Monthly Archives: June 2013

FOS and Dried Plum

Abstract

Combining fructooligosaccharide and dried plum has the greatest effect on restoring bone mineral density among select functional foods and bioactive compounds.

Functional foods and/or their bioactive compounds playing a role in improving skeletal health have received considerable attention. The objective of the present study was to determine the extent to which certain functional foods as (1) whole, e.g., dried plum (DP), figs, dates, raisin, and blueberry, (2) fractionated, e.g., DP puree, DP juice, and DP pulp/skin, or (3) isolated, e.g., DP polyphenols, fructooligosaccharides (FOS), and beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate, forms reverse bone loss in an ovariectomized (Ovx) rat model of osteoporosis. Additionally, some of these components were tested in reversal of bone loss in combination. For this purpose, 180 3-month-old female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 15 groups (n = 12) and either Ovx (14 groups) or sham-operated (Sham, one group). Rats were maintained on a semipurified standard diet for 45 days after surgery to establish bone loss. Thereafter, rats were placed on one of the following dietary treatments for 60 days: casein-based diet (Sham and Ovx). The remaining 13 Ovx groups were placed on various treatment diets. Results showed that diets supplemented with 5% FOS + 7.5% DP was most effective in reversing both right femur and fourth lumbar bone mineral density and fourth lumbar calcium loss while significantly decreasing trabecular separation. There were no significant effects of treatment on serum or urine measures of bone turnover. Although other treatments were good at altering some bone parameters, none had the success in altering several bone health indicators as the diets supplemented with 5% FOS + 7.5% DP. The findings of this study suggest the combination of 5% FOS + 7.5% DP is capable of reversing Ovx-induced bone loss.

Arjmandi BH, Johnson CD, Campbell SC, Hooshmand S…
J Med Food Apr 2010
PMID: 20132045

Dried Plum Decreases Osteoclast Activity

Abstract

Dried plum polyphenols inhibit osteoclastogenesis by downregulating NFATc1 and inflammatory mediators.

Dried plums and their polyphenols have been shown to suppress bone resorption by downregulating receptor activator NF-kappaB ligand (RANKL). Due to the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of these compounds, this study was designed to investigate whether dried plum polyphenols exert additional, more direct effects on osteoclasts and their precursors. RAW 264.7 macrophages were used as a model to study osteoclast precursors and osteoclast differentiation and activity. Under inflammatory conditions induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), polyphenols extracted from dried plum (10, 20, and 30 microg/mL) downregulated osteoclast precursor cyclooxygenase expression and nitric oxide (NO) by inhibiting inducible NO synthase. NO and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha were also suppressed in the presence of RANKL during osteoclastogenesis by the polyphenols. Increased TNF-alpha production in response to oxidative stress, but not LPS, was decreased over time. As expected, LPS and H2O2 significantly increased the number of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive cells by 127% and 30%, respectively. Dried plum polyphenols decreased osteoclast differentiation under normal as well as inflammatory and oxidative stress conditions, coincident with the suppression of the transcription factor, nuclear factor for activated T cells (NFATcl). These inhibitory effects on osteoclastogenesis were confirmed in primary bone marrow cultures. Resorption pit formation was decreased to a similar extent as osteoclast differentiation, suggesting that dried plum polyphenols primarily affect osteoclast differentiation as opposed to activity. Our data demonstrate that dried plum polyphenols directly inhibit osteoclastogenesis, leading to a decrease in osteoclast activity, by downregulating NFATc1 and inflammatory mediators.

Bu SY, Lerner M, Stoecker BJ, Boldrin E…
Calcif. Tissue Int. Jun 2008
PMID: 18509698