Maria-José Motilva

• University of Lleida

Anthocyanin-rich products (RFA and AI) decreased LDLc; ApoB; total, large, and small LDL-P; LDL size; TG/HDL ratio, large TRL, and GlycA and alanine versus WFA. Thus, anthocyanin-rich products provided greater protection against CVD risk than WFA.

Over the last decade, research has emphasized the role of the microbiome in regulating cardiovascular physiology and disease progression. Understanding the interplay between wine polyphenols, gut microbiota, and cardiovascular health...

Estimation of wine components’ intake (polyphenols, alcohol, etc.) through Food Frequency Questionnaires (FFQs) may be particularly inaccurate. This paper reports the development of a deep learning (DL) method to determine red wine volume from single-view images, along with its application in a consumer study developed via a web service. The DL mod...

Resumen La enfermedad de Alzheimer (EA) es la forma más común de demencia y tiene una elevada morbilidad y mortalidad. La EA se caracteriza principalmente por la presencia de dos estructuras aberrantes en el cerebro de los pacientes, placas seniles formadas por péptido-β-amiloide (Aβ) y ovillos neurofibrilares cuyo principal componente es la proteí...

Resumen Este estudio surge de la necesidad de nuevas metodologías que permitan cuantificar el consumo de vino con mayor precisión, para posteriormente utilizar esta información en estudios observacionales de alimentación-salud y estudios de intervención de dieta. Se ha desarrollado un algoritmo basado en un método de “aprendizaje profundo”, que per...

The recovery of raw materials offers an opportunity for applying the principles of circular bioeconomy. The phenolic composition of three underused wine byproducts (skin, seed, and bunch stem) was analyzed through UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS to evaluate the intercultivar variability comparing red and white grape cultivars from La Rioja (Spain) and the influenc...

Onion (Allium cepa L.) and its newly derived product "black onion" are characterised by the presence of compounds with potential bioactivity, particularly organosulfur compounds (OSCs). However, little is known about the metabolism, distribution, and excretion of these compounds as they pass through the gastrointestinal tract. This study monitored...

The consumption of black garlic has been related to a decreased risk of many human diseases due to the presence of phytochemicals such as organosulfur compounds (OSCs). However, information on the metabolization of these compounds in humans is limited. By means of ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectr...

This study is focused on exploring tomato by-products to provide ingredients rich in bioactive compounds with higher functional value through applying innovative techniques (microwave and spiral flash dryer) and conventional techniques (freeze-drying and hot air-drying) to the dehydration of industrial tomato pomace. The effect of the drying method...

In this paper, we present a method to determine the volume of wine in different types of glass liquid containers from a single-view image. The proposed model predicts red wine volume from a photograph of the glass containing the wine. Experimental results demonstrated satisfactory performance of our image-based wine measurement system, with a Mean...

The circular bioeconomy for the production of high-value products has gained attention due to new policies for the reuse and sustainable valorisation of locally available underutilised raw material in several countries. This study is focused to explore the potential of the by-products of winemaking through direct dehydration processes. The phenolic...

Red-fleshed apple cultivars with an enhanced content of anthocyanins have recently attracted the interest of apple producers and consumers due to their attractive color and promising added health benefits. In this paper, we provide the first comprehensive overview of new hybrid red-fleshed apples, mainly focusing on their (poly)phenolic composition...

The impact of a red-fleshed apple (RFA) rich in anthocyanins (ACNs), a white-fleshed apple (WFA) without ACNs, and an extract infusion from Aronia fruit (AI) equivalent in dose of cyanidin-3-O-galactoside (main ACN) as RFA was determined by the proteome profile of aorta and heart as key cardiovascular tissues. Hypercholesterolaemic Wistar rats were...

Sizeable scientific evidence indicates the health benefits related to phenolic compounds and dietary fiber. Various phenolic compounds‐rich foods or ingredients are also rich in dietary fiber, and these two health components may interrelate via noncovalent (reversible) and covalent (mostly irreversible) interactions. Notwithstanding, these interact...

