Content of multiple components (neochlorogenic acid,L-tryptophan,vicenin-2,isoquercitrin,and astragalin) in Moringa oleifera leaves was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC),and the absolute content-time curves were plotted.Based on Fick's law of diffusion and Higbie's penetration theory,the parameters of the equations were calculated,and the measured results were substituted into the mathematical model to fit the equations.The n and a obtained from the equations on the decocting time factor and the solvent volume were close to each other.The dynamic models of the five components are as follows:■.The variation of the content of multiple components in M.oleifera leaves with time and solvent volume was explored.It was found that the content of the components was the highest when the leaves were decocted for 30 min with solvent volume 12 folds of the medicinal material.The dissolution and destruction of components and the diffusion movement of components are the main causes of the content change of M.oleifera leaves at different time and with different solvent volumes.The R~2of the linear equations on the content and the equations on the decocting process (5-30min and solvent volume 12-20 folds of the medicinal materials) was≥0.999 8 and≥0.9,respectively.Thus,the content determination and the decocting kinetic model had high accuracy,which can reflect the change law of the content of key components in M.oleifera leaves during the decoction.This study is expected to serve as a reference for optimizing the decocting technology.
Kinetics ; Moringa oleifera/chemistry* ; Plant Leaves/chemistry* ; Solvents ; Tryptophan/analysis*

A FAST (fluorescence of advanced Maillard products and Soluble Tryptophan) method for identification of reconstituted milk made from skim milk powder in the fresh milk was developed. Considering milk and skim milk powders variations from different seasons and countries, milk was collected from different dairy farms in different seasons and skim milk powders were collected from different countries to measure the Tryptophan (Trp), advanced Maillard products (AMP) fluorescence values. The results showed that there were differences (P<0.01) between raw and reconstituted milk. The plot of values in each mixed level of raw and reconstituted milk had a correlation coefficient >0.97. The FAST method is a simple, rapid, low-cost and sensitive method enabling the detection of 5% reconstituted milk in fresh milk. The measurement of the Trp, AMP fluorescence values and calculation of the FAST index is a suitable method for large-scale monitoring of fresh milk samples.
Animals ; Cattle ; Food Analysis ; methods ; Food Contamination ; prevention & control ; Glycation End Products, Advanced ; analysis ; Maillard Reaction ; Milk ; chemistry ; classification ; Powders ; Spectrometry, Fluorescence ; methods ; Tryptophan ; analysis

Tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH), the rate-limiting enzyme in serotonin biosynthesis, is primarily expressed in serotonergic neurons of the raphe nuclei. Simple tandem repeat polymorphisms, typically one to four nucleotides long, are tandemly repeated several times and often characterized by many alleles. To identify the presence of polymorphic repeats, we sequenced the 5'-upstream region of the mouse TPH gene. For the detection of any allelic variants, polymerase chain reaction, nonisotopic single-strand conformation polymophism, and DNA sequencing analyses of the tandem repeat sequences were performed using genomic DNA extracted from 60 ICR mice. Two dinucleotide repeats, 5'-(AC/TG)22-3' and 5'-(GT/CA)17-3', were identified at approximately -5.7 kb and -3.4 kb upstream from the transcriptional initiation site of the mouse TPH gene, respectively. Minor allelic variants, 5'-(AC/TG)21-3' and 5'-(GT/CA)18-3', were observed in heterozygous pairs from 3 of 60 and 1 of 60 ICR mice, respectively. The identification of these microsatellites in the mouse TPH promoter raises the possibility that identical and/or other polymorphic sequences might exist in the upstream region of the human TPH gene.
Alleles ; Animals ; Dinucleotide Repeats* ; DNA ; Humans ; Mice* ; Mice, Inbred ICR ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Nucleotides ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Raphe Nuclei ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Serotonergic Neurons ; Serotonin ; Tandem Repeat Sequences ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase* ; Tryptophan*

