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Publication Exploring the impact of a Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) program in an urban Middle School in Western Massachusetts(2020-05) O'Donnell, MariaAlthough breakfast programs in schools have been encouraged in school-aged children due to numerous benefits on physical and academic performance, participation in School Breakfast Programs (SBP) remains lower than the National School Lunch Program in the United States. Some studies have found that lower participation in the SBP are due to barriers and stigmas. Some studies have found that when breakfast programs are taken into the classroom, uptake of the program improves. However, the relationship between breakfast intake and academic outcomes among young adolescents remains inconclusive. The goal of this study was to examine the effect of a newly implemented Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) program within a large urban school district in Western Massachusetts. A secondary comparative cross-sectional analysis was conducted to investigate the impact of the “Breakfast in the Classroom” (BIC) program on middle school students’ academic performance, absenteeism rates, and school nurse visits, factors that influence learners positive experience within the school system. Data on a total of 1,897 students from seven public schools in Western Massachusetts were included in the analysis. Linear regression models showed that breakfast in the classroom (BIC) program did not have a significant effect on student academic performance, attendance, and school nurse visits in a cohort of middle school students. Sensitivity analysis on a subset of the sample of students receiving free lunch who are also participants of the BIC program, had significantly higher academic performance outcomes than their BIC peers who were ineligible for the free lunch program. Findings of the study provide important baseline data for both food services and the school board district and can help inform future studies on the impact of the BIC program on student outcomes.Publication The Association between Diet Quality and Inflammatory Biomarkers among College-aged Women(2019-05) Lin, LuotaoInflammation status has been associated with chronic diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Previous studies suggested that healthful dietary patterns and dietary scores may have been associated with reduced concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers. However, studies have been usually conducted among middle- aged and older adults by examining commonly used biomarkers such as C-Reactive Protein (CRP) and Interleukin 6 (IL-6). For the current study, diet quality was measured by applying food frequency data to create the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Adherence Index (DGAI-2010). Concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers were obtained from fasting blood samples collected at the late-luteal phase of paticipants’ menstrual cycle. We used linear regression to analyze the association between each natural log-transformed inflammatory biomarker concentration and the continuous DGAI-2010 Score among 142 young, healthy women (aged 18-30 years) from the UMass Vitamin D Status Study. We found that as diet quality increased, concentrations of IL-7, IL-12p70, IL-13 and IFN- were significantly lower after adjustment for BMI, age, physical activity, smoking, race/ethnicity, multivitamin use, oral contraceptive use, and total energy intake per day. Following a diet that adheres to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans as a measure of dietary quality is associated with lower inflammation in healthy, normal weight and overweight young women.Publication The Efficacy of Nanoemulsion-Based Delivery Systems to Improve Vitamin D3 Bioaccessibility and Bioavailability(2019-09) Kadappan, Alagu SelviVitamin D deficiency is an epidemic issue in all age groups in Western countries and that affects both skeletal and non-skeletal functions. Even with the wide application of food fortification, vitamin D deficiency tends to increase continuously. Being hydrophobic in nature, vitamin D has poor solubility; thereby it negatively affects its absorption and bioavailability when compared to other hydrophilic dietary compounds. The need to develop a novel strategy is of greater importance to enhance its bioavailability and thereby improving vitamin D level in the body. In this study, lipid-based delivery of oil-in-water nanoemulsion (diameter < 200nm) was utilized to improve the bioaccessibility and oral bioavailability of vitamin D3. First, we examined the in vitro relative bioaccessibility of nanoencapsulated vitamin D3 using a simulated gastrointestinal system. The study results showed that nanoemulsion-based delivery system significantly increased the relative bioaccessibility by 3.94 fold when compared to the coarse emulsion (diameter >200nm), as indicated by the concentration of vitamin D3 in the mixed micelles. To evaluate the in vivo bioavailability of vitamin D3 an animal study was conducted. Mice were assigned randomly to three groups: vitamin D3 nanoemulsion (n=6), coarse emulsion (diameter > 200nm) (n=6) and vehicle (nanoemulsion without vitamin D3) (n=3), which is the control group. After 3-days of feeding emulsion by mixing in drinking water, the serum 25(OH)D3, a biomarker of vitamin D availability, was measured using immunoassay. We found that serum 25(OH)D3 level in animals fed with vitamin D3 nanoemulsion was significantly higher than in those animals fed with coarse emulsion (22.7 ± 1.10 ngmL-1 vs 17.92 ± 2.82 ngmL-1). It indicated that nanoemulsion improved the in vivo bioavailability by 28%. These results showed that the nano-based delivery systems can be utilized to improve vitamin D level, and further human studies are warranted for its application to the human population in order to improve the vitamin D status.Publication Influences of Antroquinonol and 4-Acetylantroquinonol B on Inflammatory Tumorigenesis in the MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cell Line with or without TNF-α Stimulation(2018-09) Lin, Ting-ChunBreast cancer (BC) is one of the most common cancers among women worldwide that ~25% of new cancer cases diagnosed every year would be BC; moreover, ~15% of cancer deaths per year caused by BC makes it the leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide. To date, though the cause of a large proportion of BC are still unclear, recent studies have revealed that a supportive breast tissue microenvironment is critical for the development and progression of BC, especially the communication with immune cells within breast tissue. Therefore, breast inflammatory microenvironment is currently received a substantial attention in the prevention and treatment of BC. Research on breast cancer immunology suggests that inflammatory mediators, estrogen and several inflammation-related tumorigenic pathways are potentially contributors for inflammatory breast tumorigenesis. It is evidenced that elevated levels of inflammatory mediators, such as cytokines, chemokines, prostaglandins, and enhanced estrogen production while suffering from chronic inflammation is responsible for not only activating oncogenic pathways, for example NF-κB, STAT3 and Wnt signaling pathways, but also reducing the efficacy of cancer-specific immunity against tumor cells. Accordingly, targeting the chronic inflammatory status in breast tissue has become a promising strategy for breast cancer therapy. Recently, due to the annoying side effects accompanying by traditionally anticancer drugs, there is an increased interest in finding out natural sources to treat BC. Herein, we report that antroquinonol (AQ) and/or 4-acetylantroquinonol B (4-AAQB) isolated from Antrodia Camphorata were able to modulate the expression of several inflammatory mediators, IL-6 and IFN-γ in particular, and downregulate the aromatase expression and Wnt signaling responses induced by inflammatory status. Taken together, the present findings provide new insights into the role of AQ and 4-AAQB in inflammatory breast tumors and also suggest them as promising candidates for breast cancer immunotherapy.Publication Impact of Bodyweight on Tissue-Specific Folate Status, Genome Wide and Gene-Specific DNA Methylation in Normal Breast Tissues from Premenopausal Women(2018-05) Frederick, Armina-LynObesity has reached an epidemic level in the United States. A number of epidemiological studies have established obesity as a critical risk factor for postmenopausal breast cancer (post-BC), whereas a reverse association holds prior to menopause. A significant scientific gap exists in understanding the mechanism(s) underpinning this epidemiological phenomenon, particularly the reverse association between obesity and premenopausal breast cancer (pre-BC). This study aimed to understand how folate metabolism and DNA methylation informs the association between obesity and pre-BC. Fifty normal breast tissue samples were collected from premenopausal women who underwent reduction mammoplasty. We developed and measured the breast tissue folate by a Lactobacillus Casei microbiological assay, and the DNA methylation of LINE-1, a biomarker of genome-wide methylation, and the promoter methylation and gene expression of SFRP1, a tumor suppressor, were measured by pyrosequencing and real-time PCR. We found a high BMI is associated with increased folate level in the mammary tissue, with an increase of 2.65 ng/g of folate per every 5-unit increase of BMI (p < 0.05). The LINE-1 DNA methylation was significantly associated with BMI (p < 0.05), and marginally associated with folate concentration (p = 0.087). For the 8 CpG sites analyzed in the promoter region of the SFRP1 gene, no associations were observed for either BMI or tissue folate (p > 0.05), although a high expression of SFRP1 was observed in subjects with high BMI or high folate (p < 0.05). This study demonstrated that, in premenopausal women, obesity is associated with an increased mammary folate status, genome-wide DNA methylation and SFRP1 gene expression, indicating that the improved folate and epigenetic status is potentially responsible for the reverse association between obesity and pre-BC. More studies are warranted to further understand how obesity mediates pre-BC via altering folate metabolism and DNA methylation.Publication Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviors of Traditional Health Practices Among Cambodian Women (15-35 Years) Living In Massachusetts(2018-05) Dou, NanCambodian immigrants have become a large population group in the United States since late 1970s. Traditional heath practices and alcohol consumption during pregnancy and lactation have both been associated with risks of maternal and child health in previous research. However, these associations have never been investigated in the Cambodian immigrant population. The mechanism for the potential interaction is that the traditional health practice, the use of sraa t’nam, which is an alcohol concoction usually consumed during postpartum period, may increase risks for both mothers and children. Sraa t’nam is the traditional alcohol and drinking alcohol during pregnancy and while lactation is not recommended. This study examined the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of traditional health practices among Cambodian women aged between 15-35 years old living in Massachusetts. Health insurance, acculturation and food security scores were not independently associated with the dependent variable. The odds of ‘ever used sraa t’nam’ were higher (OR 1.67, CI 1.10, 2.51, p<0.05) with every one unit or one person increase in household size, after adjusting for covariates. Similarly, women with at least one child had a 4.54 odds (CI 1.24, 16.5) of reporting that they 'ever used psraa t’nam’ compared to women with no children (p<0.05) U.S.