Phenotypic divergence in vegetable amaranth for total antioxidant capacity,antioxidant profile,dietary fiber,nutritional and agronomic traits

A lot of variations in vegetable amaranth germplasm have been observed in Bangladesh. It has been used as a cheap source of antioxidants, nutrients, protein, and dietary fiber. But no efforts had not been taken to know the status of antioxidant content, polyphenol, flavonoid, antioxidant vitamins and minerals, dietary fiber, nutritional and agronomic traits. In this study, Forty-three vegetable amaranth genotypes were evaluated to determine the status of total antioxidant content, polyphenol, flavonoid, antioxidant vitamins and minerals, dietary fiber, nutritional and agronomic traits and the magnitude of genetic diversity based on the contribution of those traits for meaningful grouping and proper utilization in future breeding program. The experiment was carried out in an open experimental field at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Bangladesh in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Multivariate (Principal component and cluster) analysis was done using numerical taxonomic techniques of Sneath, & Sokal. Four principal components contributed 98.61% of the variation. Biological yield and total antioxidant content was strongly associated with their related all agronomic traits. Total flavonoid content had a higher contribution to total antioxidant capacity compared to vitamin and mineral antioxidants. Contribution of antioxidant profile and agronomic traits was the highest in diversity of vegetable amaranth. Both high and low yielding genotypes had a high antioxidant profile. Therefore, high yielding genotypes (From cluster VI) could be used directly as high antioxidant profile varieties and low yielding genotypes as a source of donor parents in hybridization program. Cluster analysis grouped the genotypes into six clusters. The diverse genotypes in different clusters were identified. Genotypes with desirable genes of one cluster hybridized with promising genotypes of other diverge clusters could facilitate the accumulation of favorable genes in hybrids.

Abbreviations: PCA: principal component analysis; PC: principal component; dw: dry weight; TFC: total flavonoid content; TAC: total antioxidant capacity; TPC: total polyphenol content; K: potassium; Ca: calcium; Mg: magnesium; Fe: iron; Mn: manganese; Cu: copper; Zn: zinc     

Recovery of antioxidant activity from carnosol quinone: antioxidants obtained from a water-promoted conversion of carnosol quinone

Carnosol is one of the main antioxidants in sage and rosemary. Although carnosol quinone is the antioxidation product of carnosol and has a very weak antioxidant activity, its treatment in water-containing solvent restored its strong antioxidant activity. HPLC analysis of the water-stimulated recovery reaction of the antioxidant activity revealed that the strong activity was due to the reproduced carnosol. The analysis also showed that an almost equal amount of quinone derivatives of rosmanol (rosmanol quinone) was produced in the reaction along with the carnosol. The rosmanol was formed by the addition of 1 equiv of water and the following isomerization from carnosol quinone in the water-containing solvent. The formed rosmanol was also found to be oxidized by the remaining carnosol quinone to produce rosmanol quinone. At the same time, carnosol quinone was reduced to afford carnosol. This redox phenomenon is an important part of the mechanism for the recovery of the antioxidant activity from carnosol quinone under the water-containing conditions.     

Botanical origin and chemical composition of Brazilian propolis

Brazilian propolis has been classified into 12 groups based on physicochemical characteristics: five in the southern Brazil group (group 3), one in the southeastern Brazil group (group 12), and six in the northeastern Brazil group (group 6). The plant origins of these groups were investigated using reversed-phase high-performance thin-layer chromatography (RPHPTLC), reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RPHPLC), and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). It was concluded that the origins of propolis group 3, group 6, and group 12 are resins of the poplar tree, Hyptis divaricata, and Baccharis dracunculifolia, respectively.     

Optimized extraction procedure for quantifying norisoprenoids in honey and honey food products

Norisoprenoids appear as promising compounds for authenticating unifloral honeys. So far, however, no method has been optimized for their isolation from a matrix so rich in sugars. In this framework, an original extraction procedure based on the use of Amberlite XAD-16 was developed. Recovery factors were determined and compared with those obtained with another resin (XAD-2). This was done for different model media and various norisoprenoids. In aqueous or alcoholic solutions, the efficiency of both resins proved very high. As expected, addition of honey decreased the adsorption of nonpolar compounds. This effect was much more pronounced with the lower-porosity XAD-2 support. Sugar addition markedly improved the recovery factors obtained with the XAD-16 resin in the case of more polar norisoprenoids.     

