-12 months; R4: 43 regulated functions, mostly at 18 months). Despite this heterogeneity, 9 functions overlapped under all 3 DF diets in both studies, related to a restricted area of amino acids metabolism, cofactors, nucleotides and xenobiotic pathways and the microbiota. In conclusion, over the long-term, DF reprograms metabolism to close to its initial biological status in metabolically-disrupted pigs. Quality of the DF modulates its metabolic influence, although some effects were common to all DF. A resilient signature of DF consumption found in pigs was validated in humans.

Periodontal Status and Saliva Metabolic Signature in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

BACKGROUND

Characterizing the periodontal status of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), investigating differences in salivary metabolism between patients with and without AD under the same periodontal conditions, and understanding how it is related to oral flora are critical.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to examine the periodontal condition of patients with AD and to screen salivary metabolic biomarkers from the saliva of individuals with and without AD with matched periodontal conditions. Furthermore, we aimed to explore the possible relationship between salivary metabolic changes and oral flora.

METHODS

In total, 79 individuals were recruited into the experiment for periodontal analysis. Especially, 30 saliva samples from the AD group and 30 from healthy controls (HCs) with matched periodontal conditions were selected for metabolomic analysis. The random-forest algorithm was used to detect candidate biomarkers. Among these, 19 AD saliva and 19 HC samples were selected to investigate the microbiological factors influencing the alterations in saliva metabolism in patients with AD.

RESULTS

The plaque index and bleeding on probing were considerably higher in the AD group. Further, Cis-3-(1-carboxy-ethyl)-3,5-cyclohexadiene-1,2-diol, dodecanoic acid, genipic acid, and N, N-dimethylthanolamine N-oxide were determined as candidate biomarkers, based on the area under the curve (AUC) value (AUC = 0.95). The results of oral-flora sequencing showed that dysbacteriosis may be a reason for the differences in AD saliva metabolism.

CONCLUSION

Dysregulation of the proportion of specific bacterial flora in saliva plays a vital role in metabolic changes in AD. These results will contribute to further improving the AD saliva biomarker system.

Early Metabolomic Markers of Acute Low-Dose Exposure to Uranium in Rats

Changes in metabolomics over time were studied in rats to identify early biomarkers and highlight the main metabolic pathways that are significantly altered in the period immediately following acute low-dose uranium exposure. A dose response relationship study was established from urine and plasma samples collected periodically over 9 months after the exposure of young adult male rats to uranyl nitrate. LC-MS and biostatistical analysis were used to identify early discriminant metabolites. As expected, low doses of uranium lead to time-based non-toxic biological effects, which can be used to identify early and delayed markers of exposure in both urine and plasma samples. A combination of surrogate markers for uranium exposure was validated from the most discriminant early markers for making effective predictions. N-methyl-nicotinamide, kynurenic acid, serotonin, tryptophan, tryptamine, and indole acetic acid associated with the nicotinate–nicotinamide and tryptophan pathway seem to be one of the main biological targets, as shown previously for chronic contaminations and completed, among others, by betaine metabolism. This study can be considered as a proof of concept for the relevance of metabolomics in the field of low-dose internal contamination by uranium, for the development of predictive diagnostic tests usable for radiotoxicological monitoring.

Local knowledge as a tool for prospecting wild food plants: experiences in northeastern Brazil

This study aims to provide a simple framework to identify wild food plants with potential for popularization based on local knowledge and perception. To this end, we also characterized the distribution of this knowledge in the socio-ecological system. We developed the study in the rural settlement Dom Hélder Câmara in northeastern Brazil. The species with the greatest potential for popularization considering the attributes accessed from local knowledge and perception were Psidium guineense Sw., Genipa americana L., Xanthosoma sagittifolium (L.) Schott and Dioscorea trifida L.f. However, the high variation in local knowledge on wild food plants suggests that species that are not frequently cited can also be promising. The absence of age or gender-related knowledge patterns indicates that studies for prospecting wild food plants in similar socioecological contexts need to reach the population as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific group.

