The complexes of soybean protein isolate and procyanidin B2 have synergistic hypolipidemic activity at the cellular level by activating the AMPKα pathway.

The alkali method was used to prepare soybean protein isolate (SPI) and procyanidin B2 (PCB2) complexes, and the interaction between SPI and PCB2 was studied using multi-spectroscopic methods. The human hepatoma (HepG2) cell hyperlipidemia model was used to explore whether SPI-PCB2 has the potential for synergistic hypolipidemia. According to the findings, PCB2 was primarily linked to SPI via C-S and C-N bonds, and the addition of PCB2 reduced the α-helix structure content of SPI by 4.1%. At the cellular level, the optimal SPI-PCB2 ratio for lowering blood lipids was 1:1. Compared with the model group, the TG content and TC content in the 1:1 group were reduced by 28.7% and 26.3%, respectively. Western blot analysis revealed that SPI-PCB2 = 1:1 exerted synergistic hypolipidemic activity mainly by activating adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase α (AMPKα) phosphorylation, inhibiting 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase (HMGCR) and fatty acid synthetase (FAS) protein expression, and upregulating carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1A (CPT1A) protein activity.

Soybean ß-Conglycinin: Structure Characteristic, Allergenicity, Plasma Lipid-Controlling, Prevention of Obesity and Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Soybean has become an important world commodity because of its low price, good nutritional value and recognized functional health benefits in recent years. ß-conglycinin is one of the major storage proteins in soybean. It has captured a growing interest recently because of its allergenicity and potential health benefits, which continues to drive the research and commercial development of ß-conglycinin-based food products and ingredients. In this review, the structure, the amino acid composition, extraction methods and electrophoretic pattern of ß-conglycinin are briefly summarized. Studies on ß-conglycinin by allergenicity, plasma lipid-controlling, obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease are highlighted, critically discussing their main shortcomings and challenges and identifying the research gaps. Studies to date have demonstrated the cultivation of ß-conglycinin with health benefits as functional ingredients and foodstuffs. The current research focuses on proteins, mainly challenging the mechanisms of subunit/peptide effects interaction and identifying and characterizing the hidden biological activities in the polypeptide chains. There is much scope for further exploration into various aspects of ß-conglycinin, such as the selection of mutant strains and genetic engineering and prospects on targeted ß-conglycinin exploitation in the nutraceutical area. In addition, the safety evaluation of ß-conglycinin and its stabilized emulsions deserve more attention to food-related applications.

Synergistic Two-Way Interactions of Dietary Polyphenols and Dietary Components on the Gut Microbial Composition: Is There a Positive, Negative, or Neutralizing Effect in the Prevention and Management of Metabolic Diseases?

Polyphenol is an intricate bioactive molecule abundant in humans/animals' diet particularly plant foods, and has been evidenced in numerous reports with health-promoting functions, owing to its free radical scavenging properties and a broad spectrum of bioactivities. However, the beneficial functions are linked and restricted to bioavailability, which is dictated by the diversity of the gut microbiota. The human/animal's gut harbours a complex community of trillions of microbial species and their symbiotic relationship goes beyond mere aiding the host's digestive system, with important functions such as host nutrition and health by encouraging nutrient metabolism and absorption, regulation of the gastrointestinal development, protection against pathogens, maintenance of the gut mucosal barrier functions and host immune system. The disruption of the gut community (i.e., dysbiosis) is suggested to reflect several pathological processes, such as diabetes, obesity, and other metabolic-related comorbidities. Recent improvements in deep-sequencing technologies and bioinformatics have enabled a more complex understanding of the reciprocal interactions of dietary polyphenols and gut microbiota, as well as their metabolic impact. Hence this review seeks to discuss the two-way synergistic interactions of dietary polyphenols and dietary constituents on the gut microbial composition with an updated and pivotal finding from literature suggesting whether these interactions depict a positive, negative, or neutralizing effect in the prevention of metabolic diseases.

Antioxidant Potential Overviews of Secondary Metabolites (Polyphenols) in Fruits.

The rise in consumption of energy-dense foods has resulted in the displacement of several essential dietary gaps, causing numerous long-lasting diseases, including obesity, stroke, hypertension, and several forms of cancer. Epidemiological studies encourage more fruit consumption to prevent these diseases. The defensive mechanisms provided by these fruits against illness are due to the existence of several antioxidants. Recent studies proved that (poly) phenolic compounds are ideally the core phytochemicals with both functional and health-promoting properties found in the plant's kingdom, and low intake could result in the risk of certain diseases. Phytonutrients are powerful antioxidants that can modify metabolic activation and detoxification of carcinogens. The ideal motive of this review is to provide an overview as well as illuminate the polyphenolic merits of fruits in general. Fruits have several merits, including weight maintenance, proper health development, and satiety. There are many analytical methods for determining and measuring the phenolic content of different products. Phenolic compounds are of nutritional interest since they aid in the retardation and inhibition of lipids by acting as scavengers that prevent and protect the proliferation of oxidative chains. Future studies are required to help identify the physiological metabolic activities as well as to improve human health.

Inhibition of microRNA-29a alleviates hyperoxia-induced bronchopulmonary dysplasia in neonatal mice via upregulation of GAB1.

BACKGROUND: The main features of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) are alveolar simplification, pulmonary growth arrest, and abnormal lung function. Multiple studies have highlighted microRNA-29 (miR-29) as a potential biomarker for lung diseases and cancers. Upregulation of miR-29a has been known to downregulate GRB2-associated-binding protein 1 (GAB1), which is often highly expressed in the lung. The current study was designed to investigate the potential role of miR-29a in hyperoxia-induced BPD by targeting GAB1 in a neonatal mouse model. METHODS: The expression of miR-29a and GAB1 in lung tissues of neonatal mice with hyperoxia-induced BPD and mouse alveolar epithelial cells (MLE-12) was determined using RT-qPCR and western blot analysis. Subsequently, the relationship between miR-29a and GAB1 was verified using in silico analysis. In order to assess the effects of miR-29a or GAB1 on BPD, the pathological characteristics of alveoli, as well as proliferation and apoptosis of cells were measured through gain- and loss-of-function studies. RESULTS: Upregulation of miR-29a and downregulation of GAB1 were evident in both lung tissues and MLE-12 cells following BPD modeling. GAB1 was a direct target gene of miR-29a. Inhibition of miR-29a and overexpression of GAB1 were shown to alleviate lung injury, promote cell proliferation and inhibit apoptosis but reduce chord length in lung tissues of neonatal mice following hyperoxia-induced BPD modeling. CONCLUSION: Altogether, down-regulation of miR-29a can potentially elevate GAB1 expression, reducing cell apoptosis and stimulating proliferation, ultimately retarding the development of BPD in mice. This study highlights the potential of a promising new target for preventing BPD.