Hyeon Yeong Ahn

Korean Red Ginseng Improves Glucose Control in Subjects with Impaired Fasting Glucose, Impaired Glucose Tolerance, or Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of Korean red ginseng (KRG) supplementation on glucose control in subjects with impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), or newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The study was a 12-week randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled (5 g of KRG [n=21] or placebo [n=20] in tablet form) trial. Glucose-related biomarkers, including serum and whole blood levels of glucose, insulin, and C-peptide, were measured by 2-h oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) at baseline and after the 12-week intervention. After the intervention, the test group showed a significant decrease in serum levels of glucose at 30 min (-22.24±10.77 mg/dL) and whole blood levels of glucose at 30 min (-17.52±5.22 mg/dL). In addition, the test group tended to have lower whole blood levels of glucose at 0 min and glucose area under curve (AUC). However, the placebo group did not show any changes in blood glucose-related indices. The changes (difference from baseline) in serum glucose levels at 30 min, whole blood glucose levels at 60 min, and glucose AUC during OGTTs in the test group exhibited a tendency toward a decrease from those in the placebo group. There were significant decreases or trends toward a decrease in both serum insulin and C-peptide concentrations at most time intervals in the test group. In conclusion, KRG supplementation (5 g/day) may be beneficial for controlling serum and whole blood glucose levels compared with placebo among patients with IFG, IGT, or T2DM.

The triglyceride-lowering effect of supplementation with dual probiotic strains, Lactobacillus curvatus HY7601 and Lactobacillus plantarum KY1032: Reduction of fasting plasma lysophosphatidylcholines in nondiabetic and hypertriglyceridemic subjects

BACKGROUND AND AIMS This study evaluated the triglyceride (TG)-lowering effects of consuming dual probiotic strains of Lactobacillus curvatus (L. curvatus) HY7601 and Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) KY1032 on the fasting plasma metabolome. METHODS AND RESULTS A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted on 92 participants with hypertriglyceridemia but without diabetes. Over a 12-week testing period, the probiotic group consumed 2 g of powder containing 5 × 10(9) colony-forming units (cfu) of L. curvatus HY7601 and 5 × 10(9) cfu of L. plantarum KY1032 each day, whereas the placebo group consumed the same product without probiotics. Fasting plasma metabolomes were profiled using UPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap MS. After 12 weeks of treatment, the probiotic group displayed a 20% reduction (p = 0.001) in serum TGs and 25% increases (p=0.001) in apolipoprotein A-V (apoA-V). At the 12-week follow-up assessment, the following 11 plasma metabolites were significantly reduced in the probiotic group than the placebo group: palmitoleamide, palmitic amide, oleamide, and lysophosphatidyl choline (lysoPC) containing C14:0, C16:1, C16:0, C17:0, C18:3, C18:2, C18:1, and C20:3. In the probiotic group, changes (▵) in TG were negatively correlated with ▵ apoA-V, which was positively correlated with ▵ FFA. In addition, ▵ FFA was strongly and positively correlated with ▵ lysoPCs in the probiotic group but not the placebo group. CONCLUSIONS The triglyceride-lowering effects of probiotic supplementation, partly through elevated apoA-V, in borderline to moderate hypertriglyceridemic subjects showed reductions in plasma metabolites, fatty acid primary amides and lysoPCs (NCT02215694; http://www.clinicaltrials.gov). Clinical trials: NCT02215694; http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

Effect of Immune-Enhancing Enteral Nutrition Enriched with or without Beta-Glucan on Immunomodulation in Critically Ill Patients

We investigated whether high-protein enteral nutrition with immune-modulating nutrients (IMHP) enriched with β-glucan stimulates immune function in critically ill patients. In a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study, 30 patients consumed one of three types of enteral nutrition: a control or IMHP with and without β-glucan. The IMHP with β-glucan group showed increases in natural killer (NK) cell activities relative to the baseline, and greater increases were observed in NK cell activities relative to the control group after adjusting for age and gender. The IMHP groups with and without β-glucan had greater increases in serum prealbumin and decreases in high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) than the control group. The control group had a greater decrease in peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) interleukin (IL)-12 production than the IMHP with and without β-glucan groups. In all patients, the change (Δ) in hs-CRP was correlated with Δ prealbumin and Δ PBMC IL-12, which were correlated with ΔNK cell activity and Δ prealbumin. This study showed beneficial effects of a combination treatment of β-glucan and IMHP on NK cell activity. Additionally, strong correlations among changes in NK cell activity, PBMC IL-12, and hs-CRP suggested that β-glucan could be an attractive candidate for stimulating protective immunity without enhanced inflammation (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02569203).

The effects of Jerusalem artichoke and fermented soybean powder mixture supplementation on blood glucose and oxidative stress in subjects with prediabetes or newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes

Background/ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation with a Jerusalem artichoke and fermented soybean powder mixture on blood glucose and oxidative stress levels.Subjects/MethodsThis randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study was conducted on 60 subjects with impaired fasting glucose (IFG), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), or newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes. The subjects were randomly assigned to either a group that ingested 40 g of a Jerusalem artichoke and fermented soybean powder mixture (19.45 g each) daily or a group that received a placebo for 12 weeks. Paired t-test and independent t-test were performed for comparisons within groups and between groups, respectively.ResultsSupplementation with the Jerusalem artichoke and fermented soybean powder mixture reduced the levels of fasting glucose (p < 0.001) and FFAs (p = 0.034), glucose at 60 min (p = 0.004), glucose (p = 0.006) areas under the response curve (AUC), homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (p = 0.018), and the urinary 8-epi-prostaglandin F2α (8-epi-PGF2α) level (p = 0.028). The changes (Δ) in urinary 8-epi-PGF2α, glucose at 60 min, 120 min, and AUC, FFAs at 0 min and AUC were significantly different between the two groups. In addition, Δ glucose at 120 min (r = 0.472, p = 0.027) and the Δ glucose AUC (r = 0.572, p = 0.005) were positively correlated with △ plasma malondialdehyde in the test group.ConclusionsThe consumption of a Jerusalem artichoke and fermented soybean powder mixture for 12 weeks was effective for reducing postprandial glucose and oxidative stress level, particularly 8-epi-PGF2α, in subjects with IFG, IGT, or newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.