Cold-pressed Canola Oil Reduces Hepatic Steatosis by Modulating Oxidative Stress and Lipid Metabolism in KM Mice Compared with Refined Bleached Deodorized Canola Oil

Canola Oil Ameliorates Obesity by Suppressing Lipogenesis and Reprogramming the Gut Microbiota in Mice via the AMPK Pathway

BACKGROUND

obesity is a worldwide problem that seriously endangers human health. Canola oil (Col) has been reported to regulate hepatic steatosis by influencing oxidative stress and lipid metabolism in Kunming mice. However, whether Col exhibits an anti-obesity effect by altering the gut microbiota remains unknown.

METHODS

in this study, we observed that a high-fat diet increased lipogenesis and gut microbiota disorder in C57BL/6J male mice, while the administration of Col suppressed lipogenesis and improved gut microbiota disorder.

RESULTS

the results show that Col markedly reduced the final body weight and subcutaneous adipose tissue of C57BL/6J male mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) after 6 weeks of administration. However, although Col did not effectively increase the serum concentration of HDL, we found that treatment with Col notably inhibited the low-density lipoprotein (LDL), total cholesterol (TC), and triglycerides (TGs) in HFD mice. Furthermore, Col ameliorated obesity in the liver compared to mice that were only fed a high-fat diet. We also found that Col significantly inhibited the relative expression of sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP1/2), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), and insulin-induced genes (Insig1/2) that proved to be closely associated with lipogenesis in HFD mice. In addition, the concentration of acetic acid was significantly increased in Col-treatment HFD mice. Further, we noted that Col contributed to the reprogramming of the intestinal microbiota. The relative abundances of Akkermansia, Dubosiella, and Alistipes were enhanced under treatment with Col in HFD mice. The results also imply that Col markedly elevated the phosphorylation level of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathway in HFD mice.

CONCLUSIONS

the results of our study show that Col ameliorates obesity and suppresses lipogenesis in HFD mice. The underlying mechanisms are possibly associated with the reprogramming of the gut microbiota, in particular, the acetic acid-mediated increased expression of Alistipes via the AMPK signaling pathway.

The Integrated Application of Phosphorous and Zinc Affects the Physiological Status, Yield and Quality of Canola Grown in Phosphorus-suffered Deficiency Saline Soil

Despite the soil could contain high amount of phosphorus (P), salinity reduce its availability for crop plants. Hence, farmers should practice several tactics to ameliorate P deficiency in soils. The current study aimed to assess the importance of zinc (Zn) supply for mitigating the deficiency of P for canola grown in saline soil. The effects of three Zn rates (0, 150 and 300 mg L−1, Zn0, Zn150 and Zn300, respectively) under three P rates (0, 36 and 72 kg P2O5 ha−1, P0, P36, and P72, respectively) on physiological status, yield and quality of canola were measured. Treatments were arranged in the strip plot design based on completely randomized blocks with three replicates. Findings exhibited that P36 recorded the highest values of membrane stability index in the 2nd season, while statistically leveled P72 for relative water content and chlorophyll fluorescence in both seasons. Zn300 exhibited potent effect on all canola physiological traits in both seasons. In both seasons, P36 × Zn300, P72 × Zn150 and P72 × Zn300 showed the maximum chlorophyll fluorescence and performance index values. Plots treated with P72 achieved 70.0% increase in canola seed yield, greater than the untreated ones. Seed yield obtained with Zn300 were higher than Zn0 and Zn150 by1.30 and 1.10 times in 2019/20 season and 1.23 and 1.05 times in 2020/21 season. The highest oil % was recorded with P0 × Zn150 and P72 × Zn0 in the 1st season and with P72 × Zn150 in the 2nd season.

Pigment of Ceiba speciosa (A. St.-Hil.) Flowers: Separation, Extraction, Purification and Antioxidant Activity

In this work, the extraction procedure of a natural pigment from the flower of Ceiba speciosa (A. St.-Hil.) was optimized by response surface methodology. It is the first time that the extraction of the flower pigment of C. speciosa (FPCS) has been reported, along with an evaluation of its stability and biological activity under various conditions, and an exploration of its potential use as a food additive and in medicine. Specifically, the effects of ethanol concentration, solid-liquid ratio, temperature and time on the extraction rate of FPCS were determined using a Box-Behnken design. The optimum extraction conditions for FPCS were 75% ethanol with a solid-liquid ratio of 1:75 mg/mL) at 66 °C for 39 min. The purification of FPCS using different macroporous resins showed that D101 performed best when the initial mass concentration of the injection solution was 1.50 mg/mL, resulting in a three-fold increase in color value. The yield of dry flowers was 9.75% of fresh petals and the FPCS extraction efficiency was 43.2%. The effects of light, solubility, pH, temperature, sweeteners, edible acids, redox agents, preservatives and metal ions on FPCS were also investigated. Furthermore, the characteristics of FPCS were determined by spectrophotometry at a specific wavelength using the Lambert-Beer law to correlate the mass of FPCS with its absorbance value. An acute toxicological test performed according to Horne's method showed that FPCS is a non-toxic extract and thus may be used as a food additive or in other ingestible forms. Finally, western blotting showed that FPCS prevents lipopolysaccharide-induced hippocampal oxidative stress in mice. The study suggests that FPCS may function as an antioxidant with applications in the food, cosmetics and polymer industries.

