The enhancement of nonheme iron bioavailability by beef protein in the rat

Beef protein was found to enhance the bioavailability of nonheme iron in the rat. Anemic rats were fed diets containing soy protein concentrate or rice bran as the source of nonheme iron with either lactalbumin or distilled water-washed beef, which was heme free. The criteria used to determine the relative biological value (RBV) of iron was the difference between the products of final hemoglobin x final weight and initial hemoglobin x initial weight during the repletion period. Animals fed diets with only lactalbumin as a source of dietary protein and graded levels of FeSO4 (RBV of FeSO4 = 100%) served as controls. The RBV of the endogenous iron in soy protein and rice bran was found to be 91 and 46%, respectively. Substituting washed beef for lactalbumin increased the RBV of soy protein iron to 96% (results not statistically significant) and of rice bran iron to 75% (results significant, P less than or equal to 0.05). These findings demonstrate the "meat factor" effect in the rat for the first time. Two days after completion of the 11-d hemoglobin regeneration period, the apparent absorption of iron was measured during a 60-h balance period. The apparent absorption of iron by rats fed diets containing beef tended to be higher, compared to animals fed diets containing lactalbumin.     

Soy protein products and heme iron absorption in humans

Dual radioiron tags were used to measure both heme and nonheme iron absorption simultaneously from meat-containing meals in 76 healthy male volunteers. Partial substitution of beef with soy flour reduced the availability of nonheme iron but improved the percentage absorption of heme iron significantly (27 to 59% rise). In contradistinction three other powerful inhibitors of nonheme iron absorption, bran, tea, and desferrioxamine, had no appreciable effect on heme. Ascorbic acid (100 mg and 1000 mg in separate experiments) improved nonheme iron uptake markedly but also failed to alter the assimilation of heme. These studies demonstrate that the deleterious effects on iron nutrition of substituting soy protein for beef are partially offset by improved availability of the remaining heme iron as well as by an increase in the nonheme iron content of the meal.     

The effect of soy protein isolate in the diet on retention by the rat of iron from radiolabeled test meals

The influence of soy protein isolate (SPI) in the diet on whole-body retention of extrinsically radiolabeled iron from test meals containing or not containing SPI was evaluated in marginally iron-deficient weanling rats. In experiment 1 SPI was compared with casein in a 2 X 2 factorial design: diets and test meals were either SPI-based or casein-based. Diets were fed for 13 days prior to the test meal and for 7 days subsequent to the test meal. Rats fed the SPI-based diet retained less iron from test meals than did rats fed the casein-based diet (66.1 vs. 74.8%, P less than 0.01). Experiment 2 showed that an SPI-based diet fed during the final 4 days of a 14-day pre-test meal period and subsequent to the test meal led to less iron retention compared to a casein-based diet. In addition to the observed diet effect, experiment 1 showed that iron retention was less from an SPI-based test meal than from a casein-based test meal, confirming previous reports of adverse effects of SPI on iron retention. The present experiments show that SPI can adversely affect from retention in two ways: by its presence in the diet before and after a test meal, and by its presence in a test meal.     

The promotive effect of soy sauce on iron absorption in human subjects

The effects on iron absorption of a traditionally fermented Japanese soy sauce added to soy and rice meals were assessed. The addition of soy sauce to a soy flour meal could not overcome the strong inhibition of iron absorption (geometric mean absorption 7.2 per cent with soy sauce vs. 8.7 per cent without, P = 0.5). However, soy sauce added to a rice meal instead of soy flour significantly improved the geometric mean iron absorption (13.9 per cent with soy sauce vs. 5.2 per cent with soy flour, P = 0.002) and had a promotory effect on absorption from a rice meal alone (11.4 per cent with soy sauce vs. 3.5 per cent without, P = 0.0002). Although soy sauce contains appreciable amounts of organic acids, the addition of 340 mg lactic acid to rice did not enhance iron absorption (3.1 per cent with lactic acid vs. 2.2 per cent without, P = 0.11). The promotory effect of soy sauce on iron absorption appears to be due not only to its lack of soy protein content but may also be due to the presence of fermentation products other than organic acids.     

