Research - Lung Disease
Effects of Mediterranean Diet and Physical Activity on Pulmonary Function: A Cross-Sectional Analysis in the ILERVAS Project
Liliana Gutiérrez-Carrasquilla 1,†,Enric Sánchez 1,†,Marta Hernández 1,Dinora Polanco 2,3,Jordi Salas-Salvadó 4,5,Àngels Betriu 6,Anna Michela Gaeta 2,Paola Carmona 2,Francesc Purroy 7,Reinald Pamplona 8,Cristina Farràs 9,Carolina López-Cano 1,Elvira Fernández 2 andAlbert Lecube
Abstract
A few studies showed that both adherence to Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and physical activity practice have a positive impact on pulmonary function in subjects with lung disease. These associations are not well studied in subjects free from lung disease. In a cross-sectional study conducted in 3020 middle-aged subjects free of lung disease, adherence to the MedDiet using the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener, and physical activity practice using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire short form were recorded. Respiratory function was assessed using forced spirometry and the results were evaluated according to the Global initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease. Logistic regression models were used to analyze the associations between adherence to the MedDiet and physical activity practice with the presence of ventilatory defects. Participants with a high adherence to MedDiet, in comparison to those with low adherence, had both higher forced vital capacity (FVC; 100 (87–109) vs. 94 (82–105) % of predicted, p = 0.003) and forced expired volume in the first second (FEV1; 100 (89–112) vs. 93 (80–107) % of predicted, p < 0.001). According to their degree of physical activity, those subjects with a high adherence also had both higher FVC (100 (88–107) vs. 94 (83–105) % of predicted, p = 0.027) and FEV1 (100 (89–110) vs. 95 (84–108) % of predicted, p= 0.047) in comparison with those with low adherence. The multivariable logistic regression models showed a significant and independent association between both low adherence to MedDiet and low physical activity practice, and the presence of altered pulmonary patterns, with differences between men and women. However, no joint effect between adherence to MedDiet and physical activity practice on respiratory function values was observed. Low adherence to MedDiet and low physical activity practice were independently associated with pulmonary impairment. Therefore, the lung mechanics seem to benefit from heart-healthy lifestyle behaviors.
Source : Journal Nutrients
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Vitamin D Deficiency Is Associated with Pulmonary Exacerbations in Children with Cystic Fibrosis
Laura A. McCauley1 , William Thomas2 , Theresa A. Laguna3 , Warren E. Regelmann3 , Antoinette Moran3 , and Lynda E. Polgreen3
Abstract
Rationale: Recent literature suggests vitamin D has an effect on lung function and on the lung’s ability to fight infection, both important in the cystic fibrosis (CF) population as predictors of morbidity and mortality.
Objectives: Our study assessed associations between vitamin D and % predicted lung function, pulmonary exacerbations, and first Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in children with CF. We hypothesized that children with CF who have 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-OHD) levels less than 30 mg/L would have lower % predicted lung function and more pulmonary exacerbations than those with 25-OHD greater than or equal to 30 mg/L.
Methods:This retrospective longitudinal study of 130 children aged 6 to 18 years between 2000 and 2012 examined 25-OHD levels classed in three vitamin D groups: sufficient (>30 mg/L), insufficient (20–29 mg/L), and deficient (,20 mg/L). Longitudinal models followed individuals’ changing vitamin D groups over time to compare numbers of pulmonary exacerbations (defined by hospitalization), incidence of first P. aeruginosa infection, and % predicted lung function. Cross-sectional comparisons between vitamin D groups were performed at ages 8, 12, and 16 years.
Measurements and Main Results: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency increased slowly through adolescence. The rate of exacerbations for the deficient vitamin D group, aged 15 to 18 years, was 13.1 per 10 patient-years, significantly higher than 4.3 per 10 patient-years for the insufficient and sufficient vitamin D groups (P , 0.05), which were not significantly different There were no differences between vitamin D groups in pulmonary function or incidence of first P. aeruginosa infection, which was about 2 per 10 patient-years.
Conclusions: Higher 25-OHD levels in children with CF were associated with lower rates of pulmonary exacerbations and, in adolescents, higher FEV1
Source : Ann Am Thorac Soc.
