This study assessed the molecular mechanism of EPA or DHA protection against intestinal porcine epithelial cell line 1 (IPEC-1) cell damage induced by deoxynivalenol (DON). The cells were divided into six groups, including the CON group, the EPA group, the DHA group, the DON group, the EPA + DON group and the DHA + DON group. RNA sequencing was used to investigate the potential mechanism, and qRT-PCR was employed to verify the expression of selected genes. Changes in ultrastructure were used to estimate pathological changes and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) injury in IPEC-1 cells. Transferrin receptor 1 (TFR1) was tested by ELISA. Fe2+ and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents were estimated by spectrophotometry, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) was assayed by fluorospectrophotometry. RNA sequencing analysis showed that EPA and DHA had a significant effect on the expression of genes involved in ER stress and iron balance during DON-induced cell injury. The results showed that DON increased ER damage, the content of MDA and ROS, the ratio of X-box binding protein 1s (XBP-1s)/X-box binding protein 1u (XBP-1u), the concentration of Fe2+ and the activity of TFR1. However, the results also showed that EPA and DHA decreased the ratio of XBP-1s/XBP-1u to relieve DON-induced ER damage of IPEC-1 cells. Moreover, EPA and DHA (especially DHA) reversed the factors related to iron balance. It can be concluded that EPA and DHA reversed IPEC-1 cell damage induced by DON. DHA has the potential to protect IPEC-1 cells from DON-induced iron imbalance by inhibiting ER stress.

Atlantic salmon were fed diets containing graded levels of EPA + DHA (1·0, 1·3, 1·6 and 3·5 % in the diet) and one diet with 1·3 % of EPA + DHA with reduced total fat content. Fish were reared in sea cages from about 275 g until harvest size (about 5 kg) and were subjected to delousing procedure (about 2·5 kg), with sampling pre-, 1 h and 24 h post-stress. Delousing stress affected plasma cortisol and hepatic mRNA expression of genes involved in oxidative stress and immune response, but with no dietary effects. Increasing EPA + DHA levels in the diet increased the trace mineral levels in plasma and liver during mechanical delousing stress period and whole body at harvest size. The liver Se, Zn, Fe, Cu, and Mn and plasma Se levels were increased in fish fed a diet high in EPA + DHA (3·5 %) upon delousing stress. Furthermore, increased dietary EPA + DHA caused a significant increase in mRNA expression of hepcidin antimicrobial peptide (HAMP), which is concurrent with downregulated transferrin receptor (TFR) expression levels. High dietary EPA + DHA also significantly increased the whole-body Zn, Se, and Mn levels at harvest size fish. Additionally, the plasma and whole-body Zn status increased, respectively, during stress and at harvest size in fish fed reduced-fat diet with less EPA + DHA. As the dietary upper limits of Zn and Se are legally added to the feeds and play important roles in maintaining fish health, knowledge on how the dietary fatty acid composition and lipid level affect body stores of these minerals is crucial for the aquaculture industry.

Taurine (Tau) has many profound physiological functions, but its role and molecular mechanism in muscle cells are still not fully understood. In this study, we investigated the role and underlying molecular mechanism of Tau on protein synthesis and proliferation of C2C12 myoblast cells. Cells were treated with Tau (0, 60, 120, 180 and 240 μM) for 24 h. Tau dose-dependently promoted protein synthesis, cell proliferation, mechanistic target of rapamycin protein (mTOR) phosphorylation and also AT-rich interaction domain 4B (ARID4B) expression, with the best stimulatory effects at 120 μM. LY 294002 treatment showed that Tau promoted ARID4B expression in a phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-dependent manner. ARID4B knockdown (by small interfering RNA transfection for 24 h) prevented Tau from stimulating protein synthesis and cell proliferation, whereas ARID4B gene activation (using the CRISPR/dCas9 technology) had stimulatory effects. ARID4B knockdown abolished Tau signalling to mRNA expression and protein phosphorylation of mTOR, whereas ARID4B gene activation had stimulatory effects. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP)-PCR identified that all of ARID4B, H3K27ac and H3K27me3 bound to the −4368 to –4591 bp site in the mTOR promoter, and ChIP-quantitative PCR (qPCR) further detected that Tau stimulated ARID4B binding to this site. ARID4B knockdown or gene activation did not affect H3K27me3 binding to the mTOR promoter but decreased or increased H3K27ac binding, respectively. Furthermore, ARID4B knockdown abolished the stimulation of Tau on H3K27ac binding to the mTOR promoter. In summary, these data uncover that Tau promotes protein synthesis and proliferation of C2C12 myoblast cells through the PI3K-ARID4B-mTOR pathway, providing a deep understanding of how Tau regulates anabolism in muscle cells.

