PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Researchers find link between common dietary fat, intestinal microbes and heart disease

How specific digestive tract microbes react to a dietary lipid increases risk of heart attack, stroke and death

2011-04-07
(Press-News.org) A new pathway has been discovered that links a common dietary lipid and intestinal microflora with an increased risk of heart disease, according to a Cleveland Clinic study published in the latest issue of Nature.

The study shows that people who eat a diet containing a common nutrient found in animal products (such as eggs, liver and other meats, cheese and other diary products, fish, shellfish) are not predisposed to cardiovascular disease solely on their genetic make-up, but rather, how the micro-organisms that live in our digestive tracts metabolize a specific lipid -- phosphatidyl choline (also called lecithin). Lecithin and its metabolite, choline, are also found in many commercial baked goods, dietary supplements, and even children's vitamins.

The study examined clinical data from 1,875 patients who were referred for cardiac evaluation, as well as plasma samples from mice. When fed to mice, lecithin and choline were converted to a heart disease-forming product by the intestinal microbes, which promoted fatty plaque deposits to form within arteries (atherosclerosis); in humans, higher blood levels of choline and the heart disease forming microorganism products are strongly associated with increased cardiovascular disease risk.

"When two people both eat a similar diet but one gets heart disease and the other doesn't, we currently think the cardiac disease develops because of their genetic differences; but our studies show that is only a part of the equation," said Stanley Hazen, M.D., Ph.D., Staff in Lerner Research Institute's Department of Cell Biology and the Heart and Vascular Institute's Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and Section Head of Preventive Cardiology & Rehabilitation at Cleveland Clinic, and senior author of the study. "Actually, differences in gut flora metabolism of the diet from one person to another appear to have a big effect on whether one develops heart disease. Gut flora is a filter for our largest environmental exposure – what we eat."

Dr. Hazen added, "Another remarkable finding is that choline – a natural semi-essential vitamin – when taken in excess, promoted atherosclerotic heart disease. Over the past few years we have seen a huge increase in the addition of choline into multi-vitamins - even in those marketed to our children - yet it is this same substance that our study shows the gut flora can convert into something that has a direct, negative impact on heart disease risk by forming an atherosclerosis-causing by-product."

In studies of more than 2,000 subjects altogether, blood levels of three metabolites of the dietary lipid lecithin were shown to strongly predict risk for cardiovascular disease: choline (a B-complex vitamin), trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO, a product that requires gut flora to be produced and is derived from the choline group of the lipid) and betaine (a metabolite of choline).

"The studies identify TMAO as a blood test that can be used in subjects to see who is especially at risk for cardiac disease, and in need of more strict dietary intervention to lower their cardiac risk," Dr. Hazen said.

Healthy amounts of choline, betaine and TMAO are found in many fruits, vegetables and fish. These three metabolites are commonly marketed as direct-to-consumer supplements, supposedly offering increased brain health, weight loss and/or muscle growth.

These compounds also are commonly used as feed additives for cattle, poultry or fish because they may make muscle grow faster; whether muscle from such livestock have higher levels of these compounds remains unknown.

"Knowing that gut flora generates a pro-atherosclerotic metabolite from a common dietary lipid opens up new opportunities for improved diagnostics, prevention and treatment of heart disease," Dr. Hazen said. "These studies suggest we can intelligently design a heart healthy yogurt or other form of probiotic for preventing heart disease in the future. It also appears there is a need for considering the risk vs. benefits of some commonly used supplements."

INFORMATION:

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Researchers ID microbe responsible for methane from landfills

2011-04-07
Researchers have long known that landfills produce methane, but had a hard time figuring out why – since landfills do not start out as a friendly environment for the organisms that produce methane. New research from North Carolina State University shows that one species of microbe is paving the way for other methane producers. Specifically, the researchers found that an anaerobic bacterium called Methanosarcina barkeri appears to be the key microbe. "Landfills receive a wide variety of solid waste, and that waste generally starts out with a fairly low pH level," says ...

Neural guidance gene regulates liver development

2011-04-07
Scientists of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch (Germany) have demonstrated for the first time that a gene regulating neuronal cell migration during embryogenesis also plays a role in the development of the liver. Using zebrafish as a model organism, Dr. Christian Klein and Professor Ferdinand le Noble showed that the gene navigator-3 (abbreviated nav3a) regulates liver organogenesis. If nav3a is missing, the liver cannot develop (Development 2011, doi:10.1242/dev.056861)*. "Moreover, first evidence indicates," Dr. Klein said, "that the expression ...

Most recent mammography recommendations confuse public

2011-04-07
San Diego, CA, April 6, 2011 – When the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent panel of experts in primary care and prevention, released its recommendations on mammography screenings for US women on November 16, 2009, there was immediate and considerable controversy. In a study published in the May 2011 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, investigators report that these new recommendations confused women (30.0%) more than they helped them understand when to get a mammogram (6.2%). Confusion was greatest among women aged 40-49 years ...

