Effects of Branched-Chain Fatty Acids Derived from Yak Ghee on Lipid Metabolism and the Gut Microbiota in Normal-Fat Diet-Fed Mice.

Branched-chain fatty acids (BCFAs) are natural components with a variety of biological activities. However, the regulation of lipid metabolism by BCFAs is unknown. It was dedicated to examining the impacts of BCFAs inferred from yak ghee on the expression of qualities related to lipid metabolism, natural pathways, and intestinal microbiota in mice. The treatment group (purified BCFAs from yak ghee) exhibited a decrease in cholesterol levels; a decrease in HMGCR levels; downregulation of FADS1, FADS2, ACC-α, FAS, GAPT4, GPAM, ACSL1, THRSP, A-FABP, and PPARα gene expression; and upregulation of SCD1, ACSS1, FABP1, CPT1, and DGAT-1 gene expression. Gut microbiota 16S rDNA sequencing analysis showed that the treatment group improved the gut microbiota by increasing the relative abundances and increasing the short-chain fatty acid levels produced by the genera Akkermansia, Clostridium, Lachnospiraceae, Lactobacillus, Anaerotaenia, and Prevotella. After adding BCFAs to cultured breast cancer cells, pathways that were downregulated were found to be related to fatty acid degradation and fatty acid metabolism, while 20 other pathways were upregulated. Our results suggest that BCFAs reduce body fat in mice by modulating intestinal flora and lipid metabolism and modulating fatty acid metabolism in breast cancer cells.

Evaluating the in-vivo effects of olive oil, soya bean oil, and vitamins against oxidized ghee toxicity.

The aim of this study was to examine the protective role of various lipids (olive and soya oil) and vitamin (E and C) against the toxicity of thermally oxidized ghee in rabbits. Vanaspati ghee was thermally oxidized on a hot plate at 100°C for ten consecutive hours, and the oxidized ghee was stored in a refrigerator at -20°C until administration. Thirty male rabbits were purchased as experimental animals at a local market and were divided into ten corresponding groups of three based on their body weight. The blood samples of 5 ml were collected on day 0, 7, and 14 of the experiment for the analysis of hematological and biochemical serum parameters. We observed that oxidized ghee significantly elevated ALT level by affecting liver hepatocytes. Furthermore, vitamin E rapidly decreased the ALT levels compared to vitamin C and other oils. The oxidized ghee caused a significant increase in cholesterol compared to the other groups. Vitamin E and C showed the best antioxidant activity and decreased cholesterol levels to normal. Histopathological examinations of the normal rabbits' liver sections revealed no significant histological abnormality. The liver of the rabbits fed with oxidized ghee had an intact lobular architecture but the portal tracts showed inflammation and mild fibrosis, the bile ducts showed proliferation, and the hepatocytes showed feathery degeneration. In the liver sections from the groups fed with oxidized ghee and different doses of olive oil inflammation in portal tracts and large vacuoles in the hepatocytes were observed. The group fed with oxidized ghee and vitamin E had intact lobular architecture with no significant histological abnormality in portal tracts but fatty changes were present in the hepatocytes. These findings support the antioxidant activity of vitamins C and E as they reduced liver infection caused by oxidized ghee. It was concluded that oxidized ghee was highly toxic and not safe for consumption. The present study indicated that soya bean oil and vitamin E were more effective in protecting against the toxicity of thermally oxidized ghee than olive oil and vitamin C.

Histological and Microscopic Analysis of Fats in Heart, Liver Tissue, and Blood Parameters in Experimental Mice.

The intake of various types and amounts of dietary fats influences metabolic and cardiovascular health. Hence, this study evaluated the impact of routinely consumed Pakistani dietary fats on their cardiometabolic impact. For this, we made four groups of mice, each comprising 5 animals: (1) C-ND: Control mice on a normal diet, (2) HFD-DG: High-fat diet mice on a normal diet plus 10% (w/w) desi ghee, (3) HFD-O: Mice on normal diet plus 10% (w/w) plant oil (4) HFD-BG: Mice on normal diet plus 10% (w/w) banaspati ghee. Mice were fed for 16 weeks, and blood, liver, and heart samples were collected for biochemical, histological, and electron microscopic analysis. The physical factors indicated that mice fed on HFD gained more body weight than the C-ND group. Blood parameters do not show significant differences, but overall, the glucose and cholesterol concentrations were raised in the mice fed with a fat-rich diet, with the highest concentrations in the HFD-BG group. The mice fed with HFD-BG and HFD-O had more lipid droplets in the liver, compared to HFD-DG and C-ND.

