cryptoxanthins and Diabetes-Mellitus

The carotenoid β-cryptoxanthin (β-CRX) is abundant in Satsuma mandarins (Citrus unshiu Marc). Several studies have shown a relationship between Satsuma mandarin consumption and a low risk of several diseases, for example, diabetes, gout, and hypertension, suggesting β-CRX involvement in disease prevention. We investigated the effect of β-CRX on mildly obese males. β-CRX administration reduced visceral adipose tissue, body weight, and abdominal circumference. However, the detailed mechanism by which β-CRX mediates these changes remains unknown. To identify this mechanism, we used an obese model mouse (TSOD). Oral β-CRX administration repressed body weight, abdominal adipose tissue weight, and serum lipid concentrations in TSOD; these results are identical to previous human trial results. β-CRX administration significantly repressed adipocyte hypertrophy. Gene expression analysis strongly indicated that β-CRX can alter cytokine secretion and cell proliferation. These results suggest that β-CRX derived from Satsuma mandarins can help prevent obesity by repressing hypertrophy of abdominal adipocytes.

Topics: Animals; Citrus; Cryptoxanthins; Diabetes Mellitus; Fruit; Gene Expression Profiling; Intra-Abdominal Fat; Male; Mice; Obesity; Organ Size; Xanthophylls

Antioxidants are potentially beneficial in preventing vascular complications in diabetes because oxidative stress would be enhanced in such a condition and play an important role in vascular disorders. This study aimed to investigate whether brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) would be lower in the presence of high serum carotenoid concentrations stratified according to the glycemic state. A total of 297 men and 579 women between 30 and 70 years of age were analyzed cross-sectionally. Multivariate adjusted mean of baPWV in the highest tertile for beta-carotene (1386 cm/s) was lower than that in the lowest tertile (1432 cm/s) and that in the highest tertile for beta-cryptoxanthin (1382 cm/s) was lower than that in the middle tertile (1424 cm/s) in the case of normal fasting glucose. Similar inverse associations were observed in a group that included subjects with both impaired fasting glucose and diabetes, however, without statistical significance. The highest tertile of carotenoids was associated with a low risk for high baPWV (> or =1680 cm/s). Age, sex and glycemic state adjusted odds ratio was 0.35 (95% CI 0.20-0.60) for beta-carotene and 0.45 (0.27-0.77) for beta-cryptoxanthin. Multivariate adjustment did not alter the results. In conclusion, an inverse association of baPWV with beta-carotene and beta-cryptoxanthin was observed independently of the glycemic state.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Arteriosclerosis; beta Carotene; Biomarkers; Blood Flow Velocity; Blood Glucose; Brachial Artery; Cross-Sectional Studies; Cryptoxanthins; Diabetes Mellitus; Disease Progression; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prognosis; Pulsatile Flow; Retrospective Studies; Tibial Arteries; Xanthophylls

Smoking is associated with low serum carotenoid concentrations. Prospective studies have found lower diabetes risk among persons with high-carotenoid diets. Whether diabetes risk is low in the rare smoker who has high serum carotenoid levels is unknown. The authors investigated the interaction of serum carotenoid concentrations and smoking with diabetes mellitus in 4,493 Black and White men and women aged 18-30 years in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study. The authors assessed 15-year (1985-2001) incident diabetes (148 cases), insulin concentration, and insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment) in smokers and nonsmokers according to baseline levels of serum alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, zeaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, and lycopene. Diabetes incidence was inversely associated with the sum of carotenoid concentrations in nonsmokers (per standard deviation (SD) increase, relative hazard = 0.74, 95% confidence interval: 0.55, 0.99) but not in current smokers (relative hazard = 1.13, 95% confidence interval: 0.83, 1.53) (p for interaction = 0.02). Similarly, year 15 insulin and insulin resistance values, adjusted for baseline levels, were inversely related to sum of carotenoids only in nonsmokers (per SD increase in insulin level, slope = -0.46 (p = 0.03); per SD increase in insulin resistance, slope = -0.14 (p = 0.01)). In CARDIA, higher serum carotenoid concentrations are associated with lower risk of diabetes and insulin resistance in nonsmokers but not in smokers.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; beta Carotene; Black People; Carotenoids; Cryptoxanthins; Diabetes Mellitus; Female; Humans; Incidence; Insulin Resistance; Lycopene; Male; Proportional Hazards Models; Prospective Studies; Risk Factors; Smoking; White People; Xanthophylls; Zeaxanthins

Little is known about carotenoids, a diverse group of plant compounds with antioxidant activity, and their association with diabetes, a condition characterized by oxidative stress. Data from phase I of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1988-1991) were used to examine concentrations of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, and lycopene in 40- to 74-year-old persons with a normal glucose tolerance (n = 1,010), impaired glucose tolerance (n = 277), newly diagnosed diabetes (n = 148), and previously diagnosed diabetes (n = 230) based on World Health Organization criteria. After adjustment for age, sex, race, education, serum cotinine, serum cholesterol, body mass index, physical activity, alcohol consumption, vitamin use, and carotene and energy intake, geometric means of beta-carotene were 0.363, 0.316, and 0.290 micromol/liter for persons with a normal glucose tolerance, impaired glucose tolerance, and newly diagnosed diabetes, respectively (p = 0.004 for linear trend), and geometric means for serum lycopene were 0.277, 0.259, and 0.231 micromol/liter, respectively (p = 0.044 for linear trend). All serum carotenoids were inversely related to fasting serum insulin after adjustment for confounders (p < 0.05 for each carotenoid). If confirmed, these data suggest new opportunities for research that include exploring a possible role for carotenoids in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and diabetes.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Antioxidants; beta Carotene; Carotenoids; Case-Control Studies; Cryptoxanthins; Diabetes Mellitus; Female; Glucose Intolerance; Glucose Tolerance Test; Humans; Lutein; Lycopene; Male; Middle Aged; Nutrition Surveys; Regression Analysis; United States; Xanthophylls