GABA-enriched rice bran inhibits inflammation in LPS-stimulated macrophages via suppression of TLR4-MAPK/NF-κB signaling cascades.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-enriched products (GEP) exhibited a wide range of pharmaceutical properties. In this study, anti-inflammatory activity of GEP from Lactobacillus fermentum-fermented water solution of rice bran was evaluated on lipopolysaccharide-activated macrophage model. GABA content in L. fermentum-fermented rice bran solution was determined up to 1.27 g/L. GEP was shown to inhibit the expression levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 enzymes. Moreover, pretreatment of GEP attenuated the generation level of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1ß, tumor necrosis factor α, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1. Especially, the activation of signaling pathways due to nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) was interrupted in GEP-exposed cells. Notably, molecular docking result showed a potential binding of GABA to Toll-like receptor 4 with a binding energy of -3.88 kcal/mol, suggesting the role of GABA in suppression of Toll-like receptor 4-MAPK/NF-κB signaling cascades. As the result, GEP from L. fermentum-fermented rice bran solution could be suggested as a promising food for suppression of inflammatory responses. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: GABA-enriched products have been evidenced to possess various pharmaceutical properties and health beneficial effects. In this study, GABA-enriched product from L. fermentum-fermented rice bran solution exhibited the inhibition on inflammatory response in macrophages. Hence, it could be used as a potential ingredient for the mitigation of inflammatory responses.

Effect of doped H, Br, Cu, Kr, Ge, As and Fe on structural features and bandgap of poly C13H8OS-X: a DFT calculation.

Structural features such as the shape, the lattice constant, the bond length, the total energy per cell, and the energy bandgap (Eg) of C13H8OS-X are studied by the calculating Partial Density Of States (PDOS), and DOS package of the Material Studio (MS) software. Calculations show that the bond length and the bond angle between atoms insignificant change as 1.316 Å to 1.514 Å for C-C, 1.211 Å for C-O, 1.077 Å to 1.105 Å for C-H; bond angle of round one changes from 118.883° to 121.107° for C-C-C, from 117.199° to 122.635° for H-C-C, from 119.554° to 123.147° for C-C-O and from 109.956° to 117.537° for C-C-H. When C13H8OS-X doped in the order of -Br, -Cu, -Kr, -Ge, -As, and -Fe then bond lengths, bond angles between atoms have a nearly constant value. Particularly for links C-X, there is a huge change in value, respectively 1.876, 1.909, 10.675, 2.025, 2.016, 2.014 Å; the total energy change from Etot = -121,794 eV to Etot = -202,859 eV, and the energy band gap decreases from Eg = 2.001 eV to Eg = 0.915 eV. The obtained results are useful and serve as a basis for future experimental research.

Prevention of H2O2-induced oxidative stress in Chang liver cells by 4-hydroxybenzyl-chitooligomers.

In this study, a bioactive derivative of chitooligomers (1.0-3.0 kDa), 4-hydroxybenzyl-COS (HB-COS), was synthesized to enhance antioxidant activity. Hence, HB-COS was evaluated for its capabilities against H2O2-induced oxidative stress in human Chang liver cells. It was found that HB-COS possessed the free radical scavenging activity via decreasing the intracellular reactive oxygen species production. Furthermore, HB-COS significantly reduced the oxidation of DNA in a dose-dependent manner. Notably, HB-COS treatment upregulated the gene and protein expressions of antioxidative enzymes and thereby enhancing the intracellular antioxidant mechanisms. In addition, HB-COS treatment caused a remarkable blockade on degradation of inhibitory kappa B alpha (IκB-α) protein and translocation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB). The current study demonstrated that HB-COS effectively attenuated hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress in Chang liver cells by increasing levels of antioxidant enzymes and inhibiting reactive oxygen species generation, DNA oxidation and the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Protection of 4-hydroxybenzyl-chitooligomers against inflammatory responses in Chang liver cells.

The aim of this study was to investigate anti-inflammatory activity of 4-hydroxybenzyl-chitooligomers (HB-COS) in Chang liver cells stimulated by a cytokine mixture. It was revealed that HB-COS decreased the level of nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production by diminishing the expressions of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) without significant cytotoxicity. Moreover, HB-COS exerted inhibitory effects on the production of pro-inflammatory mediator (interleukin-6) in Chang liver cells. Notably, HB-COS exhibited anti-inflammatory activities via blocking degradation of inhibitory kappa B alpha (IκB-α), translocation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), and phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in a dose-dependent manner. Collectively, these findings indicated that HB-COS possessed potential anti-inflammatory effects in Chang liver cells, and could be a useful therapeutic agent for the treatment of hepatic inflammatory diseases.

Preparation and properties of silver nanoparticles loaded in activated carbon for biological and environmental applications.

Silver nanoparticles colloid has been prepared by a modified sonoelectrodeposition technique in which a silver plate was used as the source of silver ions. This technique allows producing Ag nanoparticles with the size of 4-30 nm dispersed in a non-toxic solution. The Ag nanoparticles were loaded in a high surface activated carbon produced from coconut husk, a popular agricultural waste in Vietnam by thermal activation. The surface area of the best activated carbon is 890 m(2)/g. The presence of Ag nanoparticles does not change significantly properties of the activated carbon in terms of morphology and methylene blue adsorption ability. The Ag nanoparticle-loaded activated carbon shows a good antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli with very low minimal inhibitory concentration of 16 µg/ml and strong As(V) adsorption. The materials are potential for prevention and treatment of microbial infection and contamination for environmental applications.