Effect of Maillard reaction on the quality of clarified butter, ghee.

In Ayurveda, a traditional Indian medicine system, clarified butter is called ghee and is used for food and medicinal purposes. Since butter is subjected to heat to prepare ghee, the heating process affects the ghee quality, such as oxidation, flavor, nutritional value, and biological activity. Therefore, this study focused on the Maillard reaction progress and free-radical scavenging activity with temperature and time during ghee preparation. First, ghee was prepared at low to high temperatures, and its quality (milk fat content, retinol, α-tocopherol, peroxide value, Maillard reaction progress, and free radical scavenging activity) was evaluated. Maillard reaction progress was enhanced at medium and high temperatures (120-160 â„ƒ), and the free radical-scavenging activity of ghee corresponded to the Maillard reaction progress. Since ghee is often reheated during use, we further evaluated the effect of the reheating process. The reheating process did not alter the Maillard reaction progress or the free radical scavenging activity. Our findings serve as good quality control measures for ghee preparation.

Characterization of Aerosol Properties from the Burning Emissions of Typical Residential Fuels on the Tibetan Plateau.

The Tibet Autonomous Region in China is a unique place with high altitude and special Tibetan culture. The residents have different living habits and domestic fuels from those in other parts of China, however, knowledge on the emission characteristics of local residential fuels remain poorly understood until now. In this study, nine popular residential fuels in the Tibet are burned in situ to study the aerosol chemical compositions, mass spectral signatures, and emission characteristics from their burning emissions. Overall, emissions of particulate and gaseous pollutants depend strongly on the burning conditions, in addition to the fuel constituents themselves. Burning the biofuels of yak dung, WeiSang mixture fuels, and two powdery Tibetan incenses with relatively low combustion efficiencies can emit large amounts of CO and aerosols, especially organic aerosols (>90%) with large diameters. In contrast, burning of wood, coal, ghee lamp, stick-like Tibetan incense, and diesel can release abundant CO2 but fewer aerosols from their flaming combustion. A comprehensive database consisting of the high-resolution mass spectra of organics and emission factors of multiple chemical components are established. Distinctly different mass spectral signatures are found among the different fuels, in particularly those unique Tibetan biofuels. All these findings have significant implications for the identification of aerosol sources, compilation of pollutant emission inventories, and assessment of potential environment effects in this remote region.

Experiences and attitudes related to newborn feeding in central Uganda: A qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: Adequate infant nutrition is a critical cornerstone of population health, yet adherence to recommended breastfeeding practices is low in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Uganda. This study aims to describe local attitudes, experiences and beliefs related to nutrition in early infancy in Central Uganda. DESIGN: We conducted 5 focus group discussions and 12 key informant interviews to gather information on local attitudes, experiences and beliefs related to feeding in early infancy. SETTING: Urban areas of Central Uganda. PARTICIPANTS: Parents and healthcare and public health professionals. RESULTS: Participants reported numerous concerns related to infant health including inadequate infant weight, premature birth, diarrhea, fever, gastrointestinal infection and malnutrition. Awareness of the infant health benefits of exclusive breastfeeding was prevalent but experienced as in balance with maternal factors that might lead to supplementation, including employment demands, physical appearance, pain, poverty and maternal health and malnutrition. Breastfeeding was highly valued, but use of unsafe breast milk supplements was common, including cow's milk, black tea, glucose water, fruit juice, millet, maize, rice, potatoes, soy, sorghum, egg yolk, fish and ghee. Expression of breast milk was viewed as not consonant with local culture. CONCLUSIONS: Participants were aware of the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding but described multiple barriers to achieving it. Supplementation with unsafe breastmilk supplements was considered to be more culturally consonant than milk expression and was reported to be the only affordable potential breast milk substitute for many families.

Evaluating Handwriting Skills through Human-Machine Interaction: A New Digitalized System for Parameters Extraction.

