Synthesis of novel hydrophilic celastrol nanoformulation by entrapment within calcium phosphate nanoparticle and study of its antioxidant activity against neurotoxin-induced damage in human neuroblastoma cells.

Celastrol, a pentacyclic triterpenoid found in Chinese herb Tripterygium wilfordii, is considered as one of the top-five natural medicinal compounds with high antioxidant property. However, celastrol has poor aqueous solubility and thereby low bioavailability, restricting its clinical application as drug. To overcome this problem, we nanonized celastrol by entrapping it within hydrophilic nanocarrier - calcium phosphate nanoparticle. The synthesized calcium phosphate celastrol nanoparticle (CPCN) had average size of 35 nm, spherical shape, significant stability with (-) 37 mV zeta potential, celastrol entrapment efficiency around 75 % and low celastrol release kinetics spanning over 7 days, as measured by different techniques like FESEM, AFM, DLS, and spectrophotometry. Studies on the antioxidant potency of CPCN by flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy depicted that the toxicity developed in human neuroblastoma cells SH-SY5Y by treatment with the selective neurotoxin MPP+ iodide (N-Methyl-4-phenylpyridinium iodide) got reduced by pretreatment of the cells with CPCN. Determination of cellular ROS content, depolarization level of mitochondrial membrane potential, cell cycle analysis and nuclear damage in MPP+-exposed cells demonstrated that CPCN had about 65 % more antioxidant efficacy over that of bulk celastrol. Thus, the nanonization process transformed hydrophobic celastrol into hydrophilic CPCN, having high potentiality to be developed as an effective antioxidant drug.

Ferulic Acid-Loaded Nanostructure Maintains Brain Levels of ACh, Glutamate, and GABA and Ameliorates Anxiety and Memory Impairments Induced by the D-Galactose Aging Process in Rats.

Population aging is a global reality driven by increased life expectancy. This demographic phenomenon is intrinsically linked to the epidemic of cognitive disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease, posing challenges for elderly and their families. In this context, the search for new therapeutic strategies to prevent or minimize cognitive impairments becomes urgent, as these deficits are primarily associated with oxidative damage and increased neuroinflammation. Ferulic acid (FA), a natural and potent antioxidant compound, is proposed to be nanoencapsulated to target the central nervous system effectively with lower doses and an extended duration of action. Here, we evaluated the effects of the nanoencapsulated FA on d-galactose (d-Gal)- induced memory impairments. Male Wistar adult rats were treated with ferulic acid-loaded nanocapsules (FA-Nc) or non-encapsulated ferulic acid (D-FA) for 8 weeks concurrently with d-Gal (150 mg/kg s.c.) injection. As expected, our findings showed that d-Gal injection impaired memory processes and increased anxiety behavior, whereas FA-Nc treatment ameliorated these behavioral impairments associated with the aging process induced by d-Gal. At the molecular level, nanoencapsulated ferulic acid (FA-Nc) ameliorated the decrease in ACh and glutamate induced by d-galactose (d-Gal), and also increased GABA levels in the dorsal hippocampus, indicating its therapeutic superiority. Additional studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying our current promising outcomes. Nanoscience applied to pharmacology can reduce drug dosage, thereby minimizing adverse effects while enhancing therapeutic response, particularly in neurodegenerative diseases associated with aging. Therefore, the strategy of brain-targeted drug delivery through nanoencapsulation can be effective in mitigating aging-related factors that may lead to cognitive deficits.

Formation of bis-spiropyrrolidines from isatin, secondary amines, and alkylidene Meldrum's acids.

A catalyst-free synthesis of stable bis-spiropyrrolidines from isatin, secondary amines, and alkylidene Meldrum's acids in MeCN in 75-95% yield is described. The antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of the synthesized compounds are investigated. For this purpose, the radical scavenging activities of four derivatives were studied by radical trapping of diphenylpicrylhydrazine and ferric reduction power experiments. Disk diffusion test on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria was employed to investigate antibacterial activities of five derivatives.

The Enhancement Origin of Antioxidant Property of Carboxylated Lignin Isolated from Herbaceous Biomass Using the Maleic Acid Hydrotropic Fractionation.

