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There are many blackberry cultivars in Brazil; however, the characteristics and applications of the Cherokee cultivar have not yet been widely studied. For this reason, this research investigated the behaviour of maltodextrin (MD), gum Arabic (GA), and pectin (PEC), as carriers combined in different proportions (20% MD, 15% MD + 5% GA, 15% MD + 5% PEC), on encapsulation of Cherokee blackberry pulp extract obtained by freeze-drying. The results of moisture content (2.73-3.36%), water activity (aw) (0.11–0.15), solubility (52.40–54.11%), hygroscopicity (17.59–21.11%), colour (hue 0.24–0.32), retention of anthocyanins (51.55–60.53%), total phenolic compounds (39.72–70.73 mg GAE/100g), antioxidant activity at 25 mg/mL (77.89–80.02%), IC50 (12.26–14.53), simulated in vitro digestion and morphology were discussed. Concerning morphology, blackberry powders had irregular structures and amorphous structures. Comparatively, the best results were obtained for MD-GA. MD-GA presented the highest content of phenolic compounds (70.73 ± 1.84 mg GAE/100g) and antioxidant activity (80.02%), as well as the lowest IC50 value (12.26). In general, all powders showed an increase in phenolic compounds during in vitro digestion, because of the pH conditions and digestive enzymes present in the simulated digestive fluid. This result shows that the wall material provides protection, since the blackberry rich extract (RE) showed degradation of phenolic compounds in in vitro digestion. In this sense, freeze-drying is a suitable technique for the encapsulation of Cherokee blackberry pulp extract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vaccinium corymbosum (L.) varieties cultivation is relatively recent in Brazil, but its production has been intensified given its good adaptability to the Southern Brazil climate. Blueberries are a rich source of phenolic compounds and contain significant levels of anthocyanins, flavonols, chlorogenic acids, and procyanidins, which lead to different biological activities. Chemical identification of skin and whole hydroalcoholic blueberry extracts (ExtSB and ExtWB) revealed the presence of anthocyanins concentrated in the skin and others chemicals compounds as quercetin glycosides, proanthocyanins dimers, citric, and chlorogenic acid in the pulp. Selectivity for tumor cell lines (Hep-2, HeLa, HT-29) using ExtSB and ExtWB extracts was observed through MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay after 24 h of treatment when compared to nontumor cells (MRC-5). Morphological changes and late stages of apoptotic and necrosis process were seen in HT-29 cell line after ExtWB treatment, compared to nontumor cell line MRC-5. These results are in agreement with other studies that indicate the activity of compounds such as anthocyanins and other molecules found in Southern Highbush blueberry variety, attributed to promote beneficial effects on health that may respond as cytotoxic natural agent and contribute to cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aimed to study the antioxidant capacity by different methods, the total content of polyphenols and the stability over time of dried byproducts from Brazilian hybrids andVitis viniferavarieties. Oven-dried at 50 °C and spray-dried samples were monitored for 90 days of storage. Under testing conditions, BRS Violeta grapes showed the greatest stability and initial high levels of total phenolics and anthocyanins remained almost unchanged until the end of storage period. The same behavior was observed in BRS Violeta freeze-dried skins, seeds and lees (8557, 9520 and 4261 mg GAE/100 g DM, respectively, and 829 and 257 mg mv-3-glc/100 g DM in skin and lees, respectively). In all methodologies tested, BRS Violeta also showed higher values for antioxidant capacity. These results suggest that dried winemaking byproducts can be used as rich sources of polyphenol compounds for industrial extractions with high stability and antioxidant capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Study of the many therapeutic and pharmacological actions of plants that result from the benefits of secondary metabolites, is an important part of appreciating and understanding the rich biodiversity of Brazilian biomes. The objective of this study was to investigate the antioxidant and photoprotective properties of extracts optimized through simple centroid planning of a solvent mixture of Copaifera lucens Dwyer, Schnella angulosa (Vogel) Wunderlin, and Miconia albicans (SW) Triana collected from the Atlantic Forest of southern Bahia, Brazil. The results showed that all extracts were dependent on DPPH concentration for antioxidant activity. S. angulosa (EC50 21.37 μg mL-1 and IAA 1.40) and (EC50 37.21 μg mL-1 and IAA 0.80) were considered active. However, photoprotective activity was not significant (FPS < 6). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ora-pro-nobis is an ornamental plant, often used as food in some regions of Brazil, and Pereskia grandifolia is one of the less explored specie of this nutritional plant. To understand the antioxidant potential and phenolic profile of ora-pro-nobis leaves, the micro-wave assisted extraction (MAE) was held using the green solvents ethanol and water. An optimization was made using Box-Behnken experimental design (32), with process time, temperature and solvent (% of water/ethanol) as variables. The evaluated responses were the process yield, combined with antioxidant capacity (DPPH, ABTS and FRAP methods) and total phenolic content (TPC) of the recovered extracts. Soxhlet method with ethanol was performed for comparison purpose. The phenolic profile of extract samples was assessed by LC-ESI-MS/MS analysis. High yield values were provided by 50% ethanol as solvent at 150 °C. Best antioxidant potential from DPPH and FRAP methods were provided by ethanolic extracts at 110 °C, while water extracts at 150 °C provided best ABTS results. High TPC recovery was found in 50% ethanol samples at 70 °C. Overall, 24 phenolic compounds were identified, within caffeic acid, ellagic acid, p -anisic acid, p-coumaric acid kaempferol and quercetin as the main components. Ellagic acid and p-anisic acid were firstly reported associated to ora-pro-nobis leaves. The optimization of the results indicates that 150 °C, 12.5 min of MAE and ethanol as solvent provided the best combined responses. The use of MAE for ora-pro-nobis leaves is a novelty that must be followed to explore green methods to value natural products. [Display omitted] • MAE was efficient to recover phenolic-rich extracts from ora-pro-nobis. • MAE water extracts provided phenolic-rich and flavonoid-rich fraction. • Ellagic acid and p -anisic acid were firstly identified from ora-pro-nobis leaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phenolics including flavonoids are suggested to be the major bioactive compounds contributing to the health benefits of fruits and vegetables. The objective of the study was to determine the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), peroxyl radical scavenging capacity (PSC), cellular antioxidant activity (CAA) and antiproliferative properties of selected cerrado fruits named gabiroba (Campomanesia cambessedeana Berg), murici (Byrsonoma verbascifolia Rich) and guapeva (Pouteria guardneriana Radlk). Gabiroba fruit showed the highest amount of total phenolics (851.0±40.7mg/100g fruit) and the highest antioxidant activity for both the performed assays (ORAC 8027.5±378.6μmol TE/100g fruit and PSC 2342.5±48.1μmol AAE/100g fruit). Gabiroba fruit and the pulp of guapeva had the highest antiproliferative capacity with the lowest EC50 40.7±4.8mg/mL and 37.9±2.2mg/mL, respectively. The results for the analyzed fruits for CAA were not significantly different from each other (p<0.05) (murici 41.3±17.8; gabiroba 33.9±18.8 and the pulp of guapeva 23.3±4.2μmol quercetin/100g fruit). More than 30 phenolic compounds in the pulp of guapeva, gabiroba and murici extracts were identified in the present study using ESI–TOF-MS. These results characterized for the first time the functional activity of selected Brazilian fruits and demonstrated the importance of these fruits from cerrado biome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Samples of fruit from the jussara palm plant (Euterpe edulis), collected in different regions of the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, were analyzed for chemical composition, phenolic acids, anthocyanins, flavonoids and fatty acids profile. Results indicated that the jussara fruit has a high lipid content (18.45–44.08%), oleic acid (44.17–55.61%) and linoleic acid (18.19–25.36%) are the fatty acids found in the highest proportion, and other components were proteins (5.13–8.21%), ash (1.55–3.32%) and moisture (34.95–42.47%). Significant differences were found in the total phenolic, total monomeric anthocyanins and other flavonoids for the samples from the five cultivation regions. The fruit from region E harvested in summer, with high temperatures and medium altitudes, had the highest contents of total phenolics (2610.86±3.89mg 100g−1 GAE) and monomeric anthocyanins (1080.54±2.33mg 100g−1 cy-3-glu). The phenolic compound included ferulic, gallic, hydroxybenzoic and p-coumaric acids, as well as catechin, epicatechin and quercetin. The results show promising perspectives for the exploitation of this tropical fruit with a chemical composition comprising considerable phenolic acids and flavonoids compounds and showing activity antioxidant. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]