Fatigue onset through oxidative stress, dehydration and lactic acid accumulation and its in vivo study using experimental animals

Among athletes, endurance is one of the key elements to victory. In addition to training, athletes normally used supplement to prevent fatigue during the event. With prolonged and intense activity, our body started to experience decrease in muscle performance due to several factors such as oxidative stress, dehydration and accumulation of lactic acid in the body fluids. The free radicals generated during intense exercise will expose the cells to oxidative damages. In the event of dehydration, there will be significant losses of water and functional electrolytes during intense exercise which affected the body fluid balance. Fatigue will also occur during reduced oxygen in aerobic metabolism which later caused accumulation of lactic acid in the muscle. This will change the pH balance toward more acidic and caused the muscles to lose contractile efficiency. In addition, fatigue can also be studied using rats as model organism. Results from this activity can be useful to analyse cellular metabolism and physiology effects of the tested rats toward physical exercise. Therefore, this review aims to discuss the causes of fatigue through oxidative stress, dehydration and lactic acid accumulation. In addition, the effectiveness of using rats as a model system in measuring fatigue is also included in illustrating examples on fatigue assessment in vivo

Ergogenic attributes of young and mature coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) water based on physical properties, sugars and electrolytes contents

The present work aimed to compare the main ergogenic attributes of two commercialized stages (young and mature) of coconut water (CW) obtained from four coconut varieties. The changes of electrolytes and sugars in CW upon maturation were quantified by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrophotometer and high-performance liquid chromatography, respectively. Based on the electrolyte profiling, potassium yielded the highest amount (ranging from 237.41 to 361.20 mg/100 mL) followed by sodium, magnesium, calcium, iron, manganese, copper, selenium, and zinc across all the maturity stages tested. For sugars, there were lower amounts of fructose and glucose, but a higher amount of sucrose with the maturation of the fruits. In conclusion, the amount of beneficial nutrients in the form of sugars and minerals was higher than that of young CW, and the ergogenic attributes of mature CW especially from MATAG variety (M-MATAG) were the best to be exploited further in the development of natural energy drinks

Different maturities and varieties of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) flesh as fat replacers in reduced-fat meatballs

Meatball is a popular meat product in Malaysia but it has high-fat content that could often bring health problems such as non-communicable diseases. This study aimed to produce replaced-fat meatballs using coconut flesh with three different varieties (i.e. MAWA, MYD, and Pandan) at two levels of maturities (young and matured). Meatballs with animal fat were used as control. All samples were analysed for the proximate composition, cooking yield, water holding capacity (WHC), texture and sensory properties. Two-way ANOVA was conducted to determine the interaction between the maturity and variety of the coconut for all parameters with post-hoc analysis to observe the significant difference (p<0.05). The maturity and variety of coconuts showed significant interactions (p<0.05) in affecting most of the meatball properties. Young coconuts were superior to mature coconut with better cooking yield (p<0.05), texture and sensory properties. Meatballs with young Pandan had the highest moisture content (p<0.05) (71.78%), low fat (3.56%) (p<0.05), and overall sensory acceptance. Meatballs with young MYD had low fat content (3.50%) (p<0.05), high WHC (52.11) (p<0.05), high redness (6.09) (p<0.05) with a high score of the colour (7.13) taste (7.17), texture (7.30) and overall acceptability (7.03) for the sensory properties. Since both young Pandan and young MYD managed to reduce the fat content in the meatballs as compared to the control sample and other treatments while maintaining the quality characteristics of the meatballs, both can be concluded to have potential as the fat replacers in the production of reduced-fat meatballs

Ergogenic property of Morinda citrifolia L. leaf extract affects energy metabolism in obese Sprague Dawley rats

