Suco de laranja liofilizado enriquecido com beta-caroteno proporciona maior capacidade antioxidante e maior redução da proteotoxicidade do peptídeo beta-amiloide e do acúmulo de gordura em Caenorhabditis elegans

Abstract

Orange (C. sinensis L. Osbeck) is one of the most cultivated fruits in the world, being rich in several phytochemical compounds with health benefits, such as carotenoids and flavonoids. β-carotene is a well-known antioxidant due to its ability to scavenge and suppress reactive oxygen species. However, it shows suboptimal levels of accumulation in fruits in most orange cultivars. The antioxidant property of β-carotene has been associated with anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects, as well as lipid oxidation and inhibition of fat accumulation. A genetically modified (GM) orange enriched with β-carotene has previously been reported to show a greater antioxidant effect in vivo compared to non-GM isogenic control oranges. In this work, we expand the characterization of the beneficial health properties of a new β-carotene-enriched orange obtained through a metabolic engineering (GS) strategy similar to its conventional counterpart (CV). Using the in vivo C. elegans model, we treated these animals with both oranges to assess whether GS orange has a greater antioxidant, neuroprotective and hypolipidemic effect than CV. We found that animals treated with GS showed a greater reduction in intracellular reactive oxygen species, greater resistance to oxidative stress and induction of the expression of antioxidant genes (gcs-1 and sod-3), a more effective neuroprotective response in a model strain of Alzheimer's (CL2006), and greater hypolipidemic effect under high glucose diet compared to animals treated with CV. These data, in addition to demonstrating that the increase in the amount of β-carotene in orange is actually capable of providing a greater antioxidant capacity in C. elegans, also provide a valuable proof of principle to support further studies in mammals and humans aiming at the prevention and health promotion.