Furan in commercially processed foods: four-year field monitoring and risk assessment study in Korea.

The aim of this study was to monitor and assess the risk associated with the presence of furan in various food products consumed in Korea. An optimized analytical method was used for the analysis of furan levels. The optimized solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fiber exposure conditions as follows for temperature, time, and amount of sample were 50 degrees C, 20 min, and 5 g (ml), respectively. Furan was detected in all food samples tested, at levels ranging from 0.4 ng/g in canned crab to 814 ng/g in ground roasted coffee powder. The furan levels in coffee, canned fish, canned meats, sauce, soup, retort, canned vegetables, baby foods, nutritional/diet drinks, confectionary and biscuits and snacks, juice, jams, and canned fruit were (ng/g) 169, 56.1, 30.1, 21.1, 18.1, 15.6, 10.9, 10.6, 7.1, 5.4, 3.7, 3.2, and 2.9, respectively. Furan concentrations in baby food products were between 1 and 102.5 ng/g. The total exposure estimate of furan was determined to be 10.6 ng/kg/d (maximum, 20 ng/kg/d) for adults, and 17.4 ng/kg/d (maximum. 84.9 ng/kg/d) for babies. Exposure estimates found in this study are lower than those prescribed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Correlation of urinary furan with plasma gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase levels in healthy men and women.

Furan is a colorless, volatile compound that is found in heat-treated foods, such as canned and jarred foods, at levels up to 100 ppb. When animals ingest high doses, furan metabolites, such as cis-2-butene-1,4-dial, cause severe hepatotoxicity and carcinogenicity. However, the levels and effects of furan on humans are not known. Therefore, we measured urinary furan in 100 healthy individuals consumed normal diet (49 men, 51 women) using solid phase micro-extraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (SPME-GCMS). Urinary furan was detected in 56 subjects (31 males, 25 females) and ranged up to 3.14 ppb. In individuals with detectable urinary furan, the level of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (gamma-GT), a marker for liver damage, was strongly correlated with the urinary furan concentration (r=0.56, p<0.0001). Linear regression analysis indicated that the urinary furan level was significantly associated with gamma-GT in both univariate (p<0.0001) and multiple (p=0.0001) models including age, sex, body weight, and blood pressure as covariates. To our knowledge, this is the first study to measure detectable levels of furan in human urine. These levels of urinary furan, which may be dietary origin, could be hepatotoxic in humans; therefore; the metabolic fates and potential toxicity of dietary furan in humans should be investigated further.

Oral administration of hot water extracts of Chlorella vulgaris increases physical stamina in mice.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: A unicellular algae, Chlorella vulgaris, was used as a biological response modifier. Although hot water extracts of C. vulgaris (CVE) are thought to augment immune responses, the effect of CVE on fatigue and physical stamina has not been studied. METHODS: In the present study, we investigated the effect of CVE on forced swimming test and blood biochemical parameters related to fatigue, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatine kinase (CK), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), glucose (Glc), and total protein (TP). CVE (0.05-0.15 g/kg/day) was orally administered to mice. RESULTS: After 7 days, the immobility time was decreased in the 0.1- and 0.15-g/kg CVE-treated groups (179 +/- 8.3 and 175 +/- 2.1 s) in comparison with the control group (223 +/- 5.4 s). In addition, the contents of BUN, CK, and LDH in the blood serum were decreased in the CVE-fed group. However, they had no effect on the elevation of Glc and TP level. CONCLUSIONS: The results predict a potential benefit of CVE for enhancing immune function and improving physical stamina.

Gamibojungikki-tang decreases immobility time on the forced swimming test and increases interferon-gamma production from MOLT-4 cells.

Gamibojungikki-tang (GBIT) has been used for the purpose of development of physical strength in Korea. We investigated the anti-immobility effect of GBIT on the forced swimming test (FST) and then measured the blood biochemical parameters related to fatigue, glucose (Glc); blood urea nitrogen (BUN); lactic dehydrogenase (LDH); creatine kinase (CK) and total protein (TP). GBIT (0.01, 0.1, 1 g/kg) was orally administered to mice for 7 days. After 7 days, the immobility time was significantly decreased in the GBIT-administration group (105.0+/-12.1 s for 1 g/kg) in comparison with the control group (152.3+/-16.2 s). The contents of Glc and TP in the blood serum were significantly increased in GBIT-administration group (1g/kg) compared with control group, while LDH was significantly decreased. Surface phenotyping of spleen cells by FACS analysis revealed an increasing tendency of CD4+ and CD8+ number, without statistical significance. In addition, GBIT (0.01-1 mg/ml) increased the interferon-gamma and interlukin-2 levels in MOLT-4 T-cells. These results suggest that GBIT may be useful in the immune function improvement.