Lignin is endowed with antioxidant activity due to its diverse chemical structure. It is necessary to explore the relationship between antioxidant activity and the chemical structure of the lignin to develop its high-value utilization. Herein, we employed maleic acid (MA) as a hydrotropic agent to preferably isolate the lignin from distinct herbaceous sources (wheat straw and switchgrass) under atmospheric pressure conditions. The resultant acid hydrotropic lignin (AHL) isolated from wheat straw exhibited high radical scavenging rates, up to 98% toward DPPH and 94% toward ABTS. Further investigations indicated that during the MA hydrotropic fractionation (MAHF) process, lignin was carboxylated by MA at γ-OH of the side-chain, providing additional antioxidant activity from the carboxy group. It was also found that the radical scavenging rate of AHL has a positive correlation with carboxyl, phenolic hydroxyl contents, and the S-G (syringyl-guaiacyl) ratio, which could be realized by increasing the MAHF severity. Overall, this work underlies the enhancement origin of the antioxidant property of lignin, which will facilitate its application in biological fields as an efficient, cheap, and renewable antioxidant additive.

Lanthanide-Like Contraction Enables the Fabrication of High-Purity Selenium Films for Efficient Indoor Photovoltaics.

The lanthanide contraction involves a reduction in atomic radius among f-block elements below the expected level. A similar contraction is observed in group-16 elements. The atomic radius of Se (117 pm) is slightly larger than that of S (104 pm) arising from the presence of d electrons, compared to the significant increase in atomic radius from O (73 pm) to S. This lanthanide-like contraction contributes to Se's robust oxidative resistance. Here we report a selective oxidation strategy utilizing Se's strong antioxidative property to remove coexisting narrow-bandgap Te impurities from Se feedstocks. This strategy selectively oxidizes volatile Te impurities into involatile TeO2 that remains in the evaporation source, while only volatile Se deposits onto the substrate during the thermal-evaporation deposition process. This enables the fabrication of high-purity Se films possessing a wide bandgap of 1.88 eV, ideally suited to the optimal bandgap for indoor photovoltaics (IPVs). The resulting Se photovoltaics exhibit an efficiency of 20.1% under 1000-lux indoor illumination, outperforming market-dominant amorphous silicon and all types of lead-free perovskite IPVs. Unencapsulated Se devices show no efficiency degradation after 20,000 hours of storage in ambient atmosphere.

Potato protein: current review of structure, technological properties, and potential application on spray drying microencapsulation.

Studies regarding spray drying microencapsulation are aplenty available; especially focusing on processing parameters, microparticle characteristics and encapsulation efficiency. Hence, there is a rising interest in tailoring wall materials aiming to improve the process's effectiveness. Reflecting a market trend in the food industry, plant-based proteins are emerging as alternative protein sources, and their application adaptability is an increasing research of interest related to consumers' demand for healthy food, product innovation, and sustainability. This review presents a perspective on the investigation of potato protein as a technological ingredient, considering it a nonconventional source obtained as by-product from starch industry. Furthermore, this piece emphasizes the potential application of potato protein as wall material in spray drying encapsulation, considering that this purpose is still limited for this ingredient. The literature reports that vegetal-based proteins might present compromised functionality due to processing conditions, impairing its technological application. Structural modification can offer a potential approach to modify potato protein configuration aiming to improve its utilization. Studies reported that modified proteins can perform as better emulsifiers and antioxidant agents compared to intact proteins. Hence, it is expected that their use in microencapsulation would improve process efficiency and protection of the core material, consequently delivering superior encapsulation performance.

A one-pot synthesis 3-alkoxycarbonyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran-2-ones from vinylidene melderum's acids, dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylates, and simple alcohols.

A one-pot synthesis of 3-alkoxycarbonyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran-2-ones from intermolecular hetero-Diels-Alder reaction between vinylidene Melderum's acids and dialkyl acetylenedicarboxylates, in the presence of simple alcohols at room temperature, is described. The advantages of this procedure are good yields, short reaction time, and easy workup. Antioxidant properties of four derivatives of these 3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran-2-ones, together with their antimicrobial activities, are investigated.

A Homochiral Diphenylalanine Analog Based Mechanoresponsive Hydrogel: An Insight Towards Its Wound Healing Efficacy.

