Effect of 30-day Ramadan fasting on autophagy pathway and metabolic health outcome in healthy individuals

Document Type : Original article

Authors

1 Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

2 Autophagy Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

3 Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

4 Health Policy Research Center, Institute of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

5 Research Center for Traditional Medicine and History of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

6 Autophagy Research Center, Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Abstract

During Ramadan, Muslims fast to spiritually prepare their bodies and spirits. The autophagy pathway restores cellular homeostasis and is being studied as a therapy for a variety of disorders. According to previous studies, fasting or calorie restriction has a role in the up-regulation of autophagy especially through the initiation step. The effects of Ramadan fasting on the autophagy pathways and metabolic health outcome in healthy adults were investigated in this study. In this controlled cohort study, 50 healthy subjects (20-78 years old) 24-fasting and 26 non-fasting were included. At the end of Ramadan, a blood was drawn to assess biochemical, hematological, and inflammatory variables. Serum IL-6 and hs-CRP levels were measured. The serum proteins (Beclin-1 and LC3β) and mRNAs gene expressions’ (Beclin-1, p62, and LC3β) of the autophagy marker were evaluated by ELISA and real-time PCR, respectively. During Ramadan, there were no significant differences for biochemical parameters (except for BUN-level), inflammatory markers (IL-6 and hs-CRP), and hematological indices during Ramadan. Beclin-1 gene expression was significantly upregulated in the fasting-group as the main marker of initiation of autophagy; yet, the LC3β and the p62 levels were decreased in the fasting-group in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. However, fasting women alone displayed a significantly high serum Beclin-1 level. Ramadan fasting does not have any adverse effects on biochemical, hematological, and inflammatory parameters. According to our results, people observing Ramadan may benefit from the autophagy pathway to compensate reduction in energy and vital metabolites in the face of food restriction.

Keywords

References

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