Inflammation/bioenergetics-associated neurodegenerative pathologies and concomitant diseases: a role of mitochondria targeted catalase and xanthophylls

Various inflammatory stimuli are able to modify or even re-program the mitochondrial metabolism that results in generation of reactive oxygen species. In noncommunicable chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular pathologies, type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, these modifications become systemic and are characterized by chronic inflammation and, in particular, neuroinflammation in the central nervous system. The processes associated with chronic inflammation are frequently grouped into vicious circles which are able to stimulate each other constantly amplifying the pathological events. These circles are evidently observed in Alzheimer's disease, atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome and, possibly, other associated pathologies. Furthermore, chronic inflammation in peripheral tissues is frequently concomitant to Alzheimer's disease. This is supposedly associated with some common genetic polymorphisms, for example, Apolipoprotein-E ε4 allele carriers with Alzheimer's disease can also develop atherosclerosis. Notably, in the transgenic mice expressing the recombinant mitochondria targeted catalase, that removes hydrogen peroxide from mitochondria, demonstrates the significant pathology amelioration and health improvements. In addition, the beneficial effects of some natural products from the xanthophyll family, astaxanthin and fucoxanthin, which are able to target the reactive oxygen species at cellular or mitochondrial membranes, have been demonstrated in both animal and human studies. We propose that the normalization of mitochondrial functions could play a key role in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders and other noncommunicable diseases associated with chronic inflammation in ageing. Furthermore, some prospective drugs based on mitochondria targeted catalase or xanthophylls could be used as an effective treatment of these pathologies, especially at early stages of their development.     

6种褐藻β-葡聚糖的制备及其结构与免疫活性研究

目的 研究不同褐藻来源β-葡聚糖的结构及免疫活性差异,为β-葡聚糖药物的开发提供合适的藻源。方法 通过热水提取、乙醇沉淀和柱层析分离从6种褐藻中制备β-葡聚糖,并利用高效液相色谱 (HPLC)、红外光谱 (IR)、核磁共振波谱(1H-NMR, 13C-NMR和1H-13C HSQC) 对其结构进行表征。通过小鼠巨噬细胞RAW264.7吞噬中性红及NO释放实验评价其免疫调节活性。结论 海茸β-葡聚糖的含量最高且具有最优的免疫活性,是β-葡聚糖药物开发的良好资源。     

Algal Bloom–Related Illness: Improving Health Outcomes in Primary Care

Blue-green algal blooms can be found in fresh and salt waters across the United States as well as globally. Despite growing concern about the impact of cyanotoxins produced by these harmful algae blooms on human health, potential health outcomes are unknown, and there are no clear diagnostic or clinical guidelines for blue-green algal bloom–related illness. Therefore, when patients present with systemic manifestations of exposure, it is critical that clinicians identify the level of contact and systematically document health effects through a thorough patient history and physical examination to elucidate acute and long-term health outcomes. Current knowledge for assessment, treatment, clinical management, and prevention of blue-green algal bloom–related illness is outlined. Interdisciplinary teams of researchers are needed to better understand the health outcomes to improve diagnostics and treatment for providers in primary care.     

North Atlantic summers have warmed more than winters since 1353, and the response of marine zooplankton

Modeling and measurements show that Atlantic marine temperatures are rising; however, the low temporal resolution of models and restricted spatial resolution of measurements (i) mask regional details critical for determining the rate and extent of climate variability, and (ii) prevent robust determination of climatic impacts on marine ecosystems. To address both issues for the North East Atlantic, a fortnightly resolution marine climate record from 1353-2006 was constructed for shallow inshore waters and compared to changes in marine zooplankton abundance. For the first time summer marine temperatures are shown to have increased nearly twice as much as winter temperatures since 1353. Additional climatic instability began in 1700 characterized by ～5-65 year climate oscillations that appear to be a recent phenomenon. Enhanced summer-specific warming reduced the abundance of the copepod Calanus finmarchicus, a key food item of cod, and led to significantly lower projected abundances by 2040 than at present. The faster increase of summer marine temperatures has implications for climate projections and affects abundance, and thus biomass, near the base of the marine food web with potentially significant feedback effects for marine food security.     

First U.S. report of shellfish harvesting closures due to confirmed okadaic acid in Texas Gulf coast oysters

Between March 7 and April 12, 2008, several bay systems on the east (Gulf of Mexico) coast of Texas, USA were closed to the harvesting of oysters (Crassostrea virginica) due to the presence of the DSP (Diarrheic Shellfish Poisoning) toxin okadaic acid in excess of the 20 μg/100 g tissue FDA regulatory guidance level. This was the first shellfish harvesting closure due to the confirmed presence of DSP toxins in US history. Light microscopic cell counts were performed on water samples collected from numerous sampling sites along the Texas Gulf coast where shellfish harvesting occurs. Ultra performance liquid chromatography, electrospray ionization, selected reaction monitoring, mass spectrometry (UPLC/ESI/SRM/MS) was used to detect DSP toxins in oysters. The closures were associated with an extensive bloom of the dinoflagellate Dinophysis cf. ovum. Only okadaic acid (OA) and OA acyl esters were found in shellfish tissues (max. OA eq. levels 47 μg/100 g tissue). OA was also confirmed in a bloom water sample. No illnesses were reported associated with this event. DSP toxins now add to a growing list of phycotoxins, which include those responsible for PSP (paralytic shellfish poisoning), NSP (neurotoxic shellfish poisoning), and ASP (amnesic shellfish poisoning) which must now be monitored for in US coastal waters where shellfish are harvested.     

