New development in flu prevention & treatment

20. July 2010 22:33

By Dr Ananya Mandal, MD

In a groundbreaking development, scientists at the Australian National University in

Canberra have found the key to the mutation of the flu virus. This may allow the
manufacturing of a life-long vaccine stopping the need for repeated vaccinations.
The scientists reveal that they have found a protein in the virus that changes or
mutates in order to develop resistance in the virus.

According to ANU's Marco Casarotto, the vaccines that are currently used may
become ineffective in the next five years due to these rapid mutations. “What is
important is for all research groups around the world to work on different aspects of
the flu, this sort of multi-pronged attack is really necessary,” he said. “We know
exactly what target we have to aim for, and we also know the mutations that are
out there as well, and we have got a good idea now of how to overcome these
mutations,” he explained

drugs used in influenza include neuraminidase inhibitors - oseltamivir and zanamivir

that prevent the spread of the virus. There were drugs used in the 1960’s called
adamantanes. They are no longer used because the virus had developed a
resistance to them. These adamantanes target and inhibit a proton-selective ion
channel, M2 in the influenza virus but the exact biding site of the drug was elusive
till now. Scientists at the Australian National University now have found that
adamantanes bound to two sites on M2, and found that only one of these was the
primary site for its pharmacological action. They also found that M2 could still be a
viable target option making adamantanes useful again.

Dr Marco Casarotto and PhD student, Mr Matthew Rosenberg, of the John Curtin
School of Medical Research at ANU studied two adamantanes - amantadine and
rimantadine in a series of surface plasmonresonance (SPR) experiments to check
their affinity to M2 ion channels. They found the two binding sites on the virus.

According to Dr Casarotto, “Tamiflu and Relenza are the main drugs out there, but
we can’t get too relaxed - resistance to Tamiflu is already evident… In a few years,
those drugs may be ineffective, and we’ll be left with nothing frontline to fight an
outbreak. This research paves the way for the next generation of drugs.”

The paper on their findings entitled, “Coexistence of two adamantane binding sites
in the influenza A M2 ion channel”, is published in the latest issue of Proceedings of
the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Collagen fibre shows promise as natural
emulsifier
06-Aug-2010
Related topics: Science & Nutrition, Carbohydrates and fibres (sugar, starches),
Emulsifiers, stabilisers, hydrocolloids

Collagen fibre could prove a useful emulsifier in acidic food formulations,

reports a new study which suggests it could be a natural alternative to
synthetic emulsifiers.
Collagen is already used by the food industry as a protein and collagen fibre as a
water and fat binder in meat products. But the broader potential of collagen fibre as
an emulsifier, obtain from crude collagen and defatted, dried and ground, is a new
area of exploration.

Led by Rosiane Cunha, the researchers from the University of Campinas in Brazil
were motivated by the demand for natural emulsifiers for use in the food industry
instead of synthetic ones. Other natural candidates for food use include casein,
whey protein, soybean protein and gelatine.

The team collagen fibre from NovaProm Food Ingredients in Brazil, which extracted
it from bovine hides. It then set out to investigate the potential of collagen fibres in
oil-in-water emulsions under different pH conditions, in formulations with different
protein contents, and using two different emulsification devices, a rotor stator and a
high-pressure homogeniser.

The two emulsification devices are used to deliver emulsions with different particle
sizes, the former for larger than 1µm and the latter for larger. The stability, the
microstructure and the rheology of the emulsions were measured.

They found that at pH 3.5 using the rotor stator phase separation and droplet size
decreased with protein concentration and reduction in pH. The resulting emulsions
were electromagnetically stable.

At higher pH levels there was a microscopic 3-dimensional network responsible for

their stability at protein counts over 1 per cent.

Use of the high-pressure homogenization emulsification method was seen to be

problematic, producing less stable and less structured emulsions. This was because
the pressure disrupts the collagen fibre structure and the oil droplets. While higher
pressure reduced the droplet size, it also reduced the emulsion’s viscosity.

“The results of this work showed that the collagen fibre has a good potential for use
an emulsifier in the food industry, mainly in acid products,” concluded the team.
Source

Food Hydrocolloids, published online ahead of print

DOI:

“Emulsifying properties of collagen fibers; effects of pH, protein concentration and

homogenization pressure”

Black garlic extract delivers heart health

without bad breath

By Lorraine Heller, 06-Aug-2010

Related topics: Industry, Phytochemicals, plant extracts, Cardiovascular health

Frutarom has launched a black garlic extract, which the firm says can be used in dietary
supplements and functional foods to deliver garlic’s heart health benefits without its
characteristic bad breath effects.
The new ingredient, which is part of the firm’s EFLA line, is derived from the fermentation of fresh
garlic bulbs and is said to show “comparable” benefits for cardiovascular health to fresh garlic.

Production process

Otherwise known as fermented garlic, black garlic is produced by enzymatic fermentation.

“It’s not true fermentation as there is no yeast or fungus involved – some people refer to it as an
‘aging process’,” said Adeline Prevost, Frutarom’s Health product manager. “Our ingredient is
produced more via an ‘auto-fermentation’ process, as it’s based on the enzymes that are naturally
present in the fresh garlic.”

The garlic bulbs take one months to age, she explained, then they are dried and processed for the
extract to be obtained.

Around 6g of fermented garlic is needed to obtain 1g of black garlic extract, meaning that the
recommended daily intake of 660mg is equivalent to 4g of the fermented bulbs.

