methyl donors

Background: The preconception period represents an important window for fetal and epigenetic programming. Some micronutrients (B vitamins, choline, betaine, methionine) implicated in one-carbon metabolism (OCM) are essential for major epigenetic processes that take place in early pregnancy. However, few studies have evaluated the implication of the micronutrients in placental DNA methylation. Objective: We investigated whether intake of OCM nutrients in the year before pregnancy was associated with placental DNA methylation in the EDEN mother-child cohort. Design: Maternal dietary intake was assessed with a food-frequency questionnaire. Three dietary patterns, "varied and balanced diet", "vegetarian tendency", and "bread and starchy food", were used to characterize maternal OCM dietary intake. The Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip was used to measure placental DNA methylation of 573 women included in the analyses. We evaluated the association of dietary patterns with global DNA methylation. Then, we conducted an agnostic epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) and investigated differentially methylated regions (DMRs) associated with each dietary pattern. Results: We found no significant association between the three dietary patterns and global DNA methylation or individual CpG sites. DMR analyses highlighted associations between the "varied and balanced" or "vegetarian tendency" pattern and DMRs located at genes previously implicated in functions essential for embryonic development, such as neurodevelopment. The "bread and starchy food" pattern was associated with regions related to genes whose functions involve various metabolic and cell synthesis-related processes. Conclusions: In mainly well-nourished French women without major deficiencies, OCM intake before pregnancy was not associated with major variation in DNA methylation.

Zinc is an essential dietary element that has been implicated in the pathogenesis of prostate cancer, a cancer that disproportionately affects men of African descent. Studies assessing the association of zinc intake and prostate cancer have yielded inconsistent results. Furthermore, very little is known about the relationship between zinc intake and prostate cancer among African Americans. We examined the association between self-reported zinc intake and prostate cancer in a hospital-based case-control study of African Americans. We then compared our results with previous studies by performing a meta-analysis to summarize the evidence regarding the association between zinc and prostate cancer. Newly diagnosed African American men with histologically confirmed prostate cancer (n = 127) and controls (n = 81) were recruited from an urban academic urology clinic in Washington, DC. Controls had higher zinc intake, with a mean of 14 mg/day versus 11 mg/day for cases. We observed a non-sig...

Earlier studies have implied a change in dietary habits of the Swedish population towards a low carbohydrate, high fat diet. Questions have been raised about the development in recent years and potential health effects. We have investigated the dietary intake of Swedish female students enrolled in a university nutrition course between 2002 and 2017. The students carried out self-reporting of all food and drink intake over one weekday and one weekend day. Intake of macronutrients (E%) and micronutrients were calculated for the whole period while statistical analysis was performed for changes between 2009 and 2017 (729 women). Results showed significant changes in carbohydrate intake (from 47.0 to 41.4 E%) and fat intake (from 31.7 to 37.5 E%). Carbohydrate intake was significantly lower than the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (45-60 E%). However, daily fiber intake remains high (3.0 g/MJ) in a national context, and intake of vitamin D and folate appears to increase during the period. The results suggest that the observed national transition from carbohydrate to fat intake persists, and that it might be especially evident among individuals interested in food and nutrition. Considering the fiber and micronutrient intake, the change is not necessarily unfavorable for this particular group.

Supplementary Table 2. Methyl donor concentrations of 150 bread wheats grown in 2005. Cultivars are grouped by eight different concentration ranges Winter Wheat Spring Wheat Group Betaine content (mg/gd.m.) No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes

Supplementary Table 2. Methyl donor concentrations of 150 bread wheats grown in 2005. Cultivars are grouped by eight different concentration ranges Winter Wheat Spring Wheat Group Betaine content (mg/gd.m.) No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes

Supplementary Table 2. Methyl donor concentrations of 150 bread wheats grown in 2005. Cultivars are grouped by eight different concentration ranges Winter Wheat Spring Wheat Group Betaine content (mg/gd.m.) No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes

Supplementary Table 2. Methyl donor concentrations of 150 bread wheats grown in 2005. Cultivars are grouped by eight different concentration ranges Winter Wheat Spring Wheat Group Betaine content (mg/gd.m.) No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes No of Genotypes Names of Genotypes

Maternal perinatal nutrition may program offspring metabolic features. Epigenetic regulation is one of the candidate mechanisms that may be affected by maternal dietary methyl donors intake as potential controllers of plasma homocysteine levels. Thirty-two Wistar pregnant rats were randomly assigned into four dietary groups during lactation: control, control supplemented with methyl donors, high-fat-sucrose and high-fat-sucrose supplemented with methyl donors. Physiological outcomes in the offspring were measured, including hepatic mRNA expression and global DNA methylation after weaning. The newborns whose mothers were fed the obesogenic diet were heavier longer and with a higher adiposity and intrahepatic fat content. Interestingly, increased levels of plasma homocysteine induced by the maternal high-fat-sucrose dietary intake were prevented in both sexes by maternal methyl donors supplementation. Total hepatic DNA methylation decreased in females due to maternal methyl donors administration, while Dnmt3a hepatic mRNA levels decreased accompanying the high-fat-sucrose consumption. Furthermore, a negative association between Dnmt3a liver mRNA levels and plasma homocysteine concentrations was found. Maternal high-fat-sucrose diet during lactation could program offspring obesity features, while methyl donors supplementation prevented the onset of high hyperhomocysteinemia.

