Anti-obesity activities of edible bird nest on 3T3-L1 adipocytes and high fat-cholesterol diet induced-obese rabbits

Obesity has become a global public health issue with increasing prevalence in the recent decade. Managing obesity with anti-obesity drugs have been marked by numerous adverse effects. Therefore, current research focuses on commonly consumed foods to provide multi-target functions beyond their traditional nutritive values which would likely prevent obesity. Edible bird nest (EBN) is made from saliva of swiftlets which was deemed as an important ethno-medicinal commodity for its nutritional and healing values. Growing evidence suggests EBN as a potential functional food for managing metabolic disorders, which has initiated the present study to explore the therapeutic benefit of EBN to prevent obesity and its related disorders. The present study evaluated the comparative analysis in nutrient compositions between two different shapes of housefarmed EBN which are half cup and stripe-shape EBN. Nutrient analysis showed half cup EBN has significantly higher protein, carbohydrate, calcium and sulfur content compared to stripe-shaped EBN (p < 0.05). Next, stew extract (SE) and full stew (FS) was prepared form half cup EBN to determine sialic acid (SA) content and subsequently evaluated for their antioxidant effects and enzyme inhibition activities. Stew extract exhibited higher SA content than FS and both EBN showed significantly greater antioxidant and enzyme inhibition activities at concentration of 10 mg/mL (p < 0.05). In vitro anti-adipogenic potential of SA standard (1 mg/mL), SE and FS (10 mg/mL) on 3T3-L1 adipocytes showed significant reduction in lipid accumulation, lipase and G3PDH enzymes level (p < 0.05). The anti-obesity effect of EBN were further evaluated in high fat-cholesterol diet (HFCD)-induced obese rabbits for 12 weeks. Both SE and FS groups significantly prevented weight gain and improved Lee Index as well as reduced white adipose tissue and liver weights compared to HFCD group (p < 0.05). Also, the EBN groups significantly improved serum lipid profile, free fatty acids, leptin, adiponectin, IL-6, MCP-1 and catalase levels (p < 0.05). Gene expression studies revealed that the anti-obesity effects of EBN were associated to regulation of adipokines and adipogenesis along with AMPK activation which significantly improved genes involved in lipid metabolism pathway. Furthermore, SE and FS significantly inhibit NF- κB signalling pathway which in turn downregulated the expression of pro-inflammatory (IL-6, CRP, MCP-1) and insulin resistance (IRS1) genes. Supplementation of SE and FS significantly enhanced the expression of antioxidant genes such as SOD3, CAT, GSR and PON1 (p < 0.05). Additionally, both SE and FS supplementation prevented the toxicity effect of HFCD reflected with significant reduction of ALT and GGT enzymes level (p < 0.05). In conclusion, the present study indicates that EBN via synergism of SA and other nutrients provide anti-obesity action through regulation of genes involved in adipokines, adipogenesis, lipid metabolism along with improvement in obesity-mediated inflammation, insulin resistance and antioxidants

Antioxidant activities of phenolic rich fractions (PRFs) obtained from black mahlab (Monechma ciliatum) and white mahlab (Prunus mahaleb) seedcakes

The antioxidant activities of phenolic rich fractions (PRFs) from crude methanolic extract (CME), and its fractions using ethyl acetate (EAF), hexane (HF) and water (WF) of black mahlab (Monechma ciliatum) and white mahlab (Prunus mahaleb) seedcakes were investigated. The total phenolic compounds were found to be higher in white mahlab than black mahlab seedcakes. The antioxidant activity determined by the DPPH method revealed that black mahlab PRFs had the highest antioxidant activity, compared to white mahlab fractions. The presence of antioxidants in the two mahlab PRFs reduced the oxidation of β-carotene by hydroperoxides from these extracts/fractions. The effect of the two mahlab PRFs on the oxidative stability of corn oil at 70 °C was tested in the dark and compared with butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA). The CME performed better antioxidant activity in inhibiting the formation of both primary and secondary oxidation products. The qualitative and quantitative characterisation of phenolic compounds was carried out by HPLC/DAD

Antioxidant activity and phenolic content of phenolic rich fractions obtained from black cumin (Nigella sativa) seedcake.

