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Legumes and pulses are important food components with various phytochemicals and health benefits. However, the health-related bioactivities of some underutilized species remain uninvestigated. To breed a new bean lineage with particular health-related properties, this study investigated phenolics (specifically, isoflavones) and the in vitro inhibitory activities of the enzyme relevant to some non-communicable diseases in underutilized cultivars of Phaseolus lunatus (lima beans), compared to the commonly consumed P. vulgaris (red kidney bean) and beans in the Glycine and Vigna genera. The results indicated that soybeans in the Glycine genus contained the highest isoflavone contents, especially glycitein (1825–2633 mg/100 g bean) and daidzein (1153–6471 mg/100 g bean), leading to potentially higher enzyme inhibitory activities (25–26% inhibition against α-amylase, 54–60% inhibition against α-glucosidase, 42–46% inhibition against dipeptidyl peptidase IV, 12–19% inhibition against acetylcholinesterase and 20–23% inhibition against butyrylcholinesterase) than those from other genera. Interestingly, lima beans with low isoflavone content (up to 2 mg/100 g bean) still possessed high inhibitory activities against lipase (12–21% inhibition) and β-secretase (50–58% inhibition), suggesting that bioactive compounds other than the isoflavones might be responsible for these activities. Isoflavone contents and enzyme inhibitory activities in Vigna beans were diverse, depending on the particular cultivars. The information gained from this study can be used for further investigation of bioactive components and in-depth health properties, as well as for future breeding of a new lineage of bean with specific health potentials.

Legumes and pulses are nutrient-dense foods providing a good source of protein, complex carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and bioactive compounds. To breed a new lineage of beans with specific nutritional and health beneficial purposes, more information on original lineage beans must be obtained. However, data concerning the nutritive compositions, total phenolic contents (TPCs), and health benefits regarding the antioxidant potentials of some original lineage beans in Thailand remain scarce, causing difficulty in decisional selection to breed a new lineage. Thus, this study aimed to examine the nutritional values (proximate compositions, vitamins, and minerals), TPCs, and antioxidant activities of ten original lineage bean cultivars in Glycine, Phaseolus, and Vigna genera from Genebank, Department of Agriculture (DOA), Thailand. The results indicated that beans in the Glycine genus potentially provided higher energy, protein, fat, and calcium contents than other genera, while the Phaseolus genus tended to provide higher carbohydrate and dietary fiber. Specifically, lima bean cultivar ‘38’ exhibited high vitamin B1, and red kidney bean cultivar ‘112’ exhibited high potassium content. Beans in the Vigna genus exhibited high TPCs and antioxidant activities. However, their nutritional compositions were markedly varied. The results of this work could support bean consumption as a feasible alternative diet and be used as a reference for future bean breeding (within the same genera) of a new lineage with particular nutritional requirements and health potentials.

Hodgsonia heteroclita subsp. Indochinensis W.J.de Wlide & Duyfjes (or Making in Thai) is a neglected and underutilized crop (NUC) with high fat containing nuts. In this study, the enzyme-assisted mechanical extraction of H. heteroclita seed oil was investigated using response surface methodology (RSM) to predict the optimal fat extraction conditions. The most efficient enzyme used in the experiment was a mixture of Flavourzyme® and Viscozyme® (1:1, w/w). The predicted maximum oil yield was 46.44%, using the following extraction conditions: 2.98% (w/w) enzyme loading, 48 °C incubation temperature and 76 min of incubation time. H. heteroclita seed oil obtained from heat and enzymatic pretreatments exhibited the highest lightness and viscosity. The chemical properties of this seed oil, including water and volatile compounds (≤0.2% w/w), acid value (≤4.0 mg KOH/g), peroxide value (≤15 mEq of active oxygen/kg) and soap content (≤0.005% w/w), were within the acceptable levels specified by the Codex Alimentarius (2019). H. heteroclita seed oil obtained from heat and enzymatic pretreatments contained the highest content of δ-tocopherol (88.29 mg/100 g) and omega-6 fatty acids (48.19 g/100 g). This study is the first to report on the enzyme-assisted mechanical extraction of H. heteroclita oilseeds as a promising plant material for vegetable oil production.