Handwriting is an important component of academic curricula and grapho-motor skills (GMS) support learning, reading, memory and self-confidence. Teachers and clinicians report increase in children experiencing problems with acquiring fluid and legible handwriting. To date gold-standard tests evaluating children's GMS, mostly rely on pen and paper tests, requiring extensive coding time and subject to high inter-rater variability. This work presents preliminary data on a new digital platform for Grapho-motor Handwriting Evaluation & Exercise (GHEE), attempting to overcome limitations of available digitalized methods for GMS evalution. In fact, contrary to previous systems, GHEE design originated from comparisons among multiple standardized tests and was based on a human-machine interaction approach. GHEE hardware and software is presented as well as data on preliminary testing. Cursive handwriting data from six adult volunteers was analyzed according to six parameters of relevance, both automatically (i.e., using GHEE software) and manually (i.e., by a human coder). Comparisons among machine and human data sets allowed parsing out parameters to be extracted automatically and parameters requiring human-machine interaction. Results confirmed platform efficacy and feasibility of the proposed approach.

Regenerative repair of full thickness skin wound assisted by dual crosslinking percolative gel casting maneuvered alginate hydrogel embedded with honey ghee blend resembles standard cutaneous properties.

We report synergism in scarless cutaneous wound repair by alginate hydrogel (HGSAG) embedded with an optimized blend of characterized Jamun honey and characterized indigenously prepared ghee. Thorough screening and characterization of honey and ghee are carried out followed by obtaining a novel dual crosslinking percolative gel casting fabrication method to come up with HGSAG showing superior chemical stability, and mechanical strength (Nanoindentation study; lowest stiffness: 0.71 ± 0.19 µN/nm), and surface morphology (SEM; highest roughness: 0.13 ± 0.04 µm) to other variants. In vitro swelling study and degradation behavior study show intermediate swelling (swelling index: 0.59 ± 0.008 in 98 h) and required restricted degradation (PBS: 73.38 ± 0.55%, DMEM: 83.48 ± 0.69% in 10 days) for HGSAG which is necessary for providing nutrients to cells and in vivo therapeutic efficacy. We observe the remarkable antibacterial efficacy of HGSAG against Staphylococcus mutans and Escherichia coli. This particular substrate also shows decent 3T3 fibroblasts viability, cell-cell communication followed by cell-matrix interaction, and proliferation compared to other variants. Molecular gene expression studies by quantitative RT-PCR technique reveal strong upregulation of collagen I, CD26, and TGF-ß3 while downregulation in the case of TGF-ß1 which eventually substantiates scarless wound healing potential of HGSAG. Wound closure kinetics is most rapidly and successfully underpinned by HGSAG while compared to other alternatives including marketed healing patches. Regular close monitoring using histopathological studies and real-time imaging by Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography of in vivo wound model treated with HGSAG come up with the fascinating result of scarless healing (HGSAG treated epithelial thickness: 62.96 ± 0.67 µm, unwounded akin epithelial thickness: 62.56 ± 0.34 µm) within 12 days of wounding. Thus, the work highlights modified and stabilized alginate hydrogel embedded with honey and ghee blend as a potential scarless full-thickness cutaneous wound healing bio-scaffold.

Dietary Habits of Patients with Coronary Artery Disease: A Case-Control Study from Pakistan.

BACKGROUND: Adults in South Asian countries have high chances of developing coronary artery disease (CAD) as compared to the developed nations. CAD is among the primary non-communicable causes of death in this region. Dyslipidemia, obesity, smoking hypertension, diabetes are considered as important risk factors for CVD. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted, with data was collected from the Punjab Institute of Cardiology in Lahore and the University of Lahore Teaching Hospital. A total of 500 subjects were selected, of which 250 were coronary artery disease patients and 250 were healthy controls. The CAD patients were selected from the outpatient department (OPD) and emergency unit of the Punjab Institute of Cardiology and the University of Lahore Teaching Hospital. RESULTS: The mean age of CAD patients was 57.83 ± 7.51 years and that of the controls was 55.32 ± 6.40 years. There was a significant difference in the mean values of biochemical parameters among cases and controls except for fasting blood sugar levels while there was a significant difference (p-value: 0.000) in the mean values of systolic blood pressure among cases and controls. Similarly, the values of diastolic blood pressure were also significantly different (p-value: 0.000) among cases and controls. The values of total blood cholesterol, LDL, triglycerides and HDL were also significantly different among cases and controls. There was a significant relationship between consumption of chicken, eggs, beef, yogurt, junk food, fresh vegetables, and fruits, and incidence of CAD. Consuming milk every day, and consuming fish weekly and consuming ghee had no significant association with the risk of coronary artery disease. On the other hand, from the findings of the unadjusted model, there was a significant association between CAD risk and intake of chicken, beef, egg, yogurt, junk food, fish, vegetables, and fruits. CONCLUSIONS: Diet is a risk factor for coronary artery disease and can be adjusted to reduce the risk of CAD. A key finding is that consumption of chicken, beef, eggs and junk food are associated with a high risk of CAD whereas consumption of ghee is not associated with the risk of CAD.

