Blog Archives

Development and In Vitro Evaluation of Vitamin E-Enriched Nanoemulsion Vehicles Loaded with Genistein for Chemoprevention Against UVB-Induced Skin Damage.

Brownlow B, Nagaraj VJ, Nayel A, Joshi M, Elbayoumi T.

J Pharm Sci. 2015 Oct;104(10):3510-23.

Abstract

There is a great need for effective protection against cutaneous pathologies arising from chronic exposure to harmful solar UVB radiations. A promising pharmaceutical strategy to improve the efficacy of chemotherapeutic/preventative natural compounds (e.g., soy isoflavone Genistein, Gen) is to enhance their dermal delivery using nanoemulsion (NE) formulations. This report investigates the development of nanoemulsifiedtocotrienol(T3)-rich fraction of red palm oil (Tocomin®), to yield an optimal NE delivery system for dermal photoprotection (z-average size <150 nm, ζ-potential ≈ -30 mV, polydispersity index < 0.25). Physicochemical characterization and photostability studies indicate NE formulations utilizing surfactant mixture (Smix) of Solutol® HS-15 (SHS15) blended with vitamin E TPGS (TPGS) as cosurfactant was significantly superior to formulations that utilized Lutrol® F68 (LF68) as the cosurfactant. A ratio of 60:40 of SHS15-TPGS-NE was further identified as lead Tocomin® NE topical platform using in vitro pharmaceutical skin reactivity studies that assess cutaneous irritancy and cytotoxicity. Prototype Tocomin® NE loaded with the antiphotocarcinogenic molecule Gen (Gen-Tocomin® NE) showed slow-release profile in both liquid and cream forms. Gen-Tocomin® NE also showed excellent biocompatibility, and provided substantial UVB protection to cultured subcutaneous L929 fibroblasts, indicating the great potential of our Tocomin® NE warranting further prototype development as topical pharmaceutical platform for skin photoprotection applications.

Read More

A Green Light for Red Palm Oil as Health Aid?

Red palm oil is produced in several areas, including Malaysia, West Africa and Ecuador. Oil pressed from the flesh of the fruit of the palm tree is naturally a deep orange color. But most palm fruit oil is bleached and refined at high temperatures, resulting in a yellow oil used in the food and cosmetics industries, says Johari Minal, Washington, D.C., regional manager of the Malaysian Palm Oil Board, a government agency that promotes the country’s palm-oil industry. Red palm oil is refined either at lower temperatures or not heated at all during final processing, causing it to retain color and nutrients, he says.

Read More

PINC 2015 – New Research to Focus on Tocotrienols and Renal Disease

pinc-2015-logo

Palm International Nutra-Cosmeceutical Conference (PINC 2015)

International conference to focus attention on palm oil’s health benefits

Palm phytonutrients in the form of vitamin E tocotrienols,carotenoids and phenolics are emerging as exciting micronutrients for human health, backed by rapidly emerging scientific outputs. PINC 2015, starting 2 August 2015 aims to highlight these positive benefits from the palm oil industry. New Research to focus on tocotrienols and renal disease.

Read More

In End-Stage Renal Disease Patients, Will Tocotrienols From Palm Oil Impact Restless Legs Syndrome?

End-stage renal disease (ERSD) is the last stage of chronic kidney disease where the kidneys function at under 10% to 15% of their normal capacity. At this stage, kidneys cannot effectively remove waste or excess fluid from the blood system, and dialysis or a kidney transplant is necessary to live.

A team of researchers led by Pramod Khosla, PhD, associate professor of nutrition and food science in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Wayne State University, will study the effects of a daily supplement of a Tocotrienol-rich fraction from palm oil to see if it improves dyslipidemia, a disorder of lipoprotein metabolism that may be manifested by a decrease in the “good” high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol in patients with ESRD who are on hemodialysis. Tocotrienols are a form of Vitamin E and have been shown in recent years to have diverse health effects. In addition, Khosla’s team will explore the impact on symptoms such as inflammation and symptoms related to restless legs syndrome in the same cohort of patients.