The Use of Post-Natal Skeleton Development as Sensitive Preclinical Model to Test the Quality of Alternative Protein Sources in the Diet

Dietary protein is necessary throughout all life stages. Adequate intake of protein during juvenile years is essential to enable appropriate synthesis of bone matrix and achieve the full peak bone mass (PBM). Due to socio-demographic changes, accompanied by environmental damage and ethical problems, a transition to the consumption of different and alternative protein sources in the human diet must occur. This transition requires the precise evaluation of protein quality. Here, we utilize a preclinical model of young rats during their post-natal developmental period to define the nutritive quality of a number of alternative protein sources (soy, spirulina, chickpea, and fly larvae) by their health impact on growth performance and skeletal development. We indicate that when restricted (10% of calories) not one of the tested alternative protein sources have succeeded in causing optimal growth, as compared to the referenced source, casein; yet fly larvae protein followed by chickpea flour were found to be superior to the rest. Growth-plate histology and µ-CT analyses demonstrated a number of changes in growth patterns and bone morphometric parameters. Bone mechanical testing, by three-point bending analyses, was sensitive in demonstrating the effect of the reduction in the amount of the dietary protein. Moreover, the rats’ weight and length, as well as their eating patterns, were found to reflect the proteins’ quality better than their amino acid composition. Hence, our study emphasizes the importance of evaluating protein as a whole food source, and suggests a new approach for this purpose.     

Evaluation of Toxicity of Crude Phlorotannins and Phloroglucinol Using Different Model Organisms

Phlorotannins have been proven to contain numerous bioactive compounds that have potential to be applied in variety industries, including cosmetics, functional foods, nutraceuticals, environmental management, and medicine. The larvicidal and growth-inhibiting properties of phlorotannins have been extensively studied in various organisms. However, the toxicity of the phloroglucinol oligomer of phlorotannin is unclear, especially in Artemia salina, Daphnia magna, Lactuca sativa, and Chlorella vulgaris, which are commonly used in many bioassays. Therefore, research using these four organisms should be designed to provide basic information about the toxic effects of phlorotannins and phloroglucinol. This study aimed to evaluate the larvicidal and inhibitory properties of phlorotannins and phloroglucinol on A. salina, D. magna, L. sativa, and C. vulgaris. Phlorotannin extract and phloroglucinol were administered at various concentrations to each test organism. The survival rate of A. salina nauplii and D. magna neonates was observed every 24 h to 72 h, whereas the L. sativa seed germination and inhibition rate of C. vulgaris were observed up to 96 h. The results showed that the 24 h LC50 of phlorotannin on A. salina and D. magna were 10.67 and 1.32 mg/mL, respectively. The germination inhibition of L. sativa was 53.3% with a seed growth of less than 4 mm after 96 h upon exposure to 1 mg/mL of phlorotannin. Freshwater and seawater C. vulgaris experienced yield inhibition of 39.47 and 43.46%, respectively, when 2 mg/mL of phlorotanin was added. These results indicate that phlorotannin affects the survival and growth of the test organisms, so its use as a pesticide, herbicide, and algaecide agent for environmental and aquaculture applications can be further studied.     

海洋生物酸性多糖的抗银屑病作用及对免疫功能的影响

利用鼠阴道上皮模型及鼠尾鳞片表皮模型研究了酸性多糖类海洋药物ＨＡＩ－０９１３抗银屑病的作用，并进一步研究了对机体细胞免疫功能的影响。结果表明，ＨＡＩ－０９１３２５、５０、１００ｍｇ·ｋｇ－１可明显抑制雌激素期小鼠和大鼠阴道上皮细胞有丝分裂指数（Ｐ＜０．０１），显著提高小鼠尾鳞片颗粒层形成数（Ｐ＜０．０５），与阳性对照药氨甲喋呤（１ｍｇ·ｋｇ－１，ｉｐ）比较均无显著性差异。ＨＡＩ－０９１３２５、５０、１００ｍｇ·ｋｇ－１还可显著提高小鼠脾脏Ｔ淋巴细胞增殖活性（Ｐ＜０．０１）。结果提示ＨＡＩ－０９１３可能具有抑制银屑病患者表皮细胞增生，提高颗粒层形成及改善患者免疫功能低下状态的作用。     

Antioxidant Activity and Gas Chromatographic-Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Extracts of the Marine Algae,Caulerpa peltata and Padina Gymnospora

The results of our previous investigations on extracts of selected marine algae showed that Caulerpa peltata and Padina gymnospora had more promising antiproliferative and antioxidant activities than Gelidiella acerosa and Sargassum wightii. Based on these results, the more active chloroform extract of C. peltata and ethyl acetate extract of P. gymnospora were further analyzed for their constituents by using gas chromatography in tandem with mass spectrometry. The GC-MS analysis (GC % peak area given in parentheses) showed that fucosterol (12.45%) and L-(+)-ascorbic acid 2, 6-dihexadecanoate (8.13%) were the major compounds present in P. gymnospora ethyl acetate extract. On the other hand, C. peltata chloroform extract had 1-heptacosanol (10.52%), hexacosanol acetate (9.28%), tetradecyl ester of chloroacetic acid (7.22%), Z,Z-6, 28-heptatriactontadien-2-one (6.77%) and 10, 13-dimethyl-methyl ester of tetradecanoic acid (5.34%) as major compounds. Also described in the report are the beta-carotene bleaching inhibitory and total reducing activities of the chloroform and ethyl acetate extracts of C. peltata and P. gymnospora, respectively, relative to the other three extracts (aqueous, methanol, chloroform or ethyl acetate) of the two algae.