Down-regulation of NF-κB expression by n-3 fatty acid-rich linseed oil is modulated by PPARγ activation, eicosanoid cascade and secretion of cytokines by macrophages in rats fed partially hydrogenated vegetable fat.

PURPOSE: The industrially produced partially hydrogenated vegetable fat (PHVF) contains trans fatty acid mostly comprising of elaidic acid (18:1 ∆9t). PHVF is used as a cooking medium in Southeast Asian countries. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of dietary PHVF on inflammatory mediators and possible ameliorative effects of n-3 fatty acid (α-linolenic acid, ALA)-rich linseed oil (LSO) on the inflammatory mediators. METHODS: Male Wistar weaning rats were fed AIN-93-purified diet supplemented with one of the following lipids for 60 days, groundnut oil (GNO, 10 wt%), PHVF (10 wt%), LSO (10 wt%), PHVF blended with LSO at 2.5, 5.0 and 7.5 wt% levels. The final fat level in the diet was maintained at 10 wt%. RESULTS: The macrophages from rats fed PHVF showed higher levels of total cholesterol and free cholesterol as compared to those from rats fed GNO and LSO. Macrophages from rats fed PHVF down-regulated the expression of PPARγ and up-regulated the expressions of cytosolic phospholipase A2, cyclooxygenase-2, 5-lipoxygenase and nuclear factor-kappa B p65. The macrophages from rats fed PHVF secreted higher levels of pro-inflammatory eicosanoids and cytokines. The rats fed PHVF blended with LSO at incremental amounts showed a significant reduction in the expressions of pro-inflammatory markers in dose-dependent manner. CONCLUSION: Detrimental effects of dietary PHVF in enhancing pro-inflammatory agents in rats could be significantly reduced by providing ALA (n-3 PUFA)-rich LSO.

Dietary gamma oryzanol plays a significant role in the anti-inflammatory activity of rice bran oil by decreasing pro-inflammatory mediators secreted by peritoneal macrophages of rats.

Ricebran oil (RBO) is promoted as heart friendly oil because of its ability to maintain serum lipids at desirable levels. Inflammation also plays an important role on cardiovascular health. The role of minor constituents present in unsaponifiable fraction (UF) of RBO on inflammatory markers is not well understood. To evaluate this, we have taken RBO with UF (RBO-N), RBO stripped of UF (RBO-MCR) and RBO-MCR supplemented with UF from RBO (UFRBO) or Gamma-Oryzanol (γ-ORY) were added in AIN-93 diets which was then fed to Wistar rats for a period of 60 days. Groundnut oil with UF (GNO-N), UF removed GNO (GNO-MCR) and GNO-MCR supplemented with UF from RBO or γ-ORY was also used for comparison. The peritoneal macrophages from the rats were activated and pro-inflammatory mediators such as Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), eicosanoids, cytokines, hydrolytic enzymes of lysosomal origin were monitored. The results indicated that UF of RBO and γ-ORY supplemented in the dietary oils play a significant role in reducing the secretion of pro-inflammatory mediators by macrophages. Hence γ-ORY in RBO significantly contributed to the anti-inflammatory properties of RBO.

Diet containing partially hydrogenated vegetable fat enhances the carrageenan induced paw inflammation but not oxidative stress markers in liver of rats.

In the present study, we investigated the effect of feeding Partially hydrogenated vegetable fat (PHVF) on carrageenan induced paw inflammation and oxidative stress markers in liver of rats. In addition, the effect of feeding rats with Linseed Oil (LSO, α-linolenic acid, n-3 PUFA) or PHVF blended with incremental amounts of LSO on these markers were also monitored. Rats weighing 200 g were given 1 mL of different oils (PHVF, Groundnut Oil; GNO, Olive Oil; OO and LSO) per day for 15 days. Rats given PHVF showed higher levels of paw inflammation in response to carrageenan injection. Rats given LSO showed least amounts of paw inflammation when injected with carrageenan. A second set of experiment was conducted by feeding weaning rats with AIN-93 purified diet supplemented with PHVF or PHVF with incremental amounts of LSO for 60 days. The rats fed PHVF showed higher degree of carrageenan induced inflammation as compared to rats given GNO and LSO. However, the rats fed PHVF showed lower levels of lipid peroxides, protein carbonyls, 8-hydroxy guanine and antioxidant enzyme activities in liver homogenate as compared to those given LSO. In conclusion dietary PHVF rendered the rats prone to higher levels of carrageenan induced inflammation which can be reduced by giving PHVF blended with LSO. However, oxidative stress markers found to be higher levels in rats given LSO or PHVF blended with LSO as compared to rats given PHVF as sole source of fat.

