Incoming feeds

[Investigation of ochratoxin a, B and citrinin contamination in various commercial foods]

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):111-5

Authors: Tabata S, Iida K, Kimura K, Iwasaki Y, Nakazato M, Kamata K, Hirokado M

Ochratoxin A (OTA), ochratoxin B (OTB) and citrinin (CIT) in commercial foods were simultaneously determined and confirmed with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). The samples examined were made up of cereal, fruit, coffee, and cacao products. The limits of quantification (S/N> or =10) of OTA, OTB and CIT were 0.1 microg/kg or less. Aflatoxins (AF), deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisins were also surveyed. Of 157 samples examined, 44 were contaminated with OTA at levels of 0.11 to 4.0 microg/kg. At least 2 positive samples were labeled as domestics. In most positive samples, the OTA level was low, less than 1 microg/kg. The highest incidence of OTA was observed in cacao powder (10/12), followed by instant coffee (5/7), cocoa (5/8) and raisin (6/13). OTB was found in fruit and cacao products containing relatively high levels of OTA. Co-occurrence of OTA, CIT and DON was found in cereal products, and co-occurrence of OTA and AF was found in cacao products. Approximately 30% of naturally contaminated OTA in roasted coffee bean moved into the extract solution when brewed with paper filter.

PMID: 18503248 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Mold growth on strawberries and cherries during storage at 25 degrees C]

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):106-10

Authors: Aikawa K, Asai Y, Takahashi T

Mold species that grew on the surface of retailed strawberries (10 packs, 211 strawberries) and cherries (18 packs, 441 cherries) during storage at 25 degrees C were isolated and identified to evaluate the state of mold growth. Mold growth was observed on 208 (98.6%) of the 211 strawberries and 193 (43.8%) of the 441 cherries. The mold species most frequently isolated from strawberries was Botrytis cinerea, being observed in 81.0% of the strawberries examined, followed by Cladosporium and Alternaria alternata. The mold most frequently isolated from cherries was Alternaria (28.7%), followed by Penicillium, Botrytis, and Cladosporium. The frequency of cherries on which mold growth was observed varied among packs. Mold tended to grow more often in the areas of the fruits in contact with adjacent fruits.

PMID: 18503247 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Simultaneous determination of ochratoxin A, B and citrinin in foods by HPLC-FL and LC/MS/MS]

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):100-5

Authors: Tabata S, Iida K, Kimura K, Iwasaki Y, Nakazato M, Kamata K, Hirokado M

Methods using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FL) and using liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) were developed for simultaneous determination of ochratoxin A (OTA), ochratoxin B (OTB) and citrinin (CIT) in cereal, fruit, and coffee products. The samples were extracted with ethyl acetate under an acidic condition, and then cleaned up with liquid-liquid separation. The test solutions were analyzed by reverse-phase HPLC-FL and LC/MS/MS. Mass spectral acquisition was performed in positive ion mode by applying multiple reaction monitoring. The performances of both detectors were almost equivalent. The recoveries of OTA and OTB were 87-111%, and that of CIT were 70-88%. The limits of quantification (S/N> or =10) of OTA, OTB and CIT was 0.1 mug/kg or less. These methods were considered to be useful for the determination of the three mycotoxins at low levels (0.1 microg/kg).

PMID: 18503246 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Evaluation of a nitric acid-based partial-digestion method for selective determination of inorganic arsenic in rice.

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):95-9

Authors: Hamano-Nagaoka M, Nishimura T, Matsuda R, Maitani T

Arsenic (As) uptake in human occurs via the food chain mainly. The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives has established the provisional tolerable weekly intake level for As as an inorganic As (iAs) value, because iAs in food is much more toxic than organic As. In this study, we studied an acid based partial-digestion method for the complete extraction of arsenicals from rice. HPLC/ICP-MS was used to determine the concentration of iAs selectively. The conditions adopted to extract arsenicals from a 0.5 g of finely ground rice sample were addition of 2 mL of 0.15 mol/L nitric acid and heating at 80 degrees C for 2 hr. The LOD and LOQ for iAs were 0.0024 and 0.0079 mg/kg dry weight, respectively. Recovery studies showed good accuracy. When the method was applied to ten short-grain brown rice samples, the iAs concentrations were 0.108-0.227 mg/kg dry weight and the total As concentrations were 0.118-0.260 mg/kg dry weight. Although dimethylarsinic acid was also detected in most samples, the percentage of iAs content in total As content was 62.2-96.3%. Thus, iAs was the principal As species in the short-grain brown rice samples tested.

