A pilot study investigating the influence of dietary boron levels on osteoporosis in postmenopausal women.

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of dietary boron on osteoporosis in postmenopausal Jordanian women. Sixty-six women diagnosed with osteoporosis were recruited and data on personal information, dietary habits, medical history, and lifestyle were collected. Bone mineral density, serum calcium, and serum vitamin D measurements were obtained from patient records. This study showed a strong correlation between boron intake and bone mineral density in these women with osteoporosis and a negative correlation between boron intake and serum calcium (p < .05). However, no significant correlation was found between boron intake and various parameters such as serum vitamin D, dietary habits, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), age of menopause, cases of hysterectomy or oophorectomy, location of fractures, education level, social status, smoking, and physical activity (p > .05). A significant link was found between boron intake and bone mineral density highlighting the importance of nutritional and lifestyle factors affecting bone health. Further research on the specific impact of boron is warranted to better inform dietary interventions for osteoporosis prevention and management.

Designing novel industrial and functional foods using the bioactive compounds from Nigella sativa L. (black cumin): Biochemical and biological prospects toward health implications.

Nigella sativa is one of the nutraceuticals that has gained popularity and studied extensively in recent decades as it is considered a safe medicinal plant for use as a dietary supplement. N. sativa contains a wide variety of bioactive substances, which include polyphenols, volatile oils (thymoquinone and p-cymene), proteins, and peptides. The biological attributes of N. sativa include antioxidant, antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antidiabetic, antihypertensive, hypolipidemic, and antioxidant activities, which have potential applications for the prevention of a variety of chronic diseases. In the food industry, N. sativa improves the sensory qualities, shelf life, strength, and freshness of foods, such as bread, pizza, biscuits, cookies, and cakes. This review discusses the industrial use of N. sativa, which includes processing technologies to enhance its health-promoting properties as well as the isolation of nutraceutical components.

Current perspectives on fenugreek bioactive compounds and their potential impact on human health: A review of recent insights into functional foods and other high value applications.

Despite long-standing uses in several food and medicine traditions, the full potential of the leguminous crop fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) remains to be realized in the modern diet. Not only its seeds, which are highly prized for their culinary and medicinal properties, but also its leaves and stems abound in phytochemicals with high nutritional and health promoting attributes. Fenugreek dual food-medicine applications and reported metabolic activities include hypoglycemic, antihyperlipidemic, antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, antiatherogenic, antihypertensive, anticarcinogenic, immunomodulatory, and antinociceptive effects, with potential organ-protective effects at the cardiovascular, digestive, hepatic, endocrine, and central nervous system levels. Effectiveness in alleviating certain inflammatory skin conditions and dysfunctions of the reproductive system was also suggested. As a food ingredient, fenugreek can enhance the sensory, nutritional, and nutraceutical qualities of a wide variety of foods. Its high nutritive density can assist with the design of dietary items that meet the demand for novelty, variety, and healthier foods. Its seeds provide essential protective nutrients and other bioactive compounds, notably galactomannans, flavonoids, coumarins, saponins, alkaloids, and essential oils, whose health benefits, alone or in conjunction with other bioactives, are only beginning to be tapped into in the food industries. This review summarizes the current state of evidence on fenugreek potential for functional food development, focusing on the nutrients and non-nutrient bioactive components of interest from a dietary perspective, and their applications for enhancing the functional and nutraceutical value of foods and beverages. New developments, safety, clinical evidence, presumed mechanisms of action, and future perspectives are discussed. HIGHLIGHTS: Fenugreek seeds and leaves have long-standing uses in the food-medicine continuum. Fenugreek phytochemicals exert broad-spectrum biological and pharmacological activities. They show high preventive and nutraceutical potential against common chronic diseases. Current evidence supports multiple mechanisms of action mediated by distinct bioactives. Opportunities for fenugreek-based functional foods and nutraceuticals are expanding.

Functional and Bioactive Properties of Wheat Protein Fractions: Impact of Digestive Enzymes on Antioxidant, α-Amylase, and Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition Potential.

