The medical hall lady
told me now it's time to drink Bird Nest. Yippee! I'm jumping up for joy. And
the best part is I can get to drink it once a week. Hey! I only get this kind
of nice treat during my pregnancy hor?? Non-pregnant years, I can only ration
the Bird Nest and drink once a month. Of course with the help from mom, who
will help me boil it with 泡参.
This time round (second pregnancy), she says I can just boil with honey sugar
and 枸杞. Whatever it is, I always take my
time to savour every mouthful and lick the bowl. Haha!
WHAT IS BIRD NEST?
Bird Nest is a highly-prized delicacy discovered during the Tang Dynasty in
China. At that time, it was only consumed by the Emperors and their families.Bird Nest is a white substance extracted from swallows' nests. It is normally found in places such as steep deep caves and crags.
This unique Asian delicacy undergoes an intensive and complex cleansing process before it can be consumed. The raw Bird Nest is first soaked for up to 48 hours before it can be thoroughly cleaned of impurities such as feathers and twigs.
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| 燕巢- Bird Nest |
BIRD NEST IS ESPECIALLY BENEFICIAL FOR:
Woman: It is known for its unique ability to
prevent internal dryness due to ageing and is consumed to maintain youthfulness
and a smooth, wrinkle-free complexion.Elderly and children: It helps to stimulate appetite and aid digestion.
Patients: It speeds up recovery from illness and surgery as it provides a unique pre-digested form of protein and nutrients.
Expectant mothers: Pregnant woman and their foetus can benefit greatly from eating Bird Nest. The regular consumption can increase nutrition and improve the health of the pregnant woman and foetus. The body and the immunity of the foetus can be strengthened and its mind activated. This thereby provides a firm foundation for future development. Woman consuming edible Bird Nests after giving birth can also recover quicker and slim rapidly, helping to regain their youthful appearance.
ESSENTIAL CRITERIA FOR SELECTING A BIRD NEST
* Shape and volume : the best Bird Nests is in
the shape of a boat or spoon. Bird Nest can be triangular in shape if they have
been built in the corner of two adjacent walls. However for nutritional value
the shape does not matter. Bird Nests that are broader in width rank higher.
The real Bird Nest should be in a natural shape.* Color and Purity : The best Bird Nest should be of natural colour, containing no mud and other impurities like moss. The colour of the white nest is an actual ivory. The yellow nest and the bloodyred nest are coloured straw and red, respectively. The variations and intensity in the colour are due to the difference in the mineral constituents of the food the swallow ate. The Bird Nests, regardless of their colour, swell when soaked in clear water. The colouration in the Bird Nest will fade and the nest threads look transparent after swelling. However, the water used for soaking should still remain transparent and colourless.
* Density and Swelling Capacity : Bird Nests that have finer and denser nest threads appear almost gapless. They are bigger and thicker in volume and should have a higher swelling capacity. The swelling capacity refers to the water holding ability of a Bird Nest. The higher the swelling capacity, the greater the Bird Nest distends after immersion in water. Bird Nests of different categories show different magnitudes of swelling capacity, i. e. the ratio between the weight of the Bird Nest before and after swelling can be different. The swelling capacity should be measured by weight instead of by volume.
* Flavor and Dryness : Bird Nest should be selected by smell. A real Bird Nest retains a little bit of a fishy smell of the swallow’s saliva. When cooked, it releases a light aroma resembling the aroma of an egg white. It is essential to select a dry Bird Nest. A Bird Nest that is sticky and soft is certainly not dry enough. A wet Bird Nest weighs heavier thus the price will be overcharged from the extra weight. A wet Bird Nest would not be convenient for storage as it would attract mould easily and has a low swelling capacity.
* Price and Creditability : Bird Nests should be purchased in person and selected by “looking”, “smelling” and “touching”. The price of the Bird Nest should be weighed against the flavor, size, thickness of the nest, fineness of the threads, dryness, and a good swelling capacity. It is not possible to buy a good quality Bird Nest at fair price if the goods have not been examined and the quality and category evaluated. The most trustful way to purchase a high quality Bird Nest is to buy from shops having a good reputation and guaranteed quality.
