Mutagenicity study of weeds and common plants used in traditional medicine and for animal feed.

Mutagenicity and antimutagenicity potentials were tested using Ames' test in crude distilled water and absolute ethanol extracts from the stems and leaves of Peperomia pellucida (Linn.) Kunth, Eichhornia crassipes Solms, Colocasia esculenta Schott and Brachiaria mutica (Forssk.) Stapf, and the stems of Musa sapientum Linn. No mutagenic effect was found in any of the 10 mg/plate crude extracts of these plants for either TA98 or TA100 of Salmonella typhimurium, in a direct test and a mutagenic induced test by S-9 mix. Both distilled water and absolute ethanol extract of 0.5-10 mg/plate B. mutica showed strong antimutagenicity to AFB1, B(a)P and 4NQO in two tester strains. Ethanol extract of 0.1-0.5 mg/plate C. esculenta also showed antimutagenicity to AFB1, B(a)P and 4NQO in two tester strains, but the 0.5-10 mg/plate water extract had an antimutagenic effect only for B(a)P in TA98. The ethanol extracts of 5 mg/plate B. mutica and 0.5 mg/plate C. esculenta are cytotoxic, as indicated by their partial killing effect.

Antimutagenic activity of Sesbania javanica Miq. flower DMSO extract and its major flavonoid glycoside.

The antimutagenic activity of Sesbania javanica Miq. or Sano, an edible vegetable flower DMSO extract against aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) benzo (a) pyrene [B(a)P], was evaluated by means of the Ames' test. The Sesbania javanica Miq. flower DMSO extract showed a strong inhibitory effect against AFB1 and B(a)P mutagens. A search to isolate the major flavonoid in Sesbania javanica Miq. flower extract found the flavonol glycoside, Quercetin 3-2(G)-rhamnosylrutinoside, which was confirmed by its physicochemical properties as a major constituent of the flower. Quercetin 3-2(G)-rhamnosylrutinoside (207 microg/plate) also showeda strong inhibitory effect against AFB1 and B(a)P with a more than 70% inhibition rate.

Platelet fatty acids in coronary heart disease, dyslipidemia, hypertension and healthy controls.

A cross-sectional study was performed to investigate 250 volunteers from Pramongkutklao Hospital, Samphanthawong district, Wat Chaiyapreukmala and Wat Pradoo in Taling Chan district. They were divided into groups of 35 apparently healthy males, 16 males with coronary heart disease, 37 males with dyslipidemia and 9 males with hypertension with age ranges of 24-62, 56-69, 25-69 and 26-75 years, respectively. The female groups were composed of 55 apparently healthy females, 10 females with coronary heart disease, 73 females with dyslipidemia and 15 females with hypertension with age ranges of 27-65, 33-67, 22-73 and 38-70 years, respectively. Platelet fatty acids levels were found to have no significant difference between the different male groups. In the female groups, the alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) level in hypertension was significantly higher than in coronary heart disease (CHD) (p<0.05), whereas the arachidonic acid (AA) level in hypertension was significantly higher than in the apparently healthy females (p<0.05). No correlation was found between platelet fatty acids and age or anthropometric parameters, which indicate that platelet fatty acids may not depend on either age or anthropometric parameters. Positive correlations were shown between ALA and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), AA and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), ALA and the diastolic blood pressure, DHA and total cholesterol (TC), and between low density lipoprotein choleoterol (LDL-C) and plasma glucose. Negative correlations were shown between LA and EPA, AA and EPA, EPA and DHA, EPA and the systolic blood pressure, and AA and the diastolic blood pressure.

B vitamins, vitamin C and hematological measurements in overweight and obese Thais in Bangkok.

The dynamic changes of socio-economics leading to the industrialisation of countries are known to affect lifestyle and nutritional behaviours of the population. Review of the literature on the prevalence of obesity showed increasing numbers of the overweight and obese during the past decade. However, information on health and nutritional status of the obese in Thailand has not been widely publicized. This study reveals the vitamin status and hematological picture in 270 overweight and obese Thais in Bangkok, Thailand, compared with 175 normal subjects. No statistically significant differences in haemoglobin and hematocrit were observed in the overweight compared with the control subjects. The prevalence of anaemia was 9.8 per cent among male and 17.2 per cent among female overweight and obese subjects compared with 2.6 per cent and 21.2 per cent in male and female normal controls using the cut-off point of haemoglobin concentration as an indicator of anaemia. Prevalence of hypertension was exhibited in both male and female overweight and obese subjects. Even if there were no statistically significant differences in vitamin B1, B2 and B6 in overweight and obese subjects compared with the controls, high percentages of vitamin C and vitamin B2 deficiencies were observed. Vitamin B2 deficiency was detected in 19.7 per cent of overweight and obese males as well as in 28.7 per cent of overweight and obese females using glutathione reductase activity coefficient (alpha EGR) < 1.5 as the cut-off point. However, clinical signs of vitamin B2 deficiencies were rare. There was also a high percentage of vitamin C (antioxidant vitamin) deficiency in 51.5 per cent of the overweight and obese subjects and 41.7 per cent of the controls, respectively. The results suggest more attention should be paid to health study and nutritional problems for the overweight and obese population, especially concerning vitamins and oxidative stress. Further research is still needed in these aspects.