Methanolic extracts of a selected Egyptian Vicia faba cultivar mitigate the oxidative/inflammatory burden and afford neuroprotection in a mouse model of Parkinson's disease.

Vicia faba L. is a legume from the family Fabaceae. Ancient Egyptians consumed fava beans thousands of years ago and they are still one of the most popular foods in Egypt. The current study examined the anti-Parkinson effect of 80% methanolic extracts of seeds or sprouts of the fava 'Sakha 3 'cultivar which has been selected based on the total phenol content among three cultivars tested. In addition, the extracts were characterized by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detection and quadrupole-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (RP-HPLC-DAD-QTOF-MS). Three doses (200, 400, and 600 mg/kg) of 80% methanol extracts of seeds or sprouts of the Sakha 3 cultivar were evaluated in rotenone-Parkinsonian mice from behavioral, biochemical, and histopathological aspects. The extract of fava sprouts (600 mg/kg dose) showed the most beneficial effect. It improved motor activity, enhanced striatal dopamine level, and decreased the striatal malondialdehyde, as well as the expression of the inflammatory markers, compared with the rotenone control group and groups receiving lower therapeutic doses of the extracts or L-Dopa. In addition, these findings were supported by a histopathological investigation which indicated that mice treated with the 600-mg/kg dose of the sprout extract showed a low number of degenerated neurons. The application of RP-HPLC-DAD-QTOF-MS and mass/mass spectroscopy enabled the metabolic profiling of the sprouts and seeds of the 'Sakha 3' cultivar. It is obvious that germination increased the amounts of phenolic acids, saponins, and aromatic amino acids, together with a dramatic increase in flavonoids. In conclusion, the 80% methanolic extract of sprouts of the fava "Sakha 3" cultivar may be a promising candidate for treating Parkinsonism if appropriate safety data are available.

Comparative metabolite profiling and antioxidant potentials of seeds and sprouts of three Egyptian cultivars of Vicia faba L.

Fava beans are considered basic food in Egypt and all over the world. They are a source of many bioactive secondary metabolites. Since there are many Egyptian cultivars of fava beans, this study addresses comparative chemical profiling of three Egyptian cultivars of fava beans namely Sakha 3, Nubaria 3, and Giza 843. The study also focuses on the effect of germination on the chemical profile of phenolic compounds and saponins. Sixty-five metabolites were characterized based on their UV spectra, accurate MS, and MS/MS data using RP-HPLC-DAD-ESI-QTOF-MS, including 37 metabolites reported for the first time in fava beans. The observed metabolites are phenolic compounds (flavonoids and phenolic acids), saponins, alkaloids, amino acids, nucleosides, organic acids, sugars, and a jasmonate. In fact, upon quantifying the area of metabolites in their chromatographic profiles, it was remarkable that germination increased the quantities of flavonoids, phenolic acids, and saponins. Moreover, the yield (%) of extracts, TPC, and DPPH increased upon sprouting. The TPC and the relative amounts of flavones, saponins, and amino acids showed a good positive correlation with DPPH. These findings elucidated the first report on the metabolic profiling of these cultivars as well as their antioxidant activities.