Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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    Antiproliferative Activity of Soybean and Tempeh Extracts on Human Colorectal Cancer Cells
    (2024) Fan, Rongjie; Lee, Seong-Ho; Wei, Cheng-I; Food Science; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    Tempeh, an indigenous Indonesian soybean product, is produced through a fermentation process of soybean that enhances the bioavailability of its beneficial nutrients such as proteins and phytoestrogens. Recent studies suggest that the fermentation process of tempeh may enhance the biofunctionality properties of soybeans including anticancer activity. The current study is designed to present a comparative analysis to see if defatted extracts of unfermented soybeans and tempeh (fermented soybeans) possess anti-proliferative activity in human colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. The experimental methods involve the production and extraction of soybeans extract (SE) and tempeh extract (TE) at a concentration of 35 g/100 mL (w/v) with 70% ethanol, followed by rotary evaporation and freeze-drying. MTT assays indicated that both SE and TE exhibited inhibitory activity in viability of human CRC cells, with TE demonstrating a more pronounced dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth compared to SE. Cell cycle analysis led to a significant increase of G1 arrest in both SE and TE-treated cells. The induction of apoptosis was observed from the cells treated with both SE and TE. Western blot analysis revealed an increase of PARP cleavage for both treatments, demonstrating activation of apoptotic pathways in SE and TE-treated cells.
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    FERMENTING KALE VEGETABLE (Brassica oleracea Var Sabella) IMPROVES ITS PROPERTIES AS A FUNCTIONAL FOOD
    (2023) Subedi, Ujjwol; Obanda, Diana; Food Science; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    The properties of kale as a functional food are well known. Fermentation is a process that has been shown to improve the health impacts of foods. In this study, we sought to determine how fermentation further improves or augments the functional food properties of kale. We tested six different fermentation methods which included traditional practices and inoculation with different bacterial species and compared outcomes to the unfermented control. After 16 days of fermentation, we quantified (i) selected bioactive components and (ii) anti-nutritional factors. We then determined (i) the antioxidant capacity of the whole vegetable, (ii) the microbiota composition of the vegetable, and (iii) the anti-inflammation capacity of the ethanolic extract of the vegetable. Fermentation significantly increased (i) the quantities of total polyphenols from 8.54 to 10.71 mg GAE/g (ii) sulforaphane from 960.8 ± 41.76 to 1777 ± 45.95 μg/g, and (iii) antioxidant capacity from 61.99 to 67.37 % respectively, and antinutritional factors oxalate and tannin content significantly reduced by 49 % and 29.83 % respectively. Fermented kale extract exhibited potent anti-inflammatory effects in macrophages by reducing the iNOS expression by 84.3% and TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 mRNA levels by 62, 68, and 85.5 %, respectively. Fermenting kale changed the surface microbiota by reducing the population of the inflammation-inducing Proteobacteria while increasing health-promoting Firmicutes; including Lactobacillus. All fermentation methods had a beneficial impact compared to the unfermented control, but the mixed culture of L. lactis and L. acidophilus was the most effective. In summary, fermenting enhanced the health benefits of kale by increasing the concentration of total polyphenol, sulforaphane content, antioxidant capacity, anti-inflammation capacity, and reducing the quantity of anti-nutritional factors. Furthermore, it promoted the prebiotic and/or probiotic vehicle properties of the vegetable by changing the proportion of beneficial bacteria and those associated with inflammation.