Herbs rich in bioactive phytochemicals were recognized to have biological activities and possess many health-promoting effects. In this work, cold-pressed thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.) oil (TO) was studied for its lipid classes, fatty acid profile, tocols and phenolics contents. Antioxidant activity and radical scavenging potential of TO against free radicals (DPPH^・ and galvinoxyl) was determined. Antimicrobial activity (AA) of TO against food borne bacteria, food spoilage fungi and dermatophyte fungi were also evaluated. Neutral lipids accounted for the main lipid fraction in TO, followed by glycolipids and phospholipids. The major fatty acids in TO were linoleic, oleic, stearic, and palmitic. γ-Tocopherol (60.2% of total tocols) followed by α-tocotrienol (26.9%) and α-tocopherol (9.01% of total tocols) were the main tocols. TO contained high amounts of phenolic compounds (7.3 mg/g as GAE). TO had strong antiradical action wherein 65% of DPPH^・ radicals and 55% of galvinoxyl radical were quenched after 60 min of incubation. Rancimat assay showed that induction time (IT) for TO: sunflower oil blend (1:9, w/w) was 6.5 h, while TO: sunflower oil blend (2:8, w/w) recorded higher IT (9 h). TO inhibited the growth of all tested microorganisms. TO exhibited various degrees of AA against different food borne bacteria, food spoilage fungi and dermatophyte fungi, wherein the highest AA was recorded against dermatophyte fungi and yeasts including T. mentagrophytes (62 mm), T. rubrum (40 mm), and C. albicans (20 mm) followed by food spoilage fungi including A. flavus (32 mm) with minimal lethal concentrations (MLC) ranging between 80 to 320 μg/mL. Furthermore, TO exhibited broad-spectra activity against food borne bacteria including S. aureus (30 mm), E. coli (25 mm) and L. Monocytogenes (20 mm) with MLC ranging between 160 to 320 μg/mL. The results suggest that TO could be used economically as a valuable natural product with novel functional properties in food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries.

Microencapsulation is a promising approach in drug delivery to protect the drug from degradation and allow controlled release of the drug in the body. Fucoxanthin-loaded microsphere (F-LM) was fabricated by two step w/o/w double emulsion solvent evaporation method with poly (L-lactic-coglycolic acid) (PLGA) as carrier. The effect of four types of surfactants (PVA, Tween-20, Span-20 and SDS), homogenization speed, and concentration of PLGA polymer and surfactant (PVA), respectively, on particle size and morphology of F-LM were investigated. Among the surfactants tested, PVA showed the best results with smallest particle size (9.18 µm) and a smooth spherical surface. Increasing the homogenization speed resulted in a smaller mean F-LM particle size [d(0.50)] from 17.12 to 9.18 µm. Best particle size results and good morphology were attained at homogenization speed of 20 500 rpm. Meanwhile, increased PLGA concentration from 1.5 to 11.0 (% w/v) resulted in increased F-LM particle size. The mean particle size [d(0.5)] of F-LM increased from 3.93 to 11.88 µm. At 6.0 (% w/v) PLGA, F-LM showed the best structure and external morphology. Finally, increasing PVA concentration from 0.5 to 3.5 (% w/v) resulted in decreased particle size from 9.18 to 4.86 µm. Fucoxanthin characterization before and after microencapsulation was carried out to assess the success of the microencapsulation procedure. Thermo gravimetry analysis (TGA), glass transition (Tg) temperature of F-LM and fucoxanthin measured using DSC, ATR-FTIR and XRD indicated that fucoxanthin was successfully encapsulated into the PLGA matrix, while maintaining the structural and chemical integrity of fucoxanthin.

The composition of the fatty acids of the roots and aerial parts of Aritolochia longa (Aristolacheae) and Bryonia dioïca (Cucurbutaceae) was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC-FID) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The oils extracted from the aerial parts of both species were rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids with the essential linolenic and linoleic acids being the most prominent compounds. Oleic and linoleic acids were the majors fatty acids in the roots of both species. Whatever the plant part analyzed and the species, the saturated fatty acids were predominantly composed of palmitic and stearic acids. The antibacterial activity, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the lipid extracts were determined against a panel of five bacterial strains. The results showed that the sensitivity to the lipid extracts was different for the test bacterial strains, and the susceptibility of gram positive bacteria was found to be greater than gram negative bacteria. The antibacterial activity of the root lipid extracts was particularly important against Enterococcus feacium (CMI value of 125 µg/mL; CMB values > 250 µg/mL) and Streptococcus agalactiae (CMI value of 125 µg/mL; CMB values 250 µg/mL for A. longa roots). These results indicate that A. longa and B. dioïca could be considered as good sources of essential fatty acids which can act as natural antibacterial agents.

Esterquat cationic softener is basically the class of surface active quaternary ammonium compounds. Esterquat compounds were synthesized and their surface behavior, antibacterial activity and Textile softening properties were investigated. Easily found cheap material was used to synthesize cationic fabric softeners. This fabric softener will be a good for commercially and industrially important because their emulsify activity, rewettability dispersing power and softness. Free fatty acids were derived from tallow oil and were treated with triethanolamine and mono-ethanolamine at 140°C. This diester was quaternaries with dimethyl sulphate and benzyl chloride. The synthesized esterquat compounds were characterized by its cationic content, 1H NMR and FT-IR analysis. In addition to the cationic content, surface tension, CMC (critical micelle concentration), rewettability, fabric softening, emulsification and dispersing power were determined as their surface-active properties. The fabric softening activity of esterquat and esteramide prepared from DMS was better softening activity of fabrics compared to untreated cotton and polyester fabrics cloth. The presented result shows that the esterquat made from BCl exhibit the best dispersing power. The esterquat made from DMS both in TEA and MEA shows good rewettability was determined.

