Cuban Policosanol (Raydel^®) Exerts Higher Antioxidant and Anti-Glycation Activities than Chinese Policosanol (BOC Sciences) in Reconstituted High-Density Lipoproteins: In Vivo Anti-Inflammatory Activities in Zebrafish and Its Embryos

The present study compares sugarcane-wax purified policosanols sourced from Cuba (Raydel®) and China (BOC Sciences) and utilized following the synthesis of reconstituted high-density lipoproteins (rHDL). The two policosanols exhibited distinctly different ingredient ratios of long-chain aliphatic alcohols, particularly 1-octacosanol (C28) and 1-tetratriacotanol (C34). After synthesizing rHDL with apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I), the two policosanols bound well with phospholipid and apoA-I to form the discoidal rHDL. Notably, rHDL-1, containing Cuban policosanol, displayed the largest particle diameter at approximately 78 ± 3 nm. In contrast, both control rHDL (rHDL-0) and rHDL containing Chinese policosanol (rHDL-2) exhibited smaller particles, with diameters of approximately 58 ± 3 nm and 61 ± 2 nm, respectively. Furthermore, rHDL-1 demonstrated enhanced anti-glycation activity, safeguarding apoA-I from degradation within HDL, and displayed the antioxidant ability to inhibit LDL oxidation. A microinjection of each rHDL into zebrafish embryos in the presence of carboxymethyllysine (CML) revealed rHDL-1 to have the strongest antioxidant activity with the highest embryo survivability and normal developmental morphology. Dermal application to recover the wound revealed rHDL-1 to have the highest wound-healing activity (75%) and survivability (92%) in the cutaneous wound area in the presence of CML. In adult zebrafish, injecting CML (250 μg) caused acute death and hyperinflammation, marked by heightened neutrophil infiltration and interleukin (IL)-6 production in liver. However, co-administering rHDL-1 notably increased survival (85%) and exhibited strong anti-inflammatory properties, reducing IL-6 production while improving the blood lipid profile. However, a co-injection of rHDL-2 resulted in the lowest survivability (47%) with more hepatic inflammation. In conclusion, Cuban policosanol (Raydel®) has more desirable properties for the in vitro synthesis of rHDL with stronger anti-glycation and antioxidant activities than those of Chinese policosanol (BOC Sciences). Moreover, Raydel-policosanol-integrated rHDL demonstrates a noteworthy effect on accelerated wound healing and robust anti-inflammatory properties, leading to increased survivability in zebrafish embryos and adults by effectively suppressing CML-induced hyperinflammation.