The Osmanthus fragrans flower, a popular herb in Eastern countries, contains several antioxidant compounds. Ben Cao Gang Mu, traditional Chinese medical literature, describes the usefulness of these flowers for phlegm and stasis reduction, arrest of dysentery with blood in the bowel, and stomachache and diarrhea treatment. However, modern evidence regarding the therapeutic efficacy of these flowers is limited. This study was aimed at assessing the antioxidative effects of the ethanol extract of O. fragrans flowers (OFE) in vivo and evaluating its antioxidant maintenance and therapeutic effect on an allergic airway inflammation in mice. After OFE's oral administration to mice, the values obtained in the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay as well as the glutathione concentration in the lungs and spleens of mice increased while thiobarbituric acid reactive substances decreased significantly, indicating OFE's significant in vivo antioxidant activity. OFE was also therapeutically efficacious in a mouse model of ovalbumin-induced allergic airway inflammation. Orally administered OFE suppressed ovalbumin-specific IgE production and inflammatory cell infiltration in the lung. Moreover, the antioxidative state of the mice improved. Thus, our findings confirm the ability of the O. fragrans flowers to reduce phlegm and suggest that OFE may be useful as an antiallergic agent.
Flesh of Basella alba L. mature fruits bearing deep-violet juice provides a novel and potential source of natural colorant. To minimize the pigment purification process and warrant safety acceptability, B. alba colorant powder (BACP) was prepared using mature fruits through a practical batch preparation and subjected to fundamental pigment characterization, food safety assessment and bio-function evaluation. Yield of the dehydrated B. alba colorant powder (BACP) was 37 g/kg fresh fruits. Reconstituted aqueous solution of the BACP exhibited an identical visible spectrum (400-700 nm) as that of fresh juice. Color of the solution (absorbance at 540 nm) was stable in a broad pH ranged from 3 to 8 and enhanced by co-presence of calcium and magnesium ions, while was rapidly bleached by ferrous and ferric ions. For in vivo food safety evaluation, ICR mice were daily gavage administered with BACP up to 1000 mg/kg body weight for 28 days. Organ weight determination, serum biochemical analysis and histopathological examination of hearts, livers, lungs and kidneys revealed no obvious health hazard. In vitro anti-inflammatory activity of BACP was characterized in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages. BACP exerted potent anti-inflammatory activity by down-regulation of inflammatory mediators including nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-12 and the blockage of IκB kinase (IKK)/IκB/nuclear factor-κ B (NFκB) activation cascade. These results supported that BACP may serve as a beneficial alternative of natural food colorant.
Background: Osmanthus fragrans flower, recently certificated as a new natural antioxidant, has been used in various foods. We performed an acute and subacute toxicological test for evaluating the safety and toxicity of 75 % ethanol extraction of Osmanthus fragrans (OFEE). Method: In the acute toxicity study, a single dose of 5 g/kg and 10 g/kg of the extract was administered orally to six mice. General behaviour, mortality and toxic symptoms were determined daily for 14 days. For the subacute toxicity, two groups of 12 mice received 0.9% normal saline (control) and 1 g/kg of the extract daily for 28 consecutive days by oral gavage. The animals were observed daily for abnormal clinical signs and death. Body weight, haematological and biochemical parameters of blood as well as kidney, liver, lung and spleen tissues histology were evaluated. Results: The total phenolic contents in OFEE were 371.71 ± 12.35 mg GAE/g extracts and total flavonoid contents were 47.23 ± 5.36 mg QE/g extract. OFEE did not cause any mortality or morbidity. Maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was 10 g/kg body weight in our BALB/c mice, which can be regarded as virtually non-toxic. Administration of OFEE at dose 1 g/kg/day for 28-day did not cause changed in hematological, biochemical assay, and histopathological conditions change, suggesting a no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOVEL) of 1 g/kg/day. Conclusion: We found no evidence of adverse effects in our laboratory test and pathological studies. 75 % ethanol extraction may safely be used in the research of Osmanthus fragrans in animal and probably human studies.
Extent of protein glycation, in particular serum albumins, glyco-conjugates formed between functional proteins and the advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) has been regarded as an in vivo potential marker related to metabolic syndrome and subsequent chronic diseases. In this study, bovine serum albumin (BSA) has been subjected to an in vitro glycation with fructose at 50°C for 24 h and SDS-PAGE analyzed. An original 50 KDa peptide was disappearing with time along with appearance of the normally detected 97 KDa glycated peptide. When bands of 50 KDa and 97 KDa were subjected to proteomic LC/ MS/MS analysis and MASCOT search with BSA gi|1351907 (NCBInr Database), the coverage ratios are 42% and 49%, respectively. The segment of ECCDKPLLEK [aa 300-309 sharing common segment of KPLLEK with that in human serum albumin (HSA)] was only detected in the 50 KDa peptide. In further search by manual queries addressed on m/z values of the AGEs-precursor conjugates addressed on specified segments, K548 was of particular detected being active to form various AGEs-precursor conjugates. The adjacent 11 aa-segment of aa 545-555 (QIKKQTALVEL) is identical to that of HSA and deserves to use as a target to develop a measure in monitoring human blood glycation. Thus, segments of KPLLEK (aa 304-309) and QIKKQTALVEL (aa 545-555 containing K548 are of potency to use as a glycation-sensitive marker for development of rapid clinic assessment in surveillance of human health.
Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe.) starch is a waste product generated during the extraction of bioactive compounds from ginger. This study aimed to treat ginger starch with different freeze–thaw cycles and explore the effect on the functional components, physicochemical properties, and structural properties of ginger starch. The results of the study showed that as the number of freeze–thaw cycles increased, the content of resistant starch, amylose, total starch, and recrystallization in ginger starch increased significantly (p < 0.05). Freeze-dried ginger starch exhibited a C-type crystal structure in the X-ray diffraction pattern. The Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy results also showed that the value of A1047/1022 increased, indicating that the freeze–thaw cycle would increase the degree of starch recrystallization. In terms of physical and chemical properties, compared with gelatinized starch, freeze–thawed starch had low swelling power, high solubility, low peak viscosity and breakdown, indicating higher thermal stability. In conclusion, freeze–thaw treatment can promote the formation of resistant starch from ginger starch and reduce starch hydrolysis, reflecting the potential of low–GI foods. We hope that ginger starch can be used as a raw material for new applications in functional foods.
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