Barry Sears

Independent Researcher

Omega-3 fatty acids (w-3 FA) have anti-inflammatory effects and improve mitochondrial function. Nonetheless, little is known about their effect on mitochondrial bioenergetics of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in individuals with obesity. Thus, this study aimed to determine the mitochondrial bioenergetics status and cell subset compositi...

Background Obesity is complicated by low-grade chronic inflammation characterised by increases in inflammatory proteins and cells in peripheral blood. It has been known that omega-3 fatty acids (FA) like eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) could modulate the inflammatory process and improve metabolic markers. Objective This study aime...

Lipodystrophy is a rare condition that generates lipotoxicity resulting in significant insulin resistance. However, lipodystrophy is only one of many chronic conditions associated with insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is defined as the impaired ability of insulin to activate GLUT4-mediated glucose transport into target cells. The molecular re...

The healing of any injury requires a dynamic balance of initiation and resolution of inflammation. This hypothesis-generating review presents an overview of the various nutrients that can act as signaling agents to modify the metabolic responses essential for the optimal healing of injury-induced inflammation. In this hypothesis-generating review,...

Inflammation is an acute adaptive response to injury. However, if the initial inflammatory response to an injury is not completely healed, it becomes chronic low-level inflammation that is strongly associated with many chronic disease states, including metabolic (obesity and diabetes), cardiovascular, auto-immune, and neurogenerative disorders as w...

Background Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is a common cause of lower back pain, which carries substantial morbidity and economic cost. Omega-3 fatty acids (n-3 FA) are known to reduce inflammatory processes with a relatively benign side effect profile. This study aimed to investigate the effect of n-3 FA supplementation on IVD degeneration....

Introduction: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by abnormal development of cognitive, social, and communicative skills. Although ASD aetiology and pathophysiology are still unclear, various nutritional factors have been investigated as potential risk factors for ASD development, including omega-...

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death today. Many of the biochemical alterations associated with the pathophysiology of CVD can be modified by adequate intakes of bioactive nutrients through a correct diet or supplementation. Recently, there has been growing public and clinical interest in cocoa polyphenols (CPs) and omega...

Significant reductions in insulin resistance (IR) can be achieved by either calorie restriction or by the increase of lean mass. However, calorie restriction usually results in significant loss of lean mass. A 6-week randomized controlled feeding trial was conducted to determine if a calorie-restricted, high-protein diet (~125 g protein/day consume...

Although potentially modifiable risk factors for interferon-alpha (IFN-α)-associated depression (IFN-MDD) have been identified, it is not currently known how they interact to confer risk. In the present study we prospectively investigated interactions among poor sleep quality, high-stress, pre-existing depressive symptoms, and polyunsaturated fatty...

Insulin resistance is a multi-faceted disruption of the communication between insulin and the interior of a target cell. The underlying cause of insulin appears to be inflammation that can either be increased or decreased by the fatty acid composition of the diet. However, the molecular basis for insulin resistance can be quite different in various...

Chronic disease is driven by inflammation. This article will provide an overview on how the balance of macronutrients and omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids in the diet can alter the expression of inflammatory genes. In particular, how the balance of the protein to glycemic load of a meal can alter the generation of insulin and glucagon and the how th...

The human species has evolved intricate control systems to manage the intake and storage of nutrients to increase the chances for successful survival and the procreation of the next generation. However, these complex communication systems can be disturbed by increased levels of inflammation leading to metabolic defects (obesity, metabolic syndrome,...

The master switch that turns on the expression of inflammatory gene products is the nuclear factor kappaB (NF-°B).Its activating factor includes oxidative stress from excess calories, hormones derived from arachidonic acid, saturated fatty acids, advanced glycosylated end products (AGE), and inflammatory cytokines from nearby cells.The core message...