Modulatory effects of alpha-linolenic acid on generation of reactive oxygen species in elaidic acid enriched peritoneal macrophages in rats.

Fatty acids are known to influence the ability of macrophages to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). However the effect of elaidic acid (EA, 18:1 trans fatty acid) on ROS generation is not well studied. Rat peritoneal macrophages were enriched with elaidic acid by incubating the cells with 80 1M EA. The macrophages containing EA generated higher amounts of superoxide anion (O2*-), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and nitric oxide (NO) by 54, 123 and 237%, respectively as compared to control cells which did not contain EA. To study the competition of other C18 fatty acids with EA macrophages were incubated with EA along with stearic acid (18:0), oleic acid (18:1), linoleic acid (18:2) and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3). ALA significantly reduced the incorporation of EA into macrophage lipids. This also significantly reduced the generation of O2*-, H2O2, NO by macrophages. Studies were also conducted by feeding rats with diet containing partially hydrogenated vegetable fat (PHVF) as a source for EA and linseed oil (LSO) as a source for ALA. The rats were fed AIN-93 diet containing PHVF with 17% EA and incremental amounts of linseed oil for 10 weeks. The peritoneal macrophages from rats fed partially hydrogenated vegetable fat generated higher levels of O2*-, H2O2, NO by 46, 161 and 76% respectively, when compared to rats fed control diets containing ground nut oil. Macrophages from rats fed PHVF with incremental amounts of LSO produced significantly lower levels ROS in a dose dependent manner. Thus ALA reduces the higher levels of ROS generated by macrophages containing EA.

Hypolipidemic effect of oryzanol concentrate and low temperature extracted crude rice bran oil in experimental male wistar rats.

Blends of refined groundnut oil (GNO) and oryzanol concentrate having 3, 5, and 10% oryzanol in the blend, and a rice bran oil (RBO) which had retained all the nutrients such as oryzanol, tocopherols and tocotrienols and the unsaponifiable matter components of crude oil (GWF RBO) were prepared. Weanling rats were fed with diet containing the oil blends/rice bran oil at 10% level for 60 days and then dissected. The lipid profiles in serum, liver were investigated and the cholesterol levels were marginally reduced (7-16% in serum, 10-14.5% in liver) in rats fed oryzanol containing diet. RBO, GWF RBO containing diets showed a reduction of serum cholesterol by 14%, 15% respectively when compared to those fed with GNO. Serum and liver lipid analysis also showed significant change in TG concentration in rats fed blended oils containing oryzanol compared to the rats given GNO. Histology of liver and kidneys did not show changes. These studies indicated that oryzanol has an effect in lowering serum and liver cholesterol and shows antiatherogenic properties when incorporated into groundnut oil.

Shelf-life study of Indian traditional food based nutraceutical (oryzanol) enriched instant mixes Bhath-OZ and Upma-OZ.

