Antioxidant properties and phenolic profiling by UPLC-QTOF-MS of Ajwah, Safawy and Sukkari cultivars of date palm

Date palm (P. dactylifera) plays a vital role in ethnomedicinal practices in several parts of the world. There are over 2000 cultivars of date palm that differ in chemical composition and extent of bioactivity. The present study was undertaken to comparatively evaluate the antioxidant potential of three cultivars of date palm (Ajwah, Safawy and Sukkari) from Saudi Arabia and analyze their phenolic constituents in order to draw a rationale for their activity. Antioxidant activities of the date cultivars were evaluated by different quantitative methods including 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydroxyl radical scavenging assay, total antioxidant capacity, reducing power, total phenolic (TPC), flavonoid (TFC) and tannin content (TTC), while qualitative phenolic composition was determined using ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadropole time of flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS). All the three date extracts showed good DPPH radical scavenging (IC50 103-177 mu g/mL) and hydroxyl radical scavenging (IC50 1.1-1.55 mg/mL) activity and total antioxidant capacity (IC50 87-192 mu g/mL). The reducing power was also comparable to that of ascorbic acid, used as standard in above experiments. All the three samples contain significant amount of major antioxidant components (phenolic, flavonoid and tannin) that successfully correlates with the results of radical scavenging assays. UPLC-QTOF-MS revealed a total of 22 compounds in these date cultivars classified into common phenolics, flavonoids, sterols and phytoestrogens. Significant variation in the degree of antioxidant activity of these three date cultivars can be attributed to the difference in the content and composition of phenolic compounds

Antidiabetic Potential of Commonly Available Fruit Plants in Bangladesh: Updates on Prospective Phytochemicals and Their Reported MoAs

Diabetes mellitus is a life-threatening disorder affecting people of all ages and adversely disrupts their daily functions. Despite the availability of numerous synthetic-antidiabetic medications and insulin, the demand for the development of novel antidiabetic medications is increasing due to the adverse effects and growth of resistance to commercial drugs in the long-term usage. Hence, antidiabetic phytochemicals isolated from fruit plants can be a very nifty option to develop life-saving novel antidiabetic therapeutics, employing several pathways and MoAs (mechanism of actions). This review focuses on the antidiabetic potential of commonly available Bangladeshi fruits and other plant parts, such as seeds, fruit peals, leaves, and roots, along with isolated phytochemicals from these phytosources based on lab findings and mechanism of actions. Several fruits, such as orange, lemon, amla, tamarind, and others, can produce remarkable antidiabetic actions and can be dietary alternatives to antidiabetic therapies. Besides, isolated phytochemicals from these plants, such as swertisin, quercetin, rutin, naringenin, and other prospective phytochemicals, also demonstrated their candidacy for further exploration to be established as antidiabetic leads. Thus, it can be considered that fruits are one of the most valuable gifts of plants packed with a wide spectrum of bioactive phytochemicals and are widely consumed as dietary items and medicinal therapies in different civilizations and cultures. This review will provide a better understanding of diabetes management by consuming fruits and other plant parts as well as deliver innovative hints for the researchers to develop novel drugs from these plant parts and/or their phytochemicals