Asterias amurensis starfish provide several bioactive species in addition to being fishery waste. Glucosyl ceramides (GlcCers) were extracted from the viscera of these starfish and were isolated by silica gel column chromatography. Degraded GlcCers generated A. amurensis sphingoid bases (ASBs) that mainly consisted of the triene-type bases d18:3 and 9-methyl-d18:3. The effect of these bases on ceramide synthesis and content were analyzed using normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEKs). The bases significantly enhanced the de novo ceramide synthesis and gene expression in NHEKs for proteins, such as serine-palmitoyltransferase and ceramide synthase. Total ceramide, GlcCer, and sphingomyelin contents increased dramatically upon ASB treatment. In particular, GlcCer bearing very-long-chain fatty acids (≥C28) exhibited a significant content increase. These ASB-induced enhancements on de novo ceramide synthesis were only observed in undifferentiated NHEKs. This stimulation of the de novo sphingolipid synthesis may improve skin barrier functions.

The water content of the stratum corneum was measured to investigate the skin-moisturizing property of diglycerol in water and in a lotion. The water content of the stratum corneum, to which the diglycerol solution was applied, was lower than that of the glycerol solution for 8 h. However, skin treated with diglycerol in combination with glycerol solution maintained a higher capacitance level compared with that of glycerol solution alone after 8 h. Moreover, the long-term moisturizing effect of the stratum corneum prominently appeared when diglycerol was formulated to the lotion containing glycerol and 1,3-butylene glycol. These studies suggest that diglycerol in combination with glycerol has a long-term moisturizing effect on human skin.

Alpha linolenic acid-enriched diacylglycerol (ALA-DAG) reduces visceral fat area and body fat in rodents and humans compared to conventional triacylglycerol (TAG). Although ALA-DAG increases dietary fat utilization as energy in rodents, its effects in humans are not known. The present study was a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover intervention trial performed to clarify the effect of ALA-DAG on postprandial energy metabolism in humans. Nineteen healthy subjects participated in this study, and postprandial energy metabolism was evaluated using indirect calorimetry followed by 14-d repeated pre-consumption of TAG (rapeseed oil) as a control or ALA-DAG. As a primary outcome, ALA-DAG induced significantly higher postprandial fat oxidation than TAG. As a secondary outcome, carbohydrate oxidation tended to be decreased. In addition, postprandial energy expenditure was significantly increased by ALA-DAG compared to TAG. These findings suggest that daily ALA-DAG consumption stimulates dietary fat utilization as energy after a meal, as well as greater diet induced thermogenesis in healthy humans. In conclusion, repeated consumption of ALA-DAG enhanced postprandial fat metabolism after a meal, which may partially explain its visceral fat area-reducing effect.

Coconut oil has recently attracted considerable attention as a potential Alzheimer’s disease therapy because it contains large amounts of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs) and its consumption is thought to stimulate hepatic ketogenesis, supplying an alternative energy source for brains with impaired glucose metabolism. In this study, we first reevaluated the responses of plasma ketone bodies to oral administration of coconut oil to rats. We found that the coconut oil-induced increase in plasma ketone body concentration was negligible and did not significantly differ from that observed after high-oleic sunflower oil administration. In contrast, the administration of coconut oil substantially increased the plasma free fatty acid concentration and lauric acid content, which is the major MCFA in coconut oil. Next, to elucidate whether lauric acid can activate ketogenesis in astrocytes with the capacity to generate ketone bodies from fatty acids, we treated the KT-5 astrocyte cell line with 50 and 100 μM lauric acid for 4 h. The lauric acid treatments increased the total ketone body concentration in the cell culture supernatant to a greater extent than oleic acid, suggesting that lauric acid can directly and potently activate ketogenesis in KT-5 astrocytes. These results suggest that coconut oil intake may improve brain health by directly activating ketogenesis in astrocytes and thereby by providing fuel to neighboring neurons.

Aromatic and medicinal plants are sources of natural antioxidants thanks to their secondary metabolites. Administration of Pinus halepensis L. (Pinaceae family) in previous studies was found to alleviate deleterious effects of aspirin-induced damage on liver and kidney. The present study, carried out on female rats, evaluates the effects of P. halepensis L. essential oil (EOP) on aspirin (A)-induced damage to liver and kidney. The animals used in this study were rats (n=28) divided into 4 groups of 7 each: (1) a control group (C); (2) a group given NaCl for 56 days then treated with (A) (600 mg/kg) for 4 days (A); (3) a group fed with (EOP) for 56 days then (A) for 4 days; and a group fed with only (EOP) for 56 days and given NaCl for 4 days. Estimations of biochemical parameters in blood were determined using kit methods (Spinreact). Lipid peroxidation levels (TBARS), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities were determined. Histopathological study was done by immersing pieces of both organs in a fixative solution followed by paraffin embeddeding and hematoxylin-eosin staining. Under our experimental conditions, Aspirin at dose 600 mg/kg body weight induced an increase of serum biochemical parameters as well as an oxidative stress in both organs. An increase occurred in TBARS by 108% and 55%, a decrease in SOD by 78% and 53%, CAT by 53% and 78%, and GPx by 78% and 51% in liver and kidney, respectively, compared to control. Administration of EOP given to rats enabled correction in these parameters. It could be concluded that the treatment with P. halepensis L. essential oil inhibited aspirin-induced liver and kidney damage.