CHOOSING BIRD NEST
The quality of processed Bird Nest is determined by the amount of long and
thick unbroken nest cement strands in the dried cleaned nests. The quality is
higher if it contains more longer and thicker strands. When you choose Bird
Nest, feel the nest by your hand. It should be clean, dry, light and hard. Bird
Nest with feather and dirt is time consuming to clean while sticky and soft
nests weigh heavier and turn mouldy easily. After soaking, 37.9 gms of good
quality Bird Nest will weigh about 263 to 300 gms.
REAL OR FAKE, GOOD OR BAD?
A natural Bird Nest is the real Bird Nest. Illegal merchants may coat a
layer of egg white or jelly on poor quality imitations. This increases the
weight. The fake Bird Nest will reflect light and look opaque.In contrast, light will penetrate through a real Bird Nest. Some fraudulent Bird Nests are made of "Malaysia rubber" or "pig skin". The former smells and tastes acidic and does not contain nest threads while the latter releases oil after soaking in water.
As for the quality, generally speaking, the price is a fair guideline in reflecting the quality of the Bird Nest. The higher the quality and category of a Bird Nests, the greater the nutritional value, swelling capacity and beauty and vice versa.
Vietnam seeks millions for edible Bird Nest industry
The edible nests,
shown here cleaned and soaked, are as much as 70 percent protein, one reason
aristocracy has consumed the delicacy for thousands of years, according to
Massimo Marcone, an associate professor of food science at the University of
Guelph in Ontario, Canada.
Photographer: Jerry Redfern/LightRocket via Getty Images In Vietnam, where the average income is $151 a month, Mai Vu and husband David Nguyen routinely spend $250 on edible Bird Nest. The couple accounts for the soaring appetite among Vietnam’s young and upwardly mobile population for one of the world’s most expensive foods, congealed saliva of Asian Bird Nests. The country’s expanding middle class hungers for healthy food. Bird Nest is believed to ward off diseases and feeds a growing demand for luxury products. “It’s one of the most valuable products one can give to those who have everything,” said Vu, 28, who works at an international bank in Hanoi and was shopping for Bird Nest for her toddler daughter at a new, upscale mall. “You want to impress people.” The demand for Bird Nest, once reserved for emperors and their courts, has created a global market with annual revenue as high as $5 billion that caters to Asia’s growing wealthy consumers, said Tok Teng Sai, president of the Federation of Malaysian Bird Nest Merchants Association. Vietnam is racing to catch up with Malaysia and Indonesia, the region’s top producers of the delicacy, and cash in on the demand. “People have a lot of money now, especially people…
Fund invests in Bird Nest products
VinaCapital Viet Nam Opportunity Fund Limited (VOF) yesterday
announced the acquisition of 20 equity stakes in the Bird Nest Joint Stock
Company, a domestic Bird Nest products developer.The acquisition cost US$7 million, which VinaCapital will use to assist the company in strengthening its distribution channels, production capability and product development. The fund will also help the company improve corporate governance and prepare for a listing on a Vietnamese or international stock exchange. Andy Ho, Managing Director of VOF’s Investment Manager, said that the partnership with Bird Nest earmarked it as a dominant player in the private equity investment market in Viet Nam. “The consumer goods sector is particularly attractive given its growth prospects, and Bird Nest is a perfect example of Viet Nam’s potential for high-margin, high-growth consumer products,” he said. The edible nests of Bird Nests are considered a delicacy in many parts of East and Southeast Asia. The largest market is China, particularly Hong Kong, where Bird Nests are used as part of traditional medical remedies. The nests are farmed or collected from caves without harm to the birds. Bird Nest, which targets affluent clients with high disposable incomes, has increased the value of its brand by creating a popular bottled Bird Nest drink.