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α-Mangostin Alleviated Lipopolysaccharide Induced Acute Lung Injury in Rats by Suppressing NAMPT/NAD Controlled Inflammatory Reactions
Mengqing Tao,1 Jia Jiang,1 Lin Wang,1 Yan Li,1 Qingcheng Mao,2 Jiyang Dong,3and Jian Zuo
Abstract
α-Mangostin (MAN) is a bioactive xanthone isolated from mangosteen. This study was designed to investigate its therapeutic effects on acute lung injury (ALI) and explore the underlying mechanisms of action. Rats from treatment groups were subject to oral administration of MAN for 3 consecutive days beforehand, and then ALI was induced in all the rats except for normal controls via an intraperitoneal injection with lipopolysaccharide. The severity of disease was evaluated by histological examination and hematological analysis. Protein expressions in tissues and cells were examined with immunohistochemical and immunoblotting methods, respectively. The levels of cytokines and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) were determined using ELISA and colorimetric kits, respectively. It was found that MAN treatment significantly improved histological conditions, reduced leucocytes counts, relieved oxidative stress, and declined TNF-α levels in ALI rats. Meanwhile, MAN treatment decreased expressions of nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) and Sirt1 both in vivo and in vitro, which was accompanied with a synchronized decline of NAD and TNF-α. Immunoblotting assay further showed that MAN downregulated HMGB1, TLR4, and p-p65 in RAW 264.7 cells. MAN induced declines of both HMGB1/TLR4/p-p65 and TNF-α were substantially reversed by cotreatment with nicotinamide mononucleotide or NAD. These results suggest that downregulation of NAMPT/NAD by MAN treatments contributes to the alleviation of TLR4/NF-κB-mediated inflammations in macrophage, which is essential for amelioration of ALI in rats.
Conclusion
As a well known naturally occurring bioactive compound, MAN possesses a notable clinical potential in treatments of many diseases. This study provides further evidences to support its anti-inflammatory properties and partially elucidates the underlying mechanisms from a unique perspective. The results of this study suggested that MAN suppressed TLR4/NF-κB mediated inflammation reactions by manipulation of NAMPT/NAD, and the regulation of fat metabolism could be an effective therapeutic strategy in therapies of inflammation related disorders.
Source Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
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Feifukang ameliorates pulmonary fibrosis by inhibiting JAK-STAT signaling pathway
- Hongbo Li†,
- Zhenkai Wang†,
- Jie Zhang,
- Youlei Wang,
- Chen Yu,
- Jinjin Zhang,
- Xiaodong SongEmail author and
- Changjun Lv
Background
Feifukang (FFK) is a traditional Chinese medicine composed of herbs that protect lung function. However, difficulty arises regarding the clinical application of FFK due to the complex mechanism of Chinese medicines. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of FFK and explore its targeted genes and pathways.
Methods
Histopathological changes and collagen deposition were measured to evaluate the effect of FFK on bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice. The differentially expressed targeted genes and pathways were first screened using RNA sequencing. Then network pharmacology and other experiments were conducted to confirm RNA sequencing data.
Results
FFK treatment reduced the pathological score and collagen deposition, with a decrease in α-SMA and collagen. RNA sequencing and network pharmacology results all showed that FFK can ameliorate pulmonary fibrosis through multi-genes and multi-pathways. The targeted genes in JAK-STAT signaling pathway are some of the most notable components of these multi-genes and multi-pathways. Further experiments illustrated that FFK regulated phosphorylation of SMAD3, STAT3 and JAK1, and their co-expressed lncRNAs, which all are the important genes in JAK-STAT signaling pathway.
Conclusion
FFK can ameliorate pulmonary fibrosis by inhibiting JAK-STAT signaling pathway and has potential therapeutic value for lung fibrosis treatment. Our study provides a new idea for the study of traditional Chinese medicine.
Source : BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
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Antimycobacterial activity against different pathogens and selectivity index of fourteen medicinal plants used in southern Africa to treat tuberculosis and respiratory ailments
J.P. Dzoyem, A.O. Aro, L.J. McGaw, J.N. Eloff
Abstract
Many plants are used in traditional medicine to treat tuberculosis and other respiratory disorders in Africa. The emergence of multiple drug resistance has become a major threat and thus calls for an urgent need to search for new effective and safe anti-TB agents. The aim was to determine the antimycobacterial activity and the safety of the acetone leaf extracts of 14 plant species used in southern Africa to treat tuberculosis and pulmonary ailments.
The antimycobacterial activity was evaluated by a tetrazolium violet based broth microdilution method against three fast-growing mycobacteria species (Mycobacterium smegmatis,Mycobacterium aurum and M. fortuitum) and one pathogenic M. tuberculosis field strain. The in vitro cellular toxicity was determined using the MTT assay on Vero monkey kidney cells. The extraction yield, the LC50 and MIC values were used to determine the total activity (TA) and the selectivity index (SI) of the extracts.
Extracts had moderate to weak activity with the MIC values ranging from 0.039 to > 2.5 mg/mL. M. fortuitum appeared to be better predictor of activity against pathogenic M. tuberculosis than M. smegmatis and M. aurum. Extracts from Heteropyxis natalensis (3.3) and Hexalobus monopetalus (2.47) had the highest selectivity index.
The results substantiate the safety and in some cases the potential efficacy of the traditional use of these species against tuberculosis and pulmonary ailments.
