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The plant Santa herba (Eriodictyon californicum) contains high flavonoids, thus potentially exerting beneficial effects in context of obesity, often accompanied by inflammation and metabolic imbalance. The study assessed the impact of Santa herba on oxidative stress, energy metabolism, weight reduction, and eating behaviour, combining in vitro models with clinical data. Santa herba binding of the adenosine receptor A2A (ADORA2A) was assessed using a radioligand binding assay. A Caenorhabditis elegans model was used to determine mobility boosting effects, and Santa herba oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) values were determined in comparison to antioxidative plants. Clinical data, that is, body weight and appetite-related parameters, were obtained from overweight and obese women receiving either Santa herba or placebo for 12 weeks. Results showed that Santa herba extract has energising and antioxidant properties and may aid in weight management of people with obesity.

Ageing leaves characteristic traces in the DNA methylation make-up of the genome. However, the importance of DNA methylation in ageing remains unclear. The study of subtelomeric regions could give promising insights into this issue. Previously reported associations between susceptibility to age-related diseases and epigenetic instability at subtelomeres suggest that the DNA methylation profile of subtelomeres undergoes remodelling during ageing. In the present work, this hypothesis has been tested in the context of the European large-scale project MARK-AGE. In this cross-sectional study, we profiled the DNA methylation of chromosomes 5 and 21 subtelomeres, in more than 2000 age-stratified women and men recruited in eight European countries. Results indicate that the effects of age on subtelomeric DNA methylation are mostly independent of all other variables evaluated.

The assessment of improvement or maintenance of joint health in healthy subjects is a great challenge. The aim of the study was the evaluation of a joint stress test to assess joint discomfort in subjects with activity-related knee joint discomfort (ArJD). Forty-five subjects were recruited to perform the single-leg-step-down (SLSD) test (15 subjects per group). Subjects with ArJD of the knee (age 22-62 years) were compared to healthy subjects (age 24-59 years) with no knee joint discomfort during daily life sporting activity and to subjects with mild-to-moderate osteoarthritis of the knee joint (OA, Kellgren score 2-3, age 42-64 years). The results suggest the SLSD test is a reliable tool for the assessment of knee joint health function in ArJD and OA subjects to study the improvements in their activities. Further, this model can be used as a stress model in intervention studies to study the impact of stress on knee joint health function.

Self-rated health (SRH) is one of the most frequently used indicators in health and social research. We used data from three independent European population samples (N approx. 15,000) to investigate the associations of SRH with 150 biomolecules in blood or urine (biomarkers). Altogether 57 biomarkers representing different organ systems were associated with SRH. We propose three potential pathways through which biomarkers may be incorporated into an individual's subjective health assessment. Finally our findings indicate that SRH has a solid biological basis and it is a valid but non-specific indicator of the biological condition of the human organism.

Maintaining healthy blood pressure is fundamental in order to avoid disorders to the heart and blood vessels. In prevention, and alongside pharmacological therapy, the use of natural substances is extremely helpful for pre- and mild hypertensive subjects. Our study was therefore focused on the effects, both in vitro and in humans, of a grape seed extract, Enovita (GSEe), a highly standardized extract in polyphenols of Vitis vinifera L. The in vitro cells model was chosen to explore the extract properties related to vascular inflammation/vasodilation. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study in healthy volunteers was further performed to investigate GSEe benefits. GSEe resulted in a benefit of modulating endothelial functionality and blood pressure with an overall positive modulation on mood related to stress perception.

Skin health, skin appearance and skin beauty are influenced by collagen composition of the dermis. Natural aging affects the structural integrity of the collagen network. Not only collagen peptides, but also micronutrients can beneficially affect skin appearance. Aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a food supplement with collagen hydrolysate and micronutrients on skin beauty. The test product was assessed for its capability to reduce wrinkles and to improve skin hydration and collagen structure.