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In total, 3274 adults (65.2% females) from six European countries were included in this cross-sectional analysis using data from the baseline assessment of the Feel4Diabetes study. Anthropometric, sociodemographic, dietary and behavioral data were assessed, and the existence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) was recorded. Beverage consumption patterns (BCPs) were derived via principal component analysis. Three BCPs were derived explaining 39.5% of the total variation. BCP1 was labeled as "Alcoholic beverage pattern", which loaded heavily on high consumption of beer/cider, wine and other spirits; BCP2 was labeled as "High in sugars beverage pattern" that was mainly characterized by high consumption of soft drinks with sugar, juice containing sugar and low consumption of water; and BCP3 was labeled as "Healthy beverage pattern" that was mainly characterized by high consumption of water, tea, fruit juice freshly squeezed or prepacked without sugar and low consumption of soft drinks without sugar. After adjusting for various confounders, BCP2 was positively associated with elevated triglycerides (p = 0.001), elevated blood pressure (p = 0.001) elevated fasting glucose (p = 0.008) and the existence of MetS (p = 0.006), while BCP1 was inversely associated with reduced HDL-C (p = 0.005) and BCP3 was inversely associated with elevated blood pressure (p = 0.047). The establishment of policy actions as well as public health nutritional education can contribute to the promotion of a healthy beverage consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA) of mitochondrial origin (ccf-mtDNA) consists of a minor fraction of total ccfDNA in blood or in other biological fluids. Aberrant levels of ccf-mtDNA have been observed in many pathologies. Here, we introduce a simple and effective standardized Taqman probe-based dual-qPCR assay for the simultaneous detection and relative quantification of nuclear and mitochondrial fragments of ccfDNA. Three pathologies of major burden, one malignancy (Breast Cancer, BrCa), one inflammatory (Osteoarthritis, OA) and one metabolic (Type 2 Diabetes, T2D), were studied. Higher levels of ccf-mtDNA were detected both in BrCa and T2D in relation to health, but not in OA. In BrCa, hormonal receptor status was associated with ccf-mtDNA levels. Machine learning analysis of ccf-mtDNA datasets was used to build biosignatures of clinical relevance. (A) a three-feature biosignature discriminating between health and BrCa (AUC: 0.887) and a five-feature biosignature for predicting the overall survival of BrCa patients (Concordance Index: 0.756). (B) a five-feature biosignature stratifying among T2D, prediabetes and health (AUC: 0.772); a five-feature biosignature discriminating between T2D and health (AUC: 0.797); and a four-feature biosignature identifying prediabetes from health (AUC: 0.795). (C) a biosignature including total plasma ccfDNA with very high performance in discriminating OA from health (AUC: 0.934). Aberrant ccf-mtDNA levels could have diagnostic/prognostic potential in BrCa and Diabetes, while the developed multiparameter biosignatures can add value to their clinical management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The need for minimally invasive biomarkers for the early diagnosis of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) prior to the clinical onset and monitoring of β-pancreatic cell loss is emerging. Here, we focused on studying circulating cell-free DNA (ccfDNA) as a liquid biopsy biomaterial for accurate diagnosis/monitoring of T2DM. Methods: ccfDNA levels were directly quantified in sera from 96 T2DM patients and 71 healthy individuals via fluorometry, and then fragment DNA size profiling was performed by capillary electrophoresis. Following this, ccfDNA methylation levels of five β-cell-related genes were measured via qPCR. Data were analyzed by automated machine learning to build classifying predictive models. Results: ccfDNA levels were found to be similar between groups but indicative of apoptosis in T2DM. INS (Insulin), IAPP (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide-Amylin), GCK (Glucokinase), and KCNJ11 (Potassium Inwardly Rectifying Channel Subfamily J member 11) levels differed significantly between groups. AutoML analysis delivered biosignatures including GCK, IAPP and KCNJ11 methylation, with the highest ever reported discriminating performance of T2DM from healthy individuals (AUC 0.927). Conclusions: Our data unravel the value of ccfDNA as a minimally invasive biomaterial carrying important clinical information for T2DM. Upon prospective clinical evaluation, the built biosignature can be disruptive for T2DM clinical management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]