Deciphering the most promising strategy for the evolution of potential wound-healing therapeutics is one of the greatest challenging affairs to date. The development of peptide-based smart scaffolds with innate antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties is an appealing way out. Aligned to the goal a set of Hydrogelators I-IV were developed utilizing the concept of chiral orchestration in diphenylalanine fragment, such that the most potent construct with all the bench marks namely mechanoresponsiveness, biocompatibility, consistent antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, could be fished out from the design. Interestingly, our in vitro Antifungal and Lipid peroxidation analysis identified the homochiral isomer Boc-δ-Ava-L-Phe-L-Phe-OH (Hydrogelator I), as an ideal candidate for the wound healing experiment, so we proceeded for the in vivo histopathological and antioxidant measurements in Wister rats. Indeed the wound images obtained from the different sets of animals on the 14th day of treatment demonstrated that with increased recovery time, hydrogelator I displayed a significant reduction in the lesion diameter compared to the marketed drug, and negative control. Even the histopathological measurements using H & E staining demonstrated diminished tissue destruction, neutrophil infiltration necrosis, and lymphatic proliferation in the hydrogelators, in comparison to others, backed by in vivo lipid peroxidation data. Overall our investigation certifies hydrogelator I as an effective therapeutic for managing the wound healing complication.

Structural change kinetics, drying characteristics, antioxidant properties, and the correlation between quality parameters of dried duckweed (Wolffia arrhiza (L.) Wimm) affected by different levels of microwave power.

BACKGROUND: Duckweed is considered as a future food material due to its fast growth, high yield, high nutritional value, and low impact on land use. However, in its fresh form, it has high moisture content (95% wet basis), resulting in a short shelf life. In this study, microwave drying (MWD) was conducted to produce a shelf-stable duckweed with minimal loss of quality. Drying characteristics and quality aspects of dried duckweed were assessed. Reaction order kinetics, including zero and first order, was applied to describe structural changes during drying process. Hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) was used to select the appropriate drying conditions. RESULTS: Of five drying models, the Midilli-Kucuk model was the one that best described the drying process. Drying at high microwave power could reduce energy consumption and increase energy efficiency. Increasing both microwave power and drying time increased the structural shrinkage rate as described by first-order reaction kinetics. High correlations among quality parameters were observed using Pearson's correlation. Drying treatments were differentiated into two main clusters by HCA and the results showed that MWD at 720 and 900 W provided samples that were closer in terms of quality to a freeze dried sample (the positive control) than samples that had been subjected to MWD at 450 W. CONCLUSION: Drying behaviors of duckweed were well-described by the Midilli-Kucuk model. Microwave drying at 900 W gave the lowest energy consumption and displayed the most efficient use of energy. The first-order equation could be used effectively to describe the structural changes in the duckweed. Microwave drying at 720 and 900 W was the appropriate drying condition according to the HCA classification. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Production of α-Tocopherol-Chitosan Nanoparticles by Membrane Emulsification.

α-tocopherol (α-T) has the highest biological activity with respect to the other components of vitamin E; however, conventional formulations of tocopherol often fail to provide satisfactory bioavailability due to its hydrophobic characteristics. In this work, α-tocopherol-loaded nanoparticles based on chitosan were produced by membrane emulsification (ME). A new derivative was obtained by the cross-linking reaction between α-T and chitosan (CH) to preserve its biological activity. ME was selected as a method for nanoparticle production because it is recognized as an innovative and sustainable technology for its uniform-particle production with tuned sizes and high encapsulation efficiency (EE%), and its ability to preserve the functional properties of bioactive ingredients operating in mild conditions. The reaction intermediates and the final product were characterized by 1HNMR, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), while the morphological and dimensional properties of the nanoparticles were analyzed using electronic scanning microscopy (SEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The results demonstrated that ME has high potential for the development of α-tocopherol-loaded nanoparticles with a high degree of uniformity (PDI lower than 0.2), an EE of almost 100% and good mechanical strength, resulting in good candidates for the production of functional nanostructured materials for drug delivery. In addition, the chemical bonding between chitosan and α-tocopherol allowed the preservation of the antioxidant properties of the bioactive molecule, as demonstrated by an enhanced antioxidant property and evaluated through in vitro tests, with respect to the starting materials.

Green tea catechin loaded niosomes: formulation and their characterization for food fortification.

The main aim of this study was to deliver green tea catechins with enhanced bioavailability using niosomal system. Catechins-loaded niosomes were prepared using food grade surfactant, Tween 60 and membrane stabilizers namely, lauryl alcohol, cetyl alcohol and cholesterol by thin film hydration technique. Catechins-loaded niosomes exhibited a hydrodynamic diameter of 58.48 nm with a narrow size distribution (PDI = 0.13) and zeta potential of - 31.75 mV, suggestive for homogeneity and good stability. Niosomes entrapped about 85.82% of catechin and showed sustained release under simulated GI conditions. Morphology of niosomal vesicles were carried out using scanning electron microscopy-energy X-ray dispersion spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and High-performance liquid chromatography analysis confirmed successful encapsulation of catechins. Antioxidant activity of catechins was retained in the niosomal form. Fortification of milk with catechins loaded niosomes showed no significant changes on sensory, physicochemical properties and exhibited higher antioxidant property.