Comparison of free amino acids profile in honey from three Argentinian regions

The physical chemistry characteristics of honey are directly related to floral origin and, as a result, to the production region. There are some available methods that can determine the botanical or geographical origin of honey such as the free amino acids profile analysis. This paper reports data on the free amino acid composition, determined by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography UV detection on 56 honey samples from three different Argentine regions, with characteristic apiarian flora. To evaluate if the quantified amino acid could be used to verify the geographical or botanical origin of honey, statistical analyses were performed. The cluster analysis showed that samples were grouped in clusters related to sampling regions and more strictly to apiarian flora around apiaries. Each cluster appears associated, in accordance with the principal component analysis, to high or low concentrations of different amino acids.     

Study of acaricide stability in honey. Characterization of amitraz degradation products in honey and beeswax.

A study on the possible degradation of amitraz, bromopropylate, coumaphos, chlordimeform, cymiazole, flumethrin, and tau-fluvalinate during the storage of honey was carried out by HPLC. Except amitraz, the other acaricides are stable in this medium for at least 9 months. Degradation studies of amitraz in honey and beeswax were carried out; the degradation products detected in both matrices were 2,4-dimethylphenylformamide (DMF) and N-(2,4-dimethylphenyl)-N'-methylformamidine (DPMF). The reaction rate constants and the half-lives of the amitraz degradation in honey and wax were calculated. Amitraz was nearly completely degraded within 1 day in beeswax and within 10 days in honey. When amitraz-spiked combs are recycled into new beeswax, DMF was found to be the principal degradation product left in pure wax.     

Thermal processing enhances the nutritional value of tomatoes by increasing total antioxidant activity

Processed fruits and vegetables have been long considered to have lower nutritional value than their fresh commodities due to the loss of vitamin C during processing. This research group found vitamin C in apples contributed < 0.4% of total antioxidant activity, indicating most of the activity comes from the natural combination of phytochemicals. This suggests that processed fruits and vegetables may retain their antioxidant activity despite the loss of vitamin C. Here it is shown that thermal processing elevated total antioxidant activity and bioaccessible lycopene content in tomatoes and produced no significant changes in the total phenolics and total flavonoids content, although loss of vitamin C was observed. The raw tomato had 0.76 +/- 0.03 micromol of vitamin C/g of tomato. After 2, 15, and 30 min of heating at 88 degrees C, the vitamin C content significantly dropped to 0.68 +/- 0.02, 0.64 +/- 0.01, and 0.54 +/- 0.02 micromol of vitamin C/g of tomato, respectively (p < 0.01). The raw tomato had 2.01 +/- 0.04 mg of trans-lycopene/g of tomato. After 2, 15, and 30 min of heating at 88 degrees C, the trans-lycopene content had increased to 3.11+/- 0.04, 5.45 +/- 0.02, and 5.32 +/- 0.05 mg of trans-lycopene/g of tomato (p < 0.01). The antioxidant activity of raw tomatoes was 4.13 +/- 0.36 micromol of vitamin C equiv/g of tomato. With heat treatment at 88 degrees C for 2, 15, and 30 min, the total antioxidant activity significantly increased to 5.29 +/- 0.26, 5.53 +/- 0.24, and 6.70 +/- 0.25 micromol of vitamin C equiv/g of tomato, respectively (p < 0.01). There were no significant changes in either total phenolics or total flavonoids. These findings indicate thermal processing enhanced the nutritional value of tomatoes by increasing the bioaccessible lycopene content and total antioxidant activity and are against the notion that processed fruits and vegetables have lower nutritional value than fresh produce. This information may have a significant impact on consumers' food selection by increasing their consumption of fruits and vegetables to reduce the risks of chronic diseases.     

Extraction of phenolics and changes in antioxidant activity of red wines during vinification.

The moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages has been associated with protection against the development of coronary heart disease. Although alcohol itself can help prevent coronary heart disease through a number of mechanisms, red wine appears to offer protection above and beyond that attributable to alcohol alone. Red wine is a complex fluid containing grape, yeast, and wood-derived phenolic compounds, the majority of which have been recognized as potent antioxidants. The aim of this study was to investigate the major phenolic contributors to the antioxidant activity of wine. To this end, four wines were followed during the first 7-9 days of vinification. Individual phenolic compounds were quantified by HPLC, and antioxidant activity was determined by electron spin resonance spectroscopy. The extraction of the phenolics was found to be influenced by vinification procedure, grape quality, and grape variety. Although fermenting wines reached a total phenolic content comparable to that of a bottled wine after 9 days of vinification, the antioxidant activity was significantly lower than that of a finished wine. This suggests that the larger polyphenolic complexes and condensation products that appear during aging make a sizable contribution to the overall antioxidant activity of red wines.     

Antioxidative effect of maillard reaction products formed from honey at different reaction times

Maillard reaction products (MRP) were synthesized from honey-lysine by refluxing with water for 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 h. The MRP from each reaction time were added to and reacted with a linoleic acid buffered emulsion at 37 degrees C. The MRP from each of the five reaction times were added to the linoleic acid emulsion (LAE) at 1%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% (v/v). The antioxidative effect of MRP on the LAE was determined spectrophotometrically at 234 nm. The MRP pH and brown pigment formation (450 nm) was measured. Absorbance at 450 nm increased from 0.6 to 1.6 between the 4 h and 20 h MRP treatments, respectively. The pH of the MRP decreased from 4 h to 20 h reaction solutions, ranging from 4.2 to 3.65. The antioxidative effect increased at each reaction time increment. Within each reaction time, the antioxidative effect was maximized between 10% and 15% addition levels.     

Immunoreactivity and amino acid content of fermented soybean products

Food allergy has become a public health problem that continues to challenge both the public and the food industry. The objective of this research was the detection and quantification of the major human allergenic soy proteins and to study the reduction in immunoreactivity and improvement of amino acid content after fermentation of soybean flour. Fermentation was carried out in the solid state of cracked seeds inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae, Rhizopus oryzae, and Bacillus subtilis and in the liquid state of milled soybean flours fermented naturally by microorganisms present only in the seeds or by inoculation with Lactobacillus plantarum. ELISA and Western blot were used to quantify IgE antibody response, and HPLC was used to identify and quantify total amino acids. L. plantarum fermented soy flour showed the highest reduction in IgE immunoreactivity (96-99%) depending upon the sensitivity of the plasma used. Among the solid fermented products, the lowest reduction in immunoreactivity was obtained when mold strains, R. oryzae and A. oryzae, were used (66 and 68%, respectively, for human plasma 97.5 kUA/L). Among the solid fermented products, those inoculated with B. subtilis yielded a 81 and 86% reduction in immunoreactivity against both human plasma 97.5 IgE kUA/L and human pooled plasma samples, respectively. When soybean was subjected to liquid fermentation, most of the total amino acids increased significantly ( p < or = 0.05). In solid fermentation with R. oryzae, only Ala and Thr content improved. Fermentation can decrease soy immunoreactivity, and there is potential of developing nutritious hypoallergenic soy products.     

柿子单宁的制备及其抗氧化活性研究

利用含有1％盐酸的无水甲醇提取柿子果肉中的单宁,粗提液经大孔树脂AB-8初步纯化后,再经超滤膜法制得柿子单宁两级分：高分子量单宁(High Molecular Weight Tannin,HMWT)以及小分子量单宁(Small Molecular Weight Tannin,SMWT)。HMWT具有良好的水溶性,凝胶渗透色谱(GPC)分析表明其分子量分布范围为1.16×10⁴～1.54×10⁴。抗氧化试验表明：HMWT对2-脱氧-D-核糖、甲基紫、水杨酸体系产生的羟基自由基均具有很强的清除能力,其最大清除率分别为90.47%、96.46%、87.77%,;HMWT对邻苯三酚自氧化和亚油酸脂质过氧化亦有较强的抑制作用,其最大抑制率分别为56.57%、69.63%。在所有体系中HMWT抗氧化能力呈明显的剂量效应关系,且效果均强于相同浓度的葡萄籽原花青素(OPC)及SMWT,同时表明HMWT是柿子单宁的主要抗氧化活性组分。     