Influence of fish on the bioavailability of plant iron in the anemic rat

The effect of fish protein and fish oil on the utilization of endogenous iron in wheat bran, spinach and soy protein isolate was investigated by using the anemic rat as an animal model. Marine products were substituted for casein and corn oil in the diets of these animals. Hemoglobin regeneration was one criteria used to measure iron uptake. Relative biological values (RBV) were computed from a regression equation obtained from control animals receiving graded levels of FeSO4 X 7H2O. The RBV of iron from plant sources provided in diets containing casein-corn oil versus fish-fish oil were: wheat bran, 123 vs. 111%; spinach, 53 vs. 49%; and soybean isolate, 84 vs. 67%; RBV FeSO4 = 100%. These changes were not significant. The decreases in iron absorption from diets containing marine products was attributed to the fish oil. Absorption of exogenous iron (59Fe) was measured in the same animals after the 14-day repletion period. Assimilation of the 59Fe was highly correlated (r2 = 0.958) with hemoglobin level at time of dosing. Diet composition did not appear to have the same effect on the percentage of 59Fe retained after 110 hours by the rat as compared to levels of hemoglobin regeneration (i.e., RBV). A "meat factor" effect was not shown by substituting fish for casein the diets containing plant iron sources fed anemic rats.     

Radiolabeled iron in soybeans: intrinsic labeling and bioavailability of iron to rats from defatted flour

Soybeans can be efficiently labeled with radiolabeled iron by supplying the iron via a nutrient culture medium as an iron salt or as a chelate. By using dual labeled iron and EDTA, it was determined that none of the chelator was transported to the shoots with the iron. Therefore, the use of chelated iron as the iron source in the nutrient medium should not affect assessments of bioavailability of iron from plants. Bioavailability (determined from whole-body retention curves of 59Fe in rats) of iron from defatted soy flour was relatively high and addition of vitamin C did not significantly enhance absorption of iron from defatted soy flour.     

Bioavailability of iron in ground beef and plant protein concentrates

Weanling male Wistar rats were fed a low iron basal diet for 4 weeks. They were then divided into 16 groups according to a randomized block design based on hemoglobin level. During the repletion period of 2 weeks, one group was fed the basal diet. The other fifteen groups received ferrous sulphate, freeze-dried ground beef, ground granular soy product, a 2:1 mixture of beef and the soy product, or rapeseed protein concentrate as iron sources at three levels. All diets were isocaloric and isonitrogenous. The efficiency of iron utilization was calculated on the basis of iron gained in hemoglobin and iron consumed, applying appropriate correction for iron obtained from the ingredients of the basal diet. The relative biological value (RBV) of iron in the test source was calculated as the ratio between the efficiency for the test and the standard source (ferrous sulphate). The RBVs were: freeze-dried ground beef, 0.53; ground soy product, 0.62; 2:1 mixture of beef and soy product, 0.71; rapeseed protein concentrate, 0.55. The low availability of iron in beef containing 60% heme iron indicated that the anemic rat is not a suitable model for normal man, since the absorption of heme iron by man is much higher than that of inorganic or non-heme iron.     

Assessment of dietary determinants of nonheme-iron absorption in humans and rats.

Prior investigations have shown that rats are less sensitive than humans to dietary factors that influence the absorption of nonheme iron. This investigation was undertaken to determine whether this disparity is due to differences in the methods used to measure absorption in the two species. By use of identical methodology and test meals, absorption studies were performed in rats and humans to compare the effect of known dietary enhancers (ascorbic acid and meat) and inhibitors (tea, bran, and soy protein) on nonheme-iron absorption. Meat and tea had a marked effect on absorption in humans but did not influence absorption in rats. Although the effect of ascorbic acid, soy protein, and bran on absorption was statistically significant in rats, the absorptive response was far less than it was in humans. Our studies indicate that rodents cannot be used to assess the quantitative importance of dietary factors in human iron nutrition.     

Prediction of dietary iron absorption: an algorithm for calculating absorption and bioavailability of dietary iron

BACKGROUND: Dietary iron absorption from a meal is determined by iron status, heme- and nonheme-iron contents, and amounts of various dietary factors that influence iron absorption. Limited information is available about the net effect of these factors. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to develop an algorithm for predicting the effects of factors known to influence heme- and nonheme-iron absorption from meals and diets. DESIGN: The basis for the algorithm was the absorption of iron from a wheat roll (22.1 +/- 0.18%) containing no known inhibitors or enhancers of iron absorption and adjusted to a reference dose absorption of 40%. This basal absorption was multiplied by the expected effect of different amounts of dietary factors known to influence iron absorption: phytate, polyphenols, ascorbic acid, meat, fish and seafood, calcium, egg, soy protein, and alcohol. For each factor, an equation describing the dose-effect relation was developed. Special considerations were made for interactions between individual factors. RESULTS: Good agreement was seen when measurements of iron absorption from 24 complete meals were compared with results from use of the algorithm (r(2) = 0.987) and when mean iron absorption in 31 subjects served a varied whole diet labeled with heme- and nonheme-iron tracers over a period of 5 d was compared with the mean total iron absorption calculated by using the algorithm (P = 0.958). CONCLUSIONS: This algorithm has several applications. It can be used to predict iron absorption from various diets, to estimate the effects expected by dietary modification, and to translate physiologic into dietary iron requirements from different types of diets.     