Auricularia auricula-judae (Bull.) polysaccharides improve type 2 diabetes in HFD/STZ-induced mice by regulating the AKT/AMPK signaling pathways and the gut microbiota

Auricularia auricula-judae is an edible fungus with high nutritional value due to abundant polysaccharides, and is acknowledged as traditional food and medicine in Asia. Polysaccharides from A. auricula (AAPs) are typically fungal polysaccharides and have a wide range of biological activities. It has been shown the potential of AAPs to improve diabetes as an effective adjuvant, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we explored the effects and potential mechanism of AAPs on type 2 diabetes (T2D) using a high-fat diet and streptozotocin (STZ) induced C57BL/6J mice. The results indicated that 50 and 100 mg/kg AAPs significantly decreased inflammation, liver injury, and insulin resistance. In addition, AAPs improved glycolipid metabolism disorders by activating the AKT and adenosine 5`monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathways in T2D mice. Furthermore, we investigated the association between changes of gut microbiota and AAPs effects using high-throughput sequencing of 16S rDNA for fecal samples. In our study, AAPs elevated gut microbiota diversity and optimized microbial composition and function in T2D mice, characterized by increased Lactobacillus and Bacteroides abundance and decreased Clostridium and Allobaculum abundance. Particularly, AAPs intervention mainly affected the amino acid metabolism and glycolipid metabolism pathways. Overall, this study confirms that AAPs can improve type 2 diabetes by regulating the AKT and AMPK pathways and modulating intestinal microbiota. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The article systematically verified the positive effects of AAPs on insulin resistance, glycolipid metabolism disorder, inflammation, and liver injury, key factors closely related to T2D. Furthermore, our study firstly determined the specific underlying mechanism that AAPs ameliorates T2D through regulating AKT/AMPK pathways and modifying the gut microbiota. These results could offer a full explanation and a potential option for the adjuvant therapy of diabetes with AAPs.

Chrysin Improves Glucose and Lipid Metabolism Disorders by Regulating the AMPK/PI3K/AKT Signaling Pathway in Insulin-Resistant HepG2 Cells and HFD/STZ-Induced C57BL/6J Mice

Natural products with minor side effects have been reported to be an effective adjuvant therapy for glucose and lipid metabolism disorders. Chrysin, a flavone, has a wide range of physiological effects, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetes, anti-hyperlipidemia, and hepatoprotective. This study was designed to explore the effects and mechanism of chrysin on metabolic syndrome using insulin-resistant HepG2 cells and HFD/STZ-induced C57BL/6J mice. The results indicated that chrysin significantly decreased insulin resistance, oxidative stress, inflammation, and liver injury. In addition, chrysin improved glycogen synthesis and fatty acid oxidation and inhibited gluconeogenesis and fatty acid synthesis by regulating GSK3β, G6Paes, PEPCK, SREBP1, FAS, and ACC1. Furthermore, the results of western blot and real-time PCR experiments demonstrated that chrysin modulated glucose and lipid metabolism through the AMPK/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Treatment with the AMPK inhibitor verified that AMPK activation is positively correlated with chrysin activity on glycolipid metabolism. This study confirms that chrysin is a potential treatment for glucose and lipid metabolism disorders.

Sea Cucumber Sterol Alleviates the Lipid Accumulation in High-Fat-Fructose Diet Fed Mice

The effect of marine-derived sea cucumber sterol (SS) with a special sulfate group on lipid accumulation remains unknown, although phytosterol has been proved to have many biological activities, including lowering blood cholesterol. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the alleviation of SS on lipid accumulation and the possible underlying mechanism using high-fat-fructose diet fed mice. Dietary administration with SS for 8 weeks reduced significantly the body weight gain and lipid levels in serum and liver. Especially, SS was superior to phytosterol in lowering lipid accumulation due to the great promotion of fatty acid β-oxidation, the inhibition of cholesterol synthesis, and the acceleration of cholesterol efflux. The findings found that sea cucumber sterol exhibited a more significant effect than phytosterol on alleviating HFF-diet-induced lipid accumulation through regulating lipid and cholesterol metabolism, which might be attributed to the difference in the branch chain and sulfate group.

Replacing soybean meal with rapeseed meal and faba beans in a growing-finishing pig diet: Effect on growth performance, meat quality and metabolite changes

Rapeseed meal and faba beans (RSM/FB) can serve as an alternative to imported soybean meal (SBM). In this study, forty Norwegian crossbred ([Landrace x Yorkshire] x Duroc) growing-finishing pigs (108.7 ± 4.2 kg final BW) were fed a diet with either SBM or RSM/FB as protein sources. RSM/FB increased feed conversion ratio (P = .04) in the finishing period, reduced lightness (P = .04) and yellowness (P = .004) of meat, changed amounts of individual fatty acids, but not of total SFA, MUFA and PUFA. Importantly, RSM/FB reduced the glucose level (P < .05) in meat. Lower pyroglutamic acid (P = .06) in RSM/FB indicate lower oxidative stress in pre-rigor muscle cell. Increased abundance of free amino acids, sweet tasting metabolites, reduced warmed-over flavor and flavor attributes indicated desirable properties of RSM/FB meat. To conclude, RSM/FB in pig diet supported growth performance and carcass quality comparable to SBM and had a positive effect on meat quality.