To provide nutraceutical such as oryzanol through food, two instant mixes based on the Indian traditional food cuisine Bisibele bhath and Upma(Bhath-OZ and Upma-OZ) were developed and evaluated for shelf-life. The formulations contained cereals, pulses, and spices along with oryzanol enriched oil and were packed in 200gauge/50 gauge metallized polyester packaging material and stored under ambient (27 °C 65%RH) and accelerated conditions (37 °C/92%RH). Samples were withdrawn periodically and peroxide value (PV), free fatty acid value (FFA), fatty acid composition, oryzanol, and total tocopherols content were estimated. Sensory evaluation of reconstituted products was also carried out. Oryzanol content (610 and 550 mg%) did not change appreciably in Bhath-OZ and Upma-OZ respectively. The peroxide value under ambient condition increased from 1.1 to 9.3 meq.O2/kg and 2.24 to 9.02 meq.O2/kg during the 6 month storage study at 27 °C and 65% RH, while under accelerated conditions at 37 °C and 92%RH, it increased from 1.12 to 8.54 meq. O2/kg and 2.24 to 6.96 meq. O2/kg during 2 month storage period. Bhath-OZ and Upma-OZ packed in metallized polyester pouches stored at 27 °C and 65% RH had a shelf-life of 4 months without affecting the oryzanol content and quality of instant mixes during the storage period.

Perception of undergraduate medical students on learning physiology: A descriptive cross-sectional study in a medical school of South India.

BACKGROUND: Understanding the various principles in physiology is very important for medical students to apply their knowledge in clinical practice. Most of the students learn physiology just to clear exams. There is a need to understand the student's perception on the significance of learning physiology in medical colleges, its role in clinical practice, research, and the subject of career choice. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted in a medical college in Karnataka, India. A total of 100 medical students studying in year 2 MBBS were enrolled into the study. Responses were collected, validated, and analyzed to understand the perception. RESULTS: All the participants (100%) felt physiology is an important subject in the medical curriculum and 93% of participants felt physiology knowledge was essential to become a better doctor. It was observed that 48% of the participants were interested in pursuing research in physiology and only 24% of the participants agreed on considering physiology as a carrier option. CONCLUSIONS: Medical students perceived physiology as an important and interesting subject in the medical curriculum. However, only few of the students were inclined to do research in physiology and agreed on pursuing physiology as a carrier option. The scope of study in physiology is vast due to the large variety of interdisciplinary topics included in different systems. Subsequent decrease in job opportunity, lack of awareness of research opportunities, and lower pay scale in the medical colleges in India lead to less interest in students for considering physiology as a carrier option.

Dual drug nanoparticle synergistically induced apoptosis, suppressed inflammation, and protected autophagic response in rheumatoid arthritis fibroblast-like synoviocytes.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic immune-mediated joint inflammatory disorder associated with aberrant activation of fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS). Recently, FLS gained importance due to its crucial role in RA pathogenesis, and thus, targeting FLS is suggested as an attractive treatment strategy for RA. FLS-targeted approaches may be combined with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and natural phytochemicals to improve efficacy in RA control and negate immunosuppression. In this study, we assessed the therapeutic effectiveness of DD NP HG in primary RA-FLS cells isolated from the synovial tissue of FCA-induced RA rats. We observed that DD NP HG had good biosafety for healthy FLS cells and, at higher concentrations, a mild inhibitory effect on RA-FLS. The combination therapy (DD NP HG) of MTX NP and PEITC NE in RA-FLS showed a higher rate of apoptosis with significantly reduced LPS-induced expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-17A, and IL-6) in arthritic FLS. Further, the gene expression studies showed that DD NP HG significantly down-regulated the mRNA expression of IL-1ß, RANKL, NFATc1, DKK1, Bcl-xl, Mcl-1, Atg12, and ULK1, and up-regulated the mRNA expression of OPG, PUMA, NOXA and SQSTM1 in LPS-stimulated RA-FLS cells. Collectively, our results demonstrated that DD NP HG significantly inhibited the RA-FLS proliferation via inducing apoptosis, down-regulating pro-inflammatory cytokines, and further enhancing the expression of genes associated with bone destruction in RA pathogenesis. A nanotechnology approach is a promising strategy for the co-delivery of dual drugs to regulate the RA-FLS function and achieve synergistic treatment of RA.

Silver molybdate: an excellent optical limiting material under nanoregime for photonic device application.