Read More

Wayne State researching effects of tocotrienols from palm oil in end-stage renal disease patients

DETROIT – End-stage renal disease (ERSD) is the last stage of chronic kidney disease where the kidneys function at under 10 to 15 percent of their normal capacity. At this stage, kidneys cannot effectively remove waste or excess fluid from the blood system, and dialysis or a kidney transplant is necessary to live.

A team of researchers led by Pramod Khosla, Ph.D., associate professor of nutrition and food science in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Wayne State University, will study the effects of a daily supplement of a Tocotrienol-rich fraction from palm oil to see if it improves dyslipidemia, a disorder of lipoprotein metabolism that may be manifested by a decrease in the “good” high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol in patients with ESRD who are on hemodialysis. Tocotrienols are a form of Vitamin E and have been shown in recent years to have diverse health effects. In addition, Khosla’s team will explore the impact on symptoms such as inflammation and symptoms related to Restless Leg Syndrome in the same cohort of patients.

Read More

Researched Skin Care Ingredients

Vitamin E is comprised of eight fat-soluble compounds (alpha-, beta-, gamma- and delta-tocopherol, and alpha-, beta-, gamma- and delta-tocotrienol), with research showing  benefits to skin, especially from tocotrienols.

Read More

Cytoprotective Effect of Tocotrienol-Rich Fraction and α-Tocopherol Vitamin E Isoforms Against Glutamate-Induced Cell Death in Neuronal Cells.

Rati Selvaraju T, Khaza Ai H, Vidyadaran S, Sokhini Abd Mutalib M, Ramachandran V, Hamdan Y.

Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2014;84(3-4):140-51.

Abstract

Glutamate is the major mediator of excitatory signals in the mammalian central nervous system. Extreme amounts of glutamate in the extracellular spaces can lead to numerous neurodegenerative diseases. We aimed to clarify the potential of the following vitamin E isomers, tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) and α-tocopherol (α-TCP), as potent neuroprotective agents against glutamate-induced injury in neuronal SK-N-SH cells. Cells were treated before and after glutamate injury (pre- and post-treatment, respectively) with 100 – 300 ng/ml TRF/α-TCP. Exposure to 120 mM glutamate significantly reduced cell viability to 76 % and 79 % in the pre- and post-treatment studies, respectively; however, pre- and post-treatment with TRF/α-TCP attenuated the cytotoxic effect of glutamate. Compared to the positive control (glutamate-injured cells not treated with TRF/α-TCP), pre-treatment with 100, 200, and 300 ng/ml TRF significantly improved cell viability following glutamate injury to 95.2 %, 95.0 %, and 95.6 %, respectively (p < 0.05).The isomers not only conferred neuroprotection by enhancing mitochondrial activity and depleting free radical production, but also increased cell viability and recovery upon glutamate insult. Our results suggest that vitamin E has potent antioxidant potential for protecting against glutamate injury and recovering glutamate-injured neuronal cells. Our findings also indicate that both TRF and α-TCP could play key roles as anti-apoptotic agents with neuroprotective properties.

Read More

Safety and lipid-altering efficacy of a new omega-3 fatty acid and antioxidant-containing medical food in men and women with elevated triacylglycerols

Maki KC, Geohas JG, Dicklin MR, Huebner M, Udani JK.

Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids. 2015 May 30.

Abstract

This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multi-center trial investigated the lipid-altering effects of a medical food (PDL-0101) providing 1.8g/d eicosapentaenoic acid; 12mg/d astaxanthin, a marine algae-derived carotenoid; and 100mg/d tocopherol-free gamma/delta tocotrienolsenriched with geranylgeraniol, extracted from annatto, on triacylglycerols (TAG), other lipoprotein lipids, and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in 102 subjects with TAG 150-499mg/dL (1.69-5.63mmol/L) and LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) ≥70mg/dL (1.81mmol/L). Compared to placebo, after eight weeks of treatment, PDL-0101 significantly reduced median TAG (-9.5% vs. 10.6%, p<0.001), while not significantly altering mean LDL-C (-3.0% vs. -8.0% for PDL-0101 and placebo, respectively, p=0.071), mean high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (~3% decrease in both groups, p=0.732), or median oxidized LDL concentrations (5% vs. -5% for PDL-0101 and placebo, respectively, p=0.112). These results demonstrate that PDL-0101 is an effective medical food for the management of elevated TAG.

Read More