Medicinal Plant Research 2025, Vol.15, No.1, 40-50 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/mpr 46 which contribute significantly to lipid-reducing activity. This suggests that mussels themselves are endowed with natural lipid-lowering trait but extrinsic conditions can modulate such action, which will also be reflected on their synergistic activity if mixed with other nutrients (Biandolino et al., 2023). Later studies on the lipid-lowering activity of mussels showed that for maintaining their nutrient content, they must be provided with right environmental conditions. Mytilus galloprovincialis studies showed that such stressors as glyphosate and temperature not only decreased the levels of desirable fatty acids such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) but also altered the whole indices of nutrition. They emphasize the necessity of using controlled conditions in animal models for accurate assessment of the synergistic action of mussels on other lipid-lowering agents (Table 1) (Biandolino et al., 2023). Table 1 Lipid nutritional quality indices of M. galloprovincialis in control group (CTR) and glyphosate-exposed group (Gly) at 20 and 26 °C (Adopted from Biandolino et al., 2023) - 20 °C 26 °C CTR Gly 1 mg/L Gly 10 mg/L CTR Gly 1 mg/L Gly 10 mg/L EPA+DHA% 24.6±2.4 c 22.7±2.3 bc 18.4±1.5 a 20.8±2.3 ab 21.5±1.1 abc 20.8±2.0 ab n-3/n-6 5.17±0.47 bc 4.48±0.32 a 4.56±0.25 a 5.45±0.45c 4.71±0.14 ab 4.63±0.13 a n-6/n-3 0.19±0.02 ab 0.22±0.02 bc 0.22±0.02 bc 0.18±0.02 a 0.21±0.01 bc 0.21±0.01 bc PUFA/SFA 0.85±0.12 b 0.85±0.10 b 0.61±0.03 a 0.70±0.11 ab 0.84±0.10 b 0.83±0.09 b UNS/SFA 1.25±0.16 abc 1.35±0.11 bc 1.04±0.04 a 1.15±0.16 ab 1.43±0.09 c 1.44±0.15 c ARA/DHA 0.33±0.03a 0.40±0.06 b 0.44±0.08 b 0.34±0.05 a 0.37±0.03 b 0.36±0.02 ab ARA/EPA 0.22±0.02 ab 0.24±0.00 b 0.23±0.03 b 0.20±0.00 a 0.22±0.01 ab 0.28±0.01 c Al 0.99±0.11 ab 0.87±0.13 a 1.16±0.06 b 1.18±0.15 b 0.93±0.07 a 0.83±0.16 a TI 0.38±0.06 a 0.38±0.05 a 0.50±0.03 b 0.44±0.04 ab 0.37±0.03 a 0.37±0.08 a h/H 1.05±0.15 bc 1.15±0.14 bc 0.76±0.05 a 0.92±0.14 ab 1.11±0.1 bc 1.28±0.18 c HPI 1.04±0.14 abc 1.16±0.09 c 0.86±0.04 a 0.88±0.13ab 1.08±0.0 bc 1.24±0.16 c UI 186±11.7 c 179±17.2 bc 150±6.5 a 163±14.8 ab 176±7.5 bc 173±12.8 bc FLQ 24.6±2.4 c 22.7±1.8 bc 18.4±1.6 a 20.8±2.3 ab 21.5±1.2 abc 20.8±2.0 ab PI 0.88±0.06 c 0.84±0.07 c 0.58±0.06 a 0.68±0.108 ab 0.80±0.08 bc 0.82±0.06 c Note: Values are means±standard deviations; Values are means of three separate replicates. Means within the same row without a common lowercase letter differ significantly (p<0.05). EPA, eicosapentaenoic acid; DHA, docosahexaenoic acid; SFA, saturated fatty acids; PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acids; UNS, unsaturated fatty; ARA, arachidonic acid; AI, atherogenic index; TI, thrombogenicity, h/H, hypocholesterolaemic/hypercholesterolaemic fatty acid ratio, HPI, health-promoting index; UI, unsaturation index; FLQ, flesh lipid quality; PI, polyene index 7.2 A summary of relevant human clinical trials and data Human clinical trials exhibited the lipid-lowering activity of mussel extracts. Blue mussel lipid extract (BMLE) showed a remarkable improvement in the lipid profile of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. BMLE recipients showed a remarkable decrease in total cholesterol and triacylglycerol compared to fish oil or corn oil recipients. This suggests that BMLE has a particular lipid-lowering activity that is most likely due to the outstanding fatty acid profile with very high levels of EPA and DHA (Kuang et al., 2022; Liu et al., 2023). Besides, the same trial determined the anti-inflammatory action of BMLE, which may be responsible for its lipid-lowering action. Lower concentrations of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-1β in the BMLE group suggest a dual mode of action, where lipid modulation and inhibition of inflammation also have roles to play. These findings imply that BMLE, and potentially other mussel extracts, are potentially useful ingredients in synergistic foods designed to improve the lipid profiles of people (Kuang et al., 2022; Liu et al., 2023).
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