Aim: The aim of this study is to apply untargeted proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) and chemometric analysis to obtain the cacao pod husk (CPH) fingerprint and evaluate the effect of dehydration in the CPH metabolome. Methods: Phosphate buffer extracts (pH 6.5) were obtained and measured using a one-dimension (1D)1H NMR spectrometry. The 1D1H NMR spectra were recorded without spinning and using the presaturation (PRESAT) pulse sequence to suppress the residual H2O signal. The 3-(trimethylsilyl) propionic-2,2,3,3-d4 acid sodium salt (TSP) was used as an internal reference. Analysis of processed data, applying an orthogonal projection on latent structure-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) model was used to highlight significant differences between the three dehydration treatments. Signal assignment of CPH metabolites was carried out based on the coupling constant, software simulation prediction, published data comparison, and metabolomics databases. Results: A total of 25 compounds were detected by1H NMR, methylxanthines, sugars, some amino acids, fatty acids, and organic acids were found among the identified compounds. The fingerprint spectra of the three dehydration methods were clustered separately discriminating the metabolome profile of each of the dehydration treatments, finding that metabolome remarkably differed in theanine, myristic acid, fumaric acid, and aspartic acid composition. Conclusions: An untargeted metabolomics to obtain the fingerprint of CPH was successfully established. A1H NMR spectra with a detailed signal assignment aided to identify 25 metabolites present in CPH fresh and dried by different methods. The results complement the information about CPH composition and how it is affected by the temperature used during the dehydration process. The multivariate analysis points out that freeze drying (FD) preserves the metabolites better than microwave drying (MWD) or hot air drying (HAD). FD and MWD are similar in composition maintaining most of the compounds after drying.
Aim: This study aimed to isolate, characterize, and encapsulate a lupeol-rich fraction obtained from the hexanic extract of Coccoloba uvifera L. leaves to evaluate its potential use in nutraceutical or pharmaceutical applications. Methods: The C. uvifera leaf extract was fractionated by column chromatography and the presence of lupeol was assessed by thin layer chromatography, attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Additionally, the lupeol-rich fraction was characterized according to its antioxidant capacity and cytotoxicity. Finally, this fraction was encapsulated into electrospun nanofibers made of high degree of polymerization agave fructans (HDPAF) combined with polyethylene oxide (PEO). The obtained nanofibers were characterized in terms of morphology, chemical composition, and in vitro permeability using the Caco-2 cell line. Results: Fraction 6 showed a 77% of lupeol, quantified by chromatography, and presented a 7.3% inhibition of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). 100 µg/mL of fraction 6 showed a decrease in Caco-2 cell viability. Finally, fraction 6 was encapsulated into electrospun nanofibers, which showed an increase in the apparent permeability of the lupeol present in fraction 6 in Caco-2 cells in comparison to neat fraction 6. Conclusions: It was possible to isolate and encapsulate a lupeol-rich fraction from C. uvifera into electrospun nanofibers, which allows the increasing the apparent permeability of lupeol, and consequently, they could be used for nutraceutical or pharmaceutical applications.
Aim: As far as is known, the pharmaceutical effects of neem on human B-lymphoblastoid (TK6) cells have not been studied until now. Hence, the present study aimed to obtain neem phenolic extracts for inhibits the proliferation of TK6 cells and explore some possible underlying mechanisms involved in these effects. Methods: Hexane extract (HE) was obtained in the first step. After that, the residual hexane was removed from the neem. The dried neem sample was used in a new extraction for obtaining the ethyl acetate extract (EAE). Total phenolic compounds (TPC) and total flavonoid contents (TFC) were determined by spectrophotometric methods. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) tests were used to evaluate the cytotoxicity in TK6 cells. The stop at G0/G1 cell cycle and inducing apoptosis in the TK6 cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. For deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage evaluation, the alkaline comet test was used. Results: The higher TFC (65.50 mg/g of extract ± 1.17 mg/g of extract) and TPC (52.08 mg of extract ± 0.88 mg of extract) were obtained in EAE compared to HE that was obtained TFC of 14.61 mg/g of extract ± 0.60 mg/g of extract and TPC of 3.20 mg/g of extract ± 1.20 mg/g of extract. EAE was more significantly cytotoxic to TK6 cells than HE. The apoptosis induction was higher after exposure to 15.0 µg/mL of EAE (11.29%) in comparison to 15.0 µg/mL of HE (2.52%). The G0/G1 phase increased from 72% negative control (NC) to 83% after treatment with neem extracts (15 µg/mL). Neem extracts were also able to cause DNA strand breaks in TK6 cells. Conclusions: The extraction residue from neem leaf after hexane extraction is a source important of cytotoxic and genotoxic molecules against TK6 cells, the results also can suggest that the toxic effects in TK6 cells can be provided most likely due to the presence of high content of TPC from neem extracts.
The on-site, rapid, and intelligence detection methods are the wave in food safety. Recently, intelligent point-of-care test (iPOCT) methods serve as a promising alternative for advanced monitoring in food safety. By integrating smartphones with various detection methods, iPOCT methods demonstrate unique merits. Compared with lab-dependent instruments, iPOCT strategies have a short turnaround time (several minutes), high accuracy (μm level or less), and portability (smartphones). This work discussed principles of optical and electrical iPOCT methods, including absorbing light, fluorescence, chemiluminescence, potentiometry, voltammetry, impedance spectroscopy, and amperometry. The review emphasizes the practical applications for testing chemical and biological hazards in complex food matrices. The commercialization, challenges, and future trends of iPOCT are discussed as well.
Aim: In this study, Polyphenol and chemical profiles in core, pulp, and peel of 7 apple varieties [Fuji (FS), Qinguan (QG), Qingping (QP), Jinshuai (JS), Gala (GL), Changmiou (CMO), and Huahong (HH)] were comparatively studied to distinguish the different metabolism biomarkers in the three parts of apple fruit. Methods: This study investigated the distribution of 15 polyphenolic compounds using a combination of multivariate analysis and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS). Results: chlorogenic acid, catechin, epicatechin, phloretin were the most abundant components. While phloretin was the dominant component in core, chlorogenic acid was the main phenolic compound in pulp, and quercetin was mainly found in apple peel. The multivariate analysis showed that the chemical profile of peel was significantly distinct from that of apple pulp and core, whereas apple pulp and core overlapped with each other. The difference attributed to the compounds that were predicted from ultra-high performance liquid chromatography combined with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS), which were remarkably different (P< 0.05) and belong to polyphenol. Conclusions: It indicates that the potential superior biomarker of polyphenols is to differentiate the products from apple core, pulp, and peel respectively. This research provided an insight on the polyphenolic profile of core, pulp, and peel of apple fruits.