Iron Overload Resulting from the Chronic Oral Administration of Ferric Citrate Impairs Intestinal Immune and Barrier in Mice.

Ferric citrate (FC) is an iron-containing phosphate binder used as a food additive for iron supplementation. To explore the potential effect of ferric citrate on intestinal epithelial function, in the present study, we administered the mice orally for 16 weeks with different doses of iron citrate (2.5 mg/day (1.25%), 5 mg/day (2.5%), and 10 mg/day (5.0%)). We found that the iron levels of serum and tissue significantly increased, which caused the body to be in an iron overload state; meanwhile, the villus height, the ratio of villus height to crypt depth, and the number of intraepithelial lymphocytes and goblet cells in jejunum all decreased. Iron overload upregulated the pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1ß, IL-2, IL-6, TNF-ɑ), while downregulated the anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-4, IL-10) and sIgA. Moreover, iron overload increased serum D-lactate (D-LA) levels and decreased tight junction proteins (claudin-1, occludin, and ZO-1), MUC-2, and TFF3. In addition, iron overload upregulated the content of MDA and protein carbonyl, while downregulated the activity and content of T-AOC, GSH-PX, SOD, CAT, and GSH. To sum up, the present results showed that long-term oral administration of FC resulted in iron overload, which consequently impaired intestinal immune and barrier function in mice. Meanwhile, the effect on intestinal damage may be highly related to the increase of oxidative stress in the jejunum.

Iron overload resulting from the chronic oral administration of ferric citrate induces parkinsonism phenotypes in middle-aged mice.

Iron homeostasis is critical for maintaining normal brain physiological functions, and its mis-regulation can cause neurotoxicity and play a part in the development of many neurodegenerative disorders. The high incidence of iron deficiency makes iron supplementation a trend, and ferric citrate is a commonly used iron supplement. In this study, we found that the chronic oral administration of ferric citrate (2.5 mg/day and 10 mg/day) for 16 weeks selectively induced iron accumulation in the corpus striatum (CPu), substantia nigra (SN) and hippocampus, which typically caused parkinsonism phenotypes in middle-aged mice. Histopathological analysis showed that apoptosis- and oxidative stress-mediated neurodegeneration and dopaminergic neuronal loss occurred in the brain, and behavioral tests showed that defects in the locomotor and cognitive functions of these mice developed. Our research provides a new perspective for ferric citrate as a food additive or in clinical applications and suggests a new potential approach to develop animal models for Parkinson's disease (PD).

Improvement of Colonic Immune Function with Soy Isoflavones in High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Rats.

Background: The damage to intestinal barrier function plays an important role in the development of obesity and associated diseases. Soy isoflavones are effective natural active components for controlling obesity and reducing the level of blood lipid. Here, we explored whether these effects of soy isoflavones were associated with the intestinal barrier function. Methods and Results: The obese rat models were established by high fat diet feeding. Then, those obese rats were supplemented with soy isoflavones at different doses for 4 weeks. Our results showed that obesity induced the expressions of pro-inflammatory cytokines, decreased the anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-10) expression, elevated intestinal permeability, altered gut microbiota and exacerbated oxidative damages in colon. The administration of soy isoflavones reversed these changes in obese rats, presenting as the improvement of intestinal immune function and permeability, attenuation of oxidative damage, increase in the fraction of beneficial bacteria producing short-chain fatty acids and short-chain fatty acid production, and reduction in harmful bacteria. Furthermore, soy isoflavones blocked the expressions of TLR4 and NF-κB in the colons of the obese rats. Conclusions: Soy isoflavones could improve obesity through the attenuation of intestinal oxidative stress, recovery of immune and mucosal barrier, as well as re-balance of intestinal gut microbiota.

Development of a SYBR Green II Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction for the Clinical Detection of the Duck-Origin Goose Parvovirus in China.

OBJECTIVE: To establish an efficient, convenient and quantitative method for the clinical detection of the duck-origin goose parvovirus. METHOD: In the present study, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was established for detecting the duck-origin goose parvovirus using the fluorescent chimeric dye SYBR Green II. Specific primers were designed to target a highly conserved region of the VP3 gene of the duck-origin goose parvovirus. RESULTS: This method was able to detect a minimum of 19.6 copies/µL of viral genomic DNA. Results showed that this method was faster and had a higher sensitivity than the traditional PCR in the clinical specimen test. In this paper, we developed a rapid, sensitive detection and quantitative analysis technology for the duck-origin goose parvovirus by real-time PCR assay. CONCLUSION: This test provides improved technical support for studies regarding the clinical diagnosis and epidemiological investigations of the duck-origin goose parvovirus.