PMID: 18503245 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Simultaneous determination of aconitine analogues in Aconitum plants and foods that caused food poisoning by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry]

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):76-81

Authors: Kasahara Y, Itou T

A simple method for the simultaneous determination of four aconitine analogues (AC; aconitine, HA; hypaconitine, MA; mesaconitine, JA; jesaconitine) in Aconitum plants (Aconitum subcuneatum NAKAI) and a food that caused food poisoning was developed, using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). Aconitine analogues were extracted with 1 mmol/L HCl and then cleaned up with an Oasis HLB cartridge. The LC separation was performed with an octadecylated silica column (Develosil ODS-HG-5, 2.0 mm i.d. x 50 mm) at a flow rate of 0.2 mL/min, using A solution (5 mmol/L ammonium acetate dissolved in 0.1% acetic acid) and B solution (acetonitrile-THF=1 : 3), 90%A (0 min)-->60%A (15 min)-->const. (2 min). Mass spectral acquisition was performed in the positive mode and the analogues were targeted using multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) with electrospray ionization (ESI). The recoveries of aconitine analogues were 93-99% from Aconitum plants. The detection limits of AC, HA, MA and JA were 0.4, 0.4, 0.3 and 0.5 ng/g, respectively. The aconitine analogues, except JA, were detected in food that caused food poisoning at the level of 2.6-29.7 microg/g. These results indicate that the developed method is suitable for the determination of aconitine analogues in Aconitum plants and foods that cause food poisoning.

PMID: 18503242 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

DNA extraction method using a silica-base resin type kit for the detection of genetically modified papaya.

Shokuhin Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2008 Apr;49(2):63-9

Authors: Ohmori K, Tsuchiya H, Watanabe T, Akiyama H, Maitani T, Yamada T, Hirayama K, Satoh S

Genetically modified (GM) papaya has not yet been approved for importation into, or cultivation in the European Union (EU) and Japan. A DNA extraction method using the Qiagen DNeasy Plant Mini Kit (PM method) and a method using a buffer containing cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB method) have been adopted as the official Japanese methods for detecting GM foods. However, the amounts of DNA extracted from papaya by these methods are very low. Therefore, we investigated an extraction method to obtain a high yield of DNA from raw or freeze-dried fresh papaya using the Promega Wizard DNA Clean-Up Resin System (WCR). The incubation for the extraction was carried out at 58 degrees C without proteinase K for 15 min. The extract was applied to a mini-column, then the column was washed with 80% isopropyl alcohol, and genomic DNA adsorbed on the column was eluted with TE buffer. The WCR method gave a higher yield of genomic DNA, and was simpler and faster than the PM method or CTAB method. In addition, it could be used to extract genomic DNA from fresh papaya at various stages of ripeness. Based on these results, we propose that the present method using WCR is the most practical and useful way to extract genomic DNA for the purpose of detecting GM papaya.

PMID: 18503240 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Differential response of root morphology to potassium deficient stress among rice genotypes varying in potassium efficiency.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):427-34

Authors: Jia YB, Yang XE, Feng Y, Jilani G

Disparity in the root morphology of six rice (Oryza sativa L.) genotypes varying in potassium (K) efficiency was studied with three K levels: 5 mg/L (low), 10 mg/L (moderate) and 40 mg/L (adequate) in hydroponic culture. Morphological parameters included root length, surface area, volume and count of lateral roots, as well as fine (diameter<0.2 mm) and thick (diameter>0.2 mm) roots. The results indicate that the root growth of all genotypes was reduced under low K, but moderate K deficiency increased the root length of the efficient genotypes. At deficient and moderate K levels, all the efficient rice genotypes developed more fine roots (diameter<0.2 mm) than the inefficient ones. Both fine root count and root surface area were found to be the best parameters to portray K stress in rice. In accordance with the root morphology, higher K concentrations were noted in shoots of the efficient genotypes when grown at moderate and deficient K levels, indicating that root morphology parameters are involved in root uptake for K and in the translocation of K up to shoots. K deficiency affected not only the root morphology, but also the root ultra-structure. The roots of high-efficient genotypes had stronger tolerance to K deficient stress for root membrane damage, and could maintain the developed root architecture to adapt to the low K growth medium.

