By Kyle J. Norton
Atherosclerosis is a medical condition caused by plaque accumulated on the wall of arteries, leading to the narrowing of the artery and reducing oxygen risk blood flow to the heart and brain.
Depending on the location of the blockage, if the reduced blood flow occurred in the brain, it will cause the death of the brain cells, leading to stroke.
However, if the reduced blood flow occurred in the heart, it will cause damage to the heart tissues, leading to heart disease.
The most common disease associated with atherosclerosis is coronary artery disease. Plaques are made up of cholesterol, calcium, and other chemical substances in the artery
Most people with atherosclerosis are asymptomatic at the early stage.
Some researchers suggested that atherosclerosis is a lipoprotein-driven disease. Therefore, people with high blood cholesterol are at an increased risk of atherosclerosis. Overuse of calcium supplements is also found to elevate the condition risk, particularly in the elderly.
Other risk factors that have been found epidemiologically by studies are high blood pressure, triglycerides, smoking, insulin resistance, obesity or diabetes, and inflammatory diseases, such as arthritis, lupus, or infections.
Most cases of atherosclerosis can be reversed by making a change of lifestyle and moderate exercise.
Dr. Singh RB, the lead scientist wrote, "Adherence to diet and exercise was obtained through questionnaires, and information obtained was quantified into a formula. After 24 weeks, the overall score of diet and exercises were significantly higher in group A(intervention diet( than in group B(control). There was a significant decrease in serum total cholesterol (13.3%), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (16.9%), triglycerides (19.2%), fasting blood glucose (19.5%), and blood pressures (11.5/6.2 mm Hg) in the intervention group compared with initial levels and changes in group B".
Indicaxanthin is a phytochemical in the class of red and yellow indole-derived pigments of betacyanins, belonging to the group of betalains, found abundantly in beets, chard, etc.
With an aim to find a natural compound for the treatment of atherosclerosis, researchers at the Università di Palermo investigated the effect of phytochemical indicaxanthin (Ild) a major compound found in beetroot on human atheromas.
7-Ketocholesterol (7-KC)-induced the development of human atheromas, according to the kinetic measurements within 24 h, before injection of indicaxanthin showed the early formation of intracellular reactive oxygen species over basal levels, preceding NADPH oxidase-4 (NOX-4) over-expression and elevation of cytosolic Ca²⁺, involved in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. and associated with the progressive depletion of the antioxidant activity of total thiols.
Furthermore, 7-KC- also induced the expression of NF-κB (nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells) associated with the production of proinflammatory cytokines and innate and adaptive immune response.
Where 7-Ketocholesterol (7-KC) induced apoptosis of macrophages has been found to elevate the plaque progression and endoplasmic reticulum stress caused by the secretion of pro-inflammatory, procoagulant, and proteolytic molecules by macrophages.
Believe it or not, Co-incubation of 2·5 μm of indicaxanthin completely prevented 7-KC-induced pro-apoptotic events.
In other words, indicaxanthin protects the macrophage's integrity against apoptosis, thus reducing the risk of plaque accumulating on the wall of the arteries in facilitating the onset of atherosclerosis.
Based on the findings, researchers concluded, "The effects of Ind may be ascribed to inhibition of NOX-4 basal activity and over-expression, inhibition of NF-κB activation, maintaining cell redox balance and Ca homeostasis, with the prevention of mitochondrial damage and consequently apoptosis".
Taken altogether, phytochemical indicaxanthin (Ild) found in beetroot may be considered supplements for the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis, pending the confirmation of a larger sample size and multicenter human study.
Intake of indicaxanthin (Ild) in the form of supplements should be taken with extreme care to prevent overdose acute liver toxicity.
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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.
Sources
(1) Phytochemical indicaxanthin suppresses 7-ketocholesterol-induced THP-1 cell apoptosis by preventing cytosolic Ca(2+) increase and oxidative stress by Tesoriere L1, Attanzio A, Allegra M, Gentile C, Livrea MA. (PubMed)
(2) Betalains, the nature-inspired pigments, in health and diseases by Rahimi P1, Abedimanesh S1, Mesbah-Namin SA1, Ostadrahimi A. (PubMed)
(3) Effects of diet and lifestyle changes on atherosclerotic risk factors after 24 weeks on the Indian Diet Heart Study by Singh RB1, Singh NK, Rastogi SS, Mani UV, Niaz MA. (PubMed)
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