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Protein hydrolysates have been reported to possess numerous bioactivities. However, research on melon (Cucumis melo L.) seed protein (MSP) hydrolysate is limited. This study aimed to analyze the antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic properties of MSP hydrolysate. Protein from melon seed was obtained by conventional alkaline extraction-isoelectric precipitation method. Enzymatic hydrolysis of MSP was carried out using three different proteases: pepsin, thermolysin, and trypsin, with the enzyme-to-substrate (E/S) ratio of 1:50 (w/w). The results showed that all hydrolysates exhibited antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic activity. The thermolysin-digested hydrolysate had significantly greater (p < 0.05) radical scavenging properties, while trypsin produced the highest (p < 0.05) metal ion chelating activity. At 2 mg/mL, thermolysin-derived MSP hydrolysate showed no significant difference (p > 0.05) in HMGR inhibition activity compared to pravastatin. Additionally, the thermolysin hydrolysate had significantly higher (p < 0.05) bile acid binding ability than other hydrolysates. Overall, the MSP hydrolysate produced by thermolysin exhibited stronger antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic activities when compared to those produced by pepsin and trypsin, suggesting its potential effectiveness in nutraceutical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bee pollen, a bee product, is considered as one of the valuable products in natural medicine, for its excellent therapeutic properties. Cold maceration technique was employed to extract bee pollen and the phytochemical constituents were analysed. The preliminary phytochemical analysis showed the presence of acids, proteins, carbohydrates, phenol, flavonoids, glycosides, anthraquinone, quinone, resins, saponin, tannin, and terpenoids. The advanced phytochemical screening of volatile chemical constituents analyzed using Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry showed 40 volatile chemical compounds from the bee pollen extract. Among those, the hypocholesterolemic effect-related compound of bee pollen was analyzed by in silico docking method, where Oxidosqualene: Ianosterolcyclase (OSC) was taken as a target enzyme which helps in cholesterol biosynthesis. Hexadecanoic acid, Pentadecanoic acid, Pyrroloindole, and Alpha amyrin selected as ligands, and Ro 48-8071 fumarate used as a standard enzyme inhibitor for molecular docking analysis, showed that all the ligands efficiently bound with the target enzyme OSC. Among the four compounds, alpha amyrin had the highest binding interaction energy with the target enzyme (-13.37 kJ mole-1). The OSC enzyme inhibition activity may be responsible for the hypocholesterolemic effect and weight-reducing property of bee pollen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Saponins, both steroidal and triterpenoid, exhibit distinct bioactivities. However, they are not commonly found together in natural sources; instead, sources tend to be rich in one type or another and mainly in the form of saponins rather than the sapogenin aglycones. Developing co-extracts containing both saponin or sapogenin types would be a strategy to harness their respective bioactivities, yielding multibioactive extracts. Therefore, this study evaluates the bioactivity (hypolipidemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities) of co-extracts from fenugreek seeds (steroidal-rich saponins) and quinoa husk (triterpenoid-rich saponins), co-extracted at varying proportions, alongside their respective sapogenin-rich hydrolysates. Pancreatic lipase inhibition increased with fenugreek content in co-extracts, especially in sapogenin-rich variants. The latter substantially interfered with cholesterol bioaccessibility (90% vs. 15% in sapogenin-rich extracts). Saponin-rich co-extracts exhibited reduced cytokine release with increased fenugreek content, while sapogenin-rich counterparts showed greater reductions with higher quinoa husk content. Limited cellular antioxidant activities were observed in all extracts, with improved post-hydrolysis bioactivity. Therefore, simultaneous co-extraction of steroidal and triterpenoid sources, such as fenugreek and quinoa husk, as well as their subsequent hydrolysis, are innovative strategies for obtaining multibioactive natural extracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the data provided by International Federation of Diabetes, 537 million adults of 20–79 age group are living with diabetes. The most frequent form found in patients are type 2 diabetes which accounts for more than 90–95% of cases. The current medical approaches involved in the treatment of diabetes mostly depend upon insulin injection and oral antidiabetic agents. Despite their effectiveness, the harmful side effects, limitation of synthetic drugs, shortage, lack of equitable distribution, unaffordability are some of the notable challenges in these approaches. In this direction, there are varieties of medicinal compounds derived from plants which are being meritoriously used for curing the different human problems and are recognized for their constructive impacts. Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graecum Linn) is one of the stimulating plants with magnificent medicinal properties which have greatly enticed the researchers to work on its encouraging biological and pharmaceutical properties. It is well-recognized for its hypoglycemic influence in diabetic animals as well as human models under studies. Chemical composition of fenugreek is the key factor responsible for its promising biological properties and medicinal virtues which generally includes proteins, mucilaginous soluble fiber, dietary fibers, steroidal saponins, essential oil, fatty acids and many more. Gentianine, trigonelline, choline, carpaine, 4- hydroxyisoleucine, diosgenin, yamogenin, and many other are generally found as minor components but also branded for their substantial biological properties and impacts. Hypoglycemic activities are due to dietary fibers as suggested by several studies. Along with different physiological positive effects of fenugreek, the hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic properties of this spice have weighty place for the present and future studies. The aim of this review is to comprehensively analyze the efficacy of fenugreek from the point of these two properties namely, hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic properties and appraises the results of clinical trials of various animals and human models. Analytical insights on fenugreeks’ pharmacological assessment provide striking information which demonstrates the fenugreek and its different parts as a treasured medicinal spice.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is considered one of the essential tuber crops, serving as a dietary staple food for various populations. This systematic review provides a comprehensive summary of the nutritional and therapeutic properties of cassava, which is an important dietary staple and traditional medicine. The review aims to evaluate and summarize the phytochemical components of cassava and their association with pharmacological activities, traditional uses, and nutritional importance in global food crises. To collect all relevant information, electronic databases; Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Preprint Platforms were searched for studies on cassava from inception until October 2022. A total of 1582 studies were screened, while only 34 were included in this review. The results of the review indicate that cassava has diverse pharmacological activities, including anti-bacterial, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, anti-inflammatory, hypocholesterolemic effects, and wound healing properties. However, more studies that aim to isolate the phytochemicals in cassava extracts and evaluate their pharmacological property are necessary to further validate their medical and nutritional values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food proteins are a source of nutraceutical and bioactive peptides that promote health and prevent diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of Hake heads proteins hydrolysates (HHPH) in the prevention of hypercholesterolemia, oxidative stress and obesity in mice fed a high cholesterol diet. After six week of treatment serum lipid profiles (total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol), the activities of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), the thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) level, the advanced oxidation protein product (AOPP) and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), catalase (CAT) and glutathione (GSH) were tested. The high cholesterol diet led to dyslipidemia, oxidative stress and liver structure damage, compared with the control group. It is interesting to note that the addition of HHPH to the HCD attenuated these anomalies in a dose-dependent manner. The overall findings revealed that the hypocholesterolemic effect of HHPH could be due to their capacity to diminish serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels as well as to their antioxidant activities by improving the liver architecture.

