Copyright (c) 2013 Purdue University All rights reserved. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc Recent documents in Botanicals Research Center Publications en-us Thu, 24 Jan 2013 09:59:34 PST 3600 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/5 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/5 Fri, 24 Jul 2009 06:24:35 PDT Background: Animal experiments document effects of grape juice on cognitive performance and motor skills, and observational studies in humans suggest an inverse association between flavonoid intake and cognitive decline. These effects may be related to the antioxidant properties of polyphenols. Juice consumption and flavonoid intake may also affect appetite. Objective: To study the acute effects of grape juice consumption on appetite, mood and implicit memory during a time of increased lethargy - the post-lunch dip. Design: Thirty-five participants with a mean age of 26 years who smoked a mean of 11 cigarettes/day for 8 years were included in the study. It included a practice session and two treatment sessions. All sessions involved consumption of grape juice or an energy-matched placebo with lunch followed by assessments of mood, implicit memory, appetite and food intake. Results: Mood decreased over time for both treatments, but there were no differences after lunch between grape juice and placebo for any measure. Conclusion: This study did not document any acute effects of grape juice consumption on mood, implicit memory, appetite or food intake in smokers.

]]> Sara J. Hendrickson et al. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/4 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/4 Thu, 23 Jul 2009 08:31:39 PDT Many similarities exist between research on combinatorial chemistry and natural products and research on dietary supplements and botanicals at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Botanical Research Centers. The technologies used at the centers are similar to those used by other NIH-sponsored investigators. All centers rigorously examine the authenticity of botanical dietary supplements and determine the composition and concentrations of the phytochemicals therein, most often by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Several of the centers specialize in fractionation and highthroughput evaluation to identify the individual bioactive agent or a combination of agents. Some centers are using DNA microarray analyses to determine the effects of botanicals on gene transcription with the goal of uncovering the important biochemical pathways they regulate. Other centers focus on bioavailability and uptake, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of the phytochemicals as for all xenobiotics. Because phytochemicals are often complex molecules, synthesis of isotopically labeled forms is carried out by plant cells in culture, followed by careful fractionation. These labeled phytochemicals allow the use of accelerator mass spectrometry to trace the tissue distribution of 14C-labeled proanthocyanidins in animal models of disease. State-of-the-art proteomics and mass spectrometry are also used to identify proteins in selected tissues whose expression and posttranslational modification are influenced by botanicals and dietary supplements. In summary, the skills needed to carry out botanical centers’ research are extensive andmay exceed those practiced by most NIH investigators.

]]> Stephen Barnes et al. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/3 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/3 Thu, 23 Jul 2009 07:46:00 PDT To determine comparative effects of ultraviolet (UV)-A irradiation on structural and functional properties of wild type (WT) αβ-crystallin and its three deamidated mutant proteins (αβ-Asn78Asp, and αβ-Asn78/146Asp).

]]> Kerri Mafia et al. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/2 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/2 Wed, 08 Jul 2009 06:31:51 PDT The Purdue–University of Alabama Botanicals Research Center for Age Related Disease joins novel technologies to study the bioavailability of bioactive polyphenolic constituents and their relation to health. Many diseases that manifest with age relate to oxidative stress and tissue damage. Our goal is to follow the fate of bioactive constituents from a complex mixture to the organ affected by the disease and relate that to a protective mechanism. Equally important is to screen commercially available botanicals for their efficacy and safety. Botanicals and their relation to bone antiresorptive capacity, cognitive function, vascular effects, and cancer are principal themes in our center.

]]> Connie M. Weaver et al. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/1 http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/brc/1 Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:08:12 PDT Our group is interested in evaluating early effects of dietary interventions on bone loss. Postmenopausal women lose bone following reduction in estrogen which leads to increased risk of fracture. Traditional means of monitoring bone loss and effectiveness of treatments include changes in bone density, which takes 6 months to years to observe effects, and changes in biochemical markers of bone turnover, which are highly variable and lack specificity. Prelabeling bone with ⁴¹Ca and measuring urinary ⁴¹Ca excretion with accelerator mass spectrometry provides a sensitive, specific, and rapid approach to evaluating effectiveness of treatment. To better understand ⁴¹Ca technology as a tool for measuring effective treatments on reducing bone resorption, we perturbed bone resorption by manipulating dietary calcium in rats. We used ³H-tetracycline (³H-TC) as a proxy for ⁴¹Ca and found that a single dose is feasible to study bone resorption. Suppression of bone resorption, as measured by urinary ³H-TC, by dietary calcium was observed in rats stabilized after ovariectomy, but not in recently ovariectomized rats.

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