Determination of selected glucocorticoids in healthy foods by ultra-performance convergence chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry.

The presence of glucocorticoids in healthy foods has recently become a topic of concern because of their side effects. In this study, we developed a method based on ultra-performance convergence chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UPC2-MS/MS) to detect 63 glucocorticoids in healthy foods. The analysis conditions were optimized, and the method was validated. We further compared the results of this method with those of the RPLC-MS/MS method. Glucocorticoids were separated on an Acquity Torus 2-picolylamine column (100 mm × 3.0 mm, 1.7 µm) and detected via MS/MS. CO2 and methanol (containing 0.1% formic acid) were used as mobile phases. The method demonstrated good linear relationships between 1 and 200 µg·L-1 (R2 ≥ 0.996). The limits of detection in different types of samples were 0.3-1.5 µg·kg-1 (S/N = 3). The average recoveries (n = 9) and RSDs in different types of samples were 76.6-118.2% and 1.1-13.1%, respectively. The matrix effect, calculated as the ratio between calibration curves built in matrix and pure solvent, was less than 0.21 for both a fish oil and a protein powder. This method exhibited better selectivity and resolution than RPLC-MS/MS method. Lastly, it could realize the baseline separation of 31 isomers of 13 groups, including four groups of eight epimers. This study provides new technical support for assessing the risk of exposure to glucocorticoids in healthy foods.

Enhancing the Biopharmacological Characteristics of Asperosaponin VI: Unveiling Dynamic Self-Assembly Phase Transitions in the Gastrointestinal Environment.

Purpose: Asperosaponin VI (ASP VI) as an active ingredient of Dipsacus asperoides, which has a wide range of biological and pharmacological activity. However, its development and application are restricted due to the poor gastrointestinal permeability and oral bioavailability. This investigation aims to reveal the influence of the self-assembled structure by the interaction between ASP VI and endogenous components NaTC and/or DOPC in the gastrointestinal environment on its biopharmaceutical properties, and novelty elucidated the molecular mechanism for the formation of self-assembled nanomicelles. Methods: This change in phase state in gastrointestinal fluids is characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). UPLC-Q-TOF-MS was used to analyze the composition of phase components and the exposure of nanomicelles in vivo. Molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) was applied to preliminarily elucidate the self-assembly mechanism of ASP VI in the gastrointestinal environment. Furthermore, theS8 promoting absorption mechanism of nanomicelles were investigated through in vivo pharmacokinetic experiments, parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA), quadruple single-pass intestinal perfusion in rats, and Caco-2 cell monolayer model. Results: We demonstrated that the ASP VI could spontaneously form dynamic self-assembled structures with sodium taurocholate (NaTC) and dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DOPC) during gastrointestinal solubilization, which promoted the gastrointestinal absorption and permeability of ASP VI and increased its exposure in vivo, thus improving the biopharmacological characteristics of ASP VI. Moreover, ASP VI-NaTC-DOPC-self-assembled nanostructures (ASP VI-NaTC-DOPC-SAN) manifested higher cellular uptake in Caco-2 cells as evidenced by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy, and this study also preliminarily revealed the mechanism of self-assembly formation of ASP VI with endogenous components NaTC and DOPC driven by electrostatic and hydrogen bonding interactions. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that the dynamic self-assembled phase transition may play a key role in improving the biopharmacological characteristics of insoluble or low permeability active ingredients during the gastrointestinal dissolution of Chinese medicines.

Dietary Zinc Intake Affects the Association Between Dietary Vitamin A and Depression: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction: Dietary vitamin A concentrations correlate with depression. Zinc has been reported to be associated with lower depression. In addition, zinc is an important cofactor in the activation of vitamin A. However, there are few studies investigating relationships between of dietary zinc intake, dietary vitamin A intake and depression. Materials and Methods: The data for this study came from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2005 to 2018 and involved 70,190 participants. We stratified participants by recommended dietary zinc intake (recommended dietary zinc intake for women: 8 mg/day, recommended dietary zinc intake for men: 11 mg/day). We further assessed the association between vitamin A and depression in participants with low and high zinc intake (interaction test) using univariate logistic regression of intake participants. Result: In the female population we grouped the population into low and high zinc intake groups using the recommended dietary zinc intake of 8 (mg/day), with an increase in total vitamin A, the risk of depression was significantly lower in the low zinc intake group (OR: 0.85 95 CI: 0.76-0.96), while the risk of depression was increased in the high zinc intake group (OR: 1.05 95 CI: 0.95 to 1.17). Thus, in the female population, there was a significant interaction between insufficient vitamin an intake and depression (interaction likelihood ratio test of p = 0.011). In the male population we grouped the population by the recommended dietary zinc intake of 11(mg/day). Again, the population was divided into two groups with low and high zinc intake, however we did not find significant results for the interaction (p = 0.743 for the interaction likelihood ratio test). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that zinc intake may influence the relationship between dietary vitamin A and depression. Of course, our findings require further randomized controlled trials to enhance the credibility.