Cow ghee as an efficient carrier to improve oral bioavailability of lutein.

In India, cow-ghee has been used in traditional medicinal preparations to solubilize lipophilic drugs and enhance intestinal absorption. However, reports exploring the role of cow-ghee, naturally rich in saturated fatty acids, in carotenoid chemistry is nil. We attempted to understand the influence of fatty-acid composition of cow-ghee and edible oils on intestinal absorption of lutein in mice. The postprandial plasma lutein level in the mice administered with cow-ghee significantly (p < 0.05) reached the maximum (Cmax-135.76 pmol/mL; AUC-592.80 pmol.h/mL) within 2 h (Tmax). Cow-ghee improved oral bioavailability of lutein by 2.02, 1.41 and 1.66 folds in comparison to control, olive oil and flaxseed oil respectively. Cow-ghee, composed of 69.28% saturated fatty-acids, has the potential to be a delivery vehicle for lutein as evidenced by higher postprandial triglyceride levels. This study is first of its kind which reports the influence of saturated fatty-acids on the oral bioavailability of lutein in an in-vivo system.

Effect of different dietary fats on inflammation and glucose intolerance in high fructose and high fat fed experimental animals.

OBJECTIVES: Diet is the major modifiable risk factor for the onset of insulin resistance and its progression into diabetes. In the present study the effect of various dietary fats on inflammatory homeostasis and glucose tolerance is investigated in high fat and high fructose fed mice model. METHODS: C57/BL6J mice were divided into four groups and fed a casein-based diet containing high fructose (45%) and high fat (24%) (clarified butter oil [CBO]; safflower oil [SFFO] and lard oil [LO]) for 120 days; oral glucose tolerance (OGTT), plasma lipid profile and plasma & adipose tissue cytokines levels were compared with the control diet (10% groundnut oil and 59.5% starch) fed animals. RESULTS: The total cholesterol and triglycerides were higher in CBO and LO fed animals with glucose intolerance and increased body weights; liver and white adipose tissue weights were higher in CBO and LO fed animals respectively. CBO feeding increased the plasma (IFN-γ) and adipose tissue cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-10, IL-6 & TNF-α). LO feeding increased plasma IFN-γ, TNF-α and IL-1ß and adipose tissue IL-6. SFFO feeding decreased body weight and tissue cytokines and increased plasma IFN-γ levels without causing impairment in the glucose tolerance. CONCLUSIONS: Consumption of a high fructose and high fat diet which mimic the present-day dietary pattern resulted in altered inflammatory homeostasis and impairment in glucose tolerance in 24% CBO and LO fed animals. The deleterious effects of high fructose feeding were reversed in SFFO fed mice possibly due to the presence of oleic and linoleic acids.

Detection of soybean oil adulteration in cow ghee (clarified milk fat): an ultrafast study using flash gas chromatography electronic nose coupled with multivariate chemometrics.