Benefits

Frutarom says that a number of published studies identify the health benefits of black garlic, which
include a positive impact on blood pressure and blood lipids, as well as immunomodulatory activity,
retardation of arterial calcification and acceleration of wound healing.

The firm has also conducted one (unpublished) study on its branded Black Garlic Extract EFLA 451,
which supports its heart health benefits. The in-vitro study, which used plasma from healthy
humans) demonstrated that the ingredient can “inhibit thrombocyte aggregation caused by various
organic triggers”. This, says Frutarom, contributes to cardiovascular health because aggregating
platelets have a negative effect on blood circulation as they increase the risk of capillary blockage
and blood clots, and can therefore lead to thrombosis.

In addition, Frutarom said that black garlic has been shown to have a higher antioxidant potency
than fresh garlic, which in part explains its cardiovascular benefits. The firm cited an article from
Nutrition Research and Practice (2009), which demonstrated that the TEAC (Trolox-equivalence
antioxidant assay) value for aged black garlic was 59 micromol/g compared to 13 micromol/g for
fresh garlic (based on wet weight).

No bad breath

According to Frutarom, which also supplies garlic extract derived from fresh garlic, the distinctive
advantage of its new ingredient is that it does not cause bad breath or body odour.

This is because the compounds that cause bad breath – alliin and allicin – are destroyed by the
enzymatic activity in the fermentation process, explained Prevost.

However, a study published in 2007 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
indicated that the allicin in garlic is actually responsible for some of its health benefits. The study
indicated that allicin produces hydrogen sulphide, which signals blood vessels to relax, increases
blood flow and boosts heart health.

Prevost agreed that some of garlic’s heart benefits are linked to its allicin content, but said that
other studies have shown that “in fermented garlic there are also some compounds that deliver
health benefits.”

“But fermented garlic has a very different profile to fresh garlic, so we’re working on identifying
which compounds in black garlic are responsible for delivering the health benefits” she said.

Applications

Frutarom said its black garlic ingredient can be used in traditional nutraceutical supplements, such
as tablets and capsules, but also in liquid applications with a heart health positioning, instead of or in
combination with standard garlic.

Without the pungency of fresh garlic, the fermented variety is said to have a sweet, mild taste and
smell, similar to that of oven-roasted garlic.

Frutarom says the ingredient’s mild taste and good water solubility also make it suitable for a variety
of savoury and sweet food applications.

EFSA lowers amaranth ADI and questions

standards
By Jess Halliday, 27-Jul-2010

Related topics: Artificial additives, Legislation, Flavours and colours

The European Food Safety Authority has established a new, lower acceptable daily intake for the food
colouring amaranth after re-evaluating the scientific evidence for its safety, a suggests that new
specifications also be set.
Not to be confused with the healthy grain also called amaranth, the red azo-dye is known as E123 in Europe and is
most commonly used in fish roe products and aperitif beverages. It has been banned in the United States since 1976,
but the FAO/WHO previously set an ADI of 0-0.5 mg/kg bw/d; the European Scientific Committee for Food (SCF) set a
higher ADI of 0.0.8 mg/kg bw/d.

EFSA has now lowered that ADI to 0.015 mg/kg/bw, a decision which is most likely to have an impact on
manufacturers of red-coloured aperitif beverages.

The reassessment of the evidence was not promoted by the submission of a new dossier but the authority was asked
to reevaluate all food additives previously approved for use in the EU. It prioritized azo dyes since a number of them
(though not amaranth) were included in the notorious Southampton study which found a link between cocktails of
certain food colourings and hyperactivity in children.

EFSA has decided to lower the ADI on the basis of several studies on the reproductive or developmental toxicity of the
dye, and a 2-year rat study in renal calcification and hyperplasia. Other studies on genotoxicity, carcinogenicity and
formation of sulphonated naphthylamines were not seen to raise big problems.

Although some of the reproductive and developmental toxicity had methodological issues, they did enable the setting
of no-observed-adverse-effect-levels (NOAELs) for a number of species (mouse, rat, rabbit, cat and dog).

The 2-year rat study was used to establish the JECFA ADI, but EFSA’s panel deemed that the NOAEL determined, of
50mg/kg bw/d should really be the LOAEL - low observed-adverse-effect-level.

Based on the studies, EFSA’s panel judged that the starting point for determining an ADI should be 15mg/kg bw/d –
and an uncertainty factor of 100 was applied to this, yielding the ADI of 0.15.

Implications

EFSA has calculated that the lower ADI should not be a problem for children, even in countries where fish roe is
commonly consumed. Even in the highest percentiles children aged 4-14 years would consume around 30 times less
than the ADI.

For adults however, it is a different story. The biggest drinkers of aperitif wines and cocktails, such as the
Americanomade with dry vermouth and a red mixer, could exceed the ADI by as much as 6 per cent.

New specifications

EFSA’s panel also raised some concerns about specifications for the dye and the levels of materials not accounted for,
which may have sodium chloride or sodium sulphate as the main uncoloured compounds.

The European Commission and JECFA differ in their specifications for lead levels – for JECFA it must be less than or
equal to 2mg/kg, but for Europe less than or equal to 10 mg/kg.

Specifications for the maximum level of aluminium in the colour lakes may also be required, as the panel notes it
could add to daily intake levels. A tolerable weekly intake of 1 mg/kg bw of aluminum has been established.