Search

The kumquat tree occurs in practically all countries of the subtropical zone. Kumquat fruits with a characteristic shape, size, colour and taste are the smallest of edible citrus and the only ones that can be eaten as a whole with the peel. Those fruits are rich in fiber, carotenoids, vitamins and minerals. The most important components are polyphenols showing antioxidant properties, in particular flavonoids of which the one characteristic is phloretin. The essential oils extracted from them are rich in numerous terpenoids, responsible for fragrance and aroma. An extensive literature review was carried out to collect data on the chemical composition of kumquat fruit and other selected parts of the plant. These data, depending on the variety, origin, part of the plant and method of obtaining were compiled and presented in the appropriate tables and figures. The structures of the most important components were also presented. Due to their nutritional properties and biological activity (antioxidant, antimicrobial, antitumor etc.) these components are potential sources of ingredients for foods, phytopharmaceuticals and cosmetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Litsea cubeba fruit, which has the highest content of essential oils in the plant, is an important woody oil plant resource. In this study, the influence of the solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) and hydrodistillation (HD) techniques on the extraction of L. cubeba fruit essential oils was investigated in terms of yield, kinetics, and chemical composition, where the former conditions were optimized by the response surface design. The maximal essential oil yield was obtained under the optimal SFME process conditions (442 W and 24 min), where the irradiation time was the most important variable (p < 0.0001). Regardless of the extraction method used, the influence of harvesting time on L. cubeba fruit essential oils were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed afterwards, where the SFME essential oil from July showed its superiority over the others regarding its higher extraction yield and better bioactivities. Compared with the HD method, the SFME approach could significantly enhance the yield of essential oils extracted from June to August by nearly 47% with the advantages of saving energy and low environmental impact. Interestingly, the SFME method could selectively extract monoterpene hydrocarbons such as D-limonene with relation to different compositions and bioactivities. Moreover, SFME essential oil showed a better inhibitory effect on tyrosinase and melanogenesis, indicating its skin-whitening potential as a new promising natural cosmetic ingredient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Litsea cubeba fruit, which has the highest content of essential oils in the plant, is an important woody oil plant resource. In this study, the influence of the solvent-free microwave extraction (SFME) and hydrodistillation (HD) techniques on the extraction of L. cubeba fruit essential oils was investigated in terms of yield, kinetics, and chemical composition, where the former conditions were optimized by the response surface design. The maximal essential oil yield was obtained under the optimal SFME process conditions (442 W and 24 min), where the irradiation time was the most important variable (p < 0.0001). Regardless of the extraction method used, the influence of harvesting time on L. cubeba fruit essential oils were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed afterwards, where the SFME essential oil from July showed its superiority over the others regarding its higher extraction yield and better bioactivities. Compared with the HD method, the SFME approach could significantly enhance the yield of essential oils extracted from June to August by nearly 47% with the advantages of saving energy and low environmental impact. Interestingly, the SFME method could selectively extract monoterpene hydrocarbons such as D-limonene with relation to different compositions and bioactivities. Moreover, SFME essential oil showed a better inhibitory effect on tyrosinase and melanogenesis, indicating its skin-whitening potential as a new promising natural cosmetic ingredient.

Methylxanthines and polyphenols from cocoa byproducts should be considered for their application in the development of functional ingredients for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical formulations. Different cocoa byproducts were analyzed for their chemical contents, and skincare properties were measured by antioxidant assays and anti-skin aging activity. Musty cocoa beans (MC) and second-quality cocoa beans (SQ) extracts showed the highest polyphenol contents and antioxidant capacities. In the collagenase and elastase inhibition study, the highest effect was observed for the SQ extract with 86 inhibition and 36% inhibition, respectively. Among cocoa byproducts, the contents of catechin and epicatechin were higher in the SQ extract, with 18.15 mg/100 g of sample and 229.8 mg/100 g of sample, respectively. Cocoa bean shells (BS) constitute the main byproduct due to their methylxanthine content (1085 mg of theobromine and 267 mg of caffeine/100 g of sample). Using BS, various influencing factors in the extraction process were investigated by response surface methodology (RSM), before scaling up separations. The extraction process developed under optimized conditions allows us to obtain almost 2 g/min and 0.2 g/min of total methylxanthines and epicatechin, respectively. In this way, this work contributes to the sustainability and valorization of the cocoa production chain.