Arthrospira platensis biomass is a sustainable source of bioactive products for the food, cosmetic, and medicine industries. As well as primary metabolites, different secondary metabolites can be obtained via distinct enzymatic degradation of biomass. In this work, different hydrophilic extracts were obtained after treating the biomass with: (i) a serine endo-peptidase (Alcalase®), (ii) a mixture of amino-, dipeptidyl-, and endo-peptidases (Flavourzyme®), (iii) a mixture of endo-1,3(4)-β-glucanase and an endo-1,4-xylanase, and β-glucanase (Ultraflo®), and (iv) an exo-1,3-glucanase (Vinoflow®) (all the enzymes from Novozymes A/S (bagsvaerd, Denmark)); with subsequent extraction of the biocomponents with an isopropanol/hexane mixture. The composition of each aqueous phase extract (in terms of amino acids, peptides, oligo-elements, carbohydrates, and phenols) and their in vitro functional properties were compared. The conditions described in this work using the enzyme Alcalase® permits the extraction of eight distinctive peptides. This extract is 7.3 times more anti-hypertensive, 106 times more anti-hypertriglyceridemic, 26 times more hypocholesterolemic, has 4.4 times more antioxidant activities, and has 2.3 times more phenols, than the extract obtained without any prior enzyme biomass digestion. Alcalase® extract is an advantageous product with potential application in functional food, pharmaceutics, and cosmetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food and agro-industrial by-products provoke a great environmental and economic impact that must be minimized by adding value to these wastes within the framework of circular economy. The relevance of β-glucans obtained from natural sources (cereals, mushrooms, yeasts, algae, etc.), in terms of their interesting biological activities (hypocholesterolemic, hypoglycemic, immune-modulatory, antioxidant, etc.), has been validated by many scientific publications. Since most of these by-products contain high levels of these polysaccharides or can serve as a substrate of β-glucan-producing species, this work reviewed the scientific literature, searching for studies that utilized food and agro-industrial wastes to obtain β-glucan fractions, attending to the applied procedures for extraction and/or purification, the characterization of the glucans and the tested biological activities. Although the results related to β-glucan production or extraction using wastes are promising, it can be concluded that further research on the glucans' characterization, and particularly on the biological activities in vitro and in vivo (apart from antioxidant capacity), is required to reach the final goal of formulating novel nutraceuticals based on these molecules and these raw materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saponins, both steroidal and triterpenoid, exhibit distinct bioactivities. However, they are not commonly found together in natural sources; instead, sources tend to be rich in one type or another and mainly in the form of saponins rather than the sapogenin aglycones. Developing co-extracts containing both saponin or sapogenin types would be a strategy to harness their respective bioactivities, yielding multibioactive extracts. Therefore, this study evaluates the bioactivity (hypolipidemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities) of co-extracts from fenugreek seeds (steroidal-rich saponins) and quinoa husk (triterpenoid-rich saponins), co-extracted at varying proportions, alongside their respective sapogenin-rich hydrolysates. Pancreatic lipase inhibition increased with fenugreek content in co-extracts, especially in sapogenin-rich variants. The latter substantially interfered with cholesterol bioaccessibility (90% vs. 15% in sapogenin-rich extracts). Saponin-rich co-extracts exhibited reduced cytokine release with increased fenugreek content, while sapogenin-rich counterparts showed greater reductions with higher quinoa husk content. Limited cellular antioxidant activities were observed in all extracts, with improved post-hydrolysis bioactivity. Therefore, simultaneous co-extraction of steroidal and triterpenoid sources, such as fenugreek and quinoa husk, as well as their subsequent hydrolysis, are innovative strategies for obtaining multibioactive natural extracts.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is considered one of the essential tuber crops, serving as a dietary staple food for various populations. This systematic review provides a comprehensive summary of the nutritional and therapeutic properties of cassava, which is an important dietary staple and traditional medicine. The review aims to evaluate and summarize the phytochemical components of cassava and their association with pharmacological activities, traditional uses, and nutritional importance in global food crises. To collect all relevant information, electronic databases; Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Preprint Platforms were searched for studies on cassava from inception until October 2022. A total of 1582 studies were screened, while only 34 were included in this review. The results of the review indicate that cassava has diverse pharmacological activities, including anti-bacterial, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, anti-inflammatory, hypocholesterolemic effects, and wound healing properties. However, more studies that aim to isolate the phytochemicals in cassava extracts and evaluate their pharmacological property are necessary to further validate their medical and nutritional values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legumes have been widely consumed and used to isolate bioactive compounds, mainly proteins. The aim of this study was to review the beneficial actions of different legumes proteins and peptides updating the main findings that correlate legumes consumption and the effects on non-transmissible chronic diseases, specifically metabolic syndrome. An exhaustive revision of five relevant bioactivities (antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antihypertensive, hypocholesterolemic -all of them linked to metabolic syndrome- and antitumoral) of proteins and peptides from legumes focused on isolation and purification, enzymatic hydrolysis and in vitro gastrointestinal digestion was carried out. The promising potential of bioactive hydrolysates and peptides from pulses has been demonstrated by in vitro tests. However, only a few studies validated these biological activities using animal models. No clinical trials have been carried out yet; so further research is required to elucidate their effective health implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Absorption at the intestinal epithelium is a major determinant of cholesterol levels in the organism, influencing the entry of dietary cholesterol and the excretion of endogenous cholesterol. Several strategies are currently being followed to reduce cholesterol absorption, using both pharmacological agents or food ingredients with hypocholesterolemic properties. Coffee has recently been shown to affect cholesterol bioaccessibility, although it has not been shown if this translates into a decrease on cholesterol bioavailability. In this work, coffee obtained with different commercial roasting (light and dark) and grinding (finer and coarser) was evaluated regarding their effect on cholesterol absorption through Caco-2 monolayers, mimicking the intestinal epithelium. The fluorescent dehydroergosterol was used as a sterol model, which was shown to permeate Caco-2 monolayers with a low-to-moderate permeability