BACKGROUND: Cow ghee is one of the expensive edible fats in the dairy sector. Ghee is often adulterated with low-priced edible oils, like soybean oil, owing to its high market demand. The existing adulteration detection methods are time-consuming, requiring sample preparation and expertise in these fields. The possibility of detecting soybean oil adulteration (from 10% to 100%) in pure cow ghee was investigated in this study. The fingerprint information of volatile compounds was collected using a flash gas chromatography electronic nose (FGCEN) instrument. The classification results were studied using the pattern recognition chemometric models principal component analysis (PCA), soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA), and discriminant function analysis (DFA). RESULTS: The most powerful fingerprint odor of all the samples identified from FGCEN analysis was acetaldehyde (Z)-4-heptenal, 2-propanol, ethyl propanoate, and pentan-2-one. The odor analysis investigation was accomplished with an average analysis time of 90 s. A clear differentiation of all the samples with an excellent classification accuracy of more than 99% was achieved with the PCA and DFA chemometric methods. However, the results of the SIMCA model showed that SIMCA could only be used to detect ghee adulteration at higher concentration levels (30% to 100%). The validation study shows good agreement between FGCEN and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry methods. CONCLUSION: The methodology demonstrated coupled with PCA and DFA methods for adulteration detection in ghee using FGCEN apparatus has been an efficient and convenient technique. This study explored the capability of the FGCEN instrument to tackle the adulteration problems in ghee. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Effects of diets rich in ghee or olive oil on cardiometabolic risk factors in healthy adults: a two-period, crossover, randomised trial.

This study aimed to evaluate the cardiovascular health-related effects of consuming ghee in the usual diet. Thirty healthy men and women were studied in a free-living outpatient regimen. The participants were instructed for the isoenergetic inclusion of ghee or olive oil in their diets for 4 weeks using a randomised crossover design. At the end of run-in (baseline), 2-week wash-out and interventions, fasting blood samples were drawn. In addition, 2-h postprandial blood samples were collected after ingestion of a meal containing olive oil or ghee at week 4 of each dietary intervention. Body weight was not different between the two interventions. Compared with the olive oil, the diet with ghee increased fasting plasma apo-B (apo B) (0·09, 95 % CI 0·02, 0·17 g/l, P = 0·018), non-HDL-cholesterol (non-HDL-cholesterol) (0·53, 95 % CI 0·01, 1·05 mmol/l, P = 0·046) and LDL-cholesterol did not differ significantly between diet groups (0·29, 95 % CI -0·05, 0·63 mmol/l, P = 0·092), but had no significant effect on total cholesterol:HDL-cholesterol ratio (0·75, 95 % CI - 0·24 to 1·74 mmol/l, P = 0·118). No significant difference was observed in fasting as well as 2-h postprandial plasma TAG, glucose, insulin and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 concentrations. This study showed that ghee that is predominantly saturated fats had an increasing effect on plasma apo B and non-HDL-cholesterol compared with olive oil, adding further evidence to the existing recommendations to replace dietary fats high in SFA with dietary fats high in unsaturated fats to reduce CVD risk.

Ghee Butter from Bovine Colostrum Reduces Inflammation in the Mouse Model of Acute Pancreatitis with Potential Involvement of Free Fatty Acid Receptors.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is an inflammatory disease that causes severe tissue damage. Ghee butter from bovine colostrum (GBBC) is a clarified butter produced by heating milk fat to 40 °C and separating the precipitating protein. As colostrum mainly contains fatty acids (FAs), immunoglobulins, maternal immune cells, and cytokines, we hypothesized that it may exert anti-inflammatory effects. We investigated the effects of GBBC on experimental AP in mice. Two intraperitoneal (ip) injections of L-arginine (8%) were given 1 h apart to generate the AP murine model. After 12 h from the first L-arginine injection, mice were divided into the following experimental groups: AP mice treated with GBBC (oral gavage (po) every 12 h) and non-treated AP mice (po vehicle every 12 h). Control animals received vehicle only. At 72 h, mice were euthanized. Histopathological examination along with myeloperoxidase (MPO) and amylase/lipase activity assays were performed. In a separate set of experiments, FFAR1 and FFAR4 antagonists were used to verify the involvement of respective receptors. Administration of GBBC decreased MPO activity in the pancreas and lungs along with the microscopical severity of AP in mice. Moreover, treatment with GBBC normalized pancreatic enzyme activity. FFAR1 and FFAR4 antagonists tended to reverse the anti-inflammatory effect of GBBC in mouse AP. Our results suggest that GBBC displays anti-inflammatory effects in the mouse model of AP, with the putative involvement of FFARs. This is the first study to show the anti-inflammatory potential of a nutritional supplement derived from GBBC.

