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Previous studies have reported that dietary sphingomyelin could inhibit early stages of colon cancer. Lactic acid-producing bacteria have also been associated with an amelioration of cancer symptoms. However, little is known about the potential beneficial effects of the combined administration of both sphingomyelin and lactic acid-producing bacteria. This article analyzes the effect of a diet supplemented with a combination of the probiotics Lacticaseibacillus casei and Bifidobacterium bifidum (10 8  CFU/ml) and sphingomyelin (0.05%) on mice with 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH)-induced colon cancer. Thirty-six BALB/c mice were divided into 3 groups: one healthy group (group C) and two groups with DMH-induced cancer, one fed a standard diet (group D) and the other fed a diet supplemented with sphingomyelin and probiotics (DS). The number of aberrant crypt foci, marker of colon cancer development, was lower in the DS. The dietary supplementation with the synbiotic reversed the cancer-induced impairment of galactose uptake in enterocyte brush-border-membrane vesicles. These results confirm the beneficial effects of the synbiotic on the intestinal physiology of colon cancer mice and contribute to the understanding of the possible mechanisms involved., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Obesity is considered a risk factor for the development of colorectal cancer. In rodents, high-fat (HF) diets are able to increase the formation of azoxymethane (AOM)-induced polyps. Polyphenol-rich apple extracts have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities and may induce an amelioration of the manifestations of colorectal cancer. Twenty-seven male Crl:CD-1 mice received AOM during four weeks and were subsequently divided into three groups fed a HF diet ( n = 9 each group): a non-supplemented group, a second group supplemented with apple extract at 1%, and a third group supplemented with the same apple extract at 1.5%. Energy metabolism and the respiratory quotient were not affected by the supplementation with the apple extract. Although body weight was not affected by the treatment, the mice supplemented with the apple extract showed less signs of cachexia than the non-treated mice. In the intestine, the mice supplemented with the apple extract showed lower sucrase, dipeptidyl-peptidase IV, and aminopeptidase N activities, and less intestinal lesions (aberrant crypt foci and polyps). Administration of a polyphenol-rich apple extract reduces the number of neoplastic lesions in mice with AOM-induced colorectal cancer and contributes to preserve adipose tissue mass.

GLUT12 was cloned from the mammary cancer cell line MCF-7, but its physiological role still needs to be elucidated. To gain more knowledge of GLUT12 function in the intestine, we investigated GLUT12 subcellular localization in the small intestine and its regulation by sugars, hormones, and intracellular mediators in Caco-2 cells and mice. Immunohistochemical methods were used to determine GLUT12 subcellular localization in human and murine small intestine. Brush border membrane vesicles were isolated for western blot analyses. Functional studies were performed in Caco-2 cells by measuring α-methyl-d-glucose (αMG) uptake in the absence of sodium. GLUT12 is located in the apical cytoplasm, below the brush border membrane, and in the perinuclear region of murine and human enterocytes. In Caco-2 cells, GLUT12 translocation to the apical membrane and α-methyl- d-glucose uptake by the transporter are stimulated by protons, glucose, insulin, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), protein kinase C, and AMP-activated protein kinase. In contrast, hypoxia decreases GLUT12 expression in the apical membrane. Upregulation of TNF-α and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α ( HIF-1α) genes is found in the jejunal mucosa of diet-induced obese mice. In these animals, GLUT12 expression in the brush border membrane is slightly decreased compared with lean animals. Moreover, an intraperitoneal injection of insulin does not induce GLUT12 translocation to the membrane, as it occurs in lean animals. GLUT12 rapid translocation to the enterocytes' apical membrane in response to glucose and insulin could be related to GLUT12 participation in sugar absorption during postprandial periods. In obesity, in which insulin sensitivity is reduced, the contribution of GLUT12 to sugar absorption is affected., (© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

