Alkaptonuria is an inborn error of metabolism inherited as an autosomal recessive disorder due to a mutation in the homogentisic acid dioxygenase gene. It occurs rarely (global prevalence of alkaptonuria is 1 in 100,000 to 250,000), and mainly affects the joints and connective tissue of the body due to deposition of homogentisic acid giving affected areas a blue-black discoloration (ochronosis).In this case report, we present a male patient, aged 47 years, with joint and scleral involvement. He had been diagnosed many years ago with the disease by gas chromatography. His symptoms kept progressively worsening since he was recently prescribed physiotherapy and vitamin C for his disease, which has not been shown to be an effective treatment. A main reason for his disease deterioration was also the lack of nitisinone availability in his home country, as well as in the subcontinent region generally. We also presen a summary of some previously reported cases and treatment regimens to compare our case and present the comparison as a learning source for future physicians.

Recent research has highlighted potential benefits of vitamin C in managing periodontal diseases, yet systematic reviews to consolidate these findings are scarce. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin C supplementation in preventing and treating periodontal diseases and elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying these effects. We conducted a systematic review following PRISMA guidelines, searching three databases up to 13 April 2024, for studies from 2010 onward. Our selection criteria aimed to capture a wide range of studies regarding vitamin C\'s impact on periodontal health. After rigorous screening, 16 studies were included in the final analysis. Meta-analysis techniques were employed to synthesize data and evaluate the association between vitamin C intake and periodontal disease outcomes. The meta-analysis included 17,853 participants from studies with diverse geographical and demographic settings. Notable findings indicated that higher vitamin C intake was associated with a reduction in periodontal disease risk, with a pooled odds ratio (OR) of 1.52 (95% CI: 1.49-1.55). The individual studies reported ORs ranging from 0.62 (95% CI: 0.38-0.94) indicating significant protective effects, to 1.66 (95% CI: 1.04-2.64), suggesting increased risks associated with inadequate vitamin C levels. The heterogeneity among the studies was high (I2 = 95.46%), reflecting variability in study design and population characteristics. This systematic review confirms that vitamin C supplementation has a beneficial effect on periodontal health. The significant variability across studies suggests that individual dietary needs and baseline vitamin C levels might influence the effectiveness of supplementation. These findings underscore the importance of personalized nutritional guidance as part of comprehensive periodontal care. Future research should focus on longitudinal studies to better understand the causal relationships and potential confounding factors affecting the link between vitamin C intake and periodontal health.

BACKGROUND: The tropical plant acerola of the genus Malpighia includes shrubs and trees with fruit that is high in nutrients and bioactive chemicals. Acerola stands out due to its exceptionally high ascorbic acid content, ranging from 1500 to 4500 mg/100 g. Vitamin C intake greatly influences gingival health. The addition of nanoparticles along with vitamin C-rich acerola exhibits high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, thereby positively improving gingival health.
METHODS: The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of aqueous extracts of the acerola plant (Malpighia emarginata) were assessed. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and copper oxide nanoparticles (CuONPs) were synthesized using the aqueous extract of acerola cherry gel by the phytogenic fabrication method. The antioxidant potential of silver and copper nanoparticles was evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydrogen peroxide, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), 2,2\'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), and nitric oxide scavenging activities.
RESULTS: Increasing concentrations of nanoparticles showed an increase in scavenging activity. Overall, CuONPs and AgNPs exhibited remarkable radical quenching efficacies. The anti-inflammatory effectiveness of CuONPs and AgNPs was monitored, showing suppression of protein denaturation as demonstrated by bovine serum albumin (BSA), egg albumin (EA), and membrane stabilization assays. The results revealed that increasing the doses of CuONPs and AgNPs had a positive impact on the anti-inflammatory activity of the nanoparticles.
CONCLUSIONS: The present study revealed that both nanoparticles provided better antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. This study also elaborates on the pharmacological potential of both nanoparticles, which could be further explored for application in all healthcare sectors.