Absorption of zinc from soy protein meals in humans

The absorption of zinc from soy protein-containing meals was studied in healthy human subjects by means of extrinsic labelling with 65Zn and whole body counting. Three types of soy protein, a soy flour, a soy concentrate and a soy isolate, were used in two types of meals: one consisting of rice and meat sauce and the other of white or whole-meal bread. Thirty and 100% of the protein of the meat sauce and 50% of the protein of bread was replaced with the soy protein products. Replacement of 30% of the protein in meat sauce had a marginal effect on the percentage absorption of zinc, whereas the absolute amount of zinc absorbed was lower due to the lower zinc content in soy products than in meat. After total replacement of the meat protein, a significantly lower percentage and absolute absorption of zinc was observed. A lower absorption of zinc was observed when soy protein was added to white bread. The absorption of zinc from the whole-meal bread was low and did not change when 50% of the flour protein was replaced by soy protein. We conclude that the effect of soy protein on zinc absorption depends on the degree of replacement, the phytic acid and zinc content of the soy product and the protein content of the meal.     

Iron retention by rats from casein-legume test meals: effect of tannin level and previous diet

The effect of tannin content on iron (Fe) bioavailability from several legumes was evaluated. Absorption of Fe from a casein (C), isolated soy protein (ISP), chickpea (CP) or red kidney bean (RKB) test meal was tested in marginally Fe-deficient rats [9.9 +/- 0.2 g Hb/100 mL (mean +/- SD)] using the extrinsic tag technique. Also, the effects of a casein habitual diet or of one of three casein-legume habitual diets fed before and after the test meal were investigated. Weanling male rats were fed the habitual diets containing 23 +/- 4 mg Fe/kg of diet (range 17-28) for 13 d. On d 14, after an overnight fast, rats were fed the test meal (1.5 g + 0.1 microCi 59Fe), and whole-body radioactivity was determined. The same habitual diet was refed for seven additional days, and whole-body radioactivity was determined again. Rats retained more iron from C (86%) than from ISP, CP or RKB test meals (73%, 75% and 67%, respectively) when the respective casein-legume habitual diets were fed before and after the test meals. With the casein habitual diet, there was no difference in retained iron from C, ISP, CP or RKB test meals (86%, 87%, 83% and 82%, respectively). Retention of iron from an RKB test meal was increased from 69.6 to 73% when about 90% of the extractable tannins were removed, but the difference was not statistically significant. Thus, feeding a casein-legume diet but not a casein diet prior to a test meal apparently predisposes the rat to lower iron absorption. However, in these studies, tannins per se did not significantly depress iron bioavailability.     

Iron absorption from fish sauce and soy sauce fortified with sodium iron EDTA

BACKGROUND: Fish sauce and soy sauce have been suggested as food vehicles for iron fortification in Asia. NaFeEDTA is a potentially useful fortificant because it can be added to these condiments without causing precipitation during storage. OBJECTIVES: The objectives were to evaluate iron absorption from NaFeEDTA-fortified fish sauce and soy sauce against a reference fortificant (FeSO(4)), to compare iron absorption from NaFeEDTA-fortified fish sauce and soy sauce, and to evaluate the influence of fish sauce and soy sauce per se on iron absorption. DESIGN: Five separate iron-absorption studies were made in adult women (10 women per study). Iron absorption was measured on the basis of erythrocyte incorporation of (57)Fe or (58)Fe 14 d after the intake of labeled meals of rice or rice and vegetables. Fish sauce or soy sauce (10 g) fortified with 5 mg Fe as NaFeEDTA or FeSO(4) was fed with selected meals. The results are presented as geometric means. RESULTS: Iron absorption from NaFeEDTA- and FeSO(4)-fortified fish sauce (3.3% and 3.1%, respectively) and soy sauce (6.1% and 5.6%, respectively) was not significantly different. No significant difference was observed when NaFeEDTA-fortified fish sauce and soy sauce were compared directly (6.7% and 7.9%, respectively). Soy sauce inhibited iron absorption from rice-based meals (8.5% without and 6.0% with soy sauce; P < 0.02), whereas fish sauce did not affect iron absorption significantly. CONCLUSION: The relatively high iron absorption from NaFeEDTA-fortified fish sauce and soy sauce and the acceptable organoleptic properties of NaFeEDTA indicate the potential usefulness of this iron fortificant in fish sauce and soy sauce fortification programs.     

