Nutritional Strategies for the Management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Narrative Review

BACKGROUND

Thinking about greater adherence to dietary planning, it is extremely important to be aware of all nutritional strategies and dietary prescriptions available in the literature, and of which of them is the most efficient for the management of T2DM.

METHODS

A search was carried out in 2023 for randomized clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and guidelines in the following databases: Pubmed, Scielo, Web of Science, CrossRef and Google Scholar. In total, 202 articles were collected and analyzed. The period of publications was 1983-2023.

RESULTS

There is still no consensus on what the best nutritional strategy or ideal dietary prescription is, and individuality is necessary. In any case, these references suggest that Mediterranean Diet may of greater interest for the management of T2DM, with the following recommended dietary prescription: 40-50% carbohydrates; 15-25% proteins; 25-35% fats (<7% saturated, 10% polyunsaturated, and 10% monounsaturated); at least 14 g of fiber for every 1000 kcal consumed; and <2300 mg sodium.

CONCLUSIONS

Individuality is the gold standard for dietary prescriptions, however, the Mediterranean diet with low levels of carbohydrates and fats seems to be the most promising strategy for the management of T2DM.

Untangling the evolution of soldier beetles (Coleoptera: Cantharidae) and the evaluation of the morphological phylogenetic signal in a soft-bodied elateroid lineage

This study addresses the long-standing uncertainty about the internal classification of soldier beetles (Elateroidea: Cantharidae). Four datasets were compiled and analysed: 66 genes for 14 terminals, 15 mtDNA genes for 79 terminals, one mtDNA and two rRNA genes for 217 terminals, and barcodes for 576 terminals. Based on congruent topologies, Chauliognathinae is proposed as a sister to the remaining Cantharidae, followed by the redefined Malthininae (including Tytthonyxini), the paraphyletic "dysmorphocerine" lineages (Dysmorphocerinae sensu stricto and Heteromastiginae subfam. nov.), and Silinae + Cantharinae as a terminal clade. The present phylogeny supersedes earlier morphology and short-fragment molecular hypotheses that have not converged on a consensus. Few morphological characters corroborate the DNA-based relationships (see the adults and larval keys). However, morphology-based hypotheses have relied on a few informative characters, and no evidence strongly rejects the preferred molecular topology. The interpretation of morphological characters and uncertain polarity resulting from the high phenotypic disparity of Elateroidea are discussed in detail. The dated phylogeny hypothesizes the earliest split within the Cantharidae in the Berriasian stage (Early Cretaceous, ~141 Myr) and the diversification of most extant subfamilies and tribes already in the Late Cretaceous. The most diverse subfamily, Cantharinae, represents a delayed radiation that started during the Eocene climatic optimum, 55.5 Myr. The late origin of Cantharinae questions the classification of Cretaceous Cantharidae as members of Cantharinae. Instead, the results suggest their deeper rooting after separating from dysmorphocerine lineages and before the node between Cantharinae and Silinae.

The emergence of Omicron VOC and its rapid spread and persistence in the Western Amazon

Genomic surveillance represents a strategy to understanding the evolutionary mechanisms, transmission, and infectivity of different SARS-CoV-2 variants. We evaluated 603 individuals positive for SARS-CoV-2 from 34 municipalities of Rondônia between December 2021 to December 2022. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected, RNA was extracted and screened using RT-qPCR for VOCs. RNA of the samples were sequenced and further analyzed for phylogeny, mutations, and lineages, totaling 96.19% of samples positive for Omicron VOC in this cohort. We observed that most individuals had at least two doses, however 18.97% were not vaccinated with any dose. 554 sequences were amenable to analysis for alignment and phylogenetic characterization; this group corresponded to the 27 subvariants of the Omicron VOC; a total of 100 mutations were identified, 48% of which were found in the S gene. In conclusion, the data demonstrated the rapid spread and persistence of Omicron VOC in Rondônia during the 12-month study period. Although high frequency of mutations was found in the analyzed samples, there were no individuals with a severe clinical profile, demonstrating that vaccination had a positive effect in those cases.