Functional evaluation for effective compositions in seed oil of Korean pine

The effect of seed oil of Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) on the rats' blood-fat and its anti-ageing function was stud-ied for appraising the efficacy of the seed oil of Korean pine. Sixty experimental rats were randomly divided into 5 groups (half males and half females in each group) as normal control group, high fat diet control group, and three groups (Group 1 Group 2, Group 3) that were fed with feedstuff with the contents of the seed oil of 2.0g/(kgd-1), 4.0g/(kgd-1) and 8.0g/(kgd-1), respec-tively. The indexes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) and anti-oxidation capacity (AOC) were measured by Reagent Kit method. It was found that the seed oil of the Korean pine could reduce the content of triglyc-eride and improve SOD as well as GSH-PX activity in serum. These indexes of the rats in Group 2 fed with Korean pine seed oil of 4.0 g/(kgd-1) reached the significant level and those of rats in Group 3 fed with the seed oil of 8.0 g/(kgd-1) reached the extremely significant level. The results indicated the seed oil of Korean pine had function of regulating the level of blood-fat and anti-ageing.

Ultrasound-associated extraction of seed oil of Korean pine

Experiment on ultrasound- associated extraction of seed oil of Korean pine(Pinus koraiensis) was conducted in Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China. The factorsaffecting extraction yield, such as ultrasonic frequency, extracting temperature, extracting timeand the ratio of material to liquid (ratio of Korean pine seed to absolute alcohol), were analyzedunder specific condition and the optimal extracting parameters were obtained as the ultrasonicfrequency 32 000 Hz, the extracting temperature 80 ℃, the extracting time 50 min, and the ratio ofmaterial to liquid 1: 30. The study demonstrates that ultrasound is a reliable and great efficiencytool for the fast extraction of Korean pine seed oil.

Effects of active molecules of Korean pine seed on rodent health and implications for forest regeneration

After maturation, Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis Siebold & Zucc.) seeds often cannot disperse to reach a suitable germination site. It is therefore difficult to naturally regenerate by itself and relies on animal dispersal. Squirrels hoard pine seeds as winter food and Korean pine seeds stored for overwintering might become the source of regeneration of the species. From field observations, the pine seeds are the food preference for squirrels during autumn in the Lesser Khingan Mountains in Northeast China. Such preference by squirrels has been attributed to high seed energy content and the ease of seed storage. However, it may also be expected from nutritional aspects that a coevolutionary relationship between squirrels and Korean pine species could be partially explained by the effect of active seed components and their physiological regulatory effects on squirrels. To test this hypothesis, control experiments were carried out to examine the modulatory effects of Korean pine nut oil (PNO) on intestinal microbiota, inflammatory profile and oxidative stress in mice. The results showed that, compared with mice fed a high-fat diet, PNO significantly improved the physical and the healthy state of mice. Histological analysis of the liver and epididymal fat tissue showed that PNO alleviated liver and adipocyte lesions, and inflammation caused by high-fat diets. PNO also significantly decreased atherosclerotic index and ameliorate serum lipid accumulation to prevent cardiovascular disease, which effect the positive control SG group. Moreover, PNO elevated superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase enzyme activities and reduced malondialdehyde levels in the serum. 16S rRNA sequencing showed that PNO restored intestinal microbiota composition, significantly increasing the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Akkermansia bacteria. These results suggest that Korean pine seeds not only provide adequate fat, protein and energy for squirrels, but also promote physical health and improve body immunity.