Regulating Redox Balance Gene Expression in Healthy Individuals by Nutraceuticals: A Pilot Study

Abstract

We tested the effect of a fermented papaya preparation (FPP; ORI, Gifu, Japan) on redox balance gene expression in 11 healthy nonsmoker, teetotaller individuals subjected to a detailed dietary and lifestyle questionnaire who refrained from any multivitamin supplement or fortified food. Redox status was assessed by erythrocyte and plasma parameters together with related leukocyte mRNA (glutathione peroxidase [GPx], superoxide dismutase [SOD], catalase, 8-oxoguanine glycosylase [hOGG1]) before/after 6 grams of FPP supplementation. At 2 and 4 weeks after FPP administration, plasma parameters remained unchanged, whereas FPP significantly upregulated all tested gene expression (p < 0.05). Although posttranscriptional/translation protein modifications do occur and larger and longer studies are awaited, these preliminary data suggest that a transcriptomic modification of key redox and DNA repair genes may offer further insights when attempting to interrelate "nutragenomics" to clinical phenomena.