Comparative Study of the Antioxidant Activity of the Plasma of Healthy Subjects and those with Uterine Myomas by Scavenging the ABTS Radical+

Introduction: The oxidative stress and the deterioration of the antioxidant system demonstrated by the dosage of antioxidant enzymes and the by-products of lipid peroxidation are involved in the occurrence of uterine myomas. Objectives: To measure the antioxidant activity of the plasma of patients with uterine myoma and that of the plasma of their age-matched controls by trapping the free radical ABTS+. The study aims to confirm by another assessment technique. Results: The anti-free radical activities of the plasmas of patients with myomas and those of their respective controls vary from 1.3 to 6%. In addition, two cases were observed: either the anti-radical activity of the control subjects turned out to be slightly higher than that of the patients; or the anti-free radical activity of patients with uterine myomas was slightly stronger than those of their controls. In addition, our results showed that the anti-free radical activity of patients aged over 40 years is slightly higher than that of patients aged less than or equal to 40 years. Finally, the anti-free radical activity decreases with an increase in BMI and increases with the number of gestities and parity. Conclusion: Assessment of the total antioxidant capacity of blood by trapping the ABTS+ radical can be used to assess, at a certain threshold, the oxidative stress involved in the development of uterine myoma. This method can also be used to assess the effect of age, BMI, pregnancy and parity on the occurrence of myomas.

UCHL1 and Proteasome in Blood Serum in Relation to Dietary Habits, Concentration of Selected Antioxidant Minerals and Total Antioxidant Status among Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an incurable neurodegenerative disease. It is the most common form of dementia among the elderly population. So far, no effective methods of its treatment have been found. Research to better understand the mechanism of pathology may provide new methods for early diagnosis. This, in turn, could enable early intervention that could slow or halt disease progression and improve patients’ quality of life. Therefore, minimally invasive markers, including serum-based markers, are being sought to improve the diagnosis of AD. One of the important markers may be the concentration of UCHL1 and the proteasome in the blood serum. Their concentration can be affected by many factors, including eating habits. This study was conducted in 110 patients with early or moderate AD, with a mean age of 78.0 ± 8.1 years. The patients were under the care of the Podlasie Center of Psychogeriatrics and the Department of Neurology (Medical University of Białystok, Poland). The control group consisted of 60 healthy volunteers, matched for gender and age. The concentration of UCHL1 and the 20S proteasome subunit were measured by surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRI). In addition, a nutritional interview was conducted with patients with AD, which assessed the frequency of consumption of 36 groups of products. In the group of patients with AD, compared to the control group, we showed a significantly higher concentration of UCHL1 (56.05 vs. 7.98 ng/mL) and the proteasome (13.02 vs. 5.72 µg/mL). Moreover, we found a low negative correlation between UCHL1 and the proteasome in the control group, and positive in the AD group. The analysis of eating habits showed that the consumption of selected groups of products may affect the concentration of the tested components, and therefore may have a protective effect on AD.

Effects of thermal treatment on the characteristics quality of some Ghanaian vegetable oils (palm, coconut and groundnut)

