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The metabolites entering the bloodstream and being excreted in urine as a result of consuming golden berries are currently unidentified. However, these metabolites potentially underlie the health benefits observed in various in vitro, animal, and human models. A nutritional intervention with 18 healthy human volunteers was performed, and urine was collected at baseline and after acute and short-term fruit consumption for 19 days. After UPLC-ESI/QToF-MS analysis, untargeted metabolomics was performed on the urine samples, and from the 50 most discriminant ions (VIP > 2) generated by a validated PLS-DA model (CV-ANOVA = 3.7e-35; R^2Y = 0.86, Q^2Y = 0.62 and no overfitting), 22 compounds were identified with relatively high confidence. The most discriminant metabolites confirmed by DHS/GC-MS 2 analysis of volatiles in urine were sesquiterpenes (C 15 H 22 ): 3 stereoisomers, β-vatirenene, β-vetivenene, and β-vetispirene, and 2 isomers, eremophila-1(10),8,11-triene and α-curcumene. Another major urinary biomarker was 4β-hydroxywithanolide E and its phase II derivatives, which were observed in urine for all individual up to 24 h after the fruit was consumed; thus, the bioavailability of this biomarker in humans was demonstrated for the first time. Additionally, the excretion of certain acylcarnitines and hypoxanthine in urine increased after golden berry consumption, which may be associated with a detoxifying effect and may occur because fats were utilized rather than carbohydrates to meet the body's energy needs. The main biomarkers of golden berry consumption are specific to this fruit, confirming its potential for the functional food market., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Golden berry (Physalis peruviana) is a tropical fruit rich in antioxidants that has been proposed to be able to control the lipid profile in hypercholesterolemic patients. Dyslipidemia is an independent risk factor for cardiometabolic diseases. The gut microbiota is strongly associated with cardiometabolic risk and is involved in redox balance, intestinal permeability, and inflammation. However, the impacts of golden berry on some of these factors, including the human gut microbiota, have never been tested, and there are no tools for compliance monitoring or dietary intake assessment regarding nutritional interventions with this fruit. In the pre-post quasi-experimental nutritional intervention presented here, 18 adult men (27-49 years old) consumed golden berries (Dorada variety) for three weeks. We evaluated putative biomarkers of exposure through an untargeted metabolomics approach (liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry LC-MS), quantified the biomarkers of oxidative stress, gut permeability, and inflammation in plasma, and assessed the effects of fruit intake on the gut microbiota through 16S rRNA gene sequencing of feces (Illumina MiSeq V2). First, syringic acid and kaempferol were identified as putative biomarkers of golden berry consumption. Intervention with this fruit promoted physiological changes in the participants after three weeks, reducing the level of the oxidative stress marker 8-isoprostane (-148 pg/ml; 36.1 %; p = 0.057) and slightly altering gut permeability by increasing the plasma levels of LBP (2.91 µg/ml; 54.6 %; p = 0.0005) and I-FABP (0.15, 14.7 %, p = 0.04) without inducing significant inflammation; i.e., the levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-8 changed by 0.7 (2.0 %), -4.0 (-9.6 %) and -0.4 (-1.8 %) pg/ml, respectively. Notably, the consumption of golden berries did not affect the gut microbiota of the individuals consistently but instead shifted it in a personalized manner. The compositions of the gut microbiota of a given individual at the end of intervention and one month after the end of intervention were statistically more similar to their own baseline than to a corresponding sample from a different individual. This intervention identified putative biomarkers of golden berry intake along with potential benefits of its consumption relevant to cardiometabolic disease risk reduction. Golden berries are likely to positively modulate redox balance, although this effect must be proven in a future controlled clinical trial., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Despite the importance of fermentation for cocoa quality, process parameters are not controlled under spontaneous conditions at farms. This study evaluates the influence of spontaneous fermentation and processing under laboratory-controlled conditions using the acidic reagents acetic and lactic acids on the cocoa quality of two cultivars, FEAR 5 and CCN 51, at the sensory and metabolomic levels. Under spontaneous conditions, cocoa differs in flavour quality. While FEAR 5 produces chocolate with good global quality, chocolate made with CCN 51 does not have outstanding quality attributes. Transformation under controlled conditions with acidic reagents increases the perception of fine aromatic notes such as fruity, nutty and floral attributes in chocolates made from both cultivars of cocoa. Metabolomic profiles allowed grouping of cocoa samples as a function of postharvest treatment. Twenty-five differential metabolites were identified during the postharvest processes, and these metabolites may be related to the expression of fine sensory attributes; however, more research is needed., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Many studies indicate that food matrix microstructure and type of dietary oil or fat play a key role in carotenoid absorption. Therefore, this work was designed to highlight the relationship between processed food microstructure and carotenoid absorption. This study aimed to evaluate the consumption of a carotenoid-rich fruit snack on lipid profile, glycemia and especially on carotenoid absorption/bioconversion in Wistar rats. Animals were fed with mixtures based