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that stearic acid (SA) supplementation increases milk fat content and overcomes the antilipogenic effects of trans-10, cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in lactating ewes. Twenty-eight Lacaune ewes (36 (sd 2) days in lactation; 70·5 (sd) 9·6 kg of body weight), producing 1·8 (sd 0·4) kg of milk/d, were used in a completely randomised design (seven ewes/treatment) for 21 d. The treatments were: (1) Control; (2) CLA (6·4 g/d of trans-10, cis-12 CLA); (3) SA (28 g/d of SA) and (4) SA in association with trans-10, cis-12 CLA (CLASA; 6·4 g/d of trans-10, cis-12 CLA plus 28 g/d of SA). All data were analysed using a mixed model that included the fixed effect of treatment and the random effect of ewe. SA did not alter milk fat content and yield relative to Control (91·9 v. 91·2 (sd 4·1) g/d). CLASA was not able to overcome the reduction in fat content and fat yield induced by CLA (75 v. 82 (sd 0·14) g/d). SA increased the relative abundance of CD36, fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) and PPAR-γ mRNA by 140, 112 and 68 % compared with CLASA. SA also reduced the relative abundance of acetyl-CoA carboxylase α promoter II and stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) when compared with Control (45 and 39 %). Compared with CLA, CLASA treatment had no effect on the mRNA abundance of fatty acid synthase, lipoprotein lipase, CD36, SCD, FABP4, acylglycerolphosphate acyltransferase 6, sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 and PPAR-γ. In conclusion, SA supplementation did not increase milk fat synthesis and did not overcome the CLA-induced milk fat depression when associated with trans-10, cis-12 CLA.

Vitamin D (VD) plays a vital role in various physiological processes in addition to its classic functions on maintaining the balance of Ca and P metabolism. However, there still are gaps to understand in depth the issues on the precise requirement, metabolic processes and physiological functions of VD in fish. In this study, we investigated the effects of VD on the growth, intestinal health, host immunity and metabolism in turbot (Scophthalmus maximus L.), one important commercial carnivorous fish in aquaculture, through the supplementation of different doses of dietary VD3 (0, 200, 400, 800 and 1600 μg VD3/kg diet). According to our results, the optimal VD3 level in the feed for turbot growth was estimated to be around 400 μg/kg, whereas VD3 deficiency or overdose in diets induced the intestinal inflammation, lowered the diversity of gut microbiota and impaired the host resistance to bacterial infection in turbot. Moreover, the level of 1α,25(OH)2D3, the active metabolite of VD3, reached a peak value in the turbot serum in the 400 μg group, although the concentrations of Ca and phosphate in the turbot were stable in all groups. Finally, the deficiency of dietary VD3 disturbed the nutritional metabolism in turbot, especially the metabolism of lipids and glucose. In conclusion, this study evaluated the optimal dose of dietary VD3 for turbot and provided the evidence that VD has a significant impact on intestinal health, host immunity and nutritional metabolism in fish, which deepened our understanding on the physiological functions and metabolism of VD3 in fish.

Maternal folic acid (FA) plays an important role in the fetus development, but it is unknown the response of hepatic metabolism in the offspring from different litter sizes to maternal FA supplementation. In the present study, this was done by feeding the ewes with 0, 16 and 32 mg/(kg·DM) FA supplemented diet during pregnancy and analysing the hepatic one-carbon metabolism-related indices and gene expression in the neonatal lambs of different litter sizes (twins, TW; triplets, TR). Regardless of litter sizes, the concentrations of folate, methionine, S-adenosylmethionine and DNA methyltransferase increased significantly, but homocysteine and S-adenosylhomocysteine decreased in the liver of newborn lambs from ewes whose diet was supplemented with FA. In TW, maternal FA status has little effect on hepatic genes expression profile of newborn lambs, and no significant enriched pathway was found. However, DEG involved in cell proliferation such as CCNA2, CCNB2, CCNE2, CDK1 and BUB1 were significantly enriched when the ewes were supplemented with FA in TR groups. In addition, nucleotide synthesis-related genes such as POLD1, POLD2, MCM4 and MCM5 were enriched markedly in DNA replication and pyrimidine metabolism pathways in triplets when a higher FA ingestion [32 mg/(kg·DM)] was implemented in ewes. This finding demonstrated that the hepatic methyl metabolism in TW and TR newborn lambs was regulated by maternal FA status. The hepatic cell proliferation and nucleotide metabolism related genes in TR were more susceptible to maternal dietary FA supplementation during pregnancy.

