Anti-obesity effects of onion extract were determined in obesity and diabetes-prone Zucker diabetic fatty rats by measuring the efficacy of markers concerned with diabetes and obesity. Body and adipose tissue weights in 5% of onion extract-fed group were found to be significantly lower than the control group without onion extract. Fasting blood glucose and HOMA-IR levels were also improved, although the serum insulin and leptin levels did not show any remarkable difference. Serum triglyceride and free fatty acid levels in both the 3% and 5%-fed group were found to be reduced compared to the control group. Additionally the feeding of the onion extract increased the glucose tolerance. These results suggest that dietary onion extract is beneficial for improving diabetes by decreasing lipid levels. We also examined differentiation ability of rat white preadipocyte cells using the onion extract and its sulfur-containing components. Cycloalliin, S-methyl-L-cysteine, S-propyl-L-cysteine sulfoxide, dimethyl trisulfide, especially S-methyl-L-cysteine sulfoxide were reported to be effective in inhibiting formation of oil drop in the cells, suggesting that these compounds may be involved in the anti-obesity effect of the onion extract.

Earlier studies have reported the efficacy of type II collagen (C II) in treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA). However, a few studies have investigated the ability of the antigenic collagen to induce oral tolerance, which is defined as active nonresponse to an orally administered antigen. We hypothesized that water-soluble undenatured C II had a similar effect as C II in RA. The present study was designed to examine the oral administration of a novel, water-soluble, undenatured C II (commercially known as NEXT-II) on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) in mice. In addition, the underlying mechanism of NEXT-II was also identified. After a booster dose (collagen-Freund's complete adjuvant), mice were assigned to control CIA group, or NEXT-II treatment group, to which saline and NEXT-II were administered, respectively. The arthritis index in the NEXT-II group was significantly lower compared with the CIA group. Serum IL-6 levels in the NEXT-II group were significantly lower compared with the CIA group, while serum IL-2 level was higher. Furthermore, oral administration of NEXT-II enhanced the proportion of CD4+CD25+T (Treg) cells, and gene expressions of stimulated dendritic cells induced markers for regulatory T cells such as forkhead box p3 (Foxp3), transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, and CD25. These results demonstrated that orally administered water-soluble undenatured C II (NEXT-II) is highly efficacious in the suppression of CIA by inducing CD4+CD25+ Treg cells.

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These results demonstrate the broad-spectrum safety and efficacy of NEXT-II in ameliorating the symptoms of arthritis. Key Teaching Points: •A novel, water-soluble, undenatured type II collagen (NEXT-II) was developed for osteoarthritis. •The safety studies including acute oral and dermal toxicity, primary dermal and primary eye irritation, Ames' bacterial reverse mutation assay, mouse lymphoma assay, and 150-day long-term safety studies were conducted. •NEXT-II exhibited significant efficacy in ameliorating pain and inflammation in collagen-induced arthritis in mice. •NEXT-II exhibited a significant reduction in overall pain in moderately arthritic dogs without changing physical parameters.

In the present study, the protective effects of dietary Spirulina (SP) and germanium-containing Spirulina (GeSP) were compared in rats with liver injury induced by an intraperitoneal injection of D-galactosamine and lipopolysaccharide (GalN/LPS). Wistar rats were fed one of the following diets: the basal diet (GalN/LPS-CON group; n 6), the basal diet supplemented with 5 % SP or GeSP (GalN/LPS-SP and GalN/LPS-GeSP group, respectively; n 7 each). After administering these diets for 7 d, each rat was intraperitoneally injected with GalN/LPS. Increases in plasma alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activities were suppressed in the GalN/LPS-GeSP group (GalN/LPS-CON v. GalN/LPS-GeSP: ALT 1052 (SEM 187) v. 509 (SEM 88) IU/l and AST 2183 (SEM 368) v. 1170 (SEM 196) IU/l) following the injection of GalN/LPS. Plasma levels of interferon-g (IFN-g) and TNF-a in GeSP-fed rats were significantly lower when compared with those in the GalN/LPS-CON group (GalN/LPS-CON v. GalN/LPS-GeSP: IFN-g 142·8 (SEM 17·5) v. 66·8 (SEM 9·7) pg/ml and TNF-a 72·3 (SEM 15·4) v. 31·2 (SEM 6·8) pg/ml). However, the decrease in these levels observed in the GalN/LPS-SP group was not as prominent as those observed in the GalN/LPS-GeSP group. Furthermore, the increase in liver catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities, as well as the level of oxidised glutathione (GSSG), was more suppressed in GeSP-fed rats (GalN/ LPS-CON v. GalN/LPS-GeSP: CAT 457 (SEM 47) v. 262 (SEM 54) U/mg liver protein; GPx 1·30 (SEM 0·11) v. 0·53 (SEM 0·09) U/mg liver protein; GSSG 2·18 (SEM 0·33) v. 1·31 (SEM 0·24) mmol/kg liver) after the injection of GalN/LPS. These changes were more pronounced in the GalN/ LPS-GeSP group than in the GalN/LPS-SP group. These results suggest that GeSP could afford a significant protective effect in the alleviation of GalN/LPS-induced hepatic damage. In addition, the results indicate that GeSP is more effective than SP.Key words: Germanium-containing Spirulina: D-Galactosamine and lipopolysaccharide: Liver injury: Antioxidant enzymes Hepatic failure induced by the injection of D-galactosamine and lipopolysaccharide (GalN/LPS) has been considered as an inflammatory response, involving the accumulation of mononuclear cells in the liver and an increase in plasma alanine transaminase and aspartate aminotransferase activities. This phenomenon is observed in patients with acute hepatic failure (1) . GalN/LPS-induced liver injury is also known to cause cytokine release (TNF-a is the main mediator) that contributes to increased oxidative stress and the formation of reactive oxygen species, followed by hepatocyte death (2,3) .The blue-green alga Spirulina (Spirulina platensis, SP) is used as a health food source because it contains large amounts of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Its consumption by humans and rodents is believed to be efficacious in improving diabetes (4) , osteopenia (5) and immunity (6) . Furthermore, it has been reported that SP and its component phycocyanin mitigate D-galac...