BACKGROUND: The changes in the physical structures of the products are the first things that consumers pay attention to. Therefore, it is essential and significant importance to take measures to improve the storage conditions of products and to minimize quality losses. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of agro-ecological conditions on bioactive compounds and fruit quality of kiwifruit during cold storage. The \'Hayward\' kiwifruit cultivar grown in Ordu, Giresun, Samsun, Rize, and Yalova provinces of Türkiye were kept at 0 ± 0.5 °C and relative humidity of 90 ± 5% for 150 d.
RESULTS: The kiwifruit obtained from the provinces of Yalova, Ordu, and Giresun experienced the least weight loss during cold storage. Kiwifruit from Samsun and Yalova provinces had the lowest fruit firmness, while those from Giresun had the highest on 150th d. The changes were observed in the skin and flesh colors of the kiwifruit belonging to all cultivation areas. The amount of vitamin C increased throughout the study in all ecological conditions, but the Yalova province\'s kiwifruit was found to have the highest levels. Additionally, in all ecologies, kiwifruit showed an increase in antioxidant activity, total phenolics, and total flavonoids, all known to have beneficial effects on human health. The total antioxidant activity and total phenolics were highest in the kiwifruit of Yalova province, but the total flavonoids were found in the kiwifruit of Rize and Ordu provinces.
CONCLUSIONS: The study\'s results revealed that kiwifruit\'s bioactive compounds and quality parameters may vary depending on the cultivation area. Additionally, it can be stated that Yalova province kiwifruit experiences the least amount of postharvest quality losses.

Greenhouses located at high latitudes and in cloudy areas often experience a low quality and quantity of light, especially during autumn and winter. This low daily light integral (DLI) reduces production rate, quality, and nutritional value of many crops. This study was conducted on Sakhiya RZ F1 tomato plants to evaluate the impact of LED lights on the growth and nutritional value of tomatoes in a greenhouse with low daily light due to cloudy weather. The treatments included LED growth lights in three modes: top lighting, intra-canopy lighting, and combined top and intra-canopy lighting. The results showed that although the combined top and intra-canopy lighting reached the maximum increase in tomato yield, exposure to intra-canopy LED lighting alone outperformed in tomato fruit yield increase (28.46%) than exposure to top LED lighting alone (12.12%) when compared to no supplemental lighting during the entire production year. Intra-canopy exposure demonstrated the highest increase in tomato lycopene (31.3%), while top and intra-canopy lighting exhibited the highest increase in vitamin C content (123.4%) compared to the control. The LED light treatment also had a very positive effect on the expression of genes responsible for metabolic cycles, including Psy1, LCY-β, and VTC2 genes, which had collinearity with the increase in tomato fruit production.