This research aimed to determine the biofunctional properties of wheat flour (WF) protein fractions and modifications to the antioxidant, anti-α-amylase and anti-angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) activities induced by the action of digestive endopeptidases in vitro. A molecular characterization of the most abundant protein fractions, i.e., albumins, glutelins-1, glutelins-2 and prolamins, showed that low- and high-MW polypeptides rich in cysteine, glutamic acid and leucine were present in albumins and glutelins, whereas low-MW subunits with a high proportion of polar amino acids prevailed in prolamins. Prolamins exhibited the second-highest water holding capacity (54%) after WF (84%), while albumins provided superior foam stability (76%). Prolamins, glutenins-1 and globulins demonstrated the highest antioxidant activity (up to 95%, 68% and 59%, respectively) both before and after hydrolysis with pepsin (P-H) or trypsin-chymotrypsin (TC-H). Prolamins, globulins and WF strongly inhibited α-amylase (>90%) before and after TC-H, and before P-H (55-71%). Moreover, P-H significantly increased α-amylase inhibition by albumins from 53 to 74%. The fractions with strong ACE inhibitory activity (70-89%) included prolamins and globulins after TC-H or P-H, as well as globulins before TC-H and WF before P-H. This novel evidence indicates that WF protein fractions and their peptide-enriched P and TC hydrolysates are excellent sources of multifunctional bioactives with antioxidant, antihyperglycemic and antihypertensive potential.

Characterization and biological properties of peptides isolated from dried fermented cow milk products by RP-HPLC: Amino acid composition, antioxidant, antihypertensive, and antidiabetic properties.

This study aimed to assess the biological properties of peptide fractions isolated from dried fermented dairy products (jameed) as influenced by processing. Peptide fractions were separated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) from salted (Sa) and unsalted (Us) cow milk jameed after drying the fermented curd by sun drying (Sd) or freeze-drying (Fd) and were characterized for their antioxidant capacity and inhibitory activity toward angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) and α-amylase. Sd samples showed more numerous peptide peaks in RP-HPLC chromatograms than Fd samples, regardless of the salt content. High antioxidant activity was evidenced in several peptide fractions from FdUs jameed (including fractions 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9, and 10), SdUs jameed (1, 2, 5, 7, and 9), and FdSa jameed (2, 5, 6, and 9). By contrast, peptide fractions from SdSa (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, and 9), SdUs (4, 5, and 10), and FdUs (5, 6, and 8) jameed displayed the highest ACE inhibitory activity. Similarly, the highest inhibition of α-amylase was obtained with fractions from SdSa (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 9), SdUs (2 and 6), and FdUs (1, 7 and 9) jameed. A significant negative correlation was evidenced between antioxidant activity and anti-α-amylase activity of peptide fractions from SdSa jameed. These findings demonstrate that cow milk jameed is a source of bioactive peptides with antioxidant, anti-ACE, and anti-α-amylase properties in vitro, which can be tailored by adjusting the salt content and the drying conditions. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This study shows that cow milk jameed, a staple fermented food in several Mediterranean countries, can serve as a useful source of multifunctional bioactive peptides with potential antioxidant, hypotensive, and hypoglycemic effects, which may help prevent and manage chronic health conditions such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and the metabolic syndrome. The bioactivities of certain peptide fractions were enhanced by lowering the salt content of jameed or by the drying method. The relatively simple RP-HPLC method described in this study can be used to isolate the peptide fractions of interest for further characterization and use as functional ingredients.

A review of phenolic compounds in oil-bearing plants: Distribution, identification and occurrence of phenolic compounds.

Over the last two decades, separation, identification and measurement of the total and individual content of phenolic compounds has been widely investigated. Recently, the presence of a wide range of phenolic compounds in oil-bearing plants has been shown to contribute to their therapeutic properties, including anti-cancer, anti-viral, anti-oxidant, hypoglycemic, hypo-lipidemic, and anti-inflammatory activities. Phenolics in oil-bearing plants are now recognized as important minor food components due to several organoleptic and health properties, and they are used as food or sources of food ingredients. Variations in the content of phenolics in oil-bearing plants have largely been attributed to several factors, including the cultivation, time of harvest and soil types. A number of authors have suggested that the presence phenolics in extracted proteins, carbohydrates and oils may contribute to objectionable off flavors The objective of this study was to review the distribution, identification and occurrence of free and bound phenolic compounds in oil-bearing plants.

Investigation of natural lipid-phenolic interactions on biological properties of virgin olive oil.

There is limited knowledge regarding the impact of naturally occurring lipid-phenolic interactions on the biological properties of phenolics in virgin olive oil. Free and bound phenolics were isolated via sequential methanolic extraction at 30 and 60 °C, and were identified and quantified using reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography, liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), and gas chromatography. Decreased oleic acid concentrations and increased concentrations of palmitoleic acid, stearic, linoleic, and linolenic acids were observed in virgin olive oil after removal of free and bound lipid phenolic compounds. The presence of p-hydroxybenzoic acid and tyrosol bound to glycerides was determined via LC-MS/MS, which indicates natural lipid-phenolic interactions in virgin olive oil. Both free and lipid bound phenolic extracts exerted antiproliferative activities against the CRC1 and CRC5 colorectal cancer cell lines. The present work indicates that naturally occurring lipid-phenolic interactions can affect the biological properties of phenolics in virgin olive oil.