Current Issue : October - December Volume : 2019 Issue Number : 4 Articles : 5 Articles
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is an inherited retinal dystrophy characterized by progressive\ndegeneration of the visual cells and abnormalities in retinal pigment epithelium, the\nvision is lost slowly, and the final outcome is total blindness. RP primarily affects rods,\nbut cones can also be affected as a secondary effect. Photoreceptor cell death is\nusually triggered by apoptosis, however the molecular mechanisms linking the rod\ndegeneration to the secondary cone death are poorly understood. Possible causes of\nthe secondary cone death are oxidative stress and/ or the release of toxic factors from\ndying rods. The aim of this study is to analyze the effect of nutraceutical molecules\nwith antioxidant properties, on the progression of the disease in an established animal\nmodel of RP, and rd10 mice. We show that chronic treatment per os with a flavanone\n(naringenin) or a flavonol (quercetin) present in citrus fruits, grapes and apples, preserves\nretinal morphology, and ameliorates functionality. These actions are associated with\na significant reduction of stress-oxidative markers, such as the detoxifying enzymes\nSod1 and Sod2. In addition, naringenin and quercetin treatment reduces the levels of\nacrolein staining associated with a reduction of ROS in the cellular environment. The\nstudy demonstrates the beneficial effects of naringenin and quercetin, two molecules\nthat possess antioxidant properties, limiting neurodegeneration, and thus preventing\ncone damage....
Momordica charantia, commonly called bitter melon, is a plant belonging to\nCucurbitaceae family known for centuries for its pharmacological activities, and\nnutritional properties. Due to the presence of many bioactive compounds, some of\nwhich possess potent biological actions, this plant is used in folk medicine all over the\nworld for the treatment of different pathologies, mainly diabetes, but also cancer, and\nother inflammation-associated diseases. It is widely demonstrated that M. charantia\nextracts contribute in lowering glycaemia in patients affected by type 2 diabetes.\nHowever, the majority of existing studies on M. charantia bioactive compounds were\nperformed only on cell lines and in animal models. Therefore, because the real impact\nof bitter melon on human health has not been thoroughly demonstrated, systematic\nclinical studies are needed to establish its efficacy and safety in patients. Besides, both\nin vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that bitter melon may also elicit toxic\nor adverse effects under different conditions. The aim of this review is to provide an\noverview of anti-inflammatory and anti-neoplastic properties of bitter melon, discussing\nits pharmacological activity as well as the potential adverse effects. Even if a lot of\nliterature is available about bitter melon as antidiabetic drug, few papers discuss the\nanti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties of this plant....
Selenium is an essential trace element which is incorporated in the form of a rare amino acid,\nthe selenocysteine, into an important group of proteins, the selenoproteins. Among the twenty-five\nselenoprotein genes identified to date, several have important cellular functions in antioxidant defense,\ncell signaling and redox homeostasis. Many selenoproteins are regulated by the availability of selenium\nwhich mostly occurs in the form of water-soluble molecules, either organic (selenomethionine,\nselenocysteine, and selenoproteins) or inorganic (selenate or selenite). Recently, a mixture of\nselenitriglycerides, obtained by the reaction of selenite with sunflower oil at high temperature,\nreferred to as Selol, was proposed as a novel non-toxic, highly bioavailable and active antioxidant and\nantineoplastic agent. Free selenite is not present in the final product since the two phases (water soluble\nand oil) are separated and the residual water-soluble selenite discarded. Here we compare the\nassimilation of selenium as Selol, selenite and selenate by various cancerous (LNCaP) or immortalized\n(HEK293 and PNT1A) cell lines. An approach combining analytical chemistry, molecular biology and\nbiochemistry demonstrated that selenium from Selol was efficiently incorporated in selenoproteins in\nhuman cell lines, and thus produced the first ever evidence of the bioavailability of selenium from\nselenized lipids....
Probiotics, included in functional foods, nutritional supplements, or nutraceuticals, exhibit\ndifferent beneficial effects on gut function. They are extensively used to improve the digestive\nprocesses as well as reduce the symptoms and progression of different diseases. Probiotics have\nshown to improve dysbiosis and modulate the immune response of the host by interacting with\ndifferent cell types. Probiotics and the host can interact in a direct way, but it is becoming apparent\nthat communication occurs also through extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from probiotics. EVs are\nkey for bacteriaâ??bacteria and bacteria-host interactions, since they carry a wide variety of components\nthat can modulate different signaling pathways, including those involved in the immune response.\nInterestingly, EVs are recently starting to be considered as an alternative to probiotics in those cases\nfor which the use of live bacteria could be dangerous, such as immunocompromised individuals or\nsituations where the intestinal barrier is impaired. EVs can spread through the mucus layer and\ninteract with the host, avoiding the risk of sepsis. This review summarizes the existing knowledge\nabout EVs from different probiotic strains, their properties, and their potential use for the prevention\nor treatment of different gastrointestinal diseases....
Potato protein is recognized as one of the most valuable non animal proteins due to the\nhigh content of essential amino acids. So far, it has not been used in human nutrition on a large\nscale due to technological limitations regarding its acquisition. In this study, the protein fraction\nof potato juice was concentrated with the use of membrane separation. The obtained potato juice\nprotein concentrate (PJPC) was characterized in terms of nutritional value and biological activity, and\nthe amino acid composition, mineral content, and antioxidant properties were determined. Moreover,\nin vitro cytotoxic activity against cancer cells of the gastrointestinal tract was investigated. The results\nof the present study indicate that PJPC is an excellent source of lysine and threonine, while leucine is\nits limiting amino acid, with an amino acid score (AAS) of 65%. Moreover, PJPC contains substantial\namounts of Fe, Mn, K, and Cu. As demonstrated experimentally, PJPC is also characterized by higher\nantioxidant potential than potato itself. Biological activity, however, is not limited to antioxidant\nactivity alone. Cytotoxicity studies using a gastric cancer cell line (Hs 746T), a colon cancer cell line\n(HT-29), and human colon normal cells (CCD 841 CoN) proved that PJPC is characterized by selective\nactivity against cancer cells. It can thus be concluded that the developed method of producing protein\nconcentrate from potato juice affords a product with moderate nutritional value and interesting\nbiological activity....
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