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Lipid disorders have been implicated in overweight and menopause. However, evidence on lipidomic analysis of fatty acids in erythrocytes of menopausal women is scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the body mass index within or beyond 5 years of menopause and erythrocyte fatty acid profile. This case-control study was conducted on out of 37 menopausal women total patients, 22 with body mass index ≥ 25 and 12 matched controls (body mass index 25 and non-physiological content of fatty acids, were richer in percentage of saturated fatty acids and poorer of monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids than women with BMI25 than in women with BMI

Fatty acids, as structural components of membranes and inflammation/anti-inflammatory mediators, have well-known protective and regulatory effects. They are studied as biomarkers of pathological conditions, as well as saturated and unsaturated hydrophobic moieties in membrane phospholipids that contribute to homeostasis and physiological functions. Lifestyle, nutrition, metabolism and stress--with an excess of radical and oxidative processes--cause fatty acid changes that are examined in the human body using blood lipids. Fatty acid-based membrane lipidomics represents a powerful diagnostic tool for assessing the quantity and quality of fatty acid constituents and also for the follow-up of the membrane fatty acid remodeling that is associated with different physiological and pathological conditions. This review focuses on fatty acid biomarkers with two examples of recent lipidomic research and health applications: (i) monounsaturated fatty acids and the analytical challenge offered by hexadecenoic fatty acids (C16:1); and (ii) the cohort of 10 fatty acids in phospholipids of red blood cell membranes and its connections to metabolic and nutritional status in healthy and diseased subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The natural peptide somatostatin has hormonal and cytostatic effects exerted by the binding to specific receptors in various tissues. Therapeutic uses are strongly prevented by its very short biological half-life of 1–2 min due to enzymatic hydrolysis, therefore encapsulation methodologies are explored to overcome the need for continuous infusion regimes. Multilamellar liposomes made of natural phosphatidylcholine were used for the incorporation of a mixture of somatostatin and sorbitol dissolved in citrate buffer at pH = 5. Lyophilization and reconstitution of the suspension were carried out, showing the flexibility of this preparation. Full characterization of this suspension was obtained as particle size, encapsulation efficiency and retarded release properties in aqueous medium and human plasma. Liposomal somatostatin incubated at 37 °C in the presence of Fe(II) and (III) salts were used as a biomimetic model of drug-cell membrane interaction, evidencing the free radical processes of peroxidation and isomerization that transform the unsaturated fatty acid moieties of the lipid vesicles. This study offers new insights into a liposomal delivery system and highlights molecular reactivity of sulfur-containing drugs with its carrier or biological membranes for pharmacological applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatty acids, as structural components of membranes and inflammation/anti-inflammatory mediators, have well-known protective and regulatory effects. They are studied as biomarkers of pathological conditions, as well as saturated and unsaturated hydrophobic moieties in membrane phospholipids that contribute to homeostasis and physiological functions. Lifestyle, nutrition, metabolism and stress-with an excess of radical and oxidative processes-cause fatty acid changes that are examined in the human body using blood lipids. Fatty acid-based membrane lipidomics represents a powerful diagnostic tool for assessing the quantity and quality of fatty acid constituents and also for the follow-up of the membrane fatty acid remodeling that is associated with different physiological and pathological conditions. This review focuses on fatty acid biomarkers with two examples of recent lipidomic research and health applications: (i) monounsaturated fatty acids and the analytical challenge offered by hexadecenoic fatty acids (C16:1); and (ii) the cohort of 10 fatty acids in phospholipids of red blood cell membranes and its connections to metabolic and nutritional status in healthy and diseased subjects.