The Mediterranean diet (MD) has become a dietary pattern of reference due to its preventive effects against chronic diseases, especially relevant in cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Establishing an objective tool to determine the degree of adherence to the MD is a pending task and deserves consideration. The central axis that distinguishes the MD fro...

Grapevine cultivar and clone genotype is an important factor in the phenolic composition of wine. In this study, a new intense dark black berry color variant of Tempranillo, known as Tempranillo negro or VN21, is described. A targeted chromatographic approach based on UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS was used to study the anthocyanins and non-colored phenols of the...

The present study aimed to investigate the metabolic fate and the cardiometabolic effects of phenolic compounds (PC) provided by a red‐fleshed apple variety biofortified in anthocyanins (ACN). Wistar rats were feed with high‐fat diet (HFD) to induce hypercholesterolemia and supplemented with red‐fleshed apple (HFD+R), white‐fleshed apple (HFD+W) or...

Protein functional interactions could explain the biological response of secoiridoids (SECs), main phenolic compounds in virgin olive oil (VOO). The aim was to assess protein-protein interactions (PPIs) of the aorta gap junction alpha-1 (GJA1) and the heart peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase (FKBP1A), plus the phosphorylated heart proteome, to des...

The present review has analyzed the scientific literature, available in the PubMed and Scopus databases, in order to summarize the current state of diet anthocyanin research in breast cancer (BC) and colorectal cancer (CRC) animal models but also for up-to-date human studies. For CRC, 28 preclinical and 9 clinical studies were selected in line with...

The present study evaluated the impact of different thermal (infrared-drying, hot air-drying and purée pasteurization) and non-thermal (freeze-drying) processing technologies on red-fleshed apple (poly)phenolic compounds. We further investigated the processing effect on the (poly)phenol bioavailability in a crossover postprandial study where three...

The intake of olive oil (OO) enriched with phenolic compounds (PCs) promotes ex vivo HDL-mediated macrophage cholesterol efflux in humans. We aimed to determine the effects of PC-enriched virgin OO on reverse cholesterol transport (RevCT) from macrophages to feces in vivo. Female C57BL/6 mice were given intragastric doses of refined OO (ROO) and a...

Scope We aimed to investigate the postprandial modulation of cardiovascular‐related microRNAs elicited by Extra Virgin Olive oil (EVOOs) containing different levels of own polyphenols Methods and results Randomized, postprandial, parallel, double‐blind study. 12 healthy participants consumed 30 mL of EVOO containing Low (L‐EVOO; 250 mg total pheno...

The analysis of the fat-soluble vitamins A and E and lipid micronutrients in blood, such as carotenoids, is an important parameter to monitor the micronutrient status in humans. Although the potential of dried blood spot (DBS) cards, the use of this technique for blood sampling and subsequent analysis of these fat-soluble micronutrients has been po...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is fourth cancer with the most new cases reported in 2018 worldwide. Consumption of fruit and vegetables are protective factors against the risk of CRC. Beyond this, flavonoids could orchestrate these healthy effects. Apart from containing the typical apple flavonoids, red-fleshed apples also contain anthocyanins, mainly cya...

Diets rich in (poly)phenols are associated with a reduced reduction in the incidence of cardiovascular disorders. While the absorption and metabolism of (poly)phenols has been described, it is not clear how their metabolic fate is affected under pathological conditions. This study evaluated the metabolic fate of berry (poly)phenols in an in vivo mo...

The aim of this study was to investigate comprehensively the metabolic pathways and human bioavailability of anthocyanins and other (poly)phenols in an apple matrix, and to elucidate potential intake biomarkers. After the acute intake of a red-fleshed apple freeze-dried snack, plasma and urine were collected and analyzed by UPLC-MS/MS. A total of 3...

Mol. Nutr. Food Res. 2019, 63, 1800715 DOI: 10.1002/mnfr.201800715 In article number 1800715, Úrsula Catalán and co‐workers incubate resveratrol (RV) and its main metabolites (RVmet) with endothelial cells to test their antithrombotic activity and endothelial metabolism. RV modulated tissue factor and was conjugated to RVmet in the endothelium. The...