coefficient depending on its concentration. In the presence of coffee extracts, a 50% decrease of the sterol permeability coefficient was observed, showing their potential to affect sterol bioavailability. This was attributed to an increased sterol precipitation and its deposition on the apical epithelial surface. A higher hypocholesterolemic effect was observed for the dark roasting and finer grinding, showing that the modulation of these technological processing parameters may produce coffees with optimized hypocholesterolemic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a great demand for nutraceuticals and healthy foods in today's World. Fenugreek is one of the oldest medicinal plants and is considered to have a good nutraceutical value. It belongs to the category of herbal drugs with minimal or no side effects. Fenugreek is antioxidant, anti-microbial, hypocholesterolemic, anti-carcinogenic, anti-diabetic, immunostimulatory, and a galactagogue. These nutraceutical properties of fenugreek are due to the bioactive components present in it such as diosgenin, galactomannan, etc. Fenugreek can be incorporated into different food products as a functional ingredient to enhance their nutritional value but this may impact the physical, chemical, and organoleptic properties of foods. The present paper reviews the bioactive components and nutraceutical properties of fenugreek with its impact on the properties of foods after being incorporated as a functional ingredient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel pyrrolo [2,3-b] pyrrole derivatives were synthesized and their hypolipidemic activity was assessed in hyperlipidemic rats. The chemical structures of the new derivatives were confirmed through spectral analysis. Compounds 5 and 6 were revealed to be the most effective hypolipidemic agents, with considerable hypocholesterolemic and hypotriglyceridemic effects. They appear to be promising candidates for creating new powerful derivatives with anti-atherosclerotic and hypolipidemic properties. As for antimicrobial activity, some of the tested compounds showed moderate activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa: compound 2 revealed an MIC value of 50 μg/mL, compared to 25 μg/mL for ciprofloxacin. Compound 3 showed good antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, comparable to ciprofloxacin, and roughly half the activity of ampicillin, according to MIC values. Compound 2 has an MIC approximately 25% of that of clotrimazole against Candida albicans. Compound 2 also showed the highest antioxidant activity with 59% inhibition of radical scavenging activity. Additionally, the cytotoxic activity of these new derivatives 1–7 was investigated and most of them showed good anticancer activity against the three tested cell lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coconut testa and tender coconut water (TCW) are by-products of coconut processing industries which are rich in natural phytonutrients, if not exploited properly it may add up to environmental pollution. In the current study, phenolic concentrate (PHE) from coconut testa and tender coconut water (TCW) concentrates were examined for their effect on high fat fed C57BL/6 mice at the level of 50 & 100 mg and 500 & 1000 mg/kg body weight respectively. Results showed increasing body weight in high fat fed animals when compared to starch fed control (ND/SFD) group. Treatment with concentrates of PHE and TCW reduced their body weight dose dependently. Lipid profile like triglycerides, cholesterol and LDL levels were significantly decreased, whereas HDL levels increased, indicating its health beneficial effect. Catalase, SOD, GPx, TBARS in tissues, analysis of OGTT, serum insulin levels, advance glycation and atherogenic protection were augmented at different levels in the treated groups. In conclusion, phenolic concentrate prepared from the coconut testa and tender coconut water concentrate revealed their hypolipidemic property which can be exploited further in the development of health foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dioscorea alata L. (Dioscoreaceae), commonly known as water yam, is a popular tuber crop vegetable used across the globe. It is mainly composed of starch (75–84% of the dry weight) with a small amount of proteins, lipids, and vitamins and is very rich in minerals. It has nutritional superiority compared with other tropical root crops. The main aim of the study was to extract and characterize the fructooligosaccharides (FOSs) fractions from the tuber of this plant and evaluate their prebiotic properties. The soluble FOSs were fractionated by the conventional solid-phase extraction method and were characterized by FT-IR, HPTLC, and ESI–MS analyses. In addition, the beneficial health attributes of these fractions were checked for in vitro and in vivo prebiotic properties in Swiss albino mice. The FT-IR, HPTLC, and ESI–MS analyses of the FOSs from the hot water and 80% ethanol fractions showed that both are rich in inulin-like prebiotics. Furthermore, these FOSs showed an excellent prebiotic activity score and had enhanced in vitro cholesterol-binding activities in the presence of probiotic lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains. Moreover, these had good antioxidant efficacies with IC50 values of 36.51 µg/ml and 33.12 µg/ml. In vivo treatment in Swiss albino mice, these FOSs had significantly lowered serum cholesterol (df = 6, p value < 2.2e−16), serum HDL (df = 6, p value = 3.68e−11), serum LDL (df = 6, p value < 2e−16), serum VLDL (df = 6, p value = 2.2e−13), serum triglycerides (df = 6, p value < 2e−16), blood sugar (df = 6, p value = 0.01857), serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase (S.G.P.T., df = 6, p value = 0.01189), serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (S.G.O.T., df = 6, p value = 0.01239) but no significant difference found in weight gain (df = 6, p value = 0.166) and serum creatinine (df = 6, p value = 0.987). Furthermore, they enhanced IgA-mediated immunomodulation and influenced the gut colonization of probiotic LAB strains than the standard prebiotics, inulin. Thus, the study revealed that the FOSs from the storage tuber of D. alata possess some novel prebiotic that could contribute to human nutrition. This is the first report of the prebiotic FOS characterization from this plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioactive peptides derived from food proteins are increasingly recognized as useful tools for improving health. In this dynamic field, multifunctional peptides represent an emerging area: this definition indicates those peptides which have the capacity to impart more than one physiological outcome by affecting different targets. They may be considered an improvement in respect to monofunctional peptides, owing to lower negative side effects and reduced costs. This review discusses the current information on multifunctional peptides useful in the area of cardiovascular disease prevention. Hypocholesterolemic/anti-diabetic peptides were identified in soybean and lupin protein hydrolysates, whereas hypotensive/anti-diabetic peptides in milk proteins hydrolysate. Antioxidant peptides with at least another biological activity (hypotensive peptides, anti-diabetic and hypocholesterolemic) were purified from hempseed, lentils, rice bran, milk, egg yolk, and cumin protein hydrolysates. The polypeptide lunasin is hypocholesterolemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory. Finally, the current hurdles in view of their practical exploitation are discussed in detail.