Vitamin E (α-tocopherol; VE) is known to be regenerated from VE radicals by vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid; VC) in vitro. However, their in vivo interaction in various tissues is still unclear. Therefore, we alternatively examined the in vivo interaction of VC and VE by measurement of their concentrations in various tissues of senescence marker protein-30 (SMP30) knockout (KO) mice as a VC synthesis deficiency model. Male SMP30-KO mice were divided into four groups (VC+/VE+, VC+/VE–, VC–/VE+ and VC–/VE–), fed diets with or without 500 mg/kg VE and given water with or without 1·5 g/l VC ad libitum. Then, VC and VE concentrations in the plasma and various tissues were determined. Further, gene expression levels of transporters associated with VC and VE, such as α-tocopherol transfer protein (α-TTP) and sodium-dependent vitamin C transporters (SVCTs), were examined. These results showed that the VE levels in the VC-depleted (VC–/VE+) group were significantly lower than those in the VC+/VE+ group in the liver and heart; the VC levels in the VE-depleted (VC+/VE–) group were significantly lower than those in the VC+/VE+ group in the kidneys. The α-TTP gene expression in the liver and kidneys was decreased by VC and/or VE depletion. Moreover, SVCT1 gene expression in the liver was decreased by both VC and VE depletion. In conclusion, these results indicate that VC spares VE mainly in the liver and heart and that VE spares VC in the kidneys of SMP30-KO mice. Thus, interaction between VC and VE is likely to be tissue specific.

The progression of cardiometabolic diseases is determined by both genetic and environmental factors. Gene–diet interactions may therefore be important in modulating the risks of developing metabolic diseases. The objectives were to investigate the effect of the interaction between brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphisms and dietary insulin index (DII) and dietary insulin load (DIL) on cardiometabolic markers among diabetic patients. In this cross-sectional study, blood samples were collected from 667 patients. DIL and DII were defined using a validated FFQ. Genotyping the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism was conducted by the PCR-Restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method. Interactions between dietary indices and gene variants were evaluated using a generalised linear model. PGF2a concentrations were significantly higher among Val homozygotes than Met-allele carrier. This study revealed that, compared with individuals with the Val/Val genotype, those with the Met/Val or Met/Met genotype had lower BMI (Pinteraction = 0·04), TAG (Pinteraction = 0·04), leptin (Pinteraction = 0·01), LDL (Pinteraction = 0·04) and total cholesterol (Pinteraction = 0·01) when they consumed diets higher on the DIL index. Moreover, the highest quartile of the DIL, compared with the lowest, showed increase in waist circumference (Pinteraction = 0·02) and LDL/HDL (Pinteraction = 0·04) for Val/Val homozygotes compared with Met-allele carriers. BDNF Val66Met variants may interact with DIL and DII, thus be involved in the development of cardiometabolic risk factors. If diabetic patients with Met alleles regulate dietary intakes, they have a protective opportunity to regulate their cardiometabolic markers.

This study aimed to determine the association between hemoglobin (Hb) concentration and Hb change, during early to mid-pregnancy with the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). This was a clinic-based retrospective cohort study of 1951 healthy pregnant women (18–45 years old) with a singleton gestation attending antenatal care at government health clinics. Hb concentration at first prenatal visit and each trimester was extracted from the antenatal cards. Hb changes from first prenatal visit to first and second trimester as well as from second to third trimester were calculated. Multivariate logistic regression was used with adjustment for covariates. Women with GDM had significantly higher Hb concentrations (Hb 1) at first prenatal visit (< 12 weeks) compared with non-GDM women (11·91 g/dl v.11·74 g/dl). Hb 1 and Hb changes (Hb change 2) from first prenatal visit to the second trimester (23–27th weeks) were significantly associated with GDM risk, with an adjusted OR of 1·14 (95 % CI 1·01, 1·29) and 1·25 (95 % CI 1·05, 1·49), respectively. The significant associations between Hb 1 and Hb change 2 with the risk of GDM were found among non-Malays, overweight/obese and women aged 35 years and above. Women with higher Hb concentrations in early pregnancy were at higher risk of GDM, and such association was significant among women aged 35 years and above, non-Malays and overweight/obese. This raises a potential concern for elevated Fe status in early pregnancy as a risk factor of GDM among Fe-replete women.

