Ficus carica leaf extract modulates the lipid profile of rats fed with a high-fat diet through an increase of HDL-C.

Ficus carica has been traditionally used for the treatment of several metabolic syndrome-related health problems. It was the objective of this study to investigate the preventive effects of a Ficus carica (FC) leaf extract on hyperlipidemia in high fat diet (HFD)-induced obese male rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (180-200 g) were fed with a regular diet, HFD or a HFD + oral treatment of either 50 mg/kg or 100 mg/kg of FC or 30 mg/kg pioglitazone for six weeks. A range of parameters was evaluated including body weight development, plasma levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), adiponectin, leptin, glucose, insulin, interleukin-6 (IL-6), atherogenic index (AI) and the coronary risk index (CRI). FC significantly lowered TG and IL-6 levels and elevated HDL cholesterol (p < 0.05). The effects of FC on lipid parameters were more pronounced than those of the positive control pioglitazone. FC significantly lowered AI and CRI (p < 0.01) while it had no effect on adiponectin and leptin levels. Our results demonstrate that preventive treatment with FC significantly improved the lipid profile and decreased adipogenic risk factors in HFD rats most likely mediated through an increase in HDL-C levels.

Effects of plant extracts on the reversal of glucose-induced impairment of stress-resistance in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Enhanced blood glucose levels are a hallmark of diabetes and are associated with diabetic complications and a reduction of lifespan. In order to search for plant extracts that display preventive activities in such a scenario, we tested 16 extracts used in human nutrition for their survival enhancing activities in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Nematodes were exposed for 48 h to 10 mM glucose in the absence or presence of 0.1% extract. Thereafter, survival was measured at 37 °C. Extracts made from coffee, kola, rooibos and cinnamon, did not influence the glucose-induced reduction of survival. Those made from ginseng, camomile, lime blossom, paraguay tea, balm, rhodiola, black tea, or knotgrass all extended the lifespan of the glucose-treated nematodes significantly but did not rescue survival completely. Extracts from the leaves of blackberries, from hibiscus, elderberries, or jiaogulan completely countered the glucose-induced survival reduction. A potent activation of the proteasome was shown for the most preventive extracts suggesting a more efficient degradation of proteins impaired by glucose. In conclusion, we present a simple animal model to screen for plant extracts with potency to reverse glucose toxicity. Extracts from blackberry leaves, hibiscus, elderberries, and jiaogulan were identified as very potent in this regard whose exact mechanisms of action appear worthwile to investigate at the molecular level.

Acute and Chronic Effects of Green Oat (Avena sativa) Extract on Cognitive Function and Mood during a Laboratory Stressor in Healthy Adults: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study in Healthy Humans.

Green oat (Avena sativa) extracts contain several groups of potentially psychoactive phytochemicals. Previous research has demonstrated improvements in cognitive function following a single dose of these extracts, but not following chronic supplementation. Additionally, whilst green oat extracts contain phytochemicals that may improve mood or protect against stress, for instance species-specific triterpene saponins, to date this possibility has not been examined. The current study investigated the effects of a single dose and four weeks of administration of a novel, Avena sativa herbal extract (cognitaven®) on cognitive function and mood, and changes in psychological state during a laboratory stressor. The study adopted a dose-ranging, double-blind, randomised, parallel groups design in which 132 healthy males and females (35 to 65 years) received either 430 mg, 860 mg, 1290 mg green oat extract or placebo for 29 days. Assessments of cognitive function, mood and changes in psychological state during a laboratory stressor (Observed Multitasking Stressor) were undertaken pre-dose and at 2 h and 4 h post-dose on the first (Day 1) and last days (Day 29) of supplementation. The results showed that both a single dose of 1290 mg and, to a greater extent, supplementation for four weeks with both 430 mg and 1290 mg green oat extract resulted in significantly improved performance on a computerised version of the Corsi Blocks working memory task and a multitasking task (verbal serial subtractions and computerised tracking) in comparison to placebo. After four weeks, the highest dose also decreased the physiological response to the stressor in terms of electrodermal activity. There were no treatment-related effects on mood. These results confirm the acute cognitive effects of Avena sativa extracts and are the first to demonstrate that chronic supplementation can benefit cognitive function and modulate the physiological response to a stressor.