Abstract Background Cholesterol removal by isolated Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis was investigated in vitro. The studied mechanisms were (1) assimilation of cholesterol by growing bacterial cells, (2) deconjugation of bile salts by bile salt hydrolase, (3) precipitation of cholesterol with deconjugated bile, (4) binding of cholesterol to the cell membrane, and (5) incorporation of cholesterol into the cell membrane. Result Levels of cholesterol assimilated by growing cells (43.70%) were significantly higher than those assimilated by resting cells (12.93%) or counterpart dead cells (6.35%). Scanning electron micrographs indicated that cholesterol adsorbed to the bacterial cell wall. A comparison of IR spectra of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis grown with and without cholesterol using an FTIR spectroscopy database revealed intensity changes associated with sulfamide bonds, P–H stretching and the C≡C bonds. Precipitation of cholesterol upon deconjugation of glycocholate was higher (5.53 μg/ml) than that observed upon taurocholate (3.7 μg/ml). Conclusions The present study suggested the ability of probiotic Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis to reduce its cholesterol level through several different mechanisms. Consequently, this probiotic bacterium showed an interested potential of application in cholesterol reduction to be a novel and save prospect in resolving hypocholesteremia and related diseases.

Absorption at the intestinal epithelium is a major determinant of cholesterol levels in the organism, influencing the entry of dietary cholesterol and the excretion of endogenous cholesterol. Several strategies are currently being followed to reduce cholesterol absorption, using both pharmacological agents or food ingredients with hypocholesterolemic properties. Coffee has recently been shown to affect cholesterol bioaccessibility, although it has not been shown if this translates into a decrease on cholesterol bioavailability. In this work, coffee obtained with different commercial roasting (light and dark) and grinding (finer and coarser) was evaluated regarding their effect on cholesterol absorption through Caco-2 monolayers, mimicking the intestinal epithelium. The fluorescent dehydroergosterol was used as a sterol model, which was shown to permeate Caco-2 monolayers with a low-to-moderate permeability coefficient depending on its concentration. In the presence of coffee extracts, a 50% decrease of the sterol permeability coefficient was observed, showing their potential to affect sterol bioavailability. This was attributed to an increased sterol precipitation and its deposition on the apical epithelial surface. A higher hypocholesterolemic effect was observed for the dark roasting and finer grinding, showing that the modulation of these technological processing parameters may produce coffees with optimized hypocholesterolemic activity.

Objective: Abrus precatorius is a universal panacea in herbal medicine. In view of this, phytochemical screening, proximate analysis, median lethal dose (LD50), hematological and biochemical effects of extracts of A. precatorius seed was studied in Mus musculus. Materials and methods: Nineteen (19) mice were used for the study. Four (4) mice were used for determination of median lethal dose of the aqueous and ethyl acetate extracts respectively. The LD50 of aquous and ethyl acetate extracts was estimated at 187.5±62.5 mg/Kg and 175±75 mg/Kg respectively. The remaining fifteen (15) mice divided into 3 groups of 5 each were used for hematological and biochemical studies. Group 1 was administered 1 mL of distilled water while groups 2 and 3 were administered 1/10th (18.75 mg/Kg) of LD50 (187.5 mg/Kg) of methanolic and ethanolic seed extracts, for a period of 4 weeks. Results: Proximate analysis showed the presence of moisture, ash, crude protein and crude fiber. Carbohydrate and organic matter were calculated. Phytochemical screening showed alkaloids, flavanoids, tannins, saponins, and reducing sugars in both ethanolic and aqueous extracts. Cardiac glycosides were present in aqueous extract. Hematology revealed increased packed cell volume (PCV), hemoglobin (Hb), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) whereas red blood cell (RBC) and white blood cell (WBC) were significantly (P [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2018; 5(3.000): 354-360]

The growing consumption of kombucha beverages in the last decade has motivated an increase in the number of scientific studies investigating their biological activities. Their specific microbiological and chemical composition led to the generation of interesting bioactive fractions. Although many in vitro analyses have been described regarding bioactivities of kombucha and kombucha ingredients, a significantly lower amount of in vivo tests have been published and, moreover, clinical trials are particularly missing. In this revision, several biological activities were reviewed through the scientific literature (antioxidant, immune-modulatory, antiproliferative, hypocholesterolemic, antihypertensive, hypoglycemic, antimicrobial), describing the utilized experimental model, the reported results and their potential implications on human health. Furthermore, strengths and weaknesses of the current evidences around kombucha bioactivities were pointed out. It can be concluded that, despite of the interesting results obtained in vitro , further research is required including more in vivo tests, bioaccessibility and bioavailability assessment and clinical trials, as well as the isolation of bioactive compounds allowing the study of single molecules and their functionality. Image 1 • Kombucha beverages and their ingredients showed promising in vitro bioactivities. • Fewer animal tests were described in the literature validating these activities. • Only one and limited clinical trial has been carried out. • Further research (bioavailability, clinical, single bioactives purification) is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saponins are bioactive compounds of increasing interest. The events that take place during digestion are highly related to their bioactivities, because saponins are poorly absorbed and have a long residence time in the intestinal tract. The poor bioavailability of saponins is explained by a sum of factors, but the more favorable properties of sapogenins result in higher bioavailability and bioactivity. The gastric and colonic transformations of saponins are relevant in the release of sapogenins. Saponins inhibit enzymes and cholesterol absorption, but specific chemical structures of saponins are relevant for an efficient activity. Finally, the recent research has pointed to saponins as “prebiotic-like” compounds. This review summarizes the current knowledge on the events that take place during digestion of saponins and sapogenins related to their bioactivities, with special emphasis on the factors that modulate their bioavailability, bioaccessibility, inhibition of digestive enzymes and cholesterol absorption, and the importance of the microbiota-saponins relationship.

