Effects of Freeze-dried Green Vegetable Extract on Lipid Profiles and Antioxidant Status in the Rat

There has been increasing research interests that green vegetables play beneficial roles in human health. This study was performed to investigate the effects of freeze-dried green vegetable extract of Angelica keiskei Koidz (A) and Brassica oleracea acephala (B) on lipid profiles and antioxidant status in rats. Seven-weeks old male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into 6 groups and fed diets containing 5% A & B and 0.5% cholesterol (chol) for 8 weeks [Control Diet (C) & C + chol (CC), A & A + chol (AC), B & B + chol (BC)]. Lipid profiles and antioxidant status were determined by enzyme assay methods. The serum levels of [LDL + VLDL]-cholesterol of the rats fed vegetable extract diets A and B were significantly lower than that of group C and the ratios of HDL/[LDL + VLDL] were significantly higher in groups A and B. Addition of cholesterol in the diet, however, abolished this effect. The Brassica oleracea acephala juice lowered serum TG level even when cholesterol was added to the diet. Serum total antioxidant status (TAS) were significantly higher in groups A and B as compared to the control group and the ratios of [GSH-Px + Catalase]/total-SOD in the liver were also significantly higher in groups A and B indicating that H2O2 produced be efficiently removed. In conclusion, freeze-dried green vegetable extract diets (A and B) improved serum lipid profiles by increasing the HDL/[LDL + VLDL] ratio and exerted favorable influences on antioxidant systems by improving total antioxidant status (TAS) in serum and by significantly increasing the ratio of [GSH-Px + Catalase]/total-SOD in the liver.

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymorphism, diet, and breast cancer in Korean women

To evaluate the interactive effect of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) genotype and dietary factors on the development of breast cancer, a hospital based case-control study was conducted in South Korean study population consisting of 189 histologically confirmed incident breast cancer cases and their 189 age-matched controls without present or previous history of cancer. A PCR-RFLP method was used for the genotyping of MTHFR (C677T) and statistical evaluations were performed by unconditional logistic regression analysis. Consumption of some dietary factors, such as green vegetables (OR=0.3, 95% CI: 0.2-0.6), white vegetables (OR=0.3, 95% CI: 0.1-0.7) mushrooms (OR=0.4, 95% CI: 0.3-0.7), and meats (OR=1.7, 95% CI: 1.1-2.8) significantly decreased or increased the risk of breast cancer. Although the breast cancer risk was 1.7-fold (95% CI: 0.8-3.2) increased in women with MTHFR TT genotype, the association was not statistically significant. Women with MTHFR TT genotype and low green vegetable intake increased 5.6-fold (95% CI: 1.2-26.3) risk of breast cancer compared to high green vegetable intake group containing MTHFR CC/CT genotype. However, the interaction was not significant (p for interaction=0.96). Our findings suggest that MTHFR polymorphism did not influence individual susceptibility to breast cancer. However MTHFR (C667T) genotype and green vegetable intakes appeared to have the interactive effect in breast cancer development.