Black soybean tempeh and purple sweet potato improve sperm quality in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats

Background and Aim:

Hyperglycemia increases advanced glycation end-product (AGE) production, and the activity of receptor for AGE (RAGE) in testis, which leads to testicular histopathological damage and infertility. This research investigated the effect of black soybean tempeh (BST), purple sweet potato (PSP), and its combination on AGE and RAGE expression and spermatozoa quality in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats.

Materials and Methods:

The rats were given high-fat diets for 5 weeks, then were injected intraperitoneally with multiple low doses of STZ (30 mg/kg body weight). Diabetes mellitus (DM) rats were divided into seven groups: DM, DM+glibenclamide, DM+BST, DM+PSP, and DM+combination of BST and PSP in ratio 1:3, 2:2, and 3:1 as C1, C2, and C3, respectively. The rats were treated for 30 days. Testicular AGE and RAGE expression and spermatozoa quality were measured.

Results:

The combination of BST and PSP significantly decreased AGE and RAGE expression in testicular organs and improved spermatozoa quality compared to the normal group.

Conclusion:

The combination of BST and PSP can be used as future alternatives to improve spermatozoa quality in DM patients.

Novel Self-Nanoemulsifying Drug Delivery System (SNEDDS) of Single Garlic Extract: Bio-accessibility, Cytotoxicity, and Anti-Inflammatory Studies

Single garlic has many health benefits in which the active compound content five times higher than regular garlic. However, the utilization of the active compound in single garlic was not optimal due to its lipophilic characteristics, volatility, and low stability in gastrointestinal fluids. Self-Nanoemulsifying Drug Delivery System (SNEDDS) has the potential to control the release rate of the active compounds and lead to increase bioavailability in the digestive tract. The study aimed to formulate SNEDDS for single garlic extract (SGE) to increase its bioaccessibility and anti-inflammatory potentials. SNEDDS-SGE was formulated with Tween-80, PEG-400, canola oil, and SGE. SNEDDS-SGE was characterized by response tests including emulsification time, emulsion pH, and transmittance; morphology and droplet size of SNEDDS using TEM; and SGE stability in SNEDDS was evaluated by in vitro gastrointestinal simulation. The cytotoxicity of SNEDDS-SGE was tested using MTT assay, and its anti-inflammatory potential on IL-1ß expression was assessed by the immunocytochemistry (ICC) method on TIG-1 cells induced by methylglyoxal. Response test data and characterization of SNEDDS-SGE were analyzed descriptively, bioaccessibility data were analyzed by T-test, cytotoxicity test by linear regression, IL-1β and C/EBPα expression data by One-way ANOVA. The results showed that SNEDDS-SGE had a fast emulsification time of 41.913 seconds, a stable pH of 7.56, and a high transmittance percentage of 98.027%. The SNEDDS-SGE droplet has a uniform shape with a size of less than 100 nm. SNEDDS-SGE was able to increase the bioaccessibility of SGE by 89.34% for allicin and 89.31% for alliin, also non-toxic at concentrations below 1000 µg/ml. SNEDDS was able to significantly increase the effect of SGE in suppressing the expression of IL-1ß at all concentrations of SNEDDS-SGE 62.5 µg/ml, 125 µg/ml, and 250 µg/ml with the lowest decreased expression of 44.82 ± 4.30 AU. Our study suggested that SNEDDS has the potential to enhance the biological effects of SGE, as well as being a promising anti-inflammatory agent.

Characterization and In-vitro Study of Micro-encapsulation Chitosan Alginate of Single-bulb Garlic Extract

BACKGROUND

Single-bulb garlic extract (SBGE) contains more active compounds than regular garlic, but it is unstable and easily degraded in the digestive tract. SBGE is expected to be protected by microencapsulation chitosan-alginate (MCA).

OBJECTIVE

The present study aimed to characterize and assess the antioxidant activity, hemocompatibility, and toxicity of MCA-SBGE in 3T3-L1 cells.

METHODS

The research procedures consist of extraction of single bulb garlic, preparation of MCASBGE, Particle Size Analyzer (PSA), FTIR analysis, DPPH assay, hemocompatibility test, and MTT assay.

RESULTS

The average size of MCA-SGBE was 423.7 ± 2.8 nm, the polydispersity index (PdI) was 0.446 ± 0.022, and the zeta potential was -24.5 ± 0.4 mV. MCA-SGBE was spherical with a diameter range of 0.65-0.9 μm. A shift in absorption and addition of functional groups was found in SBGE after encapsulation. MCA-SBGE, at a concentration of 24 x 103 ppm, has higher antioxidants than SBGE. The hemocompatibility test shows the hemolysis of MCA-SBGE lower than SBGE. MCA-SBGE was not toxic to 3T3-L1 cells with cell viability percentage above 100% at all concentrations.

CONCLUSION

MCA-SBGE characterization has microparticle criteria with homogeneous PdI values, low particle stability, and spherical morphology. The results showed that SBGE and MCA-SBGE are nonhemolytic, compatible with red blood cells, and non-toxic to 3T3-L1 cells.