Assay for lipid peroxides in animal tissues by thiobarbituric acid reaction

Jin-Ming Gao,*,† Sheng-Xiang Yang,‡ and Jian-Chun Qin †Shaanxi Engineering Center of Bioresource Chemistry & Sustainable Utilization, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Science, Northwest A&F University, 3 Taicheng Road, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China ‡College of Science, Zhejiang A&F University, Lin’an, Hangzhou 311300, Zhejiang, China College of Plant Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin 130062, China

Azaphilones: Chemistry and Biology

The genus Monascus, comprising nine species, can reproduce either vegetatively with filaments and conidia or sexually by the formation of ascospores. The most well-known species of genus Monascus, namely, M. purpureus, M. ruber and M. pilosus, are often used for rice fermentation to produce red yeast rice, a special product used either for food coloring or as a food supplement with positive effects on human health. The colored appearance (red, orange or yellow) of Monascus-fermented substrates is produced by a mixture of oligoketide pigments that are synthesized by a combination of polyketide and fatty acid synthases. The major pigments consist of pairs of yellow (ankaflavin and monascin), orange (rubropunctatin and monascorubrin) and red (rubropunctamine and monascorubramine) compounds; however, more than 20 other colored products have recently been isolated from fermented rice or culture media. In addition to pigments, a group of monacolin substances and the mycotoxin citrinin can be produced by Monascus. Various non-specific biological activities (antimicrobial, antitumor, immunomodulative and others) of these pigmented compounds are, at least partly, ascribed to their reaction with amino group-containing compounds, i.e. amino acids, proteins or nucleic acids. Monacolins, in the form of β-hydroxy acids, inhibit hydroxymethylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase, a key enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis in animals and humans.

Monascus secondary metabolites: production and biological activity

Natural Nrf2 activators in diabetes.

The consumption of aquatic food has globally increased in recent decades, as a result of better understanding of their health benefits and the good image of seafood among consumers. Due to the wide range of their living environments, marine organisms have developed unique properties and bioactive compounds compared to terrestrial sources. The importance of functional food ingredients has been well recognized in connection with health promotion, disease risk reduction and reduction in health care costs. These include omega-3 fatty acids from fish, marine mammals and algal/fungal sources, chitosan, chitosan oligosaccharides and glucosamine, carotenoids, enzymes and protein hydrolysates as well as algal phenolics and carbohydrates. This contribution summarizes novel functional ingredients from marine resources.

Novel functional food ingredients from marine sources

Monascus-fermented red mold dioscorea (RMD) has been proven to possess greater hypolipidemic effect than red mold rice (RMR) even though they include equal levels of cholesterol-lowering agent monacolin K. However, higher concentrations of yellow pigments (monascin and ankaflavin) were found in RMD than in RMR. In this study, purified monascin and ankaflavin were administered to hyperlipidemic hamsters for 8 weeks, respectively, to test whether these two compounds were novel hypolipidemic ingredients. In the statistical results, monascin and ankaflavin showed significant effect on lowering cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in serum, as well as aorta lipid plaque (p < 0.05). Importantly, monascin and ankaflavin, unlike monacolin K, were able to perform up-regulation rather than down-regulation on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels in serum. This finding not only explained why RMD showed greater hypolipidemic and HDL-C-raising effect than RMR but also proved that monascin and ankaflavin would act as novel and potent hypolipidemic ingredients.

Monascin and ankaflavin act as novel hypolipidemic and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol-raising agents in red mold dioscorea.

Deep ocean water (DOW) has, in previous studies, been found to be a novel anti-obesity drink and useful in raising Monascus-produced monascin and ankaflavin levels. This may resolve the limited anti-obesity ability of red mold dioscorea (RMD) known as the Monascus purpureus-fermented Disocorea batatas. This study aims to compare the anti-obesity effect of DOW-cultured RMD (DOW-RMD) and ultra-pure water-cultured RMD (UPW-RMD) in rats fed on a high fat diet. Moreover, the effect of ions composition of DOW and DOW-influenced functional metabolites change of RMD on the differentiation and lipogenesis regulation were investigated using 3T3-L1 pre-adipocytes. In the animal test, compared to UPW-RMD, DOW-RMD possessed better ability to inhibit increases in weight gain, and better feed efficiency, body-fat pad and cross-sectional area of adipocytes. In the cell test, the anti-obesity abilities of DOW-RMD in inhibiting PPARγ and C/EBPα expression in differentiation and lipoprotein lipase activity in lipogenesis were contributed to by the DOW-increased monascin and ankaflavin levels and the ions of DOW, respectively.

https://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/11/10/3902/pdf

Enhanced anti-obesity activities of red mold dioscorea when fermented using deep ocean water as the culture water.

Red mold dioscorea (RMD) produced by Monascus sp. was proven to be a hypolipidemic functional food. Deep ocean water (DOW), that is, water obtained from over 200 m deep in the ocean, was found to promote the growth of fungus via its mineral richness. On the basis of the advantages, this study used 650 m DOW as the culture water to culture Monascus purpuresus NTU 568 and produce the DOW-RMD. The goal of this study is to compare the difference between DOW-RMD and reverse osmosis water-cultured RMD (ROW-RMD) on the hypolipidemic effect. Hyperlipidemic hamsters were fed a high-cholesterol diet and administered various doses of DOW-RMD or ROW-RMD for 8 weeks. After sacrifice, biochemical analyses in serum, liver, and feces were carried out. The results showed that DOW-RMD had a greater effect on lowering cholesterol levels and lipid peroxidation in serum and lipid plaque in heart aorta than ROW-RMD. However, DOW was likely to modulate the Monascus metabolite biosynthesis pathway toward the formation of hypolipidemic yellow pigments (such as monascin and ankaflavin) rather than red pigments and the mycotoxin citrinin. In addition, the DOW with higher Mg(2+) ion was proven to absorb into DOW-RMD; however, the accumulation of Mg(2+) ions should contribute a greater hypolipidemic effect to DOW-RMD. Comprehensively, the DOW-induced metabolism modulation and the ions of DOW were a benefit to the development of safe DOW-RMD with low citrinin levels and high hypolipidemic, antiatherosclerosis, and anti-fatty liver effects.

Yi-Hsin Kung

Papers

Monascin and ankaflavin act as novel hypolipidemic and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol-raising agents in red mold dioscorea.

Enhanced anti-obesity activities of red mold dioscorea when fermented using deep ocean water as the culture water.

Enhanced Hypolipidemic Effect and Safety of Red Mold Dioscorea Cultured in Deep Ocean Water