Cinnamon improves insulin sensitivity and alters the body composition in an animal model of the metabolic syndrome.

Polyphenols from cinnamon (CN) have been described recently as insulin sensitizers and antioxidants but their effects on the glucose/insulin system in vivo have not been totally investigated. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of CN on insulin resistance and body composition, using an animal model of the metabolic syndrome, the high fat/high fructose (HF/HF) fed rat. Four groups of 22 male Wistar rats were fed for 12 weeks with: (i) (HF/HF) diet to induce insulin resistance, (ii) HF/HF diet containing 20 g cinnamon/kg of diet (HF/HF + CN), (iii) Control diet (C) and (iv) Control diet containing 20 g cinnamon/kg of diet (C + CN). Data from hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamps showed a significant decrease of the glucose infusion rates in rats fed the HF/HF diet. Addition of cinnamon to the HF/HF diet increased the glucose infusion rates to those of the control rats. The HF/HF diet induced a reduction in pancreas weight which was prevented in HF/HF+CN group (p<0.01). Mesenteric white fat accumulation was observed in HF/HF rats vs. control rats (p<0.01). This deleterious effect was alleviated when cinnamon was added to the diet. In summary, these results suggest that in animals fed a high fat/high fructose diet to induce insulin resistance, CN alters body composition in association with improved insulin sensitivity.

A stable isotope method for the simultaneous measurement of matrix synthesis and cell proliferation in articular cartilage in vivo.

OBJECTIVE: Measurements of cell proliferation and matrix synthesis in cartilage explants have identified regulatory factors [e.g., interleukin-1 (IL-1)] that contribute to osteoarthritis and anabolic mediators [e.g., bone morphogenic protein-7 (BMP-7)] that may have therapeutic potential. The objective of this study was to develop a robust method for measuring cell proliferation and glycosaminoglycan synthesis in articular cartilage that could be applied in vivo. METHODS: A stable isotope-mass spectrometry approach was validated by measuring the metabolic effects of IL-1 and BMP-7 in cultures of mature and immature bovine cartilage explants. The method was also applied in vivo to quantify physiologic turnover rates of matrix and cells in the articular cartilage of normal rats. Heavy water was administered to explants in the culture medium and to rats via drinking water, and cartilage was analyzed for labeling of chondroitin sulfate (CS), hyaluronic acid (HA) and DNA. RESULTS: As expected, IL-1 inhibited the synthesis of DNA and CS in cartilage explants. However, IL-1 inhibited HA synthesis only in immature cartilage. Furthermore, BMP-7 was generally stimulatory, but immature cartilage was significantly more responsive than mature cartilage, particularly in terms of HA and DNA synthesis. In vivo, labeling of CS and DNA in normal rats for up to a year indicated half-lives of 22 and 862 days, respectively, in the joint. CONCLUSIONS: We describe a method by which deuterium from heavy water is traced into multiple metabolites from a single cartilage specimen to profile its metabolic activity. This method was demonstrated in tissue culture and rodents but may have significant clinical applications.

Formation of the 1,N2-glyoxal adduct of deoxyguanosine by phosphoglycolaldehyde, a product of 3'-deoxyribose oxidation in DNA.

Oxidation of deoxyribose in DNA results in the formation of a variety of electrophilic products that have the potential to react with nucleobases to form adducts. We now report that 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde, a model for the 3'-phosphoglycolaldehyde residue generated by 3'-oxidation of deoxyribose in DNA, reacts with dG and DNA to form the diastereomeric 1,N2-glyoxal adducts of dG, 3-(2-deoxy-beta-D-erythro-pentofuransyl)-6,7-dihydro-6,7-dihydroxyimidazo[1,2-a]purine-9(3H)-one. The glyoxal adducts were the predominant species formed under biological conditions (pH 7.4 and 37 degrees C), with several minor fluorescent adducts, including 1,N6-ethenoadenine. The adducts were fully characterized by HPLC, mass spectrometry, and UV and NMR spectroscopy. The reaction of 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde with dG occurred with a rate constant of 10(-6) M(-1) s(-1) compared to the rate constants of 0.08 and approximately 10(-9) M(-1) s(-1) for the reactions of glyoxal and glycolaldehyde with dG, respectively. The kinetic results rule out contamination of 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde preparations with glyoxal as the basis for our observations. The rate constant for the formation of glyoxal from 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde (10(-8) s(-1)) is consistent with glyoxal generation being the rate-limiting step in the formation of dG adducts in reactions with 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde. Mechanistic studies were also undertaken to define the basis for the different oxidation states of glyoxal and 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde. Although 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde produced a weak ESR signal consistent with generation of hydroxyl radicals and it caused DNA strand breaks at high concentrations, the formation of the glyoxal adducts of dG was insensitive to radical quenchers (e.g., sorbitol) and independent of molecular oxygen. In contrast, the formation of glyoxal-dG adducts with glycolaldehyde was dependent on molecular oxygen and quenched by sorbitol, and the glycolaldehyde-glyoxal rearrangement produced a strong ESR signal characteristic of alkyl radicals. These observations are consistent with a model in which glyoxal is generated from 2-phosphoglycolaldehyde by a nonradical, oxygen-independent mechanism that is currently under investigation. Our results provide a mechanistic basis for the observation by Murata-Kamiya et al. [(1995) Carcinogenesis 16, 2251-2253] that oxidation of DNA with the Fe(II)-EDTA complex results in the formation of the glyoxal adducts of dG.

Analysis of oxidized DNA fragments by gel electrophoresis.

Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis is used to define and quantify products of deoxyribose oxidation in DNA, based on the unique electrophoretic mobility of DNA fragments possessing deoxyribose oxidation products on their termini. This approach allows initial estimation of the chemistry. Once the chemical identity of damage products has been confirmed, this technique allows sensitive quantitation of the various damage products.