Rosa rugosa Purple branch is a rare continuously flowering variety of R. rugosa and also is one of main cultivar varieties of R. rugosa in China. Although R. rugosa has been successfully used in the field of cosmetics, there are also many reports on its chemical components. The chemical composition and application value in cosmetics of R. rugosa Purple branch are still limited. The purpose of this study was to investigate the chemical components in the petals of R. rugosa Purple branch as well as evaluate their skincare and antibacterial potentials through DPPH radical scavenging, tyrosinase inhibition, elastase inhibition and antibacterial bioassays. Two new compounds, isorhamnetin-3- O -(2"- O -galloyl)- β - D -glucopyranoside (1), kaempferol-3- O - β - D -glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-(6''- O -trans-p-coumaroyl)- β - D -glucopyranoside (2) and thirteen known compounds (3 - 15) were isolated and identified from the petals by bioassay-guided fractionation. All the compounds were isolated and reported from R. rugosa Purple branch for the first time, in which twelve of them are discovered from R. rugosa for the first time. The tyrosinase inhibitory activities of 1 , 2 , rosarugoside B (3) , kaempfero-3- O - β - D -glucopyranosyl(1→2)- β - D -glucopyranoside (4), astragalin-2'',6''-di- O -gallate (8), quercetin-3- O - β - D -glucopyranosyl(1→2)- β - D -glucopyranoside (10), 2-phenylethyl- β - D -glucopyranoside (13) , 2-phenylethyl-6- O - α - L -arabinofuranosyl- β - D -glucopyranoside (14), and 2-phenylethyl- D -rutinoside (15) were firstly reported here, in which 8 showed strong tyrosinase inhibitory activity with IC 50 of 187.32 ± 0.18 μg/mL. There were eight compounds (1 , 6 - 12) showed strong antioxidant activity, with the scavenging rates of DPPH radical ranging from 88.59% to 94.30% and the IC 50 ranging from 4.22 to 13.85 μg/mL, among them, 1 and quercetin-3- O -(6''- O -Z- p -coumaroyl)- β - D -glucopyranoside (11) exhibited antioxidant activity for the first time. 3 exhibited moderate elastase inhibitory activity with IC 50 of 148.67 ± 0.11 μg/mL. In addition, seven compounds (2 , 5 -8, 10 - 11) showed varying degrees of antibacterial activity. These results indicated that R. rugosa Purple branch had anti-aging, whitening and antibacterial activities, which can be further applied to the development of functional cosmetics. [Display omitted] • This study firstly evaluated the cosmetic potentials of Rosa rugosa Purple branch. • 15 compounds were firstly isolated from this plant including new compound 1 and 2. • Compound 1 exhibited significant antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibitory activity. • Compound 2 showed obvious antibacterial activity. • Several anti-aging, anti-tyrosinase, and antibacterial active compounds were discovered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to investigate the phenolic composition and the biological properties of different Aerva lanata (L). Juss. herb extracts obtained with the use of accelerated solvent extraction (ASE), i.e., a green, ecological method, for cosmetic purposes. All samples exhibited high DPPH• (9.17–119.85 mg TE/g) and ABTS•+ (9.90–107.58 mg TE/g) scavenging activity. The extracts exhibited considerable anti-lipoxygenase (EC50 between 1.14 mg/mL and 3.73 mg/mL) and anti-xanthine oxidase (EC50 between 1.28 mg/mL and 3.72 mg/mL) activities, moderate chelating activity (EC50 between 1.58 mg/mL and 5.30 mg/mL), and high antioxidant potential in the ORAC assay (0.36–3.84 mM TE/g). Changes in the polyphenol profile of the analysed samples depending on the solvent and temperature used for the extraction were determined with the liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS) method. Twenty-one phenolic compounds, including flavonoids and phenolic acids, were detected and quantified. It was shown that tiliroside was one of the main phenolic metabolites in the A. lanata (L.) Juss. herb., which may suggest that this compound may be largely responsible for the observed anti-inflammatory activity of the extracts. In addition, the studied extracts exhibited promising skin-related (anti-tyrosinase, anti-elastase, anti-collagenase, and anti-hyaluronidase) activity. This study showed that Aerva lanata (L.) Juss. contains high amounts of phenolic compounds, including tiliroside, and has good skin-related activities. Therefore, the plant