Genotoxic effects of arsenic: Prevention by functional food-jaggery

Key Drivers for Non-Centrifugal Sugar Cane Research, Technological Development, and Market Linkage: A Technological Roadmap Approach for Colombia

Food science innovation depends on consumers' needs and is currently seeking functional food with health effects. Non-centrifugal cane sugar (NCS) is known for its potential health effects, but there is a lack of holistic analysis on technological advancement and socio-economic and market trends for decision-making in the development of the technology. The aim of this article was to analyse the research trends, recent patents, and market trends and niches for NCS to structure an NCS technological roadmap. Scientometric, bibliometric methods, and global and local market information on NCS were used. Comprehensive analysis of the worldwide research trends and patents on NCS processing and of the growth of the main niche markets for Colombian NCS exports in the last five years was conducted. Finally, with the information obtained, an NCS technological roadmap was structured, which can be used as a tool for planning innovation processes and supporting the development of new research using market information and new norms forged by the COVID-19 pandemic for Colombian case. Furthermore, the methodological design could be used for other NCS producer countries.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12355-022-01200-9.

Natural Dietary Compounds in the Treatment of Arsenic Toxicity

Chronic exposure to arsenic (As) compounds leads to its accumulation in the body, with skin lesions and cancer being the most typical outcomes. Treating As-induced diseases continues to be challenging as there is no specific, safe, and efficacious therapeutic management. Therapeutic and preventive measures available to combat As toxicity refer to chelation therapy, antioxidant therapy, and the intake of natural dietary compounds. Although chelation therapy is the most commonly used method for detoxifying As, it has several side effects resulting in various toxicities such as hepatotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and other adverse consequences. Drugs of plant origin and natural dietary compounds show efficient and progressive relief from As-mediated toxicity without any particular side effects. These natural compounds have also been found to aid the elimination of As from the body and, therefore, can be more effective than conventional therapeutic agents in ameliorating As toxicity. This review provides an overview of the recently updated knowledge on treating As poisoning through natural dietary compounds. This updated information may serve as a basis for defining novel prophylactic and therapeutic formulations.

Environmental arsenic exposure and its contribution to human diseases, toxicity mechanism and management

Arsenic is a well-recognized environmental contaminant that occurs naturally through geogenic processes in the aquifer. More than 200 million people around the world are potentially exposed to the elevated level of arsenic mostly from Asia and Latin America. Many adverse health effects including skin diseases (i.e., arsenicosis, hyperkeratosis, pigmentation changes), carcinogenesis, and neurological diseases have been reported due to arsenic exposure. In addition, arsenic has recently been shown to contribute to the onset of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. The mechanisms involved in arsenic-induced diabetes are pancreatic β-cell dysfunction and death, impaired insulin secretion, insulin resistance and reduced cellular glucose transport. Whereas, the most proposed mechanisms of arsenic-induced hypertension are oxidative stress, disruption of nitric oxide signaling, altered vascular response to neurotransmitters and impaired vascular muscle calcium (Ca²⁺) signaling, damage of renal, and interference with the renin-angiotensin system (RAS). However, the contributions of arsenic exposure to non-communicable diseases are complex and multifaceted, and little information is available about the molecular mechanisms involved in arsenic-induced non-communicable diseases and also no suitable therapeutic target identified yet. Therefore, in the future, more basic research is necessary to identify the appropriate therapeutic target for the treatment and management of arsenic-induced non-communicable diseases. Several reports demonstrated that a daily balanced diet with proper nutrient supplements (vitamins, micronutrients, natural antioxidants) has shown effective to reduce the damages caused by arsenic exposure. Arsenic detoxication through natural compounds or nutraceuticals is considered a cost-effective treatment/management and researchers should focus on these alternative options. This review paper explores the scenarios of arsenic contamination in groundwater with an emphasis on public health concerns. It also demonstrated arsenic sources, biogeochemistry, toxicity mechanisms with therapeutic targets, arsenic exposure-related human diseases, and onsets of cardiovascular diseases as well as feasible management options for arsenic toxicity.