UNASSIGNED: This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of vitamin C on apoptotic and proliferative genes in injured HepG2 cells.
UNASSIGNED: In silico analysis was performed using molecular docking of chemical compounds with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The different computational tools used were AutoDock Vina, BIOVIA DISCOVERY studio, and PyMOL. Drug likeness and toxicity were analyzed by SWISS ADMET. Cells that were 60-70% confluent were treated with different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) (100-2000 μM) and ascorbic acid (30, 60, 90 μg/mL). The MTT cell proliferation assay was performed to compare the proliferative potential of HepG2 cells treated with H2O2 or ascorbic acid with untreated HepG2 cells using 96-well plates.
UNASSIGNED: The lowest binding energy of VEGF with vitamin C -5.2 kcal/mol and L-ascorbic acid-2 glycoside -4.7 kcal/mol was observed by in silico analysis. Vitamin C was selected because it exhibited a high interaction with VEGF and fulfilled Lipinski\'s rule, and had better oral viability and pharmacokinetics compared to L-ascorbic acid-2 glycoside. Cell viability assays showed that vitamin C had significant apoptotic effects (P < 0.0001). After treating HepG2 cells with ascorbic acid, reduced VEGF (angiogenesis) was observed as determined by apoptotic and proliferative gene expression. Ascorbic acid treatment of HepG2 cells led to downregulation of the proliferation markers, proliferating cell nuclear antigen, Ki67, and DNA topoisomerase II alpha. Increased apoptosis after treatment with vitamin C was observed due to upregulation of p53 and annexin V.
UNASSIGNED: The results of this study showed that vitamin C inhibited the growth of cancer cells, thus protecting HepG2 cells from oxidative stress. Vitamin C exhibited antiproliferative activity as observed in silico and in vitro, as well as by the inhibited expression of genes involved in protein synthesis.
UNASSIGNED: أجريت هذه الدراسة لتقييم تأثير فيتامين سي على جينات الاستماتة والتكاثر في خلايا \"هيب جي 2\" المصابة.
UNASSIGNED: في تحليل السيليكو تم إجراء استخدام الالتحام الجزيئي للمركبات الكيميائية مع بروتين عامل النمو البطاني الوعائي. الأدوات الحسابية المختلفة المستخدمة هي \"أوتودوك فينا\" و\"بايوفيا ديسكفري ستوديو\" و \"بايمول\". تم تحليل تشابه الأدوية وسميتها بواسطة \"سويس أدميت\". تمت معالجة التقاء الخلايا – 60-70% بتركيزات مختلفة من \"اتش 2 أوه 2\" (100-2000 مايكرومولر) وحمض الأسكوربيك (30، 60، 90 ميكروغرام / مل). تم إجراء اختبار موت الخلايا \"ام تي تي\" لمقارنة الإمكانات التكاثرية لخلايا \"هيب جي 2\" المعالجة بـ \"اتش 2 أوه 2\" وحمض الأسكوربيك باستخدام 96 لوحة جيدة.
UNASSIGNED: تمت ملاحظة أدنى طاقة ربط لـ بروتين عامل النمو البطاني الوعائي مع فيتامين سي -5,2 كيلو كالوري/مول وحمض الأسكوربيك-2 جليكوسيد -4.7 كيلو كالوري/مول في تحليل السيليكو. تم اختيار فيتامين سي لأنه يظهر تفاعلا عاليا مع بروتين عامل النمو البطاني الوعائي ويحقق قاعدة ليبينسكي، والقدرة على البقاء عن طريق الفم، والحركية الدوائية مقارنة بجليكوسيد حمض الأسكوربيك. أظهرت فحوصات صلاحية الخلية أن فيتامين سي كان له تأثيرات موت الخلايا المبرمج. بعد معالجة خلايا \"هيب جي 2\" بحمض الأسكوربيك، لوحظ انخفاض بروتين عامل النمو البطاني الوعائي (تكوين الأوعية) من خلال التعبير الجيني للموت المبرمج والتكاثري. أدى علاج حامض الأسكوربيك لخط خلايا \"هيب جي 2\" إلى تنظيم علامات التكاثر \"بي سي ان ايه\" و \"كي آي 67\" و تي أوه بي 2 ايه\". وقد لوحظت زيادة في موت الخلايا المبرمج بعد العلاج بفيتامين سي بسبب تنظيم \"بي53\" و \"أنيكسين في\".
UNASSIGNED: بناء على النتائج، من الواضح أن فيتامين سي يثبط نمو الخلايا السرطانية وبالتالي يحمي خلايا \"هيب جي 2\" من الإجهاد التأكسدي. أظهر فيتامين سي نشاطا مضادا للتكاثر كما لوحظ في السيليكو، وفي المختبر، وكذلك النتائج المحتملة من تثبيط التعبير عن الجينات المشاركة في تخليق البروتين.

Introduction: Vitamin C is an essential nutrient. Sex differences in serum vitamin C concentrations have been observed but are not fully known. Investigation of levels of metabolites may help shed light on how dietary and other environmental exposures interact with molecular processes. O-methylascorbate and ascorbic acid 2-sulfate are two metabolites in the vitamin C metabolic pathway. Past research has found genetic factors that influence the levels of these two metabolites. Therefore, we investigated possible effect modification by sex of genetic variant-metabolite associations and characterized the biological function of these interactions. Methods: We included individuals of European descent from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging with available genetic and metabolic data (n = 9004). We used linear mixed models to tests for genome-wide associations with O-methylascorbate and ascorbic acid 2-sulfate, with and without a sex interaction. We also investigated the biological function of the important genetic variant-sex interactions found for each metabolite. Results: Two genome-wide statistically significant (p value < 5 × 10-8) interaction effects and several suggestive (p value < 10-5) interaction effects were found. These suggestive interaction effects were mapped to several genes including HSD11B2, associated with sex hormones, and AGRP, associated with hunger drive. The genes mapped to O-methylascorbate were differently expressed in the testis tissues, and the genes mapped to ascorbic acid 2-sulfate were differently expressed in stomach tissues. Discussion: By understanding the genetic factors that impact metabolites associated with vitamin C, we can better understand its function in disease risk and the mechanisms behind sex differences in vitamin C concentrations.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is associated with a highest mortality rate in the ICU. Present study tests the efficacy of combined therapy with vitamin C, hydrocortisone and thiamine (combined therapy) in the ovine model of sepsis induced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In this study, sepsis was induced in sheep by instillation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (1 × 1011 CFU) into the lungs via bronchoscope, under anesthesia. Nine hours after injury, intravenous infusion of vitamin C (0.75 g every 6 h), hydrocortisone (25 mg every 6 h), and thiamine (100 mg every 12 h) or saline was given to the treatment and control groups. Cardiopulmonary variables were recorded.
RESULTS: The survival rate was 16.7% in control and 33.3% in treatment groups. In the control group, mean arterial pressure dropped from 93.6 ± 8.6 to 75.5 ± 9.7 mmHg by 9 h, which was not affected by the combined therapy. Pulmonary dysfunction was not attenuated by the combined therapy either. The combined therapy had no effect on increased extravascular lung water content and fluid effusion into thoracic cavity. The bacterial number in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was significantly increased in the treatment group than the control group. The blood bacterial number remained comparable between groups.
CONCLUSIONS: Combined vitamin C, hydrocortisone, and thiamine did not attenuate severity of ovine sepsis.