Production of benzazepine derivatives via four-component reaction of isatins: study of antioxidant activity.

In current research, benzazepine derivative is synthesized via a new process of four-component reaction of isatin or its derivatives, α-haloketones, activated acetylenic compounds, isoquinoline and potassium fluoride/clinoptilolite nanoparticles (KF/CP NPs) in acidic solution of H2O2 in water at room temperature. Also, antioxidation property of some prepared benzazepines is investigated by employing trapping diphenyl-picrylhydrazine (DPPH) radical and ability of ferric reduction experiment. Among investigated compounds, compounds 5c have good results relative to BHT and TBHQ as standard antioxidant. Also, the Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria disk diffusion research is used for the confirmation of antimicrobial power of some prepared benzazepines. The achieved outcomes of disk diffusion experiment showed that these compounds avoided the growth of bacteria. Our procedure has a few benefits relative to reported method such as good rate of reaction, product with high efficiency, simple removal of catalyst from mixture of reaction. In the yield of the product, KF/clinoptilolite nanoparticles show a satisfactory recyclable activity.

Farnesol alleviates diethyl nitrosamine induced inflammation and protects experimental rat hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a well-known internal malignancy with increased worldwide mortality. The increased progression rate is closely associated with chronic liver diseases such as cirrhosis. Chemical carcinogens cause tumor advocacy over free radical metabolites to causes numerous biochemical and molecular changes that bring oxidative stress. In addition, inflammatory cells and its growth factor promotes the progression of liver cancer through deregulates the numerous cellular signaling pathways involved in normal cellular proliferation. Plant derived phytochemicals have a better complimentary potency to defend against a wide array of free radical mediated diseases such as cancer. More recently, we have evaluated the anticancer effect of Farnesol against DEN induced hepatocellular carcinoma in male wistar albino rats. However, the possible mechanism in which Farnesol attributes its anticancer effect against DEN induced liver cancer remains unknown. Hence in the present study, an attempt has been made to reduce the oxidative stress by appraise the antioxidant effect by Farnesol in DEN induced hepatocellular carcinoma. Elevated oxidative stress markers with concomitant decreased cellular antioxidants levels were observed in DEN induced hepatic tissues. Further, proliferating nuclei with increased proliferating cell nucleolar antigen (PCNA) and inflammatory mediator expression were observed in DEN induced rats. Oral supplementation of Farnesol to DEN induced rats significantly decrease the oxidative stress markers and increase the cellular antioxidant status. Moreover, Farnesol treatment decreases the argyrophilic nuclear organizer region and PCNA along with decreased expression of inflammatory mediators suggest that Farnesol treatment restores DEN induced hepatic abnormalities and protects liver from cancer progression.

Bioconservation of iron and enhancement of antioxidant and antibacterial properties of chicken gizzard protein hydrolysate fermented by Pediococcus acidilactici ATTC 8042.

BACKGROUND: The poultry industry is one of the fastest growing sectors, and it generates considerable quantities of chicken gizzards (CG) every day. However, due to their hard texture and high microbial load, and due to cultural beliefs, they are not preferred by consumers. Chicken gizzards are a substantial source of proteins, iron, and other nutrients, which can be used effectively to produce nutraceuticals, rich in peptides (antioxidants and antibacterial), bio-iron, essential free amino acids, and fatty acids vital for human health. RESULTS: Lactic acid fermentation of CG by Pediococcus acidilactici ATTC 8042 increased the antioxidant activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiaziline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) by up to 26 times compared with unfermented CG (P < 0.05). The amount of hydrolysis and solvents (ethanol and water) used for extracting protein hydrolysates significantly affected the antioxidant properties. Moreover, fermented CG showed a negligible reduction in bio-iron (2-3%) compared with heat-processed CG (85 °C for 15 min), in which bio-iron was reduced by up to 20.3% (P < 0.05). The presence of unsaturated fatty acids such as C20:4 and C22:4 n-6 indicated a low level of lipid oxidation. CONCLUSION: Fermented CG, with its reasonably high antioxidant and antibacterial activity, together with a substantial amount of bio-iron and other nutritional components can serve as a functional food or feed additive to reduce oxidative stress and to treat iron deficiency. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

DoE directed optimization, development and evaluation of resveratrol loaded ultradeformable vesicular cream for topical antioxidant benefits.

