Furio Brighenti

Publications (96) View all

• Article: Anti-estrogenic activity of a human resveratrol metabolite.

  R Ruotolo, L Calani, E Fietta, F Brighenti, A Crozier, C Meda, A Maggi, S Ottonello, D Del Rio
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  ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Resveratrol, the most investigated dietary compound in studies aimed at linking wine consumption to human health, is an extremely minor component of this beverage and it is generally studied in vitro as the unconjugated aglycone at concentrations largely exceeding those found in the human circulatory system after dietary intake. Moreover, following intestinal absorption, trans-resveratrol and its glucoside, which are naturally present in wine and other food sources, are converted to sulphate and glucuronide metabolites. An estrogenic activity has previously been documented for resveratrol, yet nothing is known about the activity of its blood-circulating metabolic derivatives. METHODS AND RESULTS: Using a yeast two-hybrid detection system relying on the interaction between the ligand-binding domain of the human oestrogen receptors α and β and the human coactivator Tif2, we have systematically examined the oestrogen agonist and antagonist activities of the two main resveratrol forms present in planta (trans-resveratrol and trans-resveratrol-3-O-glucoside) and of the three main metabolites found in human plasma (trans-resveratrol-3-O-sulphate, trans-resveratrol-3-O-glucuronide and trans-resveratrol-4'-O-glucuronide). Only resveratrol-3-O-sulphate was found to display a fairly strong and oestrogen receptor α-preferential antagonistic activity, which was confirmed in a human breast adenocarcinoma cell line containing a luciferase reporter gene under the control of an oestrogen-responsive promoter. CONCLUSIONS: We show, for the first time, that resveratrol-3-O-sulphate, but neither of its metabolites, is endowed with anti-estrogenic activity and how human metabolism of phenolic substances plays a pivotal role in modulating their biological effect.
  Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases: NMCD 03/2013; · 3.52 Impact Factor
• Article: The application of good clinical practice in nutrition research.

  J A J Schmitt, H Bouzamondo, F Brighenti, A K Kies, I Macdonald, A F H Pfeiffer, A Chiodini
  European journal of clinical nutrition 12/2012; 66(12):1280-1. · 3.07 Impact Factor
• Article: High glycemic diet and breast cancer occurrence in the Italian EPIC cohort.

  S Sieri, V Pala, F Brighenti, C Agnoli, S Grioni, F Berrino, F Scazzina, D Palli, G Masala, P Vineis, C Sacerdote, R Tumino, M C Giurdanella, A Mattiello, S Panico, V Krogh
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  ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND AND AIMS: There are theoretical reasons for suspecting that a high glycemic index (GI) or glycemic load (GL) diet may increase breast cancer risk, perhaps via an effect on the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) axis. However observational studies have produced inconsistent findings and it is controversial whether breast cancer risk is influenced by the carbohydrate characteristics of the diet. We prospectively investigated the association between dietary GI and GL and breast cancer in the Italian section of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). METHODS AND RESULTS: Women were recruited from 1993 to 1998 at five centers: Varese and Turin (north Italy), Florence (central Italy), and Ragusa and Naples (south Italy). Participants completed validated food frequency questionnaires from which GI and GL were estimated. Multivariable Cox proportional hazard regression models quantified the association between breast cancer risk and total carbohydrate intake, GI, and GL. During 11 years of follow-up, 879 breast cancer (797 invasive and 82 in situ) cases were indentified. High dietary GL was associated with increased breast cancer risk (RR 1.45, 95% CI = 1.06-1.99; highest vs. lowest quintile; p-trend 0.029), whereas dietary GI and total carbohydrate had no influence. The association was not modified by menopausal status or body mass index. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that, in a Mediterranean population characterized by traditionally high and varied carbohydrate intake, a diet high in GL plays a role in the development of breast cancer.
  Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases: NMCD 04/2012; · 3.52 Impact Factor
• Article: Macrophage polarization: the answer to the diet/inflammation conundrum?

  M Dall'Asta, E Derlindati, D Ardigò, I Zavaroni, F Brighenti, D Del Rio
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  ABSTRACT: Macrophages, a heterogeneous and ubiquitous cell population representing up to 15% of the cellular content of different types of tissue, are the principal cell mediators in response to pathogens, inflammation process, tissue homeostasis and repair and play a pivotal role in atherosclerosis and insulin resistance because of their capacity to be the major source of inflammatory cytokines, which can function through paracrine and endocrine mechanisms. Recently, differently activated macrophage populations have been described, depending on a large variety of microenvironmental signals, and it is now recognized that their activation plays a crucial role in the development and progression of atherosclerosis. There is good evidence of the ability of conjugated linoleic acids and polyphenolic compounds to modulate inflammation in experimental models involving macrophages. This observation leaves room to the intriguing hypothesis that macrophage polarization could represent one of the unifying mechanisms through which specific food components can exert anti-inflammatory effects in humans, contributing to the prevention of chronic diseases strongly linked to inflammation, such as atherosclerosis. Future studies should be addressed to substantiate this hypothesis, investigating whether or not physiological concentrations of food-derived metabolites can perturb macrophage activation in vitro. On the in vivo side, the evaluation of macrophage populations in tissues, however complex, should be included among the analyses performed in observational and intervention studies, in order to understand if macrophage activation is involved in the anti-inflammatory activity of a specific dietary regimen.
  Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases: NMCD 03/2012; 22(5):387-92. · 3.52 Impact Factor
• Article: Glycaemic index and body fat distribution in children: the results of the ARCA project.

  G Barba, S Sieri, M Dello Russo, E Donatiello, A Formisano, F Lauria, S Sparano, A Nappo, P Russo, F Brighenti, V Krogh, A Siani
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  ABSTRACT: Various dietary factors may play a critical role in body weight regulation. Among them, the role of glycaemic index (GI) remains a subject of debate. The present study aimed at evaluating the association between dietary GI, body mass index (BMI) and body fat distribution in school children. 3734 Italian children (M/F = 1883/1851; age range 6-11 years) were cross-sectionally screened for anthropometry (BMI, waist circumference), lifestyle and clinical history (questionnaire) and dietary habits (1-year food frequency questionnaire). Energy and macronutrients intake, dietary GI and glycaemic load (GL) were calculated. GI was directly associated with age, waist and BMI z-scores, energy, fibre and carbohydrate intake (r: from 0.080 to 0.238, P < 0.001), and negatively with fat intake (r: -0.060, P < 0.0001). BMI, waist circumference, energy intake, carbohydrate, protein and fibre intake and GL significantly increased, whilst fat intake decreased, going up across quartiles of residuals of dietary GI. At linear regression analysis, GI was associated with BMI and waist z-scores independently of age, sex, parental overweight/obesity, parental education, and energy intake, protein, fat, carbohydrate, fibre and GL residuals. In particular, GI was the sole nutritional factor among those under investigation, significantly associated with waist circumference. Controlling for covariates, the risk of overweight/obesity or of central fat distribution was almost two-folds higher in the upper quartile in comparison to the lowest quartile of dietary GI. Dietary GI is an independent determinant of body fat distribution in children as well as of total adiposity.
  Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases: NMCD 01/2012; 22(1):28-34. · 3.52 Impact Factor