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The impact of grain hardness on iron bioavailability from a set of wheat genotypes with varying hardness indices was determined. This may help us to consider grain hardness as an important parameter along with other established parameters for selecting food crops for future biofortification programs to combat iron deficiency linked to global health problem. The bioavailability and dialysability of iron were determined using the coupled in vitro digestion/Caco-2 model. The grain hardness and its molecular basis along with grain iron, phytate and inorganic phosphorous (Pi) contents were also evaluated. The data indicated that iron concentration in the genotypes ranged from 21 to 50 μg/g of dry matter. The hardness indices varied from as low as 28 for the derivative BTC17 to as high as 92 for the landrace IITR 26, almost similar to that of WL711, a wild type cultivar considered as control in this study. Low variability was however observed for the phytate and Pi contents. A significant negative correlation was observed between grain hardness vs. dialysability ( r = −0.73) and bioavailability ( r = −0.75) of iron. The results suggest that the hardness index which profoundly affects milling process, particle size of flour, milling yield and end-use also influences dialysability and bioavailability of iron from wheat.

In recent time, vanadium compounds are being used as antidiabetic drug and in orthopedic implants. However, the exact role of this incorporated vanadium in improving the quality of bone structure and morphology is not known. The impact of vanadium ion was studied and compared to other trace metal ions with respect to the proliferation and osteoblast differentiation of C3H10t1/2 cells. Toxicity profile of these trace metal ions revealed a descending toxicity trend of Fe(2+)Zn(2+)Cu(2+)Co(2+)Mn(2+)V(5+)Cr(2+). The effect of vanadium and other trace metal ions on osteoblast differentiation was evaluated by culturing the cells for 10 days in osteoblastic medium supplemented with different trace ions at concentrations lower than their cytotoxic doses. The results indicated that vanadium has maximum impact on the induction of osteoblast differentiation by upregulating alkaline phosphatase activity and mineralization by up to 145 and 150 %, respectively (p 0.05), over control. Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) had a mild inhibitory effect, while Mn(2+), Fe(2+), and Co(2+) demonstrated a clear decrease in osteoblast differentiation when compared to the control. The data as presented here demonstrate that orthopedic implants, if supplemented with trace metals like vanadium, may provide a source of better model for bone formation and its turnover.

In this study, we report the enhanced osteoblast differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) on a novel polygalacturonic acid (PGA)/gelatin scaffold. The matrices of various PGA/geletin ratios were fabricated, biophysically characterized, and optimized for cell culture applications. Blended 2% PGA/gelatin scaffolds were highly porous and were robust with enhanced mechanical strength. Swelling studies showed they had high swelling capacity (six-fold higher than only gelatin scaffold) along with complete degradation in the presence of phosphate-buffered saline. Cytocompatibility of the matrices was evaluated using mouse fibroblast 3T3-L1 cell line showing normal spreading and proliferation as assessed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and MTT assay. Among different blends of PGA/gelatin, 2% PGA/gelatin (2PG) scaffold showed the optimum physical and biological compatibility for use in cell culture and differentiation of mESC, especially for osteoblast differentiation. The scaffold, as reported in...

The zinc bioavailability from wheat- Aegilops derivatives and Triticum monococcum low phytic acid ( lpa ) mutants with varying zinc concentrations was assessed using a novel metal response element (MRE)-binding transcription factor-1 (MTF-1)/MRE luciferase reporter gene based transactivation assay in the coupled in vitro digestion/Caco-2 model. The zinc content in the genotypes studied ranged from 19 to 65 μg/g. The bioavailability enhancement of zinc as determined from the luciferase response of MTF1/MRE transfected cells to cooked digests of biofortified derivatives and the lpa mutants was recorded as a 1.2–2.0 fold-increase, corresponding to 1.8–3.3 fold increases in the zinc content over the respective WL711-cultivar and T. monococcum wild-type controls. The strong positive and negative correlations observed for zinc bioavailability with respect to zinc content and phytate:zinc molar ratios in the derivatives ( r = 0.74 and −0.76) as well as lpa mutants ( r = 0.89 and −0.94) illustrate the significance of using these parameters in zinc biofortification programmes. Genotypes with phytate:zinc molar ratios of less than 15, with remarkably enhanced zinc bioavailability, were identified. This method could thus serve as a sensitive transactivation assay for a screening approach that could accurately rank bioavailability of zinc from biofortified staples for subsequent animal studies and advance select lines for human studies.

A coupled in vitro digestion/Caco-2 model was employed to assess iron bioavailability from wheat Aegilops derivatives selected for high iron and protein contents. The iron content in wheat genotypes used in this study correlated to a great extent with both protein (r = 0.80) and phytate (r = 0.68) contents. The iron bioavailability was based on Caco-2 cell ferritin formation from cooked digests of these derivatives (relative to WL711 control) and correlated positively with dialyzable iron (r = 0.63) and total iron content (r = 0.38) but not with the phytate content. The apparently decreased phytate/iron molar ratios, however, correlated negatively (r = -0.42) with the iron bioavailability, justifying the utilization of these parameters in biofortification programs. Iron bioavailability in the derivatives increased up to 1.5-fold, corresponding to a 1.5-2.2-fold increase observed in iron content over control. These data suggest that biofortification for iron proportionately leading to higher iron bioavailability will be the most feasible and cost-effective approach to combat micronutrient deficiency.

Eugenia jambolana (EJ) is long known for its antidiabetic activities in traditional medicines. The aim of this study was to determine the probable mechanism of action of a flavonoid-rich extract from seeds of EJ on streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. Various biochemical parameters, e.g. glucose tolerance, lipid profile, glycogen biosynthesis, glucose uptake and insulin release in vivo and in vitro, were significantly improved in the extract-treated diabetic mice. Similarly, differential regulation and expression of glucose homeostatic enzymes, e.g. glucose-6-phosphatase and hexokinase, were also changed significantly in response to the flavonoid-rich extract, which clearly demonstrated the hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects in treated animals. Further, analysis of the extract using HPLC, demonstrated the presence of different flavonoids and their derivatives which are known for their antidiabetic and antioxidant potential. The data showed that this flavonoid-rich seed extract has a remarkable dual hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effect.

A pharmacokinetic in vitro and in vivo degradation study has been carried out in rat to evaluate the deleterious effects of exposure to quinalphos on a target population. Degradation of quinalphos in simulated gastric and intestinal phases has been investigated. The metabolic intermediates of quinalphos in serum and urine of albino rats at different time intervals were identified after dosing the animals with 5 mg kg(-1) body weight. All the samples were lyophilised, extracted and analysed by HPLC and GC-MS. The rate of degradation of quinalphos was accelerated in the presence of the enzymes pepsin and pancreatin contained in the gastric and intestinal simulations, respectively. Quinalphos oxon, O-ethyl-O-quinoxalin-2-yl phosphoric acid, 2-hydroxy quinoxaline and ethyl phosphoric acid are among the important metabolites identified both in in vitro and in vivo investigations. In simulated in vitro study some isomerised derivatives which were missing in the blood and urine of treated animals were identified. This could possibly be either due to non-formation or faster decay of the isomerised derivatives because of slightly different conditions prevailing in the two cases. The results also indicate that the metabolites, 2-hydroxy quinoxaline and oxon, which are more toxic than the parent compound, seem to persist for a longer time.

Sedentary lifestyle, consumption of energy-rich diet, obesity and longer lifespan are some of the major reasons for the rise of metabolic disorders like type II diabetes, obesity, hypertension and dyslipidemia among people of various age groups. High fat diet induced diabetic rodent models resembling type II diabetic condition in human population were used to assess the anti-diabetic and hypolipidemic activity of guggulsterone (isolated from Commiphora mukul resin). Four groups of rats were fed high fat diet, for 16 weeks. On feeding the normal rats with fat rich diet they showed increased serum glucose, cholesterol and triglyceride levels along with increase in insulin resistance significantly (p

Capparis decidua (CD) is a xerophytic shrub, found widely in the western parts of India, Pakistan and some of the Asian countries. The dried fruits are used as an ingredient in anti-diabetic compositions.The present study was carried out to test the effect of alkaloid rich (AR) fraction from this plant in the management of diabetes.Streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice were treated with the AR fraction for 28 days. On completion of the treatment, a range of parameters were tested including oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), blood lipid profile, expression patterns of various glucose homeostatic enzyme genes and their activities.Treatment of diabetic mice with AR fraction for 28 days significantly inhibited the acute elevation of blood glucose level during OGTT and also reduced total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) content (p0.05). Activity of glucose-6-phosphatase (G6Pase) was attenuated by 44%, also liver and muscle glycogen content showed significant improvement (p0.05). The expression of different target genes like G6Pase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK), aldose reductase and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) showed significant reduction whereas glucose transporter-4 (Glut-4), peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) and glucokinase (GK) improved remarkably.AR fraction showed promising results in terms of anti-diabetic activities establishing its candidacy for further purification and characterization of the individual alkaloids, in order to understand their mechanism of action.