Reduction in dietary lysine increases muscle free amino acids through changes in protein metabolism in chickens.

Taste is crucial to meat quality, and free Glu is an important taste-active component in meat. Our recent study showed that the short-term feeding of a low-Lys diet increases the concentration of free Glu and other free amino acids in chicken muscle and improves its taste. Here, we investigated the mechanisms by which the feeding of a low-Lys diet increases free Glu in chicken muscle.

Physiological Multifunctions of Rice Proteins of Endosperm and Bran.

Although it is considered a staple food, rice intake is under serious debate for its physiological usefulness, especially for diabetic patients, because of starch content. However, rice protein, the second major component of rice, has gained attention recently for its newly-discovered functions, which were previously unknown. Rice protein, a plant protein, shows multiple beneficial functions on lipid metabolism and diabetes and its complications, nephropathy, fatty liver and osteoporosis.

Rice endosperm protein slows progression of fatty liver and diabetic nephropathy in Zucker diabetic fatty rats.

We previously reported that rice endosperm protein (REP) has renoprotective effects in Goto-Kakizaki rats, a non-obese diabetic model. However, whether these effects occur in obese diabetes remains unclear. This study aimed to clarify the effects of REP on obese diabetes, especially on fatty liver and diabetic nephropathy, using the obese diabetic model Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats.

Protective effect of composite earthworm powder against diabetic complications via increased fibrinolytic function and improvement of lipid metabolism in ZDF rats.

Thrombosis is the leading cause of mortality globally. It is not only a complication but also a risk factor for progression of diabetes. However, alternative oral therapies and prophylaxis with less adverse effect for thrombosis have not been well studied.

Reduction of dietary lysine increases free glutamate content in chicken meat and improves its taste.

Taste is a crucial factor of meat quality, and amino acids are important taste-active components in meat. Here, the effects of dietary lysine (Lys) content on taste-active components in meat, especially free glutamate (Glu), were investigated. Twenty-eight-day-old broilers (Gallus gallus) were fed diets with graded Lys content of 90% or 100% of the recommended Lys requirement, (according to the National Research Council, ) for 10 days.

Effect of dietary histidine on contents of carnosine and anserine in muscles of broilers.

Carnosine (β-alanyl-L-histidine) and anserine (β-alanyl-1-methyl-L-histidine) are dipeptides mainly found in skeletal muscle and brain of many vertebrates, and particularly high concentrations are observed in chicken pectoral muscles. It was reported that these peptides have many functions, such as antioxidant activity. In this study, we examined the effect of different levels of dietary histidine on carnosine and anserine contents in broiler muscles.

Regulation of free glutamate content in meat by dietary lysine in broilers.

Regulation of taste is important for improving meat quality and glutamate (Glu) is one of the important taste-active components in meat. Here, the effects of dietary lysine (Lys) content on taste-active components in meat, especially free Glu, were investigated. Fourteen-day-old broiler chicks (Gallus gallus) were fed on diets containing 100% or 150% of the recommended Lys content for 10 days.

In vivo digestibility of rice prolamin/protein body-I particle is decreased by cooking.

Rice has storage proteins, e.g., glutelin, globulin and prolamin, in the seeds, which are used as nitrogen sources during germination.

Effect of dietary astaxanthin rich yeast, Phaffia rhodozyma, on meat quality of broiler chickens.

We evaluated effects of dietary supplementation with astaxanthin (Ax)-rich yeast, Phaffia rhodozyma (Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous), on broiler chicken meat quality. Fourteen-day-old female Ross broilers were divided into three groups: control group, Ax-free diet; Ax 10 group, 10 mg/kg Ax diet; and Ax 20 group, 20 mg/kg Ax diet for 28 days. At 42 days old, chickens were slaughtered, and then growth performance, meat quality and sensory attributes were analyzed.

Diversity of amino acid signaling pathways on autophagy regulation: a novel pathway for arginine.

Autophagy is the intracellular bulk degradation process to eliminate damaged cellular machinery and to recycle building blocks, and is crucial for cell survival and cell death. Amino acids modulate autophagy in response to nutrient starvation and oxidative stress. We investigated the relevance of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production on the regulation of autophagy using amino acids, both as a mixture and individually, in rat hepatoma H4-II-E cells.

Effect of dietary vitamin E on broiler meat qualities, color, water-holding capacity and shear force value, under heat stress conditions.

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary vitamin E (VE) on broiler meat quality, especially focused on PSE (pale color, soft and exudative), under chronic heat stress (HS) conditions. Twenty-eight-day-old female Ross broilers were kept in independent cages with a controlled temperature of 24°C (normal temperature: NT) or 30°C (high temperature: HT). The NT chickens were fed basal feed.

Rice protein ameliorates the progression of diabetic nephropathy in Goto-Kakizaki rats with high-sucrose feeding.

The effect of rice protein (RP) on diabetic nephropathy in non-obese, spontaneous type 2 diabetic Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats was investigated.GK rats at 7 weeks of age were fed 20% RP or casein (C) in standard or high-sucrose diets for 10 weeks. Plasma total cholesterol,TAG, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), adiponectin, creatinine and urinary albumin excretion (UAE) were measured and renal histology was evaluated.

Improvement in the in vivo digestibility of rice protein by alkali extraction is due to structural changes in prolamin/protein body-I particle.

Rice prolamin, constituting type-I protein body (PB-I), is indigestible and causes deterioration of rice protein nutritional quality. In this study, the in vivo digestibility of rice protein isolates was investigated by tracing their intraluminal transit in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of rats by western blotting and by observing the structures excreted in the feces by electron microscopy. Two types of rice protein isolates, produced by alkali extraction (AE-RP) and by starch degradation (SD-RP), were compared.

Superiority of alkali-extracted rice protein in bioavailability to starch degraded rice protein comes from digestion of prolamin in growing rats.

The rice protein prepared from alkaline extraction (AE-RP) has high digestibility compared to that obtained from starch degradation (SD-RP) in in vitro digestion experiments, and alterations in the protein body (PB) structures were observed in AE-RP in the previous study. The improvement in the digestibility of AE-RP is probably a result of the structural change of PB. The present study was carried out to elucidate the superiority of AE-RP compared to SD-RP in bioavailability in growing rats.

Effects of rice proteins from two cultivars, Koshihikari and Shunyo, on cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism in growing and adult rats.

The effect and mechanism of two types of rice protein, one from regular japonica rice Koshihikari and another from rice cultivar Shunyo, with low glutelin and high prolamin content, on cholesterol and triglyceride metabolism were compared by feeding casein and soy protein to male Wistar strain rats 7 and 20 weeks old ad libitum for 2 weeks. The results in adult rats clearly indicated that both rice proteins had cholesterol-lowering effects in the plasma and the liver, comparable to soy protein, and the effects were accompanied with TG-lowering effects in the liver. Similar effects were also observed in growing rats when the diets were supplemented with cholesterol.