Tocopherols as bioactive compounds in different cultivars of Gomphrena globosa L.

Tocopherols are lipid-soluble molecules that belong to the group of the Vitamin E compounds, playing an essential role on human nutrition and health [1]. The term "Vitamin E" was first introduced as an important dietary factor for animal reproduction and, more than 40 years later, it was associated to antioxidant properties. Nowadays, most of the researches focus on the fundamental chemistry that explains their antioxidant properties, specific location, role in biological membranes, and particularity on the benefits of these compounds for human health [1]. The antioxidant activity of tocopherols can be explained by two main mechanisms: first as scavengers of lipid peroxyl radicals, produced from polyunsaturated fatty adds of the membrane phospholipids and lipoproteins, through the transfer of a hydrogen atom; and second as a singlet molecular oxygen quencher, which can oxidize membrane lipids, proteins, amino acids, and nucleic acids, among others [2, 3]. In this context, our study focused on the identification and quantification of tocopherols in three different Gomphrena globosa L. cultivars (red, white and pink globe amaranth). The analysis was performed by HPLC and the quantification was based on their fluorescence signal response. White and pink globe amaranth revealed similar amounts of Υ-tocopherol (1. 04 and 1.09 mg/100 g of dry weight) and total tocopherols (1. 37 and 1.38 mg/100 g, respectively). α-Tocopherol was found in higher concentrations in red globe amaranth (0.55 mg/100 g), that also presented Υ-tocopherol (0. 50 mg/100 g), but this was the only sample where α-tocopherol was not detected. This latter isoform was found in low amounts in the other two cultivars in concentrations ranging from 0. 05 to 0.06 mg/100 g (for white and pink globe amaranth, respectively). The results obtained offer prospects for the use of these less studied cultivars of G. globosa as antioxidants, making them suitable to be included in the human diet

Agri-food surplus, waste and loss as sustainable biobased ingredients: a review

Ensuring a sustainable supply of food for the world’s fast growing population is a major challenge in today’s economy, as modern lifestyle and increasing consumer concern with maintaining a balanced and nutritious diet is an important challenge for the agricultural sector worldwide. This market niche for healthier products, especially fruits and vegetables, has increased their production, consequently resulting in increased amounts of agri-food surplus, waste, and loss (SWL) generated during crop production, transportation, storage, and processing. Although many of these materials are not utilized, negatively affecting the environmental, economic, and social segments, they are a rich source of valuable compounds that could be used for different purposes, thus preventing the losses of natural resources and boosting a circular economy. This review aimed to give insights on the efficient management of agri-food SWL, considering conventional and emerging recovery and reuse techniques. Particularly, we explored and summarized the chemical composition of three worldwide cultivated and consumed vegetables (carrots, broccoli and lettuce) and evaluate the potential of their residues as a sustainable alternative for extracting value-added ingredients for the development of new biodynamic productsThe authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through the national funds FCT/MCTES to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020) and national funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program contract for L. Barros and A. Fernandes.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Phytochemical and antioxidant profile of pardina lentil cultivars from different regions of Spain

Lentils (Lens culinaris spp.) are an important food consumed worldwide given their high protein, fiber, mineral, and phytochemical contents, and can be used as a potential source of good nutrition for many people. With the purpose of valuing the Pardina variety, the quality brand from a protected geographical indication “Lenteja de Tierra de Campos”, a full assessment of the nutritional, chemical, and antioxidant properties of 34 samples from this variety was carried out. Besides its actual rich nutritional profile, three phenolic compounds by high performance liquid chromatography equipped with photodiode array detection-mass (HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS) were identified (kaempferol derivatives) with slight differences between them in all extracts. Sucrose by high-performance liquid chromatography with a refraction index detector (HPLC-RI) and citric acid by ultra-fast liquid chromatography coupled with a photodiode array detector (UFLC-PDA) were the major identified sugar and organic acid components, respectively, as well as α-tocopherol and γ-tocopherol isoforms (HPLC-fluorescence). Additionally, all the extracts presented excellent antioxidant activity by the oxidative hemolysis inhibition assay (OxHLIA/TBARS). Briefly, Pardina lentils from this quality brand are a good source of nutritional and chemical components and should therefore be included in a balanced diet.The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support by national funds FCT/MCTES to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020). National funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program-contract for L. Barros, A. Fernandes, M.I. Dias, and J. Pinela’s contracts. Vivar-Quintana is also grateful for the University of Salamanca’s support for researcher mobility and the Regulatory Council of the IGP Tierra de Campos for the lentil samples.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of red, white and pink globe amaranth hydromethanolic extracts

