Comprehensive evaluation of phenolic profile in dark chocolate and dark chocolate enriched with Sakura green tea leaves or turmeric powder

Recently, a huge number of studies have confirmed the important role of chocolate polyphenols in human health, underlining its beneficial effects especially in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, a thorough evaluation of chocolate phenolic profile is still lacking. This study aimed at a comprehensive characterization of dark chocolate phenolic profile, using non-targeted mass spectrometry identification. This approach allowed a tentative identification of 158 individual phenolic compounds: 67 were newly detected in dark chocolate, among these 38 were observed for the first time in chocolate as well as in cocoa beans or products. Ellagitannins, which have never been reported in cocoa or chocolate, represented about the 10% of the phenolic profile of dark chocolate. The enrichment of dark chocolate with Sakura green tea leaves or turmeric powder influenced and modified the phenolic profile, resulting in a phenolic concentration increase. In this way, this functional chocolate might maximize the beneficial effect of chocolate consumption, combining the positive health effects of chocolate, turmeric and green tea and, at the same time, reducing the amount of sugars and calories introduced with chocolate

Effect of ripening and in vitro digestion on the evolution and fate of bioactive peptides in Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

The influence of ripening and in vitro digestion on the peptidomic profile of Parmigiano-Reggiano (PR) cheeses was investigated. Ripening and in vitro digestion thoroughly modified the peptidomic profile of the three cheeses. Twenty-six bioactive peptides were identified in undigested PR. Some peptides were degraded and others released during ripening. After digestion, 52 bioactive peptides were identified. Semi-quantitative data suggested that bioactive peptides released after digestion can be clustered in 5 groups according to the ripening time. VPP and IPP peptide levels in undigested samples were in the range of 4.52–11.34 and 0.66–4.24 mg kg−1, with the highest amounts found in 18-month ripened PR. YPFPGPI peptide was absent in undigested PRs but was released after digestion, especially in the 12-month-old sample (20.18 mg kg−1). The present study suggests possible differences in bioactive peptide levels after digestion as a function of the duration of ripening of PR cheese

Protocatechuic and 3,4-Dihydroxyphenylacetic Acids Inhibit Protein Glycation by Binding Lysine through a Metal-Catalyzed Oxidative Mechanism

The mechanism of inhibition of advanced glycation end product (AGE) formation by protocatechuic acid and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DHPA) has been studied using a widespread applied in vitro model system composed of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and supraphysiological glucose concentrations. Protocatechuic acid and DHPA inhibited the formation of Amadori compounds, fluorescent AGEs (IC50 = 62.1 \ub1 1.4 and 155.4 \ub1 1.1 \u3bcmol/L, respectively), and N\u3b5-(carboxymethyl)lysine (IC50 = 535.3 \ub1 1.1 and 751.2 \ub1 1.0 \u3bcmol/L, respectively). BSA was pretreated with the two phenolic acids, and the formation of BSA\u2013phenolic acid adducts was estimated by nanoflow liquid chromatography\u2013electrospray ionization\u2013quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Results showed that the tested phenolic acids bound key sites of glycation in BSA through a metal-catalyzed oxidative mechanism. The antiglycative activity mechanism involved the formation of BSA\u2013phenolic acid adducts, and it is unlikely that this occurs in vivo. These results raise the problem to design in vitro models closer to physiological conditions to reach biologically sound conclusions

Comparative peptidomic profile and bioactivities of cooked beef, pork, chicken and turkey meat after in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion

This study was designed to investigate the potential contribution of bioactive peptides to the biological activities related to the consumption of pork, beef, chicken and turkey meat following in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion. After extraction of the peptidic fractions from digested samples, the bioactivities were evaluated by in vitro antioxidant activity as well as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and dipeptidyl peptidase-IV (DPP-IV) inhibition assays. Pork and turkey meat appeared to be the best sources of antioxidant peptides. Pork was found to be the best source of DPP-IV-inhibitory peptides whereas chicken meat supplied peptides with the highest ACE-inhibitory activity. The comprehensive analysis of the peptidomic profile of digested samples was performed by nano-LC-ESI-QTOF MS/MS analysis. A total of 217, 214, 257 and 248 peptides were identified in digested pork, beef, chicken and turkey meat, respectively. Chicken and turkey meat showed the highest similarity in peptide sequences with 202 common peptides. Sixty-two peptides matched with sequences with previously demonstrated biological activity. In particular, 35 peptides showed ACE-inhibitory activity and 23 DPP-IV inhibitory activity. Twenty-two bioactive peptides were commonly released from the different types of meat. The relative amount of identified bioactive peptides were positively correlated to the biological activities of the different digested meats. Biological significance: The present study describes for the first time a comprehensive peptide profile of four types of meat after in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion. The peptide inventory was used to identify 62 bioactive peptides with ACE- and DPPIV-inhibitory and antioxidant activities. The bioactivity analysis revealed interesting and significant differences between the studied meats. The originality of this work lay in the description of intrinsic differences in physiological functions after the ingestion of meat proteins from different species. In a context in which the current research scene relates meat consumption to the onset of chronic pathologies, this peptide profiling and bioactivity analysis shed light on the possible health benefits of peptides released from meat proteins. In fact, this paper represents a sort of detailed peptide list that may help to predict which peptides could be generated after meat intake and detectable at gastro-intestinal level. It also provides a thorough investigation of novel biological activities associated to meat protein hydrolysates, giving a new positive aspect to meat consumption

