S24 - Session P2 - Determination of antioxidant activity of olive oil cultivars in the region of Epirus, Greece

Authors: Paraskevi Mpeza *, Nikoletta Vitsiou 90% of lycopene is trans -lycopene, whereas in orange heirloom tomatoes such as the 'Moonglow' variant, > 90% of lycopene is the more bioavailable cis- lycopene. Lycopene has shown protective effects against bone loss. This study compared plasma lycopene concentration and bone turnover markers following red versus 'Moonglow' tomato feeding in a rat model of post-menopausal osteoporosis. Female Sprague-Dawley rats underwent no surgery (Sham-C) or ovariectomy (OVX) surgery at age 16 weeks to induce osteoporosis. Sham-C and OVX-C groups received no dietary supplement; 'post-red' and 'post-Moonglow' received tomato for 8 weeks post-surgery; 'pre-red' and 'pre-Moonglow' received tomato for 8 weeks before surgery plus 8 weeks post-surgery (N=15/group). Rats were fed tomato powder containing 0.172 mg lycopene (~ 0.35 mg lycopene/kg body weight/day). Plasma lycopene and bone turnover markers were evaluated. After 8 or 16 weeks of tomato supplementation, mean plasma lycopene concentrations in 'pre-Moonglow' and 'post-Moonglow' groups were ~8X higher than 'pre-red' and 'post-red' groups. 'pre-red' (247.0 +- 17.4 ng/ml), 'pre-Moonglow' (260.2 +- 10.1 ng/ml), and 'post-Moonglow' (260.3 +- 10.4 ng/ml) had significantly reduced serum osteocalcin levels compared to OVX-C (337.6 +- 19.6 ng/ml). Serum CTX-1 was not significantly different among OVX tomato treatment groups. Both red and 'Moonglow' tomatoes reduced biomarkers of bone resorption and turnover in rats with simulated post-menopausal bone loss, but the effect was more consistent with 'Moonglow' feeding. In contrast to the similar studies with higher doses of all- trans- lycopene (15-45 mg/kg BW/day), these results demonstrate that 'Moonglow' cis- lycopene is more bioavailable than trans- lycopene and leads to a lower risk of bone loss.