Effects of the Seed Oil of Carica papaya Linn on Food Consumption, Adiposity, Metabolic and Inflammatory Profile of Mice Using Hyperlipidic Diet.

BACKGROUND: Studies indicate that different parts of Carica papaya Linn have nutritional properties that mean it can be used as an adjuvant for the treatment of various pathologies. METHODS: The fatty acid composition of the oil extracted from the seeds of Carica papaya Linn was evaluated by gas chromatography, and an acute toxicity test was performed. For the experiment, Swiss mice were fed a balanced or high-fat diet and supplemented with saline, soybean oil, olive oil, or papaya seed oil. Oral glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity tests were performed. After euthanasia, adiposity, glycemia, total cholesterol and fractions, insulin, resistin, leptin, MCP-1, TNF-α, and IL-6 and the histology of the liver, pancreas, and adipose tissue were evaluated. RESULTS: Papaya seed oil showed predominance of monounsaturated fatty acids in its composition. No changes were observed in the acute toxicity test. Had lower food intake in grams, and caloric intake and in the area of adipocytes without minimizing weight gain or adiposity and impacting the liver or pancreas. Reductions in total and non-HDL-c, LDL-c, and VLDL-c were also observed. The treatment had a hypoglycemic and protective effect on insulin resistance. Supplementation also resulted in higher leptin and lower insulin and cytokine resistance. CONCLUSIONS: Under these experimental conditions, papaya seed oil led to higher amounts of monounsaturated fatty acids and had hypocholesterolemic, hypotriglyceridemic, and hypoglycemic effects.

Comparison of analytical methods for the fatty acid profile in ewes' milk.

Studies comparing methodologies for fatty acids are very important, since they can influence the quality and final quantification of the lipid fraction. Objective-to compare different extraction methods for total lipids and to evaluate the effect of these methodologies on the quantitative composition of fatty acids in milk of lactating ewes raised in tropical pastures. The methodologies used were simple direct transesterification, using the HPLC grade organic solvent n-hexane, Bligh; Dyer (cold extraction, extracting mixture proportions 5, 10, and 15 mL in a ratio of 2:1:1 (v/v/v) of chloroform-methanol-water). The fatty acid methyl esters were separated by gas chromatography coupled with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). The results show that there was no significant difference (p <0.05) in the total lipid content between the extraction methods. However, the Bligh's method; Dyer obtained the best yield of lipids to be extracted from ewe's milk, since the volume with 15 mL of the extraction solution was able to identify 87% of the chromatographic peaks. It was also observed that ewe's milk has a higher percentage of palmitic, stearic and oleic fatty acids, with percentages of 20.1%, 15.5% and 33.1%, respectively. Therefore, an extraction mixture with a volume of 15 mL used in this study may be an alternative to perform the extraction of milk fat from high lactating ewes in tropical pastures as a routine method, as it expresses the best lipid content of this food.

High-Fat Diet with Lyophilized Acrocomia aculeata Pulp Increases High-Density Lipoprotein-Cholesterol Levels and Inhibits Adipocyte Hypertrophy in Mice.

Obesity is a relevant health hazard characterized as a chronic noncommunicable disease, with severe comorbidities that cause mortality worldwide. Acrocomia aculeata is a Brazilian palm with edible fruits. Its pulp contains fibers, monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), such as oleic acid and carotenoids. In this context, our study aimed to elucidate the protective effect of the lyophilized A. aculeata pulp added at the rates of 1%, 2%, and 4% to a high-fat (HF) diet (rich in saturated fats and cholesterol), for 90 days, in mice. The treatment with 4% pulp induced a significant increase in the biochemical parameters of serum cholesterol HDL-C (high-density lipoprotein) compared with the control. According to the evaluation of the epididymal tissue, the groups treated with A. aculeata pulp exhibited smaller fat deposits compared with the HF diet group. Therefore, we infer that the predominant components in A. aculeata, particularly fibers and MUFAs, promote beneficial effects on health parameters during simultaneous exposure to food rich in saturated fat and cholesterol, typical of the Western diet. This is the first study to correlate the presence of fatty acids from A. aculeata pulp in different proportions added in a HF diet with metabolic and histological parameters in Swiss mice.