PMID: 18500783 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Tannins from Canarium album with potent antioxidant activity.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):407-15

Authors: Zhang LL, Lin YM

The contents of total phenolics and extractable condensed tannins in the leaves, twigs and stem bark of Canarium album were determined. The structural heterogeneity of condensed tannins from stem bark was characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses. The results show the predominance of signals representative of procyanidins and prodelphinidins. In addition, epicatechin and epigallocatechin polymers with galloylated procyanidin or prodelphinidin were also observed. The tannins were screened for their potential antioxidant activities using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP) model systems. Tannins extracted from leaves, twigs and stem bark all showed a very good DPPH radical scavenging activity and ferric reducing power.

PMID: 18500781 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Synthetic and biological studies on a cyclopolypeptide of plant origin.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):391-400

Authors: Dahiya R, Kumar A

OBJECTIVE: A natural cyclic peptide previously isolated from Citrus medica was synthesized by coupling of tetrapeptide units Boc-Leu-Pro-Trp-Leu-OMe and Boc-Ile-Ala-Ala-Gly-OMe after proper deprotection at carboxyl and amino terminals followed by cyclization of linear octapeptide segment. METHODS: Solution phase technique was adopted for the synthesis of cyclooctapeptide-sarcodactylamide. Required tetrapeptide units were prepared by coupling of Boc-protected dipeptides viz. Boc-Leu-Pro-OH and Boc-Ile-Ala-OH with respective dipeptide methyl esters Trp-Leu-OMe and Ala-Gly-OMe. Cyclization of linear octapeptide unit was done by p-nitrophenyl ester method. The structure of synthesized cyclopolypeptide was elucidated by FTIR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, FABMS spectral data and elemental analysis. The newly synthesized peptide was evaluated for different pharmacological activities including antimicrobial, anthelmintic and cytotoxic activities. RESULTS: Synthesis of sarcodactylamide was accomplished with >78% yield utilizing dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) as coupling agent. Newly synthesized peptide possessed potent cytotoxic activity against Dalton's lymphoma ascites (DLA) and Ehrlich's ascites carcinoma (EAC) cell lines, in addition to moderate anthelmintic activity against earthworms Megascoplex konkanensis, Pontoscotex corethruses and Eudrilus sp. Moreover, cyclopolypeptide displayed good antimicrobial activity against pathogenic fungi Candida albicans and Gram-negative bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, in comparison to standard drugs griseofulvin and ciprofloxacin. CONCLUSION: Solution phase technique employing DCC and triethylamine (TEA) as base proved to be effective for the synthesis of natural cyclooctapeptide. N-methyl morpholine (NMM) was found to be a better base for the cyclization of linear octapeptide unit in comparison to TEA and pyridine.

PMID: 18500779 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Quantifying biochemical variables of corn by hyperspectral reflectance at leaf scale.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):378-84

Authors: Yi QX, Huang JF, Wang FM, Wang XZ

To further develop the methods to remotely sense the biochemical content of plant canopies, we report the results of an experiment to estimate the concentrations of three biochemical variables of corn, i.e., nitrogen (N), crude fat (EE) and crude fiber (CF) concentrations, by spectral reflectance and the first derivative reflectance at fresh leaf scale. The correlations between spectral reflectance and the first derivative transformation and three biochemical variables were analyzed, and a set of estimation models were established using curve-fitting analyses. Coefficient of determination (R2), root mean square error (RMSE) and relative error of prediction (REP) of estimation models were calculated for the model quality evaluations, and the possible optimum estimation models of three biochemical variables were proposed, with R2 being 0.891, 0.698 and 0.480 for the estimation models of N, EE and CF concentrations, respectively. The results also indicate that using the first derivative reflectance was better than using raw spectral reflectance for all three biochemical variables estimation, and that the first derivative reflectances at 759 nm, 1954 nm and 2370 nm were most suitable to develop the estimation models of N, EE and CF concentrations, respectively. In addition, the high correlation coefficients of the theoretical and the measured biochemical parameters were obtained, especially for nitrogen (r=0.948).