Bioavailability Study of Maqui Berry Extract in Healthy Subjects.

Several health promoting effects have been reported for maqui berry, rich in anthocyanins. Direct effects of anthocyanins as well as bioactive metabolites might be involved. Within the study, bioavailability of a proprietary standardized maqui berry extract Delphinol® was investigated based on two selected anthocyanins (delphinidin-3-O-glucoside (DS) + cyanidin-3-O-sambubioside (CS)) and two breakdown products (protocatechuic acid (PCA) + gallic acid (GA)) after a single-dose supplementation in humans. Pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated from individual concentration time curves. In all 12 subjects a significant increase was noted in plasma values of DG and CS after intake of maqui berry extract. Maximum concentration of DG was observed after 1.0 ± 0.3 h and CS after 2.0 ± 1.1 h. Within 8 h, concentrations nearly returned to baseline levels. The results confirm a fast uptake and metabolism of the two selected key substances. Additionally, the phenolic acids GA and PCA were observed as breakdown products of anthocyanins. In summary, the study clearly confirms the bioavailability of maqui berry extract and its specific anthocyanin compounds and related breakdown products in healthy subjects.

Lipoxygenase distribution in coffee (Coffea arabica L.) berries.

In this paper lipoxygenase (LOX) presence was investigated in coffee berries to determine its involvement in lipid degradative metabolism of plants grown in organic and conventional cultivations. An immunochemical analysis has evidenced a ca. 80 kDa protein, cross-reacting with an anti-LOX antibody, only in the pulp fraction of berries obtained from plants of both cultivations. LOX activity in this fraction could be monitored either as conjugated diene formation or reaction products (determined by HPLC) and was mainly associated with a heavy membrane fraction (HMF, enriched in tonoplast, endoplasmic reticulum, plasma membrane, and mitochondria) and a light membrane fraction (LMF, enriched in plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticulum, with low levels of tonoplast and mitochondria). The LOX activity of LMF from berries of both cultivations showed an optimum at pH 8.0. The HMF exhibited a different activity peak in samples from conventional (pH 8.0) and organic (pH 5.5) cultures, suggesting the presence of different isoenzymes. These findings were also confirmed by variation of the ratio of 9- and 13-hydroperoxides in organic (1:1) and conventional cultivations (1:10), indicating that the organic one was subjected to an oxidative stress in the coffee pulp fraction leading to the expression of an acidic LOX. Such de novo synthesized LOX activity could be responsible for the production of secondary metabolites, which may interfere with the organoleptic profile of coffee.

A catechin-enriched green tea extract prevents glucose-induced survival reduction in Caenorhabditis elegans through sir-2.1 and uba-1 dependent hormesis.

Hyperglycemia is a hallmark of diabetes mellitus which leads to the onset of complications in the long term. Green tea through its high content of polyphenolic catechins, on the other hand, is suggested to prevent or at least delay such detrimental complications. In the present study we fed the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans on a liquid medium supplemented with 10mM glucose in the absence or presence of a catechin-enriched green tea extract (CEGTE). After exposure of young adults for 48h survival was subsequently measured under heat stress at 37°C. Whereas CEGTE at 0.01% did not affect the survival of wild type nematodes, it completely reversed the glucose-induced survival reduction. Those effects were not achieved through the monomeric catechins included in CEGTE. RNA interference (RNAi) for sir-2.1 not only prevented the survival extension by CEGTE under simultaneous glucose exposure but also caused a further reduction of survival. Likewise, the knockdown of uba-1, encoding the only E1-ubiquitin-activating enzyme in C. elegans, proved that UBA-1 is essential for the survival extension by CEGTE and that its loss of function changes CEGTE from a survival extending into a survival reducing extract. Stimulation of the proteasome by CEGTE was finally proven through measurements of the proteolytic cleavage of a fluorogenic peptide substrate. To conclude, our studies provide evidence that CEGTE reverses glucose-induced damage in C. elegans through activation of adaptive responses mediated by SIR-2.1 and proteasomal degradation. The hormetic mode of action is revealed by a reduction of survival once the adaptive processes were blocked.