Protein content of winged bean is almost the same as soybean, but the beany flavor is more poweful than soybean. Therefore the protein of winged bean was isolated prior to use as raw material of yogurt. This research was aimed to determine the potency of hypocholestrolemic activity of yogurt protein isolate of winged bean through in vivo bioassay by using Sprague Dawley male rats. The treatments of the research were yogurt feed treatment with concentration of yogurt 0 (standard feed without yogurt as a control), 2, and 4 g yogurt/day as low and high concentration treatment respectively for 4th weeks after hypercholesterol feed treatment for 1 week. The blood lipid profile of rats, including triglyceride, cholesterol total, High Density Lipoprotein (HDL), Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were analysed on the 2nd and 4th weeks for the yogurt feed treatment while for before yogurt feed treatment, the evaluation were based on the adaptation phase and the 1st week for hypercholesterol phase. The result of this research showed that the blood triglyceride, cholesterol total, LDL increased, and the blood HDL decreased in hypercholesterol phase before yogurt feed treatment. The potency of hypocholestrolemic of yogurt from protein isolate of winged bean was shown by the decreasing of blood triglyceride, cholesterol total, LDL and increasing the HDL cholesterol after the yogurt feed treatment with low and high concentration. That indicated that yogurt that was made of protein isolate of winged bean could reduced cholesterol. ABSTRAK Biji kecipir memiliki kadar protein yang hampir sama dengan kedelai, namun bau langunya lebih tajam daripada kedelai, sehingga perlu diisolasi proteinnya sebelum digunakan sebagai bahan baku yogurt. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah menentukan potensi hipokolesterolemik yogurt isolat proteun biji kecipir melalui uji biologis in vivo menggunakan tikus jantan Sprague Dawley. Perlakuan penelitian ini adalah perlakuan pakan yogurt dengan konsentrasi 0 (pakan standar tanpa penambahan yogurt sebagai kontrol), 2, dan 4 g yogurt/hari berturut-turut sebagai perlakuan konsentrasi rendah dan tinggi selama 4 minggu perlakuan pakan yogurt sesudah pemberian pakan hiperkolesterol selama 1 minggu. Profil lipida darah tikus meliputi kadar trigliserida, total kolesterol, kolesterol High Density Lipoprotein (HDL), dan Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) dianalisis pada minggu ke 2 dan 4 minggu selama perlakuan pakan yogurt dan sebelum perlakuan pakan yogurt yaitu pada fase pemeliharaan adaptasi dan 1 minggu pada fase pemeliharan hiperkolesterol. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa trigliserida, total kolesterol, dan kolesterol LDL meningkat dan kolesterol HDL menurun selama fase pemberian pakan hiperkolesterol sebelum perlakuan pakan yogurt. Potensi hipokolesterol yogurt isolat protein biji kecipir ditunjukkan dengan penurunan trigliserida, total kolesterol, dan kolesterol LDL, serta peningkatan kolesterol HDL sesudah perlakuan pakan yogurt dengan konsentrasi rendah maupun tinggi. Hal tersebut mengindikasikan bahwa yogurt isolat protein biji kecipir mampu menurunkan kolesterol.

