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At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

Azaphilone pigments from a yellow mutant of the fungus Monascus kaoliang.

Azaphilone pigments, monascusones A (1) and B (2), together with two known azaphilones, monascin (3) and FK17-P2b2 (4), were isolated from the CH2Cl2 extract of a yellow mutant of the fungus M. kaoliang grown on rice. Structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated by analyses of spectroscopic data. Monascusone A (1), the major metabolite of M. kaoliang, showed no antimalarial (against Plasmodium falciparum), antitubercular (against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Ra), and antifungal (toward Candida albicans) activities. Compound 1 exhibited no cytotoxicity against BC (breast cancer) and KB (human epidermoid carcinoma of cavity) cell lines.

Benzopyrans↗
PubMed2004

[Study on space flight-mutants of Monascus purpureus using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA].

OBJECTIVE: To study the mechanism of microbial mutation in aerospace. METHOD: Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) was used to analyze the polymorphism of high Lovastatin-producing mutants. RESULT: Variations occurred in genomes of these mutants. CONCLUSION: The high Lovastatin producibility of the mutants is due to the variation of genomes, therefore the microbial mutation in the aerospace is achieved via the variation of hereditary genes in the microbes.

DNA, Fungal↗
PubMed2005

Acute administration of red yeast rice (Monascus purpureus) depletes tissue coenzyme Q(10) levels in ICR mice.

In this study, we attempted to evaluate the effect of administration of a high quantity of red yeast rice on coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) synthesis in the tissues of ICR mice. Eighty-eight adult male ICR mice were housed and divided into control and experimental groups for red yeast rice treatment. Animals were gavaged with a low (1 g/kg body weight) or a high dose (5 g/kg body weight, approximately five times the typical recommended human dose) of red yeast rice dissolved in soyabean oil. After gavagement, animals of the control group were immediately killed; mice of the experimental groups (eight for each subgroup) were killed at different time intervals of 0.5, 1, 1.5, 4 and 24 h. The liver, heart and kidney were taken for analysis of monacolin K (liver only) and CoQ10 analysis. Liver and heart CoQ10 levels declined dramatically in both groups administered red yeast rice, especially in the high-dose group, within 30 min. After 24 h, the levels of hepatic and cardiac CoQ10 were still reduced. A similar trend was also observed in the heart, but the inhibitory effect began after 90 min. The higher dose of red yeast rice presented a greater suppressive effect than did the lower dose on tissue CoQ10 levels. In conclusion, acute red yeast rice gavage suppressed hepatic and cardiac CoQ10 levels in rodents; furthermore, the inhibitory effect was responsive to the doses administered.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Study on red fermented rice with high concentration of monacolin K and low concentration of citrinin.

Red fermented rice (RFR), known as Asian traditional fermentation foodstuff, is now used as natural colorants and a dietary supplement all over the world. However, the discovery of citrinin in RFR has led to a controversy about the safety of RFR. In this paper, a mutant strain, Monascus spp. M12-69, was acquired by treatment with mutagenic agents from a wild strain M12 of Monascus screened from RFR samples gathered around China. According to the classification guide of Hawksworth and Pitt on Monascus genus, they belong to Monascus pilosus Sato. The conditions of solid state fermentation of M12-69 were optimized. At the optimum conditions, the concentrations of monacolin K and citrinin in RFR, which was dried at 50 degrees C to a constant weight, were 2.52 mg/g and 0.13 ng/g, respectively. These results reveal that Strain M12-69 is a potential strain, which can be used to produce RFR with high concentration of monacolin K and low concentration of citrinin.

Citrinin↗
PubMed2006

A novel formulation approach for preparation of nanoparticulate red mold rice.

Monascus has been used for thousands of years. In China, Monascus has been widely used as a natural food-coloring agent for many kinds of foods. The metabolites of Monascus species, specifically, monacolin K, gamma-aminobutyric acid, and dimerumic acid, have been proven to have cholesterol-lowering, blood pressure-lowering, and antioxidant effects. Nowadays, the public has recognized the importance of Monascus products for its many health benefits. The focus of this study is to explore the effects of nanoparticulate dispersion of red mold rice (RMR) after wet-milling technology treatment. An RMR nanoparticulate formulation was reproducibly obtained after milling in the presence of dispersing agent and water. Furthermore, the physical and chemical properties of these RMR particles were studied using electron microscopy, laser light scattering, pH meter, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and photometry. The results demonstrate that RMR (mean size = 20.15 microm), processed with wet-milling technology, forms an aqueous-based nanoparticle dispersion (mean particle size of less than 0.41 microm). In addition, HPLC analyses, performed on the secondary metabolites, demonstrated that monacolin K was reduced to 50-92% of its base level and citrinin was reduced to 48-74% of its base level. When testing for the levels of pH, the processed RMR had increased from a pH level of 4.47-4.82 to 5.56-6.4; also, pigment analysis showed that yellow and red pigments were reduced to 36 and 39% of its base level after the wet-milling process. Partial agglomeration has been observed in RMR dispersion when stored in refrigeration after 2 months. RMR can be formulated as a nanoparticulate dispersion without compromising its stability, but its secondary metabolite extraction rate was changed. Further experimentation will be needed to verify safety and functionality evaluations.