There is a mounting demand for nonlinear optical materials with superior optical limiting performance which has a noticeable impact on protecting the delicate optical components from laser-induced damage. Transition metal molybdates have garnered attention in the nonlinear optics field due to their outstanding optical and luminescent properties, which give rise to widespread applications in next-generation optoelectronics devices. The structural confirmation of the as prepared silver molybdate nanoparticles were made by XRD and Raman spectroscopy analysis. The linear optical properties and the band gap of the synthesized material were studied using UV-Visible and photoluminescence spectroscopy. SEM analysis revealed the pebble like morphology of the silver molybdate nanostructures. The nonlinear responses of the samples were studied using open aperture z-scan approach with Nd:YAG pulsed laser (532 nm, 9 ns, 10 Hz). The sample exhibits reverse saturable absorption pattern attributed to the two photon absorption (2PA) mechanism. The obtained OL threshold value is in the order of 1012 which is suitable for fabricating optical limiters in nano second pulsed laser regime.

Precision Targeting of BET Proteins - Navigating Disease Pathways, Inhibitor Insights, and Shaping Therapeutic Frontiers: A Comprehensive Review.

The family of proteins known as Bromodomain and Extra-Terminal (BET) proteins has become a key participant in the control of gene expression, having a significant impact on numerous physiological and pathological mechanisms. This review offers a thorough investigation of the BET protein family, clarifying its various roles in essential cellular processes and its connection to a variety of illnesses, from inflammatory disorders to cancer. The article explores the structural and functional features of BET proteins, emphasizing their special bromodomain modules that control chromatin dynamics by identifying acetylated histones. BET proteins' complex roles in the development of cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, and cancer diseases are carefully investigated, providing insight into possible treatment avenues. In addition, the review carefully examines the history and relevance of BET inhibitors, demonstrating their capacity to modify gene expression profiles and specifically target BET proteins. The encouraging outcomes of preclinical and clinical research highlight BET inhibitors' therapeutic potential across a range of disease contexts. The article summarizes the state of BET inhibitors today and makes predictions about the challenges and future directions of the field. This article provides insights into the changing field of BET protein-targeted interventions by discussing the potential of personalized medicine and combination therapies involving BET inhibitors. This thorough analysis combines many aspects of BET proteins, such as their physiological roles and their roles in pathophysiological conditions. As such, it is an invaluable tool for scientists and medical professionals who are trying to figure out how to treat patients by using this fascinating protein family.

Enhanced incorporation of docosahexaenoic acid in serum, heart, and brain of rats given microemulsions of fish oil.

Long-chain n-3 fatty acids are essential for the development of cognitive functions and reducing the risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The present study was undertaken to prepare fish oil (FO) microemulsion and explore the possibility of enhancing the enrichment of long-chain n-3 PUFA in the heart and brain lipids. The bioavailability of encapsulated FO was compared with that of native oil in rats by utilizing the intestinal sac method and by an in vivo study giving microemulsions of FO through intubation for a period of 30 days. Microemulsions were prepared using chitosan, gum acacia, whey protein, and lipoid. The bioavailability of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from FO encapsulated in chitosan, gum acacia, whey protein, and lipoid was increased by 7, 9, 23, and 68%, respectively, as compared to oil given without encapsulation in the everted intestinal sacs model. The DHA levels in serum lipids when FO was given as lipoid emulsion to rats were found to be 56 µg/ml, while rats given FO without encapsulation had a DHA level of 22 µg/ml. In the heart and brain lipids, the DHA levels were increased by 77 and 41%, respectively, in rats given FO encapsulated with lipoid compared to those given native oil. These studies indicated that DHA from FO was taken up in a more efficient manner when given in an encapsulated form with lipoid. Thus, phospholipid-based binding materials such as Lipoid provide a good delivery system for FO and significantly enhance DHA levels in the serum, liver, heart, and brain tissues.

