Molecular Mechanisms Associated with Protecting IEC-6 Cells from Acrylamide-Induced Tight Junction Damage by Ganoderma atrum Polysaccharide

Disruption of intestinal epithelial permeability in the Co-culture system of Caco-2/HT29-MTX cells exposed individually or simultaneously to acrylamide and ochratoxin A

Mycotoxins and thermal processing hazards are common contaminants in various foods and cause severe problems in terms of food safety and health. Combined use of acrylamide (AA) and ochratoxin A (OTA) would result in more significant intestinal toxicity than either toxin alone, but the underlying mechanisms behind this poor outcome remain unclear. Herein, we established the co-culture system of Caco-2/HT29-MTX cells for simulating a real intestinal environment that is more sensitive to AA and OTA, and showed that the combination of AA and OTA could up-regulate permeability of the intestine via increasing LY permeabilization, and decreasing TEER, then induce oxidative stress imbalance (GSH, SOD, MDA, and ROS) and inflammatory system disorder (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-10, and IL-6), thereby leading a rapid decline in cell viability. Western blot, PAS- and AB-staining revealed that AA and OTA showed a synergistic effect on the intestine mainly through the disruption of tight junctions (TJs) and a mucus layer. Furthermore, based on correlation analysis, oxidative stress was more relevant to the mucus layer and TJs. Therefore, our findings provide a better evaluation model and a potential mechanism for further determining or preventing the combined toxicity caused by AA and OTA.

Anti-obesity effects of mulberry leaf extracts on female high-fat diet-induced obesity: Modulation of white adipose tissue, gut microbiota, and metabolic markers

Mulberry leaves (MLs) are reported to have beneficial effects in modulating obesity in male models. However, the impact of different types of mulberry leaf extracts (MLEs) on female models, specifically their influence on adipocytes, gut microbiota, and related metabolic markers, remains poorly understood. In this study, we observed a strong correlation between the total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant and adipocyte modulation effects of water extracted MLEs. HB-W (water-extracted baiyuwang) and HY-W (water-extracted Yueshen) demonstrated remarkable inhibition effects on adipocytes in 3 T3-L1 adipocytes model. Moreover, MLEs effectively reduced the levels of triglycerides (TG), non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), and total cholesterol (T-CHO) in adipocytes in vitro. In vivo experiments conducted on female mice with high fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity revealed the anti-obesity effects of HB-W and HY-W, leading to a significant decrease in weight gain rates and notable influence on the ratios of adipose tissue, particularly white adipose tissue (WAT). Gene expression analysis demonstrated the up-regulation of WAT-related genes (Pla2g2a and Plac8) by HB-W, while HY-W supplementation showed beneficial effects on the regulation of blood sugar-related genes. Furthermore, both HB-W and HY-W exhibited modulatory effects on obesity-related gut microbiota (Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidetes ratio) and short chain fatty acid (SCFA) contents. Importantly, they also mitigated abnormalities in liver function and uncoupling protein 1 (UPC1) expression. Overall, our findings underscore the anti-obesity effects of MLEs in female rats with high-fat diet-induced obesity.

Intervention effects of sulfate glycosaminoglycan from swim bladder against arsenic-induced damage in IEC-6 cells

In this study, a purified macromolecular sulfate glycosaminoglycan whose structural characterization is similar to chondroitin sulfate from the swim bladder of Aristichthys nobilis, named SBSG, was used to explore the intervention effects on arsenic-induced intestinal epithelial cells (IEC-6) damage. Arsenic exposure led to cell membrane rupture, mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative damage, and down-regulation of tight junction proteins expression. Treatment with SBSG could alleviate arsenic exposure-induced cell damage by decreasing the extracellular lactate dehydrogenase activity and influencing mitochondrial membrane potential, reactive oxygen species level, malondialdehyde content, and anti-oxidative enzyme activity. On the other hand, SBSG could promote nitric oxide production to achieve potential immunoregulation. The Western blot showed that intervention of SBSG mainly could restrain the activation of the JNK signaling pathway and up-regulate the expression of ZO-1 against arsenic-induced cell damage. This study provides a new perspective for understanding the heavy metal detoxification of SBSG on the intestinal and indicates that SBSG could be used as natural antioxidant resistant to heavy metal toxicity.