may be interesting as a novel source of bioactive agents for cosmetic industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methylxanthines and polyphenols from cocoa byproducts should be considered for their application in the development of functional ingredients for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical formulations. Different cocoa byproducts were analyzed for their chemical contents, and skincare properties were measured by antioxidant assays and anti-skin aging activity. Musty cocoa beans (MC) and second-quality cocoa beans (SQ) extracts showed the highest polyphenol contents and antioxidant capacities. In the collagenase and elastase inhibition study, the highest effect was observed for the SQ extract with 86 inhibition and 36% inhibition, respectively. Among cocoa byproducts, the contents of catechin and epicatechin were higher in the SQ extract, with 18.15 mg/100 g of sample and 229.8 mg/100 g of sample, respectively. Cocoa bean shells (BS) constitute the main byproduct due to their methylxanthine content (1085 mg of theobromine and 267 mg of caffeine/100 g of sample). Using BS, various influencing factors in the extraction process were investigated by response surface methodology (RSM), before scaling up separations. The extraction process developed under optimized conditions allows us to obtain almost 2 g/min and 0.2 g/min of total methylxanthines and epicatechin, respectively. In this way, this work contributes to the sustainability and valorization of the cocoa production chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study firstly evaluated the cosmetic potentials of Rosa chinensis cv. 'JinBian'. • The ethanol extracts showed significant anti-aging and anti-tyrosinase activities. • Fifteen compounds were firstly isolated from this plant including a new compound 1. • Compound 1 exhibited significant antioxidant and antibacterial activities. • Several anti-aging, anti-tyrosinase, and antibacterial active compounds were found. Rosa chinensis cv. 'JinBian', a cultivar of Rosa chinensis Jacq., is one of major raw material of rose tea and possesses sufficient plant resources in China. However, the studies on the chemical constituents and cosmetic activities of R. chinensis cv. 'JinBian' are almost blank. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the anti-aging, skin-whitening, and antibacterial potentials of extracts and chemical constituents of the flower by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging, elastase inhibition, anti-tyrosinase, and antibacterial assays. Bioassay results suggested both 95 % and 65 % ethanol extracts possessed significant antioxidant, elastase inhibition, and anti-tyrosinase activities. The combined active extract was studied with bioassay-guided fractionation to give a new compound, kaempferol 3-O- α - l -rhamnopyranosyl (1→6)-(2",3"- O -digalloyl)- β - d -glucopyranoside (1) and fourteen known compounds (2 – 15). All compounds were firstly isolated from this species and subjected to the above mentioned bioassays. Ten compounds exhibited antioxidant activities with DPPH radical scavenging rate from 63.40 %–94.04 % under the concentration of 100 μg/mL. The antioxidant activities of 1 , 2-phenylethyl 1- O - β - d -(6'-O-galloyl)-glucopyranoside (12), vomifoliol (14), and 4, 4'-dimethoxy-3'-hydroxy-7, 9': 7', 9-diepoxylignan-3- O - β - d -glucopyranoside (15) were firstly found with DPPH radical scavenging rate of 83.24 %, 91.10 %, 63.40 %, and 77.75 %, respectively. The moderate elastase inhibitory activities of 12 , ethyl gallate (13), and 15 were firstly found with the inhibitory rate of 43.69 %, 43.25 %, and 35.34 % at the concentration of 100 μg/mL. Multiflorin B (3), 12 , and 13 showed strong tyrosinase inhibitory activities with the inhibition rate at 43.83 %–55.80 %, comparing with the positive control, α -arbutin (22.15 %). In addition, 1 showed significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus with the MIC 50 of 8.51 ± 0.26 μg/mL. Compounds 2–4 and 12–14 showed moderate antibacterial activities against S. aureus. Compounds 6 and 13 also exhibited moderate inhibitory effects against Klebsiella pneumoniae. Above results manifested that R. chinensis cv. 'JinBian' possessed potential application values in the development of natural anti-aging, skin-whitening and antibacterial products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]