PMID: 18500777 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Interaction between seed size and NaCl on germination and early seedling growth of some Turkish cultivars of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.).

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):371-7

Authors: Kaya M, Kaya G, Kaya MD, Atak M, Saglam S, Khawar KM, Ciftci CY

Chickpea is an important food legume crop of Turkey and is largely grown for human consumption on low moisture or salt-affected soils. The objective of the study was to find the effects of NaCl stress at electrical conductivities of 4.5, 8.6, 12.7 and 16.3 dS/m and seed sizes (7, 8 and 9 mm) on germination and early seedling growth of three popular chickpea cultivars (AKN-97, Gokce and Uzunlu-99). Mean frequency of germination, germination time, germination index, root length, shoot length and seedling fresh weight showed seed size-dependent responses of cultivars to salt stress. In general, small seeds germinated and grew more rapidly compared to medium and large seeds of the same cultivars against all levels of salt stress, with the best results in cultivar Uzunlu-99. No effect of NaCl treatments was observed on frequency of germination; however, a drastic decrease in early seedling growth was recorded at increased NaCl concentrations. Regression analysis results showed a significantly positive relationship (P<0.01) between seed size and mean germination time, whereas a significantly negative relationship was recorded between seed size and germination index, root length, shoot length. Moreover, linear regression values apparently confirmed that increased seed size in each cultivar affected decreased germination index, root and shoot lengths with enhanced mean germination time. Thus, it was concluded that the use of small seeds could considerably reduce the production costs of chickpea in salt-affected soils.

PMID: 18500776 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Characterization of high-yield performance as affected by genotype and environment in rice.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):363-70

Authors: Chen S, Zeng FR, Pao ZZ, Zhang GP

We characterized yield-relevant characters and their variations over genotypes and environments (locations and years) by examining two rice varieties (9746 and Jinfeng) with high yield potential. 9746 and Jinfeng were planted in two locations of Shanghai, China, during 2005 and 2006. The results show that there was a large variation in grain yield between locations and years. The realization of high yield potential for the two types of rice was closely related to the improved sink size, such as more panicles per square meter or grains per panicle. Stem and leaf biomasses were mainly accumulated from tillering stage to heading stage, and showed slow decline during grain filling. Meanwhile, some photosynthetic characters including net photosynthesis rate (Pn), leaf area index (LAI), specific leaf area (SLA), fluorescence parameter (maximum quantum yield of PSII, Fv/Fm), chlorophyll content (expressed as SPAD value), as well as nutrient (N, P, K) uptake were also measured to determine their variations over genotypes and environments and their relationships with grain yield. Although there were significant differences between years or locations for most measurements, SLA at tillering and heading stages, Fv/Fm and LAI at heading stage, stem biomass at heading and maturity stages, and leaf nitrogen concentration at tillering and heading stages remained little changed, indicating their possible applications as selectable characters in breeding programs. It was also found that stem nitrogen accumulation at tillering stage is one of the most important and stable traits for high yield formation.

PMID: 18500775 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Assessment of different genetic distances in constructing cotton core subset by genotypic values.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):356-62

Authors: Wang JC, Hu J, Huang XX, Xu SC

One hundred and sixty-eight genotypes of cotton from the same growing region were used as a germplasm group to study the validity of different genetic distances in constructing cotton core subset. Mixed linear model approach was employed to unbiasedly predict genotypic values of 20 traits for eliminating the environmental effect. Six commonly used genetic distances (Euclidean, standardized Euclidean, Mahalanobis, city block, cosine and correlation distances) combining four commonly used hierarchical cluster methods (single distance, complete distance, unweighted pair-group average and Ward's methods) were used in the least distance stepwise sampling (LDSS) method for constructing different core subsets. The analyses of variance (ANOVA) of different evaluating parameters showed that the validities of cosine and correlation distances were inferior to those of Euclidean, standardized Euclidean, Mahalanobis and city block distances. Standardized Euclidean distance was slightly more effective than Euclidean, Mahalanobis and city block distances. The principal analysis validated standardized Euclidean distance in the course of constructing practical core subsets. The covariance matrix of accessions might be ill-conditioned when Mahalanobis distance was used to calculate genetic distance at low sampling percentages, which led to bias in small-sized core subset construction. The standardized Euclidean distance is recommended in core subset construction with LDSS method.