-born women (OR 0.12, CI 0.02, 0.83, p<0.05) and those with more than a high school education (OR 0.13, CI 0.02, 0.71, p<0.05) had lower odds of having 'ever used (psraa t’nam’. Age was independently associated with having ‘ever used sraa t’nam’ (OR 1.32, CI 1.01, 1.74, p<0.05); for every year older, the odds of ever using sraa t’nam increased by 0.32 units. In summary, women who lived in larger households, had at least one child, were foreign-born, had less education, or were older in age had higher odds of reporting that they had ‘ever used sraa t’nam’. Univariate analyses tested for associations between intention to breastfeed, age, smoking status, and intention to use sraa t’nam. Age was positively associated with the intention to breastfeed (OR=1.26, p<0.05), and smoking was also positively associated with the intention to breastfeed (OR=4.81, p<0.05).Publication The Role of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Intake and Vitamin D in Elevated Systolic Blood Pressure(2017-09) Abrams, AmandaHigh sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake and poor vitamin D status have both been associated with increased risk of elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) in previous research. However, these associations have never been investigated in the same study population, leaving the question of a possible interaction uninvestigated. One potential mechanism for an interaction is that SSB intake may increase serum uric acid (UA) and UA may interfere with utilization of vitamin D. This study examined these relationships in a sample of men and women (n=2,875) aged 20-74 using data collected in the 2003-2006 NHANES survey. No statistically significant association was found between SSB intake and risk of elevated SBP (defined as SBP>120mmHg) in whole group analysis. In subgroup analysis by gender, women (n=1,550) showed a 68% (OR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.12-2.50, p-value 0.011) increased risk of elevated SBP in the highest SSB intake quartile (mean intake of 3.27 servings/day) compared to the lowest (mean intake of 0.03 servings/day) after adjustment for age, race, BMI, alcohol use, physical activity, and smoking, but no association was found in men (n=1,325). A statistically significant association was found between 25(OH)D and SBP, with a 30% decrease in risk of elevated SBP (OR: 0.70, 95% CI: 0.55-0.90, p-value 0.005) for those in the highest serum 25(OH)D group (>75nmol/L) compared to the lowest (<50nmol/L) in the fully adjusted model. However, no association was found between SSB intake and serum UA. Assessing potential effect modification between SSB and vitamin D in their impact on blood pressure using a multiplicative term and stratified analysis did not provided evidence of an interaction effect.Publication Evaluation of Berry Extracts on Intestinal Digestive Enzymes and Sugar Transporters(2017-05) Ohrenberger, JungbaeT2DM is a chronic disease characterized by postprandial hyperglycemia. One of the therapeutic approaches to attenuate hyperglycemia is to inhibit intestinal ɑ-glucosidase enzyme and/or suppress glucose transporters that regulate intestinal glucose transporters such as SGLT1 & GLUT2. Berries rich in polyphenol antioxidants have various health benefits. Although the antidiabetic effects of various berry extracts or berry mixture in pre-clinical and clinical studies, the underlying pathways at the molecular level is still unclear. In this study, we investigated antioxidant and antidiabetic effects of selected berry extracts by determining free radical scavenging activates, Caco-2 intestinal ɑ-glucosidase activity, glucose uptake and the gene expression of ɑ-glucosidase and glucose transporters in Caco-2 cells. Total phenolic contents of berry extracts varied from 28.55 ± 0.06 to 56.15 ± 1.08 gallic acid equivalent (GAE μg/mL) and correlated with antioxidant capacities. Both cranberry extract (CBE) and blackberry extract (BBE) at 200 μg/mL concentration significantly decreased glucose uptake in Caco-2 cells. While mRNA expression and activity of ɑ-glucosidase were inhibited by CBE and BBE, mRNA expression of SGLT1 and GLUT2 was only inhibited by CBE. Moreover, CBE and BBE significantly decreased glucose uptake in the presence of sucrose and AS. Our data suggest that CBE and BBE have different molecular mechanisms in suppressing hyperglycemia and their effects are mediated by inhibiting carbohydrate digestion and absorption.Publication The Impact of Cannabidiol on Intestinal Tumorigenesis: A Pilot Study on Caco-2 Cell(2023-09) Guan, YingxueColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most prevalent cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Despite the availability of early diagnosis and treatment options, which could potentially increase the 5-year survival rate, the accessibility of such CRC management measures remains limited due to cost barriers and uneven healthcare infrastructure globally. This underscores an urgent need for effective preventive methods and affordable treatments. Cannabidiol (CBD), a compound derived from cannabis, has garnered attention as a potential natural therapeutic agent. This study investigates the influence of CBD on the serotonin pathway and intestinal tumorigenesis. Serotonin, primarily produced in the intestine, is not only a critical neurotransmitter but also has complex and multifaceted biological functions. In this investigation, Caco-2 cells were exposed to CBD, and we observed an increase in serotonin levels. The treatment elevated the expression of several genes related to serotonin such as TPH, SLC6A4, HTR2A, HTR1D, HTR2C, and HTR4, with a notable increase in TPH and HTR2C. Concurrently, CBD exhibited an enhancement in immune response and significant inhibition of the Wnt signaling pathway, implying a protective role of CBD in CRC. Given the dual roles of serotonin in CRC - protective in early stages and promotive in later stages — the interaction between serotonin, the Wnt signaling pathway, and the immune system necessitates further research. Our findings shed new light on the potential role of CBD in inflammatory colorectal tumors, suggesting that CBD could be a promising candidate for CRC immunotherapy. Key words: Canabidiol, Colorectal Cancer, Serotonin pathway, Wnt-signaling.