Tahini, Antioxidant Status and Endothelial Function

October 28, 2020 updated by: PANAGIOTIS KANELLOS, Harokopio University

Effect of Tahini Consumption on Oxidative Stress and Inflammation Markers as Well as Endothelial Function and Arterial Stiffness in Healthy Volunteers

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), a cluster of disorders that affect heart and blood vessels, is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality around the world and is responsible for 17.9 million deaths annually worldwide. CVD risk factors can be modifiable (nutrition, physical activity, obesity, smoking, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and diabetes) and non-modifiable (age, gender, ethnicity, family history and socioeconomic status). Chronic exposure to CVD risk factors induces oxidative stress and promotes inflammation. In addition, endothelial cells in response to the inflammatory reaction secrete growth factors, leading to the destruction of vascular endothelium and promoting atherogenesis.

Oxidative stress refers to the imbalance between anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant compounds, with predominance of the pro-oxidant ones. Reactive Oxygen Species overproduction has been implicated in pathogenesis and complications of numerous diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and chronic kidney disease.

Moreover, endothelium consists of a single layer of endothelial cells; it is the natural barrier between blood and tissues and also an endocrine organ. It plays a key role in vascular homeostasis by maintaining a balance between vasodilation and vasoconstriction and is responsible for fluid filtration, blood vessel tone, hormone trafficking, hemostasis, regulation of blood flow and growth of blood vessels. Thus, reductions in endothelial function are detrimental and predict and precede the development of overt CVD.

Sesame belongs to Pedaliaceae family and can be consumed in different forms such as seeds, oil or tahini, i.e., a 100 % peeled, ground and roasted sesame paste. Sesame seeds are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, proteins, vitamin E and lignans, such as sesamin, sesamolin and sesamol. Recent studies have highlighted the antioxidant, antihypertensive, hypolipidemic and appetite control properties of sesame seeds and sesame oil.

Regarding the consumption of tahini and its effect on human health, only three studies are available in the current literature, one of them in patients with type 2 diabetes, one in diabetic animal model and one in Alzheimer's disease animal model. Thus, the aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of tahini consumption on oxidative stress, blood pressure, endothelial function and arterial stiffness in healthy males postprandially.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), a cluster of disorders that affect heart and blood vessels, is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality around the world and is responsible for 17.9 million deaths annually worldwide. CVD includes coronary heart disease, peripheral arterial disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease, congenital heart disease, deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. CVD risk factors can be modifiable (nutrition, physical activity, obesity, smoking, hyperlipidemia, hypertension and diabetes) and non-modifiable (age, gender, ethnicity, family history and socioeconomic status). Chronic exposure to CVD risk factors induces oxidative stress and promotes inflammation. In addition, endothelial cells in response to the inflammatory reaction secrete growth factors, leading to the destruction of vascular endothelium and promoting atherogenesis.

Oxidative stress refers to the imbalance between anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant compounds, with predominance of the pro-oxidant ones. These compounds are also called Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) or free radicals and are unstable atoms or molecules. Their generation, as products of normal cellular metabolism, occurs naturally by endogenous sources (e.g. mitochondria, peroxisomes and endoplasmic reticulum) through enzymatic and non-enzymatic reactions. Furthermore, exogenous sources implicated in free radical production are air pollution, alcohol consumption, tobacco smoking, ultraviolet light exposure, industrial solvents and others. Free radical production is regulated by the well-organized human endogenous enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant system, along with the exogenous antioxidants found in food. However, in some cases antioxidant system fails to eliminate ROS overproduction and can consequently induce serious damage to important for life biomolecules (DNA, lipids, proteins), leading to cell injury and death. Thus, ROS overproduction has been implicated in pathogenesis and complications of numerous diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and chronic kidney disease.

Moreover, endothelium consists of a single layer of endothelial cells; it is the natural barrier between blood and tissues and also an endocrine organ. It plays a key role in vascular homeostasis by maintaining a balance between vasodilation and vasoconstriction. Moreover, vascular endothelium is responsible for fluid filtration, blood vessel tone, hormone trafficking, hemostasis, regulation of blood flow and growth of blood vessels. Thus, reductions in endothelial function are detrimental and predict and precede the development of overt CVD.

Sesame belongs to Pedaliaceae family and can be consumed in different forms such as seeds, oil or tahini, i.e., a 100 % peeled, ground and roasted sesame paste. Sesame seeds are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), proteins, vitamin E and lignans, such as sesamin, sesamolin and sesamol. Recent studies have highlighted the antioxidant, antihypertensive, hypolipidemic and appetite control properties of sesame seeds and sesame oil. Moreover, few studies have investigated the effect of sesame consumption on blood pressure, endothelial function and arterial stiffness in human population. According to a metanalysis, sesame consumed in form of seed, oil, capsule or bar decreased both systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), while sesame oil consumption was found to improve endothelial function both in the postprandial state and after long term consumption in hypertensive men.

Regarding the consumption of tahini and its effect on human health, only three studies are available in the current literature, one of them in patients with type 2 diabetes, one in diabetic animal model and one in Alzheimer's disease animal model. Thus, the aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of tahini consumption on oxidative stress, blood pressure, endothelial function and arterial stiffness in healthy males postprandially.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

20

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Greece
      • Athens, Greece, 11527
        • Diabetes Center, First Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laiko General Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

20 years to 40 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • age between 20 and 40 years
  • Body Mass Index (BMI)<30 kg/m2

Exclusion Criteria:

  • alcohol or drug abuse,
  • any medication or vitamin/mineral supplementation
  • alternative diet (vegetarian, macrobiotic, etc.)
  • recent use of antibiotics
  • history of any chronic disease

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention arm
After an overnight fast, participants subjected to baseline measurements and blood and urine collection and then consumed an amount of 50 g of tahini. Blood and urine collection and other measurements were repeated 4 h postprandially.
Other: Tahini
Fifty grams of tahini were consumed by 20 healthy males

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Concentration of oxidative stress biomarkers
Time Frame: Four hours after tahini consumption
concentration of urinary 8-iso-prostaglandin F2a
Four hours after tahini consumption

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Harokopio University

Investigators

  • Study Director: NIKOLAOS K TENTOLOURIS, PROF, Diabetes CeMedical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laiko General Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 2, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

July 31, 2020

Study Completion (Actual)

July 31, 2020

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 25, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 25, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

October 29, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

October 30, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 28, 2020

Last Verified

October 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 703

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

No

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Blood Pressure

Clinical Trials on Tahini

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

CROs by country

CROs in Ghana

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

3
Subscribe