This study examined effects of calcium supplemented milk on bone loss in ovariectomized rats. Twenty four Sprague-Dawley female rats, 7 weeks-old, were divided into 4 groups, ovariectomized and fed diets containing: 1) control, no Ca supplemented milk, 2) ovx 1, Ca carbonate supplemented milk, 3) ovx 2, ionized Ca supplemented milk, and 4) ovx 3, nano Ca supplemented milk. All rats were fed 1 ml of milk containing 20 mg supplemented Ca. After 18 wk feeding, body weight gain and food efficiency ratio were significantly different between ovx 1 and ovx 3. Serum concentration of calcium and phosphorus were not different among groups. However, there was a significant difference in calcium content of dry femoral weight in ovx 3 compared with the control and ovx 2. In addition, femoral bone mineral density (g/cm 2 ) was significantly greater in ovx 3 than in other groups (p<0.05). The ovx 3 group showed the highest stiffness (N/mm), maximum energy (N) in femur and trabecular bone area (%). The present study indicated that nano Ca supplementation in milk may be an effective way to enhance bone calcium metabolism for ovariectomized rats.

This study was designed to develop a microencapsulated, water-soluble isoflavone for application into milk and to examine the hypocholesterolemic effect of such a milk product in a rat diet. The coating material was medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) and the core material was water-soluble isoflavone. The microencapsulation efficiency was 70.2% when the ratio (w/w) of coating material to core material was 15:1. The isoflavone release from the microcapsules was 8% after 3-day storage at 40 degrees C. In in vitro study, 4.0-9.3% of water-soluble isoflavone in simulated gastric fluid was released in the pH range of 2 to 5 after 60 min incubation; however, in simulated intestinal fluid at pH 8, 87.6% of isoflavone was released from the capsules after 40 min incubation time. In sensory analysis, the scores of bitterness, astringency, and off-taste in the encapsulated isoflavone-added milk were slightly, but not significantly, different from those in uncapsulated, isoflavone-added milk. In blood analysis, total cholesterol was significantly decreased in the isoflavone-added group compared with that in the control after 6-week feeding. Therefore, this study confirmed the acceptability of MCT as a coating material in the microencapsulation of water-soluble isoflavone for application into milk, although a slight adverse effect was found in terms of sensory attributes. In addition, blood total cholesterol was lowered in rats which had been fed a cholesterol-reduced and microencapsulated, isoflavone-added milk for 6 weeks.

This study examined the effect of isoflavone-enriched milk on bone loss in ovariectomized (OVX) rats. Thirty 6-week-old Sprague-Dawley female rats were divided into two groups: sham-operated and OVX. The OVX group was subdivided into three dietary groups (OVX, non-isoflavone-enriched milk; OVX+Iso, isoflavone-enriched milk; and OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca, isoflavone-, vitamins D and K-, and Ca-enriched mik). After 19 weeks of feeding, the food efficiency ratio and body weight gain in the sham-operated group were significantly lower compared with those in the other groups. The bone alkaline phosphatase and total alkaline phosphatase activities were significantly higher in isoflavone-enriched groups (OVX+Iso and OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca) when compared with the sham-operated group. Urinary excretions of deoxypyridinoline and hydroxyproline were significantly higher with ovariectomy, but mostly normalized in the OVX+Iso and OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca groups. The rats in the OVX+Iso and OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca groups showed higher femur and tibia weights. A significant increase was found in bone density of femur and trabecular bone area in the OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca group, which almost reached that of the sham-operated group, whereas no difference was found among the OVX and OVX+Iso groups. The histological areas of the proximal tibia sections showed highly filled trabecular bone in both isoflavone-enriched groups (OVX+Iso and OVX+Iso+Vit+Ca). The present study indicated that isoflavone-enriched milk may have a partial preventive effect on ovariectomy-induced bone loss; however, vitamins D and K and Ca enrichment with isoflavone may enhance effectiveness for increasing bone mass in OVX rats.

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