Objective: Aim of the present work was to optimize and formulate resveratrol loaded vesicular cream intended for dermal delivery of resveratrol with high skin deposition potential.Methods: Formulation was developed and optimized using Central Composite Design. Amount of phospholipid and sodium cholate were selected as critical material attributes and vesicle size and entrapment efficiency of resveratrol were taken as critical quality attributes. To increase the skin applicability and patient compliance, vesicles were further developed as vesicular cream which was then thoroughly characterized for physicochemical parameters, ex vivo skin permeation/deposition profile and antioxidant potential.Results: Vesicle size and entrapment efficiency of the optimized batch were found to be 178.9 ± 12.87 nm with 72.32 ± 3.45% respectively. Physicochemical properties and viscosity of cream formulation were also found to be favorable for skin applicability. Permeation flux at the end of 24 h was found to be 2.70 ± 0.73, 4.45 ± 0.56 and 4.95 ± 0.69 µg cm-2 h-1 for conventional cream, vesicular dispersion, and vesicular cream formulation respectively. Higher drug deposition in the skin via vesicular cream formulation was observed i.e. 335.2 ± 4.12 µg cm-2 (70.16 ± 0.87%) as compared to conventional cream i.e. 67.12 ± 19.63 µg cm-2 (14.05 ± 4.11%). Resveratrol encapsulated in vesicular cream has retained its inherent antioxidant activity suggesting the stability of resveratrol in vesicular cream.Conclusion: Thus, it can be concluded that deformable vesicular cream is capable of delivering encapsulated bioactive in deeper layers of skin, where it can be retained for achieving higher dermatological benefits.

Influence of spray drying on bioactive compounds of blackberry pulp microencapsulated with arrowroot starch and gum arabic mixture.

The objective of this research work was to obtain blackberry pulp in microencapsulated powder with a of arrowroot starch/gum arabic mixture by spray drying. Experimental design, with 11 runs, was performed to evaluate the effects of inlet air temperature (100-150 °C) and encapsulating agent concentration (1:0.5-1:2, blackberry pulp solids: arrowroot starch/gum arabic) on the functional properties of powders. The ascorbic acid content and luminosity of the powder increased with increasing encapsulating agent concentrations, whereas the b* values decreased. Increasing the inlet air temperature and decreasing the encapsulating agent concentration, the content of anthocyanins also increased. The powders were able to reduce Fe+3 and to trap free radicals, showing antioxidant property. The temperature of 143 °C and concentration of encapsulating agent 1:1.78 were the ideal conditions to have high content of ascorbic acid and good content of anthocyanins and antioxidant properties.

Preparation and characterization of poly-lactic acid based films containing propolis ethanolic extract to be used in dry meat sausage packaging.

In this study, active poly lactic acid (PLA) films containing 0, 10, 20 and 40% w/w propolis extract (PE), as active agent, were developed. A high amount of phenolic content (PC) was measured in PE. The antioxidant effect of active PLA films was determined by measuring the PC of sausage slices after 0, 2 and 4 days storage at refrigerator. Results showed that phenolic compounds of PE were released from PLA films in quantities proportional to PE concentration. Disc diffusion test indicated that PE showed an inhibitory effect against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterial species but was more effective against gram-positive species. PE containing PLA films had antimicrobial effect on S. aureus while in the case of P. aeruginosa, PLA/PE films needed polyethylene glycol (PEG)/CaCO3 content to show inhibitory effect. Addition of PE changed the tensile strength, elongation at break and elastic modulus of PLA films negatively. However, addition of PEG/CaCO3 improved the film mechanical properties and antimicrobial effect of films.

Effects of iron glycine chelate on laying performance, antioxidant activities, serum biochemical indices, iron concentrations and transferrin mRNA expression in laying hens.

