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The dynamics of maturation index, water and oil concentrations, and total phenols in olive fruit, together with fatty acids and total phenols content in olive oil, was studied as a function of time after flowering for super-high-density 'Arbequina', 'Arbosana' and 'Koroneiki' using data collected in three seasons. Oil concentration increased linearly from the middle of August until reaching a plateau by the end of November for all three cultivars, with 'Koroneiki' (45.7 g/100 g) and 'Arbosana' (45.4 g/100 g) showing higher maximum oil concentration than 'Arbequina' (41.8 g/100 g). While total phenols in the fruit decreased linearly during the harvest for all three cultivars, phenolics in oil peaked at 180 days after flowering (400 mg/kg) for 'Arbequina' and at 160 days after flowering (600 mg/kg) for 'Koroneiki'. For 'Arbosana', total phenols in oil decreased linearly with a maximum of 400 mg/kg for early harvest oils. Fatty acid dynamics was largely affected by genotype, with 'Arbequina' displaying the largest variation in fatty acid concentrations along the season. 'Koroneiki' presented the highest values of oleic acid (73.0–77.1%), followed by 'Arbosana' (70.2–72.4%) and 'Arbequina' (64.4–74.0%). Results presented here are useful for growers to make planting and harvesting decisions, for producers to understand the differences in oil made from the most common super-high-density cultivars during the harvest seasons, and for regulators to consider legal standards for authentic olive oil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Estrogen-receptor-mediated signaling has been suggested to decrease the inflammatory response in monocyte macrophages. Previously, we showed that a novel selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM2) promotes anti-inflammatory phenotype of monocytes in vitro. In this study, we demonstrate the potential of SERM2 in amelioration of colitis. We utilized a dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis model in FVB/n mice to demonstrate the effects of orally administered SERM2 on the clinical status of the mice and the histopathological changes in the colon, as well as proportion of Mrc-1 positive macrophages. SERM2 nuclear receptor affinities were measured by radioligand binding assays. Orally administered, this compound significantly alleviated DSS-induced colitis in male mice and induced local estrogen receptor activation in the inflamed colon, as well as promoting anti-inflammatory cytokine expression and infiltration of anti-inflammatory monocytes. We show that this novel drug candidate has an affinity to estrogen receptors α and β and progesterone receptors, but not to glucocorticoid receptor, thus expressing unique binding properties compared to other sex steroid receptor ligands. These results indicate that novel drug candidates to alleviate inflammatory conditions of the colon could be found among sex steroid receptor activating compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]