Effects of ethanol, activated carbon, and activated kaolin on perilla seed oil: Volatile organic compounds, physicochemical characteristics, and fatty acid composition.

Perilla seed oil (PSO) has a special aromatic odor, which is unpleasant to the personal preferences of some consumers. To this end, this article evaluated the differences in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), physicochemical characteristics, and fatty acid composition of PSO treated with ethanol (PSO-EA), activated carbon (PSO-AC), and activated kaolin (PSO-AK). The results showed that in the PSO, PSO-EA, PSO-AC, and PSO-AK samples, the content of linolenic acid, oleic acid, and linoleic acid hardly changed. Among the physicochemical characteristics of the four samples, the color difference between PSO and PSO-EA was greater than the color difference between PSO and PSO-AC, PSO-AK. The three treatment methods had the greatest impact on the PSO peroxide value but had little effect on other indicators. Gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrum results identified 28 known volatiles, of which aldehydes, alkenals, alcohols, ketones, and esters were the main groups. Fingerprint analysis found that PSO had an aromatic odor, which includes 1-hexanol, hexanal, and 2-pentylfuran; the removal effect of ethanol on VOCs in PSO was better than that of activated carbon and activated kaolin. The difference between the four oil samples was found from the strength of the VOCs' signals in a two-dimensional map. From the principal components analysis and the "nearest neighbor" fingerprint analysis, it was found that PSO is generally quite different from PSO-EA, PSO-AC, and PSO-AK, while in the "nearest neighbor" fingerprint analysis, PSO-AC and PSO-AK are similar in general. In short, PSO will have better applications in the food field. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Treatment of PSO with ethanol, activated carbon, and activated kaolin is conducive to the comprehensive utilization of edible resources. In this work, ethanol, activated carbon, and activated kaolin were used to remove VOCs in PSO, and PSO-EA, PSO-AC, and PSO-AK were obtained. The perilla seed oil after these three treatment methods was tested for VOCs, physicochemical characteristics, and fatty acid composition. They can meet the needs of more consumers without affecting the fatty acid composition in the PSO, and have broad development prospects.

Characterization of astragaloside I-IV based on the separation of HPTLC from Pleurotus ostreatus cultivated with Astragalus.

In this study, total saponins were extracted from Pleurotus ostreatus cultivated with Astragalus as one of organic culture substrates. High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) assay showed total saponins could be separated effectively, and four kinds of spots were identified as AG I, AG II, AG III, and AG IV, respectively. FTIR spectra based on HPTLC separation assay showed the saponin characteristic groups including -OH, C-H, C=O, and the glycoside linkaged to sapogenin group C-O-C, suggesting the four kinds of spots belonged to cycloartane-type triterpene saponins. The primary mass spectra of precursor ion (HPTLC-ESI-MS) assay further proved the main composition of four kinds of spots was AG I-IV, respectively. Physical properties, including the detection of specific rotation and melting point, revealed the separation of high-purity saponin monomer by HPTLC. HPTLC-dual wavelength spectrodensitometric method detection showed that content of astragaloside I-IV was ranged from 0.2 to 0.5 mg/g, and the total astragalosides contents attained to 1.397 mg/g, indicating P. ostreatus could bioaccumulate astragalosides from Astragalus. These results demonstrated the characterization of astragalosides based on the separation of HPTLC was effective, and supported to consider astragalosides-enriched P. ostreatus as functional edible fungus for food and medical applications. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Currently, the consumption of enriched foods has become common and continues to increase due to urgent demanding for foods with high nutritional value. Pleurotus ostreatus is a functional edible fungus, which not only can produce secondary metabolites, but can enrich bioactive ingredients. Astragalosides have a wide range of biological activities, especially currently being tested as cardioprotective agent. In this study, P. ostreatus was cultivated through adding Astragalus into culture substrates, which realized massive enrichment of astragalosides. Astragalosides-enriched P. ostreatus as functional edible fungus could be extensively used in food and medical areas, especially for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

Antitumor activity of selenium modification of the bovine milk component ß-Lg (Se-ß-Lg) on H22 cells.

In this study, the apoptosis induction and antitumor activity of a novel complex, seleno-ß-lactoglobulin (Se-ß-Lg), on H22 cells were explored. In in vitro experiments, the MTT assay showed that Se-ß-Lg was cytotoxic to H22 cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner and displayed few proliferation inhibition effects on normal liver L02 cells. Annexin V-FITC/PI and PI staining assays showed that Se-ß-Lg induced apoptosis changes of H22 cells from early to late apoptosis and led to S phase cell cycle arrest. Western blot and Z-VAD-FMK inhibitor assays showed that Se-ß-Lg triggered the Fas/FasL-mediated caspase 8-dependent extrinsic death receptor pathway in H22 cells. In in vivo experiments, Se-ß-Lg effectively repressed the growth of transplanted H22 solid tumors in a dose-dependent manner and exhibited few toxic effects on the host animals. H&E and PI staining of tumor tissues showed that Se-ß-Lg caused the occurrence of typical apoptosis morphology features and dose-dependently increased the proportion of apoptosis peaks (Sub-G1 peak) in H22 solid tumors. These results suggest that Se-ß-Lg has the capacity to induce H22 tumor cell apoptosis in vitro and in vivo and support that Se-ß-Lg can be applied as a functional complex in food.

Characterization of Se-enriched Pleurotus ostreatus polysaccharides and their antioxidant effects in vitro.

Selenium-enriched polysaccharides have become a major research focus owing to their high anti-oxidant activities. Selenium-enriched Pleurotus ostreatus polysaccharide (Se-POP) and the native polysaccharide (POP) were obtained by hot water extraction from fresh fruiting bodies of P. ostreatus with or without selenium. Se-POP and POP had similar average molecular weights (0.95×104Da and 0.94×104Da, respectively). Se-POP was mainly composed of fucose, rhamnose, arabinose, galactose, glucose, and xylose, similar to the composition of POP, but in different molar ratios. In an FT-IR analysis, in comparison to POP, two new absorption peaks at 941cm-1 and 1048cm-1 were observed due to COSe and SeO bonds. In vitro study of DPPH, hydroxyl, and ABTS free radicals, Se-POP had a stronger antioxidant capacity than that of POP. Compared to POP, Se-POP had a superior ability to reduce hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in murine skeletal muscle (C2C12) cells. In general, selenium in Se-POP contributed to high antioxidant and biological activities. Se-POP acts as a potent antioxidant and has the ability to prevent oxidation via reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radicals in humans. These results suggest that Se-POP is a candidate dietary supplement for functional foods.