This work aims to examine the interaction between apo A2 (Apo A-II) –265T > C SNP and dietary total antioxidant capacity (DTAC) on inflammation and oxidative stress in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The present cross-sectional study included 180 patients (35–65 years) with identified Apo A-II genotype. Dietary intakes were assessed by a FFQ. DTAC was computed using the international databases. IL-18 (IL18), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), pentraxin (PTX3), serum total antioxidant capacity (TAC), superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and 8-isoprostaneF2α (PGF2α) markers were obtained according to standard protocols. General linear model was used to evaluate the interaction. The interaction of gene and DTAC (PFRAP = 0·039 and PORAC = 0·042) on PGF2α level was significant after adjusting for confounders. A significant interaction was observed on IL18 level (PORAC = 0·018 and PFRAP = 0·048) and SOD (PTEAC = 0·037) in obese patients. Among patients whose DTAC was higher than the median intake, the levels of hs-CRP and PGF2α were significantly higher only in individuals with CC genotype. Serum TAC (PFRAP = 0·030, PORAC = 0·049) and SOD were significantly lower in the CC genotype. There was a favourable relationship between the high-DTAC and SOD (obese: PTEAC = 0·034, non-obese: PFRAP = 0·001, PTRAP < 0·0001, PTEAC = 0·003 and PORAC = 0·001) and PGF2α (non-obese: PORAC = 0·024) in T-allele carriers. The rs5082 SNP interacts with DTAC to influence several cardiometabolic risk factors. Also, we found dietary recommendations for antioxidant-rich foods intake might be useful in the prevention of diabetes complications in the T carrier more effectively than the CC genotype. Future large studies are required to confirm these results.

The present study investigated the effect of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae meal (BSF) on haemolymph biochemical indicators, muscle metabolites as well as the lipid and glucose metabolism of Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei. Four diets were formulated in which the control diet contained 25 % of fishmeal (FM) and 10 % (BSF10), 20 % (BSF20), and 30 % (BSF30) of FM protein were replaced with BSF. Four hundred and eighty shrimp (0·88 ± 0·00 g) were distributed to four groups of three replicates and fed for 7 weeks. Results showed that growth performance of shrimp fed BSF30 significantly decreased compared with those fed FM, but there was no significant difference in survival among groups. The whole shrimp crude lipid content, haemolymph TAG and total cholesterol were decreased with the increasing BSF inclusion. The results of metabolomics showed that the metabolite patterns of shrimp fed different diets were altered, with significant changes in metabolites related to lipid metabolism, glucose metabolism as well as TCA cycle. The mRNA expressions of hk, pfk, pk, pepck, ampk, mcd, cpt-1 and scd1 in hepatopancreas were downregulated in shrimp fed BSF30, but mRNA expression of acc1 was upregulated. Unlike BSF30, the mRNA expressions of fas, cpt-1, fbp and 6pgd in hepatopancreas were upregulated in shrimp fed BSF20. This study indicates that BSF20 diet promoted lipid synthesis and lipolysis, while BSF30 diet weakened β-oxidation and glycolysis as well as affected the unsaturated fatty acids synthesis, which may affect the growth performance and body composition of shrimp.

Despite numerous reports on the beneficial effects of olive oil in the cardiovascular context, very little is known about the olive tree’s wild counterpart (Olea europaea, L. var. sylvestris), commonly known as acebuche (ACE) in Spain. The aim of this study was to analyse the possible beneficial effects of an extra virgin ACE oil on vascular function in a rodent model of arterial hypertension (AH) induced by NG-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME). Four experimental groups of male Wistar rats were studied: (1) normotensive rats (Control group); (2) normotensive rats fed a commercial diet supplemented with 15 % (w/w) ACE oil (Acebuche group); (3) rats made hypertensive following administration of L-NAME (L-NAME group); and (4) rats treated with L-NAME and simultaneously supplemented with 15 % ACE oil (LN + ACE group). All treatments were maintained for 12 weeks. Besides a significant blood pressure (BP)-lowering effect, the ACE oil-enriched diet counteracted the alterations found in aortas from hypertensive rats in terms of morphology and responsiveness to vasoactive mediators. In addition, a decrease in hypertension-related fibrotic and oxidative stress processes was observed in L-NAME-treated rats subjected to ACE oil supplement. Therefore, using a model of AH via nitric oxide depletion, here we demonstrate the beneficial effects of a wild olive oil based upon its vasodilator, antihypertensive, antioxidant, antihypertrophic and antifibrotic properties. We postulate that regular inclusion of ACE oil in the diet can alleviate the vascular remodelling and endothelial dysfunction processes typically found in AH, thus resulting in a significant reduction of BP.

