Accordingly, of the three fall risk assessment scales, the highest predictive validity for identifying patients at high risk for falls was achieved by the MFS.

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The effect of mulberry (Morus alba L.) fruit extract (MFE) on hyperglycemia and insulin sensitivity in an animal model of type 2 diabetes was evaluated. C57BL/Ksj-diabetic db/db mice were divided into three groups: diabetic control, rosiglitazone, and MFE groups. Blood glucose, plasma insulin, and intraperitoneal glucose were measured, and an insulin tolerance test was performed after MFE supplementation in db/db mice. In addition, the protein levels of various targets of insulin signaling were measured by western blotting. The blood levels of glucose and HbA1c were significantly lower in the MFE-supplemented group than in the diabetic control group. Moreover, glucose and insulin tolerance tests showed that MFE treatment increased insulin sensitivity. The homeostatic index of insulin resistance significantly decreased in the MFE-supplemented group relative to the diabetic control group. MFE supplementation significantly stimulated the levels of phosphorylated (p)-AMP-activated protein kinase (pAMPK) and p-Akt substrate of 160 kDa (pAS160) and enhanced the level of plasma membrane-glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) in skeletal muscles. Further, dietary MFE significantly increased pAMPK and decreased the levels of glucose 6-phosphatase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase in the liver. MFE may improve hyperglycemia and insulin sensitivity via activation of AMPK and AS160 in skeletal muscles and inhibition of gluconeogenesis in the liver.

Obesity is an important issue in the world of public health and preventive medicine. Inhibition of proliferation of preadipocytes plays an important role in proposed antiobesity mechanisms. In this study, we investigated the effect of diphlorethohydroxycarmalol (DPHC) isolated from Ishige okamurae on the apoptotic pathway. The results showed that DPHC inhibited population growth in 3 T3-L1 preadipocytes as assessed using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. Flow cytometric analysis of 3 T3-L1 preadipocytes showed that the number of early and late apoptotic cells increases in a dose-dependent manner after exposure to DPHC, while the number of normal cells was reduced. Our findings indicate that the induction of apoptosis in 3 T3-L1 preadipocytes by DPHC is mediated through the activation of caspase-3, Bax, and caspase-9, and then through the cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase and the down-regulation of Bcl-2. The data also indicated that treatment with DPHC inhibits histone deacetylase activity in 3 T3-L1 preadipocytes. These results show that DPHC efficiently induces apoptosis in 3 T3-L1 preadipocytes.