Biochemistry Department, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.
J Med Food. 2010 Oct;13(5):1075-80. doi: 10.1089/jmf.2009.0226.
The stem of sorghum is used as color additives in cooking meals and taken as beverages when steeped or boiled in water as folklore for the management of anemia and some other diseases. This study sought to assess the antioxidant and neuroprotective potentials of red dye extract from sorghum stem on cyclophosphamide-induced oxidative stress in rat brain. Wistar strain albino rats were fed diet supplemented with the red dye (0.5% and 1.0% inclusion) for 14 days. There was no significant difference (P > .05) in average feed intake and weight gain of rats fed the basal diet and the red dye-supplemented diet. However, intraperitoneal administration of cyclophosphamide (75 mg/kg of body weight) 24 hours prior the termination of the experiment caused a significant (P < .05) increase in the brain malondialdehyde (MDA) content and serum activities of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase in those rats fed diet without the dye supplement, whereas there was a significant decrease (P < .05) in brain MDA content and serum enzyme activities in rats fed diet with the dye in a concentration-dependent manner. The protective effect of the red dye against cyclophosphamide-induced oxidative stress could be attributed to the high phenolic content (56.2%) and antioxidant activities of the red dye as typified by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radical scavenging ability, reducing properties, and Fe(2+) chelating ability. Therefore, dietary inclusion of the red dye from sorghum stem could be harnessed in the management of neurodegenerative diseases associated with oxidative stress.
高粱茎被用作烹饪食物的色素添加剂，也被民间用作饮料，用水浸泡或煮沸，用于治疗贫血和其他一些疾病。本研究旨在评估高粱茎红色素提取物对环磷酰胺诱导的大鼠脑氧化应激的抗氧化和神经保护潜力。Wistar 白化大鼠连续 14 天喂食添加红色素（0.5%和 1.0%）的饮食。与基础饮食相比，喂食添加红色素饮食的大鼠的平均饲料摄入量和体重增加没有显著差异（P>.05）。然而，实验结束前 24 小时腹腔注射环磷酰胺（75mg/kg 体重），导致未补充染料饮食的大鼠大脑丙二醛（MDA）含量和血清天冬氨酸氨基转移酶、丙氨酸氨基转移酶和碱性磷酸酶活性显著升高（P<.05），而大脑 MDA 含量和血清酶活性则显著降低（P<.05），且呈浓度依赖性。红色素对环磷酰胺诱导的氧化应激的保护作用可能归因于红色素的高酚含量（56.2%）和抗氧化活性，如 2,2-二苯基-1-苦基肼自由基清除能力、还原能力和 Fe(2+)螯合能力。因此，高粱茎红色素的饮食摄入可用于治疗与氧化应激相关的神经退行性疾病。
