Evolution of the anticholinesterase, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activity of Epilobium angustifolium L. infusion during in vitro digestion

Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium L.) has attracted attention due to its numerous biological activities. In the present work, we produced a polyphenol-rich freeze-dried infusion (407.02 ± 7.10 mg GAE/g) in order to measure, for the first time, the evolution of anticholinesterase activity during in vitro digestion. During the ‘gastric’ phase, there was an increase in the inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) activity followed by a decrease during the ‘small intestinal’ phase. A strong correlation between total polyphenolic content (TPC) and the anticholinesterase activity of the digested fluids was observed (r = 0.90 for TPC/AChE; r = 0.88 for TPC/BChE, p