Amino Up (Japan)

Abstract Background: The increase in sedentary behavior, coupled with a decrease in physical activity , poses a significant health risk. Medical students, in particular, face higher risks due to demanding academic schedules, prolonged sitting, and limited attention to physical activity. Methods: The PROMESS-Physical Activity clinical trial aims to support future healthcare professionals by enhancing their abilities to reduce their sedentary behavior and promote their physical activity. The support will be provided through a three-session program. Each session will include an individual meeting between a medical student and a PROMESS-Physical activity expert, during which self-care education, advice, and personalized goals will be established. The present protocol is designed to assess the influence of this program on forty-five undergraduate medical students (4th and 5th-year) of the Lyon-Est Faculty of Medicine (Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, France). Assessments of sedentary behavior and physical activity will be conducted before and during the intervention. At the end of the third session the student’s satisfaction levels regarding the program will be assessed. The primary will be change in sedentary time estimated through self-reported (questionnaires) and objective (accelerometry) measurements during the program. Secondary outcomes will provide a detailed characterization of changes in other sedentary behaviors, physical activity levels, physical fitness and body composition markers. Exploratory outcomes will provide information regarding the satisfaction and will determine the moderators of the program’s efficacy. Data will be analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle and presented in accordance with the CONSORT Guidelines. Ethical approval has been obtained (IRB: 2023070401). The results from this study will be presented at conferences and in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Discussion: Results will provide valuable insights into the program's efficacy. If its efficacy is proven, PROMESS-Physical Activity could become an integral part of medical education, fostering a healthier future for healthcare professionals. This manuscript follows the SPIRIT guidelines (Additional files 1 & 7). Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT06297304; retrospectively registered

Patient derived xenograft (PDX) is a powerful tool to confirm pharmacological efficacy in non-clinical studies for the development of various drugs including anti-cancer agents and therapeutic research. A standardized extract of cultured Lentinula edodes mycelia, a product name AHCC® is produced by Amino Up Co., Ltd. (Sapporo, Japan). In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effect of AHCC® on the growth of tumor PDX in Super SCID (severe combined immunodeficiency) mice. Effects of AHCC® and BCG administration on the growth of renal cancer PDX implanted in Super SCID mice were evaluated by PDX growth curve. Tendency for the effects on the growth of renal cancer PDX in Super SCID by administration of AHCC® and BCG before implanting the PDX were demonstrated. The effects of the oral administration of AHCC® on the growth of renal, invasive and non-invasive breast cancer PDX in Super SCID mice were studied. In Super SCID mice transplanted with renal cancer PDX, AHCC® significantly suppressed tumor proliferation from the day 48 to 83 after transplantation. In two types of breast cancer PDX, tendency of the growth inhibitory effects of AHCC® were shown by PDX growth curve. Significant inhibitory effect was found at only one time point for during proliferation in each PDX. Super SCID-PDX model has the potential to be a useful tool to investigate for the effect of functional foods.

Heat shock (HS) protein 70 (HSP70), a well-known HS-induced protein, acts as an intracellular chaperone to protect cells against stress conditions. Although HS induces HSP70 expression to confer stress resistance to cells, HS causes cell toxicity by increasing reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. Recently, a standardized extract of Asparagus officinalis stem (EAS), produced from the byproduct of asparagus, has been shown to induce HSP70 expression without HS and regulate cellular redox balance in pheochromocytoma cells. However, the effects of EAS on reproductive cell function remain unknown. Here, we investigated the effect of EAS on HSP70 induction and oxidative redox balance in cultured bovine cumulus-granulosa (CG) cells. EAS significantly increased HSP70 expression; however, no effect was observed on HSP27 and HSP90 under non-HS conditions. EAS decreased ROS generation and DNA damage and increased glutathione (GSH) synthesis under both non-HS and HS conditions. Moreover, EAS synergistically increased HSP70 and HSF1 expression and increased progesterone levels in CG cells. Treatment with an HSP70 inhibitor significantly decreased GSH level, increased ROS level, and decreased HSF1, Nrf2, and Keap1 expression in the presence of EAS. Furthermore, EAS significantly increased progesterone synthesis. Thus, EAS improves HSP70-mediated redox balance and cell function in bovine CG cells.

A standardized extract of Asparagus officinalis stem (EAS) is prepared from the lower residual parts of the plant. It is known to have antioxidative and neuroprotective activities. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of EAS on photoaging in the epidermal layer of the skin using cultured keratinocytes. Normal human epidermal keratinocytes were irradiated or unirradiated with UV-B (10 mJ/cm2) and incubated with EAS (0.5 or 2 mg/mL) or vehicle. After 3 or 13 hours, molecular examinations were performed, and after 24 or 48 hours, cell viabilities were determined by a CCK-8 assay. EAS treatment upregulated the mRNA level of heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor in cultured keratinocytes 13 hours after UV-B irradiation. On the other hand, EAS downregulated caspase-9 and endothelin-1 mRNA levels in UV-treated keratinocytes. EAS also increased cell viability on keratinocytes 24 hours after UV-B irradiation. These results suggested that EAS might accelerate the migration of keratinocytes and protect the cells against damage induced by UV-B irradiation. Furthermore, EAS might inhibit melanocyte proliferation and UV-induced hyperpigmentation.