Medicinal plants have been playing a vital role on human health and healing, representing one of the major sources of drugs in modem and traditional medicine [1]. Plants synthesize and preserve a variety of biochemical products that can be used as pharmaceutical compounds [2], and recently there has been an increasing interest in the therapeutic potential of plants as antioxidants and anti-inflammatories [3]. Oxidative stress and inflammation play critical roles in the pathogenesis of many diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, arthritis and obesity [4], among others. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore the bioactivity of red, white and pink globe amaranth (different cultivars of Gomphrena globosa L.) hydromethanolic extracts, namely the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. The antioxidant activity was tested through radicals scavenging capacity, reducing power, and lipid peroxidation inhibition, whereas the anti-inflammatory activity was assessed by monitoring the inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) release in the mouse macrophage-like cell line RAW 264.7. The absence of toxicity of the extracts was also confirmed by the sulphorodamine B (SRB) assay applied to a porcine liver primary culture (PLP2) established by the authors. Among the three studied samples, pink globe amaranth showed the highest antioxidant activity, with the lowest ECso values (0.25 to 1.02 mg/mL), followed by red (0.41 to 1.30 mg/mL) and white (0.57 to 1.47 mg/mL) globe amaranth. Regarding the anti-inflammatory activity, pink and red globe amaranth also revealed the lowest ECso values (133 and 136 pg/mL, respectively), with white globe amaranth revealing an ECso value of 198pg/mL. None of the extracts presented cytotoxicity in PLP2 cells up to 400 pg/mL. From the results obtained, we can conclude that the extracts of these plants can be considered good sources of antioxidants and can also be used for anti-inflammatory purposes

Compositional features and biological activities of wild and commercial Moringa oleifera leaves from Guinea-Bissau

Moringa oleifera Lam. is a nutraceutical edible plant used to fight malnutrition in developing countries. This investigation describes the nutritional, chemical and bioactive assets of wild and commercially acquired M. oleifera leaves from Guinea-Bissau. Both samples presented significant differences in the contents of almost all the analysed parameters. Carbohydrates and proteins were the major constituents of the leaves, which also showed an interesting profile of tocopherols, organic acids, unsaturated fatty acids, and phenolic compounds. The infused extract of the commercial leaf sample was more effective than other preparations against lipid peroxidation and oxidative haemolysis. In turn, higher antibacterial activity was achieved with hydroethanolic and infused extracts of the wild sample, which extracts also displayed superior antifungal activity. Overall, the commercially acquired M. oleifera leaves stand out with better quality profiles than the wild collected, which aroused interest in studying the processing methods used locally to process this functional food.The authors are thankful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through national funds FCT/MCTES to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020) and to the Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c) (UIDB/00329/2020). National funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program-contract for the contracts of A. Fernandes and L. Barros, and through the individual scientific employment programcontract for the contract of J. Pinela (CEECIND/01011/2018). To the grants of A. Liberal (through the INTERNOVAMARKET-FOOD project) and A. Bancessi (SFRH/BD/135356/2017). This work was funded by FEDER-Interreg España-Portugal programme through the projects 0377_Iberphenol_6_E and TRANSCoLAB 0612_TRANS_CO_LAB_2_P, and also by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of Republic of Serbia (451-03-68/2020-14/200007).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Fighting Iron-Deficiency Anemia: Innovations in Food Fortificants and Biofortification Strategies

[EN] Iron deficiency remains one of the main nutritional disorders worldwide and low iron intake and/or bioavailability are currently the major causes of anemia. To fight this public health problem, the scientific challenge is to find an iron form with sufficient bioavailability to increase its levels in humans through food fortification. In turn, biofortification appears as a comparatively advantageous and bearable strategy for the delivery of vitamins and other micronutrients for people without access to a healthy and diverse diet. This approach relies on plant breeding, transgenic techniques, or agronomic practices to obtain a final food product with a higher iron content. It is also known that certain food constituents are able to favor or inhibit iron absorption. The management of these compounds can thus successfully improve the absorption of dietary iron and, ultimately, contribute to fight this disorder present all over the world. This review describes the main causes/manifestations of iron-deficiency anemia, forms of disease prevention and treatment, and the importance of a balanced and preventive diet. A special focus was given to innovative food fortification and biofortification procedures used to improve the iron content in staple food crops

