Virgin coconut oil (VCO) supplementation relieves symptoms and inflammation among COVID-19 positive adults: a single-blind randomized trial.

A clinical study conducted in 2020 showed that virgin coconut oil (VCO) has been found effective in the rapid relief of COVID-19 symptoms and normalization of the C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration among probable and suspected cases of COVID-19. This present study aimed to validate those results and to evaluate the effects of VCO among COVID-19 patients through a 28-day randomized, single-blind trial conducted among 76 SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain report)-confirmed adults, with VCO given as a COVID-19 adjunct therapy. The results showed that VCO recipients were free from symptoms and had normal CRP concentrations by day 14. In comparison, participants in the control group reported relief from signs and symptoms on day 23, with normal CRP concentrations on day 25. This second study bolsters the use of VCO as an effective adjunct therapy for COVID-19-positive patients showing mild-to-moderate symptoms.

Virgin coconut oil is effective in lowering C-reactive protein levels among suspect and probable cases of COVID-19.

Understanding the complex pathogenesis of COVID-19 continues to evolve. With observation and quarantine as the prevailing standard of care, this study evaluated the effects of virgin coconut oil (VCO) in the biochemical markers of suspect and probable cases of COVID-19. A 28-day randomized, double-blind, controlled intervention was conducted among 63 adults in two isolation facilities in Santa Rosa City, Laguna, Philippines. The participants were randomly assigned to receive either a standardized meal (control) or a standardized meal mixed with a predefined dosage of VCO. Changes in clinical markers were measured at three time points (day 0, 14, and 28), with daily monitoring of COVID-19 symptoms. Participants in the intervention group showed a significant decline in the C-reactive protein level, with the mean CRP level normalized to ≤ 5 mg/dL on the 14th day of the intervention. As an adjunct therapy, meals mixed with VCO is effective fostering faster recovery from COVID-19.

Visualizing Phytochemical-Protein Interaction Networks: Momordica charantia and Cancer.

The in silico study of medicinal plants is a rapidly growing field. Techniques such as reverse screening and network pharmacology are used to study the complex cellular action of medicinal plants against disease. However, it is difficult to produce a meaningful visualization of phytochemical-protein interactions (PCPIs) in the cell. This study introduces a novel workflow combining various tools to visualize a PCPI network for a medicinal plant against a disease. The five steps are 1) phytochemical compilation, 2) reverse screening, 3) network building, 4) network visualization, and 5) evaluation. The output is a PCPI network that encodes multiple dimensions of information, including subcellular location, phytochemical class, pharmacokinetic data, and prediction probability. As a proof of concept, we built a PCPI network for bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) against colorectal cancer. The network and workflow are available at https://yumibriones.github.io/network/. The PCPI network highlights high-confidence interactions for further in vitro or in vivo study. The overall workflow is broadly transferable and can be used to visualize the action of other medicinal plants or small molecules against other diseases.

Trace organic chemical pollutants from the lake waters of San Pablo City, Philippines by targeted and non-targeted analysis.

More than half of the freshwater lakes in the Philippines are small with surface areas of <2 km2. The dynamics in these lakes are different from those in the bigger lakes. This study was conducted to determine the organic pollutants and their sources in three of the seven lakes of San Pablo City in Laguna, Philippines: lakes Palakpakin, Sampaloc, and Pandin. Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) and Liquid Chromatography - Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) were used in the targeted and non-targeted analysis of the lake water samples. The three lakes are all volcanic crater lakes but are exposed to different anthropogenic activities, which includes domestic activities, livelihood (farming and aquaculture) and eco-tourism. Due to the presence of rice fields and fruit plantations, chlorpyrifos was detected in the three lakes while other pesticides like cypermethrin, picolinafen and quinoxyfen were additionally found in Lake Sampaloc, which is the biggest of the three lakes and located within the urbanized section of the city. Traces of different surfactants (linear alkylbenzene sulfonates, secondary alkyl sulfonates, alkyl sulfates, alkyl ether sulfates), biocide benzalkonium chloride, insect repellent diethyltoluamide, antibiotics (sulfadiazine and sulfamethoxazole), hypertension drug telmisartan, phosphate-based fire retardants, and artificial sweeteners (acesulfame, cyclamate, saccharin and sucralose) were detected in lakes Sampaloc and Palakpakin. The same surfactants, artificial sweeteners, insect repellant and phosphate-based fire retardants were also found in Lake Pandin, which is mainly used for eco-tourism activities like swimming and boating. The results of this study suggest that the organic pollutants present in the small lakes can be linked to the various human activities in the immediate lake environment. Because small lakes are more prone to environmental stresses, human activities in the said lakes must be regulated to ensure sustainable development.

Zebrafish bioassay-guided microfractionation identifies anticonvulsant steroid glycosides from the Philippine medicinal plant Solanum torvum.

