Evaluation of spontaneous genomic lesions, cellular response to in vitro induced-DNA damage in peripheral blood lymphocytes and molecular responses to parenteral nutrition treatment in Short Bowel Syndrome patients

• Grant number: 09/52907-4
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: December 01, 2009
• End date: November 30, 2011
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Nutrition - Nutrition Biochemistry
• Principal Investigator: Helio Vannucchi
• Grantee: Helio Vannucchi
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS) is a pathological condition of congenital or non-congenital etiology characterized by maldigestion and malabsorption of nutrients after extensive loss of the small bowel. SBS patients exhibit severe malnutrition and consequently are submitted to periodic or constant parenteral nutrition (PN) treatment It is well known that PN improves nutritional markers but not clinical outcomes, suggesting that malnutrition is not causatively associated with a poor outcome. Thus, the mortality rate is up to 25% three years after the treatment beginning. Moreover, nutritional deficiencies may result in genomic instability as the result of increasing oxidative stress or yet DNA damage detection and/or repair inefficiency. At moment there is no evidence in literature about the levels of DNA damage and/or molecular responses after PN treatment. The objectives of the present study are to evaluate the spontaneous genomic lesions, the ability of DNA repair and the molecular responses to PN nutrition in patients with SBS. Finding new biomarkers that point to molecular pathways modulated by PN represents a great advance in understanding and developing new strategies for SBS interventions. (AU)