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of iron glycine chelate (Fe-Gly) on laying performance, antioxidant enzyme activities, serum biochemical indices and iron concentrations in laying hens. A total of 810 laying hens (Hy-Line Variety White, 26 weeks old) were randomly assigned to six groups with five replicates of 27 layers. Hens in the control group received diet supplemented with 60 mg Fe/kg as FeSO4 , while hens in other five groups received the diet supplemented with 0, 20, 40, 60 and 80 mg Fe/kg from Fe-Gly respectively. The results showed that dietary Fe-Gly treatments significantly influenced (p < 0.01) the laying rate and egg weight of layers, compared with the control group. Concerning to CuZn-superoxide dismutase (CuZn-SOD) and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) activity, Fe-Gly groups (60, 80 mg Fe/kg) were promoted significantly (p < 0.01) compared with 0 mg Fe/kg group. The concentrations of Fe in serum, liver, kidney, spleen and ovary were increased significantly with the level dietary Fe-Gly raised where Fe-Gly groups (60, 80 mg Fe/kg) had observably higher Fe concentration than the control (p < 0.01) in serum, kidney and spleen. There was a trend that transferrin mRNA expression was decreased with the increase of Fe as Fe-Gly in diets, and compared with the control, the expression was lower in the group fed diet with 60 mg/kg Fe as Fe-Gly. In conclusion, Fe-Gly (60 mg Fe/kg) had improved laying rate, egg weight, SOD enzyme activity, Fe absorption and protein synthesis in body and promoted iron metabolism in laying hens. Moreover, Fe-Gly (40 mg/kg Fe) had the similar effect with control group. It revealed that FeSO4 could be substituted by lower concentration of Fe-Gly and Fe-Gly may be superior to FeSO4 for iron fortification to laying hens.

In silico optimization of enzyme mediated debittering of Assam lemon: biochemical and sensory evaluation studies.

Commercialization of citrus fruit juice is always hindered by the bitterness development in juice when stored for a significant period of time. In order to debitter citrus juice, an attempt has been taken up by treating the juice with tannase. Central Composite Design (CCD) based Response Surface Methodology (RSM) has been implemented to evaluate and optimize the effect of underlying process parameters viz., enzyme volume, temperature, incubation time and enzyme titre on debittering effect of Assam lemon juice. The significance of parameters and their interaction were assessed by analysis of variance at 95% level of confidence. Optimization study reveals that the maximum debittering (40.12 ± 0.02%) of Assam lemon juice takes place at ambient temperature (37 °C) within an incubation time of 2 h and 1.12% (v/v) enzyme volume while 30 IU/ml enzyme activity. Moreover, percentage contribution of the underlying process parameters demonstrate that the enzyme volume and enzyme titre as first and second most significant contributors in process of debittering. As part of validating the above results, experimental debittering has been performed and compared with predicted debittering percentage which showed a high coefficient value (0.971) which ensures the effectiveness of the proposed model. Biochemical analysis of the treated juice reveals improved antioxidant property after enzymatic treatment by 15.30%. Total sugar and reducing sugar content has also been enhanced by 1.38 and 1.49 folds, respectively, after enzymatic treatment of juice. Furthermore, no alteration in the elemental composition of the treated juice ensure that the quality of the final juice is retained with the enzyme applications. Sensory analysis based on nine-point Hedonic scale advocates the best organoleptic property in 1% (v/v) enzyme treated juice.

From Robinia pseudoacacia L. nectar to Acacia monofloral honey: biochemical changes and variation of biological properties.

BACKGROUND: Robinia pseudoacacia L. nectar and its derivative monofloral honey were systematically compared in this study, to understand how much the starting solution reflected the final product, after re-elaboration by Apis mellifera ligustica Spinola. RESULTS: Subjected to dehydration in the hive, nectar changed in its water and sugar content when transformed into honey, as physicochemical and gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric analyses revealed. Spectrophotometric measurements and characterization by high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection of 18 plant molecules demonstrated honey to be richer than nectar in secondary metabolites. For the first time, the hypothesis of the existence of a nectar redox cycle in R. pseudoacacia was reported, as previously described for Nicotiana sp., based on 1D-protein profiles, western blot analysis and detection of H2 O2 and ascorbate. The bioactivity of both matrices was also investigated. Antiradical in vitro tests showed that Acacia honey was more antioxidant than nectar, which was even able to induce oxidative stress directly in a eukaryotic cell system. Antimicrobial assays demonstrated that nectar was bacteriostatic, due to H2 O2 activity, whereas honey was even bactericidal. CONCLUSION: All these data support the ecological role of nectar and honey in nature: protection of the gynoecium from pathogens and preservation from degradative processes, respectively. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.