Antiproliferative Activity and Cell Metabolism of Hydroxycinnamic Acids in Human Colon Adenocarcinoma Cell Lines

In this study, we investigated the antiproliferative activity and the stability and metabolic fate of the main dietary hydroxycinnamates, using two colonic adenocarcinoma cell models (Caco-2 and SW480). Dihydrocaffeic and dihydroferulic acids were the most effective against cell proliferation in both cell lines with IC50 values of 71.7 \ub1 1.1 and 83.1 \ub1 1.1 \u3bcmol/L, respectively (P < 0.05) in Caco-2. At 200 \u3bcmol/L, caffeic and ferulic acids inhibited SW480 proliferation by 40.8 \ub1 1.6 and 59.9 \ub1 1.3%, respectively. Hydroxycinnamic acids with a catechol-type structure were degraded in Caco-2 cell medium, resulting in the production of H2O2. Intracellular Caco-2 UDP-glucuronosyltransferases and catechol-O-methyltransferases were able to form glucuronide and methyl conjugates. However, only the sulfate conjugates were detected after incubation with SW480. In addition, simple hydroxycinnamates were released from quinic and aspartic conjugates. The remarkable effect of dihydrocaffeic and dihydroferulic acids against cell proliferation is of paramount importance, since these compounds are the main metabolites detectable at the colonic level

Bioaccessibility, bioactivity and cell metabolism of dark chocolate phenolic compounds after in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion

The bioaccessibility of phenolic compounds after in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion of dark chocolate, dark chocolate enriched with Sakura green tea and dark chocolate enriched with turmeric powder was studied. The phenolic profile, assessed by accurate mass spectrometry analysis, was modified during in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion, with a considerable decrease of total and individual phenolic compounds. Phenolic acids showed the highest bioaccessibility with hydroxycinnamic acids displaying higher bioaccessibility (from 41.2% to 45.1%) respect to hydroxybenzoic acids (from 28.1% to 43.5%). Isomerisation of caffeoyl-quinic acids and galloyl-quinic acids as well as dimerization of (epi)gallocatechin were also observed after in vitro gastro-intestinal digestion. Antioxidant activity increased after the gastric step and rose further at the end of the digestion. Furthermore, in vitro digested phenolic-rich fractions showed anti-proliferative activity against two models of human colon adenocarcinoma cell lines. Cell metabolism of digested phenolic compounds resulted in the accumulation of coumaric and ferulic acids in the cell media

Comparing Time and Event Based Prospective Memory: Effects of Delay

Prospective memory (PM) is the act of remembering to perform a future intention (Einstein & McDaniel, 2005). Time-based PM is remembering to retrieve that future intention at or after a specific time has elapsed. Event-based PM is remembering to retrieve the future intention when a specific cue or event is encountered (Sellen et al., 1997). The current project was designed to compare time- and event-based PM performance within a laboratory context. Previous research suggests that time-based tasks are more difficult to carry out because a decrease in performance (or PM cost) is often found compared with event-based tasks (e.g., Sellen et al., 1997). All participants completed a lexical decision task as the ongoing task. Participants in the event-based condition were asked to respond to a specific type of word for the PM task, and participants in the time-based task were asked to respond after a specific time has elapsed for the PM task. Delay between instruction and presentation of PM cue were manipulated in a completely between-subjects design. I hypothesized that participants would have higher PM accuracy when completing an event-based PM tasks than time-based PM tasks and a higher PM cost overall for the time-based than the event-based task. As the delay from instruction for the PM task and retrieval of the PM task increases, accuracy would decrease in both time and event-based tasks types. However, I also predicted a significant interaction between type of PM task and delay on PM accuracy and expected that delay would affect time-based task accuracy more strongly and result in a larger decrease in performance as delay increases. Overall, the current project contributes to our understanding of the differences in performance between time- and event-based PM tasks within a laboratory setting

Bovine milk antioxidant properties: effect of in vitro digestion and identification of antioxidant compounds

Milk proteins contained encrypted in their sequence biologically active components that can be released by enzymatic hydrolysis. Among the biological activities recognized in milk components, the antioxidant activity is of great interest. The objective of the present study was to analyse the antioxidant properties of whole, semi-skimmed and skimmed milk during simulated gastrointestinal digestion and to identify the compounds responsible for the antioxidant activity. Simulated digestion increased the 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid (ABTS)+ radical scavenging activity of milk. In digested whole milk, the main contribution to ABTS+ radical scavenging activity was due to high molecular weight fraction (>3 kg.mol−1). For semi-skimmed and skimmed milk, the main contribution was due to low molecular weight fraction (<3 kg.mol−1). Twelve major peaks were collected from low molecular weight fraction of digested skimmed milk by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and evaluated for their ABTS+ radical scavenging activity. Among the different fractions, three (F2, F3 and F5) showed high ABTS+ and hydroxyl radical scavenging activity and lipid peroxidation inhibitory capacity. The compounds (free amino acids and peptides) present in these fractions were identified with nano-LCQTOF MS/MS analysis. The amino acids tryptophan and tyrosine seemed fundamental in the ABTS+ and hydroxyl radical scavenging capacities whereas the amino acids phenylalanine and histidine played an important role in the lipid peroxidation inhibitory activity of the peptides. The results reported in this study suggested that milk proteins could act as a carrier for the delivery of antioxidant compounds in the gastrointestinal tract possibly protecting the gastrointestinal tract itself from the oxidative damage