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Biomedical subjects

B V Ramasastri

Publications and source records attributed to B V Ramasastri.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1978

Effect of water-soluble oxalates in Amaranthus spp. leaves on the absorption of milk calcium.

1. Amaranthus spp. leaves contain high amounts of oxalates which affect the calcium absorption. This study was done to determine whether removal of the water-soluble oxalates from the leaves by cooking would reduce this deleterious effect. 2. Experimental work done with two types of basal diets on six adult male subjects has shown that the milk Ca absorption was low when leaves cooked without draining away the water were included in the diet. However when the soluble oxalates were removed by throwing away the water after cooking the leaves, the absorption of milk Ca was unaffected.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

A simple method for estimation of thiamine in foods using base-exchange on sand instead of Decalso.

Sea-sand obtained from two different areas (Madras and Bombay) in India showed that sand of 50-80 mesh from Madras had a satisfactory capacity to adsorb thiamine, and that the elution of the adsorbed vitamin was quantitative. With Bombay sand, however, the elution of the vitamin was not efficient. A few simple methods that can be used for testing sands from different areas for their efficacy as base-exchangers were described, and details were given of a method for the estimation of thiamine in cereals and legumes using sea-sand in place of Decalso for the removal of the interfering substances from the food extracts.

Food Analysis↗
PubMed1975

Folic acid conjugase from Plasma. I. Partial purification and properties.

Human plasma conjugase was partially purified by ammonium sulphate and DEAE-cellulose column fractionation. The pH optimum was found to be 4.5. The enzyme followed normal Michaelis-Menten Kinetics. The Km value was found to be 1.4 x 10(-7)M for folylheptaglutatmate assuming this compound to be the predominant form of folate in yeast extract. The enzyme required sulfhydryl compounds for full activity. Differential microbiological assay of the conjugase reaction product using L. casei and S. faecalis as the test organisms revealed that during the initial stage of the reaction considerable portion of the reaction product was at polyglutamyl stage. On prolonged incubation polyglutamates decreased due to further hydrolysis of the gamma-glutamyl residues. The plasma conjugase activity of different species of animals showed wide variations. Goat, dog and rabbit plasma had neglibible activity while monkey, guinea pig and chick plasma had moderate activity. Bovine plasma had low activity while rat plasma had high activity. The plasma conjugase activity of normal Indian adults ranged from 400 to 900 units per ml, and there was no significant sex difference. The values obtained are considerably higher than those reported in literature.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Folic acid conjugase from plasma. II. Studies on the source of the enzyme in blood.

Following the administration of carbon tetrachloride to rats, the liver conjugase level decreased with 4 hours and continued to be low till 24 hours. Plasma conjugase did not change till 6 hours after administration, but at 24 hours showed a significant increase. Histological examination of the livers revealed liver damage even by 6 hours following carbon tetrachloride administration. However, centrilobular liver cell necrosis could be seen only in the livers of animals killed after 24 hours following carbon tetrachloride administration. The properties of plasma and liver conjugases were similar. The pH optimum of the conjugase in the plasma obtained at 24 hours after carbon tetrachloride administration was 4.5 which is the same as that of the liver conjugase and the Km values were also almost the same. Both the enzymes were stimulated by thiol compounds. The inverse relationship between liver and plasma conjugase activities following carbon tetrachloride administration suggested that liver is probably the source of plasma conjugase.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Folic acid conjugase from plasma. III. Use of the enzyme in the estimation of folate activity in foods.

A convenient method for the estimation of food folates using human plasma as a source of folic acid conjugase has been standardized. Bovine, goat and dog plasma could not be used for the purpose because of low enzyme activity and slow reaction rates. Human plasma conjugase released food folates from conjugated forms over a pH range of 4.5 to 6.0. The food folate values obtained by employing rat liver and chicken pancreas conjugase closely agreed with the values obtained by using human plasma conjugase. The advantages in using human plasma as a source of conjugase were (1) easy availability (2) non-essentiality of preliminary processing (3) stability of the enzyme on storing plasma in cold (4) low enzyme blank folate activity and (5) low amount of plasma needed for assay. Using this method, folic acid activity of some common Indian foods of plant and animal origin has been estimated. There were wide variations in the folate activity of different classes of foods. In general legumes and green leafy vegetables were found to be rich in folate activity.

Animals↗