Ergogenic property is the ability to enhance capacity for physical activities through efficient production of energy and is potentially beneficial in weight management for the obese. In this study, ergogenic property of Morinda citrifolia leaf's extract (MCL) was evaluated using AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activity and high fat diet-induced obese rats. Findings from the study showed that MCL demonstrated ergogenic activity via enhancement of AMPK activity using L6 skeletal muscle cell line. Interestingly, the result also revealed that rats treated with the intermediate dosage of MCL experienced the lowest % weight gain. The rats fed the highest dose of 200 mg/kg BW MCL demonstrated the longest swimming time of approximately three times that of green tea and caffeine-fed rats. The highest dose fed rats were also found to have lower glucose and lactate levels, suggesting that energy metabolism was more effective in these rats. In addition, lactate dehydrogenase and creatinine kinase activities, the muscle injury indicators, were found to be the lowest in rats fed the highest MCL dose. The same effect was not seen in rats fed either caffeine or green tea, indicating that MCL treatment is may be protective of the rats' muscles. It was also shown that MCL consisted of various flavonoids with epicatechin, catechin, and quercetin that may be responsible for the effects measured. In conclusion, improvements were seen in rats fed MCL in terms of weight management, endurance capacity, energy metabolism, and muscle injury parameters. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Results of the study revealed that Morinda citrifolia leaf has great potential to be used as functional ingredient in the development of designer food/drink as ergogenic aid for both obese and non-obese individuals. Morinda citrifolia leaf could help in the weight management of obese people and enhance endurance capacity and energy metabolism in active individuals

Different maturities and varieties of coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) flesh as fat replacers in reduced-fat meatballs

Meatball is a popular meat product in Malaysia but it has high-fat content that could often bring health problems such as non-communicable diseases. This study aimed to produce replaced-fat meatballs using coconut flesh with three different varieties (i.e. MAWA, MYD, and Pandan) at two levels of maturities (young and matured). Meatballs with animal fat were used as control. All samples were analysed for the proximate composition, cooking yield, water holding capacity (WHC), texture and sensory properties. Two-way ANOVA was conducted to determine the interaction between the maturity and variety of the coconut for all parameters with post-hoc analysis to observe the significant difference (p<0.05). The maturity and variety of coconuts showed significant interactions (p<0.05) in affecting most of the meatball properties. Young coconuts were superior to mature coconut with better cooking yield (p<0.05), texture and sensory properties. Meatballs with young Pandan had the highest moisture content (p<0.05) (71.78%), low fat (3.56%) (p<0.05), and overall sensory acceptance. Meatballs with young MYD had low fat content (3.50%) (p<0.05), high WHC (52.11) (p<0.05), high redness (6.09) (p<0.05) with a high score of the colour (7.13) taste (7.17), texture (7.30) and overall acceptability (7.03) for the sensory properties. Since both young Pandan and young MYD managed to reduce the fat content in the meatballs as compared to the control sample and other treatments while maintaining the quality characteristics of the meatballs, both can be concluded to have potential as the fat replacers in the production of reduced-fat meatballs

Novel sources of bioactive compounds in coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) water from different maturity levels and varieties as potent skin anti-aging strategies and anti-fatigue agents

Coconut water (CW) is a popular natural hydration drink in tropical countries. It is rich in essential electrolytes, vitamins, minerals, and bioactive compounds with functional properties. Therefore, this work aimed to evaluate the functional properties (i.e., antioxidant and anti-aging activities) and to determine selected bioactive compounds in young and mature CW from the four most popular coconut varieties in Malaysia namely, Aromatic Green Dwarf (PDN), Malaysian Yellow Dwarf (MYD), MATAG (MYD × Tagnanan) and MAWA (MYD × West African Tall). Spectrophotometric and liquid chromatography methods were used to quantify the changes in the tested parameters. It is shown that the quantification of selected bioactive compounds and functional activities of CW displayed a mixed pattern at different maturation. Results from antioxidant, anti-aging activities, amino acids profile and bioactive compounds such as gallic acid, catechin, trans-zeatin, and dihydrozeatin were measured to decrease with the coconuts’ maturation. Meanwhile, the amount of kinetin, kinetin riboside and trans-zeatin riboside increased with the maturation of the coconuts. Specifically, CW from young MYD showed the highest antioxidant and anti-aging activities and possessed diverse bioactive compounds that could serve as novel sources of natural functional ingredients targeted for skin anti-aging. In addition, the sensory evaluation showed that the taste of young and mature CW is acceptable for consumption with the young PDN, young MYD and mature MYD displaying the highest score. To the best of our knowledge, the present work reported the first attempt to elucidate the inhibitory activities of CW towards elastase and collagenase enzymes