Graphical abstract Highlights • Multifunctional peptides from food proteins in cardiovascular disease prevention. • Hypocholesterolemic, anti-diabetic, hypotensive and antioxidant peptides. • Multidisciplinary strategy for discovering absorbable bioactive peptides. Abstract Bioactive peptides derived from food proteins are increasingly recognized as useful tools for improving health. In this dynamic field, multifunctional peptides represent an emerging area: this definition indicates those peptides which have the capacity to impart more than one physiological outcome by affecting different targets. They may be considered an improvement in respect to monofunctional peptides, owing to lower negative side effects and reduced costs. This review discusses the current information on multifunctional peptides useful in the area of cardiovascular disease prevention. Hypocholesterolemic/anti-diabetic peptides were identified in soybean and lupin protein hydrolysates, whereas hypotensive/anti-diabetic peptides in milk proteins hydrolysate. Antioxidant peptides with at least another biological activity (hypotensive peptides, anti-diabetic and hypocholesterolemic) were purified from hempseed, lentils, rice bran, milk, egg yolk, and cumin protein hydrolysates. The polypeptide lunasin is hypocholesterolemic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory. Finally, the current hurdles in view of their practical exploitation are discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract High cholesterol levels in blood are a risky factor on the human health. Lentinula edodes mushroom produce the 2(R), 3(R)-dihydroxy-4-(9-adenil)-butyric acid, eritadenine. This compound showed hypocholesterolemic effect on rats and humans. In this work, the eritadenine (EA) concentration was quantified by HPLC from treated mushrooms by several heat treatments: drying, as first treatment followed by cooking treatments as boiling, autoclaving, hot water bath, frying, and roasting treatments. It was found that the EA concentration increased from 1.2 (100 °C with subsequent boiling for 5 min) to 1.9 times in dried mushroom at 4 and 60 °C compared with the fresh mushrooms. The water used for the boiling process of the mushrooms also presented the compound, eritadenine (5.6–16.6 mg/100 g dry mushroom). It was found that, a long exposure to temperature by roasting and frying processes showed a negative effect on the EA concentration. These results provide interesting alternatives for the conservation and processing of the mushroom and preservation of its properties. Highlights • Dried mushrooms at 60 °C increased the concentration of EA by 90.7%. • The boiling process increased the total concentration of EA of dried mushrooms at 100 °C. • The amount of EA decreased drastically by treatments such as roasting and frying. • The autoclaving and hot water bath of dried mushrooms increased EA concentration 1.4 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was inspired due to the potential use of water yams which have high resistant starch therefore they could be developed as functional food. In Indonesia, water yam is differentiated by its flesh color, such as purple, yellow and white. The modified water yam flour was made by three-cycle autoclaving-cooling process in order to increase the resistance starch content (RS3). The effect of modified water yam diet administration on blood cholesterol, glucose and lipid profile of hypercholesterolemia rats was investigated. The results showed that rats which were fed with modified water yam flour had lower concentration of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglyceride, and blood glucose than those which were fed with standard diet. The higher reduction of total cholesterol and glucose level (39.8% and 58.1% respectively) was found in the group fed with modified white water yam while than those of other groups with purple and yellow water yam diets. It can be concluded that modified white water yam was proved to pose hypocholesterolemic and hypoglycemic effects and could be developed as functional food. The findings of this research can facilitate the development of functional food for the healthiness of human, and for diabetic and hypercholesterolemia patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Hyperlipidemia, extensively contributes in the progression of coronary heart diseases and atherosclerosis, but may be managed through alterations in the nutritional pattern. Several studies show that diet rich in polyphenols and antioxidants have antiatherogenic effects. Citrus sinensis and Citrus paradisi are widely known for health benefits and have found to produce antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and hypolipidemic effects, hence current research was planned to determine the hypolipidemic effects of C. sinensis and C. paradisi in rats receiving diet rich in cholesterol. Materials and Methods: All rats were divided into 11 groups each comprising 10 animals: Normal control group and hyperlipidemic control. C. sinensis treated three groups, C. paradisi treated three groups, C. sinensis and C. paradisi combination treated two groups, and group treated atorvastatin. All rats in the respective groups were treated orally with sterile water, juices, and standard drug for 8 weeks and lipid profile was estimated at the end of dosing. Results: Cholesterol, triglycerides (TGs), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) were decreased at all the three doses of C. sinensis and C. paradisi but rise in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) was only significant at 8 ml/kg, and 0.3 ml/kg, respectively. Animals received the combination doses of C. sinensis and C. paradisi also showed a highly significant fall in cholesterol, LDL, and TGs, however HDL level was significantly elevated by SPJ-2 combination. Conclusion: Results suggest that C. sinensis and C. paradisi possess antihyperlipidemic activity due to phytochemicals and other essential nutrients, hence may serve as cardioprotective by preventing thrombosis.

Traditional Indonesian fermented foods can be used as potential sources of probiotics as they commonly contain lactic acid bacteria (LAB), including species of Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Enterococcus, Weisella and Leuconostoc. The occurrence of LAB in Indonesian fermented foods is not only limited to lactic fermented foods but is also present in foods with molds as the main starter culture. This review aims to describe the significance of Indonesian fermented foods as potential sources of probiotics and the potential of LAB from fermented foods to promote beneficial health effects. A number of in vitro studies have been carried out to assess the probiotic potential of LAB from fermented foods. Many LAB strains have met the basic requirements for them to be considered as probiotics and possess some functional properties contributing to positive health impacts. Hypocholesterolemic effects, stimulation of the immune system, and prevention of diarrhea by some probiotic strains have been shown in animal studies. However, human studies on the efficacy of probiotic strains are still limited. Two strains isolated from dadih, a fermented buffalo milk, are examples of promising probiotic strains that have gone through human studies. The potential probiotic properties of LAB in Indonesian fermented foods still need to be fully investigated to assess their impact on human health. The studies should also consider factors that may influence the functional properties of probiotics, both in foods and in humans.

Metabolomics study of Hydrocotyle umbellata L. revealed the richness of its aerial parts in phenolics primarily; quercetin and its glycoside derivatives, which are well-reported to exert antidiabetic activity owing to their powerful antioxidant capacity. Hence, the antioxidant and antidiabetic potentials of the quercetin standardized ethanolic extract of H. umbellata aerial parts were investigated. The antioxidant activity was examined by using in-vitro 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl free radical scavenging assay, while the antidiabetic activity was examined by using in-vitro α- glucosidase inhibitory assay and further confirmed by in-vivo experiments using streptozotocin-induced diabetes in rat model. Interestingly, the standardized ethanolic extract showed significant in-vitro antioxidant activity, and effectively inhibited Saccharomyces cerevisiae α- glucosidase enzyme activity. Moreover, it significantly reduced fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, and cholesterol levels. Thus, H. umbellata is a potential natural candidate to attenuate diabetes mellitus and its altered lipid profile complications, which could be attributed to its quercetin and quercetin glycosides content.