Background: Pregnancy and early life are critical periods of plasticity during which the fetus and neonate may be influenced by environmental factors such as nutrition. Maternal methionine (Met) supply in non-ruminants during pregnancy can affect offspring development and growth. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate if increasing Met supply during late-pregnancy affects developmental parameters of the calf at birth and if either maternal Met or colostrum from Met-fed cows alters calf growth. Calves born to Holstein cows individually-fed a basal control [CON; 1.47 Mcal/kg dry matter (DM) and 15.3% crude protein] diet with no added Met or CON plus ethylcellulose rumen-protected Met (MET; Mepron® at 0.09% of diet DM; Evonik Nutrition & Care GmbH, Germany) during the last 28 ± 2 d of pregnancy were used. A total of 39 calves were in CON (n = 22 bulls, 17 heifers) and 42 in MET (n = 20 bulls, 22 heifers). At birth, calves were randomly allocated considering dam treatment and colostrum as follows: 1) calves from CON cows and colostrum from CON cows (n = 21); 2) calves from CON cows and colostrum from MET cows (n = 18); 3) calves from MET cows and colostrum from MET cows (n = 22); and 4) calves from MET cows and colostrum from CON cows (n = 20). All calves were housed, managed, and fed individually during the first 9 wk of life. Results: Despite greater daily DM intake pre-partum in cows fed MET (15.7 vs. 14.4 ± 0.12 kg/d, P < 0.05), colostrum quality and quantity were not affected by maternal diet. At birth, MET calves had greater (P ≤ 0.05) body weight (BW, 44.1 vs. 42.1 ± 0.70 kg), hip height (HH, 81.3 vs. 79.6 ± 0.53 cm) and wither height (WH, 77.8 vs. 75.9 ± 0.47 cm). In contrast, concentrations of His, Lys, and Asn in plasma were lower (P ≤ 0.05) in MET calves. Regardless of colostrum source, the greater BW, HH, and WH in MET calves at birth persisted through 9 wk of age resulting in average responses of + 3.1 kg BW, + 1.9 cm HH, and + 1.8 cm WH compared with CON. Average daily gain during the 9 wk was (P < 0.05) 0. 72 ± 0.02 kg/d in MET compared with 0.67 ± 0.02 kg/d in CON calves. Respiratory scores were normal and did not differ (P > 0.05) due to maternal Met supply or colostrum source. However, fecal scores tended to be lower (P ≤ 0.10) in MET calves regardless of colostrum source.

Earlier studies have implied a change in dietary habits of the Swedish population towards a low carbohydrate, high fat diet. Questions have been raised about the development in recent years and potential health effects. We have investigated the dietary intake of Swedish female students enrolled in a university nutrition course between 2002 and 2017. The students carried out self-reporting of all food and drink intake over one weekday and one weekend day. Intake of macronutrients (E%) and micronutrients were calculated for the whole period while statistical analysis was performed for changes between 2009 and 2017 (729 women). Results showed significant changes in carbohydrate intake (from 47.0 to 41.4 E%) and fat intake (from 31.7 to 37.5 E%). Carbohydrate intake was significantly lower than the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (45-60 E%). However, daily fiber intake remains high (3.0 g/MJ) in a national context, and intake of vitamin D and folate appears to increase during the period. The results suggest that the observed national transition from carbohydrate to fat intake persists, and that it might be especially evident among individuals interested in food and nutrition. Considering the fiber and micronutrient intake, the change is not necessarily unfavorable for this particular group.

Inappropriate complementary feeding is among the main causes of malnutrition worldwide. However, optimal complementary feeding is an effective child survival strategy ranked among the top life-saving interventions for children under 5 years. WHO and UNICEF underline the use of available food locally produced for children less than 2 years as a significant strategy to ensure the optimal complementary feeding. Maize-Soy blend in 3/1 proportion (MASO31) is consumed as complementary food in Katanga. Nevertheless, its nutritional value isn’t known nor its adequacy as additional food. This study aimed to evaluate the nutritional value of MASO31 content according to the WHO recommendations on complementary feeding. Two samples of MASO31 formulas were taken of two different preparations, for biochemical analysis nutrients data (energy, protein, Fe, Ca, P, Zn) in the Research and Agro Alimentary Analysis Center (CRAA) of Lubumbashi. The biochemical methods used were specific to analyze each ...

Personalized nutrition and precision healthcare require valid, reliable and clinically-applicable instruments including dietary assessment. Accurate assessment of essential nutrients including methyl donors associated with nutrigenomics one carbon metabolism for DNA methylation is critical for associated health outcomes. We examined nutrients between the food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and 24-hour food record (FR) by accessing USDA Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR-FR) for social-ethnic diets with the differences <10% or >10% on the total calories. Overall, NDSR-FR presented lower estimates of most nutrients than FFQ. Correlation coefficients between the two measures were consistently high for all 25 essential nutrients (mean = 0.98) for cases with <10% of calories difference (n=81). Percent differences between NDSR-FR and FFQ were within 10% for all macronutrients; B vitamins including thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, pyridoxine, folate and cobalamin; and other methyl donors including choline, glycine, and methionine. NDSR-FR underestimated (>10%) vitamin E and overestimated vitamin C compared to FFQ. Bland-Altman analyses demonstrated the average for all nutrients was with >95% limits of agreement (mean: 95%, range: 83%-99%), suggesting an acceptable level of agreement between the two measures. Outlier analyses revealed sources of disagreement for cases with >10% differences for total calorie, protein, and fat. Bland-Altman plots showed wide scatter of differences both for plant-based (folate, vitamins C and E) and protein-based nutrients (pyridoxine, cobalamin, methionine, glycine, and choline) for outliers. These results support the overall capacity of NDSR-FR in comparison to FFQ on estimating essential nutrients and methyl donors in relation to DNA methylation for various social-ethnic populations.

Keywords: validation; methyl donors; 24-hour food record; food frequency questionnaire (FFQ); Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR); social ethnic diet