Adenia viridiflora Craib. is an indigenous plant found in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam that has become threatened owing to lack of knowledge about its agricultural management. This plant is now rare in the wild and was registered in the Plant Genetic Conservation Project under the initiation of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn (RSPG) to promote sustainable conservation and optimally beneficial utilization. A. viridiflora has a long history of utilization as a nutrient-rich source with medicinal properties but scientific evidence of the veracity of these claims is limited. Here, the nutritional compositions, phenolic contents and antioxidant activities of different plant parts (young shoots and old leaves) of A. viridiflora were investigated using plants collected from four areas of Thailand as Kamphaeng Phet (KP), Muang Nakhon Ratchasima (MN), Pakchong Nakhon Ratchasima (PN) and Uthai Thani (UT) at different harvesting periods (March-April, May–June and July–August). Results indicated that young shoots provided higher energy, protein, fat, dietary fiber, phosphorus, sodium, and zinc than old leaves. By contrast, nutrients such as total sugar, vitamin C, carotenoids, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and iron contents were higher in old leaves that also exhibited higher phenolic contents and most antioxidant activities than young shoots. Generally, most nutrients, phenolic contents, and antioxidant activities exhibited no clear trend among different plant origins. The harvesting period of July–August provided a suitable climate for biosynthesis of most nutrients, while high phenolics were mainly found in samples harvested in March–April. No clear trend was observed in the prevalence of antioxidant activities that varied according to assay techniques.

Fermented tea (Cha-miang in Thai) is a local product made by traditional food preservation processes in Northern Thailand that involve steaming fresh tea leaves followed by fermenting in the dark. Information on changes in nutritive values, bioactive compounds, antioxidant activities, and health properties that occur during the steaming and fermenting processes of tea leaves is, however, limited. Changes in nutritive values, phenolics, antioxidant activities, and in vitro health properties through inhibition of key enzymes that control obesity (lipase), diabetes (&alpha, amylase and &alpha, glucosidase), hypertension (angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE)), and Alzheimer&rsquo, s disease (cholinesterases (ChEs) and &beta, secretase (BACE-1)) of fermented tea were compared to the corresponding fresh and steamed tea leaves. Results showed that energy, carbohydrate, and vitamin B1 increased after steaming, while most nutrients including protein, dietary fiber, vitamins (B2, B3, and C), and minerals (Na, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, and Zn) decreased after the steaming process. After fermentation, energy, fat, sodium, potassium, and iron contents increased, while calcium and vitamins (B1, B2, B3, and C) decreased compared to steamed tea leaves. However, the contents of vitamin B1 and iron were insignificantly different between fresh and fermented tea leaves. Five flavonoids (quercetin, kaempferol, cyanidin, myricetin, and apigenin) and three phenolic acids (gallic acid, caffeic acid, and p-coumaric acid) were identified in the tea samples. Total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activities increased significantly after steaming and fermentation, suggesting structural changes in bioactive compounds during these processes. Steamed tea exhibited high inhibition against lipase, &alpha, amylase, and &alpha, glucosidase, while fermented tea possessed high anti-ChE and anti-ACE activities. Fresh tea exhibited high BACE-1 inhibitory activity. Results suggest that tea preparations (steaming and fermentation) play a significant role in the amounts of nutrients and bioactive compounds, which, in turn, affect the in vitro health properties. Knowledge gained from this research will support future investigations on in vivo health properties of fermented tea, as well as promote future food development of fermented tea as a healthy food.

We compared the colonization of lactobacilli in the stomachs of mice fed nonpurified and purified diets and examined to determine whether the expression of Toll-like receptor 2, which is involved in the recognition of lactobacilli, is influenced by diet. Female BALB/c mice were fed a nonpurified or a purified diet for 2 weeks. Conventional cultivation and cultivation-independent molecular biological analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that the number of lactobacilli associated with the gastric tissue was significantly higher in the mice fed the nonpurified diet than in those fed the purified diet. Sequencing analysis indicated that L. gasseri and L. johnsonii were predominant Lactobacillus species associated with the gastric tissue of the mice fed the nonpurified diet. The mRNA levels of Toll-like receptor 2, but not of 9, in the gastric tissue were significantly higher in the mice fed the purified diet than in those fed the nonpurified diet. We propose that nonpurified and purified diets have different impacts on gastric microbiota, which can in turn influence the expression of Toll-like receptor 2 in the stomach.