燕麦生物碱的提取及其抗氧化活性研究

采用正交试验设计对麸皮中燕麦生物碱（AV）的提取条件进行优化,提取物经大孔吸附树脂纯化,并利用活性氧和DPPH自由基的清除率研究其抗氧化活性。结果表明：最佳提取参数为温度60℃,提取时间2h,溶剂为乙醇/水/冰醋酸（80/19.9/0.1）,料液比1︰8,此条件下得率为5.29%,经树脂纯化后粗提物中生物碱纯度达19.2%,且纯化后的燕麦生物碱表现出较强的清除OH·,O2-·和有机自由基DPPH的体外抗氧化活性,其清除能力分别是α-生育酚的79.4%、82.2%和78.0%。     

Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitory activity in commercial fermented products. Formation of peptides under simulated gastrointestinal digestion

The angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE)-inhibitory activity of several commercial fermented milks was evaluated. Most of these products showed moderate inhibitory activity, but a few exceptions were detected. The high ACE-inhibitory activity found in some cases could be related to the origin of the milk. Two of these products were subjected to an enzymatic hydrolysis process, which simulates physiological digestion, to study the influence of digestion on ACE-inhibitory activity. The activity did not significantly change or increase during simulated gastrointestinal digestion. The peptides generated from one selected product during simulated digestion were sequenced by tandem spectrometry. Most peptides found at the end of the simulated digestion were released after 30 min of incubation with the pancreatic extract. This suggests that physiological digestion promotes the formation of active peptides from the proteins present in these fermented products. The potential ACE-inhibitory activity of the identified peptides is discussed with regard to their amino acid sequences.     

近红外光谱结合化学计量学方法检测蜂蜜产地

为了实现蜂蜜产地的快速判别,应用近红外光谱结合化学计量学方法对蜂蜜产地进行了判别分析。kennard-Stone法划分训练集和预测集。光谱用一阶导数加自归一化预处理后,再用小波变换（WT）进行压缩和滤噪。结合滤波后光谱信息,分别用径向基神经网络（RBFNN）和偏最小二乘-线性判别分析（PLS-LDA）建立了苹果蜜产地和油菜蜜产地的判别模型。对不同小波基和分解尺度进行了讨论。对苹果蜜,WT-RBFNN模型和WT-PLS-LDA模型都是小波基为db1、分解尺度为2时的预测精度较好,都为96.2%。对油菜蜜：WT-RBFNN模型在小波基为db4和分解尺度为1时,预测精度较好,为85.7%;WT-PLS-LDA模型在小波基为db9、分解尺度也为1时,预测精度较好,为90.5%。研究表明：WT结合线性的PLS-LDA建模比WT结合非线性的RBFNN建模更适于蜂蜜产地判别;近红外光谱技术具有快速判别蜂蜜产地的潜力。     

Variation in phenolic content and antioxidant activity of fermented rooibos herbal tea infusions: role of production season and quality grade

Data are required to calculate the dietary exposure to rooibos herbal tea flavonoids and phenolic acids. Representative content values for the principal phenolic compounds and total antioxidant capacity of fermented rooibos infusion, taking into account variation caused by production seasons (2009, 2010, and 2011) and quality grades (A, B, C, and D), were determined for samples (n = 114) from different geographical areas and producers. The major phenolic constituents were isoorientin and orientin (>10 mg/L), with quercetin-3-O-robinobioside, phenylpyruvic acid glucoside, and aspalathin present at >5 mg/L. Isovitexin, vitexin, and hyperoside were present at <3 mg/L. Rutin, ferulic acid, and isoquercitrin were present at <2 mg/L. Nothofagin was present at <1 mg/L. Only traces of luteolin-7-O-glucoside and the aglycones quercetin, luteolin, and chrysoeriol were present. Substantial variation was observed in the individual content values of the phenolic compounds and total antioxidant capacity within production seasons and quality grades.     

Relationship between interannual variation of amino acid profile and pollen content in honey from a small Argentinian region

With the objective of evaluating the utility of the amino acid profile in the characterization of honey samples, 39 honey samples of two different harvests from a particular production zone in Córdoba, Argentina, were analyzed. Multivariate statistical techniques, such as principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA), and multiple correspondence analysis (MCA), were applied to verify the correlation among the amino acid profiles, pollen percentages, and different harvests. PCA, CA, and MCA demonstrate the presence of differences of amino acid profiles between samples of the two harvests, such differences being mainly due to differences in pollen availability. Variation of the flora surrounding the apiary due to agricultural practices makes the analysis of amino acid profile typical for those cases with stabilized flora.     

