Development of nucleic acid isolation by non-silica-based nanoparticles and real-time PCR kit for edible vegetable oil traceability

For efficient extraction of amplifiable DNA from edible vegetable oils, we developed a novel DNA extraction approach based on the non-silica-based dipolar nanocomposites. The nanoparticle comprises a hydrophilic polymethyl methacrylate core with abundant capillaries, hydrophilic vesicles decorated with molecules having DNA affinity and a coating hydrophobic polystyrene layer. The nanoparticles are soluble in oil, adsorb the DNA from the aqueous phase and gave a high DNA recovery ratio. All DNA extracts from fully refined vegetable oil soybean, peanut, rapeseed, and cottonseed oils, including their blends, were sufficiently pure to be amplified by real-time PCR targeting the chloroplast ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate gene (rbcL), therefore, the species of origin and their ratios in mixed vegetable oils blended from two or three oil-species could be determined. These results indicate that the novel DNA isolation and real-time PCR kit is a simple, sensitive and efficient tool for the species identification and traceability in refined vegetable oils.

Aspirin prevents bone loss with little mechanical improvement in high-fat-fed ovariectomized rats

Obesity and osteoporosis are often concurrently happened in the menopausal women. Obesity in menopausal women is not only related to a high risk of cardiovascular disease, but also results in a detrimental effect on bone health. This study aimed to investigate the effects of aspirin, a popular anti-thrombosis drug, on bone quantity and quality in the high-fat-fed animal model. Adult female rats were subjected to either sham operations or ovariectomized operations. The ovariectomized rats were orally administered with deionized water or standardized high fat emulsion with or without aspirin. All rats were injected with calcein before killed for the purpose of double in vivo labeling. Biochemistry, histomorphometry, micro-computed tomography analysis, mechanical test, and component analysis were performed after 12 weeks. In vitro cell culture was also performed to observe the effect of aspirin in osteogenesis. We found that high fat remarkably impaired bone formation and bone biomechanics. Aspirin treatment significantly prevented bone loss by increasing bone formation. In vitro studies also validated the enhancement of osteogenic differentiation. However, aspirin presented no significant improvement in bone mechanical properties. Component analysis shown aspirin could significantly increase the content of mineral, but had limited effect on the content of collagen. In conclusion, aspirin is beneficial for the prevention of bone loss; meanwhile, it may cause an imbalance in the components of bone which may weaken the mechanical properties. The current study provided further evidence that aspirin might not be powerful for the prevention of fracture in osteoporotic patients.