The antioxidant activities of crude methanolic extract (CME) and its fractions using ethyl acetate (EAF), hexane (HF) and water (WF) of black cumin seedcake were investigated. DPPH radical scavenging activity, β-carotene-linoleate bleaching, and inhibition of corn oil oxidation were used to evaluate the antioxidant capacity. The total phenolics were found to be 78.8, 27.8, 32.1 and 12.1 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g in EAF, CME, WF and HF, respectively. The CME and EAF exhibited the highest DPPH followed by WF and HF. The extract/fractions showed high effect on reducing the oxidation of β-carotene. The effect of extract/fractions on the oxidative stability of corn oil at 70 °C was tested in the dark and compared with butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA). The oil peroxide and anisidine values were generally lower with addition of PRFs in comparison to a control. The predominant phenolic compounds identified by HPLC-DAD in CME and WF of black cumin seedcake were hydroxybenzoic, syringic and p-cumaric acids

Efficacy of edible bird's nest on cognitive functions in experimental animal models: a systematic review

Edible bird's nest (EBN) is constructed from saliva of swiftlets birds and consumed largely by Southeast and East Asians for its nutritional value and anti-aging properties. Although the neuroprotection of EBN in animals has been reported, there has not been yet systemically summarized. Thus, this review systemically outlined the evidence of the neuroprotective activity of EBN in modulating the cognitive functions of either healthy or with induced-cognitive dysfunction animals as compared to placebos. The related records from 2010 to 2020 were retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and ScienceDirect using pre-specified keywords. The relevant records to the effect of EBN on cognition were selected according to the eligibility criteria and these studies underwent appraisal for the risk of bias. EBN improved the cognitive functions of induced-cognitive dysfunction and enhanced the cognitive performance of healthy animals as well as attenuated the neuroinflammations and neuro-oxidative stress in the hippocampus of these animals. Malaysian EBN could improve the cognitive functions of experimental animals as a treatment in induced cognitive dysfunction, a nutritional cognitive-enhancing agent in offspring and a prophylactic conservative effect on cognition against exposure to subsequent noxious cerebral accidents in a dose-depended manner through attenuating neuroinflammation and neuro-oxidative stress. This systemic review did not proceed meta-analysis

A randomised controlled trial on hypolipidemic effects of Nigella Sativa seeds powder in menopausal women

Background: The risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) is increased tremendously among menopausal women, and there is an increasing demand for alternative therapies for managing factors like dyslipidemia that contribute to CVD development. Methods: In this study, Nigella sativa was evaluated for its hypolipidemic effects among menopausal women. In a randomised trial, hyperlipidemic menopausal women were assigned to treatment (n = 19) or placebo groups (n = 18), and given N. sativa or placebo for two months after their informed consents were sought. At baseline, blood samples were taken and at one month intervals thereafter until one month after the end of the study. Results: The results showed that N. sativa significantly improved lipid profiles of menopausal women (decreased total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride, and increased high density lipoprotein cholesterol) more than the placebo treatment over 2 months of intervention. One month after cessation of treatment, the lipid profiles in the N. sativa-treated group tended to change towards the pretreatment levels. Conclusions: N. sativa is thought to have multiple mechanisms of action and is cost-effective. Therefore, it could be used by menopausal women to remedy hypercholesterolemia, with likely more benefits than with single pharmacological agents that may cause side effects. The use of N. sativa as an alternative therapy for hypercholesterolemia could have profound impact on the management of CVD among menopausal women especially in countries where it is readily available