This book explores the nature of pregnancy and metabolic syndrome as proinflammatory conditions and explains how pregnancy provides a window of opportunity for preventing the lifelong complications of metabolic syndrome, during which key risk factors can be identified and beneficial dietary changes can be implemented. The books opening sections dis...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with long-chain omega-3 (LCn-3) fatty acid deficits and indices of chronic sustained inflammation including elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. The present study combined a case-control analysis and a prospective 10-week open-label fish oil (FO) supplementation trial to investigate the relationshi...

Severe brain trauma injury (TBI) is characterized by significant neuroinflammation. Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are known to have anti-inflammatory properties. Since they can easily pass the blood–brain barrier, they have the potential to reduce the neuroinflammation that accom...

Background / Purpose: Interferon-alpha can worsen irritability and anger, which omega-3 fatty acids may mitigate. Main conclusion: Low omega-3 levels were associated with increased anger (particularly in subjects with TNF-alpha promoter A allele). SSRI use was also correlated with increased anger.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the primary cause of blindness in individuals older than 50 years of age. Studies were carried in patients with dry AMD using high-dose omega-3 fatty acids providing 3.4 g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 1.6 g of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on a daily basis for 6 months. In patients with dry AMD, signific...

Obesity, metabolic syndrome and diabetes represent multi-factorial conditions resulting from improper balances of hormones and gene expression. In addition, these conditions have a strong inflammatory component that can potentially be impacted by the diet. The purpose of this review is to discuss the molecular targets that can be addressed by anti-...

Cross-sectional studies have found that an elevated ratio of arachidonic acid to omega-3 fatty acid is associated with depression, and controlled intervention studies have found that decreasing this ratio through administration of omega-3 fatty acids can alleviate depressive symptoms. Additionally, arachidonic acid and omega-3 fatty acids have oppo...

Traumatic brain injury remains the most common cause of death in persons under 45 years of age in the Western world. Recent evidence from animal studies suggests that supplementation with omega-3 fatty acid (O3FA) (particularly eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) improves functional outcomes following focal neural injury. Th...

Obesity is a multifactorial condition resulting from improper balances of hormones and gene expression induced by the diet. Obesity also has a strong inflammatory component that can be driven by diet-induced increases in arachidonic acid. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the molecular targets that can be addressed by anti-inflammatory nutrit...

Obesity and type 2 diabetes are strongly associated with increased inflammation. As the inflammation in adipose tissue increases, this becomes a strong driving force for the development of increased systemic inflammation that results in metabolic syndrome, eventually followed by the development of overt type 2 diabetes. The potential reversal of bo...

Ketogenic diets have been associated with reductions in free-living physical activity, a response that can be counterproductive in individuals trying to lose weight. To explore whether popular low-carbohydrate diets might impact the desire to exercise by raising blood ketone concentrations, fatigue and perceived effort during exercise were compared...

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common neurological condition in children. This pilot study evaluated the effects of high-dose eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation on the isolated plasma phospholipids and behavior in children with ADHD (primarily inattentive subtype and combined subt...

Without Abstract

Low-carbohydrate diets may promote greater weight loss than does the conventional low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet. We compared weight loss and biomarker change in adults adhering to a ketogenic low-carbohydrate (KLC) diet or a nonketogenic low-carbohydrate (NLC) diet. Twenty adults [body mass index (in kg/m(2)): 34.4 +/- 1.0] were randomly assigned...

The Zone Diet was developed on the concept that the hormonal responses of macronutrients could be orchestrated to maintain key hormones within therapeutic zones to control inflammatory responses. In particular, the two hormonal systems that are directly affected by dietary macronutrients are (1) the insulin/glucagon axis and (2) eicosanoids. Each o...

Background: A science-based diet approach to achieving a healthy diet began in the early 1900s, and this led to the development of the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Food Guide Pyramid. Since its adoption, the prevalence of overweight and type 2 diabetes has risen substantially. Whether the two are related is unknown, but a cha...

Historically, carbohydrates have been thought to play only a minor role in promoting weight gain and in predicting the risk of development of chronic disease. Most of the focus had been on reducing total dietary fat. During the last 20 years, fat intake decreased, while the number of individuals who were overweight or developed a chronic conditions...

