Abstract:Octenyl succinic anhydride (OSA) modified early Indica rice starch was prepared in aqueous slurry systems using response surface methodology. The paste properties of the OSA starch were also investigated. Results indicated that the suitable parameters for the preparation of OSA starch from early Indica rice starch were as follows: reaction period 4 h, reaction temperature 33.4 °C, pH of reaction system 8.4, concentration of starch slurry 36.8% (in proportion to water, w/w), amount of OSA 3% (in proportion to starch, w/w). The degree of substitution was 0.0188 and the reaction efficiency was 81.0%. The results of paste properties showed that with increased OSA modification, the starch derivatives had higher paste clarity, decreased retrogradation and better freeze-thaw stability.

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Octenyl succinic anhydride (OSA) modified early indica rice starch was prepared in aqueous slurry systems and the major factors affecting the esterification were investigated systematically. The physicochemical properties of the products were determined by means of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction and Rapid Visco Analyser (RVA). The results indicated that the suitable parameters for the preparation of OSA starch from early indica rice starch in aqueous slurry systems were as follows: concentration of starch slurry 35% (in proportion to water, w/w), reaction period 4 h, pH of reaction system 8.5, reaction temperature 357C, amount of OSA 3% (in proportion to starch, w/w). The degree of substitution (DS) was 0 018 and the reaction efficiency (RE) was 78%. FT-IR spectroscopy showed characteristic absorption of the ester carbonyl groups in the OSA starch at 1724 cm 21 . SEM and X-ray diffraction revealed that OSA groups acted by first attacking the surface and some pores formed, but OSA modification caused no change in the crystalline pattern of rice starch up to DS 0.046. RVA results indicated that the starch derivatives gelatinized at shorter time to achieve higher viscosities with increased OSA modification.

This study aimed to evaluate the safety of Clostridium butyricum and to investigate the effect of C. butyricum on mice ecosystem in the intestinal tract by way of examining the population of different microorganisms isolated from caecal contents. We firstly evaluated the safety of C. butyricum using acute toxicity test and Ames test. Then forty male BALB/c mice were divided into the following four treatment groups, each consisting of ten mice: normal group, low-dose group, medium-dose group and high-dose group. Caecal contents were removed aseptically, immediately placed into an anaerobic chamber, and dissolved in sterile pre-reduced PBS. The determination of Enterococcus spp., Enterobacter spp., Lactobacillus spp., Bifidobacterium spp. and Clostridium perfringens was analyzed by the spread plate method, cell morphologies and biochemical profiles. The results showed the oral maximum tolerated dose of C. butyricum was more than 10 g/kg body weight in mice and no mutagenicity judged by negative experimental results of Ames test. And in medium- and high-dose groups, the populations of Bifidobacterium spp. and Lactobacillus spp. increased in caecum, as well as the ratios of Bifidobacterium spp. and Lactobacillus spp. to Clostridium perfringens (P < 0.01) as compared with the normal group. This research showed the intake of C. butyricum significantly improved the ecosystem of the intestinal tract in BALB/c mice by increasing the amount of probiotics and reducing the populations of unwanted bacteria.

Cortex Eucommiae is used worldwide in traditional medicine, various constituents of Cortex Eucommiae, such as chlorogenic acid (CGA), has been reported to exert anti-osteoporosis activity in China, but the mechanism about their contribution to the overall activity is limited. The aims of this study were to determine whether chlorogenic acid can prevent estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis and to analyze the mechanism of CGA bioactivity. The effect of CGA on estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis was performed in vivo. Sixty female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided randomly among a sham-operated group and five ovariectomy (OVX) plus treatment subgroups: saline vehicle, 17α-ethinylestradiol (E2), or CGA at 9, 27, or 45 mg/kg/d. The rats’ femoral metaphyses were evaluated by micro-computed tomography (μCT). The mechanism of CGA bioactivity was investigated in vitro. Bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) were treated with CGA, with or without phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor LY294002. BMSCs proliferation and osteoblast differentiation were assessed with 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and alkaline phosphatase, with or without Shp2 interfering RNA (RNAi). The results display that CGA at 27 and 45 mg/kg/day inhibited the decrease of bone mineral density (BMD) that induced by OVX in femur (p< 0.01), significantly promoted the levels of bone turnover markers, and prevented bone volume fraction (BV/TV), connectivity density (CoonD), trabecular number (Tb.N), trabecular thickness (Tb.Th) (all p< 0.01) to decrease and prevented the trabecular separation (Tb.Sp), structure model index (SMI)(both p< 0.01) to increase. CGA at 1 or 10 μM enhanced BMSC proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. CGA at 0.1 to 10 μM increased phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt) and cyclin D1. These effects were reversed by LY294002. CGA at 1 or 10 μM increased BMSC differentiation to osteoblasts (p< 0.01), Shp2 RNAi suppressed CGA-induced osteoblast differentiation by decreasing Shp2, p-Akt, and cyclin D1. This study found that CGA improved the BMD and trabecular micro-architecture for the OVX-induced osteoporosis. Therefore, CGA might be an effective alternative treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis. CGA promoted proliferation of osteoblast precursors and osteoblastic differentiation of BMSCs via the Shp2/PI3K/Akt/cyclin D1 pathway.