Nutrients

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Laura Sturla

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Guest Editor

Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Biochemistry, School of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Genova, Viale Benedetto XV 1, 16132 Genova, Italy
Interests: glucose homeostasis; food supplement; abscisic acid; molecular mechanisms of signal transduction; insulin resistance; diabetes and related metabolic syndrome

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The control of glucose homeostasis represents the primary goal for the prevention of prediabetes, insulin resistance, and diabetes. Diabetes is a metabolic disease that is growing in incidence, and its control involves numerous challenges; in particular, type 2 diabetes mellitus is the most prevalent form, affecting more than 90% of total diabetes subjects, and is characterized by decreased β-cell insulin secretion and/or insulin resistance, resulting in chronic hyperglycemia. The application of therapeutic strategies aiming to contrast hyperglycemia is essential; albeit many of the measures are based on improving life habits and pharmacological treatment, these interventions are often difficult to support due to several serious side-effects and fail to significantly alter the course of diabetic complications. Therefore, the development of novel strategies is necessary, and new bioactive compounds, present in food or released from human cells, able to improve glycemic control, stimulating glucose uptake, metabolism, and increasing insulin sensitivity, have recently attracted considerable interest.

The aim of this Special Issue is to collect original research articles, short communications, and reviews on new bioactive compounds as promising and innovative molecules able to contribute to the management of glucose homeostasis, including their molecular mechanisms in diabetes and all related metabolic syndromes.

Dr. Sturla Laura
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

bioactive molecules
glycemia control
diabetes
insulin sensitivity
human health
human diet
molecular mechanisms
biological activity

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 2063 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Phenolic-Rich Extracts of Rubus fruticosus, R. ulmifolius and Morus nigra on Oxidative Stress and Caco-2 Inhibition Growth

by Mariana S. Martins, Márcio Rodrigues, José David Flores-Félix, Cristina Garcia-Viguera, Diego A. Moreno, Gilberto Alves, Luís R. Silva and Ana C. Gonçalves

Nutrients 2024, 16(9), 1361; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16091361 - 30 Apr 2024

Viewed by 562

Abstract

Currently, a clear interest has been given to berries due to their richness in active metabolites, including anthocyanins and non-coloured phenolics. Therefore, the main aim of the present work is to investigate the phenolic profile, antioxidant abilities, and antiproliferative effects on normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDF) and human colon carcinoma cell line (Caco-2) cells of phenolic-rich extracts from three red fruits highly appreciated by consumers: two species of blackberries (Rubus fruticosus and Rubus ulmifolius) and one species of mulberry (Morus nigra). A total of 19 different phenolics were identified and quantified by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MSⁿ and HPLC-DAD, respectively. Focusing on the biological potential of the phenolic-rich extracts, all of them revealed notable scavenging abilities. Concerning the antiproliferative properties, R. fruticosus presented a cytotoxic selectivity for Caco-2 cells compared to NHDF cells. To deeper explore the biological potential, combinations with positive controls (ascorbic acid and 5-fluorouracil) were also conducted. Finally, the obtained data are another piece of evidence that the combination of phenolic-rich extracts from natural plants with positive controls may reduce clinical therapy costs and the possible toxicity of chemical drugs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Bioactive Compounds in Blood Glucose Control)

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Review

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22 pages, 2061 KiB

Open AccessReview

Interactions between Intestinal Homeostasis and NAD⁺ Biology in Regulating Incretin Production and Postprandial Glucose Metabolism

by Taichi Nagahisa, Shotaro Kosugi and Shintaro Yamaguchi

Nutrients 2023, 15(6), 1494; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15061494 - 20 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2463

Abstract

The intestine has garnered attention as a target organ for developing new therapies for impaired glucose tolerance. The intestine, which produces incretin hormones, is the central regulator of glucose metabolism. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) production, which determines postprandial glucose levels, is regulated by intestinal homeostasis. Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT)-mediated nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD⁺) biosynthesis in major metabolic organs such as the liver, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle plays a crucial role in obesity- and aging-associated organ derangements. Furthermore, NAMPT-mediated NAD⁺ biosynthesis in the intestines and its upstream and downstream mediators, adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and NAD⁺-dependent deacetylase sirtuins (SIRTs), respectively, are critical for intestinal homeostasis, including gut microbiota composition and bile acid metabolism, and GLP-1 production. Thus, boosting the intestinal AMPK–NAMPT–NAD⁺–SIRT pathway to improve intestinal homeostasis, GLP-1 production, and postprandial glucose metabolism has gained significant attention as a novel strategy to improve impaired glucose tolerance. Herein, we aimed to review in detail the regulatory mechanisms and importance of intestinal NAMPT-mediated NAD⁺ biosynthesis in regulating intestinal homeostasis and GLP-1 secretion in obesity and aging. Furthermore, dietary and molecular factors regulating intestinal NAMPT-mediated NAD⁺ biosynthesis were critically explored to facilitate the development of new therapeutic strategies for postprandial glucose dysregulation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Bioactive Compounds in Blood Glucose Control)

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