Ho Chi Minh City to provide credit for locals to produce bird nests
Ho Chi Minh City authorities have promised to provide people in outlying Can Gio District with financial support to produce edible bird nests, as part of an effort to eliminate poverty in the area. Ho Chi Minh City authorities have promised to provide people in outlying Can Gio District with financial support to produce edible bird nests, as part of an effort to eliminate poverty in the area. Dinh La Thang, secretary of the municipal Party Committee, suggested the idea during a meeting with leaders of the People’s Committees from Ly Nhon, An Thoi Dong, and Binh Khanh Communes on Sunday. Prior to the meeting, Thang took a first-hand look at how local residents live solely on the production of shrimp, sea salt, and edible bird nests. According to salt farmers, with the average price of VND300 (US$0.01) to VND600 ($0.03) per kilogram, they can only make up to VND50 million ($2,197) a year, while production costs account for about VND30 million ($1,318). Meanwhile, raising shrimp can earn them a higher yearly income of between VND100 million ($4,395) and VND120 million ($5,274), local residents said, adding that risks associated with this aquaculture include bad weather and polluted water resources. Only the sale of Bird Nests can generate a stable revenue thanks to their high price, about VND20 million ($879) per kilogram. But raising edible-Bird Nests requires billions of dong (VND1 billion = $43,955) in initial capital, local residents said. As over 50 percent of the households in Can Gio…
The evaluation of Bird Nest Extract Reduced Influenza A virus Induced
Apoptosis on Cultured Cells in vitro study
Bird Nest mainly comprises a secretion of the salivary gland of different Bird
Nest species has been used as a symbol of wealth and power as well as an
crucial ingredient in traditional Chinese Medicine. The MTT assay and flow
cytometry analysis were carried out to evaluate the effect of Bird Nest extract
in treated Influenza A virus infected MDCK cells. MTT assay was performed to
determine the cell viability and Ha assay was used to determine the virus titer
after 24 hour of post treatment with Bird Nest extract towards MDCK cells
challenged with influenza A virus. The results showed that there was a
significant increase in cell viability (p < 0.05) of Bird Nest extract
treatment compared to positive infected control. Annexin V-fitc double staining
method was carried out to identify the mode of cell death in MDCK cells by
calculating the means of each apoptosis stage. The results showed that there
was a significant reduced early apoptotic injury in infected cells treated with
Bird Nest extract. In summary, the current finding suggests that Bird Nest may
be have the potentiality to be as an apoptotic inhibitor and ameliorate the
infected cells caused by virus.
Introduction
Apoptosis is an important physiological necessary for development and
maintenance of tissues homeostasis including tissue atrophy, the immune system
development and biological tumor [1-2]. It also plays an important function in
the pathogenesis of many infectious diseases including those caused by viruses
[3-5]. Many virus infections result in apoptosis of host cells, and several
viruses have evolved mechanisms to inhibit apoptosis. Influenza viruses induce
apoptosis through mechanism then both cellular and viral factors depending on
the cell type. However, the precise mechanism still remain unclear.Bird Nest is natural food product made from Aerodramus genus Bird Nest’s saliva. Studies show its unique glycoprotein properties provide health benefits, cure many illnesses and rejuvenate cells. The nests contain almost all of the bessential ingredients for body maintenance. Amino acids, minerals, and others keep the body healthy and increase immunity against a host of illness. Another studies have shown that this animal saliva previously found to contain bioactive compounds that are powered with anti-apoptotic and antioxidant properties [6-7]. As apoptosis have been suggested as crucial events in Influenza virus infection, Bird Nest, the salivary secretion of Bird Nests, may have anti-apoptosis relevance in the therapeutic context of viral infection. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the anti-apoptosis effect of Bird Nest.
Materials and Methods
Preparation of Bird Nest ExtractsRaw Bird Nest from the Bird Nest of Aerodramus genus collected from Bird Nest house in Teluk Intan, Perak, Malaysia. The cleaning process was carried out by first soaking after the unprocessed Bird Nest in distilled water until softened. Debris and feathers were removed after which the Bird Nest was subjected to drying process at 70 oC for 16 hrs and followed by grounding and sifting through a mesh (60μM in pore size). The grounded samples were kept in distilled water at 3oC in about 16 hours and continued heated for 30-60 min at 60oC. The extract was then filtered and freeze-dried after 48 hours freezing at -800C, and stored for the following experiment.
Madin Darby Canine Kidney (Mdck) Cell Culture
MDCK cell line was purchased from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC,CCL-34TM) and grown in Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle’s Medium (Gibco,UK) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (Gibco, UK), antibiotic-antimycotic (Gibco,UK). The cells then were seeded into a sterile 96-well flat bottom plate (Nunc, USA) and maintained at 37oC humidified incubator with 5% CO2 (Galaxy, UK) for 2-3 days until 70%-80% confluency is achieved.