Buriti pulp oil did not improve high-fat diet-induced metabolic disorders in c57bl/6 mice.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and obesity are growing in many parts of the world, becoming public health problems. It is proposed that foods with functional properties can assist in the treatment of these diseases. Crude buriti pulp oil (BPO) is a food traditionally consumed by residents in the Pantanal, Cerrado and Brazilian Amazon. It is rich in oleic acid, tocopherols and carotenoids, emerging as a potential functional food. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of the supplementation of BPO on metabolic disorders caused by a high-fat diet. Four groups of C57BL6 mice were used, a lean group with AIN-93M diet and control oil supplementation, an obese group with a high-fat diet and control oil supplementation, and two obese groups with a high-fat diet and BPO supplementation in the amounts of 50 and 100 mg/kg. BPO worsened the metabolic state caused by the high-fat diet, worsening risk factors associated with MetS, as the abdominal circumference and retroperitoneal fat, serum levels of total cholesterol, uric acid, alanine transaminase, glucose and triglycerides, and renal fat, in addition to changes in glycaemic control and oxidative stress markers. C57BL/6 mice fed with a high-fat diet and supplemented with BPO presented a worsening in metabolic risk factors associated with MetS.

Caryocar brasiliense Cambess. Pulp Oil Supplementation Reduces Total Cholesterol, LDL-c, and Non-HDL-c in Animals.

The fruit of Caryocar brasiliense Cambess. is a source of oil with active compounds that are protective to the organism. In our work, we analyzed the physicochemical characteristics and evaluated the effects of supplementation with C. brasiliense oil in an animal model. We characterized the oil by indices of quality and identity, optical techniques of absorption spectroscopy in the UV-Vis region and fluorescence, and thermogravimetry/derived thermogravimetry (TG/DTG). For the animal experiment, we utilized mice (Mus musculus) supplemented with lipidic source in different dosages. The results demonstrated that C. brasiliense oil is an alternative source for human consumption and presents excellent oxidative stability. Primarily, it exhibited oleic MFA (53.56%) and palmitic SFA (37.78%). The oil level of tocopherols and tocotrienols was superior to the carotenoids. The supplementation with C. brasiliense oil reduced the levels of total cholesterol, LDL-c, and non-HDL-c. Regarding visceral fats and adiposity index, the treatment synergically supplemented with olive oil and C. brasiliense oil (OO + CO) obtained the best result. Therefore, C. brasiliense oil is a high quality product for consumption. Its supplementation promotes beneficial effects mainly on the lipidic profile.

Intake of Polydextrose Alters Hematology and the Profile of Short Chain Fatty Acids in Partially Gastrectomized Rats.

Polydextrose (PDX) ingestion may increase the intestinal absorption of iron. This study evaluated the effects of 7.5% polydextrose supplementation on markers of iron uptake, transport and storage in partially gastrectomized rats. Half of a batch of 40 male Wistar rats (250 g) underwent Billroth II partial gastrectomy with anterior truncal vagotomy (GXT), while the other half underwent sham gastrectomy (SHAM). At 7 postoperative days, the animals were subdivided into four groups (n = 10): Sham Control and GXT Control (no polydextrose); Sham PDX and GXT PDX (with 7.5% PDX). The animals were euthanized after 60 day of PDX treatment. Organ weight, cecal pH, the characterization and quantification of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), hematological parameters, hepatic iron content and the expression of ferroportin (FPT) in the jejunum, cecum, colon and liver were evaluated. PDX caused changes in the cecum of the supplemented animals, where there was a decrease in pH, increase in cecal wall and marked production of SCFA, especially acetic and propionic acids (p < 0.05). Hepatic iron levels were lower in GXT animals. PDX increased hemoglobin (HGB) values by 29.2% and hematocrit (HCT) by 55.8% in the GXT PDX group compared to the GXT Control group. The GXT PDX group had lower hepatic FPT expression (p < 0.05). PDX led to increased SCFA concentration in the supplemented animals. Considering that SCFAs play a central role in the increasing nutrients uptake, this mechanism may be involved in altering the hematology profile observed in these animals but not enough to reverse iron deficiency anemia in post-gastrectomy rats.