Scope The antithrombotic effects of resveratrol (RV) and its derivatives remain unknown. The objective is to evaluate the modulatory effects of RV, its glucoside form, piceid, and its biological metabolites (RV‐3‐O‐β‐D‐Glucuronide,RV‐4’‐O‐D‐Glucuronide,and RV‐3‐O‐Sulfate) on tissue factor (TF). Moreover, the endothelial metabolism of RV is assessed...

Scope The application of dried blood spot (DBS) cards for the study in human blood of dietary polyphenol bioavailability has been poorly studied. Methods and results An analytical method based on blood sampling with DBS cards combined with liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry has been developed and validated. To test the metho...

Among cereals, barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is notable for its high content of bioactives such as β-glucan and phenolic compounds, but it is not used as widely in human nutrition as wheat. To compare the impact of food formulation and processing on barley bioactives, crackers, cookies and fresh pasta were prepared combining wheat and barley flour. A...

Mol. Nutr. Food Res. 2018, 62, 1800456 DOI: 10.1002/mnfr.201800456 HDL functionality is a better atheroprotection marker than serum HDL‐cholesterol. The “Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) and HDL Functionality” study assesses whether VOOs, enriched with their own phenolic compounds or with these plus complementary ones from thyme, enhance the functionality of...

Hydroxytyrosol (HT) and oleuropein derivatives are the main phenolic compounds in virgin olive oil (VOO). After VOO intake, HT is extensively metabolized being hydroxytyrosol-sulphate (HT-S) and hydroxytyrosol-acetate sulphate (HT-AC-S) the main circulating metabolites detected in human plasma. The brain uptake and accumulation of HT and its metabo...

Scopus The main findings of the “Virgin Olive Oil and HDL Functionality” (VOHF) study and other related studies on the effect of phenol‐enriched virgin olive oil (VOO) supplementation on cardiovascular disease are integrated in the present work. Methods and Results VOHF assessed whether VOOs, enriched with their own phenolic compounds (FVOO) or wi...

Visceral and subcutaneous adipose depots have different metabolic roles that may be involved in the development of obesity-related pathologies. Procyanidins have beneficial effects on insulin resistance, and they target adipose tissue. We analyse whether procyanidins exert different effects, depending on the adipose tissue depot, and whether these...

Two different rapid sample pretreatment strategies, dried spot cards, and microelution solid-phase extraction plates (μSPE), with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) have been developed and validated for the determination of hydroxytyrosol and its metabolites in spiked human urine samples. H...

Spices, like vegetables, fruit, and medicinal herbs, are known to possess a variety of antioxidant effects and other biological activities. Phenolic compounds in these plant materials are closely associated with their antioxidant activity, which is mainly due to their redox properties and their capacity to block the production of reactive oxygen sp...

A considerable number of epidemiological investigations and intervention studies have supported an association between the intake of flavanol- and proanthocyanidin-containing foods and a decreased risk of metabolic diseases. Nonetheless, less is know about the capacity of tissues to accumulate flavanols and/or their metabolites. The main objective...

Epidemiological data suggest that plant-derived phenolics beneficial effects include an inhibition of LDL oxidation. After applying a screening method based on 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine- protein carbonyl reaction to 21 different plant-derived phenolic acids, we selected the most antioxidant ones. Their effect was assessed in 5 different oxidation...

In the present study, a selective and sensitive method, based on microelution solid-phase extraction (μSPE) plate and ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was validated and applied to determine the plasma metabolites of the bioactive compounds of thyme. For validation process, standards of the mor...

Background: Procyanidins are extensively metabolized via phase-II and microbial enzymes. However, their distribution in the body is not well characterized. Aim: This study investigates the distribution of procyanidins (monomers and dimers) and their phase-II metabolites in plasma and tissues (thymus, heart, liver, testicle, lung, kidney, spleen...

An improved method, based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), has been developed to determine the bioactive dipeptides carnosine (CAR) and anserine (ANS) in chicken broth. These analytes are hydrophilic (polar) and in order to improve their retention, the chromatographic mode used was hydro...

