{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,12]],"date-time":"2025-10-12T00:51:53Z","timestamp":1760230313978,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":43,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"14","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,20]],"date-time":"2022-07-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1658275200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Ministero dell\u2019Istruzione, dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 e della Ricerca, Italy","award":["FFR-D15-162221"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FFR-D15-162221"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Micronutrients are required in many reactions involved in physical activity and exercise. Most physically active people do not meet the body\u2019s needs in terms of micronutrients through diet. The novelty of the present manuscript is the use of an innovative dietary approach to supply micronutrients to physically active people through biofortified food. Therefore, the key point of this study was to verify whether supplementation with biofortified vegetables\u2014and specifically molybdenum (Mo)-enriched lettuce\u2014in healthy volunteers affects essential regulators of body homeostasis and, specifically, hematological parameters, iron and lipid metabolism, and hepatic function. Twenty-four healthy volunteers were allocated in a double-blinded manner to either a control group that consumed lettuce, or the intervention group, which consumed Mo-enriched lettuce, for 12 days. Blood samples were collected at baseline (T0) and after 12 days (T1). We found that supplementation with Mo-enriched lettuce did not affect hematological parameters, liver function, or lipid metabolism, but significantly improved iron homeostasis by increasing non-binding hemoglobin iron by about 37% and transferrin saturation by about 42%, while proteins of iron metabolism (e.g., transferrin, ferritin, ceruloplasmin) were not affected. The serum molybdenum concentration increased by about 42%. In conclusion, this study shows that consumption of Mo-biofortified lettuce ameliorates iron homeostasis in healthy subjects, and suggests that it could be used as a new nutritional supplementation strategy to avoid iron deficiency in physically active people.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu14142971","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,21]],"date-time":"2022-07-21T03:34:40Z","timestamp":1658374480000},"page":"2971","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":11,"title":["A New Potential Dietary Approach to Supply Micronutrients to Physically Active People through Consumption of Biofortified Vegetables"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5160-5865","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sara","family":"Baldassano","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maria Rita","family":"Polizzi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8992-7045","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Leo","family":"Sabatino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali (SAAF), University of Palermo, Viale Delle Scienze, Ed. 5, 90128 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Rosalia","family":"Caldarella","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Laboratory Medicine, \u201cP. Giaccone\u201d University Hospital, 90128 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Andrea","family":"Macaluso","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Angelina","family":"Alongi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Gaetano Felice","family":"Caldara","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Vincenzo","family":"Ferrantelli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Sicily, Via Gino Marinuzzi 3, 90129 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6033-4745","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sonya","family":"Vasto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy"},{"name":"Euro-Mediterranean Institutes of Science and Technology (IEMEST), 90139 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,20]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"683","DOI":"10.1258\/0007142991902556","article-title":"Role of micronutrients in sport and physical activity","volume":"55","author":"Maughan","year":"1999","journal-title":"Br. 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