Search

Fresh fruits, particularly berries, are rich in polyphenols. These bioactive compounds are important in the prevention of chronic inflammatory diseases. The present study aimed to assess polyphenol intake from fresh fruit in Portugal and the relative contribution of berries to overall intake, using an online semi quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Consumption of processed berry products was also studied. Mean fresh fruit consumption was 365.6 ± 8.2 g/day. Berries accounted for 9% of total fresh fruit intake, from which 80% were due to strawberries. Total polyphenol intake from fresh fruits was 783.9 ± 31.7 mg of Gallic Acid Equivalents (GAE) per day, from which 14% were from berries. Within berries, strawberries accounted for 11% of total polyphenol intake, with the other consumed berries accounting for 3% of the total polyphenol intake per day. Main reasons reported for relative low consumption of berries were market availability and price. The most consumed processed berry product was yogurt.

Thirteen species of wild edible plants belonging to 11 botanical families consumed in the traditional Mediterranean diet were evaluated. Sanguisorba minor, Quercus ballota and Sedum sediforme showed the highest hydrophilic total antioxidant activity (H-TAA) and total phenols. Asparagus acutifolius, Allium ampeloprasum, Foeniculum vulgare and Malva sylvestris presented high levels of potassium, Malva and Asparagus are interesting due to their zinc content, and Urtica urens contains a high content of calcium. Sensory analysis indicated that fruits from Q. ballota could be considered very sweet and plants of Crithmum maritimum and Oxalis pes-caprae are very acidic. Moreover, testers highlighted the salty taste of C. maritimum. Mesembryanthemum nodiflorum and Mesembryanthemum cristalinum, the spicy taste of A. ampeloprasum, and the aroma of F. vulgare. Our results indicate that increased consumption of the investigated plant species could provide health benefits. Moreover, due to their sensorial properties, they could be used as new ingredients to improve the diversity in modern diet and highly creative cuisine.

Wild edible plants (WEP), traditionally consumed in the Mediterranean diet, are considered a rich source of natural antioxidants but can also accumulate significant amount of nitrates. Most WEP are cooked before consumption, therefore, a study was conducted to evaluate the effects of boiling, steaming and microwave cooking processes on the total antioxidant activity (TAA) and nitrate content of eight common WEP. Boiling caused the highest losses of TAA, resulting in a reduction of the TAA on dry weight (DW) basis ranging from 5.5% in Beta vulgaris up to 100% in Urtica dioica. Steaming and microwaving produced the highest increase of TAA on DW basis in Helminthotheca echioides (249.7%) and Taraxacum officinale (60.7%). Boiling caused the highest reduction of nitrate content in all species excluding Asparagus acutifolius that maintained almost unvaried its already low nitrate content. These results suggest that cooking has not always negative effect on product quality, since in certain cases, it may even enhance the nutritional value of WEP by increasing their TAA and reducing the nitrate content.

This study was carried out to characterize phenolic compounds, carotenoids, vitamins and the antioxidant activity of selected wild edible plants. Plant extracts were purified, and phenolic compounds comprising 11 phenolic acids (hydroxybenzoic acid and hydrocinnamic acid) and 33 flavonoids (including catechin, glycosides and aglycones) were analysed using High Performance Liquid Chromatography - Diode Array Detector (HPLC-DAD). Furthermore, the contents of ascorbic acid and tocopherol ((α and γ tocopherol) and carotenoids (lutein and β-carotene) were also determined. The major phenolics identified consisted of glycosides of flavones (apigenin and luteolin) and flavonols (kaempferol and quercetin). Among the phenolic acids identified after hydrolysis, coumaric acid was the predominant phenolic acid in all the extracts of wild plants. Ascorbic acid [53.8 mg/100 g fresh weight (FW)] and β-carotene (656.5 mg/100 g FW) showed the highest content in the leaf of Heckeria umbellatum. In conclusion, the leaves of H. umbellatum, Aniseia martinicensis and Gonostegia hirta have excellent potential in the future to emerge as functional ingredients.

Proanthocyanidins (PA) or condensed tannins, a major group of oligomeric and polymeric dietary polyphenols, have an essential role on the organoleptic and health-related properties of plant foods. Their content is usually determined by HPLC analysis of aqueous-organic extracts. However, appreciable amounts of polymeric PA that remain in the residues of extraction usually are not considered for the analysis. A complete quantification of PA requires an additional determination of these non-extractable PA (NEPA). The objective of this work was to develop a new procedure to determine the content of NEPA, based in depolymerization by butanolysis, which yields anthocyanidin monomers and xanthylium compounds. Samples and standard are treated with butanol/HCl with FeCl₃ (100 °C, 60 min), and absorbances at 555 nm (anthocyanidins) and 450 nm (xanthylium compounds) are measured in the hydrolysates. NEPA content determined in some plant foods suggests that procedures based just on anthocyanidin concentration overestimate the actual content.

The multifunctional bioactive materials were prepared from Enteromorpha prolifera by enzyme-assisted extraction using four proteases and seven carbohydrases, and the biological activities of the enzyme-assisted extracts were evaluated as antioxidant, anti-acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and anti-inflammatory effect as the measures of inhibition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) production in RAW264.7 cells. The enzyme-assisted extracts were rich in polyphenols in the range 124 ± 4.2 to 844 ± 9.1 mg/100 g and flavonoids in the range 453 ± 6.0 to 675 ± 5.2 mg/100 g, and Protamex and Viscozyme extracts, which were rich in polyphenols and flavonoids, showed the highest 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging, hydrogen peroxide scavenging, ferrous ion chelating and reducing power. Flavourzyme extract (89.92%) and Promozyme extract (93.64%) showed the highest AChE inhibitory activities at the concentration of 1.0 mg/ml. All enzyme-assisted extracts showed no cytotoxic effect on RAW264.7 cells at the tested concentration and significantly inhibited the LPS-induced NO production in RAW264.7 cells.

The antioxidant activities and contents of total phenols of 33 plants were evaluated using the ferric-reducing antioxidant power assay and Folin-Ciocalteu method. Significant linear correlation between the antioxidant activity and total phenolic content was found. The results show that a number of Chinese medicinal and edible plants, especially Flos Caryophylli, are important raw materials of the antioxidant functional foods or ingredients.

Various vegetables were investigated for antioxidant activities in two assays, namely, inhibition of lysis of erythrocytes induced by peroxyl radicals and inhibition of lipid peroxidation. The lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn) rhizome showed the strongest antioxidant activity in both assays. The crude extract (L) of lotus rhizome was chromatographed on a macroporous adsorption resin named NKA. The resulting three fractions were designated L1, L2 and L3, respectively. L2 showed the highest antioxidant activity and was further fractionated by Sephadex LH-20 chromatography. Eight fractions were obtained and named from L2a to L2h, respectively. L2c showed the strongest activity in inhibiting hemolysis of erythrocytes and was further purified by high-performance liquid chromatography. L2c-3 was identified as tryptophan. Its inhibitory concentration of 50% (IC(50)) value in inhibiting hemolysis of erythrocytes was 156.3 microg/ml (i.e. 765.4 microM). This is the first report on isolation of tryptophan from the aqueous extract of lotus rhizome and demonstration of their antioxidant activities.

The present study was to investigate in vitro alpha-glucosidase, pancreatic alpha-amylase and protein glycation inhibitory activities of nine edible plants. The results indicated that total phenolics, flavonoids, and condensed tannins of nine edible plants showed marked variations, ranging from 12.2 to 80.1 mg gallic acid equivalent/g extract, 2.34 to 13.65 mg quercetin equivalent/g extract, and 97.2 to 460.1 mg catechin equivalent/g extract, respectively. Our findings showed that grape seed, Cat's whiskers and Sweetleaf extract were the most effective pancreatic alpha-amylase, intestinal maltase, and sucrase inhibitor with IC(50) values of 0.29 +/- 0.01 mg/ml, 0.97 +/- 0.10 mg/ml and 0.86 +/- 0.01 mg/ml, respectively. All extracts (1 mg/ml) markedly inhibited the glycation of bovine serum albumin in fructose-mediated non-enzyme glycation by 50-30% at week 1. It was found that Pennywort maintained the high percentage inhibition among those of the extracts during the 4 weeks of experiment. These edible plants may be used for controlling blood glucose level and prevention of the development of type 2 diabetes.

Adequate intake of fruits and vegetables as part of the daily diet may help prevent major diseases. Low fruit intake is a major risk factor for cancer, coronary heart disease and stroke. The World Health Organization recommends eating at least five portions of a variety of fruit, which is nearly 400 g/day. Essential nutrients, water, carbohydrates, oils and vitamins are needed in appropriate quantities in order to have a well-functioning body. In this study we try to carry out a food composition study to identify and determine the chemical nature of the organic and inorganic macro-nutrient and micro-nutrient properties of the main fruit types that affect human nature, by a biplot graphical approach. The biplot can be considered as multivariate equivalents of scatter plots that have been used for graphically analyzing bivariate data. Biplot approaches show a simultaneous display of fruits and nutrient components in low dimensions. In the present study, the theory of biplot and different types of biplot will be given and than an application of the biplot approach will be applied to the real data.

We evaluated the antiproliferative effect of aqueous extracts of 14 plant foods consumed in Mexico on the breast cancer cell line MCF-7. The plant foods used were avocado, black sapote, guava, mango, prickly pear cactus stems (called nopal in Mexico, cooked and raw), papaya, pineapple, four different cultivars of prickly pear fruit, grapes and tomato. β-Carotene, total phenolics and gallic acid contents and the antioxidant capacity, measured by the ferric reducing/antioxidant power and the 2,2-diphenyl-1,1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging assays, were analyzed in each aqueous extract. Only the papaya extract had a significant antiproliferative effect measured with the methylthiazolydiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide assay. We did not notice a relationship between the total phenolic content and the antioxidant capacity with antiproliferative effect. It is suggested that each extract of plant food has a unique combination of the quantity and quality of phytochemicals that could determine its biological activity. Besides, papaya represents a very interesting fruit to explore its antineoplastic activities.

The glycaemic index (GI) ranks foods according to their acute glycaemic impact and is used in planning meals for patients invoking glycaemic control through diet. Kurakkan (Eleusine coracana) flour roti, rice flour roti, atta flour roti, boiled breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis/Artocarpus communis) and boiled legumes (mungbean, cowpea and chickpea) were categorized as low-GI foods (relative to white bread; Prima Crust Top), and the corresponding GI (+/- standard error of the mean) values were 70+/-8, 69+/-7, 67+/-9, 64+/-7, 57+/-6, 49+/-8 and 29+/-5, respectively. Kurakkan flour pittu and wheat flour roti were classified as medium-GI foods with GI values of 85+/-6 and 72+/-6. Hoppers, rice flour pittu, wheat flour pittu and Olu-milk rice (seeds of Nymphaea lotus) were categorized as high-GI foods, and the corresponding GI (+/- standard error of the mean) values were 120+/-8, 103+/-7, 101+/-8 and 91+/-8, respectively. The GI values significantly (P<0.01) and negatively correlated with the insoluble dietary fibre (rho = - 0.780), soluble dietary fibre (rho = - 0.712) and protein (rho = - 0.738) contents in grams per 100 g digestible starch containing foods.

The potential of wild plants in Israel as sources of edible sprouts has not been investigated until now. Milk thistle (Silybum marianum L.) is native to the Mediterranean basin and is now widespread throughout the world; its young fleshy stems are traditionally eaten by the local Arab sector in Israel, and its sprouts are rich in antioxidants and have been used as a traditional medicine for diseases of the liver and biliary tract. The active extract of milk thistle, silymarin, is a mixture of flavonolignans and is a strong antioxidant that has been proved to promote liver cell regeneration, to reduce blood cholesterol and to help prevent cancer. The present objective was to investigate the potential of milk thistle as a source of edible sprouts rich in antioxidants. We found that seed germination within 3-4 days was high (96%, except for striated seeds). Exposure to light significantly reduced sprout growth and significantly increased the polyphenol content and antioxidative capacity. The polyphenol content was 30% higher in seeds originating from purple inflorescences than in those from white ones. We thus found milk thistle to be a good candidate source of healthy edible sprouts.

The newly emerging, tender juvenile shoots of bamboos that belong to the tribe Bambuseae, subfamily Bambusoideae of family Poaceae, are edible. Their rich content of amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and low fat content attracts many people to consume bamboo shoots. A study was conducted to determine the nutrient changes in emerging juvenile shoots of five commercially important bamboos. It was observed that whereas nutrient components of the shoots depleted in all the five species with ageing, the dietary fibre and moisture content were increased. Vitamins and mineral content also decreased in the older shoots. The present study indicates that the freshly emerging juvenile shoots are nutritionally superior to the older emerged shoots.

Antioxidants are important in protection against hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Polyphenols are potent antioxidants in plant foods, but their contribution to such protective effects is yet to be established. This study attempted to generate a database on the antioxidant activity (AOA) and phenolic content (PC) of some plant foods commonly consumed in India and to assess the contribution of the PC to their AOA. Plant foods belonging to different food groups such as cereals, legumes, oil seeds, oils, green leafy vegetables, other vegetables, spices, roots and tubers were analysed for AOA and PC. AOA was the highest in black pepper (0.43 mg food required for 50% inhibition of the coupled auto-oxidation of beta-carotene and linoleic acid in a mixture in vitro) and it had the highest PC (191 mg gallic acid equivalent/100 g food). The AOA (18.4 mg) as well as the PC (not detectable) were the lowest in sunflower oil. PC in oil seeds was higher than that in the oil, which could be due to the hydrophilic nature of phenolics and suggests the need for greater use of oil seeds than oils. A significant correlation was observed between the AOA and PC of the plant foods studied in general (r=-0.465), but the coefficient of correlation and determination were high only in spices (r=-0.86 and r2 =74%, respectively) and dehusked legumes (r=-0.65 and r2 = 42.2%, respectively). The results suggest that phenolics may contribute significantly to the AOA of some plant foods, such as spices and dehusked legumes.

To identify promising sources of antioxidants, some food and medicinal plants were studied for total phenolic contents and antioxidant activity. The leaves, bark and fruits of Terminalia arjuna, Terminalia bellerica, Terminalia chebula and Terminalia muelleri, the leaves and fruits of Phyllanthus emblica, and the seeds of Syzygium cumini were found to have high total phenolic contents (72.0-167.2 mg/g) and high antioxidant activity (69.6-90.6%). Leaves of Eucalyptusglobulus were a rich source of rutin, Moringa oleifera for kaempferol, aerial parts of Centella asiatica for quercetin, fruits of T. bellerica and T. chebula for gallic acid, and bark of T. arjuna, leaves and fruits of T. bellerica and bark, leaves and fruits of T. muelleri for ellagic acid.