Source : South African Journal of Botany
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Circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D and risk of lung cancer: a dose–response meta-analysis
- Guo-Chong Chen
- , Zeng-Li Zhang
- , Zhongxiao Wan
- , Ling Wang
- , Peter Weber
- , Manfred Eggersdorfer
- ,Li-Qiang Qin
- , Weiguo Zhang
- Abstract
Mounting experimental evidence supports a protective effect of high 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D), a good indicator of vitamin D status, on risk of various cancers including lung cancer. However, prospective observational studies examining the 25(OH)D–lung cancer association reported inconsistent findings. A dose–response meta-analysis was carried out to elucidate the subject.
Methods
Potentially eligible studies were identified by searching PubMed and EMBASE databases, and by carefully reviewing the bibliographies of retrieved publications. The summary relative risks (RRs) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using the random-effects model.
Results
Thirteen reports from ten prospective studies were included, totaling 2,227 lung cancer events. Results of the meta-analysis showed a significant 5 % (RR 0.95, 95 % CI 0.91–0.99) reduction in the risk of lung cancer for each 10 nmol/L increment in 25(OH)D concentrations. This inverse association was not significantly modified by area, study duration, sex, methods for 25(OH)D measurement, baseline 25(OH)D levels, or quality score of included studies. There was evidence of a nonlinear relationship between 25(OH)D and risk of lung cancer (p-nonlinearity = 0.02), with the greatest reductions in risk observed at 25(OH)D of nearly 53 nmol/L, and remained protective until approximately 90 nmol/L. Further increases showed no significant association with cancer risk, but scanty data were included in the analyses of high-level 25(OH)D. There was no evidence of publication bias.
Conclusion
This dose–response meta-analysis of prospective studies suggests that 25(OH)D may be associated with reduced risk of lung cancer, in particular among subjects with vitamin D deficiencies.
Source : Journal Cancer Causes and Control
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Protective effect of polyphenols in an inflammatory process associated with experimental pulmonary fibrosis in mice
Abstract
Polyphenols have been described to have a wide range of biological activities, and many reports, published during recent years, have highlighted the beneficial effects of phenolic compounds, illustrating their promising role as therapeutic tools in several acute and chronic disorders. The purpose of study was to evaluate, in an already-assessed model of lung injury caused by bleomycin (BLM) administration, the role of resveratrol and quercetin, as well as to explore the potential beneficial properties of a mango leaf extract, rich in mangiferin, and a grape leaf extract, rich in dihydroquercetin (DHQ), on the same model. Mice were subjected to intra-tracheal administration of BLM, and polyphenols were administered by oral route immediately after BLM instillation and daily for 7 d. Treatment with resveratrol, mangiferin, quercetin and DHQ inhibited oedema formation and body weight loss, as well as ameliorated polymorphonuclear infiltration into the lung tissue and reduced the number of inflammatory cells in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Moreover, polyphenols suppressed inducible nitric oxide synthase expression, and prevented oxidative and nitroxidative lung injury, as shown by the reduced nitrotyrosine and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase levels. The degree of apoptosis, as evaluated by Bid and Bcl-2 balance, was also suppressed after polyphenol treatment. Finally, these natural products down-regulated cyclo-oxygenase-2, extracellular signal-regulated kinase phosphorylated expression and reduced NF-κBp65 translocation. Our findings confirmed the anti-inflammatory effects of resveratrol and quercetin in BLM-induced lung damage, and highlight, for the first time, the protective properties of exogenous administration of mangiferin and DHQ on experimental pulmonary fibrosis.
Source : British Journal of Nutrition
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The Effects of Regular Yoga Practice on Pulmonary Function in Healthy Individuals: A Literature Review
Allison N. Abel, BEd, Lisa K. Lloyd, PhD, and James S. Williams, PhD
Department of Health and Human Performance, Texas State University–San Marcos, San Marcos, TX.
Abstract
Objectives: Yoga is a popular form of exercise in the Western world, and yoga's effects on pulmonary function have been investigated previously. The purpose of this article is to review this research systematically and determine if regular yoga training improves pulmonary function in apparently healthy individuals.
Methods: Using the Alternative Health Watch, the Physical Education Index, Medline,® and the SPORTdiscus databases; and the keywords yoga, respiration, and pulmonary function, a comprehensive search was conducted that yielded 57 studies. Of these studies selections were made to include only experimental studies written in English, published in peer-reviewed journals after 1980, and investigating the effects of regular yoga practice on pulmonary function in healthy individuals participating in the studies.
Results: Yoga improved pulmonary function, as measured by maximum inspiratory pressure, maximum expiratory pressure, maximum voluntary ventilation, forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in 1 second, and peak expiratory flow rate, in all (N=9), but 1, study.
Conclusions: Overall, pulmonary function appears to improve with a minimum of 10 weeks of regular yoga practice, and the magnitude of this improvement is related to fitness level and/or the length of time the subjects spend practicing pranayama (i.e., breathing exercises). In other words, greater improvements in pulmonary function are more likely to be seen in less-fit individuals and/or those that engage in longer periods of pranayama. Additional studies examining various yoga practices are warranted to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the effects of yoga techniques on pulmonary functions.
Source : the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
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