Serum Metabolomics Profiling of Commercially Mixed Functional Foods—Effects in Beta-Amyloid Induced Rats Measured Using ¹H NMR Spectroscopy

• Main Authors: Nur Hasnieza Mohd Rosli, Hanis Mastura Yahya, Farah Wahida Ibrahim, Suzana Shahar, Intan Safinar Ismail, Amalina Ahmad Azam, Nor Fadilah Rajab
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-12-01
• Series: Nutrients
• Subjects: mixed functional foods; behaviour study; metabolomics; Alzheimer’s disease; ¹H NMR
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/12/3812

Functional foods such as pomegranate, dates and honey were shown by various previous studies to individually have a neuroprotective effect, especially in neurodegenerative disease such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In this novel and original study, an ¹H NMR spectroscopy tool was used to identify the metabolic neuroprotective mechanism of commercially mixed functional foods (MFF) consisting of pomegranate, dates and honey, in rats injected with amyloid-beta 1-42 (Aβ-42). Forty-five male albino Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups: NC (0.9% normal saline treatment + phosphate buffer solution (PBS) solution injection), Abeta (0.9% normal saline treatment + 0.2 µg/µL Aβ-42 injection), MFF (4 mL/kg MFF treatment + PBS solution injection), Abeta–MFF (4 mL/kg MFF treatment + 0.2 µg/µL Aβ-42 injection) and Abeta–NAC (150 mg/kg N-acetylcysteine + 0.2 µg/µL Aβ-42 injection). Based on the results, the MFF and NAC treatment improved the spatial memory and learning using Y-maze. In the metabolic analysis, a total of 12 metabolites were identified, for which levels changed significantly among the treatment groups. Systematic metabolic pathway analysis found that the MFF and NAC treatments provided a neuroprotective effect in Aβ-42 injected rats by improving the acid amino and energy metabolisms. Overall, this finding showed that MFF might serve as a potential neuroprotective functional food for the prevention of AD.