PMID: 18500774 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Transient expression of chicken alpha interferon gene in lettuce.

J Zhejiang Univ Sci B. 2008 May;9(5):351-5

Authors: Song L, Zhao DG, Wu YJ, Li Y

We investigated the possibility of producing chicken alpha interferon (ChIFN-alpha) in transgenic plants. The cDNA encoding ChIFN-alpha was introduced into lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) plants by using an agro-infiltration transient expression system. The ChIFN-alpha gene was correctly transcribed and translated in the lettuce plants according to RT-PCR and ELISA assays. Recombinant protein exhibited antiviral activity in vitro by inhibition of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) replication on chicken embryonic fibroblast (CEF). The results demonstrate that biologically active avian cytokine with potential pharmaceutical applications could be expressed in transgenic lettuce plants and that it is possible to generate interferon protein in forage plants for preventing infectious diseases of poultry.

PMID: 18500773 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Viable chimaeric viruses confirm the biological importance of sequence specific maize streak virus movement protein and coat protein interactions.

Virol J. 2008;5:61

Authors: van der Walt E, Palmer KE, Martin DP, Rybicki EP

BACKGROUND: A variety of interactions between up to three different movement proteins (MPs), the coat protein (CP) and genomic DNA mediate the inter- and intra-cellular movement of geminiviruses in the genus Begomovirus. Although movement of viruses in the genus Mastrevirus is less well characterized, direct interactions between a single MP and the CP of these viruses is also clearly involved in both intra- and intercellular trafficking of virus genomic DNA. However, it is currently unknown how specific these MP-CP interactions are, nor how disruption of these interactions might impact on virus viability. RESULTS: Using chimaeric genomes of two strains of Maize streak virus (MSV) we adopted a genetic approach to investigate the gross biological effects of interfering with interactions between virus MP and CP homologues derived from genetically distinct MSV isolates. MP and CP genes were reciprocally exchanged, individually and in pairs, between maize (MSV-Kom)- and Setaria sp. (MSV-Set)-adapted isolates sharing 78% genome-wide sequence identity. All chimaeras were infectious in Zea mays c.v. Jubilee and were characterized in terms of symptomatology and infection efficiency. Compared with their parental viruses, all the chimaeras were attenuated in symptom severity, infection efficiency, and the rate at which symptoms appeared. The exchange of individual MP and CP genes resulted in lower infection efficiency and reduced symptom severity in comparison with exchanges of matched MP-CP pairs. CONCLUSION: Specific interactions between the mastrevirus MP and CP genes themselves and/or their expression products are important determinants of infection efficiency, rate of symptom development and symptom severity.

PMID: 18489800 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

High-performance liquid chromatography and LC-ESI-MS method for the identification and quantification of two biologically active isomeric coumarinolignoids cleomiscosin A and cleomiscosin B in different extracts of Cleome viscosa.

Biomed Chromatogr. 2008 Jul 23;

Authors: Chattopadhyay SK, Kumar S, Tripathi S, Kaur R, Tandon S, Rane S

A rapid, sensitive and simple reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry method for simultaneous determination of cleomiscosin A and cleomiscosin B has been developed and validated. The isomeric coumarinolignoids cleomiscosin A (1) and cleomiscosin B (2) were separated on a Waters symmetry C(18) column with a solvent system composed of acetonitrile-methanol (1:2) and acetic acid-water (0.5 : 99.5) in a gradient elution mode. The absorption at 326 nm was chosen as the measuring wavelength in which resolution and baseline separation of compounds 1 and 2 could be obtained. The identity of the two isomeric compounds 1 and 2 in the samples were determined on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer with ESI interface operating in the positive mode. Calibration curves were linear (r(2) > 0.993) over the concentration range 20-200 microg/mL for cleomiscosin A and 10-200 microg/mL for cleomiscosin B with acceptable accuracy and precision, respectively. The intra-day and inter-day precision were 1.13 and 0.82% for cleomiscosin A and 1.78 and 1.28% for cleomiscosin B, respectively. The validated method was successfully applied for the analysis of the above two compounds in different extracts of Cleome viscosa. Copyright (c) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

PMID: 18651599 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Corrigendum: Recent advances in plant hepatoprotectives: A chemical and biological profile of some important leads.

