Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 2/10/10.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

Vitamin D for Mom May Lower Baby’s MS Risk - WebMD, 2/9/10 - "We also found the risk of MS among daughters whose mothers were in the top 20% of vitamin D intake during pregnancy was 45% lower than daughters whose mothers were in the bottom 20% for vitamin D intake during pregnancy" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Flavonols may slash stroke risk in women: Study - Nutra USA, 2/9/10 - "the researchers noted that a high intake of flavonols, predominantly from tea in the Dutch population and from tea, onions, apples, and broccoli in US studies, was associated with a 20 per cent reduction in stroke risk" - [Abstract]

Blueberries counteract intestinal diseases - Science Daily, 2/8/10 - "blueberry fibre are important and can alleviate and protect against intestinal inflammations, such as ulcerative colitis. The protective effect is even better if the blueberries are eaten together with probiotics ... probiotics proved to have a protective effect on the liver, an organ that is often negatively impacted by intestinal inflammations" - See blueberry extract at Amazon.com.

Beer is a rich source of silicon and may help prevent osteoporosis - Science Daily, 2/8/10 - "Silicon is present in beer in the soluble form of orthosilicic acid (OSA), which yields 50% bioavailability, making beer a major contributor to silicon intake in the Western diet. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), dietary silicon (Si), as soluble OSA, may be important for the growth and development of bone and connective tissue, and beer appears to be a major contributor to Si intake. Based on these findings, some studies suggest moderate beer consumption may help fight osteoporosis, a disease of the skeletal system characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue" - See Jarrow BioSil at iHerb (it says "Reduces Fine Lines and Wrinkles by 19%").  I put ten drops of it in my coffee every morning.

Soft drink consumption may markedly increase risk of pancreatic cancer - Science Daily, 2/8/10 - "Consuming two or more soft drinks per week increased the risk of developing pancreatic cancer by nearly twofold compared to individuals who did not consume soft drinks" - [Abstract]

Carotenoids may reduce breast cancer risk in women: Study - Nutra USA, 2/8/10 - "The highest average levels of alpha- and beta-carotene were associated with a 68 and 65 per cent reduction in the risk of ER-PR breast cancer among smokers" - [Abstract] - See Jarrow Formulas, CarotenALL, Mixed Carotenoid Complex at Amazon.com.

Omega-3 may combat mouth bacteria, boost oral health - Nutra USA, 2/10/10 - "The study, sponsored by the US National Institutes of Health, found that all six compounds showed cent 50 per cent inhibitory activity for concentrations ranging from 1 to 10 micrograms per millilitre" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

OPCs come out tops for heart health beverages - Nutra USA, 2/5/10 - "Cranberry juice rich in antioxidant procyanidins is effective at boosting the health of blood vessels ... oligomeric procyanidins (OPC) had “by far the most potent effects” on the function of the endothelium (the cells lining blood vessels)" - [Abstract] - See cranberry extract at Amazon.comand grape seed extract at Amazon.com.

Omega-3 may boost kidney health in diabetics: Study - Nutra USA, 2/3/10 - "Our results showed a significant decrease in serum creatinine level after fish-oil supplement in Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

Weight-loss supplement has potential to burn fair amount of calories - Science Daily, 2/2/10 - "the nutritional supplement called the tri-pepper blend, which contains black pepper, caffeine and a concentrated form of capsaicin -- the ingredient that makes red peppers hot. The OU study showed energy expenditures of three to six percent, results which are statistically significant enough to validate product weight-loss claims"

Study Linking Autism to Vaccine Retracted - WebMD, 2/2/10 - "The venerable British medical journal The Lancet has retracted a 1998 study suggesting a link between autism and childhood vaccination with the measles-mumps-rubella MMR vaccine ... The Lancet specifically refers to claims made in the paper that the 12 children in the study were consecutive patients that appeared for treatment, when the GMC found that several had been selected especially for the study. The paper also claimed that the study was approved by the appropriate ethics committee, when the GMC found it had not been"

Abstracts from this week's Doctor's Guide Nutrition/Dietetics plus abstracts from my RSS feeds (Click here for the journals, the PubMed ones at the top):

Chrysin sensitizes tumor necrosis factor-alpha-induced apoptosis in human tumor cells via suppression of nuclear factor-kappaB - Cancer Lett. 2010 Feb 2 - "In the present study, we found that, pretreatment with chrysin greatly sensitized various human cancer cells to tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha)-induced apoptosis"

Effects of Korean Red Ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Mayer) and Its Isolated Ginsenosides and Polysaccharides on Arterial Stiffness in Healthy Individuals - Am J Hypertens. 2010 Feb 4 - "Although preliminary, this study is the first to demonstrate that KRG may improve arterial stiffness as measured by AI" - See ginseng at Amazon.com.

