Chemical Profiles and Antioxidant Activity of Black Elder (Sambucus Nigra L.) - A Review

Introduction: All plant parts of elderberry (leaves, berries, inflorescences, roots, shoots, bark) have a long history of use in herbal remedy or lots of culinary uses, widespread in almost every continent of the world (1). Pro-health properties indicated a role of elderberry products intake in the prevention of cancer and diabetes.Aims: This paper presents an overview of the evaluation of biochemical compounds (sugars, organic acids, total phenolics, antioxidative activity, flavonoids, flavor and volatile compounds), found in flowers, berries and leaves of Sambucus nigra L.Materials and Methods: Chromatographic profiling, spectrophotometric evaluation, DPPH antioxidant assay, ABTS radical scavenging activity.Results: The variability of concentration compounds are found by uniform maturity of each phenophase of elderberry, hence the need varieties improve the quantity and quality of its yield. Elderberry has food industry properties associated with the presence of increased nutritive and decreased caloric value at fruits best correlated with the content of sugars and organic acids of flower, organic acids as a important metabolic pathway of proteins, lipids, carbohydrates. Several studies have confirmed that Sambucus nigra L. is a valuable raw material with many nutrients and bioactive substances, being extraordinarily rich in antioxidants, and the leaves are remarked as easily available source of antioxidant preparations in different domains (food products, pharmaceutics, or cosmetics).Conclusion: A bush of Sambucus nigra L. in the garden is our true handy pharmacy, a food market like as functional ingredient, a spot of color with unmistakable smell

Textural and sensorial characterization of a new oat based product

Oat it is known as a cereal which provides numerous health benefits due to its composition. Likewise, hemp, flax and olive oils are rich in compounds required for the wellness maintenance and in prevention and treatment of various diseases. Thanks to advances of last decades in the food industry, it can be said that the rheological measurements have become indispensable in order to obtain a quality product. The aim of this work was to develop and optimize a technology for obtaining  unfermented dough, respectively, to obtain oat based unleavened bread. The characterization of the final product from a sensorial point of view was performed, analysis very important for assessing the consumers acceptance. In the meantime the texture properties of all samples were instrumentally determined. Textural profile showed that samples containing higher percent of oil content had a lower hardness than those with reduced percent of oil. The most appreciated unleavened oat bread was dried at 150˚C and had a low content of oil

Thyroid hormones paradox, oxidative stress, and selenium

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role in physiological processes, but - when being in excess - ROS cause oxidative damage to molecules. Under physiological conditions, the production and detoxification of ROS are more-or-less balanced. Also in the thyroid, ROS and free radicals participate in physiological and pathological processes in the gland. For example, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is crucial for thyroid hormone biosynthesis, acting at different steps of the process. Additionally, H2O2 is believed to participate in the Wolff-Chaikoff`s effect, undergoing in conditions of iodide excess in the thyroid. It is the purpose of this review to attempt a synthesis of what we currently know of thyroid hormones production and their relation to oxidative stress and selenium, a trace element.Biomedical Reviews 2009; 20: 17-29