Assessment of Chemical Composition of Spirulina Platensis and its Effect on Fasting Blood Glucose and Lipid Profile in Diabetic Rats

Abstract

Background & Objective(s): Spirulina platensis is an incredibly powerful source of proteins, fibers and antioxidants. The aim of the study was to assess the nutritional value of Spirulina platensis cultivated in Egypt and study its effect on fasting blood glucose and lipid profile in diabetic rats. Methods: A total of one kilogram of Spirulina platensis was used in the study. The nutritional value of Spirulina platensis was characterized by measuring its proximate, vitamins, amino acids, minerals and antioxidants contents. We extended our analysis to study its effect on fasting blood glucose (FBG), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), serum triglycerides (TG), and total cholesterol (TC) parameters in sixty male albino rats grouped as 10 control rats and 50 diabetic rats in five groups. The latter comprised 10 diabetic control rats and 40 test rats that were orally administered 10, 20, 30 mg/kg body weight Spirulina platensis and 300 mg/kg of the anti-diabetic medication Metformin respectively for four weeks. Results: Spirulina platensis contained high amount of high quality protein, as eight essential amino acids were present (56.79%). It was also a rich source of Ca, phenolic compounds and flavonoids (363.7, 997 and 711 mg/100g respectively). Spirulina significantly managed body weight of diabetic rats and reduced blood glucose level in treated groups compared to diabetic control by 67.8% and 68.3% in rats treated by 10 and 30 mg/kg body weight Spirulina respectively. Rats administered 30 mg/kg body weight Spirulina achieved decreased TG, TC, and LDL-C levels to reach 101.9, 75.43, and 6.2 mg/dl respectively, with improvement in HDL-C level by 58.7% compared to diabetic control rats. Conclusion: Chemical analysis of Spirulina platensis produced in Egypt showed high nutritional value with high concentration of several functional ingredients. In addition, its effect on the measured FBG, LDL-C, HDL-C, TG, and TC parameters in experimental rats was dose dependent.

Phytochemical and Biological Evaluation of a Newly Designed Nutraceutical Self-Nanoemulsifying Self-Nanosuspension for Protection and Treatment of Cisplatin Induced Testicular Toxicity in Male Rats

“…It was reported that 175 μg/100 g of vitamin B 12 and 9.86 mg/100 g of vitamin E were detected in SP [ 19 ]. Other studies reported 162 μg/100 g of vitamin B 12 [ 23 ] and 60 mg/100 g vitamin E in SP [ 18 ] However, these results were inconsistent with the results of this study as the content of vitamin B12 was higher than reported in the previous studies and vitamin E was undetectable as shown in Supplementary Table S3 .…”

“…Glutamic acid is the main non-essential amino acid (14.1%) followed by aspartic acid (8.52%) while leucine is the main essential amino acid represent (6.4%) followed by valine (5.3%) as presented in Figure 2 . Previously, the total protein content was reported to be 56.79% [ 18 ] and other studies reported it to be 62.84% [ 19 ], which was slightly below the results of this study. Other studies reported leucine as the main essential amino acid with a percentage of 5.5% and glutamic acid as the main non-essential amino acid with a percentage of 9.2% [ 17 ], which was in accordance with the results of this study.…”

“…While, the TFC content was (0.864 mg rutin equivalent (RE)/g dry SP). It was reported that SP contains total flavonoids (0.166 mg quercetin equivalent (QE)/g dry extract (DE) [ 22 ] and (7.11 mg QE/g DW) [ 18 ]. For the first time, TFC was estimated in commercial SP in Egypt using rutin as a reference standard.…”

Chemical and Technological Studies on Micro Algae Extracts and Its Utilization in Some Food Products. 1-Chemical, Biochemical Characteristics and Nutritional Value of Spirulina Algae.

“…The filtrates were evaporated under nitrogen and the residues were re-dissolved in 1ml water for water soluble vitamins and in1 ml butanol for fat soluble vitamins that were quantified by HPLC. (Manz and Vuilleumier, 1988)and El-Moataaz et al (2019) analysis was carried out using an Agilent 1260 series. Phenolic compound determined with HPLC according to by (Abd El-Baky et al, (2009) analysis was carried out using an Agilent 1260 series.…”

Effects of Mesobiliverdin IXα-Enriched Microalgae Feed on Gut Health and Microbiota of Broilers

“…Spirulina not only has potential as a sustainable biofuel, but also as an animal feed ( 10 ). Nutrients of spirulina enrichening with protein, carbohydrates, balanced amino acids, carotenoids, fatty acids including γ-linolenic acid, vitamins, and minerals ( 11 , 12 ). Approximately half of the total spirulina production is currently used for livestock and fish feed.…”