The present study investigates oleuropein metabolism, as well as the involvement of β-glucosidase during the growth, development, and ripening of olive fruit. The results show that in olive fruit the in vivo formation and transformation of oleuropein takes place in three different stages. The first one is characterized by a net accumulation of oleu...

Besides affecting the oil's sensorial characteristics, the presence of herbs and spices has an impact on the nutritional value of the flavored oils. The aim of the study was to develop a new product based on the phenol-enrichment of a virgin olive oil with both its own phenolic compounds (secoiridoid derivatives) plus additional complementary pheno...

The distribution and accumulation of olive oil phenolic compounds in the body are topics lacked of information. The aim of this study was to evaluate the bioavailability, metabolism and distribution of phenolic compounds from olive cake. The metabolism and distribution of phenolic compounds were examined by UPLC-MS/MS after an acute intake of a phe...

Procyanidins are present in a wide range of dietary foods and their metabolism is well known. Nevertheless, the biological target and their distribution are topics lacking information. The purpose of the present work was to study the metabolism and distribution of procyanidins and their metabolites in rat plasma and different tissues, such as liver...

The use of an emulsifier to stabilize the phenolic compounds added in the preparation of an enriched olive oil was evaluated. Two emulsifiers, lecithin and monoglyceride, were studied. The results showed lecithin to be the most convenient, due to the increase in the value of the oxidative stability of the phenol-enriched oils in relation to the enr...

Phenolic compounds are one of the main reasons behind the healthy properties of virgin olive oil (VOO). However, their daily intake from VOO is low compared with that obtained from other phenolic sources. Therefore, the intake of VOO enriched with its own phenolic compounds could be of interest to increase the daily dose of these beneficial compoun...

Metabonomics has recently been used to study the physiological response to a given nutritional intervention, but such studies have usually been restricted to changes in either plasma or urine. In the present study, we demonstrate that the use of LC-Q-TOF-based metabolome analyses (foodstuff, plasma, urine, and caecal content metabolomes) in mice of...

Procyanidins are metabolised by endogenous gastrointestinal microflora into several small molecules that may exert systemic effects. However, the metabolic pathways of procyanidins are still largely uncharacterised. The aim of this study was to evaluate the colonic metabolism of procyanidins (catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, epigallocate...

Procyanidins are ubiquitous in the diet. They are poorly absorbed and extensively metabolized via phase II and microbial enzymes. However, their distribution in the body is not well characterized. This study investigates the distribution of procyanidins (monomers and dimers) and their phase II metabolites in brain, spleen, heart, and liver and plas...

Carob flour (CF) and washed carob flour (WCF) (without the water soluble dietary fraction) were submitted to an in-vitro digestion method to evaluate the dietary soluble fibre (DF) and soluble sugars content on the digestibility and bioaccessibility of polyphenols. In addition, combinations of the raw materials (CF and WCF) with hazelnut oil (HO) w...

The biosynthetic pathway of oleuropein (from 7-ketologanin, oleoside-11-methyl ester, 7-β-1-d-glucopyranosyl-11-methyl oleoside, and ligstroside to oleuropein) was investigated in two fruit species of Oleaceae, namely, Arbequina and Hojiblanca. Main oleuropein precursors and their metabolites, produced by the enzymatic hydrolysis mediated by β-gluc...

The recent information regarding the healthy properties of virgin olive oil phenols and the interest in increasing the value of byproducts from the oil extraction processs support the standardized development of phenol-enriched olive oil. Accordingly, the aim of this research work was to evaluate strategies for the development of a virgin olive oil...

Natural plant extracts are complex mixtures of molecules that have to be uptaken and metabolized, at least by the intestinal barrier, before they reach their body targets. This paper evaluates the feasibility of using a co-culture system to assay the bioactivity of plant extract on hepatic cells closest to the in vivo situation. Caco-2 cells, mimic...

This study develops a method using ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS) to identify and quantify procyanidins, monomers to oligomers, and alkaloids, theobromine and caffeine, in cocoa samples. UPLC analyses were carried out using an Acquity HSS T3 column (100 mm × 2.1 mm i.d., 1.8 μm particle size) and gradi...