Low bioavailability of carbonyl iron in man: studies on iron fortification of wheat flour

The bioavailability in man of commercially available elemental iron powders is unknown despite their extensive use for fortification of flour. Carbonyl iron, which is widely used in Europe, is considered as one of the best reduced iron powders based on studies both in vitro and in animals. In this study, a 55Fe labeled carbonyl iron was prepared by neutron irradiation and used to fortify wheat flour. The native iron of the wheat was extrinsically labeled by 59FeCl3. Doubly labeled wheat rolls were served with different meals. The ratio of absorbed 55Fe/59Fe is a direct measure of the fraction of carbonyl iron that joins the nonheme iron pool and is made potentially available for absorption. This relative bioavailability of carbonyl iron was unexpectedly low and varied from 20 to 5% when the iron fortified wheat rolls were served with different meals. The baking process did not change the relative bioavailability nor the addition of ascorbic acid. The low and variable bioavailability of carbonyl iron in man, makes it necessary to reconsider the rationale of using elemental iron powders for the fortification of foods for human consumption.     

Apparent small intestinal absorption of nitrogen and minerals from soy and meat-protein-based diets. A study on human ileostomy subjects

The apparent absorption of nitrogen and minerals was studied in 8 ileostomy subjects. Four different test diets containing 60 g of meat, rice and bread protein, or a 25% replacement of the protein with soy flour, soy concentrate or soy isolate, were randomly assigned to the subjects in 2-d periods. All animal protein was replaced by soy isolate for a fifth 2-d period in two of the subjects. Ileostomy contents were collected in 2-h intervals during the day and in one portion during night and immediately deep-frozen. The fiber components and the phytic acid in the diet were almost completely recovered in the ileostomy contents, whereas unabsorbed starch was less than 2% of the intake. A significantly lower protein digestibility was observed when the diets containing soy protein were fed. No difference in protein digestibility was found between the different soy protein products. A 25% replacement by soy protein had no obvious effect on apparent mineral absorption. A low protein digestibility was also observed when soy was the main source of protein, and a negative apparent absorption of zinc was found in both subjects. Although 25% of soy protein in the diet does not seem to impair mineral absorption significantly, small intestinal net absorption of nitrogen is less from the soy diets than from the meat diet.     

Dietary and physiological factors that affect the absorption and bioavailability of iron

Iron deficiency, a global health problem, impairs reproductive performance, cognitive development, and work capacity. One proposed strategy to address this problem is the improvement of dietary iron bioavailability. Knowledge of the molecular mechanisms of iron absorption is growing rapidly, with identification of mucosal iron transport and regulatory proteins. Both body iron status and dietary characteristics substantially influence iron absorption, with minimal interaction between these two factors. Iron availability can be regarded mainly as a characteristic of the diet, but comparisons between human studies of iron availability for absorption require normalization for the iron status of the subjects. The dietary characteristics that enhance or inhibit iron absorption from foods have been sensitively and quantitatively determined in human studies employing iron isotopes. People with low iron status can substantially increase their iron absorption from diets with moderate to high availability. But while iron supplementation and fortification trials can effectively increase blood indices of iron status, improvements in dietary availability alone have had minimal influence on such indices within several weeks or months. Plentiful, varied diets are the ultimate resolution to iron deficiency. Without these, more modest food-based approaches to human iron deficiency likely will need to be augmented by dietary iron fortification.     

Soybean protein isolate and soybean lectin inhibit iron absorption in rats.

Inhibitory effects of soybean protein isolate (SPI) and soybean lectin on the intestinal absorption of nonheme iron were investigated by in vivo studies in rats. Rats fed the SPI-based diet absorbed significantly less iron than did control rats fed the casein-based diet. Supplementing the SPI diets with 8% D-galactose significantly increased the incorporation of iron into liver ferritin, although D-galactose did not significantly increase iron absorption. Heat treatment of SPI significantly increased iron absorption. Ascorbate did not enhance iron absorption in rats fed the SPI-based diet. The presence of lectin in an aqueous extract of SPI was suggested by hemagglutination activity as well as by immunoreactivity with soybean lectin antibody. Soybean lectin introduced into ligated segments of the upper small intestine of rats inhibited ferrous iron absorption. This inhibitory effect, especially in the mucosal uptake, was significantly improved by addition of N-acetyl-D-galactosamine to soybean lectin. Soybean lectin had no effect on ferric iron absorption. Our results suggest that a portion of the reduction in iron absorption in rats fed SPI may be due to lectins.     

