Choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid supplementation as an adjunct to calcium/vitamin D3 stimulates markers of bone formation in osteopenic females: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Mounting evidence supports a physiological role for silicon (Si) as orthosilicic acid (OSA, Si(OH)4) in bone formation. The effect of oral choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid (ch-OSA) on markers of bone turnover and bone mineral density (BMD) was investigated in a double-blind placebo-controlled trial. METHODS: Over 12-months, 136 women out of 184 randomized (T-score spine < -1.5) completed the study and received, daily, 1000 mg Ca and 20 microg cholecalciferol (Vit D3) and three different ch-OSA doses (3, 6 and 12 mg Si) or placebo. Bone formation markers in serum and urinary resorption markers were measured at baseline, and after 6 and 12 months. Femoral and lumbar BMD were measured at baseline and after 12 months by DEXA. RESULTS: Overall, there was a trend for ch-OSA to confer some additional benefit to Ca and Vit D3 treatment, especially for markers of bone formation, but only the marker for type I collagen formation (PINP) was significant at 12 months for the 6 and 12 mg Si dose (vs. placebo) without a clear dose response effect. A trend for a dose-corresponding increase was observed in the bone resorption marker, collagen type I C-terminal telopeptide (CTX-I). Lumbar spine BMD did not change significantly. Post-hoc subgroup analysis (baseline T-score femur < -1) however was significant for the 6 mg dose at the femoral neck (T-test). There were no ch-OSA related adverse events observed and biochemical safety parameters remained within the normal range. CONCLUSION: Combined therapy of ch-OSA and Ca/Vit D3 had a potential beneficial effect on bone collagen compared to Ca/Vit D3 alone which suggests that this treatment is of potential use in osteoporosis. NTR 1029.RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

Actisil application affects growth, flowering, and biochemical parameters in petunia in vitro and greenhouse

AbstractMineral nutrients are necessary for the growth and development of plants. Previous studies have concentrated mainly on silicon-accumulating plants, while less work has been conducted on non-accumulating plants such as Petunia × atkinsiana D. Don. In this study, we investigated the responses of morphological (plant height, root length, fresh and dry weight, no. of flowers) and biochemical (proline, malondialdehyde MDA, catalase CAT activity, total chlorophylls, carotenoids, total polyphenol, and NO3) traits of petunia to external application of commercial silicon solution (Hydroplus™ Actisil) after 5 weeks of in vitro culture and 6 weeks under greenhouse condition. Actisil was supplemented into the MS medium (in vitro) at concentrations of 0 (control), 50, 100, 200, and 500 mg L−1, or supplied via irrigations at a concentration of 0 (control) and 200 mg L−1 in one, two, and three applications under greenhouse conditions. The addition of silicon to the MS medium decreased plant height (22–41% of control) and root length (53–70% of control). In contrast, in greenhouse-grown petunia irrigation of silicon increased plant height (145% of control ) and root length (176% of control). Petunias treated with Actisil had greener leaves compared to the control. This was also confirmed by higher concentrations of chlorophyll. Conversely, increased concentrations of proline, MDA, and total polyphenol and higher CAT activities may indicate that silicon provokes a stress response of the in vitro plants. Actisil treatment in the concentration of 200 mg L−1 was found to positively affect the growth and flowering of the greenhouse-grown petunia.</jats:p

The effect of choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid on microelements and silicon concentration, photosynthesis activity and yield of tomato grown under Mn stress

AbstractThe aim of experiments was to assess the efficiency of choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid (ch-OSA; complex of orthosilicic acid with choline and a bioavailable source of silicon) application under increasing manganese (Mn) stress on the micronutritional composition and yielding of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L. cvs. ‘Alboney F1’ and ‘Emotion F1’). Plants were grown in rockwool with the application of a nutrient solution varied the Mn concentrations (in mg dm−3): 9.6 and 19.2 which cause strong oxidative stress of plants comparing with optimal concentration of that microelement in nutrient solution. The effect of ch-OSA application (at Si concentration of 0.3 mg dm−3 nutrient solution) was investigated at both Mn-levels. Increasing Mn stress modified the concentration of microelements and silicon (Si) in tomato leaves. Application of ch-OSA also influenced the concentration of nutrients, but the determined changes were generally multidirectional and varied depending on Mn-level and cultivar. Under the increasing Mn stress a significant downward trend was observed for the mean concentration of Fe (in both cultivars) in fruits – but changes of Mn, Zn and Cu were varied depend on cultivar. In the case of cv. ‘Alboney F1’ ch-OSA application caused an increase the mean concentrations of Fe, Zn and Cu, while in the case of cv. ‘Emotion F1’ the reduction of mean concentrations of Zn and Cu was recorded. Ch-OSA treatment did not influence on the Mn concentrations in fruits. A beneficial role of ch-OSA was also found in photosynthesis activity. This was especially valid for lower levels of Mn. Application of ch-OSA improved significantly the marketable yield of tomato under stress by a low Mn level