Apoptotic effect of astaxanthin from white shrimp shells on lung cancer A549 cells

Purpose: To investigate the anti-cancer potential of astaxanthin from Litopenaeus vannamei encapsulated in liposomes (ASX) to treat lung cancer A549 cells.Methods: Lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells were cultured and treated with ASX, following which cell viability and nuclear staining were performed. Generation of ROS was identified by the DCFH-DA assay while tetramethylrhodamine ethyl ester was used to determine the mitochondrial membrane potential. Flow cytometry was applied to investigate caspase-3/7 activity and cell cycle distribution.Results: ASX inhibited growth of A549 in a concentration- and time- dependent manner. The IC50 values at 24, 48 and 72 h were 53.73, 22.85, 17.46 μg/mL, respectively (p < 0.05). After incubation with ASX, the morphological changes were observed in A549 cells following Hoechst 33342/PI fluorescent staining. ASX increased ROS generation and was associated with the collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential, which subsequently triggered the activation of caspase-3/7 activity leading to apoptosis (p < 0.05). In addition, A549 cells accumulated in the G0/G1 phase.Conclusion: The results suggest that ASX is a valuable nutraceutical agent to target A549 lung cancer cells via ROS-dependent pathway as well as blockage of cell cycle progression. Keywords: Astaxanthin, Litopenaeus vannamei, Lung cancer, A549, Apoptosi

Evaluation of encapsulated astaxanthin from white shrimp shells (Litopenaeus vannamei) on hepatotoxicity

Recent advances in astaxanthin encapsulation have been reported, but hepatotoxic effect remains unclear. The present investigation therefore aimed to examine the effects of encapsulated astaxanthin from white shrimp shells (Litopenaeus vannamei) on liver toxicity. Wistar rats were divided into 6 groups as control (C), and receiving vitamin E (VE), astaxanthin commercial (AC), astaxanthin extracted from white shrimp shells (AE), astaxanthin encapsulation into powder form (AP), and blank powder (BP). The evaluation of liver in response to astaxanthin administration was then assessed in terms of biochemical parameters and histopathological features. Liver enzymes, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), showed no significant differences among all groups of treatment. Histopathological study showed no abnormal changes on liver tissue including hepatic inflammation. Our data demonstrated that astaxanthin encapsulation did not increase the expression of NF-ҡB nuclear translocation and CYP2E1 in comparison with the control group. Additionally, in this study, the consumption of astaxanthin and vitamin E resulted in a reduction in the oxidative stress index (OSI), while the levels of antioxidant enzymes, including glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD), were significantly increased compared to the control group. Our data suggested that astaxanthin encapsulation does not cause hepatic toxicity, contributing useful information in the applications of astaxanthin encapsulation technology

Properties and controlled release of chitosan microencapsulated limonene oil

Chitosan microcapsules containing limonene essential oil as active ingredient were prepared by coacervation using three different concentrations of NaOH (0.50, 1.00, 1.45 wt%) and fixed concentrations of chitosan and surfactant of 0.50 wt%. The produced microcapsules were fully characterized in their morphology and chemical composition, and the kinetic release analysis of the active ingredient was evaluated after deposition in a non-woven cellulose fabric. The concentration of 1.00 and 1.45 wt% clearly show the best results in terms of dimension and shape of the microcapsules as well as in the volatility results. However, at the concentration of 1 wt% a higher number of microcapsules were produced as confirmed by FTIR and EDS analysis. Free microcapsules are spherical in size with disperse diameters between 2 and 12 μm. Immobilized microcapsules showed sizes from 4 to 7 μm, a rough surface and loss of spherical shape with pore formation in the chitosan walls. SEM analysis confirms that at higher NaOH concentrations, the larger the size of the microcapsules. This technique shows that by tuning NaOH concentration it is possible to efficiently control the release rate of encapsulated active agents demonstrating great potential as insect repellent for textiles.JMS and ALC acknowledge CAPES Foundation, the Ministry of Education of Brazil, Proc. no 8976/13-9 e Proc. No 1071/13-0, respectively, and the Department of Textile Engineering of the University of Minho, Portugal. J. Molina is grateful to the Conselleria d'Educacio, Formacio i Ocupacio (Generalitat Valenciana) for the Programa VALi+D Postdoctoral Fellowship. AZ (C2011-UMINHO-2C2T-01) acknowledges funding from Programa Compromisso para a Ciencia 2008, Portugal. Shafagh Dinparast Tohidi would like to thank the Portuguese Foundation of Science and Technology for providing the PhD grant SFRH/BD/94759/2013

Development and characterization of phytosterol-enriched oil microcapsules for foodstuff application

Phytosterols are lipophilic compounds contained in plants and have several biological activities. The use of phytosterols in food fortification is hampered due to their high melting temperature, chalky taste, and low solubility in an aqueous system. Also, phytosterols are easily oxidized and are poorly absorbed by the human body. Formulation engineering coupled with microencapsulation could be used to overcome these problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of encapsulating soybean oil enriched with phytosterols by spray-drying using ternary mixtures of health-promoting ingredients, whey protein isolate (WPI), inulin, and chitosan as carrier agents. The effect of different formulations and spray-drying conditions on the microencapsules properties, encapsulation efficiency, surface oil content, and oxidation stability were studied. It was found that spherical WPI-inulin-chitosan phytosterol-enriched soybean oil microcapsules with an average size below 50 μm could be produced with good encapsulation efficiency (85%), acceptable level of surface oil (11%), and water activity (0.2–0.4) that meet industrial requirements. However, the microcapsules showed very low oxidation stability with peroxide values reaching 101.7 meq O2/kg of oil just after production, and further investigations and optimization are required before any industrial application of this encapsulated system

