Botany in molecular era: a modern science with ancient roots

Botany—the study of plant life—is an ancient science.[...

Plant neurobiology, a fascinating perspective in the field of research on plant secondary metabolites

In this Editorial, I comment on the exciting and original topic of plant neurobiology, focusing on natural products whose biosynthesis is shared by animal and plant organisms, i.e., indoleamines (melatonin and serotonin) and catecholamines (dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine)

Pulses, healthy, and sustainable food sources for feeding the planet

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Review on Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) and its important secondary metabolite diosgenin

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) is a medicinal plant used worldwide since ancient times. Its use as smelling agent and spice was documented since 15th century. The genus Trigonella includes around 260 species diffused worldwide and belonging to Fabaceae family. In the last decades, a number of studies highlighted the biological activities and therapeutic properties of this species mainly attributed to bioactive secondary metabolites such as alkaloids, flavonoids, steroids and saponins. In particular, diosgenin, a steroidal saponin, has been investigated for its medicinal uses and fenugreek has been reported as source of raw material for the production of steroidal hormones. This review article focuses on the cultivation, genetics, ecophysiology and traditional uses of fenugreek, as well as on its medicinal properties, phytochemical and nutrient contents. Extraction procedures and pharmacological activities of diosgenin are also reviewed, as well as methods for its chemical analyses. This review focuses on the medicinal importance of Fenugreek and its important secondary metabolite diosgenin. The review article complies the results of pre-clinical studies conducted to establish the various medicinal applications of diosgenin. This will help researcher to discover fundamental role of diosgenin as a potential product for drug manufacturers and use of fenugreek as a source of diosgenin

Is There any Relationship Between the Type of Alcoholic Beverage and Oral Cancer? : Focus on Red Wine in an European Perspective

Since decades, it has been suggested that regular, moderate consumption of red wine, a major component of Mediterranean diet, at main meals, may contribute to explain the healthy properties attributed to this traditional dietary style. Despite preclinical in vitro/in vivo data have shown many significant pharmacological activities of grape phytochemicals, mostly polyphenols, evidence in humans is still debated. This lack of consensus may be due to the equilibrium between the two main components of wine relevant for health: alcohol and phytochemicals. Because ethanol is a major risk factor in oral carcinogenesis, in this commentary, we briefly discuss the relationship between the type of alcoholic beverage and oral cancer in European countries

Discovery of unexpected sphingolipids in almonds and pistachios with an innovative use of triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry

The densely packed storage of valuable nutrients (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, micronutrients) in the endosperm of nuts and seeds makes the study of their complex composition a topic of great importance. Ceramides in the total lipid extract of some ground almonds and pistachios were searched with a systematic innovative discovery precursor ion scan in a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry, where iso-energetic collision activated dissociation was performed. Five descriptors were used to search components with different C18 long chain bases containing different structural motifs (d18:0, d18:1, d18:2, t18:0, t18:1). The presence of hexoside unit was screened with a specific neutral loss experiment under iso-energetic collision activated dissociation conditions. The discovery scans highlighted the presence of two specific hexosyl-ceramides with a modified sphingosine component (d18:2) and C16:0 or C16:0 hydroxy-fatty acids. The hexosyl-ceramide with the non-hydroxylated fatty acid seemed specific of pistachios and was undetected in almonds. The fast and comprehensive mass spectrometric method used here can be useful to screen lipid extracts of several more seeds of nutraceutical interest, searching for unusual and/or specific sphingosides with chemically decorated long chain bases

Impact of Cooking on Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Activity of Pigmented Rice Cultivars

Pigmented rice cultivars, namely Venere and Artemide, are a source of bioactive molecules, in particular phenolics, including anthocyanins, exerting a positive effect on cardiovascular systems thanks also to their antioxidant capacity. This study aimed to determine the total phenol index (TPI), total flavonoids (TF), total anthocyanins (TA) and in vitro antioxidant capacity in 12 batches of Venere cultivar and two batches of Artemide cultivar. The rice was cooked using different methods (boiling, microwave, pressure cooker, water bath, rice cooker) with the purpose to individuate the procedure limiting the loss of bioactive compounds. TPI, TF and TA were spectrophotometrically determined in both raw and cooked rice samples. Rice samples of Artemide cultivars were richer in TPI (17.7-18.8 vs. 8.2-11.9 g gallic acid/kg in Venere rice), TF (13.1 vs. 5.0-7.1 g catechin/kg rice for Venere rice) and TA (3.2-3.4 vs. 1.8-2.9 g Cy-3glc/kg for Venere rice) in comparison to those of Venere cultivar; as well, they showed higher antioxidant capacity (46.6-47.8 vs. 14.4-31.9 mM Trolox/kg for Venere rice). Among the investigated cooking methods, the rice cooker and the water bath led to lower and comparable losses of phenolics. Interestingly, the cooking water remaining after cooking with the rice cooker was rich in phenolics. The consumption of a portion of rice (100 g) cooked with the rice cooker with its own cooking water can supply 240 mg catechin and 711 mg cyanidin 3-O-glucoside for Venere rice and 545 mg catechin and 614 mg cyanidin 3-O-glucoside for Artemide rice, with a potential positive effect on health

Cardioprotective effects of moderate red wine consumption : Polyphenols vs. ethanol

Since decades, it has been suggested that regular, moderate consumption of red wine, a major component of Mediterranean diet, at main meals, may contribute to explain the healthy properties attributed to this traditional dietary style. Despite preclinical in vitro/in vivo data have shown a significant cardioprotective activity of grape phytochemicals, mostly polyphenols, evidence in humans is still debated. This lack of consensus may be due to the equilibrium between the two main components of wine relevant for health: ethanol and bioactive compounds or phytochemicals, which include not only polyphenols, but also newly detected molecules, such as melatonin and phytosterols. The state of art related to this delicate equilibrium represents the starting point for designing future clinical trials, in perspective of clinical recommendations. A better comprehension of the wine chemistry complexity with its major components embodies a pivotal issue in biomedicine, involving the fields of diet-related environmental medicine as well as chronomedicine. In this paper, we briefly reviewed putative beneficial effects of moderate red wine intake in humans, focusing on the reduction of cardiovascular risk

Moving to the field: Plant innate immunity in crop protection

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Tryptophan-ethylester, the false (unveiled) melatonin isomer in red wine

Among the food plants, the presence of melatonin in grapes (Vitis vinifera L.) deserves particular attention because of the production of wine, an alcoholic beverage of economic relevance and with putative healthy effects. Furthermore, melatonin isomers have been detected in wine too. Recently, one of these isomers has been identified as tryptophan-ethylester, a compound with the same molecular weight of melatonin. In this Commentary, we briefly comment the source(s) of tryptophan-ethylester in wine and the putative nutritional role(s)