The effect of various high-fat diet on liver histology in the development of NAFLD models in mice.

OBJECTIVES: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is exceptionally common around the world. The development of NAFLD is increasing rapidly in the world, along with changes in lifestyle. Excess lipid intake is one of the risk factors for NAFLD. The NAFLD model is induced by a high-fat diet contains SFA, MUFA, and ῳ-6 PUFA. This study aims to assess the effect of high-fat diet variation on liver histology in developing NAFLD models in mice. METHODS: Thirty-six male mice (Balb/c) were divided into six groups fed a high-fat diet containing beef tallow 60%, beef tallow 45%, vegetable ghee, animal ghee + corn oil, vegetable ghee + corn oil for 28 days and compared to a control group fed a chow diet. All of the mice were fed with a high-fat diet in the form of pellets ad libitum for 28 days. Bodyweight and food intake were measured every day. At the last day of treatment, animals were sacrificed and the Liver were taken for histological analysis. RESULTS: This study showed that NAFLD model development was achieved in all group mice fed a high-fat diet with different degrees of NAFLD. Beef tallow 60% had the worst liver histology. CONCLUSIONS: Thus, based on this study, we found that high-fat diet variations influenced the development of NAFLD models in mice, particularly concerning liver histology.

Evaluation of wound healing potential of Bhallatakadi Ghrita - cow ghee based polyherbal formulation: in-vivo excision and incision wound model.

OBJECTIVES: Ghee is widely considered as the Indian name for clarified butterfat and processing of ghee with therapeutic herbs i.e., ghrita is renowned for augmenting their medicinal properties. The wound is considered as a challenging clinical problem with early and late complications. To reduce the burden of wounds with the shortest period and minimum scaring, an attempt was made to prepare and evaluate the wound healing potential of ghee based polyherbal formulation. METHODS: Based on local ethnic tribal claims, Semecarpus anacardium L., Argemone mexicana L., Cocculus hirsutus L., and Woodfordia fruticosa K. were collected from Western Ghats of India. The polyherbal Bhallatakadi Ghrita (BG) formulation was prepared as per Ayurvedic procedure and assessed for its wound healing potential using incision and excision wound animal models. RESULTS: BG treated group showed a complete contraction of wounds (99.82 ± 0.10%) (p<0.001) with 15.17 ± 0.40 days re-epithelization time and breaking strength (531.50 ± 5.89) (p<0.05). The hydroxyproline content of BG was found to be significantly higher i.e., 4.23 ± 0.21 (p<0.05). Quantitative estimation of BG exhibited 54.7 ± 3.7 mg100 g-1 of polyphenols and 42.3 ± 5.4 mg.100 g-1 flavonoids in terms of gallic acid and quercetin respectively. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of gallic acid and quercetin whereas the presence of fatty acids was confirmed by GC-MS analysis. CONCLUSIONS: It may conclude that the presence of quercetin, gallic acid, and fatty acids could have accelerated the healing rate of the ghrita formulation, as they have already been known for their potential wound healing properties.

Comparative evaluation of fish oil and butter oil in modulating delivery of galantamine hydrobromide to brain via intranasal route: pharmacokinetic and oxidative stress studies.

The present study investigates the role of fish oil (FO)- and butter oil (BO)-enriched microemulsion-based system of galantamine hydrobromide (GH), an anti-Alzheimer drug, for its potential role in brain permeation enhancement and neuroprotection against oxidative stress. Microemulsion (ME)-based system of GH was prepared using water phase titration. The prepared ME was characterized by several physicochemical parameters like particle size, polydispersity index, and ex vivo drug permeation. Cell-based oxidative stress assays and pharmacokinetic studies were performed using C6 glial cell lines, and Sprague Dawley rats, respectively. The optimized ME comprised 5.3% v/v of Capmul MCM EP (as oil),15.8% v/v of Tween-80 (as surfactant), 5.3% v/v of Transcutol P (as co-surfactant), and 73.6% v/v of water (as aqueous phase). The addition of FO and BO resulted in a slight increase in the droplet size and decrease in transparency of ME. Cell-based anti-oxidative stress assays (glutathione assay, nitrite assay, and lipid peroxidation assay) showed the efficacy of formulation in the order of ME, BO ME, and FO ME, respectively. A similar trend was also observed in in vivo animal studies, wherein GH FO ME showed a comparatively higher percentage of drug reaching the brain when administered by intranasal route than by IV route. The study concluded the potential benefits of co-administering FO- and BO-enriched microemulsion is not only enhancing the permeation of drugs across BBB but also improving efficacy against lipopolysaccharide-induced oxidative stress. Graphical abstract.

Fluorescence Spectroscopy Based Detection of Adulteration in Desi Ghee.

Desi ghee, obtained by buffalo and cow milk, is highly expensive because it contains valuable vitamins and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Its high demand and cost result in to its adulteration with inferior banaspati ghee. In this study, Fluorescence spectroscopy along with multivariate analysis has been utilised for the detection and quantification of adulteration. Spectroscopic analysis showed that buffalo ghee contains more vitamins and CLA than cow, whereas cow ghee is enriched with beta-carotene. For multivariate analysis, principle component analysis (PCA) and partial least square regression (PLSR) have been applied on the spectral data for the determination of adulteration. PLSR model was authenticated by predicting 23 unknown samples including 3 commercial brands of desi ghee. The root mean square error in prediction (RMSEP) of unknown samples was found to be 1.7 which is a reasonable value for quantitative prediction. Due to non-destructive and requiring no sample pre-treatment, this method can effectively be employed as on line characterization tool for the food safety assurance.

Role of Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Butter Oil in Targeting Delivery of Donepezil Hydrochloride Microemulsion to Brain via the Intranasal Route: a Comparative Study.

In order to investigate the possible role of butter oil (BO) and omega-3 fatty acids-rich fish oil (O3FO) in the delivery of donepezil hydrochloride microemulsion (DH-ME) to the brain via intranasal route, the present study was conducted. DH:BO and DH:O3FO binary mixtures (9:1 to 1:9) were prepared by simple physical mixing and subjected to in vitro diffusion study. Ratios of DH:BO and DH:O3FO, which showed the highest diffusion, were selected for further development of microemulsion (ME). Globule sizes of DH-BO-ME and DH-O3FO-ME were found to be 87.66 ± 5.23 nm and 88.59 ± 8.23 nm, respectively. Nasal histopathological study and in vitro cytotoxicity study revealed the safety of the formulation. Higher percentage of nasal diffusion was found with DH-BO-ME (71.22 ± 1.21%) and DH-O3FO-ME (62.16 ± 1.23%) in comparison to DH-ME (59.69 ± 1.74%) and DH solution (55.01 ± 1.19%), which was further supported by in vitro cell permeability study. After intranasal administration, %bioavailability of drug in the rat brain (Sprague-Dawley rats)(on the basis of DH-ME IV) was higher with DH-BO-ME (313.59 ± 12.98%) and DH-O3FO-ME (361.73 ± 15.15%) in comparison to DH-ME (168.62 ± 6.60%) and DH solution (8.960 ± 0.23%). The results of ex vivo diffusion study and in vivo pharmacokinetic study suggested that BO and O3FO helped in enhancing the nasal permeability and the brain uptake of drug when administered intranasally.

Characterization of Desi Ghee Extracted by Different Methods Using Fluorescence Spectroscopy.

In the current study, the effect of ghee extraction methods (direct cream DC, milk butter MB and milk skin MS) on its molecular composition has been investigated using Fluorescence spectroscopy. The excitation wavelength of 300 nm was found the best to produce pronounced spectral signatures of beta-carotene, vitamins and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in both cow and buffalo ghee types. Principal component analysis (PCA) has been applied on the spectral data to visualize the classification among ghee samples extracted by three methods. Both cow and buffalo ghee contain spectral signatures of vitamin A, E, K, D and CLA which has been verified through plotting loading vectors. The analysis of loading plots has been suggested that for cow ghee, MS extraction method conserve relatively higher concentration of beta carotene while DC and MB methods are a good choice for preserving relatively more concentrations of vitamins D, E and K. Similarly, for buffalo ghee, MS extraction method appear with higher concentration of CLA, whereas DC extraction method looks to preserve relatively higher concentration of vitamin A while MB method retains relatively low concentration of CLA and vitamins as compared to other two methods.