Herbaceous peony seed oil: A rich source of unsaturated fatty acids and γ-tocopherol : Fatty acids composition and tocopherols in HPOS

The omega-3 fatty acids are essential dietary nutrients and one of their important roles is providing the fatty acid with 22 carbons and 6 double bonds known as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) for nervous tissue growth and function. Inadequate intakes of omega-3 fatty acids decrease DHA and increase omega-6 fatty acids in the brain. Decreased DHA in the developing brain leads to deficits in neurogenesis, neurotransmitter metabolism, and altered learning and visual function in animals. Western diets are low in omega-3 fatty acids, including the 18 carbon omega-3 fatty acid alpha linolenic acid found mainly in plant oils, and DHA, which is found mainly in fish. The DHA status of the newborn and breast-fed infant depends on the maternal intake of DHA and varies widely. Epidemiological studies have linked low maternal DHA to increased risk of poor child neural development. Intervention studies have shown improving maternal DHA nutrition decreases the risk of poor infant and child visual and neural development. Thus, sufficient evidence is available to conclude that maternal fatty acid nutrition is important to DHA transfer to the infant before and after birth, with short and long-term implications for neural function. However, genetic variation in genes encoding fatty acid desaturases also influence essential fatty acid metabolism, and may increase requirements in some individuals. Consideration of omega-3 fatty acid to include brain development, optimizing omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in gestation and lactation, and in fatty acid nutrition support for intravenous and formula-fed neonates is important. Show more

Antioxidants are used to minimize the oxidative changes in meat and meat products. Oxidative changes may have negative effects on the quality of meat and meat products, causing changes in their sensory and nutritional properties. Although synthetic antioxidants have already been used but in recent years, the demand for natural antioxidants has been increased mainly because of adverse effects of synthetic antioxidants. Thus most of the recent investigations have been directed towards the identification of natural antioxidants from various plant sources. Plant extracts have been prepared using different solvents and extraction methods. Grape seed, green tea, pine bark, rosemary, pomegranate, nettle and cinnamon have exhibited similar or better antioxidant properties compared to some synthetic ones. This review provides the recent information on plant extracts used as natural antioxidants in meat and meat products, specifically red meat. Show more

There is little doubt regarding the essential nature of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), yet the capacity of dietary ALA to maintain adequate tissue levels of long chain n-3 fatty acids remains quite controversial. This simple point remains highly debated despite evidence that removal of dietary ALA promotes n-3 fatty acid inadequacy, including that of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and that many experiments demonstrate that dietary inclusion of ALA raises n-3 tissue fatty acid content, including DHA. Herein we propose, based upon our previous work and that of others, that ALA is elongated and desaturated in a tissue-dependent manner. One important concept is to recognize that ALA, like many other fatty acids, rapidly undergoes beta-oxidation and that the carbons are conserved and reused for synthesis of other products including cholesterol and fatty acids. This process and the differences between utilization of dietary DHA or liver-derived DHA as compared to ALA have led to the dogma that ALA is not a useful fatty acid for maintaining tissue long chain n-3 fatty acids, including DHA. Herein, we propose that indeed dietary ALA is a crucial dietary source of n-3 fatty acids and its dietary inclusion is critical for maintaining tissue long chain n-3 levels. Show more