Factors associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease grades detected by ultrasound at a screening center in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a very common liver disease in the world, particularly in Western and developed countries. It is rapidly growing in the Asia- Pacific region. Objectives: This study was designed to determine the association between risk factors and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease grades among Malaysian adults. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study design was prospectively carried out in this study. Consecutive 628 respondents who attended for a medical checkup at urban health center had been recruited for the study. All respondents had the physical examination, blood tests, clinical assessments, and abdominal ultrasound. A structured self-administered questionnaire has been also used in this study in this survey. Results: From a total of 628 “health screened” subjects, 235 subjects (37.4%) were diagnosed to have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Female gender and Chinese race were predominant in our study population. Of those with NAFLD, more than half subjects (63.4) had a moderate grade of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The mean age of the study population was 54.54 ±6.69 years. Differences of the mean body mass index (BMI) and waist to hip ratio (WHR) were found to be significant among non-alcoholic fatty liver disease grades (P< 0.001). Similarly, mean triglycerides (TG) and high-densiy lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels had significant differences among non-alcoholic fatty liver disease grades (P< 0.001 and P= 0.016, respectively). Conclusion: the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is common among urban Malaysian adult population. Anthropometric measurements were closely correlated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease grades

Antioxidant Activity of the Phenolic Leaf Extracts from Monechma ciliatum in Stabilization of Corn Oil

The total phenolic content and the antioxidan potential of methanolic extract (ME), ethyl acetate extract (EAE), and hexane extract (HE) from Monechma ciliatum leaves (MCL) were evaluated. The Folin-Ciocalteu, b-carotene bleaching, the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and the accelerated oxidation methods were used for evaluation. Both the extraction yield and the antioxidant activity (AOA) were strongly dependent on the solvent. Among the extracts, ME exhibited highest total phenolic compounds (TPC) and IC50 values for DPPH, followed by EAE and HE, respectively. Peroxide value (PV), anisidine value (AV) conjugated dienes (CD), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were taken as the parameters for evaluation of stabilization efficacy of MCL extracts and results revealed MCL to be a potent antioxidant for the stabilization of corn oil. As a general trend, increased AOA was observed for increased extract concentration. The predominant phenolic compounds identified by HPLC-DAD in MCL extracts were p-coumaric acid, vanillin and ferulic acid

Antioxidant Activity of the Phenolic Leaf Extracts from Monechma ciliatum in Stabilization of Corn Oil

The total phenolic content and the antioxidan potential of methanolic extract (ME), ethyl acetate extract (EAE), and hexane extract (HE) from Monechma ciliatum leaves (MCL) were evaluated. The Folin-Ciocalteu, b-carotene bleaching, the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and the accelerated oxidation methods were used for evaluation. Both the extraction yield and the antioxidant activity (AOA) were strongly dependent on the solvent. Among the extracts, ME exhibited highest total phenolic compounds (TPC) and IC50 values for DPPH, followed by EAE and HE, respectively. Peroxide value (PV), anisidine value (AV) conjugated dienes (CD), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were taken as the parameters for evaluation of stabilization efficacy of MCL extracts and results revealed MCL to be a potent antioxidant for the stabilization of corn oil. As a general trend, increased AOA was observed for increased extract concentration. The predominant phenolic compounds identified by HPLC-DAD in MCL extracts were p-coumaric acid, vanillin and ferulic acid

The authentication and grading of edible bird's nest by metabolite, nutritional, and mineral profiling

Edible bird’s nest (EBN) produced by Aerodramus fuciphagus has a high demand for nutritional and medicinal application throughout the world. The present study was to evaluate the authentication of a man-made house EBN, which are half cup and stripe-shaped by FTIR. Next, both samples were compared according to their metabolite, nutritional, and mineral composition. The results indicated that the FTIR spectra of both EBN samples were identical and similar to the reference, suggesting the authenticity of the EBN used. The metabolites that contribute to the possible medicinal properties of EBN were found by using GC-MS. The results of the proximate analysis, followed by the standard AOAC method, inferred that both EBN shapes to be rich in crude protein and carbohydrate contents. However, the proximate composition between the half cup and stripe-shaped EBN showed significant differences. Major mineral elements detected were calcium and sodium, and magnesium contents were significantly different between both EBN. Additionally, the half cup and stripe-shaped EBN had a low level of heavy metal content than the maximum regulatory limit as set by the Malaysian Food Act 1983. This study concludes that the nutritional composition varied between the samples and thus suggests that nutrient content should be considered as criteria for the grading requirement of commercialized EBN