Krill Protein Hydrolysate Provides High Absorption Rate for All Essential Amino Acids-A Randomized Control Cross-Over Trial

First Feeding of Cuttlefish Hatchlings: Pioneering Attempts in Captive Breeding

In the last few decades, the cuttlefish market has grown to approximately 14% of the world's fisheries, and operators have begun to express concerns about the decline of this resource. In this context, the production of cuttlefish through aquaculture could offer a diversifying and valuable response to the increasing market demand and help alleviate the environmental pressure on this species. Therefore, the aim of this study is to identify a dry, cost-effective, and easy-to-administer diet that can successfully support the initial phases of cuttlefish growth and provide a similar performance to a krill-based diet, which closely mimics their natural diet. To achieve this objective, cuttlefish hatchlings were distributed among different experimental tanks, each receiving one of the five different diets (namely Diets A to E). Mortality and morphological parameters were monitored until day 10 post hatching, and the two most effective diets (Diets A and B) were chosen for further trials. The results indicated that Diet B had similar survival and growth rates to Diet A, which was based on frozen krill. Histological analysis revealed a comparable degree of gut maturity between the organisms fed the two diets. Likewise, levels of amylase and trypsin enzymes and hsp70, cat, and sod mRNA did not exhibit significant differences between the two groups. In conclusion, our findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the possibility of cultivating cuttlefish in captivity using a pelleted diet, representing a promising starting point for larger-scale breeding efforts.

Acute changes in the metabolome following resistance exercise combined with intake of different protein sources (cricket, pea, whey)

INTRODUCTION

Separately, both exercise and protein ingestion have been shown to alter the blood and urine metabolome. This study goes a step further and examines changes in the metabolome derived from blood, urine and muscle tissue extracts in response to resistance exercise combined with ingestion of three different protein sources.

METHODS

In an acute parallel study, 52 young males performed one-legged resistance exercise (leg extension, 4 × 10 repetitions at 10 repetition maximum) followed by ingestion of either cricket (insect), pea or whey protein (0.25 g protein/kg fat free mass). Blood and muscle tissue were collected at baseline and three hours after protein ingestion. Urine was collected at baseline and four hours after protein ingestion. Mixed-effects analyses were applied to examine the effect of the time (baseline vs. post), protein (cricket, pea, whey), and time x protein interaction.

RESULTS

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomics resulted in the annotation and quantification of 25 metabolites in blood, 35 in urine and 21 in muscle tissue. Changes in the muscle metabolome after combined exercise and protein intake indicated effects related to the protein source ingested. Muscle concentrations of leucine, methionine, glutamate and myo-inositol were higher after intake of whey protein compared to both cricket and pea protein. The blood metabolome revealed changes in a more ketogenic direction three hours after exercise reflecting that the trial was conducted after overnight fasting. Urinary concentration of trimethylamine N-oxide was significantly higher after ingestion of cricket than pea and whey protein.

CONCLUSION

The blood, urine and muscle metabolome showed different and supplementary responses to exercise and ingestion of the different protein sources, and in synergy the summarized results provided a more complete picture of the metabolic state of the body.

In vitro digestion models for the design of safe and nutritious foods

Responsible development of future foods requires in depth understanding of food digestion in the human body based on robust research models, ranging from in vitro models to randomized controlled human trials. This chapter overviews fundamental aspects of food digestion, namely bioaccessibility and bioavailability, and models mirroring gastric, intestinal, and colonic conditions. Second, the chapter demonstrates the potential of in vitro digestion models to help screen adverse effects of food additives, such as Titanium dioxide or carrageenan, or underpin the determinants of macro- and micronutrient digestion in different strata of the population, for example digestion of emulsions. Such efforts support rationalized design of functional foods, such as infant formulae, cheese, cereals and biscuits which are validated in vivo or in randomized controlled trials.

Whey protein hydrolysate alleviated atherosclerosis and hepatic steatosis by regulating lipid metabolism in apoE-/- mice fed a Western diet

Whey protein hydrolysate (WPH) has been proved to possess various biological activities associated with the amelioration of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The objective of this study was to investigate the anti-atherosclerotic and hepatoprotective effects of WPH on apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE^-/-) mice fed with a Western diet for 15 weeks. Results revealed that WPH markedly inhibited the development of atherosclerotic lesions in the aorta and steatosis injury in the liver. The serum lipid and inflammation levels were both reduced after WPH supplemented in apoE^-/- mice. In addition, WPH inhibited the lipid accumulation in the liver, thereby decreasing the hepatic inflammation level and oxidative stress injury. Mechanism investigation revealed that WPH down-regulated the expression of cholesterol biosynthesis genes while up-regulated the expression of cholesterol uptake and excretion genes in the liver. Meanwhile, the de novo lipogenesis was inhibited while the fatty acids β-oxidation was activated in the liver by WPH supplementation. Notably, the n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)/n-6 PUFA ratio in serum and liver of the WPH-H group were 2.69-fold (p < 0.01) and 3.64-fold (p < 0.01) higher than that of the Model group. Collectively, our results proved WPH possesses potent anti-atherosclerotic and hepatoprotective activities and has the potential to be used as a novel functional ingredient for the management of CVD.

Postprandial Effects of Salmon Fishmeal and Whey on Metabolic Markers in Serum and Gene Expression in Liver Cells

Fish is considered an important part of a healthy diet, in part due to the content of long chain omega-3 fatty acids. However, both lean and fatty fish have beneficial health effects, suggesting that micronutrients and proteins may play a role. In a randomised, controlled, cross-over trial, five healthy male participants consumed 5.2 g of protein from either salmon fishmeal or whey. Blood samples were taken before and 30 and 60 min after intake. The concentration of glucose, lipids, hormones and metabolites, including 28 different amino acids and derivatives, were measured in serum or plasma. Cultured HepG2 cells were incubated with or without serum from the participants, and transcriptomic profiling was performed using RNA sequencing. The ingestion of both salmon fishmeal and whey reduced the glucose and triglyceride levels in serum. Protein intake, independent of the source, increased the concentration of 22 amino acids and derivatives in serum. Fishmeal increased the concentration of arginine, methionine, serine, glycine, cystathionine and 2-aminobutyric acid more than whey did. Incubation with postprandial serum resulted in large transcriptomic alterations in serum-fasted HepG2 cells, with the differential expression of >4500 protein coding genes. However, when comparing cells cultivated in fasting serum to postprandial serum after the ingestion of fishmeal and whey, we did not detect any differentially regulated genes, neither with respect to the protein source nor with respect to the time after the meal. The comparable nutrigenomic effects of fishmeal and whey do not change the relevance of fish by-products as an alternative food source.