An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary vitamin D3 supplementation on the growth performance, tissue Ca and P concentrations, antioxidant capacity, immune response and lipid metabolism in Litopenaeus vannamei larvae. A total of 720 shrimp (initial weight 0·50 ± 0·01 g) were randomly distributed into six treatments, each of which had three duplicates of forty shrimp per duplicate. Six isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated to contain graded vitamin D3 (0·18, 0·23, 0·27, 0·48, 0·57 and 0·98 mg/kg of vitamin D3, measured) supplementation levels. The results revealed that L. vannamei fed diet containing 0·48 mg/kg of vitamin D3 achieved the best growth performance. Compared with the control group, supplementing 0·48 mg/kg of vitamin D3 significantly increased (P < 0·05) the activities of catalase, total antioxidative capacity, alkaline phosphatase and acid phosphatase in serum and hepatopancreas. Expression levels of antioxidant and immune-related genes were synchronously increased (P < 0·05). Carapace P and Ca concentrations were increased (P < 0·05) with the increased vitamin D3 supplementation levels. Further analysis of lipid metabolism-related genes expression showed that shrimp fed 0·48 mg of vitamin D3 per kg diet showed the highest value in the expression of lipid synthesis-related genes, while shrimp fed 0·98 mg of vitamin D3 per kg diet showed the highest value in the expression of lipolysis-related genes. In conclusion, the results of present study indicated that dietary supplementation of 0·48 mg/kg of vitamin D3 could increase Ca and P concentrations, improve antioxidant capacity and immune response, and influence lipid metabolism in L. vannamei.

Aerobic organisms need antioxidant defense systems to deal with free radicals which either are produced during aerobic respiration or may have an external origin. Oxidative stress, which is resulted from an imbalance between the production of free radicals and the ability of antioxidant defense mechanism to deactivate them, is involved in the development of many chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, CVD and some neurodegenerative diseases. Reinforcing the antioxidant potential of the body has been considered as a strategy that could prevent and manage such conditions. In the previous review article published by British Journal of Nutrition, in 2014, for the first time, we concluded that riboflavin could alleviate oxidative stress. Although riboflavin can serve as a prooxidant when exposed to ultraviolet irradiation, the literature is replete with studies that support its antioxidant properties. Furthermore, recent evidence suggests that riboflavin may have a therapeutic potential in many conditions in which oxidative stress is involved, although the therapeutic efficacy of riboflavin as an antioxidant requires further study under conditions of wellness and clinical disease.

Maternal folic acid and vitamin B12 (B12) status during pregnancy influence fetal growth. This study elucidated the effect of altered dietary ratio of folic acid and B12 on the regulation of H19/IGF2 locus in C57BL/6 mice. Female mice were fed diets with nine combinations of folic acid and B12 for 4 weeks. They were mated and the offspring born (F1) were continued on the same diet for 6 weeks post-weaning and were allowed to mate. The placenta and fetal (F2) tissues were collected at day 20 of gestation. H19 overexpression observed under dietary deficiency of folate combined with normal B12 (B12 normal folic acid-deficient, BNFD) was associated with an increased expression of microRNA-675 (miR-675) in maternal and fetal tissues. Insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) expression was decreased under folic acid-deficient conditions combined with normal, deficient or over-supplemented state of B12 (BNFD, BDFD and BOFD) in fetal tissues along with B12 deficiency combined with normal folic acid (BDFN) in the placenta. The altered expression of imprinted genes under folic acid-deficient conditions was related to decreased serum levels of folate and body weight (F1). Hypermethylation observed at the H19 differentially methylated region (DMR) (in BNFD) might be responsible for the decreased expression of IGF2 in female fetal tissues. IGF2 DMR2 was found to be hypomethylated and associated with low serum B12 levels with B12 deficiency in fetal tissues. Results suggest that the altered dietary ratio of folic acid and B12 affects the in utero development of the fetus in association with altered epigenetic regulation of H19/IGF2 locus.