Med Res Rev. 2008 Jul 23;

Authors: Negi AS, Kumar JK, Luqman S, Shanker K, Gupta MM, Khanuja SP

PMID: 18651581 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Phytotoxic effects of sewage sludge extracts on the germination of three plant species.

Ecotoxicology. 2008 Jul 24;

Authors: Ramírez WA, Domene X, Andrés P, Alcañiz JM

In order to evaluate the ability of three types of extracts to explain the ecotoxicological risk of treated municipal sewage sludges, the OECD 208A germination test was applied using three plants (Lolium perenne L., Brassica rapa L., and Trifolium pratense L.). Three equivalent batches of sludge, remained as dewatered sludge, composted with plant remains and thermally dried, from an anaerobic waste water treatment plant were separated. Samples from these three batches were extracted in water, methanol, and dichloromethane. Plant bioassays were performed and the Germination Index (GI) for the three plants was evaluated once after a period of 10 days. Germination in extracts was always lower than the respective controls. The germination in composted sludge (GI 40.9-86.2) was higher than the dewatered (GI 2.9-45.8), or thermally dried sludges (GI 24.6-64.4). A comparison of the germination between types of extracts showed differences for dewatered sludge with the three plants, where the water and methanol extracts had significantly lower germination than the dichloromethane extract. A higher half maximal effective concentration (EC50) in composted extracts was established, mainly in the water extract (EC(50) 431-490 g kg(-1)). On the contrary, the germination was strongly inhibited in the water extract of the dewatered sludge (EC(50) 14 g kg(-1)). The germination was positively correlated with the degree of organic matter stability of the parent sludge, and an inverse correlation was detected for total nitrogen, hydrolysable nitrogen and ammonium content. It is concluded that the phytotoxic effect of the water extract is more closely related to hydrophilic substances rather than lipophilic ones, and care must be taken with dewatered sludge application, especially with their aqueous eluates. Results obtained in this work show the suitability of the use of sludge extracts in ecotoxic assays and emphasize the relevance of sewage sludge stabilization by post-treatment processes.

PMID: 18651217 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Mechanisms of combined action of different chemopreventive dietary compounds: a review.

Eur J Nutr. 2008 May;47 Suppl 2:51-9

Authors: de Kok TM, van Breda SG, Manson MM

Consumption of fruits and vegetables has generally been associated with a decrease in cancer incidence and cardiovascular disease. Over the years, numerous bioactive compounds have been identified that contribute to these beneficial health effects. More recently, evidence is emerging that specific combinations of phytochemicals may be far more effective in protecting against cancer than isolated compounds. Combinatorial effects have been observed where any one of the single agents is inactive. Apart from interactions among dietary micronutrients, drug-phytochemical interactions have also been observed, indicating possibilities for improved cancer therapeutic strategies. Our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying such synergistic effects is still limited, but it appears that different combinations of complementary modes of actions are involved. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanisms that are likely to be involved in cancer chemoprevention and summarize the most important findings of those studies that report synergistic chemopreventive effects of dietary compounds.

PMID: 18458834 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Evaluation of supplemental administration of Eviprostat in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia with persistent symptoms following treatment with alpha1-adrenoceptor blocker]

Hinyokika Kiyo. 2008 May;54(5):341-4

Authors: Naruoka T, Suzuki Y, Furuta A, Endo K, Sugaya S, Egawa S

We examined the effectiveness of supplemental administration of Eviprostat in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) whose lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) caused by BPH were not adequately relieved by an alpha1-adrenoceptor blocker. Twenty-nine patients with insufficient improvement in the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and quality of life (QOL) score after administration of 50 mg naftopidil for 4 weeks or more received 6 tablets of Eviprostat in addition to naftopidil for another 2 weeks or more. With supplemental administration of Eviprostat, significant improvement was observed in the symptoms of incomplete emptying, daytime frequency, intermittency, weak stream, total IPSS, sum of the IPSS subscores for voiding symptoms (intermittency, weak stream and straining), sum of the IPSS subscores for storage symptoms (daytime frequency, urgency and nocturia), and QOL score. Supplemental administration of Eviprostat is therefore effective for the improvement of LUTS and QOL in BPH patients resistant to an alpha1-adrenoceptor blocker.

PMID: 18546857 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]