The choline-containing phospholipids of mammalian membranes have been biosynthetically deuterated by raising rats on a diet supplemented with [HOCH2CH2N(CD3)3]+Cl- or [HOCD2CH2N(CH3)3]+Cl-. Deuterium NMR spectra have been obtained from excised deuterated brain, sciatic nerve, heart, and lung, from isolated brain myelin and brain microsomes, and fro...

Binary phase diagrams have been constructed from differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) data for the systems 1-palmitoyl-2-oleylphosphatidylcholine (POPC)/dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC), POPC/dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and POPC/distearoylphosphatidylcholine (DSPC). Mixtures of POPC with DMPC exhibit complete miscibility in the ge...

Mixed micelles of deoxycholate (DOC) and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoylphosphatidylcholine (POPC) have been prepared in which the POPC was specifically deuterated in the 2-, 6-, 10-, or 16-position of the palmitoyl chain or in the N-methyl position of the choline head group. The deuterium nuclear magnetic resonance (2H NMR) spectrum of each of these specific...

Deuterium magnetic resonance (2H-NMR) and Raman spectroscopy are used to investigate order and fluidity at the terminal methyl position in 16-d3, 16'-d3 dipalmitoylphosphatidyl-choline (16-d6 DPPC) multibilayers. These methods reveal substantial motion and disorder in the gel phase, 5-10 degree C below the gel-liquid crystal phase transition temper...

An approach for increasing the effectiveness of antitumor drugs is to alter their distribution in the body incorporating them into particulate carriers, which theoretically can be concentrated at the tumor site. In this way, the toxicity of the drug for the tumor might be enhanced while the systemic toxicity is minimized. Two major approaches for a...

2H-NMR was used to probe the interaction of non-hydroxy fatty acid cerebroside and 2-hydroxy fatty acid cerebroside with the polar head group and with the acyl chains of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine in unsonicated bilayers. It is shown that the interior of the bilayer exhibits uniformly increasing orientational order as the concentration of both...

The following synthetic phospholipids were prepared, and the structures that were formed by ultrasonic irradiation in aqueous solution were studied: 1,2-di(10-bromo stearoyl)-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (DBrPC), 1,2-di(10-methyl stearoyl)-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (DMePC), and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleyl-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (POPC). Uniform populations of...

The natural abundance 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrum of human serum low density lipoproteins (LDL) shows significant temperature-dependent changes. These temperature-dependent spectra have been used to monitor changes in the organization of cholesterol esters within the LDL particle. Comparison with 13C NMR spectra of both cholestero...

Effects of paramagnetic shift reagents on the 13C NMR spectra obtained from single-walled vesicle dispersions of egg phosphatidylcholine enriched with 13C in the N-methyl carbons are investigated. Spectra obtained at 25.1 MHz show that, at Yb3+ to phospholipid molar ratios as low as 0.06, complete resolution of the N-methyl carbon resonances is obt...

Spin lattice relaxation times (T 1) and apparent spin-spin relaxation times (T 2*) derived from linewidth have been used to investigate model membranes composed of egg yolk phosphatidylcholine.T 1 measurements appear to be largely dominated by segmental motion and as a consequence are not very sensitive to small changes in membrane structure. On th...

13C NMR relaxation measurements have been carried out on phospholipid bilayer systems formed from synthetic di-10-methyl-stearoyl phosphatidylcholine with 92% enrichment in one of the N-methyl carbons. Studies on single-walled vesicles prepared by sonication from this lipid, and on large multi-lamellar liposomes show that although T1 values are nea...

Molecular motions in unaggregated and micellar aqueous solutions of several n-alkyltrimethylammonium bromides were studied by means of 13C spin-lattice relaxation times (T 1) of individual carbon resonances. The T 1 values were extracted from proton-decoupled natural-abundance 13C partially relaxed Fourier transform nmr spectra. Spin-lattice relaxa...

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University, 1971. Vita.