Virus Propagation
Influenza A virus, strain A/Puerto Rico/1934 (H1N1)was purchased from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC,® VR-95TM) and propagated in MDCK cells, then the stock virus was titrated by TCID50. In obtained 100 TCID50, the resultant virus titer was further diluted with 100 μl taken from the amount ofTCID50, then it was to be used as a constant positive control in the following procedure
Cell Viability Based On Combination Treatment
This procedure was performed by using Maximal Non- Cytotoxic Concentration of Bird Nest and constant virus titer (100 TCID50). Briefly,the virus was first inoculated into the MDCK cells and later followed by the Bird Nest extract replacement for 1 hrs followed by change with media. All the samples were incubated at 37oC in 5% CO2 incubator.
After 24 hour of post-treatment incubation, the plates were exposed to the MTT assay. Treated cells were subjected to MTT reagent (Sigma Aldrich, USA) in which reacts to quantify the viable cells. Pure DMSO solution (Merck, Germany) was added to the cells after 2-3 hr exposure to the MTT reagent to solubilise the formazon precipitation. Absorbance of the solution was measured spectrophotomerically by using ELISA reader at 540nm wavelength (Bio Tek Instruments EL800,USA).
Apoptotic Cells Analysis
The protocol of Annexin V-FITC Apoptosis Detection Kit (BD Pharmingen, USA) by Rieger et al was performed in this procedure. Briefly, upon completion of treatments, cells were harvested and washed with binding buffer. Then, Annexin V and propidium iodide (PI) were added and incubated in dark for 15 min. Subsequently, washing was performed twice with binding buffer which then incubated for 15 min at 37oC. Finally, the samples were reads for analysis with Becton Dickson FACS Calibur Flow Cytometer (BD Biosciences, USA).
Statistical Analysis
Data was collected as triplicate for each experiments. The results were expressed as mean ± standard deviation. Statistical significance was assessed with Anova test and P value < 0.05 was considered significant.
Result And Discussion
Cytotoxic Profile Of Bird Nest ExtractToxicity study was first performed with addition of Bird Nest extract to MDCK cells to determine the concentration side effect as well as MNCCs of the extract on cultured cells. MNCC is maximal non-cytotoxic concentration of the Bird Nest extract.
Based on the [Figure 1], cytotoxicity percentage in MDCK cells showed an increasing trend of optimal density (OD) of cell viabilities along the concentration. As determined from the bar graph, MNCCs was 12.5 mg/ml.
The Bird Nest extract in water soluble form is likely less cytotoxic, thus same as previous report that pointed out the water soluble subtances possess less cytotoxic effect compared to the crude Bird Nest extract. This is due to compound solubility and stability are major factors that contribute to varied activities in different extract [8] such as the application of high temperature during the water extraction process caused affected the potency of proteins within the Bird Nest, possibility through denaturation [9].
Bird Nest extracts improves cell viability in H1N1 viruschalleged MDCK cells
The MTT was performed in order to quantify the cell viability based on the apoptotic reduction activity. Upon challeged with 100TCID50/ul HINI virus for 24 hour post treatment with Bird Nest extract, cell viability increased to about 20% of that of infected control [Figure 2]. Meawhile, the Bird Nest alone treatment generally did not affect the infected group. This could be due to the mitogenic property of Bird Nest that promoted cell growth, as made evident a study by Zainal Abidin et el. Which shows that Bird Nest promoted cell divison in rabbit corneal keratocytes [10].
Bird Nest Extracts Reduce Early Apoptotic Event in H1N1 Virus Challeged MDCK Cells
Apoptotic cells resulted due to phosphatidylserine (PS) translocation towards the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane caused the apoptotic or death cells and membrane integrity become loss. Therefore, the annexin V-FITC double stainig was performed in this study to calculate the percentage of cell death in different stages of apoptosis. In this assay, cells residing at different level of apoptosis upon exposure to the virus infection (A/Puerto Rico/8/1934 (H1N1)) by differential staining of DNA and also PS, whereby cells are grouped and revealed in dot plot. Annexin V-FITC-/PI- (lower left quadrant) are classified as healthy cells, the cells that are considered early apoptotic showed Annexin V-FITC+/PI- (lower right quadrant), whereas late
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