Medicinal plants used for the treatment of epilepsy are potentially a valuable source of novel antiepileptic small molecules. To identify anticonvulsant secondary metabolites, we performed an in vivo, zebrafish-based screen of medicinal plants used in Southeast Asia for the treatment of seizures. Solanum torvum Sw. (Solanaceae) was identified as having significant anticonvulsant activity in zebrafish larvae with seizures induced by the GABAA antagonist pentylenetetrazol (PTZ). This finding correlates well with the ethnomedical use of this plant in the Philippines, where a water decoction of S. torvum leaves is used to treat epileptic seizures. HPLC microfractionation of the bioactive crude extract, in combination with the in vivo zebrafish seizure assay, enabled the rapid localization of several bioactive compounds that were partially identified online by UHPLC-TOF-MS as steroid glycosides. Targeted isolation of the active constituents from the methanolic extract enabled the complete de novo structure identification of the six main bioactive compounds that were also present in the traditional preparation. To partially mimic the in vivo metabolism of these triterpene glycosides, their common aglycone was generated by acid hydrolysis. The isolated molecules exhibited significant anticonvulsant activity in zebrafish seizure assays. These results underscore the potential of zebrafish bioassay-guided microfractionation to rapidly identify novel bioactive small molecules of natural origin.

Analysis of monoglycerides, diglycerides, sterols, and free fatty acids in coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) oil by 31P NMR spectroscopy.

Phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy ( (31)P NMR) was used to differentiate virgin coconut oil (VCO) from refined, bleached, deodorized coconut oil (RCO). Monoglycerides (MGs), diglycerides (DGs), sterols, and free fatty acids (FFAs) in VCO and RCO were converted into dioxaphospholane derivatives and analyzed by (31)P NMR. On the average, 1-MG was found to be higher in VCO (0.027%) than RCO (0.019%). 2-MG was not detected in any of the samples down to a detection limit of 0.014%. On the average, total DGs were lower in VCO (1.55%) than RCO (4.10%). When plotted in terms of the ratio [1,2-DG/total DGs] versus total DGs, VCO and RCO samples grouped separately. Total sterols were higher in VCO (0.096%) compared with RCO (0.032%), and the FFA content was 8 times higher in VCO than RCO (0.127% vs 0.015%). FFA determination by (31)P NMR and titration gave comparable results. Principal components analysis shows that the 1,2-DG, 1,3-DG, and FFAs are the most important parameters for differentiating VCO from RCO.

Structural analysis of kappa-carrageenan [corrected] sulfated oligosaccharides by positive mode nano-ESI-FTICR-MS and MS/MS by SORI-CID.

Structural analysis of sulfated oligosaccharides from kappa-carrageenan of up to ten residues (MW >2 kDa) was successfully carried out by positive mode nano-ESI-FTICR-MS together with MS/MS using sustained off-resonance irradiation-collision induced dissociation (SORI-CID). Glycosidic bond cleavage reactions via the B- and Y-types of fragmentation were observed and enabled complete sequencing of the oligosaccharide samples. The positions of the labile sulfate substituents were observable using SORI-CID, enabling the determination of the sequence of the sulfated residues.

Impurity profiling of methamphetamine hydrochloride drugs seized in the Philippines.

Methamphetamine hydrochloride is one of the most widely used illicit drugs in the Philippines. In this study, we describe the application of cluster analysis of trace impurities in the profiling of the seized methamphetamine drug samples. Thirty milligrams of a homogenized drug sample were dissolved in 1 mL of pH 10.5 buffer solution and extracted with ethyl acetate containing three internal standards. The trace impurities were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and quantified by gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Following previously reported methodologies, 30 impurity peaks were selected from the GC-FID chromatograms. The peak areas and retention times were referenced to the internal standards. The peak areas of the selected peaks were then grouped for cluster analysis. In order to check for consistency of clustering, two further cluster analyses were performed using 40 and 50 impurity peaks. Changes in clustering were observed in going from 30 to 40 impurity peaks, while analyses using 40 and 50 impurity peaks gave similar results. Thus, for the seized drug samples used in this study, cluster analysis using at least 40 impurity peaks showed better consistency of clustering as compared to analysis using 30 peaks only. Ten of the impurity peaks were identified, of which four were identified for the first time in methamphetamine drug samples. These are p-bromotoluene, N-benzyl amphetamine, N-ethyl amphetamine, and N-ethyl methamphetamine. The presence of phenyl-2-propanone (P2P), N,N-dimethyl amphetamine, and N-formyl amphetamine is indicative that these casework samples were synthesized using the Leuckart method.

Development of an analytical method for 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol in soy sauce using 4-heptanone as derivatizing agent.

3-Monochloro-1,2-propane diol is a suspected carcinogen found in hydrolysed vegetable protein products such as soy sauce. A method is described for the analysis of 3-monochloro-1,2-propane diol in soy sauce by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry at a concentration range of 1-5000 ng g-1 using 4-heptanone as the derivatizing ketone and 3-monochloro-1,2-propane diol-d5 as the internal standard. The limit of detection for the method in the soy sauce matrix was 0.48 ng g-1 and the limit of quantification was 1.2 ng g-1.