High-fat Diet Promotes Cardiac Remodeling in an Experimental Model of Obesity

AbstractBackground:Although nutritional, metabolic and cardiovascular abnormalities are commonly seen in experimental studies of obesity, it is uncertain whether these effects result from the treatment or from body adiposity.Objective:To evaluate the influence of treatment and body composition on metabolic and cardiovascular aspects in rats receiving high saturated fat diet.Methods:Sixteen Wistar rats were used, distributed into two groups, the control (C) group, treated with isocaloric diet (2.93 kcal/g) and an obese (OB) group, treated with high-fat diet (3.64 kcal/g). The study period was 20 weeks. Analyses of nutritional behavior, body composition, glycemia, cholesterolemia, lipemia, systolic arterial pressure, echocardiography, and cardiac histology were performed.Results:High-fat diet associates with manifestations of obesity, accompanied by changes in glycemia, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, and myocardial interstitial fibrosis. After adjusting for adiposity, the metabolic effects were normalized, whereas differences in morphometric changes between groups were maintained.Conclusion:It was concluded that adiposity body composition has a stronger association with metabolic disturbances in obese rodents, whereas the high-fat dietary intervention is found to be more related to cardiac morphological changes in experimental models of diet-induced obesity.

Diet and arboreality in the emerald monitor, Varanus prasinus : with comments on the study of adaptation : a contribution in celebration of the distinguished scholarship of Robert F. Inger on the occasion of his sixty-fifth birthday / Harry W. Greene.

n.s. no.31(1986)

Diet, feeding behavior, growth, and numbers of a population of Cerberus rynchops (Serpentes: Homalopsinae) in Malaysia / Bruce C. Jayne, Harold K. Voris, Kiew Bong Heang.

n.s. no.50(1988)

Diet and functional feeding groups of Chironomidae (Diptera) in the Middle Paraná River floodplain (Argentina)

The gut contents of nine genera of benthic Chironominae and Tanypodinae from the Middle Paraná River floodplain habitats (a lake and a secondary channel) were analyzed to determine their feeding patterns and functional feeding groups. Amorphous detritus, animal and vegetal tissues, and mineral materials (predominantly sand) were observed in the larval guts. Amorphous detritus were the main food item found for Polypedilum (Tripodura) sp., Chironomus gr. decorus sp., Endotribelos sp., Phaenopsectra sp., Cladopelma sp., and Pelomus sp. (Chironominae), while animal tissues (mainly oligochaetes) were the most important food item found for Ablabesmyia (Karelia) sp., Coelotanypus sp., and Procladius sp. (Tanypodinae). Dietary overlap was calculated for all pairs of genera. Within predators, the highest overlap was obtained between Coelotanypus sp. and Ablabesmyia (Karelia) sp., while within detritivores the highest niche overlap was obtained between Endotribelos sp. and Phaenopsectra sp.

American medical botany :being a collection of the native medicinal plants of the United States, containing their botanical history and chemical analysis, and properties and uses in medicine, diet and the arts /by Jacob Bigelow.

v. 1

American medical botany :being a collection of the native medicinal plants of the United States, containing their botanical history and chemical analysis, and properties and uses in medicine, diet and the arts /by Jacob Bigelow.

v. 2

American medical botany :being a collection of the native medicinal plants of the United States, containing their botanical history and chemical analysis, and properties and uses in medicine, diet and the arts /by Jacob Bigelow.

v. 3

Ecomorphology and diet reflect the spatial segregation between two Siluriformes species inhabiting a stream of the Bodoquena Plateau, in Central Brazil

Pimelodella taenioptera Miranda Ribeiro, 1914 and Imparfinis schubarti (Gomes, 1956) are two of the most common fish species in Bodoquena Plateau streams, Paraguay basin. These species have benthic habits and subaquatical observations suggested that they present differentiation in their preference for mesohabitat types. Pimelodella taenioptera shows preference for slow waters, such as pools, while I. schubarti is associated to riffles. In this study we investigated if the known patterns of mesohabitat use of P. taenioptera and I. schubarti can be predict by their ecomorphological and trophic traits. We described the dietary habits and ecomorphological attributes of P. taenioptera and I. schubarti individuals, captured in the Parque Nacional da Serra da Bodoquena (PNSB), Mato Grosso do Sul state, central Brazil. Pimelodella taenioptera presented a more generalist diet, consuming a total of 23 different food items. Imparfinis schubarti have a diet based exclusively on aquatic insects. The ecomorphological analysis revealed that the species differed in relation to five morphological traits associated to habitat use (p <0.01). The results of this study reveal a clear functional dissimilarity between P. taenioptera and I. shubarti. The observed trophic and ecomorphological patterns are congruent with the known habitat use for these species and probably reflect the spatial and temporal variability on conditions and resources present in riffles and pools. Therefore, as expected, the morphological and feeding attributes represent predictive information related to mesohabitat use.