Screening methods to measure antioxidant activity of sorghum (sorghum bicolor) and sorghum products

Specialty sorghums, their brans, and baked and extruded products were analyzed for antioxidant activity using three methods: oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), 2,2'-azinobis (3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). All sorghum samples were also analyzed for phenolic contents. Both ABTS and DPPH correlated highly with ORAC (R(2) = 0.99 and 0.97, respectively, n = 18). Phenol contents of the sorghums correlated highly with their antioxidant activity measured by the three methods (R(2) >or= 0.96). The ABTS and DPPH methods, which are more cost effective and simpler, were demonstrated to have similar predictive power as ORAC on sorghum antioxidant activity. There is a need to standardize these methods to allow for data comparisons across laboratories.     

Antioxidant activity of methanol extracts obtained from Plantago species

Antioxidative activities of methanol extracts from five Plantago species (P. afra, P. coronopus, P. lagopus, P. lanceolata, and P. serraria) were characterized by the DPPH scavenging test and the inhibition of Fe2+/ascorbate-induced lipid peroxidation on bovine brain liposomes. All extracts showed antioxidant activity in both methods. Whereas P. serraria exhibited the strongest activity as a DPPH scavenger, P. lanceolata and P. serraria were found to be the most active in the lipid peroxidation inhibition assay. The extracts were investigated regarding their composition by different colorimetric techniques, such as the content of total phenolic compounds by the Folin-Ciocalteu assay, flavonoids by AlCl3 reagent, phenylpropanoid glycosides (PPGs) by Arnow reagent, and iridoids by Trim-Hill assay. A high correlation was found between the scavenging potency and the total phenolic and phenylpropanoid content of the extracts but not between the lipid peroxidation potency and the extract composition. P. serraria is presented as a possible new source of natural antioxidants.     

Comparative study of the cytotoxicity induced by antioxidant epicatechin conjugates obtained from grape

We studied the cytotoxicity of epicatechin conjugates obtained by depolymerization of grape polymeric flavanols in the presence of cysteamine or cysteine and the resulting conjugates purified by ion exchange and/or reversed-phase high-resolution chromatography and compared it to their antioxidant capacity. The studies were carried out on fibroblast and keratinocyte cell lines. The cytotoxic effects of these products were observed at concentrations 3-7-fold higher than the antioxidant concentration after exposure for 24, 48, and 72 h. The compounds with a gallate group were more toxic than the corresponding products without one. It is interesting to note that the esther ethyl derivative exhibited low cytotoxicity but had the most potent antioxidant activity. The results indicated that effective antioxidant activity can be obtained from these products in a concentration range that is safe for the normal cell. This finding suggests new pharmaceutical applications and may also help us to identify the potential therapeutic dose.     

Comparative analyses of total phenols, antioxidant activity, and flavonol glycoside profile of cladode flours from different varieties of Opuntia spp

The phenolic, flavonoid, and antioxidant contents of methanol extracts of nine samples of Mexican cactus ( Opuntia spp.) cladodes processed into flours were studied. Opuntia undulata contained the highest amount of phenols [905.08 ± 64.51 μg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g]. The oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) of the cladode flour extracts indicated that Opuntia robusta var. Gavia [738.8 ± 89.9 μmol of Trolox equivalents (TE)/g] contained the highest antioxidant capacity. ORAC values significantly correlated to total phenols but not to flavonoid contents and were comparable to cranberries and blackberries. Glycosidic forms of isorhamnetin and kaempferol were identified via high-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array (HPLC-PDA) and HPLC-mass spectrometry (MS), with isorhamnetin being the most abundant flavonol in all samples, except for Opuntia lindheimeri . The effectiveness of acid hydrolysis varied among species because of the different flavonol profiles. For some varieties, the triglycosidic forms were partially acid-hydrolyzed, giving an increase in the content of diglycosides. Optimization of hydrolysis for each species is required to estimate the total amount of each flavonol.