on vacuum-fried papaya chips with either soy oil (PC-S) or palm oil (PC-P) during 7 days, receiving 0.29 mg lycopene/kg/day and 0.35 mg total carotenoids/kg/day. Lycopene and retinoids were analyzed in plasma and liver of rats by HPLC-DAD. Results showed that the consumption of mixtures based on papaya chips did not affect the lipid profile or glycemia in rat plasma, regardless the type of oil. Wide-field and confocal microscopy analyses of food matrix helped to understand why lycopene accumulation in the liver was higher (p < 0.05) in rats fed with PC-P (0.442 µg/g liver) than in those fed with PC-S (0.291 µg/g liver). A better dissolution of crystalloid lycopene was found in PC-P. Conversely, a higher bioconversion of provitamin A carotenoids was observed for soy products. The effect of type of oil was underlined by epifluorescence microscopy of papaya mixtures showing homogeneous and small lipid droplets for soy products. These results showed that PC-S could be recommanded as a healthy snack, being a source of provitamin A carotenoids and bioavailable lycopene in a diversified diet., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Genipap (Genipa americana L.) is an exotic fruit largely consumed and well known, in Amazonian pharmacopeia, to treat anemia, measles and uterine cancer. It is also used as a diuretic, digestive, healing, laxative and antiseptic. The aim of this study was to apply an untargeted metabolomics strategy to determine biomarkers of food intake after short-term consumption of genipap juice. Sixteen healthy adult men were administered jenipap juice (250 mL) twice a day for three weeks. Before and after the three weeks of consumption. the subjects drank a control drink, and they consumed a standard diet. Urine was collected after 0-6 h, 6-12 h and 12-24 h. An ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS)-based metabolomics approach was applied to analyze the urine samples. Principal components analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were performed to highlight experimental differences between groups. The value of the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve validated the identified biomarkers. Thirty-one statistically affected urinary metabolites were putatively identified and were mainly related to iridoids family, medium-chain fatty acids, and polyphenols. Also a group of urinary markers including dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA), 1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,2-propanediol and 3-carboxy-4-methyl-5-propyl-2-furanpropionic acid were established as biomarkers of genipap consumption. Our findings have established a comprehensive panel of changes in the urinary metabolome and provided information to monitor endogenous alterations that are linked to genipap juice intake. These data should be used in further studies to understand the health implications of genipap juice consumption., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The aim of the study was to evaluate the degradation kinetics of carotenoids (CTs) in vacuum-fried papaya (Carica papaya L.) chips (PCs) during storage at four temperatures (15, 25, 35 and 45 °C) for 52 and 94 days for the two highest and lowest temperatures, respectively. Three treatments were applied to obtain the chips: chips with soy oil (24% lipids) and chips with palm oil (24% and 29% lipids). All the chips were packaged under air or nitrogen conditions. The CTs analyzed by HPLC-DAD were per order of content all-E-lycopene (LYC), Z-lycopene (Z-LYC), all-E-β-carotene (BC), all-E-β-cryptoxanthin (BCX) and Z-β-carotene (Z-BC). The all-E-forms represented 80% of carotenoids in PCs. No significant carotenoid degradation was observed in the PCs packaged under nitrogen conditions during storage. For chips stored under air conditions, a second-order kinetic model best fitted the experimental data. Rate constants for LYC degradation were the lowest, while BCX and BC presented similar rate constants 4-23-fold higher depending on lipid composition. All Z-isomers degraded faster than all-E-forms, but Z-BC degraded only 2-4-fold faster than Z-LYC. All CTs followed Arrhenius temperature-dependency pattern and LYC showed the lowest activation energies (5-21 kJ/mol). A higher lipid content in the chips with palm oil enhanced the carotenoid retention in PCs. Moreover, a greater retention (p < 0.05) of CTs was observed in PCs with soy oil. The use of soy oil instead of palm oil increased the theoretical half-life (at 25 °C) by 2.2, 1.3 and 5.9-fold for BCX, BC and LYC, respectively. Packaging under nitrogen conditions and lipid composition may be considered to optimize the shelf life and carotenoid retention in PCs during storage., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Jicaro seeds (Crescentia alata) are widely consumed in Central America, primarily as a popular tasty and nutritious beverage called "horchata". Seeds are roasted to develop a specific aroma through a process that has never been explored. Volatile compounds, extracted from raw and roasted jicaro seeds (140°C for 140s) by SAFE (Solvent Assisted Flavor Evaporation), were analyzed by Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS). Twenty-seven volatile compounds were isolated, among which, ethyl-2-methylbutyrate was designated by olfactometry as providing the characteristic jicaro note (0.16 and 0.47mg/kg dry basis (d.b.) in raw and roasted seeds, respectively). The release of volatile compounds from the Maillard reaction, such as pyrazines, and the increase of ethyl-2-methylbutyrate after roasting, exhausted the pleasant jicaro aroma. This mild roasting process had a slight impact on polyphenol, fructose and free amino acid contents, in agreement with the Maillard reaction. Confocal microscopy showed the coalescence of lipids in roasted jicaro seeds, which might explain the higher extracted fat content., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)