This study aims to examine the anti-diabetic properties of insoluble and soluble dietary fibers from kiwifruit (KIDF and KSDF) in rats with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) resulting from a high-fat diet (HFD) and streptozotocin (STZ). Both KIDF and KSDF treatments for four weeks remarkably decreased body weight and increased satiety. In addition, the blood glucose level and circulatory lipopolysaccharide (LPS) content were decreased, while the insulin resistance, inflammatory status, and lipid profiles improved. These anti-diabetic effects might be related to the regulation of gut microbiota and increased SCFA content. The key microbial communities of KIDF and KSDF were different. Furthermore, the KIDF treatment increased the level of total SCFAs and isobutyric acid, while KSDF increased the levels of total SCFAs and butyric acid. The association between critical species and SCFA and between SCFA and biochemical parameters indicated that the mechanisms of KIDF and KSDF on T2DM might be different.

In this study, the roles of kiwifruit soluble/insoluble dietary fiber (SDF/IDF, respectively) in the pasting characteristics and in vitro digestibility of wheat starch were explored. According to RVA and rheological tests, the IDF enhanced the wheat starch viscosity, decreased the gelatinization degree of the starch granules, and exacerbated starch retrogradation. The addition of SDF in high quantities could reduce the starch gelatinization level, lower the system viscosity, and exacerbate starch retrogradation. Through determining the leached amylose content and conducing scanning electron microscopy, the IDF and SDF added in high quantities was combined with the leached amylose wrapped around the starch granules, which reduced the leached amylose content and decreased the gelatinization degree of the starch granules. The Fourier transform infrared results showed that the addition of both the IDF and SDF resulted in an enhancement in hydrogen bonding formed by the hydroxyl groups of the system. The in vitro digestion results strongly suggested that both the IDF and SDF reduced the wheat starch digestibility. The above findings are instructive for the application of both IDF and SDF in starchy functional foods.

Nanocapsules formed via the CS–EWP interaction provide an environmentally friendly and sustainable method for efficiently encapsulating various hydrophilic food or pharmaceutical ingredients.

The purposes of the present work are to assess how 6-gingerol (6G) positively influences serum glucose regulation in mice with prediabetes triggered by streptozotocin (STZ) plus a high-fat diet (HFD) and to clarify its underlying mechanisms. An analysis of prediabetic symptoms and biochemical characteristics found that 6G intervention was significantly associated with reduced fasting glucose levels, alleviated insulin resistance, better glucose tolerance, hepatic and pancreatic impairment, and dyslipidemia. For the recognition of the target gut microbiota and the pathways linked to 6G’s hypoglycemic function, a combination of hepatic RNA and 16S rRNA sequencing was employed. Specifically, 6G significantly improved the dysbiosis of the gut microbiota and elevated the relative abundances of Alistipes, Alloprevotella, and Ruminococcus_1. Furthermore, 6G supplementation inhibited gluconeogenesis and stimulated glycolysis by activating the PI3K/AKT axis, which also repressed the oxidative stress through Nrf2/Keap1-axis initiation. In addition, Spearman’s correlation analyses reveal a complex interdependency set among the gut microbiota, metabolic variables, and signaling axes. Taken together, the hypoglycemic effect of 6G is partially mediated by altered gut microbiota, as well as by activated Nrf2/Keap1 and PI3K/AKT axes. Thus, 6G may be used as a candidate dietary supplement for relieving prediabetes.

This study aimed to examine the relationships among frailty, dietary energy intake, protein intake, and protein type in patients with cirrhosis. This study enrolled 267 eligible patients with liver cirrhosis from a tertiary hospital in Shandong Province between April 2024 and July 2024. Participants were divided into three groups based on the Liver Frailty Index: non-frail group (n = 63), pre-frail group (n = 132), and frail group (n = 72). Patients were assessed using the following questionnaires and scales: the General Demographic Information Questionnaire, the Child-Pugh Score Scale, the Liver Frailty Index, the Food Frequency Questionnaire, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire–Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depression. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine the associations between frailty and dietary energy intake, protein intake, and the animal-to-plant protein ratio. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was employed to identify the optimal thresholds for energy, protein, and protein ratio to differentiate between non-frail and frail states. Based on the Liver Frailty Index, 63 patients (23.6 %) were classified as non-frail, 132 (49.4 %) as pre-frail, and 72 (27.0 %) as frail. The prevalence of frailty was significantly higher in females (37.0 %) than in males (22.6 %) (P < 0.05). Multivariable logistic regression analysis, after adjustment for potential confounders (including age, sex, education level, etiology, Child-Pugh class, physical activity, depressive symptoms, and polypharmacy), higher dietary energy (P = 0.044), total protein (P = 0.003), animal protein (P = 0.004), and a higher animal-to-plant protein ratio (P = 0.015) were associated with a lower risk of frailty. ROC curve analysis further identified the optimal thresholds for distinguishing frailty from non-frailty as 30 kcal/(kg·d) for energy intake, 0.83 kcal/(kg·d) for total protein intake, and 0.34 for the animal-to-plant protein ratio, respectively. When patients maintained their nutritional intake above these thresholds, their risk of frailty was significantly reduced. Increasing dietary energy and protein intake, particularly from animal sources, is associated with a reduced risk of frailty in cirrhosis patients. This suggests that in clinical nursing practice, guiding patients to appropriately increase their dietary energy and protein intake, particularly by optimizing the proportion of animal protein, may help reduce the risk of frailty.