Milk sphingomyelin accelerates enzymatic and morphological maturation of the intestine in artificially reared rats.

OBJECTIVES: Sphingomyelin (SPM) is the dominant phospholipid, comprising 38% of total human milk phospholipids. Although little is known about the nutritional importance of SPM during the neonatal period, SPM may affect the growth and development of tissues in the newborn infant through mechanisms regulating cell proliferation and differentiation. We evaluated the effect of sphingomyelin (SPM) in artificially reared rats as a suitable model of gut maturation in the suckling infant. METHODS: Seven-day-old Sprague-Dawley rat pups were cannulated intragastrically and reared artificially on milk containing 0.5% SPM or 0.5% phosphatidylcholine (PC) for 1 week. RESULTS: Intestinal lactase activity in the SPM group was significantly lower than that in the control or PC group. Upon histologic examination, intestinal villi were found to be occupied with vacuolated cells in the control and the PC group, whereas the vacuolated cells were restricted to the tip of villi in the SPM group. The Auerbach nerve plexus area of the ileum in the SPM group was significantly greater, possibly due to accelerated development, than that in the control group or PC group. CONCLUSIONS: The present results suggest that SPM, the dominant phospholipid in milk, plays an important role in neonatal gut maturation during the suckling period.

Milk basic protein (MBP) increases radial bone mineral density in healthy adult women.

We studied the effects of daily intake of milk basic protein (MBP) on radial bone mineral density (BMD) in healthy adult women. Thirty-three healthy women were randomly assigned to a 6-month trial with either placebo or MBP (40 mg per day). The radial BMD of each volunteer was measured at the beginning of and at six months after the trial. The mean BMD value at the 6th month in the MBP group increased significantly at both 1/6 and 1/10 portion from the distal end of the radius, whereas that in the control group did not. The BMD gain of each volunteer in the MBP group was significantly higher than that in the placebo group. Thus a daily MBP supplementation of 40 mg in healthy adult women can significantly increase radial BMD.

Subulatin, an antioxidic caffeic acid derivative isolated from the in vitro cultured liverworts, Jungermannia subulata, Lophocolea heterophylla, and Scapania parvitexta.

The new caffeic acid derivative, subulatin (1), was isolated from in vitro cultured liverworts, Jungermannia subulata, Lophocolea heterophylla, and Scapania parvitexta. The structure of 1 involved two caffeic acids, D-glucose, and 2-carboxy-6-(1,2-dihydroxy-ethyl)-4,5-dihydroxy-5,6-dihydro-4H-pyran. The connectivity of those and the absolute stereochemistry of 1 were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence. The antioxidative activity of 1 was comparable to that of alpha-tocopherol. (2'R)-Phaselic acid (2a) and (-)-9,2''-epiphylloyl-L-malic acid (4) were also isolated from J. subulata and L. heterophylla, respectively. A chiral HPLC analysis of the p-bromobenzoyl-malic acids derived from 2a showed that 2a from J. subulata was unusual (+)-trans-caffeoyl-D-malic acid.