Ferulic acid is the most abundant phenolic compound found in vegetables and cereal grains. In vitro and animal studies have shown ferulic acid has anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-oxidative, and anti-inflammatory effects. The objective of this study is to investigate the effects of ferulic acid supplementation on lipid profiles, oxidative stress, and inflammatory status in hyperlipidemia. The study design is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Subjects with hyperlipidemia were randomly divided into two groups. The treatment group (n = 24) was given ferulic acid (1000 mg daily) and the control group (n = 24) was provided with a placebo for six weeks. Lipid profiles, biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation were assessed before and after the intervention. Ferulic acid supplementation demonstrated a statistically significant decrease in total cholesterol (8.1%; p = 0.001), LDL-C (9.3%; p < 0.001), triglyceride (12.1%; p = 0.049), and increased HDL-C (4.3%; p = 0.045) compared with the placebo. Ferulic acid also significantly decreased the oxidative stress biomarker, MDA (24.5%; p < 0.001). Moreover, oxidized LDL-C was significantly decreased in the ferulic acid group (7.1%; p = 0.002) compared with the placebo group. In addition, ferulic acid supplementation demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in the inflammatory markers hs-CRP (32.66%; p < 0.001) and TNF-α (13.06%; p < 0.001). These data indicate ferulic acid supplementation can improve lipid profiles and oxidative stress, oxidized LDL-C, and inflammation in hyperlipidemic subjects. Therefore, ferulic acid has the potential to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Density of biodiesel is an important physical property of liquid fuel and biodiesel. A slight change in density can affect engine output power. In this work, density of a saturated, unsaturated fatty acid methyl ester or a biodiesel can be estimated from either (1) its number of carbon atoms (of fatty acid, z) and number of double bonds (n d ): ln ρ = −0.435 − 0.0025z + 85.98/T + 0.792z/T + 4.0 n d /T or (2) its saponification number (SN) and iodine value (IV): ln ρ = −0.427 − 10/SN + 83.38/T + 3168.95/(T × SN) + 11 IV/(T × SN), where T is absolute temperature. The predicted densities at different temperatures from both equations agree well with the reported literature values.
The effects of minor components in crude rice bran oil (RBO) including free fatty acids (FFA), rice bran wax (RBW), c-oryzanol, and long-chain fatty alcohols (LCFA), on alkali refining losses were determined. Refined palm oil (PO), soybean oil (SBO) and sunflower oil (SFO) were used as oil models to which minor component present in RBO were added. Refining losses of all model oils were linearly related to the amount of FFA incorporated. At 6.8% FFA, the refining losses of all the model oils were between 13.16 and 13.42%. When \1.0% of LCFA, RBW and c-oryzanol were added to the model oils (with 6.8% FFA), the refining losses were approximately the same, however, with higher amounts of LCFA greatly increased refining losses. At 3% LCFA, the refining losses of all the model oils were as high as 69.43-78.75%, whereas the losses of oils containing 3% RBW and c-oryzanol were 33.46-45.01% and 17.82-20.45%, respectively.
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