ABSTRACT
Tocotrienols and tocopherols together compose the vitamin E family. Tocotrienols offer many health benets of vitamin E including the ability to lower cholesterol levels and provide anticancer and tumor-suppressive activities. Dietary tocotrienols reduce the concentration of plasma cholesterol and apolipoprotein B, platelet factor 4, and thromboxane B2, indicating their ability to protect against platelet aggregation and endothelial dysfunction (Qureshi, Qureshi et al. 1991a, 1991b). Red palm oil is one of the richest sources of carotenoids, tocotrienols and ascorbic acid. Thus, this oil represents a powerful network of antioxidants that can protect tissues and cells from oxidative damage (Edem 2002; Krinsky 1992; Pacer 1992). For rat hearts, α-tocotrienol were more pro- cient in the protection against oxidative stress induced by ischemia-reperfusion than α-tocopherol (Serbinova et al. 1992). Tocotrienols are found to be more effective in the protection of the central nervous system than α-tocopherol (Sen et al. 2004). In another study, TRF (tocotrienol rich fraction) was found to inhibit the glutamate-induced pp60 c-src kinase activation in HT4 neuronal cells (Sen et al. 2000). One study indicated that TRF was able to reduce myocardial infarct size, improve postischemic ventricular dysfunction and reduce the incidence of ventricular arrhythmias (Das et al. 2005). TRF was also shown to stabilize 20S and 26S proteasome activities and reduce the ischemia-reperfusion-induced increase in c-Src phosphorylation (Das et al. 2005).