Bioactive properties and phenolic compound profiles of turnip-rooted, plain-leafed and curly-leafed parsley cultivars

Petroselinum crispum Mill., Fuss., is a culinary vegetable used as an aromatic herb that garnishes and flavours a great variety of dishes. In the present study, the chemical profiles and bioactivities of leaf samples from 25 cultivars (three types: plain- and curly-leafed and turnip-rooted) from this species were assessed. Seven phenolic compounds were identified in all the varieties, including apigenin and kaempherol derivates. Apigenin-O-pentoside-O-hexoside was the major compound in all the tested parsley types (20, 22 and 13 mg/g of extract, respectively) and responsible for its excellent antioxidant activity, also investigated in this study. Antimicrobial activities were also explored, and the results revealed a good bioactivity against specific tested pathogens, such as bacteria and fungi. In conclusion, the leaves of all the types of P. crispum are a good source of natural bioactive compounds that confer health benefits, and thus, they should be part of a balanced and diversified diet.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Ethnomycological prospect of wild edible and medicinal mushrooms from Central and Southern Africa

In diferente regions of Africa, the people´s diet depends partially on edible products from wild animals, plants, or mushrooms, motivated not only by the high cost of living but also by the profusion of such products in local environment (Soro et al., 2019). In addition to being appreciated for their high nutritional value, rich in proteins, carbohydrates, elements (phosphorous, potassium, calcium, copper, magnesium, iron, zinc), vitamins, and lower fat amounts, thesse non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are the basis of various dietary, ethnic, cultural, religious, and medicinal considerations, depending on ethnic groups. Despite the rich biodiversity of the African continent, this remains largely unexplored resulting in a poor food contribution to the often malnourished populations (Yongabi et al., 2004). Thus, the aim of this review is to gather information on the wild mushroom species used in Central and Southern Africa and their main uses, with a focus on food and medicinal species.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Nutritional and phytochemical profiles and biological activities of Moringa oleifera Lam. edible parts from Guinea-Bissau (West Africa)

Moringa oleifera is an edible medicinal plant used to fight malnutrition in Africa. In this study, M. oleifera flowers, fruits and seeds from Guinea-Bissau were characterized for their nutritional composition and hydroethanolic and aqueous extracts were prepared to investigate the phenolic profiles and bioactivities. Seeds presented higher levels of proteins (~31 g/100 g dw), fat (~26 g/100 g dw) and flavan-3-ol derivatives, while carbohydrates, proteins, citric acid, and glycosylated flavonoids were abundant in fruits and flowers, these last samples also being rich in α-tocopherol (~18 mg/100 g dw). Some of the identified polyphenols had never been described in M. oleifera. In general, hydroethanolic extracts contained more polyphenols and were more active against lipid peroxidation, NO production, and tumour cells growth. Significant antimicrobial effects against the tested bacteria and fungi strains were displayed by both hydroethanolic and aqueous extracts. The M. oleifera potential to fight malnutrition and health issues was highlighted.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evaluation of the Polyphenolic Composition and Bioactivities of Three Native Cabo Verde Medicinal Plants

The use of medicinal plants in a variety of health conditions remains essential for the discovery of new treatments. The present study aimed to investigate the bioactive properties of three native plants from Cabo Verde Islands, namely Artemisia gorgonum Webb, Sideroxylon marginatum (Decne. ex Webb) Cout., and Tamarix senegalensis DC., contributing to the characterization of less-known medicinal plants and their potential benefits for human health. Known compounds, such as kaempferol, quercetin, caffeyolquinic, and apigenin derivatives, among others, were detected in the plant species under study. Overall, all species demonstrated good antioxidant capacity, especially the ethanolic extracts of A. gorgonum (EC50 = 0.149 mg/mL) in TBARS assay. Moreover, the ethanolic extracts of the studied plants showed cytotoxic properties against tumor cells, and again the A. gorgonum extract proved to be the most effective in inhibiting tumor growth, mainly in the CaCO2 (GI50 = 17.3 μg/mL) and AGS (GI50 = 18.2 μg/mL) cell lines. Only the ethanolic extracts of T. senegalensis and S. marginatum demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity, albeit weak (EC50 = 35 and 43 μg/mL, respectively). The present study contributed to increased knowledge about the bioactive properties of these plants commonly used in traditional medicine, some of which was discussed for the first time, opening new perspectives for their use in a wider range of health conditions, especially in African countries, where access to modern health care is more limited.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio