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A multistep enzymatic extraction method was compared with a conventional chemical extraction process to evaluate the phenolic content and antioxidant activity of highland barley (Z2, Zangqing 25; CHQK, Changheiqingke). The main phenolic compound extracted was (+)-catechin, followed by ferulic acid, p-coumaric acid, caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid. The multi-enzymatic digestion yielded a higher retrieval of (+)-catechin compared to the conventional chemical extraction procedure (P < 0.05). Compounds obtained from the multi-enzymatic digestion process exhibited significantly higher (P < 0.05) antioxidant activities determined by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and cellular antioxidant activity (CAA) when compared to chemical extracts. These results suggest that highland barley subjected to in vitro multi-enzymatic digestion exhibits a higher phenolic content and antioxidant activity than the chemical extraction, and this multi-enzymatic digestion coupled with the CAA assay may be a valuable tool to evaluate the antioxidant potential of wholegrains and fruits, as well as vegetables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citrus is a rich source of nutritive and bioactive compounds. Impact of fruit tissues and ripening stage on phytochemical profile, antioxidant capacity and antiproliferative activity was investigated in Citrus reticulata Blanco cv. Chachiensis (Chachi). Regardless of different ripening stage, peel had the highest contents of phenolics and flavonoids, strongest antioxidant activities resolved by PSC, ORAC and CAA assay and antiproliferative activities against MCF-7, HepG2 and SiHa cancer cell. Increased level of total phenolics, hesperidin and naringin, and elevated antioxidant capacities were detected in peel during maturity, whereas highest amount of nobiletin and strongest antiproliferative activities were explored in immature peel. In flesh the vitamin C content increased during ripening, while lower phenolic content, smallest ORAC value and weakest antiproliferative activity were resolved in mature flesh. The flavonoid content and antioxidant capacity in seed were comparable with flesh and relatively constant during ripening, suggesting seeds as a valuable source of flavonoid extraction for further utilization. The characteristic flavonoids, nobiletin, tangeretin, hesperetin and naringenin inhibited proliferation of SiHa, HepG2 and MCF-7 cell dose-dependently, thus suggesting their contribution and potential application. Results presented here provide the foundation for comprehensive utilization of phytochemicals in different parts of this medicinal and edible citrus fruit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comparative assessment of the phytochemical profiles and antioxidant activities of seven cultivars of Aloe was conducted to evaluate the potential health benefits of Aloe. Aloe arborescens contained the highest levels of phenolic content, total antioxidant capacity by the oxygen radical scavenging capacity assay and cellular antioxidant activity assay. Aloe vera showed the highest levels of flavonoid content and antioxidant capacity by the peroxyl radical scavenging capacity assay. Aloe greenii had the highest CAA value with a PBS wash before adding ABAP. There were no significant differences observed between Aloe arborescens and Aloe greenii. Aloin, aloe-emodin-8-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside, catechin, epicatechin, sinapic acid and chlorogenic acid were identified in Aloe samples by the HPLC analysis. Aloin, aloe-emodin-8-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside and catechin showed strong relationships with antioxidant activity. Significant levels of aloin, aloe-emodin-8-O-beta-D-glucopyranoside and catechin were determined in Aloe greenii, Aloe vera and Aloe saponaria, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The polysaccharides from Mactra veneriformis (MVPS) were degraded by controlled mild acid hydrolysis to produce active oligosaccharides. MVPS can easily be hydrolyzed by H 2 SO 4 or HCl. The hydrolyzing process was investigated in acid addition and reaction time by evaluating the producing content of reducing sugar. Hydrolysis with 1 M HCl to MVPS can generate a time-depended behavior that is mild and controllable. HPLC analysis monitored the change of oligosaccharides composition in hydrolyzing. Total nine oligosaccharides are recognizable in the HPLC profile, and their content showed a regular transformation in hydrolysis. Those nine ingredients were identified as glucooligosaccharides with DP from 1 to 7 by MS analysis. Antioxidant activities of the typical hydrolyzates as well as MVPs were further tested in assays of DPPH and hydroxyl radicals scavenging, and reducing power. It was found that HCl hydrolyzate exhibited stronger antioxidant effects than MVPS and H 2 SO 4 hydrolyzate due to its higher content of oligosaccharides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flaxseed (Linum usitatissimum L.) is well known for its health benefits and chemical composition. This study aimed to evaluate the dynamic changes caused by germination in vitamin C, phenolic compounds and antioxidant activities of flaxseed. It was observed that eight-day germination of flaxseed sprouts caused increases in phytochemical contents, that is 22.1-fold increase in vitamin C, 2.67-fold increase in phenolics and 5.48-fold increase in flavonoid contents as compare to initial concentration in flaxseeds on dry weight basis. The stimulation was also noted in the three identified phenolic acid ingredients including caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid and ferulic acid. Similarly, the total PSC and ORAC values of flax sprouts at day 8 increased by 3- to 4-folds compared to nongerminated flaxseeds. It is revealed that comparatively, 8-day germination of flax sprouts leads to a significant increase in vitamin C, phenolic constituents and total antioxidant activities than those of flaxseeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the in vitro gastrointestinal digestion of yerba mate extract on the cellular antioxidant activity (CAA) and cytotoxic and antiproliferative action toward HepG2 cells. The total reducing substances, isolated phenolic acids, total flavonoids and total antioxidant activity of the yerba mate extract decreased significantly after in vitro digestion. The digested extract promoted lower CAA and inhibition of HepG2 cell proliferation when compared to the non-digested extract ( P < 0.05). No significant difference was observed in the cytotoxicity assay. Dose–response correlations were found for both yerba mate extracts for CAA, antiproliferative activity and cytotoxicity. The simulated gastrointestinal digestion of yerba mate extract promoted a significant decrease in the phytochemical content, total antioxidant activity, CAA and inhibition of HepG2 cell proliferation. Nevertheless, digested yerba mate extract still has considerable CAA and antiproliferative activity, which merits further investigation in in vivo studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this investigation was to study the dynamic changes of ascorbic acid, tocopherols and their antioxidant activity of soya bean sprouts during germination. Results showed that the expression levels of genes related to biosynthesis of ascorbic acid and tocopherols dramatically increased during germination. The expression levels of most genes were up to the peak at day 3 and kept constantly until the end of germination. The contents of ascorbic acid, α-tocopherol, γ-tocopherol, δ-tocopherol and total tocopherols increased during soya bean sprouts germination and reached peak levels on day 5, of 74.42 ± 1.64 mg/100 g DW, 7.64 ± 0.13 mg/100 g DW, 15.84 ± 1.85 mg/100 g DW, 12.37 ± 1.06 mg/100 g DW, 35.85 ± 2.81 mg/100 g DW, respectively. The antioxidant activity of soya bean sprouts increased during germination and reached peak level on day 5 to 311.01 ± 49.01 μmol ASA equiv./100 g DW. Therefore, germination significantly increased the biosynthesis of ascorbic acid, tocopherols and antioxidant activity of soya bean sprouts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single-factor experiment and Box–Behnken design (BBD) were applied to optimize the ultrasound-assisted extraction of mulberry fruits polysaccharides (MFP). Under optimum conditions: ratio of water to raw material 40.25, extraction temperature 69 °C, ultrasonic power 190 W and extraction time 75 min, the MFP yield was 3.13% (±0.07%), in accordance to the predicted value of 3.04%. The mulberry fruits polysaccharides fractions was obtained by deproteinization (MFP-1), followed by decolorization and deionization (MFP-2). Carbohydrate content in MFP, MFP-1 and MFP-2 was 58.61% (±1.47%), 69.98% (±0.91%), 81.18% (±1.29%), as well as proteins was estimated 16.50% (±0.86%), 1.57% (±0.63%), 1.02% (±0.18%), respectively. The FT-IR indicated that MFP, MFP-1 and MFP-2 were acidic polysaccharides. The MFP-1 exhibited the strongest antioxidant activity, while MFP-2 showed the strongest hyperglycemic activity in vitro . This may be caused by their different compositions and physical properties in the different mulberry fruit polysaccharides fractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on the antioxidant activity of fresh apples. Use on Vitamin C as a dietary supplement because of its antioxidant activities; Study that shows that 100 grams of fresh apples has an anti-oxidant activity equivalent to 1,500 milligrams of vitamin C and that whole apple extracts inhibit the growth of cancer cells in-vitro in a dose-dependent manner; Results indicating the anti-oxidants in fresh fruit could be more effective than a supplement.

Water-soluble polysaccharides from Prunella vulgaris Linn ( P. vulgaris ) were fractionated using DEAE-Sepharose fast-flow column to obtain several eluents of water (PV-P1), 0.1 M NaCl (PV-P2) and 0.2 M NaCl (PV-P3). Structural analyses showed that PV-P1 had a higher molecular weight and degree of branching as compared to PV-P2 and PV-P3. Tertiary structure analyses indicated that PV-P1, PV-P2 and PV-P3 did not have triple-helical conformation. PV-P2 and PV-P3 showed stronger antioxidant activities than PV-P1, as measured radical scavenging capacities. PV-P1 showed stronger immunomodulatory activities than PV-P2 and PV-P3 in term of stimulation of the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells. PV-P1, PV-P2 and PV-P3 did not exhibit cytotoxicities against RAW 264.7 at the concentrations tested. These results suggest that P. vulgaris polysaccharides could be explored as potential antioxidant and immunomodulatory agents for the complementary medicine or functional foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mammalian cells are able to sense environmental oxidative and genotoxic conditions such as the environmental low-dose ionizing radiation (LDIR) present naturally on the earth’s surface. The stressed cells then can induce a so-called radioadaptive response with an enhanced cellular homeostasis and repair capacity against subsequent similar genotoxic conditions such as a high dose radiation. Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), a primary mitochondrial antioxidant in mammals, has long been known to play a crucial role in radioadaptive protection by detoxifying O 2 •− generated by mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. In contrast to the well-studied mechanisms of SOD2 gene regulation, the mechanisms underlying posttranslational regulation of MnSOD for radioprotection remain to be defined. Herein, we demonstrate that cyclin D1/cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4) serves as the messenger to deliver the stress signal to mitochondria to boost mitochondrial homeostasis in human skin keratinocytes under LDIR-adaptive radioprotection. Cyclin D1/CDK4 relocates to mitochondria at the same time as MnSOD enzymatic activation peaks without significant changes in total MnSOD protein level. The mitochondrial-localized CDK4 directly phosphorylates MnSOD at serine-106 (S106), causing enhanced MnSOD enzymatic activity and mitochondrial respiration. Expression of mitochondria-targeted dominant negative CDK4 or the MnSOD-S106 mutant reverses LDIR-induced mitochondrial enhancement and adaptive protection. The CDK4-mediated MnSOD activation and mitochondrial metabolism boost are also detected in skin tissues of mice receiving in vivo whole-body LDIR. These results demonstrate a unique CDK4-mediated mitochondrial communication that allows cells to sense environmental genotoxic stress and boost mitochondrial homeostasis by enhancing phosphorylation and activation of MnSOD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastrodin (GAS), an active constituent of the Chinese herbal medicine Tianma, has anti-oxidant and anti-inflammation activities but its protective effect to the prevention of neurotoxicity induced by ischemic stroke is unclear. In the present study, middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) was used to establish a mice ischemic stroke model. Infarct volume ratio and neurobehavioral score were evaluated, Nissl staining was performed and the expression of cleaved Caspase 3, Bax and B cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) were assessed at 24 h or 7 days after reperfusion. In addition, the total superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) content, as well as the expression of Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), SOD1, phospho-Akt and total Akt and TNF-α and IL-1β in the ischemic hemispheres were also observed at 6 h after reperfusion to assess oxidative stress and inflammatory changes after GAS treatment. It was found that GAS, especially at high dose (100 mg/kg) reduced tested neuronal injury and neurobehavioral deficient in MCAO mice. Enhanced expression of cleaved Caspase 3 and Bax and decreased expression of Bcl-2 by MCAO were also reversed by GAS. Moreover, GAS treatment decreased the MDA content and the expression of TNF-α and IL-1β, and increased amount of SOD activity and the expression of HO-1 and SOD1 in GAS-treated ischemic brain. Furthermore, GAS significantly increased Akt phosphorylation and Nrf2 expression. These results support the neuroprotective effects of GAS, and the activation of Akt/Nrf2 pathway may play a critical role in the pharmacological action of GAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the antioxidant activity of a tropical fruit juice and its antiproliferative and antimutagenic effects. The antioxidant activity was determined by several different methods, such as ORAC, ABTS, PSC (peroxyl radical scavenging capacity) and CAA (cellular antioxidant activity). The total of phenolics and flavonoids were determined, and the phenolic compounds were identified by LC-DAD-ESI-MS. The juice showed high total phenolic and flavonoid contents (838.44 ± 30.27 g GAE/100 g and 219.45 ± 12.27 mg CE/100 g DW, respectively). According to the PSC, CAA, ABTS and ORAC assays, the tropical fruit juice showed a high antioxidant value of 308.39 ± 3.10 μM AEE/100 g, 26.76 ± 4.47 μM QE/100 g, 167.17 ± 4.10 μM TE/g DW and 235.90 ± 11.90 μM TE/g DW, respectively. The proliferation of HepG 2 was significantly inhibited, in a dose-dependent manner, by exposure to the tropical fruit juice. Antimutagenic activity was investigated by micronucleous test in mice, and all doses evaluated (30, 100 and 300 mg/kg b.w.) showed beneficial effects. As a consequence, these results encourage further studies on the pharmacological and functional properties of this tropical fruit juice, in order to evaluate its use as a functional food, due to its beneficial health properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increased consumption of vegetables or plant food has been associated with decreased risk of developing major chronic diseases, such as cancers, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and age-related functional decline. Ramie leaves are rich in phenolics and flavonoids, which have been suggested for human health benefits. Phenolic contents, flavonoid contents, phenolic compounds, and anti-cancer properties in six species of ramie leaves were analyzed by Folin-reagent method, sodium borohydride/chloranil-based assay (SBC), HPLC method and antiproliferation, cytoxicity, respectively. Antioxidant activities were measured through peroxyl radical scavenging capacity (PSC) method, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) method, and cellular antioxidant activity (CAA). Research indicated that Boehmeria penduliflora contained the highest total phenolic content (2313.7±27.28 mg GAE/100 g FW), and flavonoid content (1682.4±27.70 mg CAE/100 g FW). Boehmeria tricuspis showed the highest PSC value (9574.8±117.63 µM vit. C equiv./100 g FW), while Boehmeria penduliflora indicated the highest ORAC value (330.44±16.88 µmol Trolox equiv./g FW). The antioxidant activities were correlated with phenolic contents and flavonoid contents. Boehmeria tricuspis had the highest antiproliferative capacity with the lowest EC50 (4.11±0.19 mg/mL). The results for the analyzed ramie for CAA were significantly different from each other (p<0.05), Boehmeria tricuspis had the highest CAA value (133.63±7.10 µmol QE/100 g). Benzoic acid, 4-coumaric acid, caffeic acid, and ferulic acid were the dominant phenolic ingredients in the ramie leaves according to HPLC analysis. Our research is the first report to study the phytochemical profiles and antioxidant activities in different species of ramie leaves for their health benefit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grapes are rich in phytochemicals with many proven health benefits. Phenolic profiles, antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of twenty-four selected Vitis vinifera grape cultivars were investigated in this study. Large ranges of variation were found in these cultivars for the contents of total phenolics (95.3 to 686.5 mg/100 g) and flavonoids (94.7 to 1055 mg/100 g) and antioxidant activities (oxygen radical absorbance capacity 378.7 to 3386.0 mg of Trolox equivalents/100 g and peroxylradical scavenging capacity14.2 to 557 mg of vitamin C equivalents/100 g), cellular antioxidant activities (3.9 to 139.9 µmol of quercetin equivalents/100 g without PBS wash and 1.4 to 95.8 µmol of quercetin equivalents /100 g with PBS wash) and antiproliferative activities (25 to 82% at the concentrations of 100 mg/mL extracts).The total antioxidant activities were significantly correlated with the total phenolics and flavonoids. However, no significant correlations were found between antiproliferative activities and total phenolics or total flavonoids content. Wine grapes and color grapes showed much higher levels of phytochemicals and antioxidant activities than table grapes and green/yellow grapes. Several germplasm accessions with much high contents of phenolics and flavonoids, and total antioxidant activity were identified. These germplasm can be valuable sources of genes for breeding grape cultivars with better nutritional qualities of wine and table grapes in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phenolics including flavonoids are suggested to be the major bioactive compounds contributing to the health benefits of fruits and vegetables. The objective of the study was to determine the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), peroxyl radical scavenging capacity (PSC), cellular antioxidant activity (CAA) and antiproliferative properties of selected cerrado fruits named gabiroba (Campomanesia cambessedeana Berg), murici (Byrsonoma verbascifolia Rich) and guapeva (Pouteria guardneriana Radlk). Gabiroba fruit showed the highest amount of total phenolics (851.0±40.7mg/100g fruit) and the highest antioxidant activity for both the performed assays (ORAC 8027.5±378.6μmol TE/100g fruit and PSC 2342.5±48.1μmol AAE/100g fruit). Gabiroba fruit and the pulp of guapeva had the highest antiproliferative capacity with the lowest EC50 40.7±4.8mg/mL and 37.9±2.2mg/mL, respectively. The results for the analyzed fruits for CAA were not significantly different from each other (p<0.05) (murici 41.3±17.8; gabiroba 33.9±18.8 and the pulp of guapeva 23.3±4.2μmol quercetin/100g fruit). More than 30 phenolic compounds in the pulp of guapeva, gabiroba and murici extracts were identified in the present study using ESI–TOF-MS. These results characterized for the first time the functional activity of selected Brazilian fruits and demonstrated the importance of these fruits from cerrado biome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a major cause of dementia in the elderly with no effective treatment. Accumulation of amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) in the brain, one of the pathological features of AD, is considered to be a central disease-causing and disease-promoting event in AD. In this study, we showed that feeding male AβPP/PS1 transgenic mice, a well established mouse model of AD, with a diet containing phenolic antioxidant tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) dramatically reduced brain Aβ load with no significant effect on the amounts of alpha- and beta-C-terminal fragments or full-length AβPP. Further studies showed that TBHQ diet inhibited the expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), a protease inhibitor which plays a critical role in brain Aβ accumulation in AD, accompanied by increases in the activities of tissue type and urokinase type plasminogen activators (tPA and uPA) as well as plasmin. Moreover, we showed that TBHQ diet increased the expression of low density lipoprotein related protein-1, a multi ligand endocytotic receptor involved in transporting Aβ out of the brain, and plasma Aβ(40) and Aβ(42) levels. We also showed that TBHQ diet increased the concentration of glutathione, an important antioxidant, and suppressed the expression of NADPH oxidase 2 as well as lipid peroxidation. Collectively, our data suggest that TBHQ may have therapeutic potential for AD by increasing brain antioxidant capacity/reducing oxidative stress level and by stimulating Aβ degradation/clearance pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The phytochemical content and antioxidant activity of six diverse varieties of whole wheat are reported. The free phenolic content ranged from 255 (KanQueen) to 499 (Roane)μmol gallic acid equivalents/100g DW. The bound phenolic content ranged from 582 (Roane) to 662 (Cham1) μmol gallic acid equivalents/100g DW. The bound fraction contributed 53.8–69.7% of the total phenolic content of the wheat varieties analysed. Ferulic acid was the predominant phenolic acid found in whole wheat. Total ferulic acid content ranged from 310.8 (Caledonia) to 496.1 (KanQueen)μmol ferulic acid/100g DW. The percentage of ferulic acid found in the insoluble-bound fraction ranged from 87.4% (Caledonia) to 97.2% (KanQueen). Other phenolic acids, p-coumaric acid, syringic acid, vanillic acid, and caffeic acid were also detected. Lutein was the predominant carotenoid found in the whole wheat varieties analysed. Zeaxanthin, β-carotene, and β-cryptoxanthin were also detected. Mainly α- and β-tocopherols and α- and β-tocotrienols were found in all varieties of whole wheat though γ-tocopherol was detected in all but two varieties. β-Tocotrienol was the predominant form of vitamin E found in all varieties of whole wheat. The antioxidant activity was assessed using the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay. The ORAC of the free fraction ranged from 1958 to 3749μmol Trolox equivalents/100g DW. The ORAC of the bound fraction ranged from 3190 to 5945μmol Trolox equivalents/100g DW. Total phenolic content was correlated with oxygen radical absorbance capacity (R 2 =0.810; p <0.001). The phytochemicals found in whole grains may be responsible for the health benefit of whole grain consumption. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Quantitative analysis of 21 microbial metabolites of (epi)catechin was performed. • The antioxidant activities of 12 metabolites were evaluated. • C-ring opened significantly increased the antioxidant activities of (epi)catechin. • Dehydroxylation at the C-3′ or C-4′ mostly deprived their antioxidant activity. The changes in DPPH radical-scavenging capability of catechin and epicatechin during 24 h incubation with fecal microbiota in vitro and the targeted analysis of the characteristic metabolites by using UPLC-Q-TOF indicated that increase in antioxidant activity was synchronous with the accumulation of C-ring cleavage metabolites. Therefore, C-ring cleavage metabolite, 1-(3′,4′-Dihydroxyphenyl)-3-(2′′,4′′,6′′-trihydroxyphenyl)propan-2-ol (3,4-DHPP-2-ol), was separated from incubation liquid. The antioxidant activities of this metabolite and other 11 metabolites were examined through DPPH and ABTS free radical scavenging capacity and ferric reducing antioxidant capability (FRAC). The results indicated that all metabolites with the structure of 3′,4′-dihydroxylated had high antioxidant activity, especially 3,4-DHPP-2-ol, whose EC 50 was 5.97 μM in DPPH assay, 2 times as high as that of catechin, and 1.8 times as high as that of epicatechin. But the metabolites with the structure of monohydroxylated or unhydroxylated on the benzene ring hardly exhibited antioxidant activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ramie (Boehmeria nivea L.) is usually cultivated as a fiber crop, but it is also well known for its potential use in animal feeding with viable commercial applications. In this study, the phenolics profile as well as cellular antioxidant and antiproliferative activities were investigated in free and bound fractions of six different vegetative parts from Boehmeria nivea L. The highest total phenolic content was observed in bud (4585 ± 320 mg GAE/100 g DW), whereas root and petiole had the lowest total phenolic contents, 442.8 ± 9.8 and 630.9 ± 27.0 mg GAE/100 g DW, respectively. Likewise, phloem had the most abundant total flavonoids (2755 ± 184 mg CE/100 g DW), whereas the lowest flavonoid contents was found in root and petiole, 636.9 ± 44.2 and 797.4 ± 87.6 mg CE/100 g DW, respectively. Xylem and bud depicted remarkable antioxidant and antiproliferative activities, which could be explained by their diverse phenolic composition, especially chlorogenic acid and epicatechin. The Boehmeria nivea L. plant might be a valuable resource for high value-added phenolic compounds used in food and non-food industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to evaluate phenolics, flavonoids, total and cellular antioxidant activity (CAA), antioxidant capacity in ear sections of sweet corn. Corn cob and mature corn silk showed the highest contents of total phenolics and flavonoids (p < 0.05), respectively. Gallic acid and ferulic acid were the main free and bound phenolics in each ear part of corn, respectively (p < 0.05). Corn resident (CR) had a dominant role in total antioxidant activity and cellular antioxidant activity (CAA) (p < 0.05). Considering all the antioxidant properties, CR showed the best performance. The content of ferulic acid was correlated closely with CAA (R2 = 0.898, p < 0.05) and total antioxidant capacity (R2 = 0.971, p < 0.05), and total antioxidant capacity was also connected tightly with total phenolics (R2 = 0.886, p < 0.05). The results of this investigation were significant to enhance recognition and application of ear sections in food industry. Practical applications: Sweet corn is widely cultivated in Asia, America, and other regions for fresh or industrial food because of high sugar, dietary fiber, and vitamins. However, there is no systematic assay on ear sections of sweet corn concerning antioxidant evaluation. The study investigated phytochemical profiles and antioxidant capacity in ear sections of sweet corn systematically, and made a comprehensive comparison of them combined with correlation analysis. The results indicated that ear sections of sweet corn, not only kernels, demonstrated high antioxidant capacity. Ear sections show promising potential application in food industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]