Introduction: Vegetable oils contain natural antioxidants and other properties reported to impart anti-diabetic properties when consumed, in animal study. In humans however, these oils are subjected to high temperatures during cooking before consumption. High temperature tends to affect the characteristic quality and potential to impart on health benefits such as antidiabetic properties. The objective of this work was to determine the characteristics quality of vegetable oils after thermal treatment that equates to temperatures oils are subjected to during food processing/cooking.Methodology: Three portions of 200g of each fresh unrefined red palm oil, coconut oil and groundnut oils in three conical flasks T1, T2 and T3 were heated to room temperature 28oC (T1) to 100o C in boiling water (T2) and to 200o C in electric cooker oven (T3) for 10 minutes. Acid, iodine, peroxide, saponification, unsaponification values of the oils, Phytoconstituents (Flavanoids, polyphenols saponins etc) and antioxidant (Vitamin A&C) and DPPH (1,1-Diphenyl-2-Picrylhydrazyl) Radical Scavenging Activity were then determined after cooling to room temperature. Results: Coconut oil heated to 200˚C had the least Acid value of 2.89±0.135 whiles Palm oil heated to 100 ˚C had the highest value of 19.57±0.165. There were no peroxides formed in Coconut and Palm oils at 28 ˚C as well as Palm oil at 100 ˚C. However, peroxides were highest in Coconut oil at 200˚C with value of 15.28±2.315. Saponification value of groundnut oil at 28 ˚C was the least at 89.52 ± 2.18 and 296.57±1.045 the highest in coconut oil at 200 ˚C. Heating however increased the unsaponifiable matter in all the vegetable oils used. Total antioxidant capacity was not significantly changed across the temperature treatment. Total phenolic content was not significantly changed for palm oil but was significantly increased at 100C for coconut and groundnut oilsConclusion: The quality of the oils in terms of acid value, iodine vale, peroxide value and saponification value, total antioxidant and phenolic content were retained after one heat treatment. This implies the quality of the oils are maintained after a single heating. The oils may still retain antidiabetic property when consumed after processing.

The Effects of a Gum Arabic-Based Edible Coating on Guava Fruit Characteristics during Storage

Guava is a nutritious fruit that has perishable behavior during storage. We aimed to determine the influences of some edible coatings (namely, cactus pear stem (10%), moringa (10%), and henna leaf (3%) extracts incorporated with gum Arabic (10%)), on the guava fruits’ properties when stored under ambient and refrigeration temperatures for 7, 14, and 21 days. The results revealed that the coating with gum Arabic (10%) only, or combined with the natural plant extracts, exhibited a significant reduction in weight loss, decay, and rot ratio. Meanwhile, there were notable increases in marketability. Moreover, among all tested treatments, the application of gum Arabic (10%) + moringa extract (10%) was the superior treatment for most studied parameters, and exhibited for the highest values for maintaining firmness, total soluble solids, total sugars, and total antioxidant activity. Overall, it was suggested that coating guava with 10% gum Arabic combined with other plant extracts could maintain the postharvest storage quality of the cold-storage guava.

Different values obtained by the FRAP method for the determination of slowly and rapidly reacting phenols

A number of methods have been applied to measure total antioxidant capacity (TAC), including FRAP, which is based on reducing the amount of iron ions in a complex compound. Researchers often use measurement of absorbance 10 min after mixing a sample with the FRAP reaction solution to calculate TAC. The FRAP solution has been shown to alter absorbance over time by ca 0.0010–0.0020 per hour, under storage conditions. This article intends to show that some substances do not fully or sufficiently react within the common analysis period. It is evident from the results that some substances react more quickly and others very slowly. Absorbance in relation to various phenols was measured. Compared to the levels of absorbance at 10 min, mean absorbance at 48 h was higher by 5,395% for vanillin, 426% for caffeic acid, 170% for sinapinic acid, 67% for gallic acid, 19% for syringic acid, and only by 4% for Trolox. Results for vanillin and caffeic acid indicate potential auto-catalysis.

Comparison of Three Different Cord Clamping Techniques Regarding Oxidative-antioxidative Capacity in Term Newborns