New drug shrinks cancer in animals, U-M study shows

2011-04-07
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A study led by researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center showed in animal studies that new cancer drug compounds they developed shrank tumors, with few side effects. The study, done in two mouse models of human cancer, looked at two compounds designed to activate a protein that kills cancer cells. The protein, p53, is inactivated in a significant number of human cancers. In some cases, it is because another protein, MDM2, binds to p53 and blocks its tumor suppressor function. This allows the tumor to grow unchecked. The new ...

esd & associates Gets Its Mobile Site On

2011-04-07
esd & associates is a company that practices what it preaches. So it is only natural for San Antonio's leading digital creative agency to go digital. esd's mobile site is now live, compressing its website onto a 3x2 inch mobile display. For retailers a mobile site is mandatory. It is equally important for b2b, non-profits and others where the decision is not as immediate. "Our customers are out there and they are mobile," says Erik Simpson, esd & associates creative director. "Our mobile site leads our visitor to the material they are most likely to need on the road." The ...

High levels of toxic compounds found on coasts of West Africa

High levels of toxic compounds found on coasts of West Africa
2011-04-07
"We were not expecting to find such high levels of PCBs, highly toxic compounds that are considered as priority compounds by European legislation, in a region such as the western coast of Africa", Ailette Prieto, a researcher at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU-Spain) and co-author of a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, tells SINC. PCBs, which some studies have shown to be carcinogenic compounds, were used years ago as dielectric fluids in transformers, condensers and coolants for various devices. However, their production ...

NewBlueFX Effects and Transitions: Now Fully Compatible with Avid Studio

2011-04-07
NewBlueFX, the fastest growing integrated video and audio effects provider, has announced today that NewBlueFX plugins are now compatible with Avid(r) Studio, the newly released consumer video editing solution. Avid Studio features include integrated media library, media editor, timeline editor, DVD and Blu-ray authoring tools, NewBlueFX's line of professional-grade Video Essentials, Effects and Transitions plugin packs are now fully compatible. "With increasing demand in the video hobbyist and editing enthusiast markets for easy-to-use, effective products, NewBlue ...

Simple chemical cocktail shows first promise for limb re-growth in mammals

2011-04-07
Move over, newts and salamanders. The mouse may join you as the only animal that can re-grow their own severed limbs. Researchers are reporting that a simple chemical cocktail can coax mouse muscle fibers to become the kinds of cells found in the first stages of a regenerating limb. Their study, the first demonstration that mammal muscle can be turned into the biological raw material for a new limb, appears in the journal ACS Chemical Biology. Darren R. Williams and Da-Woon Jung say their "relatively simple, gentle, and reversible" methods for creating the early stages ...

triCerat's ScrewDrivers Now Available for Macs

2011-04-07
triCerat is excited to announce that ScrewDrivers is now available for Mac users. ScrewDrivers is a simple yet effective solution that instantly eradicates printer problems using a patented print format technology. Users experience fast, problem-free remote desktop printing from any application to any printer while system administrators enjoy easy configuration, implementation, and management. It's about being effective, efficient, and user friendly, which is what the ScrewDrivers remote printing solution is designed to do: simplify the printing process for users and ...

Internet Consultancy to Provide Free Link Audits

2011-04-07
Research carried out recently by Receptional has shown a close correlation in some sectors between the acquisition rate of hyperlinks from third party sites into a website, and the ultimate web traffic that the site enjoys. This research has led to renewed interest in link building as a part of the online marketing mix, and Receptional is looking to develop this channel by offering free link audits to established websites and brands. As Receptional is the sole marketing partner of MajesticSEO - the world's largest independent link map of the web, they are uniquely placed ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Development of a global innovative drug in eye drop form for treating dry age-related macular degeneration

Scientists unlock secrets behind flowering of the king of fruits

Texas A&M researchers illuminate the mysteries of icy ocean worlds

Prosthetic material could help reduce infections from intravenous catheters

Can the heart heal itself? New study says it can

Microscopic discovery in cancer cells could have a big impact

Rice researchers take ‘significant leap forward’ with quantum simulation of molecular electron transfer

Breakthrough new material brings affordable, sustainable future within grasp

How everyday activities inside your home can generate energy

Inequality weakens local governance and public satisfaction, study finds

Uncovering key molecular factors behind malaria’s deadliest strain

UC Davis researchers help decode the cause of aggressive breast cancer in women of color

Researchers discovered replication hubs for human norovirus

SNU researchers develop the world’s most sensitive flexible strain sensor

Tiny, wireless antennas use light to monitor cellular communication

Neutrality has played a pivotal, but under-examined, role in international relations, new research shows

Study reveals right whales live 130 years — or more

Researchers reveal how human eyelashes promote water drainage

Pollinators most vulnerable to rising global temperatures are flies, study shows

DFG to fund eight new research units

Modern AI systems have achieved Turing's vision, but not exactly how he hoped

Quantum walk computing unlocks new potential in quantum science and technology

Construction materials and household items are a part of a long-term carbon sink called the “technosphere”

First demonstration of quantum teleportation over busy Internet cables

Disparities and gaps in breast cancer screening for women ages 40 to 49

US tobacco 21 policies and potential mortality reductions by state

AI-driven approach reveals hidden hazards of chemical mixtures in rivers

Older age linked to increased complications after breast reconstruction

ESA and NASA satellites deliver first joint picture of Greenland Ice Sheet melting

Early detection model for pancreatic necrosis improves patient outcomes

[Press-News.org] Researchers find link between common dietary fat, intestinal microbes and heart disease
How specific digestive tract microbes react to a dietary lipid increases risk of heart attack, stroke and death