Formulation of a dual drug-loaded nanoparticulate co-delivery hydrogel system and its validation in rheumatoid arthritis animal model.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a systemic autoimmune disease that dramatically affects patients' quality of life. Given the intricacy of RA's pathophysiology, no single treatment can completely halt the disease progression. Here, we attempted to treat RA holistically and synergistically by co-delivering methotrexate (MTX), a standard slow-acting anti-rheumatic drug, and phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), a bioactive phytochemical, using a sodium alginate (SA)-pluronic F127 (PF-127) in situ hydrogel formulation. Therefore, in the current study, the co-delivery of MTX and PEITC in the nanoparticulate form could help enhance stability and solubility and facilitate greater penetration in the target arthritic tissues. The fabricated MTX NP and PEITC NE were found to have a minimum particle size, PDI, and good zeta potential. Results from in vitro release studies showed that MTX and PEITC were simultaneously released from the DD NP HG matrix over 6-7 days through diffusion and erosion mechanisms. An intra-articular (IA) injection of DD NP HG dramatically reduced chronic inflammation in adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) rats, delayed the onset of bone erosion, significantly reduced synovitis, and down-regulated the inflammatory cytokine expression. Most notably, the co-delivery strategy almost entirely restored the morphological features of the ankle joints of RA rats. The hepatic and renal function tests indicated good biological safety for DD NP HG in RA conditions. Taken together, these findings indicated that DD NP HG could achieve good anti-inflammatory activity and reverse cartilage disruption through a synergistic effect between two nanoparticulate forms of MTX and PEITC, which can effectively improve the drawbacks of their free forms.

A nanostructured dual-drug loaded smart hydrogel (DD NP HG) was successfully constructed for the intra-articular delivery of MTX and PEITC to the affected joints of RA.The fabrication of the nanoformulation of both MTX (MTX NP) and PEITC (PEITC NE) aided in mitigating the drawbacks and drug-related side effects of the free form of drugs.DD NP HG markedly suppressed joint inflammation and protect against bone destruction in arthritic rats.This combination approach of PEITC and MTX (DD NP HG) synergistically improved anti-arthritic activity and reduced the adverse side effects in vivo.

Morphological changes of the epineurium in leprosy: a new finding detected by high-resolution sonography.

INTRODUCTION: From histopathological studies of peripheral nerves in leprosy, it is known that the epineurium can be thickened. We measured the epineurial thickness of the ulnar nerve by high resolution sonography (HRUS). METHODS: The epineurium of the ulnar nerve was measured above the elbow on transverse scan in 25 healthy controls and 26 leprosy patients. RESULTS: The mean epineurial thickness was 0.77 mm (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.66-0.88) in symptomatic ulnar nerves (n = 20), 0.58 mm (CI 0.51-0.65) in asymptomatic nerves (n = 30), and 0.49 mm (CI 0.44-0.54) in healthy controls (n = 25) (P = 0.0001). This thickening was related to the cross-sectional area of the ulnar nerve, but not with increased blood flow. CONCLUSIONS: The epineurium of the ulnar nerve can be measured with the use of HRUS, and it is often strikingly thickened in leprosy patients, especially in those with ulnar involvement.

Diverging beam transmit through limited aperture: A method to reduce ultrasound system complexity and yet obtain better image quality at higher frame rates.

In this paper, a technique combining Diverging Beam with Synthetic Aperture Technique (DB-SAT) is demonstrated that utilizes only limited number of active elements yet provides better quality images at higher frame rates than possible with Conventional Focused Beamforming (CFB). The DB-SAT has been investigated in simulations and experiments on wire and tissue-mimicking phantoms, and the results are compared with routinely used CFB with Linear Array (CFB-LA). The estimated lateral resolution at the focal point was 0.41 mm and 0.34 mm for CFB-LA and DB-SAT, respectively, in simulations. These were estimated to be 0.78 mm and 0.71 mm, respectively, in experiments. Experimentally computed contrast resolution (contrast-to-noise ratio) for the cyst located at 60 mm depth were 0.50 (1.31 dB) and 0.58 (2.33 dB) for CFB-LA and DB-SAT, respectively. The frame-rate achieved by DB-SAT was 8 times and 2 times higher than that achieved by CFB-LA when transmit sub-apertures had an overlap 0% and 75%, respectively. Therefore, it can be concluded from the results that DB-SAT using 8 active transmit elements and 64 active receive elements yields better quality images at higher frame-rates than those obtained using CFB-LA with 64 active elements in transmit and receive. Since there is a reduction in the number of active transmit elements in the case of DB-SAT, it leads to a reduction in the overall system complexity.