This study was inspired due to the potential use of water yams which have high resistant starch therefore they could be developed as functional food. In Indonesia, water yam is differentiated by its flesh color, such as purple, yellow and white. The modified water yam flour was made by three-cycle autoclaving-cooling process in order to increase the resistance starch content (RS3). The effect of modified water yam diet administration on blood cholesterol, glucose and lipid profile of hypercholesterolemia rats was investigated. The results showed that rats which were fed with modified water yam flour had lower concentration of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglyceride, and blood glucose than those which were fed with standard diet. The higher reduction of total cholesterol and glucose level (39.8% and 58.1% respectively) was found in the group fed with modified white water yam while than those of other groups with purple and yellow water yam diets. It can be concluded that modified white water yam was proved to pose hypocholesterolemic and hypoglycemic effects and could be developed as functional food. The findings of this research can facilitate the development of functional food for the healthiness of human, and for diabetic and hypercholesterolemia patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to assess the qualitative and chemical characteristics of a shoulder muscle (triceps brachii muscle, medial head (TBm)) of 15 Nellore × Canchim steers and 14 heifers of the same cross fed diets containing 80% concentrate on a dry-matter (DM) basis and increasing concentrations of linseed oil (1%, 3.8% and 5.2% of DM). A randomised incomplete-block design, divided on the basis of initial bodyweight, in a 3 × 2 factorial scheme (oil concentration and animal sex) was used. Oil concentrations were evaluated by linear and quadratic regression. The finishing period lasted for 96, 110 or 138 days, until the average weight of each block reached 500 kg. At 24 h postmortem, TBm samples were taken to evaluate quality traits and chemical composition. Meat from steers was significantly (P < 0.05) brighter than was heifer meat (brightness (L*) = 39.55 vs 36.28). The addition of linseed oil up to 5.2% improved the pH value of TBm in heifers (6.07, 6.22 and 5.77). No significant (P > 0.05) influence was observed for linseed oil addition up to 5.2% of DM or animal sex on the chemical characteristics of TBm, estimated activity of Δ9-desaturase and elongase, and atherogenic and thrombogenic indices. However, the increasing inclusion of linseed oil in the diet of crossbred cattle increased (P < 0.05) conjugated linoleic acid (0.46, 0.66 and 0.73 g/100 g total fatty acids), α-linolenic acid (0.39, 0.69 and 1.31 g/100 g total fatty acids for steers; 0.36, 0.79 and 0.76 g/100 g total fatty acids for heifers), γ-linolenic acid (0.07, 0.10 and 0.24 g/100 g total fatty acids), and the sum of n-3 fatty acids. The increasing inclusion of linseed oil also increased the ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids and decreased the ratio of n-6:n-3 fatty acids (11.68, 6.43 and 5.26 for steers; 10.69, 6.93 and 6.03 for heifers). Supplementation of finishing cattle with linseed oil is an effective means to increase n-3 fatty acid concentration in forequarter muscle. High concentrate diets with increasing linseed oil concentration were offered to steers and heifers to evaluate quality traits of meat. The higher linseed oil concentration increased the levels of important fatty acids such as n-6 and n-3. The inclusion of linseed oil is a strategy to produce meat with benefits for human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Abrus precatorius is a universal panacea in herbal medicine. In view of this, phytochemical screening, proximate analysis, median lethal dose (LD50), hematological and biochemical effects of extracts of A. precatorius seed was studied in Mus musculus. Materials and methods: Nineteen (19) mice were used for the study. Four (4) mice were used for determination of median lethal dose of the aqueous and ethyl acetate extracts respectively. The LD50 of aquous and ethyl acetate extracts was estimated at 187.5±62.5 mg/Kg and 175±75 mg/Kg respectively. The remaining fifteen (15) mice divided into 3 groups of 5 each were used for hematological and biochemical studies. Group 1 was administered 1 mL of distilled water while groups 2 and 3 were administered 1/10th (18.75 mg/Kg) of LD50 (187.5 mg/Kg) of methanolic and ethanolic seed extracts, for a period of 4 weeks. Results: Proximate analysis showed the presence of moisture, ash, crude protein and crude fiber. Carbohydrate and organic matter were calculated. Phytochemical screening showed alkaloids, flavanoids, tannins, saponins, and reducing sugars in both ethanolic and aqueous extracts. Cardiac glycosides were present in aqueous extract. Hematology revealed increased packed cell volume (PCV), hemoglobin (Hb), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) whereas red blood cell (RBC) and white blood cell (WBC) were significantly (P<0.05) decreased. Biochemistry revealed significantly decreased (P<0.05) total protein, albumin, cholesterol, globulin and albumin/globulin ratio whereas creatinine and alkaline phosphatase were significantly increased. Conclusion: A. precatorius seed extracts are very toxic and can be used as blood tonic, immunosupressant, hypocholesterolemic and renotoxic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reports on the volatile profile and pharmacological activities of the essential oil and resin from Bursera slechtendalii , an aromatic medicinal tree commercialized in southern Mexico. The essential oil contained 25 volatiles including p-cymen-8-ol (25.4–35.7%), n-hexyl hexanoate (6.8–17.6%) and n-octyl hexanoate (7.6–14.8%), whereas the crystallized resin contained 14 volatiles, including n-octyl acetate (29.6–34.2%), limonene (15.8–18.7%) and n-octyl butyrate (12.6–17-6%). The inhalation of vapors from the resin and essential oil caused a significant anxiolytic-like effect (p < .01) in ICR mice after 20 min of exposure at a dose of 50–150 mg L −1 . The prolonged inhalation of the essential oil (for 40 days, for 15 min, twice a day) produced a significant decrease (p < .01) in total cholesterol and LDL-c content as well as an increase of HDL-c levels in the same murine model. Interestingly, levels of hepatic lipid hydroperoxide decreased, whereas the hepatic activity of superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase was significantly enhanced (P < .05). The detection of p-cymen-8-ol and n-octyl acetate in the plasma of mice strongly suggests their bioavailability and possible role in the biological activities described herein. Also, both the resin and essential oil from B. slechtendalii, as well as their main volatiles, showed a potent repellence activity against Aedes aegypti (p < .01). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In previous studies, it has not been reported that protein isolated from chia interferes favorably with antibacterial activity, and reduces cholesterol synthesis. The objective of this study was to determine whether commonly used commercial microbial proteases can be utilized to generate chia protein-based antibacterial and hypocholesterolemic hydrolysates/peptides, considering the effects of protein extraction method. Alcalase, Flavourzyme and sequential Alcalase-Flavourzyme were used to produce hydrolysates from chia protein (CF), protein-rich fraction (PRF) and chia protein concentrates (CPC1 and CPC2). These hydrolysates were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (G+) and Gram-negative (G-) microorganisms. The protein hydrolysates were purified by ultrafiltration through a membrane with 3 kDa nominal molecular weight, for evaluation of hypocholesterolemic activity. An inhibition zone was observed when the hydrolysate was tested against S. aureus, and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were obtained. Peptides from chia protein with molecular mass lower than 3 kDa reduced up to 80.7% of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMG-CoA reductase) enzymatic reaction velocity. It was also observed that, independent of the method used to obtain chia proteins, the fractions showed relevant bioactivity. Moreover, the intensity of the bioactivity varied with the method for obtaining the protein and with the enzyme used in the hydrolysis process. This is the first report to demonstrate that chia peptides are able to inhibit cholesterol homeostasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioprospecting of novel probiotic strains especially from unexplored eco-niches has been a continuous practice. Enterococcus faecium K1, an isolate from indigenously fermented milk product kalarei possesses numerous desirable functional attributes. In current study, E. faecium K1 has been used for EPS production, and it yielded 355 ± 0.019 mg/L EPS. EPS demonstrates remarkable hypocholesterolemic, antioxidant, antibiofilm, and emulsification characteristics. EPS is constituted of mannose, glucose and galactose. SEM analysis reveals flake like compact structure of EPS while TEM and X-ray diffractogram confirms the amorphous structure of EPS. FTIR substantiates the functional groups/bonds typical of polysaccharides. Thermal analysis indicates adequate stability of EPS at 237 °C with average weight loss of 22%. E. faecium K1 EPS possesses unique functional bioactivities and physicochemical characteristics, and may potentially be explored for applications in food/pharmaceutical industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of kenaf seed oil (KSO), kenaf seed oil‐in‐water macroemulsion (KSOM), kenaf seed oil‐in‐water nanoemulsions (KSON), and emulsifier mixtures (EM) on serum lipid profile, liver oxidative status, and histopathological changes in high‐cholesterol fed rats. Stability and characteristic of KSOM and KSON were carried out prior to in vivo study. Forty‐two Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into 7 groups (6 rats each) and induced hypercholesterolemia by feeding high cholesterol diet (HCD) for 14 days prior to treatments. Different treatments were introduced on day 15 to 29 while supplemented with HCD and removal of HCD during treatment on day 30 to 43, except for HCD group. Body weight and serum lipid profiles were measured at 3 different points: after hypercholesterolemia was induced, on day 29, and at the end of the experiment. Relative liver weight, atherogenic index, coronary risk index, and fecal total bile acids were also determined at the end of experiment. KSON showed significantly higher stability than KSOM and FTIR exhibited good encapsulation of KSO after 1.5 years of storage. Serum total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, lipid peroxidation levels in HCD group without treatment were significantly higher compared to normal control group and all treatment groups. All samples demonstrated hypocholesterolemic effect, but KSON exhibited higher efficiency in cholesterol‐lowering properties, weight control and decreased liver fat as confirmed by histopathological evaluation. The overall results revealed that the efficacy of different treatments was in descending order of KSON, KSO, KSOM, and EM. Practical Application: Kenaf seed oil‐in‐water nanoemulsion (KSON) has the potential to be used as a natural alternative to the synthetic hypocholesterolemic drug in the future. However, larger sample size and clinical trial are needed to confirm on this potential application. In addition, treatment with KSON was suggested to prevent cardiovascular disease and fatty liver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic activities of the aqueous preparation of Kalanchoe pinnata (K. pinnata) leaves in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Methods: Diabetes mellitus was induced in rats by a single administration of streptozotocin (60 mg/Kg). Diabetic rats were then treated with aqueous K. pinnata for 30 d. Serum glucose, proteins, lipid composition, liver and kidney function indices, inflammatory markers, and key enzymes of hepatic carbohydrate and lipid metabolism were determined. Results: The untreated and treated diabetic groups lost weight and consumed less food compared to the normal group. We noted 37.9% decrease in fasting blood glucose in the treated diabetic group compared to 13.2% and 17.0% increases in normal and untreated diabetic groups respectively. Serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly (P

The present study aims to produce low cost sophorolipids, and to evaluate their potential hypocholesterolemic impact. Sophorolipids were produced by Candida bombicola grown on safflower oil cake, extracted by methanol followed by ethyl acetate with a yield of 24.4 and 48.3 g·100 g-1 mixed substrate, respectively. Their structure was confirmed by FTIR and 1H NMR and proven to be safe when subjected to an acute toxicity test. A biological experiment was done on 42 male albino rats classified into six groups for 4 weeks following an induction period for hypercholesterolemia of 8 weeks. The two extracts and their mixture were examined for their hypocholesterolemic effect compared to rosuvastatin. The results revealed a reduction in total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, atherogenic index, liver transaminases’ activity and malondialdehyde. They also revealed an elevation in high density lipoprotein cholesterol and antioxidant enzymes which was more efficient than rosuvastatin. Histopathological examination confirmed these results. In conclusion, the newly isolated sophorolipids are powerful hypocholesterolemic compounds which are even more efficient and safer than rosuvastatin.