Objective As newborns are exposed to oxidative stress during delivery, cord clamping techniques play significant role on antioxidant status. In this study, we aimed to show the relationship between early cord clamping (ECC), delayed cord clamping (DCC) and cut umblical cord milking (C-UCM) techniques with total oxidant capacity (TOC), total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and peroxynitrite levels. Study Design Sixty-nine term infants were selected with APGAR score of 7 and above in the first and fifth minutes. The mothers of all infants had uncomplicated pregnancy, had no congenital anomaly, and delivered by cesarean section. Newborns were randomised to one of three groups: ECC (n: 23), DCC (n: 23) or C-UCM (n: 23). After all newborn babies were taken under radiant heater, blood samples were collected from the umbilical cord. The plasma samples were then frozen and stored at -80 °C until analysis and TOC, TAC and peroxynitrite levels were studied. Results The ages of the mothers participating in the study were between 17 and 42, with an average of 29.14 ± 6.28. 30 (43.5%) of the babies were girls and 39 (56.5%) were boys. The 5th minute APGAR score of the babies in early cord clamping group was significantly lower than the babies in delayed cord clamping and cut cord milking group (p = 0.034; p = 0.034; p <0.05). The TOC, OSI and Peroxynitrite measurements of three groups did not differ statistically. The TAC value of the C-UCM group was significantly higher than the patients with the ECC and DCC group (p = 0.002; p = 0.019; p <0.05). Conclusion C-UCM and DCC would be feasible methods by increasing antioxidant status and providing protective effect on the future health of the term newborns,

Combined Analysis of Gut Microbiota and Plasma Metabolites Reveals the Effect of Red-Fleshed Apple Anthocyanin Extract on Dysfunction of Mice Reproductive System Induced by Busulfan

Busulfan is currently an indispensable anti-cancer drug, but the side effects on male reproductive system are so serious. Meanwhile, red-fleshed apples are natural products with high anthocyanin content. In this research, we analyzed the effect of red-fleshed apple anthocyanin extract (RAAE) on busulfan-treated mice. Compared with the busulfan group, main plasma biochemical indicators were significantly improved after RAAE treatment. Compared with BA0 (busulfan without RAAE) group, total antioxidant capacity(T-AOC) and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione catalase (GSH-Px) in RAAE treatment groups were obviously increased, while the activity of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were significantly decreased. Malondialdehyde (MDA) was significantly decreased in the RAAE groups. In addition, we found RAAE alleviated busulfan-disrupted spermatogenesis through improving genes expression which are important for spermatogenesis, such as DDX4, PGK2, and TP1. Furthermore, we found that RAAE increased beneficial bacteria Akkermansia and Lactobacillaceae, and significantly depleted harmful bacteria Erysipelotrichia. The correlation studies indicated that RAAE ameliorated busulfan-induced rise in LysoPC levels through regulating gut microbial community and their associated metabolites. In conclusion, this study extends our understanding of the alleviated effect of RAAE on busulfan-induced male reproductive dysfunction through regulating the relationships between gut microbiota and metabolites.

Polarity Directed Appraisal of Pharmacological Potential and HPLC-DAD Based Phytochemical Profiling of Polygonum glabrum Willd

The present study was designed to evaluate polarity-dependent extraction efficiency and pharmacological profiling of Polygonum glabrum Willd. Crude extracts of leaves, roots, stems, and seeds, prepared from solvents of varying polarities, were subjected to phytochemical, antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal, antidiabetic, and cytotoxicity assays. Maximum extraction yield (20.0% w/w) was observed in the case of an acetone:methanol (AC:M) root extract. Distilled water:methanol (W:M) leaves extract showed maximum phenolic contents. Maximum flavonoid content and free radical scavenging potential were found in methanolic (M) seed extract. HPLC-DAD quantification displayed the manifestation of substantial quantities of quercetin, rutin, gallic acid, quercetin, catechin, and kaempferol in various extracts. The highest ascorbic acid equivalent total antioxidant capacity and reducing power potential was found in distilled water roots and W:M leaf extracts, respectively. Chloroform (C) seeds extract produced a maximum zone of inhibition against Salmonella typhimurium. Promising protein kinase inhibition and antifungal activity against Mucor sp. were demonstrated by C leaf extract. AC:M leaves extract exhibited significant cytotoxic capability against brine shrimp larvae and α-amylase inhibition. Present results suggest that the nature of pharmacological responses depends upon the polarity of extraction solvents and parts of the plant used. P. glabrum can be considered as a potential candidate for the isolation of bioactive compounds with profound therapeutic importance.