Bio-availability and metabolism of n-3 fatty acid rich garden cress (Lepidium sativum) seed oil in albino rats.

The ratio of fatty acids namely linoleic acid (LA, 18:2, n-6) and alpha linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3, n-3) in the diet plays an important role in enrichment of ALA in tissues and further conversion to long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) like eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5, n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6, n-3). Garden cress seed oil (GCO) is one of the richest sources of omega-3 fatty acid and contains 29-34.5% of ALA. In this study, dietary supplementation of GCO on bio-availability and metabolism of alpha-linolenic acid was investigated in growing rats. Male wistar rats were fed with semi-purified diets supplemented with 10.0% sunflower oil (SFO 10%); 2.5% GCO and 7.5% SFO (GCO 2.5%); 5% GCO and 5% SFO (GCO 5.0%); 10% GCO (GCO 10%) for a period of 8 weeks. There was no significant difference with regard to the food intake, body weight gain and organ weights of rats in different dietary groups. Rats fed with GCO showed significant increase in ALA levels in serum and tissues compared to SFO fed rats. Feeding rats with 10% GCO lowered hepatic cholesterol by 12.3% and serum triglycerides by 40.4% compared to SFO fed group. Very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels decreased by 9.45% in serum of 10% GCO fed rats, while HDL remained unchanged among GCO fed rats. Adipose tissue showed incorporation of 3.3-17.4% of ALA and correlated with incremental intake of ALA. Except in adipose tissue, the EPA, DHA levels increased significantly in serum, liver, heart and brain tissues in GCO fed rats. A maximum level of DHA was registered in brain (11.6%) and to lesser extent in serum and liver tissues. A significant decrease in LA and its metabolite arachidonic acid (AA) was observed in serum and liver tissue of rats fed on GCO. Significant improvement in n-6/n-3 fatty acid ratio was observed in GCO based diets compared to diet containing SFO. This is the first study to demonstrate that supplementation of GCO increases serum and liver ALA, EPA, DHA and decreases LA and AA in rats. Therefore, the GCO can be considered as a potential, alternate dietary source of ALA.

Diverging beam with synthetic aperture technique for rotation elastography: preliminary experimental results.

Rotation Elastogram (RE) is a 2D spatial distribution map of the estimated local rigid-body rotation undergone by a target when subjected to an external compression, which is one of the recent variants in elastographic imaging. A recent study has shown that inclusion-contrast in RE is independent of inclusion-background modulus contrast and thus may be helpful in distinguishing between barely-stiff benign and malignant lesions. However, estimation of quality RE requires not only precise axial displacement estimates but also lateral displacement estimates. The widely used conventional focused beamforming technique using linear array (CFB-LA) provides better lateral resolution only over the depth of focus, which still results in poorer quality lateral displacement estimates compared to the axial displacement estimates. As an alternative to overcome this depth-dependent lateral resolution and obtain an improved lateral resolution, synthetic aperture-based approaches have been proposed in literature. Recently, we developed a synthetic aperture-based method, diverging beam with synthetic aperture technique (DB-SAT) that was aimed to not only reduce the ultrasound system complexity, but also provide improved lateral resolution throughout the depth of imaging and at higher frame-rate than that is possible in CFB-LA. In this paper, we report the preliminary experimental findings on the use of DB-SAT on RE and compare the resultant image quality against that obtained using often-employed CFB-LA and the synthetic transmit aperture (STA) technique. The investigation was done on tissue-mimicking phantoms and using contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) as the metric for performance evaluation. The estimated CNR values from the REs obtained using CFB-LA, STA, and DB-SAT were 2.69 ± 0.81, 1.35 ± 0.22, and 14.71 ± 9.83, respectively, for inclusion present at 55 mm depth. The obtained results clearly demonstrated that the quality of RE can be improved significantly, especially at larger depth, using DB-SAT compared to that obtained using CFB-LA and STA technique.