Oral Nigella sativa oil administration alleviates arsenic-induced redox imbalance, DNA damage, and metabolic and histological alterations in rat liver

Arsenic, an omnipresent environmental contaminant, is regarded as a potent hepatotoxin. Nigella sativa oil (NSO) consumption has been shown to improve hepatic functions in various in vivo models of acute hepatic injury. The present study evaluates the protective efficacy of NSO against sodium arsenate (As)-induced deleterious alterations in the liver. Male Wistar rats were divided into four groups, namely, control, As, NSO, and AsNSO. After pre-treating rats in AsNSO and NSO groups with NSO (2 mL/kg bwt, orally) for 14 days, NSO treatment was further extended for 30 days, with and without As treatment (5 mg/kg bwt, orally), respectively. As induced an upsurge in serum ALT and AST activities indicating liver injury, as also confirmed by the histopathological findings. As caused significant alterations in the activities of membrane marker enzymes and carbohydrate metabolic enzymes, and in the vital components of antioxidant defense system. Marked DNA damage and hepatic arsenic accumulation were also observed in As-treated rats. Oral NSO administration ameliorated these deleterious alterations and improved overall hepatic antioxidant and metabolic status in As-treated rats. Prevention of oxidative damage could be the underlying mechanism of NSO-mediated protective effects. The results suggest that NSO could be a useful dietary supplement in the management of arsenic hepatotoxicity.

Value Addition and Fortification in Non-Centrifugal Sugar (Jaggery): A Potential Source of Functional and Nutraceutical Foods

Nutraceutical, functional or fortified food not only supplements the diet but also assists in developing immunity and preventing diseases. Therefore, it also provides medical benefits apart from nutrition. Individual health and diet are receiving a lot of attention these days. Food products that are healthy, safe, and easy to use are in high demand. A lot of emphases has been directed toward food products with added health benefits. Jaggery (non-centrifugal sugar), made from sugarcane juice, is one of them. It is known to mankind for the last 3000 years and is an essential part of the diet in the rural part of many countries. Jaggery is recognized as a nutraceutical due to the presence of a variety of essential amino acids, antioxidants, phenolics, minerals like calcium, phosphorus, iron, and vitamins. Jaggery has a better natural source and nutrients for health benefits and could be used as a healthier dietary substitute to white sugar. The nutraceutical value of jaggery can be enhanced with value addition and fortification of medicinally important herbs and spices. This would not only enhance the quality of nutritive jaggery but will also offer value-added products with exciting flavors for daily use sweeteners with several nutritional health benefits.

Combined effects of arsenic and palmitic acid on oxidative stress and lipid metabolism disorder in human hepatoma HepG2 cells

The toxicity of arsenic (As) can be influenced by many nutrients in food. However, the combined effects and underlying mechanisms of As and palmitic acid (PA) are still unclear. Here, cell viability, oxidative stress, lipids accumulation, gene expression profiles, and metabolome profiles of human hepatoma HepG2 cells exposed to As, PA, and As + PA were analyzed and compared. Results showed that co-exposure of 100 μM PA and 2 μM As induced lower cell viability, higher intracellular reactive oxygen species level, more lipid droplet accumulation, and more intracellular triglyceride contents than As alone or PA alone exposure. High-throughput quantitative PCR and ¹H NMR-based metabolomics analysis showed that co-exposure of As and PA caused all toxic effects on gene expression and metabolome profiles induced by As alone or PA alone exposure, and showed higher toxicities. Gene expression profiles in the As + PA group had higher similarity with those in the As group than the PA group. However, PA played a more important role in metabolism disorder than As in their interactive effects. Oxidative stress and lipid metabolism disorder were found to be the main toxic effects in the As + PA group. Several differentially expressed genes (such as OXR1, OXSR1, INSR, and PPARA) and changed metabolites (such as pyruvate, acetate, and L-phenylalanine) were involved in the combined toxicity of As and PA. This study provides basic information on the interactive effects of As and PA, which is useful for the health risk assessment of As and FFA.

Effects of arsenic toxicity beyond epigenetic modifications

Worldwide chronic arsenic (As) poisoning by arsenic-contaminated groundwater is one of the most threatening public health problems. Chronic inorganic As (inAs) exposure has been associated with various forms of cancers and numerous other pathological effects in humans, collectively known as arsenicosis. Over the past decade, evidence indicated that As-induced epigenetic modifications have a role in the adverse effects on human health. The main objective of this article is to review the evidence on epigenetic modifications induced by arsenicals. The epigenetic components play a crucial role in the regulation of gene expression, at both transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels. We synthesized the large body of existing research on arsenic exposure and epigenetic mechanisms of health outcomes with an emphasis on recent publications. Changes in patterns of DNA methylation, histone posttranslational modifications, and microRNAs have been repeatedly observed after inAs exposure in laboratory studies and in studies of human populations. Such alterations have the potential to disturb cellular homeostasis, resulting in the modulation of key pathways in the As-induced carcinogenesis. The present article reviews recent data on As-induced epigenetic effects and concludes that it is time for heightened awareness of pathogenic arsenic exposure, particularly for pregnant women and children, given the potential for a long-lasting disturbed cellular homeostasis.