Regulation of Vascular Endothelial Function by Procyanidin-Rich Foods and Beverages (dagger) - J Agric Food Chem. 2010 Jan 28 - "Evaluation of the relative effects of extracts of cranberry juice compared to apple, cocoa, red wine, and green tea showed inhibition of ET-1 synthesis was dependent primarily on their oligomeric procyanidin content. Procyanidin-rich extracts of cranberry juice triggered morphological changes in endothelial cells with reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton and increased immunostaining for phosphotyrosine residues ... procyanidin tetramer, pentamer, hexamer, and heptamer produced concentration-dependent decreases with IC(50) values of 5.4, 1.6, 0.9, and 0.7 muM, respectively. Levels of ET-1 mRNA showed a similar pattern of decreases, which were inversely correlated with increased expression of Kruppel-like factor 2 (KLF2), a key endothelial transcription factor with a broad range of antiatherosclerotic actions including suppression of ET-1 synthesis" - See cranberry extract at Amazon.comand grape seed extract at Amazon.com.

Acute effects of coffee on endothelial function in healthy subjects - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Feb - "caffeinated (CC) and one cup of decaffeinated (DC) Italian espresso coffee ... Subjects ingested one cup of caffeinated (CC) and one cup of decaffeinated (DC) Italian espresso coffee in random order at 5- to 7-day intervals.Results:Following CC ingestion, FMD decreased progressively and significantly (mean+/-s.e.m.: 0 min, 7.7+/-0.6; 30 min, 6.3+/-0.7; 60 min, 6.0+/-0.8%; ANOVA (analysis of variance), P<0.05), but it did not significantly increase after DC ingestion (0 min, 6.9+/-0.6; 30 min, 8.1+/-0.9; 60 min, 8.5+/-0.9%; P=0.115). Similarly, CC significantly increased both systolic and diastolic blood pressure; this effect was not observed after DC ingestion. Blood glucose concentrations remained unchanged after ingestion of both CC and DC, but insulin (0 min, 15.8+/-0.9; 60 min, 15.0+/-0.8 muU/ml; P<0.05) and C-peptide (0 min, 1.25+/-0.09; 60 min, 1.18+/-0.09 ng/ml; P<0.01) blood concentrations decreased significantly only after CC ingestion.Conclusions:CC acutely induced unfavorable cardiovascular effects, especially on endothelial function. In the fasting state, insulin secretion is also likely reduced after CC ingestion"

Fish-oil supplement has neutral effects on vascular and metabolic function but improves renal function in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus - Diabet Med. 2010 Jan;27(1):54-60 - "serum creatinine was lower (-4.5 mumol/l, P = 0.01) in fish-oil-treated patients as compared with control subjects" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

Long-Chain {omega}-3 Fatty Acids for Indicated Prevention of Psychotic Disorders: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial - Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2010 Feb;67(2):146-54 - "The difference between the groups in the cumulative risk of progression to full-threshold psychosis was 22.6% ... Long-chain omega-3 PUFAs reduce the risk of progression to psychotic disorder and may offer a safe and efficacious strategy for indicated prevention in young people with subthreshold psychotic states" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at iHerb.

Health Focus (Apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I)):

Related Topics:

• HDL cholesterol / apolipoprotein B

News & Research:

• High apoB/apoA-I ratio is associated with increased progression rate of carotid artery intima-media thickness in clinically healthy 58-year-old men: Experiences from very long-term follow-up in the AIR study - Atherosclerosis. 2008 Dec 3 - "The results indicate that apoB/apoA-I ratio is an important risk factor for predicting atherosclerotic progression rate during very long-term follow-up in clinically healthy middle-aged men"
• Natural Regulator Of Inflammation Identified - Science Daily, 12/24/08
• HDL cholesterol and large HDL particles not cardioprotective when adjusted for apoA-1 and apoB - theheart.org, 2/4/08
• Resveratrol attenuates the expression of HMG-CoA reductase mRNA in hamsters - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2007 Dec 28 - "The concentrations of serum total cholesterol and triglyceride were significantly lower in the resveratrol-fed group than in the control group. The resveratrol contained diet significantly decreased Apo B, Lp(a), and cholesterol-ester-transport protein (CETP) concentrations, but increased Apo A-I levels and the Apo A-I/Apo B ratio. The contents of cholesterol and triglyceride in hepatic tissue were significantly lower in the resveratrol group than in the control group. Real-time PCR analysis revealed that HMGR mRNA expression was significantly lower in the resveratrol group than in the control group" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Vitamin E dietary supplementation significantly affects multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease in baboons - Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Sep;86(3):597-603 - "vitamin E caused 2 paradoxical effects on HDL metabolism: higher apolipoprotein A-I (apo A-I) concentrations and lower HDL sizes ... They also show 2 apparently paradoxical effects on HDL metabolism: lower HDL(2), which is mediated by genes, and higher apo A-I, which is not. These effects have contrasting associations with CVD risk and may help account for the mixed results from clinical trials of dietary vitamin E"
• ApoB/apoA-I ratio: an independent predictor of insulin resistance in US non-diabetic subjects - Eur Heart J. 2007 Sep 1 - "In the US population, apoB/apoAI ratio is significantly associated with insulin resistance in non-diabetic subjects"
• HDL Levels and Particle Size: Does Size Matter at Both Ends of the Scale? - Medscape, 8/7/07 - "very large HDL particles would be associated with an increased risk for coronary artery disease ... These data suggest that very large HDL particles no longer seem to confer protection against cardiovascular disease, at least when levels of apoA-1 and apoB are kept constant, but this lack of protection does not seem to hold true for apoA-1"
• Low vitamin D levels may increase metabolic syndrome risk - Nutra USA, 7/17/07 - "The most relevant finding in our study was the association of vitamin D concentrations with lipid levels. Our results are in concordance with the concept that vitamin D appears to be necessary to maintain adequate apolipoprotein A-I concentrations, the main component of HDL cholesterol" -  [Abstract] - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Blood Protein Ups Heart Risk - WebMD, 9/19/06
• The apo B/A-I Ratio -- A Stronger Predictor of Cardiovascular Events Than LDL, HDL, or Total Cholesterol, Triglycerides, or Lipid Ratios - Medscape, 7/28/06 - "the predictive power of the apo B/A-I ratio is superior to, and cannot be improved by adding, any other lipid parameter or ratio"
• Novel Dietary Supplement [Sytrinol™] Shows Dramatic Effects in Lowering Cholesterol, LDL, and Triglycerides - Life Extension Magazine, 11/04 - "those with the highest ratios of apolipoprotein B to apolipoprotein A were at the greatest risk of dying from a heart attack" - See Sytrinol at Amazon.com.
• Scientists Tout New Cholesterol Test - Intelihealth, 9/1/04 - "Globally, 50 percent of the risk of a heart attack is predicted by the apo B/apo A1 ratio"
• Raising HDL in Clinical Practice - Medscape, 6/10/04 - "The HDL particle is actually a protein complex consisting of several apolipoproteins, including ... apoA-I, which is abundant in all HDL particles"
• New Way to Unclog Arteries? - Dr. Weil, 1/19/04
• Genetically Engineered Molecule May Unclog Arteries - Physician's Weekly, 12/1/03
• Milano Apolipoprotein: A Newsmaker Interview With Steven E. Nissen, MD - Medscape, 11/11/03
• Simvastatin Increases HDL-C And Apo A-I More Than Atorvastatin in Patients With Hypercholesterolemia - Doctor's Guide, 11/10/03 - "Simvastatin appears to increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and apolipoprotein (apo) A-I significantly more than does atorvastatin in patients with hypercholesterolaemia ... Liver toxicity occurred in significantly fewer patients treated with simvastatin compared to atorvastatin"
• ‘Liquid Drano’ for the arteries - MSNBC, 11/4/03 - Note:  The article calls it "HDL" but I believe they are referring to the synthetic version of ApoA-I.  See the next article.
• Potential Heart Disease Breakthrough - WebMD, 11/4/03 - "It's called ApoA-I Milano ... a genetically engineered version of this "good" HDL cholesterol protein has been tested in a small human trial ... The findings exceed even the most optimistic expectations ... In five weeks, patients treated with ApoAI Milano had about a 4% decrease in plaque volume. That's 10 times greater reduction than ever seen before"
• Rosuvastatin Improves Apolipoprotein Levels - Doctor's Guide, 10/1/03
• Cholesterol Carriers May Offer Predict Second Heart Attack More Accurately -  Doctor's Guide, 5/17/99 - "ApoA-1 and apo B carry cholesterol in the bloodstream. Apo B is a cholesterol donor, while apoA-1 is a cholesterol scavenger"

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