Nutritionally enriched 1,3-diacylglycerol-rich oil: Low calorie fat with hypolipidemic effects in rats.

An enzymatic process was developed for the preparation of a nutritionally enriched 1,3-diacylglycerol(DAG)-rich oil from a blend of refined sunflower and rice bran oils. The process involves hydrolysis of vegetable oil blend using Candida cylindracea followed by esterification with glycerol using Lipozyme RM1M. The resultant DAG-rich oil contains 84% of DAG (66% of 1,3-DAG, 18% of 1,2-DAG) and 16% of triacylglycerol (TAG) along with micro nutrients like γ-oryzanol, tocotrienols, tocopherols and phytosterols. Nutritional studies of the DAG-rich oil were conducted in Wistar rats and compared with sunflower oil (SFO). The calorific value of the DAG-rich oil was estimated to be 6.45 Kcals/g as against 9.25 Kcals/g for SFO. The serum and liver cholesterol and TAG levels in rats fed with 1,3-DAG-rich oil were found to be significantly reduced as compared to rats fed diet containing SFO. We conclude that 1,3-DAG-rich oil is a low calorie fat and exhibits hypolipidemic effects.

Curcumin and linseed oil co-delivered in phospholipid nanoemulsions enhances the levels of docosahexaenoic acid in serum and tissue lipids of rats.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an important long chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) primarily found in marine fishes. The diets of vegetarian population do not contain preformed DHA, but they can derive it from shorter chain α-linolenic acid (ALA) found in plant oils. However, the conversion efficiency of ALA to DHA is minimal in human adults. This may cause insufficiency of DHA in the vegetarian population. Curcumin, diferuloyl methane found in the spice turmeric, has the potential to increase the formation of DHA from ALA by activating the enzymes FADS2 and elongase 2. The present study was designed to prepare curcumin nanoemulsion using phospholipid core material (Lipoid™) and exploring the possibility of enhancing its bioavailability and its impact on DHA levels in rats. Curcumin was dissolved in coconut oil (CNO, MCFA rich), Sunflower oil (SNO, n-6 PUFA rich) or Linseed oil (LSO, n-3 PUFA rich) and nanoemulsions were prepared after mixing with Lipoid™ using high pressure homogenizer. The nanoemulsions were fed to weaning rats for 60 days along with AIN-93 diets. Rats fed nanoemulsion containing curcumin in LSO showed high levels of curcumin in serum liver, heart and brain. Significant increase in DHA levels of serum and tissue lipids were observed in rats given LSO with curcumin in nanoemulsions. Therefore, supplementation of diets with ALA rich LSO and curcumin could increase DHA concentrations in serum, liver, heart and brain lipids which have implications for meeting the DHA requirements of vegetarian populations.

Sodium-glucose Cotransporter-2 Inhibitors: Moving Beyond the Glycemic Treatment Goal.

Revelations of the multifactorial pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) that extend beyond the role of insulin and glucose utilization have been crucial in redefining the treatment paradigm. The focus of treatment is currently directed towards achieving wide-ranging targets encompassing the management of cardiovascular comorbidities that have been evidenced as indispensable aspects of T2DM. While most currently prescribed antihyperglycemic agents have little or no effect on reducing cardiovascular risks, some have been associated with undesirable effects on common risk factors such as weight gain and cardiovascular sequelae. Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) are newer additions to the array of therapeutic agents for T2DM that have demonstrated robust glycemic control as mono and add-on therapies. Their unique renal mode of action, independent of insulin modulation, confers complementary metabolic benefits. By virtue of these effects, SGLT2i may have a distinct role in the revised treatment recommendations by established working groups such as the American Diabetes Association and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists that advocate a more comprehensive management of T2DM, not restricting to glycemic targets. The current review gives an overview of the changing treatment needs for T2DM and discusses the nonglycemic effects of SGLT2i. It provides an updated summary on the efficacy of canagliflozin, dapagliflozin, and empagliflozin in promoting weight loss, stabilizing blood pressure, and other favorable metabolic effects.