Effects of Astaxanthin from Litopenaeus Vannamei on Carrageenan-Induced Edema and Pain Behavior in Mice

Carrageenan produces both inflammation and pain when injected in mouse paws via enhancement of reactive oxygen species formation. We have investigated an effect of astaxanthin extracted from Litopenaeus vannamei in carrageenan-induced mice paw edema and pain. The current study demonstrates interesting effects from astaxanthin treatment in mice: an inhibition of paw edema induced in hind paw, an increase in mechanical paw withdrawal threshold and thermal paw withdrawal latency, and a reduction in the amount of myeloperoxidase enzyme and lipid peroxidation products in the paw. Furthermore the effect was comparable to indomethacin, a standard treatment for inflammation symptoms. Due to adverse effects of indomethacin on cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems, our study suggests promising prospect of astaxanthin extract as an anti-inflammatory alternative against carrageenan-induced paw edema and pain behavior

Effects of Astaxanthin from Shrimp Shell on Oxidative Stress and Behavior in Animal Model of Alzheimer’s Disease

This study aimed to investigate the effect of astaxanthin (ASX) extracted and ASX powder from shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) shells on Wistar rats with Alzheimer’s disease, induced by amyloid-β (1-42) peptides. In this task, the rats were divided into eight groups: (1) Control, (2) sham operate, (3) negative control (vehicle) + Aβ1-42, (4) ASX extract+Aβ1-42, (5) commercial ASX + Aβ1-42, (6) ASX powder + Aβ1-42, (7) blank powder + Aβ1-42, and (8) vitamin E + Aβ1-42. All treatments were orally administrated for 30 days. At 14- and 29-days post injection, animals were observed in behavioral tests. On the 31st day, animals were sacrificed; the hippocampus and cortex were collected. Those two brain areas were then homogenized and stored for biochemical and histological analysis. The results showed that the Aβ1-42 infused group significantly reduced cognitive ability and increased memory loss, as assessed by the Morris water maze test, novel object recognition test, and novel object location test. Moreover, the Aβ1-42 infused group exhibited a deterioration of oxidative markers, including glutathione peroxidase enzymes (GPx), lipid peroxidation (MDA), products of protein oxidation, and superoxide anion in the cortex and the hippocampus. Meanwhile, ASX powder (10 mg/kg body weight) showed a significant reduction in cognitive and memory impairments and oxidative stress which is greater than ASX extract in the same dose of compound or vitamin E (100 mg/kg body weight). Our study indicates the beneficial properties of ASX in alleviation of cognitive functions and reducing neurodegeneration in Wistar rats induced by amyloid-β (1-42) peptides

Impact of Time and Enzyme Concentration on Sangyod Rice Bran Hydrolysate: Phytochemicals, Antioxidants, Amino Acids, and Cytotoxicity

Abstract This study investigated the production of Sangyod rice bran hydrolysate (SYRB) from Sangyod rice, focusing on incubation times (1, 3, and 5 h) and alcalase enzyme concentrations (0, 0.7, and 1% v/v). The results demonstrated a concentration-dependent relationship: higher alcalase concentrations increased hydrolysate yield. Prolonged incubation, especially with alcalase, enhanced substrate breakdown, further increasing hydrolysate production. The degree of hydrolysis, reflecting peptide bond cleavage, depended on both incubation time and enzyme concentration, emphasizing the role of enzyme activity in efficiency. Moreover, color analysis (L*, a*, b*) and color difference (∆E) revealed intricate changes from enzymatic hydrolysis. Proximate composition analysis showed higher protein and lipid content with increased enzyme concentration and longer incubation times, whereas ash content varied with both factors. Hydrolysate powders exhibited higher moisture content than raw rice bran, indicating the impact of the hydrolysis process. The study also explored SYRB's antioxidant properties and cytotoxicity, which were sensitive to incubation time and alcalase concentration. Longer incubation increased DPPH scavenging activity, with the highest efficacy at 3 h. Meanwhile, ABTS scavenging displayed a delicate balance with alcalase concentration. The cytotoxicity study of SYRB revealed that all concentrations of SYRB were non-toxic to C2C12 cells, with cell viability values exceeding 70%

In Vitro Antioxidant, Antityrosinase, and Cytotoxic Activities of Astaxanthin from Shrimp Waste

Astaxanthin is a potent antioxidant compared with vitamins and other antioxidants. However, astaxanthin extract from shrimp processing waste has not yet been used in cosmetic products. This study aimed to explore the natural astaxanthin from shrimp shells for antioxidant and antityrosinase activities as well as potential toxicity. The antioxidant activities were performed with 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging, β-carotene bleaching, and singlet oxygen quenching assays. The results revealed that astaxanthin extract demonstrated potent antioxidant activities against DPPH and ABTS radicals, and prevented the bleaching of β-carotene and quenching of singlet oxygen (EC50 17.5 ± 3.6, 7.7 ± 0.6, 15.1 ± 1.9 and 9.2 ± 0.5 μg/mL, respectively). Furthermore, the astaxanthin extract could inhibit tyrosinase activity (IC50 12.2 ± 1.5 μg/mL) and had no toxic effects on human dermal fibroblast cells. These results suggested that shrimp astaxanthin would be a promising dietary supplement for skin health applications