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Molasses is a by-product from refining sugarcane beets into sugar. In this study, we assessed the inhibitory effect of sugarcane molasses concentrate (SMC) on postprandial hyperglycemia using a mouse model. Starch administration into male ICR mice increased blood glucose levels, reaching a peak 60 min after administration. The simultaneous administration of SMC markedly suppressed this increase, and the area under the curve was reduced until 240 min after administration. Simultaneous administration of an ethanol-precipitated fraction (Et-Fr) of SMC with starch also exerted significant inhibitory effects. Ad libitum consumption of Et-Fr for 6 weeks did not exert any changes on fasting blood glucose levels. In vitro experiments showed that SMC and Et-Fr significantly inhibited α-glucosidase but not α-amylase activity. These results suggest that SMC has the potential to suppress postprandial hyperglycemia via inhibition of α-glucosidase.

We previously showed that social stress exposure in mature adult mice increased blood corticosterone concentrations at 2 days, disrupted hepatic lipid metabolism-related pathway at 30 days, and increased the risk of overweight with hepatic hypertrophy at 90 days. To further investigate the effects of aging on the physiological responses to social stress, we conducted a study using male BALB/c mice at the ages of 2 months (mature age), 14 months (middle age) and 26 months (old age), and exposed them to confrontation stress for 2 or 7 days. Blood corticosterone concentrations were increased at 2 days of stress, and then returned to baseline concentrations. This change was observed only at 2 months of age. We further examined the effect of aging on hepatic gene expression of fibroblast growth factor-21 (Fgf21) and found that its expression was significantly decreased after 7 days of stress at 14 months of age and after 2 days of stress at 26 months of age, indicating these decreasing effects became more pronounced with age. In conclusion, our study suggests that hepatic Fgf21 expression decrease under exposure to confrontation stress at middle or more age, indicating that stress response on Fgf21 related pathway might be more pronounced with age when exposed to stress.

Thinned immature fruit of the mango tree (Mangifera indica ‘Irwin’) are handled as waste. In this study, we conducted a 90-days toxicity study in male and female Sprague Dawley rats to evaluate the safety of a hot-water extract of thinned immature mango fruits (TIMEx) administered by oral gavage at doses of 500, 1000 and 2500 mg/kg body weight/day. Treatment did not result in death or changes in the behavior or external appearance of the animals. No alterations were observed in hematological or serum chemical parameters, urinalysis, food consumption, body weight gain or organ weights at the end of the treatment period, with the exception of higher mean corpuscular volume in male rats that received high doses and lower serum creatine phosphokinase levels in female rats that received medium doses. Under the conditions of this study and based on the toxicological endpoints evaluated, the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for TIMEx was 2500 mg/kg/day. The findings indicate that TIMEx is safe for consumption and should be investigated as a candidate food.

Black soybean (Glycine max L.) seed coat extract (BE) is rich in polyphenols, including epicatechin, procyanidin, and cyanidin-3-glucoside. We evaluated the effects of daily consumption of BE in apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE−/−) mice. ApoE−/− and wild-type BALB/c mice were fed a 20% fat diet with or without 1% BE for 8 weeks. Bodyweight was unaffected by BE. BE supplementation significantly lowered serum and hepatic total cholesterol and hepatic triglyceride levels. Hepatic mRNA expression of cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (Cyp7a1) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (Pparα) were significantly stimulated in ApoE−/− mice consuming the BE diet. These effects were characteristic in ApoE−/− mice, but not in their corresponding wild type. In conclusion, it is clear that dietary consumption of BE affected blood and hepatic levels of cholesterol and triglyceride in ApoE−/− mice, and consequently exerted preventive effects for dyslipidemia. Putative mechanisms include the upregulation of hepatic Cyp7a1 and Pparα mRNA expression.

Blueberry leaf may contain multiple compounds with beneficial effects. We conducted a 90-day toxicity study in rats to evaluate the safety of consuming the leaves of rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium virgatum Aiton; RB species). Powdered leaves were administered daily by oral gavage at doses of 500, 1000, and 2500 mg/kg body weight to male and female Sprague-Dawley rats for 90 days. Treatment did not result in death or changes in the behavior and external appearance of the animals. No alterations were observed in hematological and serum chemical parameters, urinalysis, food consumption, body weight gain, or absolute and relative organ weights at the end of the treatment period, with the exception of some leukocyte percentages in male rats treated with 500 and 1000 mg/kg blueberry leaf powder. The findings indicate that rabbiteye blueberry leaf is safe for consumption and should be investigated as a candidate functional food. Keywords: Blueberry leaf, No-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL), Oral toxicity, Subchronic toxicity, Rat