Anticholesteremic Agents↗
PubMed2000

[Distinguish of the original fungi of the Chinese traditional medicine, hongqu with gas chromatography fuzzy clustering analytical method].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a gas chromatography fuzzy clustering analytical method for classifying of origin fungi of the Chinese traditional medicine, Hongqu. METHODS: The volatile and nonvolatile components of 7 ordinary species of Monascus including M. aurantiacus Lee, etc. were analyzed by capillary gas chromatog raphy using FID: Inlet temperature 280 degrees C, detector temperature 280 degrees C, temperature program 130 degrees C, 5 min-->10 degrees C.min-1-->200 degrees C, 10 min. RESULTS: In the peak number and contents of volatile and nonvolatile components of Monascus exist obviously differences through which Monascus can be distinguished easily by the main fingerprint peaks within 20 minutes. CONCLUSION: The capillary gas chromatography fuzzy clustering analytical method is useful to the identification of Monascus fungi.

Chromatography, Gas↗
PubMed2005

Evaluation of photo-mutagenicity and photo-cytotoxicity of food coloring agents.

Pigments extracted from natural products are widely used for food coloration in Japan. An investigation concerning the photo-mutagenicity and photo-carcinogenicity of frequently used colorants in Japan was performed. Colorants examined were from Laccifer lacca (lac-color), Coccus cacti (cochineal-color), Carthamus tinctorius (carthamus yellow), Gardenia augusta (gardenia yellow and gardenia blue), Monascus anka and Monascus purpureus (monascus red), the skin of Vitis vinifera and Vitis labrusca (grape-skin color), Tamarindus indica (tamarind brown) and Beta vulgaris (beet red). No significant increase in bacterial mutation was found when Salmonella typhimurium TA98, TA100 and TA102 were simultaneously treated with colorants and subjected to UVA irradiation for 30 min. When colorant solutions were subjected to UVA irradiation for 4 h, irradiated solutions containing lac-color became slightly mutagenic toward S.typhimurium TA98 without metabolic activation. A decrease in cell survival resulted when WTK-1 cells were subjected to UVA irradiation for 60 min in the presence of purpurin at 1 mg/ml. Delayed cytotoxicity was also observed following 24 h incubation in fresh medium of samples that were subjected to UVA irradiation for 60 min in the presence of colorant (carthamus yellow, grape-skin color, gardenia blue, cochineal-color, monascus red or purpurin).

Carcinogens↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Azaphilones inhibit tumor promotion by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate in two-stage carcinogenesis in mice.

Monascorubrin (an azaphilone derivative) was isolated from Monascus anka, 'Monascus pigment', a natural pigment of food additivies, was extracted from Monasucs spp., and chaetoviridin A, one of the azaphilones, was isolated from Chaetomium globosum var. flavo-viridae. Application of 1 microgram of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), a tumor promoting agent, to the mouse ear resulted in induction of inflammation. Among monascorubrin and related compounds assayed, monascorubrin, chaetoviridin A and its related compounds inhibited the inflammatory activity of TPA in mice. The 50% inhibitory dose of these compounds for TPA-induced inflammation was 0.4-1.5 mumol. Furthermore, monascorubrin (2 mumol), chaetoviridin A (2 mumol) and Monascus pigment (1 mg) markedly suppressed the promoting effect of TPA (1 microgram) on skin tumor formation in mice initiated with 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (50 micrograms). It is assumed that the inhibition of tumor promotion by monascorubrin, chaetoviridin A and Monascus pigment is due to anti-inflammatory activity.

9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene↗
PubMed2006

Colorimetric characterization for comparative analysis of fungal pigments and natural food colorants.