Apert syndrome (AS) is a rare autosomal dominant disorder characterised by craniosynostosis and limb malformations, and is associated with congenital heart disease and other systemic malformations, including intellectual disability. We report two Indonesian patients with AS, in whom molecular analysis detected p.Ser252Trp (c.755C>G) and p.Pro253Arg (c.758C>G) mutations in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) gene, respectively. Although the syndrome has been frequently described, this is the first clinical report of AS confirmed by molecular analysis in Indonesia. The difference in severity of clinical features in the two patients may be consistent with a genotype-phenotype correlation of the FGFR2mutation. The management of individuals with AS is best achieved within a multidisciplinary setting. However, in most developing countries, early intervention may be delayed due to late diagnosis, a lack of facilities and financial constraints. This report underpins the benefits of early diagnosis for AS management.
Acrocephalosyndactylia ; diagnosis ; ethnology ; genetics ; Arginine ; analysis ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Fatal Outcome ; Genetic Association Studies ; Humans ; Indonesia ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Mutation ; Proline ; analysis ; Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 2 ; genetics ; Serine ; analysis ; Tryptophan ; analysis

PURPOSE: We investigated the association between the tryptohan hydroxylase 1 (TPH1) gene and aggression in schizophrenia in a Korean population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sample included 61 aggressive patients as well as 104 non-aggressive patients from psychiatric hospitals and 335 healthy volunteers in Korea. Blood samples were collected from all participants for TPH1 A218C genotyping. The patients were administered standard psychiatric interviews as well as a self-report questionnaire for anger-related traits. RESULTS: In the case-control phenotypic comparisons, there was no significant association between the aggressive patients and the TPH1 A218C polymorphism. There was no significant effect of the TPH1 genotype on the anger-related traits, or no significant interaction between the genotype and group (aggressive and non-aggressive patients). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that TPH1 does not play a major role in aggressive behavior via anger in schizophrenic patients.
Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/genetics ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease/genetics ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Polymorphism, Genetic/*genetics ; Schizophrenia/*genetics ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase/*genetics ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) often report poor sleep quality. Whether poor sleep is associated with tryptophan (Trp) metabolites is unknown. We compared serum Trp metabolites in women with IBS and healthy controls (HCs) using targeted liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based profiling. In IBS only, we explored whether Trp metabolites are associated with IBS symptoms and subjective and objective sleep indices, serum cortisol, plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and cortisol/ACTH levels. METHODS: Blood samples were obtained every 80 minutes in 21 HCs and 38 IBS subjects following an anticipation-of-public-speaking stressor during a sleep laboratory protocol. Subjects completed symptom diaries for 28 days. Adjacent values of metabolites were averaged to represent 4 time-periods: awake, early sleep, mid-sleep, and mid-to-late sleep. Thirteen of 20 targeted Trp metabolites were identified. RESULTS: Ten of 13 Trp metabolites decreased across the night, while nicotinamide increased in both groups. A MANOVA omnibus test performed after principal component analysis showed a significant difference in these 13 principal component (P = 0.014) between groups. Compared to HCs, nicotinamide levels were higher and indole-3-lactic acid levels lower in the IBS group. Melatonin and indole-3-acetic acid levels were associated with several subjective/objective sleep measures; decreased stool consistency/frequency and abdominal pain were positively associated with melatonin and serotonin in the IBS group. The kynurenine and kynurenic acid were associated with ACTH (positively) and cortisol/ACTH (negatively). CONCLUSIONS: Nighttime Trp metabolites may provide clues to poor sleep and stress with IBS. Further study of the mechanism of metabolite action is warranted.
Abdominal Pain ; Adrenocorticotropic Hormone ; Chromatography, Liquid ; Female ; Humans ; Hydrocortisone ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; Kynurenic Acid ; Kynurenine ; Mass Spectrometry ; Melatonin ; Niacinamide ; Plasma ; Principal Component Analysis ; Serotonin ; Tryptophan