Background: Oligonol® (OLG) is a functional food product and ingredient for cosmetics derived from a lychee fruit polyphenol. It has been reported to act on the skin as an anti-inflammatory and prevent UVB-induced skin damage.Aim: In this study, with the aim of exploring new functionalities of OLG on the scalp, we investigated the effect of OLG on human dermal papilla cells by comparing with adenosine and minoxidil at the genetic level.Method: OLG, adenosine, and minoxidil were applied to human dermal papilla cell lines for 24 h, after which VEGF, FGF-7, WNT5a, and WNT10a mRNA expressions were measured by real-time PCR analysis. Additionally, using DNA microarrays, we investigated the effect on 205 inflammation-related genes.Result: Consequently, in human dermal papilla cell lines, FGF-7 and WNT10a mRNA expression were observed in 100 µg/mL OLG-supplemented cells. The results of the DNA microarray analysis showed that 10 genes were suppressed by OLG.Conclusions: OLG may be expected to affect function of human dermal papilla cell by regulating the expression of genes related to cell proliferation and inflammation.

BackgroundGastrointestinal (GI) discomfort, e.g. bloating or rumbling, is a common symptom in otherwise healthy adults. Approximately 20% of the population, particularly women suffer from gastrointestinal discomfort and this affects quality of life. Recent studies discovered a link between the body and mind, called the gut-brain axis. Psychosocial factors, such as e.g. daily stress may cause altered gut physiology leading to ileum contractions and consequently gastrointestinal symptoms. In vitro and ex vivo studies clearly showed that a Perilla frutescens extract combines prokinetic, antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory effects. The aim of the intervention was to investigate the effects of the proprietary Perilla extract on GI discomfort in healthy subjects with gastrointestinal discomfort and reduced bowel movements in comparison to a placebo product.MethodsThe pilot study was performed according to a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled parallel design. Fifty healthy subjects with gastrointestinal discomfort and reduced bowel movements, 30-70 years, documented their GI symptoms, stool frequency and consistency daily during a 2-week run-in phase and a 4-week intervention phase with Perilla frutescens extract or placebo. GI symptoms were assessed on a 5-point scale daily and average scores over 14 days intervals were calculated.ResultsAll GI symptoms were significantly improved over time by Perilla frutescens extract during the intervention phase (bloating: -0.44 ± 0.56, p = 0.0003; passage of gas: -0.30 ± 0.66, p = 0.0264; GI rumbling: -0.55 ± 0.87, p = 0.0014; feeling of fullness: -0.36 ± 0.72, p = 0.0152; abdominal discomfort: -0.54 ± 0.75, p = 0.004), whereas in the placebo group only abdominal discomfort was significantly improved (-0.31 ± 0.55, p = 0.0345). In the subgroup of women results were strengthened and a subscore out of bloating and abdominal discomfort was significantly improved against placebo (95%CI 0.003 to 0.77; p = 0.048).ConclusionThe demonstrated effects of Perilla frutescens extract to improve GI complaints offer very promising results, taking into consideration the challenging set up of a nutritional human study with healthy subjects and in the area of digestive health, which is known for high placebo effects.Trial registration numberNCT01931930 at ClinicalTrials.gov, Registration date 23rd August 2013.

Introduction: We hypothesize that Active Hexose Correlated Compound (AHCC), a fermented mushroom extract, restores immune function in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced inflammation in the gut, especially when endogenous nitric oxide (NO) signaling pathway is impaired. We identified the molecular mechanisms in the gut in rats subjected to LPS‐induced immune dysfunction, treated and non‐treated with AHCC, a potent promoter of immune support.Method: Six rats were instrumented under anesthesia to record mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR) and for drug administrations. Following recovery, conscious animals were pretreated with AHCC in drinking water (6%) prior to be subjected to LPS; 20 mg/kg; IV to induce inflammation. MAP and HR were continuously recorded for 3 hrs. following LPS administration. Simultaneously to hemodynamic measurements, blood samples were collected for NO and cytokines production. Animals were sacrificed at 3 hrs. and gut harvested to assess histology.Results and Conclusions: Ourpreliminary data have shown that AHCC induced reductions in LPS‐induced hypotension by 20% and gut edema by 30%. Cytokines e.g. TNF‐α, TGF β and IL‐1 were reduced by 40% in LPS rats pre‐treated with AHCC. Administration of AHCC prior to LPS challenge ameliorates LPS‐induced microvilli disruption in the gut. In summary, our data show that AHCC restored immune function in rats subjected to inflammation and specifically decreased excessive inflammation/oxidative stress in the gut.Grant Funding Source: None

ポリフェノールの好中球機能に及ぼす影響をオリゴノールとライチポリフェノールを用いて検討した．37℃ で加温したハイドロゲルに，オリゴノールまたはライチポリフェノールと全血，ルミノールを添加し，ハイドロゲル内に浸潤した好中球の遊走細胞数と活性酸素産生量を測定した．その結果，好中球の遊走能には影響は認められなかったが，活性酸素産生量は同様に 100 μg/ml 以上では有意に抑制されたが，より低濃度では好中球が活性化された．すなわち，ライチポリフェノールは 100 ng/ml～10 μg/ml では好中球活性酸素産生量を上昇させたが，オリゴノールはその程度が少なかったため，オリゴノールに含まれるカテキン類が低濃度域で抗酸化作用を発現した可能性とポリフェノールの低分子化や組成の変化が影響した可能性が示唆された．