FPAS - Programs and projects

Programs and Projects

The activity of HNF is focused on three main directions:

A. Scientific Research
B. Education/information for population
C. HNF Symposium

A. SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH:

1. Acronym: CIVRES

Complet Title: Interlinking Civil Society Organisation and Research through Education, Cooperation and the 7th Framework Programme.

Period: 2 years (January 2008 - December 2010)

Project Coordinator: Mr. Joshua Sidwell, Europa Media, Hungary
Scientific Director for HNF: Professor Dan Mircea Cheta, UMF "Carol Davila" Bucharest, Romania
Project Manager: Ciprian Constantin M.D., Military Emergency Hospital "Carol Davila"

Short description: The overall strategic objective of the CIVRES project is to stimulate the participation of Civil Society Organisations in research activities, encouraging them to take a more active role in FP7 projects. As the needs and challenges of CSOs show great variety depending on their specific field of activity a multinational consortium has been established, comprising representatives of both CSOs and research organisations. This consortium will set-up a platform of long-term cooperation where researchers and CSOs can meet, identify common research areas and collaborate on future projects. The communicational platform will be developed to facilitate dialogue between researchers and CSO representatives serving as a permanent communicational interface. Interactive e-training services tailored to suit the needs of civil society will also be launched to inform CSOs of the European research activities they are able to participate in as well as train them on how to actively take part in FP7 through proposal development and consortium building. These targeted direct actions will be supplemented by a comprehensive dissemination campaign, to further raise awareness and interest. One roundtable discussion, four information days and a final brokerage event have been planned in order to increase the cooperation among the stakeholders and encourage interactive dialogue to better find areas of cooperation between CSOs and researchers. An information booklet will also be published that will help bridge the gap between CSOs and researchers, as both can learn from each other. Other dissemination activities include the exploitation of local media sources, publications targeted toward both of the stakeholder groups, dissemination through national contact points and existing networks, and a comprehensive e-dissemination strategy campaign.

2. Acronym: METANTIOX

Complet Title: Bioactivity Study of Functional Foods in reversibility of X Syndrome

Period: 3 years (started in 2005)

Project Coordinator: University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Timisoara, Associat Professor Simona Dragan, M.D., PhD
Scientific Director for HNF: Professor Gabriela Radulian, M.D., PhD, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Carol Davila" Bucharest

Short description: It is well known that one of the risk factor for obesity, hipecolesterolemia and impaired glucose tolerance is life style. The reseach hypotesis is that X syndrome could be reversibil using the functional foods enriched with natural antioxidants.

Standardization of some functional foods (mixture of natural antioxidants)
Creation of a prevention portal for X Syndrome.
The evaluation of X Syndrome reversibility after nutritional intervention.

3. Acronym: GENOB

Complet title: The eficiency of intensive nutritional, pharmacologic and life style intervention management: scietific corelations

Period: 3 years (started in 2006)

Project Coordinator: National Institute of Diabetes "Prof. Dr. N.C. Paulescu", Professor Dan Mircea Cheta, M.D., PhD,
Scientific Director for HNF: Professor Gabriela Radulian, M.D., PhD, UMF "Carol Davila" Bucharest

Short description: In this project we will evaluate the eficiency of intensive nutritional, pharmacologic and life style intervention. We will corelate the genetic, clinical, psicho-, and comportamental data.

4. Acronym: ADENODIAG

Complet title: Optimization of the precocious diagnosis of prostate adenocarcinoma at patients with metabolic syndrome by correlating the genetic factors, anatomic-pathological and biochemical

Period: 3 years (October 2007 - September 2010)

Coordinator: Emergency Military Hospital "Carol Davila" Bucharest, Associate Professor Dan Mischianu, M.D., PhD
Scientific Director for HNF: Professor Gabriela Radulian, M.D., PhD, UMF "Carol Davila" Bucharest

Short description:

Prostate adenocarcinoma (ADKP) represents the first neoplasm disease regarding its incidence in urology. ADKP is the second death cause linked to cancer, after pulmonary cancer at men. Measuring the prostate specific antigen level (PSA) revolutioned the diagnosis of ADKP, disease that can be controlled for a long time if it is discovered in the first stages.
As a result of the fact that a considerable number of man with a low PSA level (defined as PSA < 4 ng/mg) have prostate cancer, in the last years, the researches about the factors that can influence PSA levels have extended. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is estimated at 30% in Europe and 40% of the adult population over 50 years, in USA. The obesity situated in the center of the definition of the metabolic syndrome is associated with some types of cancer, including Brest cancer and colon cancer, but the connection between obesity and prostate cancer is less clear; while some studies showed the fact that the increase of the body mass index has been associated with the increase of the prostate cancer risk, other studies did not establish a connection between the two.
In this project we try to optimize: the precocious diagnosis of prostate cancer using the prostate specific antigen (PSA), the free PSA, density, velocity and doubling the PSA, trans-rectum ultrasound, rectum touch and prostate echo-guided biopsy puncture to the patients with metabolic syndrome; -the correlation between the genetic profile of the prostate cells through micro array technique (the study of the expression of 280 genes) and the prognostication of the monitored patients �evaluating a relation between the components of the metabolic syndrome (obesity, lipid profile, HTA, diabetes) and PSA, respectively prostate adenocarcinoma; - the transfer of the results of this research in the interest of prostate cancer therapy, focusing the efforts toward the patient, having as a target the precocious diagnosis, discovery in the first stages and the adequate therapy. The arguments of the interdisciplinary research team coordinated by the personnel of the Urology Clinic of the Central Military Emergency Hospital to propose this project are:
1. The extended experience in the field of prostate cancer, pathology with a high addressability in our field;
2. Presence of the partners: The PhD Theodor Burghele Clinical Urology Hospital and the N. Paulescu Institute for Diabetes, Nutrition and Metabolic diseases, with extended experience in the fundamental research and in the applied clinical research.
3. Genetic Lab SRL Company, partner with a solid knowledge in molecular biology, co-opted in numerous clinical studies and national and international research projects.
4. Experience of the Foundation for a Healthy Nourishment/Food partner (HNF) actively implicated in developing research projects and also with a vast media activity.
5. Affiliation in the working team of some young PhD doctors with experience in research, urology, metabolic diseases, internal medicine.
The obesity is associated with a low level of testosterone and the PSA production is under androgenic control, which might suggest that obesity can be associated with a low level of PSA; many studies showed that obesity is associated with an increased prostate volume; so this combination: low PSA level, high prostate level, determines a low detection of prostate cancer. Obesity is associated also with other hormonic dysfunctions (increase in the estrogen level, insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 � IFG-1) which might be implicated in the increase of the prostate volume. On the other hand, diabetic men have a low level of testosterone and insulin-like growth factor-1 � IFG-1 as compared to the non-diabetics. The recent epidemiological studies suggest that diabetic men have a lower prostate cancer risk than the non-diabetic men. An analysis of 14 studies published before 2003 showed slow but significant decrease of the prostate cancer among the diabetic men.

5. Acronym: DIADIPOHEP

Title: Adipocitokynes, link between virus C hepatitis and type 2 diabetes mellitus

Period: 3 years (Octomber 2007 - September 2010)

Coordinator: National Institute of Diabetes "Prof. Dr. N.C. Paulescu", Professor Gabriela Radulian, M.D, PhD
Scietific Director for HNF: Professor Dan Mircea Cheta, UMF "Carol Davila" Bucharest, Romania

Short description: Virus C hepatitis (HVC) presently affects more than 170 million of people from all over the world. The prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM), especially of DM type 2, is growing and it is estimated that there are 195 million of persons with diabetes, and previsions for 2025 estimate almost 330 million. A link between the two conditions was first described by Allison si colab. in 1994 (but patients enrolled in the study had hepatic chirossis). Presently, this link is sustained by numerous clinical and epidemiological studies and represents an important public health problem. The pathogenesis of DM that appears during HVC is still controversial; between the mechanisms suggested we can enumerate insulin-resistance and hyperinsulinemia; insulin deficiency or decreased insulin secretion; hepatitis steatosis; inflammation and proinflammatory cytokines; direct infection of the pancreas by HCV; autoimmune beta-cell damage; iron overload a.o. During this research we intend to finalize the following objectives:

Optimization of research methods
Study of the relationship between adipocytokines, insulinresistance, hepatic steatosis and type 2 diabetes mellitus in patients with HVC
Following of reversibility of insulinresistance and hepatic steatosis using nutrition intervention
Analysis and capitalization of the results

Clinical study will take place in 3 medical institutions in Bucharest and will include patients with virus C hepatitis, type 2 diabetes mellitus, virus C hepatitis and type 2 diabetes mellitus, nonalcoholic steatoheatitis, and a group of healthy subjects. Patients will be evaluated using clinic parameters, biochemical parameters, ultrasound and electric bioimpedance parameters at baseline, 6 and 12 months. All patients will receive nutrition counseling, monthly, in order to change their unhealthy lifestyle. Research collective implicated in the study consists of 4 institutions with over 30 specialists with experience in nutrition and metabolic diseases, gastroenterology, basic research: biochemistry, morphology and morphopathology, and also, media. Considering these facts, we appreciate that this project is situated in the research direction 4. Health, thematic priority 4.1.6. concerning "implementation of new prevention and intervention methods , at national level, included in European space".

B. EDUCATION/INFORMATION FOR POPULATION:

1. "6 Km daily"

Period: 01 January 2007 - 15 November 2007

Project Manager: Professor Dan Mircea Cheta,M.D.,PhD UMF "Carol Davila" Bucharest

Short description: HNF and Profesional Association of Journalists in the Medical Field initiated a campaign concerning the benefits of healthy lifestyle.

2. "Healthy lifestyle - the best choice "

Period: 01 July 2008 - present