Medium chain triglycerides alleviate non-alcoholic fatty liver disease through bile acid-mediated FXR signaling pathway: A comparative study with common vegetable edible oils.

With the global epidemic trend of obesity, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a significant cause of chronic liver disease, seriously affecting human health. Medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) with a fatty acid chain length varying between 6 and 10 carbon atoms (most sources from coconut and palm kernel oils), which exhibited activities to improve lipid metabolism, prevent cardiovascular diseases, and enhance immunity. However, the efficacy differences and potential mechanisms between MCT and traditional long-chain vegetable oils (palm oil, PA; high oleic peanut oil, OA) in obesity-induced NAFLD were still unclear.

Enhanced sediment microbial diversity in mangrove forests: Indicators of nutrient status in coastal ecosystems.

Coastal ecosystems are increasingly threatened by nutrient imbalances and environmental degradation, which can compromise their stability and productivity. We analyzed the sediment characteristics, microbial community structures, and nutrient cycling across three habitats: mangrove forests, seagrass beds, and bare beaches. The physicochemical properties (including pH, total nitrogen (TN), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K)) of the sediment samples were analyzed, and the microbial diversity was assessed using high-throughput sequencing.

Amelioration of myofibrillar protein emulsion gel properties by mildly oxidized sunflower oil.

Different oxidation states of oil affect the emulsion stablility and gel properties of emulsified meat products. Emulsified chicken gels were prepared using sunflower oil (SFO) with different oxidation levels (0, 20, 40, and 60 min, 120 °C). The pre-oxidation treatment of oils was investigated for emulsification and gelation of myofibrillar protein (MP).

Effect of soluble dietary fiber on soy protein isolate emulsion gel properties, stability and delivery of vitamin D.

Emulsion gels with denser network microstructure and stronger mechanical properties have attracted increasing attentions for delivering lipophilic compounds. In this study, the effect of three distinct soluble dietary fiber (inulin (IN), resistant dextrin (RD) and stachyose (ST)) on the rheological, mechanical and microstructural properties of soy protein isolate (SPI) emulsion gel were firstly investigated. Compared with RD and IN, ST significantly accelerated water holding capacity and thermal stability, which exhibited more compact microstructure and more uniform emulsified oil droplets.

Purification and characterization of Se-enriched Grifola frondosa glycoprotein, and evaluating its amelioration effect on As -induced immune toxicity.

Background: Selenium (Se)-enriched glycoproteins have been a research highlight for the role of both Se and glycoproteins in immunoregulation. Arsenic (As) is a toxicant that is potentially toxic to the immune function and consequently to human health. Several reports suggested that Se could reduce the toxicity of heavy metals.

Short-term exposure of decabromodiphenyl ether in female adult Balb/c mice: Immune toxicity and self-recovery.

As a typical persistent organic pollutant, decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) is associated with various health risks, especially on immune system, which is sensitive to environmental pollutants. In addition, there is a problem of multi-index estimation and lack of comprehensive evaluation in immune toxicity study. In this study, the immunotoxicity of BDE-209 was systematically estimated from the aspects of immunopathology, humoral immunity, cellular immunity and non-specific immunity, etc.

Novel in situ visualisation of rat intestinal absorption of polyphenols via matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation mass spectrometry imaging.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) is presently used in physiological evaluations for visualisation of targets in organs. In the present study, MALDI-MSI was used as a visualisation technique to investigate the intestinal absorption of polyphenols. Nifedipine/phytic acid-aided MALDI-MSI was performed to visualise theaflavin-3'-O-gallate (TF3'G) and epicatechin-3-O-gallate (ECG) in the rat jejunum for 50-µM, 60-min transport experiments.

Inhibition of Glucose Transport by Tomatoside A, a Tomato Seed Steroidal Saponin, through the Suppression of GLUT2 Expression in Caco-2 Cells.

We investigated whether tomatoside A (5α-furostane-3β,22,26-triol-3-[O-β-d-glucopyranosyl (1→2)-β-d-glucopyranosyl (1→4)-β-d-galactopyranoside] 26-O-β-d-glucopyranoside), a tomato seed saponin, may play a role in the regulation of intestinal glucose transport in human intestinal Caco-2 cells. Tomatoside A could not penetrate through Caco-2 cell monolayers, as observed in the transport experiments using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The treatment of cells with 10 μM tomatoside A for 3 h resulted in a 46.