INTERACCIÓN DE COMPUESTOS FENÓLICOS Y FIBRA DIETARIA: CAPACIDAD ANTIOXIDANTE Y BIODISPONIBILIDAD

En los últimos años, la relación entre el consumo de frutas y la salud humana ha sido el punto focal de la investigación científica. Este interés se debe a la búsqueda específica de los compuestos contenidos en vegetales que proporcionan beneficios a la salud del consumidor (Palafox-Carlos et al., 2011). Las frutas, además de ser fuente de vitaminas, minerales y fibra, también son fuente rica en compuestos bioactivos conocidos como fitoquímicos. Los compuestos fenólicos (CF) son sustancias fitoquímicas que estando en bajas concentraciones en los alimentos, pueden prevenir algunos de los procesos implicados en el desarrollo de cáncer y enfermedades cardiovasculares (Denny y Buttriss, 2007). Sin embargo, la evidencia de su papel en la prevención de otras enfermedades degenerativas requiere de un mayor soporte científico

Edible films and coatings as carriers of living microorganisms: a new strategy towards biopreservation and healthier foods

Edible films and coatings have been extensively studied in recent years due to their unique properties and advantages over more traditional conservation techniques. Edible films and coatings improve shelf life and food quality, by providing a protective barrier against physical and mechanical damage, and by creating a controlled atmosphere and acting as a semipermeable barrier for gases, vapor, and water. Edible films and coatings are produced using naturally derived materials, such as polysaccharides, proteins, and lipids, or a mixture of these materials. These films and coatings also offer the possibility of incorporating different functional ingredients such as nutraceuticals, antioxidants, antimicrobials, flavoring, and coloring agents. Films and coatings are also able to incorporate living microorganisms. In the last decade, several works reported the incorporation of bacteria to confer probiotic or antimicrobial properties to these films and coatings. The incorporation of probiotic bacteria in films and coatings allows them to reach the consumers gut in adequate amounts to confer health benefits to the host, thus creating an added value to the food product. Also, other microorganisms, either bacteria or yeast, can be incorporated into edible films in a biocontrol approach to extend the shelf life of food products. The incorporation of yeasts in films and coatings has been suggested primarily for the control of the postharvest disease. This work provides a comprehensive review of the use of edible films and coatings for the incorporation of living microorganisms, aiming at the biopreservation and probiotic ability of food products.Ana Guimaraes received support through grant SFRH/BD/ 103245/2014 from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). Luís Abrunhosa was supported by grant UMINHO/BPD/51/2015 from project UID/BIO/04469/2013 financed by FCT/MEC (OE). This study was supported by FCT under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684), and of BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER000004) funded by European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte. Vectors used in Figure were designed by Freepik.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Processing ‘Ataulfo’ Mango into Juice Preserves the Bioavailability and Antioxidant Capacity of Its Phenolic Compounds

The health-promoting effects of phenolic compounds depend on their bioaccessibility from the food matrix and their consequent bioavailability. We carried out a randomized crossover pilot clinical trial to evaluate the matrix effect (raw flesh and juice) of ‘Ataulfo’ mango on the bioavailability of its phenolic compounds. Twelve healthy male subjects consumed a dose of mango flesh or juice. Blood was collected for six hours after consumption, and urine for 24 h. Plasma and urine phenolics were analyzed by electrochemical detection coupled to high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC-ECD). Five compounds were identified and quantified in plasma. Six phenolic compounds, plus a microbial metabolite (pyrogallol) were quantified in urine, suggesting colonic metabolism. The maximum plasma concentration (Cmax) occurred 2–4 h after consumption; excretion rates were maximum at 8–24 h. Mango flesh contributed to greater protocatechuic acid absorption (49%), mango juice contributed to higher chlorogenic acid absorption (62%). Our data suggests that the bioavailability and antioxidant capacity of mango phenolics is preserved, and may be increased when the flesh is processed into juice

Added dietary fiber reduces the antioxidant capacity of phenolic compounds extracted from tropical fruit

The effect of dietary fiber (DF) from tropical fruits on the antioxidant capacity of phenolic compounds (PC) present in the same fruits was investigated. DF obtained from tropical fruits pulp (FDF) was incubated with methanolic extracts (ME) containing PC, at pH 2.5 and room temperature for 2 h. The total soluble phenols (TSP) content and antioxidant capacity (DPPH assay) were analyzed in the resulting supernatants. Results show that the addition of FDF significantly (p<0.05) decreased the antioxidant capacity of ME from 5-20%. Among the FDF, the mango fiber affected in higher extent the antioxidant capacity. Wheat dietary fiber (WDF) was used as control. The addition of WDF decreased significantly (p<0.05) the antioxidant capacity ranging from 23-45%. The bioactive compounds bioaccesibility was also reduced with both types of fiber, being the WDF the most effective to trapping the PC. This suggests that apparently some type of physic-chemical interaction between DF and PC are occurring consequently affecting the bioaccesibility and action of antioxidants

Effect of dietary fiber on the bioaccessibility of phenolic compounds of mango, papaya and pineapple fruits by an in vitro digestion model

The presence of dietary fiber (DF) in the food matrix of some tropical fruits plays an important role in the release and absorption of its bioactive compounds, such as phenolic compounds (PCs). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the DF fractions in mango cv. ‘Ataulfo’, papaya cv. ‘Maradol’ and pineapple cv. ‘Esmeralda’, on the bioaccessibility of their PCs and antioxidant capacity (AOXC) under an in vitro digestion model. The highest PCs content and AOXC was found in mango (274.30 mg GAE/100 g FW), followed by papaya (212 mg GAE//100 g FW), and pineapple (107.63 mg GAE/100 g FW), respectively. About 50% of the total PCs in all fruits was released at gastric phase, increasing closer to 60% at intestinal phase in mango and pineapple. However, the highest content of PCs associated to DF was found in mango (2.48 mg GAE/100 g FW) compared with papaya DF fractions (0.96 GAE/100 g FW) and pineapple (0.52 GAE/100 g FW). The presence of DF in mango, papaya and pineapple did not represent a major limitation on the bioaccessibility of its PCs according to the in vitro digestion model used in this study