Physicochemical characteristics of rapidly dried onion powder and its anti-atherogenic effect on rats fed high-fat diet

Rapidly dried onion (Milan cepa L. cv. Momiji No. 3) powder (OP) prepared from the outer layers (from second to fourth scale leaves from the surface) of onion bulbs was analysed for its quercetin and polyuronide contents, the effects of enzymatic treatment and the anti-atherogenic effect on rats fed a high-fat diet. Quercetin 4'-glucoside (50%), free quercetin (30%) and quercetin 3,4'-diglucoside (20%) were identified as quercetin derivatives, and boiling-water extraction was effective in extracting these compounds. OP contained 12.9% of polyuronides, the basic skeleton of pectin. Enzymatic degradation (cellulase and pectinase, 50 degrees C for 12 h, pH 6.0) of OP was effective in obtaining a slurry of smaller particle sizes. The free quercetin increased and the glucosides decreased with enzyme treatment. In Wistar rats fed an OP-added high-fat diet, the total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were not significantly different from the rats fed a high-fat diet without OP. However, the atherogenic index (AI) of Wistar rats fed an OP-added high-fat diet was lower (AI = 3.3) than rats fed the diet without OP (AI = 4.1). The incremental elastic modulus (IEM) of the aorta from rats fed the OP-added diet was also significantly lower than that of the rats fed the diet without OP. The AI and IEM values of the rats fed the OP-added diet were quite similar to the values of rats fed the diet without OP but were allowed spontaneous exercise. These results suggest that OP intake is effective for decreasing the risk of arteriosclerosis.ArticleFOOD CHEMISTRY. 129(3):810-815 (2011)journal articl

Influence of Diabetes Mellitus on Left Ventricular Function in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting

Objectives. Left ventricular function was assessed by two-dimensional echocardiography before and one year after coronary artery bypass grafting CABG in a series of patients with severe coronary artery disease with diabetes mellitus DM and without DM non-DM . Methods. Twenty-three patients with DM and 50 patients without DM, all with no previous myocardial infarction, underwent two-dimensional echocardiography before CABG and one year after CABG, in a non-matched study. For a matched study, 31 patients without DM who had almost the same left ventricular function as DM patients at the baseline were selected to and compare the rate of improvement in left ventricular function between the DM group and the matched non-DM group. Results. In the non-matched study, patient characteristics were not significantly different between the 2 groups except for the incidence of congestive heart failure within one year before CABG, which was significantly higher in the DM group. Fractional shortening was significantly lower in the DM group at the baseline p 0.05 and also one year after CABG p 0.0001 . Significant improvement in fractional shortening was seen in the non-DM group p 0.001 , but not in the DM group. The left ventricular enddiastolic diameter LVDd was significantly larger in the DM group at the baseline p 0.01 , and was still significantly larger in the DM group at one year after CABG p 0.01 . No improvement in LVDd was seen in the DM group. In the matched study, fractional shortening of the non-DM group also showed significant improvement after CABG p 0.001 . Moreover, the rate of improvement in fractional shortening was higher in the non-DM group than in the DM group p 0.05 . LVDd tended to be larger in the DM group p NS . Conclusions. Left ventricular dysfunction and left ventricular impaired improvement were seen in the patients with DM, and CABG improved left ventricular function in the patients without DM with poor left ventricular function. These findings indicate that CABG therapy may be inadequate for improving left ventricular function in patients with DM and severe left ventricular dysfunction at the baseline.