OBJECTIVE: To study the distribution of the tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) gene-T457C locus polymorphism in Han ethnic group in northern China and to find its applicable value in forensic science. METHODS: Genomic DNA samples, extracted from 180 unrelated individuals in northern Chinese Han population, were analyzed by PCR-RFLP. RESULTS: The discrimination power (DP) value and the power of exclusion (PE) value of the TPH gene-T457C locus were 0.624 and 0.187, respectively. The allele frequency showed significant difference from that of French people (P=0.04). CONCLUSION Polymorphism of the TPH gene-T457C locus could show ethnic and regional differences. It has a potential to be used in forensic science.
Alleles ; Asian People/genetics* ; China/ethnology* ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/methods* ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase/genetics*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a multifaceted disorder that afflicts millions of individuals worldwide. IBS is currently diagnosed based on the presence/duration of symptoms and systematic exclusion of other conditions. A more direct manner to identify IBS is needed to reduce healthcare costs and the time required for accurate diagnosis. The overarching objective of this work is to identify gene expression-based biological signatures and biomarkers of IBS. METHODS: Gene transcripts from 24 tissue biopsy samples were hybridized to microarrays for gene expression profiling. A combination of multiple statistical analyses was utilized to narrow the raw microarray data to the top 200 differentially expressed genes between IBS versus control subjects. In addition, quantitative polymerase chain reaction was employed for validation of the DNA microarray data. Gene ontology/pathway enrichment analysis was performed to investigate gene expression patterns in biochemical pathways. Finally, since vitamin D has been shown to modulate serotonin production in some models, the relationship between serum vitamin D and IBS was investigated via 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) chemiluminescence immunoassay. RESULTS: A total of 858 genetic features were identified with differential expression levels between IBS and asymptomatic populations. Gene ontology enrichment analysis revealed the serotonergic pathway as most prevalent among the differentially expressed genes. Further analysis via real-time polymerase chain reaction suggested that IBS patient-derived RNA exhibited lower levels of tryptophan hydroxylase-1 expression, the enzyme that catalyzes the rate-limiting step in serotonin biosynthesis. Finally, mean values for 25(OH)D were lower in IBS patients relative to non-IBS controls. CONCLUSIONS: Values for serum 25(OH)D concentrations exhibited a trend towards lower vitamin D levels within the IBS cohort. In addition, the expression of select IBS genetic biomarkers, including tryptophan hydroxylase 1, was modulated by vitamin D. Strikingly, the direction of gene regulation elicited by vitamin D in colonic cells is “opposite” to the gene expression profile observed in IBS patients, suggesting that vitamin D may help “reverse” the pathological direction of biomarker gene expression in IBS. Thus, our results intimate that IBS pathogenesis and pathophysiology may involve dysregulated serotonin production and/or vitamin D insufficiency.
Biomarkers ; Biopsy ; Cohort Studies ; Colon ; Diagnosis ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gene Expression ; Gene Ontology ; Health Care Costs ; Humans ; Immunoassay ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome ; Luminescence ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA ; Serotonin ; Transcriptome ; Tryptophan ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase ; Vitamin D ; Vitamins