Exogenous pigments produced by ascomycetous filamentous fungi belonging to the genera Penicillium, Epicoccum, and Monascus, preselected based on chemotaxonomic knowledge, have been extracted and characterized by quantitative colorimetry. The color characteristics of the fungal extracts were compared to water soluble natural colorants derived from sources currently in use. The tested fungal extracts also included some commercially available Monascus colorants. The a values for the fungal extracts were found to be both positive and negative, the b values were found to be positive, while the hue angles of the fungal color extracts ranged from 40 to 110 indicating the color distribution of fungal extracts over the red-orange-yellow region of the CIELAB color space. The fungal extracts exhibited additional color hues in the red spectrum and similar hues in the yellow spectrum as compared to the reference natural colorants. They were also found to be similar or brighter in terms of chroma to some of the reference natural colorants. Principal component analysis was performed to group and distinguish different colors based on the a and b values. The fungal color extracts could be grouped in accordance with the similarity or difference in the color to those of the existing natural colorants. The diversity of colors was not only found among different fungal genera and/or species but also within the same species on changing the media. There was a marked change in the color composition of the extracts resulting in relatively different hues. Our results, thus, indicate that there exists pigment-producing genera of ascomycetous fungi other than Monascus that produce color shades in the red and the yellow spectra in addition or similar to reference colorants. These color shades could add to the color palette of the natural colorants currently in use. In addition, the multivariate approach in distinguishing and classifying the colorants was shown to be a very useful tool in colorimetric comparison of colorants.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2006

Proteomic analysis of Caco-2 cells treated with monacolin K.

Monascus species is an important traditional fermentation fungus used on food. Monacolin K (a secondary metabolite of Monascus, a competitive inhibitor of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase) in inhibition of mevalonate synthesis may result in reductions of isoprenoid prenylation in cells. Impairment of protein isoprenoid prenylation has been related to anticancer effect in cancer cells. As a functional food for Monascus, however, the molecular mechanisms responsible for the anti-proliferate effect of monacolin K in cancer cells are not clear. We used proteomic analysis by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS), tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), and database interrogation to separate and identify the proteins of Caco-2 cells treated with monacolin K. The results showed that monacolin K inhibited the proliferation of Caco-2 cells in a dose-dependent manner. The identified proteins in proteomic analysis included anti-oxidation enzymes related to reactive oxygen species stress, cytoskeleton proteins, glycolytic enzymes, and enzymes involved in mediating protein interactions. Furthermore, glutathione S-transferase P 1 and cytoskeleton-8, -18, and -19 revealed a down-regulation in a dose-dependent manner in exposure of Caco-2 cells to monacolin K.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed2006

Production of red mold rice using a modified Nagata type koji maker.

In this research, a commercial koji maker with a rotary perforated bed of 5-m diameter was modified for red mold rice production. Monascus purpureus BCRC 31499 was selected for its high production capacities of monacolin K and red pigment. The selected strain was first cultivated in a 120-l submerged type fermentor at 34 degrees C and 2 vvm aeration rate with 60 rpm agitation for 5 days using 20% liquefied rice porridge as carbon source. The high concentration red mold rice broth (>3.5 g/ml) was harvested for inocula and well mixed with cooked rice to an initial concentration of 2% v/w. The inoculated cooked rice then was directed into the modified koji maker, in which temperature and humidity profiles were kept at varied levels at different stages, respectively. Air was circulated to remove fermentation heat while the perforated bed rotated slowly for providing mild agitation. Lag phase of the Monascus sp. in the modified koji maker was determined to be 16 h by the time the koji temperature raised rapidly. Water was added into the koji bed by a water curtain at the 36th hour to keep the moisture content of the rice koji at 50% or above. At the final stage, temperature was adjusted to 34 degrees C to direct red pigment production. After 7 days, 1,200-kg high quality red mold rice was harvested per batch. Labor costs, space, and fermentation time were reduced tremendously compared with those made by traditional methods.

Absorption↗
PubMed2006

Plasma glucose-lowering action of Hon-Chi in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Hon-Chi was used for anti-hyperglycemic activity screening in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats (STZ-diabetic rats) in an attempt to develop new substances for handling diabetes. Mandarin Hon-Chi is red yeast rice fermented with Monascus pilous and Monascus purpureus. Single oral administration of Hon-Chi decreased plasma glucose in STZ-diabetic rats in a dose-dependent manner from 50 mg/kg to 350 mg/kg. Similar treatment with Hon-Chi also lowered the plasma glucose in normal rats as effectively as that produced in STZ-diabetic rats. In addition, oral administration of Hon-Chi at the highest dose (350 mg/kg) attenuated the elevation of plasma glucose induced by an intravenous glucose challenge test in normal rats. Moreover, mRNA levels of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) in liver from STZ-diabetic rats were reversed in a dose-dependent manner by the repeated oral treatment of Hon-Chi three times daily for two weeks. Otherwise, hyperphagia in STZ-diabetic rats was markedly reversed by similar repeated treatment of Hon-Chi. The obtained results suggest that oral administration of Hon-Chi could decrease hepatic gluconeogenesis to lower plasma glucose in diabetic rats lacking insulin.

Administration, Oral↗