Influence of diet, vitamin, tea, trace elements and exogenous antioxidants on arsenic metabolism and toxicity

Health risk of arsenic (As) has received increasing attention. Acute and chronic exposure to As could cause several detrimental effects on human health. As toxicity is closely related to its bioaccessibility and metabolism. In real environment, many factors, such as diet and nutrition, can influence As bioaccessibility, metabolism and toxicity. This paper mainly reviews the influences of diets and elements on As bioaccessibility, metabolism and toxicity and their underlying mechanisms to provide suggestions for future investigations. Vitamins, jaggery, fruit, tea, glutathione, N-acetylcysteine and zinc could reduce the As-induced toxicity by increasing antioxidative enzymes to antagonize oxidative stress caused by As and/or increasing As methylation. However, bean and betel nut could increase risk of skin lesions caused by As. Interestingly, high-fat diet, selenium and iron have incompatible effects on As bioaccessibility, metabolism and toxicity in different experimental conditions. Based on current literatures, the As methylation and As-induced oxidative damage might be two main ways that the diets and elements influence As toxicity. Combined application of in vitro human cell lines and gastrointestinal models might be useful tools to simultaneously characterize the changes in As bioaccessibility and toxicity in the future research.

Natural aflatoxin uptake by sugarcane (Saccharum officinaurum L.) and its persistence in jaggery

The present study focused on aflatoxin (AF) uptake by sugarcanes from contaminated soils, and its persistence in jaggery. Analysis of 25 agricultural soil samples from sugarcane growing fields revealed that 80% were found contaminated with AF ranging from 0.5 to 22 ppb and all samples harbored aflatoxigenic fungi. Forty percent of the juices extracted from sugarcane grown in contaminated soil recorded AF ranging from 1.0 to 9.5 ppb. Conversely, jaggery prepared from those samples was almost free from AF. Further, greenhouse experiment confirms the AF uptake ability of sugarcane plants. Analysis of sugarcane juice and jaggery collected from local vendor showed 21% (0.5 to 6.5 ppb) and 5.6% (0.5-1.0 ppb) of AF contamination, respectively. Aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus strain was evaluated for their ability to grow and produce AF on jaggery medium. At 14th day after inoculation, decreased concentration of AF was recorded in jaggery medium ranging from 0 to 120 mg jaggery/ml, above which AF was absent though the fungal growth was noted. From the results, it could be concluded that sugarcane plants have the ability to uptake AF from contaminated soil, but AF was reduced during jaggery preparation. Also, higher concentration of jaggery was inhibitory to AF production.

Protective action of curcumin and nano-curcumin against arsenic-induced genotoxicity in rats in vivo

We explored whether nanoformulation of curcumin can cause better protective effect than free curcumin against arsenic-induced genotoxicity. Curcumin-loaded Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (CUR-NP) were prepared by emulsion technique. The CUR-NP were water soluble and showed biphasic release pattern. Rats were divided into 5 groups of 6 each. Group I served as the control. Group II rats were exposed to sodium arsenite (25 ppm) daily through drinking water for 42 days. Groups III, IV and V were maintained as in Group II, however, they were also administered empty nanoparticle, curcumin (100 mg/kg bw) and CUR-NP (100 mg/kg bw), respectively, by oral gavage during the last 14 days of arsenic exposure. On the 43rd day, genotoxic effects were evaluated in bone marrow cells. Arsenic increased chromosomal aberrations, micronuclei formation and DNA damage. Both free curcumin and CUR-NP attenuated these arsenic-mediated genotoxic effects. However, the result suggests that nanoformulation have better protective effect than free curcumin at the same dose level.

Physical and chemical properties of granulated cane sugar "panelas"

"Panela" is a natural sweetener obtained by concentrating sugar cane juice and handmade in small factories. In the study carried out, the physical and chemical properties of two commercial brands of artisanal granulated panelas and of one made on an experimental level were determined. Three lots of each sample were analyzed. The parameters measured were moisture, a w, protein, ash, minerals, reducing sugars, sucrose, pH, color (L, a and b), insoluble solids (IS), transmittance a 720 nm and filterability. In addition, a qualitative test to detect sulphur dioxide was performed. The parameters with higher variability were moisture (1.66-4.36 g.100 g-1), a w (0.51-0.69), reducing sugars (4.58-11.48 g.100 g-1), pH (5.58-6.90), and color. Potassium was the most abundant mineral (229.52-1027.18 mg.100 g-1). An inverse relationship between IS and transmittance at 720 nm (R² = 0.96) and a direct relationship between IS and ash (R² = 0.94) were found. The sulphur dioxide test was negative for all the samples.