The use of cinnamaldehyde and Vitamin C can improve immunity and intestinal health. A two-way factorial design was employed to investigate the main and interactive effects of cinnamaldehyde and vitamin C on the growth, carcass, and intestinal health of broiler chickens. A total of 288 one-day-old female Arbor Acres broiler chicks were randomly distributed among four treatment groups, consisting of six replicate cages with 12 birds each. Four treatments were basal diet or control (CON), supplemental cinnamaldehyde (CA) 300 g/ton (g/t), vitamin C (VC) 300 g/t, and cinnamaldehyde 300 g/t, and vitamin C 300 g/t (CA + VC), respectively. The results showed that supplemental CA did not affect the growth performance or slaughter performance of broilers at 21 days (d), 42 days (d), and 1-42 days (d); however, it could improve intestinal barrier function at 42 d of age and reduce the mRNA expression of inflammatory factors in the intestine at 21 d and 42 d of age. Supplemental VC showed a trend towards increasing body weight gain (BWG) at 21 d (p = 0.094), increased breast muscle rate (at 21-d 5.33%, p < 0.05 and at 42-d 7.09%, p = 0.097), and decreased the abdominal fat (23.43%, p < 0.05) and drip loss (20.68%, p < 0.05) at 42-d. Moreover, VC improves intestinal morphology and intestinal barrier function and maintains a balanced immune response. The blend of CA and VC significantly upregulated the mRNA expression of myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD-88) in the intestine at 21 d of age, the mRNA expression of catalase (CAT), Occludin, Claudin-1, Mucin-2, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) in the intestine at 42 d of age (p < 0.01), and downregulated the mRNA expression of interleukin 10 (IL-10), interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in the intestine at 21-d and 42-d of age, and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) mRNA in intestine at 42 d of age (p < 0.01). This study suggested that the combination of CA and VC had the potential to regulate intestinal health and result in better carcass character of broilers.

This research aimed to study the long-term effects of soccer training on platelet membrane fatty acid levels and antioxidant vitamins. Forty-four subjects divided into soccer players (SP; n = 22; 20.86 ± 0.36 years) and a control group (CG; n = 22; 21.23 ± 0.49 years) participated in the study. The fatty acids of the platelet membrane, the rates of desaturation, lipid peroxidation indexes and intra-platelet levels of vitamins C and E were assessed. SP obtained lower values in polyunsaturated fatty acids 18:3:3 (alpha-linolenic acid), 20:5:3 (eicosapentaenoic acid) and 22:6:3 (docosahexaenoic acid) (p < 0.05). The desaturation index ∆5 was higher in SP (p < 0.05), and they had a higher lipid peroxidation index 20:4:6 (arachidonic acid)/16:0 (palmitic acid) (p < 0.05). Vitamin E and C platelet values were also higher in SP (p < 0.01). There were positive correlations in the ω6/ω3 index (p < 0.05), desaturation index ∆5 (p < 0.05), lipid peroxidation index 20:4:6/16:0 and intra-platelet vitamins E and C (p < 0.01) with the level of physical activity. In addition, there were inverse correlations in fatty acids 24:0 (lignoceric acid), 16:1 (palmitoleic acid), 20:3:6 (eicosadienoic acid) and 18:3:3 (alpha-linolenic acid) (p < 0.05) depending on the degree of physical activity. Regular long-term soccer training could modify the concentration of fatty acids such as 24:0, 16:1, 18:6, 20:3:6, 18:3:3:3, 20:5:3, 26:6:3 and ω3 PUFAs in the platelet membrane.