Do nuts help with type 2 diabetes?

 (Source: https://www.news-medical.net/news)

Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder that affects one in ten people worldwide. There has been an alarming increase of 16% in the global prevalence of type 2 diabetes over the past two years. Diabetes is also associated with other health complications, such as neuropathy, retinopathy, chronic kidney disease, and cardiovascular disease. Recently, scientists reviewed the role of nuts in the management of type 2 diabetes. This review is available in the journal Nutrients.

Background

Around 11% of adults across the world have impaired glucose tolerance. This group is at a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D). Diabetes can be managed through lifestyle changes, particularly adherence to healthy diets and regular exercise. As per the recent diabetes guidelines, the Mediterranean diet, which involves high consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, olive oils, fish, and eggs, and a low intake of red meat, has been recommended for diabetes patients.

Different tree nuts include cashew, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, almonds, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts, and macadamias. Although peanuts are considered nuts, they are technically a legume. Nuts are considered nutrient-dense foods that provide unsaturated fatty acids, non-sodium minerals, phenolics, plant protein, and other important bioactive metabolites.

The authors collected relevant articles from PubMed and Cochrane's databases related to T2D and nut consumption for this review article. Both peanut and tree nuts were considered in this study.

How does Nut Consumption Affect Glucose Metabolism?

Few epidemiological studies have evaluated how nut consumption affects glycemic control markers. A previously conducted Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS) revealed lower fasting serum glucose levels after higher nut consumption. Several cross-sectional studies have highlighted an association between nut intake and glucose/insulin homeostasis markers. A higher nut intake has been linked to significantly low levels of all diabetes-related biomarkers, such as plasma insulin, blood glucose, homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and HOMA-β.

The effect of nut consumption frequency on insulin resistance was assessed based on HOMA-IR. This study revealed that consumption of more than five servings (1 serving = 15 g) of nuts per week, compared to less than one serving a month, leads to lower HOMA-IR. This observation was found to be predominantly true among women participants aged less than 40 years.

Based on clinical trial evidence, nut consumption alone lowered postprandial glycemia in participants associated with high glycemic index (GI) food intake. In healthy individuals, the consumption of almonds with white bread significantly lowered postprandial glycemia.

A five-arm, randomized crossover trial was conducted involving individuals with impaired glucose tolerance. Participants were randomly divided into different groups, and each group was administered whole almonds, defatted almond flour, almond butter, almond oil, or no almonds. The whole almond-consuming group observed a significant decrease in blood glucose levels. Interestingly, in the case of peanut intake, a quicker return of insulin to basal concentrations was observed when obese men consumed shakes containing conventional peanuts and high-oleic peanuts. Nut consumption led to a significant lowering in fasting insulin and HOMA-IR; however, it did not have a considerable effect on fasting glucose or HbA1c.

Consumption of Nuts and Diabetes Prevention and Management

Epidemiological studies revealed inconsistencies and inconclusive findings related to nut intake and the incidence of T2D. To date, the effect of nut consumption, in a dose-dependent manner, on the incidence of T2D risk has not been elucidated. Also, most of the studies have combined nuts with other foods, making the assessment of individual nuts' roles in glycaemic index difficult.

No clinical trials aimed to assess the efficacy of nut supplementation to reduce or prevent the incidence of diabetes were found. However, several studies revealed the beneficial effects of the Mediterranean diet, which entails a high consumption of tree nuts.

The macronutrients, micronutrients, and other bioactive compounds present in nuts regulate postprandial glycemic and insulinemic levels. In addition, they aid in body weight management, have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, control cellular membrane fluidity, and protect β-cells against glucose toxicity, microRNAs, and pancreatic insulin secretion.

Future Outlook

In the future, dose-response analyses are required to elucidate the total amount of nuts consumed for possible diabetes-related health benefits. Also, the impact of nuts in the prevention and management of TYD must be elucidated in greater detail. Since very little epidemiological and clinical trial data is available, more research could be conducted in this area to provide more insights into developing diabetes dietary guidelines.

Conclusion

Based on the limited evidence currently available, nuts may have beneficial effects on diabetes management and prevention. A diet that includes nuts may also lower cardiovascular disease risk and mortality in those with T2D and improve glycemic control.

 

Cancer-causing viruses use a human protein to evade the innate immune response

 (Source: https://www.news-medical.net/news)

The viruses Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) have been linked to several cancers. For the first time, UNC School of Medicine scientists have discovered that these viruses use a human protein called barrier-to-autointegration factor 1, or BAF, to evade our innate immune response, allowing the viruses to spread and cause disease.

These findings, published in Nature Communications, suggest that BAF and related proteins could be therapeutic targets to prevent these viruses from spreading and leading to cancers, such as Kaposi sarcoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, multicentric Castleman disease, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and gastric cancer.

Viruses have evolved with humans for millions of years, so it's no surprise they've evolved tricks to evade our natural, or innate, immune responses. Finding out precisely how viruses do this is the basis for creating vaccines and therapeutics to overcome their tricks.

In the case of KSHV and EBV, the expression of BAF is increased upon infection, suggesting that these viruses take advantage of this host protein to blunt the immune response to infection. In a series of experiments, Damania's lab found that BAF contributes to the degradation of the cGAS DNA sensor. With less cGAS protein available in the infected cell to detect DNA, the cells mount weaker immune responses, which allows these two viruses to replicate and spread more efficiently.

"BAF enables EBV and KSHV to reactivate from latency, replicate, and make more of themselves," said first author Grant Broussard, a graduate student in the Genetics and Molecular Biology Curriculum at UNC Lineberger. "Our study highlights the prominent role that DNA detection pathways like the cGAS pathway play in controlling viral infection."

He stressed that disrupting BAF activity with targeted therapies could reduce its immunosuppressive effects, thus restricting replication of these viruses to prevent the spread of disease.

Damania, who is a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Scholar and a Burroughs Wellcome Fund Investigator in Infectious Diseases, added, "Preventing lytic replication will prevent transmission of these viruses and also reduce the global cancer burden associated with these two viruses."