Abstract

Nutritional strategies that enhance exercise tolerance and muscle function are of increasing interest. Nitric oxide mediated pathways have been implicated in the regulation of muscle contractility, oxygen utilization, and exercise performance. NS1901F01 is a standardized botanical preparation derived from Amaranthus dubius and Amaranthus tricolor aerial parts and containing 10% nitrate. This study evaluated the effects of 28 day NS1901F01 supplementation on exercise endurance and muscle growth in treadmill trained Swiss albino mice and assessed associated changes in serum nitric oxide, muscle weights, biochemical parameters, and acute oral tolerability. Male Swiss albino mice were allocated to negative control, exercise control, arginine (411mg/kg bw), or NS1901F01 (118.36 or 205.50mg/kg bw) groups (n=9/group). Treatment groups underwent treadmill training 5 days/week for 28 days. Exercise capacity was assessed by progressive treadmill exhaustion testing, including distance travelled, shock zone time, and shock frequency. Forelimb grip endurance, muscle weights, serum nitric oxide, metabolic and clinical biochemical parameters were also evaluated. Acute oral toxicity was assessed separately in female Sprague Dawley rats at 5000mg/kg.

Compared with exercise controls, NS1901F01 increased treadmill distance by 36.9% and 42.7% at the low and high doses, respectively, while reducing shock zone exposure and shock frequency. Grip endurance increased by 15.3% and 21.8%, respectively. Gastrocnemius and soleus weights increased, particularly at the high dose. Serum nitric oxide levels increased from 9.47 to 12.57 and 12.86ng/mL at the low and high doses, respectively. No treatment-related adverse biochemical or gross pathological findings were observed. A single 5000mg/kg bw oral dose produced no mortality or clinical toxicity. NS1901F01 improved treadmill endurance and forelimb muscle function in trained mice, accompanied by increased serum nitric oxide and muscle weights. These findings support further investigation of nitraterich Amaranthus preparations using direct measures of oxygen utilization, mitochondrial function, body composition, and muscle adaptation.

Keywords: NS1901F01; Amaranthus dubius; Amaranthus tricolor; Dietary nitrate; Nitric oxide; Endurance; Treadmill exercise

Abbreviations: ALP: Alkaline Phosphatase; ANOVA: Analysis of Variance; BW: Body Weight; CCSEA: Committee for Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals; CM: Centimeter; HDL: High-Density Lipoprotein; IAEC: Institutional Animal Ethics Committee; LDL: Low-Density Lipoprotein; Min: Minute; OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development; S: Second; SGOT: Serum Glutamic- Oxaloacetic Transaminase; SGPT: Serum Glutamic-Pyruvic Transaminase; TC: Total Cholesterol