Search

Type-2 diabetes affects an increasing percentage of the world's population and its control through dietary management, involving the consumption of health-promoting foods or their derived supplements, is a common strategy. Several mushroom species have been demonstrated to be endowed with antidiabetic properties, resulting from their ability in improving insulin sensitivity and production, or inhibiting the carbohydrate-hydrolyzing enzymes α-amylase and α-glucosidase. This study aimed to investigate for the first time the hypoglycemic properties of the edible mushroom Leccinum scabrum (Bull.) Gray. Mushroom extracts were prepared through the microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) technique using green solvents with different polarity degrees. The inhibition activity of all the obtained extracts on both α-glucosidase and α-amylase was evaluated and the highest activity was observed for the EtOAc extract which showed an IC50 value about 60-fold lower than the reference compound 1-deoxynojirimycin (DNJ) on α-glucosidase (0.42 ± 0.02 and 25.4 ± 0.6 µg/mL, respectively). As expected on the basis of the literature data concerning both α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibition, a milder inhibition activity on pancreatic α-amylase was observed. Preliminary in vivo tests on Drosophila melanogaster carried out on the most active obtained extract (EtOAc) confirmed the in vitro observed hypoglycemic activity. Finally, the EtOAc extract metabolic profile was determined through GC-MS and HRMS analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Objectives: In the contest of agro-industrial waste valorization, we focused our attention on lentil seed coats as a source of health-promoting phytochemicals possibly useful in managing inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), usually characterized by inflammation and altered intestinal motility. Methods: Both traditional (maceration) and innovative microwave-assisted extractions were performed using green solvents, and the anti-inflammatory and spasmolytic activities of the so-obtained extracts were determined through in vitro and ex vivo assays, respectively. Results: The extract obtained through the microwave-assisted procedure using ethyl acetate as the extraction solvent (BEVa) proved to be the most useful in inflammation and intestinal motility management. In LPS-activated Caco-2 cells, BEVa down-regulated TLR4 expression, reduced iNOS expression and the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1 production, and upregulated the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 production, thus positively affecting cell inflammatory responses. Moreover, a significant decrease in the longitudinal and circular tones of the guinea pig ileum, with a reduction of transit speed and pain at the ileum level, together with reduced transit speed, pain, and muscular tone at the colon level, was observed with BEVa. HPLC separation combined with an Orbitrap-based high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) technique indicated that 7% of all the identified metabolites were endowed with proven anti-inflammatory and antispasmodic activities, among which niacinamide, apocynin, and p-coumaric acid were the most abundant. Conclusions: Our results suggest that lentil hull extract consumption could contribute to overall intestinal health maintenance, with BEVa possibly representing a dietary supplementation and a promising approach to treating intestinal barrier dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moringa oleifera (M. oleifera) is a plant widely used for its beneficial properties both in medical and non-medical fields. Because they produce bioactive metabolites, plants are a major resource for drug discovery. In this study, two different cultivars of leaves of M. oleifera (Salento and Barletta) were obtained by maceration or microwave-assisted extraction (MAE). We demonstrated that extracts obtained by MAE exhibited a lower cytotoxic profile compared to those obtained by maceration at concentrations ranged from 25 to 400 µg/mL, on both Vero CCL-81 and Vero/SLAM cells. We examined their antiviral properties against two viruses, i.e., the human coronavirus 229E (HCoV-229E) and measles virus (MeV), which are both responsible for respiratory infections. The extracts were able to inhibit the infection of both viruses and strongly prevented their attack and entry into the cells in a range of concentrations from 50 to 12 µg/mL. Particularly active was the variety of Salento that registered a 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) at 21 µg/mL for HCoV-229E and at 6 µg/mL for MeV. We identified the presence of several compounds through high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC); in particular, chlorogenic and neochlorogenic acids, quercetin 3-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (QGP), and glucomoringin (GM) were mainly observed. In the end, M. oleifera can be considered a promising candidate for combating viral infections with a very strong action in the early stages of viral life cycle, probably by destructuring the viral particles blocking the virus–cell fusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]