Whey protein concentrate (WPC 80) and sodium caseinate were hydrolyzed by Protamex to 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% degree of hydrolysis (DH). WPC 80, sodium caseinate and their hydrolysates were then analyzed, compared and evaluated for their nutritional qualities. Their chemical composition, protein solubility, amino acid composition, essential amino acid index (EAA index), biological value (BV), nutritional index (NI), chemical score, enzymic protein efficiency ratio (E-PER) and in vitro protein digestibility (IVPD) were determined. The results indicated that the enzymatic hydrolysis of WPC 80 and sodium caseinate by Protamex improved the solubility and IVPD of their hydrolysates. WPC 80, sodium caseinate and their hydrolysates were high-quality proteins and had a surplus of essential amino acids compared with the FAO/WHO/UNU (1985) reference standard. The nutritive value of WPC 80 and its hydrolysates was superior to that of sodium caseinate and its hydrolysates as indicated by some nutritional parameters such as the amino acid composition, chemical score, EAA index and predicted BV. However, the E-PER was lower for the WPC hydrolysates as compared to unhydrolyzed WPC 80 but sodium caseinate and its hydrolysates did not differ significantly. The nutritional qualities of WPC 80, sodium caseinate and their hydrolysates were good and make them appropriate for food formulations or as nutritional supplements.
Amino Acids ; chemistry ; Caseins ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Dietary Proteins ; analysis ; Evaluation Studies as Topic ; Hydrolysis ; Milk Proteins ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Models, Statistical ; Nutritive Value ; Protein Hydrolysates ; chemistry ; Solubility ; Temperature ; Time Factors ; Tryptophan ; chemistry ; Whey Proteins

OBJECTIVETo investigate the immunological characteristics of human tonsil mesenchymal stem cells (TMSCs).

METHODSHuman tonsil tissues were obtained from the children patients with chronic tonsillitis. TMSCs were separated, cultured, and were detected the expression profiles of HLA-I, HLA-II, CD80, CD86 by flow cytometry. The measurement of immunogenicity, the effect on phytohemagglutinin (PHA) induced peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMCs) proliferation and mixed lymphocytes reaction (MLR) were performed to identify the immunological characteristics of TMSCs. The co-cultures of TMSCs + PBMCs + PHA and TMSCs + MLR were established, respectively, and the concentration of kynurenine, which is the metabolin of indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase, in the culture supernatant were examined. Then we added 1-methyl-L-tryptophan into the co-culture of TMSCs + PBMCs + PHA and TMSCs + MLR, respectively, and tested the proliferation of PBMCs. Each experiment was repeated three times, and there were six samples in each group. Statistical significance was assessed by analysis of variance (ANOVA), and a P value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTSTMSCs expressed HLA-I, were negative for HLA-II and co-stimulatory molecules CD80 and CD86. The stimulation index in the group of TMSCs + allogeneic PBMCs was 1.38 ± 0.26, whereas the stimulation index in the group of allogeneic PBMCs was 1.22 ± 0.28, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05), indicating that TMSCs could not initiate the proliferation of allogeneic PBMCs. The stimulation indexes in the group of TMSCs + allogeneic PBMCs + PHA were 1.49 ± 0.29 and 1.23 ± 0.22, respectively, whereas the stimulation index in the group of allogeneic PBMCs + PHA was 4.60 ± 0.81, and the difference between the two groups had a statistical significance (P < 0.05) suggesting that TMSCs could inhibit PHA-induced PBMCs proliferation. The stimulation indexes in the group of TMSCs + MLR were 1.29 ± 0.23 and 1.26 ± 0.27, respectively, however, the stimulation index in the group of MLR was 3.04 ± 0.66, and the difference between the two groups had a statistical significance (P < 0.05), demonstrating that TMSCs could suppress MLR-induced PBMCs proliferation. The levels of kynurenine were (26.0 ± 2.3) μmol/L and (23.5 ± 4.5) μmol/L in the culture of TMSCs + PBMCs + PHA and TMSCs + MLR, respectively, thus elevating significantly. After adding of 1-methyl-L-tryptophan, TMSCs-mediated-proliferation suppression of PBMCs restored to normal levels.

CONCLUSIONTMSCs possess low immunogenecity and immunosuppressive function, may be used in allogeneic transplantation.

Cell Proliferation ; Cells, Cultured ; Child ; Coculture Techniques ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Immunosuppression ; Kynurenine ; analysis ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear ; Lymphocyte Culture Test, Mixed ; methods ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; immunology ; Palatine Tonsil ; cytology ; Tryptophan ; administration & dosage ; analogs & derivatives