Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) activate mast cells

[nanonug]

From "Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) activate mast cells":


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) represent one of the many types of chemical modifications that occur with age in long-lived proteins. AGEs also accumulate in pathologies such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, neurodegeneration and cancer. Mast cells are major effectors of acute inflammatory responses that also contribute to the progression of chronic diseases. Here we investigated interactions between AGEs and mast cells.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACHES
Histamine secretion from AGEs-stimulated mast cells was measured. Involvement of a receptor for AGEs, RAGE, was assessed by PCR, immunostaining and use of inhibitors of RAGE. Production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cytokines was measured.

KEY RESULTS
Advanced glycation endproducts dose-dependently induced mast cell exocytosis with maximal effects being obtained within 20 s. RAGE mRNA was detected and intact cells were immunostained by a specific anti-RAGE monoclonal antibody. AGEs-induced exocytosis was inhibited by an anti-RAGE antibody and by low molecular weight heparin, a known RAGE antagonist. RAGE expression levels were unaltered after 3 h treatment with AGEs. AGE-RAGE signalling in mast cells involves Pertussis toxin-sensitive Gi-proteins and intracellular Ca2+ increases as pretreatment with Pertussis toxin, caffeine, 2-APB and BAPTA-AM inhibited AGE-induced exocytosis. AGEs also rapidly stimulated ROS production. After 6 h treatment with AGEs, the pattern of cytokine secretion was unaltered compared with controls.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
Advanced glycation endproducts activated mast cells and may contribute to a vicious cycle involving generation of ROS, increased formation of AGEs, activation of RAGE and to the increased low-grade inflammation typical of chronic diseases.

 

[Hip]

Very interesting.

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are created by cooking foods until the foods brown: AGEs are formed within the browning that appears when frying, baking, grilling, toasting or roasting foods.

The AGEs in the food browning would be activating mast cells, which in turn will increase inflammation and increase reactive oxygen species in those that eat browned food.

So this might explain why raw food diets have been reported to put ME/CFS into remission: there are no AGEs in raw food.



Browning on foods includes the browning of meats when fried, baked, grilled, toasted or roasted, as well as the browning that appears on potatoes, wheat, vegetables, coffee, etc when fried, baked, grilled, toasted or roasted. The caramel coloring found in soft drinks also contains AGEs.

Yes, that's right: browning, the stuff that makes food taste so nice, is the dietary source of the AGEs.

The specific type of browning reaction that causes these problematic AGEs to appear in food is Maillard reaction browning.

The Maillard reaction is chemical reaction between an amino acid and a sugar. The Maillard reaction occurs at cooking temperatures of around 150 ºC to 260 ºC.

Boiled food usually does not have any significant browning, because the presence of water tends to keep the temperature lower — below the temperature required for the Maillard reaction.

So perhaps a boiled food diet might also be effective for treating ME/CFS?

 

[nanonug]

Since advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are created by cooking foods until the foods brown (the browning on fried, baked, grilled, toasted or roasted food contains the AGEs), this might explain why raw food diets have been reported to put ME/CFS into remission

Very astute observation!

 

[PatJ]

So this might explain why raw food diets have been reported to put ME/CFS into remission: there are no AGEs in raw food.

It didn't work that way for me. I went on a raw food diet for two years early in this illness. I didn't experience any of the benefits that were highly touted by raw food advocates. I had less energy and eventually had so little body heat that I could sit on a couch for an hour, stand up, feel the couch cushions and not detect any warmth. I started to feel somewhat better once I started eating cooked food again.