The growing interest in the substitution of synthetic food antioxidants by natural antioxidants and in the health implications of antioxidants as nutraceuticals has fostered research on vegetable sources and the screening of raw materials for identifying antioxidants. Plant and plant products have been used as a source of medicine for a long time. Among the more important constituents of edible plant products, low molecular weight antioxidants are the most important species. It is known that consumption of fruits and vegetables is essential for normal health of human beings. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the total antioxidant activity of selected natural food materials by an in vitro method involving the measurement of oxidation of linoleic acid by fluorimetry. Among the food materials chosen for the present study, pomegranate peel gave the maximum antioxidant activity due to the presence of its high polyphenolic content. At a concentration of 60 ppm, pomegranate peel powder reduced lipid peroxidation by 65% in an in vitro assay.

Since the end of the American-Vietnamese War in 1975, more than 1.5 million refugees from Southeast Asia have resettled in the United States. Included among these displaced persons were the Hmong from Laos, a subsistence-based, shifting-cultivation, agricultural society. Hmong who resettled in urban areas have viewed vacant lots adjacent to urban dwellings as potential garden sites for production of familiar herbs and vegetables. In the present study exotic culinary and medicinal herbs grown by Hmong refugees in Sacramento, California were identified and analyzed for mineral composition. The herbs grown in these urban gardens were significant ingredients of Hmong recipes, and herb leaves, or infusions of steamed herb leaves were widely consumed as a component of pregnancy and post-partum diets. Six common species, Acorus gramineus, aff. Angelica, Dendranthema indicum, Eupatorium lindleyana, Sedum aff. sarmentosum, and Sedum aff. spectabile, were used in combination to season chicken. Polygonum odoratum, also widely cultivated, was used to season fish. Exotic culinary-medicinal species with highest mineral profiles included: Basella alba (Ca, Mg, Mn, Zn); Houttuynia cordata (Fe, Mg, Mn); Justica gendarussa (Ca, Mg, Zn); and Polygonum odoratum (Ca, Mg, Mn). While vacant lots sometimes are heavy metal contamination sites, we found no detectable levels of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, or lead in the samples analyzed.

Two rural settled Fulani villages, northeastern Nigeria, were surveyed for dietary practices and use of edible wild plants (n = 100 households). Commonly consumed species of edible wild barks, fruits, leaves, nuts, seeds, and tubers were analyzed for protein, fat, and carbohydrate and for minerals. Kuka bark (Adansonia digitata) given to infants to increase weight gain was high in fat, calcium, copper, iron, and zinc. Cediya (Ficus thonningii), dorowa (Parkia biglobosa) and zogale (Moringa oleifera) were good sources of protein and fat and excellent sources of calcium and iron or copper and zinc. Fruits, leaves, and nuts of aduwa (Balanites aegyptiaca) were widely used during the dry season and during drought. Edible wild species available during the wet season generally were inferior in energy and micronutrient mineral content compared to dry season plants. Fruits commonly eaten by children were poor sources of protein and minerals but rich in carbohydrate and fiber. Tsamiya seeds (Tamarindus indica) were good sources of zinc and used to make dawwa (porridge) commonly consumed during pregnancy. Kirya seeds (Prosopos africana) contained the highest zinc concentrations. Shiwaka leaves (Veronia colorate) consumed by pregnant women to increase breastmilk production and to expel intestinal worms, were high in fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, and were adequate sources of calcium.

Wild and cultivated fruits, leaves, nuts, seeds, spices and vegetables from southern Burkina Faso and Niamey, Niger, were analysed for their copper, iron, magnesium, manganese and zinc concentrations and compared to imported, exotic reference foods found within the study area. The species analysed covered a broad spectrum of local diet; 33 were wild and 16 were cultivated. The edible wild plants were often the highest in mineral concentrations. Five species analysed, exhibited consistently high mineral values, specifically, Adansonia digitata, Boerhavia diffusa, Cerathoteca sesamoides, Sclerocarya birrea and Xylopia sp. The latter was particularly high in zinc, an observation which suggests that there may be a solid rationale for local traditions which recommended its consumption during pregnancy and lactation. Respondents indicated that during times of drought, wild plants were not consumed in the volume they once were, due to changes of infrastructure and in famine relief programmes.