Dietary modulation of plasma antioxidant deficiencies: effect of mediterranean diet

Estudi elaborat a partir d’una estada al National Research Institute for Food and Nutrition, Itàlia, des de novembre del 2006 fins a febrer del 2007. La capacitat antioxidant total (TAC) en plasma pot ser un bon biomarcador del estat antioxidant dels humans. Prenent les mostres de dos projectes diferents de recerca s’ha mesurat la TAC mitjançant el FRAP (ferric reductant antioxidant potencial) i el TRAP (total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter ). D’una banda el PREDIMED, és un estudi prospectiu aleatoritzat i controlat, amb una cohort d’ individus sense patología vascular coneguda, però amb un alt risc de patir-la. En aquest es valora la utilitat d’una intervenció dietética del tipus mediterrània en la prevenció primària de la malaltia cardiovascular. L’altre és el de biodisponibilitat en humans dels metabòlits dels polifenols presents en els solubles de cacau, un estudi crònic (28 dies) on es vol mesurar la influència de la llet en l’absorció dels polifenols del cacau, en voluntaris amb elevat risc de sofrir patologia cardiovascular.

The study of insect blood-feeding behaviour: 1. Feeding equipment, physical and endogenous factors, dose effect analysis, and diet destination

Experimental techniques that we have found useful during our studies of insect blood-feeding behaviour are reviewed. Some of the principal findings resulting from these techniques are discussed. Where directly applicable, the work of others is included, but no complete review of the subject has been attempted.

Measurement of 13CO2 in expired air as an index of compliance to a high carbohydrate diet naturally enriched in 13C.

The aim of this study was to determine whether breath 13CO2 measurements could be used to assess the compliance to a diet containing carbohydrates naturally enriched in 13C. The study was divided into two periods: Period 1 (baseline of 4 days) with low 13C/12C ratio carbohydrates. Period 2 (5 days) isocaloric diet with a high 13C/12C ratio (corn, cane sugar, pineapple, millet) carbohydrates. Measurements were made of respiratory gas exchange by indirect calorimetry, urinary nitrogen excretion and breath 13CO2 every morning in post-absorptive conditions, both in resting state and during a 45-min low intensity exercise (walking on a treadmill). The subjects were 10 healthy lean women (BMI 20.4 +/- 1.7 kg/m2, % body fat 24.4 +/- 1.3%), the 13C enrichment of oxidized carbohydrate and breath 13CO2 were compared to the enrichment of exogenous dietary carbohydrates. At rest the enrichment of oxidized carbohydrate increased significantly after one day of 13C carbohydrate enriched diet and reached a steady value (103 +/- 16%) similar to the enrichment of exogenous carbohydrates. During exercise, the 13C enrichment of oxidized carbohydrate remained significantly lower (68 +/- 17%) than that of dietary carbohydrates. The compliance to a diet with a high content of carbohydrates naturally enriched in 13C may be assessed from the measurement of breath 13CO2 enrichment combined with respiratory gas exchange in resting, postabsorptive conditions.

Introduced freshwater blenny influences the diet and body condition of the invasive dice snake in Lake Geneva

Non-indigenous species can have strong impacts on biodiversity by affecting trophic relationships in their new environments. The piscivorous dice snake (Natrix tessellata) has been introduced to Geneva Lake, western Switzerland, where the endangered viperine snake (Natrix maura) is native. Local, dramatic declines in the viperine snake population might be associated with the appearance of the dice snake through dietary overlap between these 2 species, which mainly feed on bullhead (Cottus gobio). In response to this decline, a control program for dice snake was implemented in 2007 to reduce numbers of this introduced snake. In 2010, a new species of fish, the freshwater blenny (Salaria fluviatilis), which shares the same habitat as the bullhead, was introduced into Lake Geneva and has since reached high densities. We determined the impact of freshwater blenny on diet composition and body condition of dice snakes. In addition, we tested for effects of the control program on the body condition of dice snakes and viperine snakes. We collected 294 dice snakes between 2007 and 2013. Based on morphology and a genetic marker (cytochrome b gene), we determined the ®sh species contained in these snakes' stomachs. We found a drastic switch in dice snake diet following the arrival of freshwater blenny, as consumption of bullhead declined by 68% and was replaced by the blenny. In addition, the body condition of dice snakes increased significantly after the arrival of freshwater blenny. The body condition of both snake species was positively correlated with the number of dice snakes removed from the study area. This finding has important implications concerning the conservation of the endangered viperine snake, and suggests that the control program of dice snakes should be continued.

Diet diversity and the risk of laryngeal cancer: a case-control study from Italy and Switzerland.

Diet diversity (defined as the number of different foods consumed) has been considered an indicator of a healthy diet, and favorably related to the risk of several digestive tract cancers. We analyzed the relation between diet diversity and the risk of laryngeal cancer using data from a case-control study carried out between 1992 and 2000 in Italy and Switzerland. The subjects of the study were 527 patients with histologically confirmed incident cancers of the larynx and 1297 patients admitted for acute, non-neoplastic diseases, unrelated to tobacco or alcohol consumption. Total diversity was computed as the number of different foods (overall and within four food groups, i.e., vegetables, fruit, meat, and cereals) consumed at least once per week. A significant inverse association was observed for vegetable diversity (OR=0.41, 95% CI: 0.28-0.59, for the highest versus the lowest quartile) and fruit diversity (OR=0.40, 95% CI: 0.27-0.59). Conversely, a direct association was found for meat diversity (OR=1.67, 95% CI: 1.11-2.50), while no meaningful association was found for total diet and cereal diversity. The results were consistent across strata of age, alcohol drinking and tobacco smoking. This study suggests that a diet not only rich but also varied in fruit and vegetables is related to a decreased risk of laryngeal cancer risk.