Genipap (Genipa americana L.) juice intake biomarkers after medium-term consumption

Genipap (Genipa americana L.) is an exotic fruit largely consumed and well known, in Amazonian pharmacopeia, to treat anemia, measles and uterine cancer. It is also used as a diuretic, digestive, healing, laxative and antiseptic. The aim of this study was to apply an untargeted metabolomics strategy to determine biomarkers of food intake after short-term consumption of genipap juice. Sixteen healthy adult men were administered jenipap juice (250 mL) twice a day for three weeks. Before and after the three weeks of consumption. the subjects drank a control drink, and they consumed a standard diet. Urine was collected after 0-6 h, 6-12 h and 12-24 h. An ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS)-based metabolomics approach was applied to analyze the urine samples. Principal components analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were performed to highlight experimental differences between groups. The value of the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve validated the identified biomarkers. Thirty-one statistically affected urinary metabolites were putatively identified and were mainly related to iridoids family, medium-chain fatty acids, and polyphenols. Also a group of urinary markers including dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA), 1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,2-propanediol and 3-carboxy-4-methyl-5-propyl-2-furanpropionic acid were established as biomarkers of genipap consumption. Our findings have established a comprehensive panel of changes in the urinary metabolome and provided information to monitor endogenous alterations that are linked to genipap juice intake. These data should be used in further studies to understand the health implications of genipap juice consumption.

Plasma Biomarkers and Identification of Resilient Metabolic Disruptions in Patients With Venous Thromboembolism Using a Metabolic Systems Approach

OBJECTIVE

Deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism referred as venous thromboembolism (VTE) are a common cause of morbidity and mortality. Plasma from healthy controls or individuals who have experienced a VTE were analyzed using metabolomics to characterize biomarkers and metabolic systems of patients with VTE. Approach and Results: Polar metabolite and lipidomic profiles from plasma collected 3 months after an incident VTE were obtained using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. Fasting-state plasma samples from 42 patients with VTE and 42 healthy controls were measured. Plasma metabolomic profiling identified 512 metabolites forming 62 biological clusters. Multivariate analysis revealed a panel of 21 metabolites altogether capable of predicting VTE status with an area under the curve of 0.92 (P=0.00174, selectivity=0.857, sensitivity=0.971). Multiblock systems analysis revealed 25 of the 62 functional biological groups as significantly affected in the VTE group (P<0.05 to control). Complementary correlation network analysis of the dysregulated functions highlighted a subset of the lipidome composed mainly of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids within the predominant triglycerides as a potential regulator of the post-VTE event biological response, possibly controlling oxidative and inflammatory defence systems, and metabolic disorder associated dysregulations. Of interest was microbiota metabolites including trimethylamine N-oxide that remained associated to post incident VTE patients, highlighting a possible involvement of gut microbiota on VTE risk and relapse.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings show promise for the elucidation of underlying mechanisms and the design of a diagnostic test to assess the likely efficacy of clinical care in patients with VTE.

Urinary Metabolomic Profiling Analysis and Evaluation of the Effect of Ecklonia cava Extract Intake

Metabolomics is a powerful tool for the investigation of interactions between diet, nutrients, and human metabolism. Ecklonia cava is an edible brown alga that is abundantly found in Korea and Japan and contains unique polyphenols referred to as phlorotannins. However, there are few metabolomics studies related to the effects of polyphenols in humans. In this study, we performed a mass spectrometry-based metabolomics analysis of urine samples from participants with a body mass index (BMI) higher than 25 kg/m2 and lower than 30 kg/m2 to investigate the effects of the intake of seapolynol isolated from E. cava. Metabolomic profiling showed that the levels of riboflavin, urocanic acid, 5-hydroxy-6-methoxyindole glucuronide, and guanidino valeric acid were significantly increased in the seapolynol intake group compared with the placebo group. A correlation analysis was performed to identify the association between the metabolites' levels and clinical characteristics related to body fat. Among the metabolites whose concentrations changed in the seapolynol intake group, riboflavin was associated with BMI, body weight, fat mass, and percent body fat. These findings suggest that the decreased body fat induced by the intake of seapolynol is related to an increase in the antioxidant effect of riboflavin.