Bioavailability of iron to rats from processed soybean fractions determined by intrinsic and extrinsic labeling techniques

Intrinsic and extrinsic labeling techniques were used to measure iron bioavailability from soybean fractions (isolated soy protein, defatted flour, soy hulls, insoluble material and whey) by iron-depleted and non-iron-depleted rats. As expected, absorption of iron was higher in the iron-depleted than in the non-iron-depleted rats. In the iron-depleted group, significantly more iron was absorbed from soy whey than from other fractions. No other significant difference in iron absorption associated with iron source was observed. The higher absorption rate of iron from whey by the iron-depleted rats probably was related to a lower quantity of food consumed during the test meal by this group. Intrinsic and extrinsic labeling techniques produced similar assessments of bioavailability of iron.     

Effect of beef and soy proteins on the absorption of non-heme iron and inorganic zinc in children

BACKGROUND: Iron and zinc deficiency remain substantial problems in small children in both developed and developing nations. Optimizing mineral absorption is an important strategy in minimizing this problem. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of beef and soy proteins on the bioavailability of non-heme iron and zinc in children. METHODS: We measured iron (n = 26) and zinc (n = 36) absorption in 4-8 y old children from meals differing only in protein source (beef or a low-phytate soy protein concentrate). Iron and zinc absorption were measured using multi-tracer stable isotope techniques. Iron absorption was calculated from the red blood cell iron incorporation measured after 14 days and zinc absorption from the ratio of the oral and intravenous excretion of the zinc tracers 48 hours after dosing. RESULTS: Iron absorption from the beef meal was significantly greater (geometric mean, 7.6%) than from the soy meal (3.5%, p = 0.0015). Zinc absorption from the beef meal was greater (mean +/- SD, 13.7 +/- 6.0%) than from the soy meal (10.1 +/- 4.1%, p = 0.047). CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that beef protein increases both non-heme iron and zinc absorption compared to soy protein. The effect of protein source on non-heme iron and inorganic zinc absorption should be one of the factors taken into account when designing diets for children. The inhibitory effect of the soy based meal on iron and zinc absorption could be overcome by fortifying the soy protein with these minerals during the production process.     

Influence of several plant and animal proteins on rat pancreas

Twelve different plant and animal proteins were fed to rats for 4 weeks. Trypsin inhibitor (TI) content of the diet was significantly correlated with (although not directly related in all cases to) pancreas weights and with the pancreatic biochemical parameters that indicate hypertrophy. In vitro, but not in vivo, digestibility was correlated with the TI content of the diet. Quantity of DNA per gram pancreas was not found to be related to TI content. A second experiment compared graded levels of TI from raw or heated soy flour and soy protein isolate (SPI). The SPI diet produced higher relative pancreas weights per TIU than did the flour diets. Two commercial SPI's were fed as is or autoclaved in a third experiment. Autoclaving to very low TI values made no improvement in weight gain or pancreatic parameters measured, indicating that there may be a threshold level of TI below which rat pancreata do not respond, and that other factors in SPI are responsible for the slight pancreatic enlargement seen with SPI compared to casein.     

Studies of iron:zinc interactions in adult rats and the effect of iron fortification of two commercial infant weaning products on iron and zinc status of weanling rats

The effect of iron on zinc absorption in the rat, and vice versa, was investigated from single starch:sucrose test meals (containing 65Zn or 59Fe) by whole body counting. Zinc had no effect on iron absorption, but iron reduced zinc absorption when the total ionic species in the meal (iron plus zinc) reached 1.36 mg. Below this level, high iron:zinc molar ratios (10:1) had no effect on zinc absorption, presumably because the transport mechanism for zinc had not reached full capacity. Previous iron intake had no effect on zinc absorption. The relevance of these findings to infant foods was explored by feeding rats exclusively a vegetable or cereal weaning product, with or without additional iron, for 12 d and measuring zinc and iron status. The added iron raised body iron stores and caused a small reduction in zinc status in animals fed the oat, but not the vegetable, diet as measured by plasma and femur zinc concentrations. Since the threshold level of 1.36 mg ionic species would be exceeded when the animal ate 3-4 g of the iron-fortified weaning food at any one time, it appears that the iron:zinc interactive effect was absent in the vegetable and less potent in the oat formulation than in a carbohydrate test meal. Alternatively, it may be the case that the animals had responded over time to reduced zinc availability by increasing whole body zinc retention.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)