The aim of the present work was to investigate in Caco-2 cells whether eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, could block the inhibitory effect of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) on sugar transport, and identify the intracellular signaling pathways involved. After pre-incubation of the Caco-2 cells with TNF-α and EPA for 1 hr, EPA prevented the inhibitory effect of the cytokine on α-methyl-d-glucose (αMG) uptake (15 min) and on SGLT1 expression at the brush border membrane, measured by Western blot. The ERK1/2 inhibitor PD98059 and the AMPK activator AICAR also prevented the inhibitory effect of TNF-α on both αMG uptake and SGLT1 expression. Interestingly, the AMPK inhibitor, Compound C, abolished the ability of EPA to prevent TNF-α-induced reduction of sugar uptake and transporter expression. The GPR120 antagonist, AH7614, also blocked the preventive effect of EPA on TNF-α-induced decrease of αMG uptake and AMPK phosphorylation. In summary, TNF-α inhibits αMG uptake by decreasing SGLT1 expression in the brush border membrane through the activation of ERK1/2 pathway. EPA prevents the inhibitory effect of TNF-α through the involvement of GPR120 and AMPK activation., (© 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Leptin is secreted into the digestive tract and contributes to the absorption of dietary molecules by regulating transporters activity. Here, we studied the effect of luminal leptin on the intestinal transport of L-glutamate, an important component of human diet. We examined the effect of leptin on L-glutamate uptake in rat intestine in vitro measuring glutamate-induced short-circuit current (Isc) in Ussing chambers and L-[(3)H (U)]-glutamate uptake in jejunal everted rings. Glutamate-induced Isc was only observed in Na(+)-free conditions. This Isc was concentration (1-60 mmol L(-1)) and pH dependent. Luminal leptin increased glutamate Isc (∼100 %). Dose-response curve showed a biphasic pattern, with maximal stimulations observed at 10(-13) and 10(-10) mmol L(-1), that were sensitive to leptin receptor antagonist. In everted rings, two glutamate transport mechanisms were distinguished: a Na(+)-dependent, H(+)-independent, that was inhibited by leptin (∼20 %), and a Na(+)-independent but H(+)-dependent, that was enhanced by leptin (∼20 %), in line with data obtained in Ussing chambers. Altogether, these data reveal original non-monotonic effect of luminal leptin in the intestine and demonstrate a new role for this hormone in the modulation of L-glutamate transport, showing that luminal active gut peptides can influence absorption of amino acids.

Obesity is a chronic disease that represents one of the most serious global health burdens associated to an excess of body fat resulting from an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure, which is regulated by environmental and genetic interactions. The adipose-derived hormone leptin acts via a specific receptor in the brain to regulate energy balance and body weight, although this protein can also elicit a myriad of actions in peripheral tissues. Obese individuals, rather than be leptin deficient, have in most cases, high levels of circulating leptin. The failure of these high levels to control body weight suggests the presence of a resistance process to the hormone that could be partly responsible of disturbances on body weight regulation. Furthermore, leptin resistance can impair physiological peripheral functions of leptin such as lipid and carbohydrate metabolism and nutrient intestinal utilization. The present document summarizes those findings regarding leptin resistance development and the role of this hormone in the development and maintenance of an obese state. Thus, we focused on the effect of the impaired leptin action on adipose tissue, liver, skeletal muscle and intestinal function and the accompanying relationships with diet-induced obesity. The involvement of some inflammatory mediators implicated in the development of obesity and their roles in leptin resistance development are also discussed., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Leptin is secreted by the gastric mucosa and is able to reach the intestinal lumen and bind to its receptors located in the apical membranes of enterocytes. We have previously demonstrated that apical leptin inhibits uptake of amino acids in rat intestine in vitro and in Caco-2 cells. The aim of the present work was to investigate the effect of leptin on absorption of amino acids using in vivo techniques, which generate situations closer to physiological conditions. In vivo intestinal absorption of amino acids in rats was measured by isolating a jejunal loop and using the single-pass perfusion system. Disappearance of glutamine (Gln), proline (Pro), and β-alanine (β-Ala) from the perfusate, in the absence or presence of leptin, was measured using a radioactivity method. Luminal leptin (25 nM) inhibited the absorption of 2 mM Pro, 5 mM β-Ala, and 5 mM Gln by approximately 45% after 5-15 min; the effect remained constant until the end of the experiment (80 min) and was rapidly and completely reversed when leptin was removed from the perfusion medium. Moreover, leptin was able to regulate the absorption of galactose and Gln in the same animal, indicating a direct action of the hormone on the specific transporters implicated in the uptake of each nutrient. The results of the present work indicate that luminal leptin decreases absorption of amino acids in vivo in a short-term manner and in a reversible way. These results, together with our previous findings, make it evident that leptin can be considered as a hormone which provides the intestine with a control mechanism to handle absorption of nutrients., (© 2015 Society for Endocrinology.)