Natural plant extracts are candidates for the development of new functional foods. Most of them are usually complex mixtures of molecules of uncertain bioavailability that are often partially metabolized before they finally reach the target cells IN VIVO. IN VITRO studies of the bioactivity of these extracts suggest that their direct application to...

The effect of repeated consumption of virgin olive oil on endogenous phenolic metabolites of fasting plasma is unknown. For this reason, we hypothesized that regular long-term virgin olive oil intake could have an indirect protection effect on the endogenous phenols. Thus, the aim of the study was to determine the phenolic profile of human plasma i...

Among procyanidins (PC), monomers, such as catechin and epicatechin, have been widely studied, whereas dimer and trimer oligomers have received much less attention, despite their abundance in our diet. Recent studies have showed that as dimers and trimers could be important in determining the biological effects of procyanidin-rich food, understandi...

This work presents the experimental results, on the olive oil of the arbequina variety in the Garrigues region, of the different irrigation conditions in two successive campaigns and the influence of climatic conditions in eight campaigns. The polyphenol and pigment content are themost influenced parameters, and the other quality characteristics ar...

Two methods based on solid-phase extraction (SPE) using traditional cartridges and microelution SPE plates (muSPE) as the sample pre-treatment, and an improved liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) were developed and compared to determine the phenolic compounds in virgin oil olive from plasma samples. The phenolic c...

An improved chromatographic method was developed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to identify and quantify phenolic compounds and alkaloids, theobromine and caffeine, in carob flour samples. The developed method has been validated in terms of speed, sensitivity, selectivity, peak efficiency, linearity, reproduc...

This work describes the applicability of an in vitro digestion model for the evaluation of the digestibility and bioaccessibility of cocoa polyphenols (procyanidins, phenolic acids, and flavones) and for the study of the food matrix effect in relation with the fat content. For this purpose, two cocoa samples, cocoa liquor ( approximately 50% fat co...

An off-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated for determining procyanidins, catechin, epicatechin, dimer, and trimer in plasma samples. In the validation procedure of the analytical method, linearity, precision, accuracy, detection limits...

Olive cake, the most important byproduct of olive oil extraction by the two-phase centrifugation system, was used to obtain phenolic extracts. The extracts were obtained using the two constituents of this waste, vegetative water and solid residue, to maximize the extraction of all phenolic compounds. Different extraction procedures were studied, a...

An improved liquid chromatography (LC) tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) method has been developed for the determination of phenolic compounds (phenyl alcohols, phenyl acids, secoiridoid derivatives, lignans and flavonoids) in virgin olive oil. The used LC technique was ultra-performance LC with columns packed with 1.7 microm particles. The obtained...

Monovarietal virgin olive oils are labelled with the olive varieties giving them their distinctive character. There are numerous studies focussed on the characterisation and quantification of the minor fractions of virgin olive oils that have generated databases on varietal olive oils. However, few studies have focussed on the components of the pig...

The aim of this study was to evaluate several cocoa sources to obtain a rich phenol extract for use as an ingredient in the food industry. Two types of phenolic extracts, complete and purified, from different cocoa sources (beans, nibs, liquor, and cocoa powder) were investigated. UPLC-MS/MS was used to identify and quantify the phenolic compositio...

The aim of this study was to characterise the pigment profile (chlorophylls and carotenoids) of monovarietal virgin olive oils from six Italian olive cultivars (Ghiacciolo, Giarraffa, Sant’Agatese, Biancolilla, Nocellara del Belice and Gentile di Larino), from three Italian olive-growing regions (Emilia-Romagna, Sicily and Molise). The results show...

Phenolics have been considered an important group of natural antioxidants. The type and quantity of phenolics vary in olive matrices (leaves, fruit, stones, seeds, and paste). However, the relationships linking the products from the olive oil extraction process are poorly studied. This manuscript deals with the partition of phenolic compounds durin...

The aim of this study was to monitor the pigment profile and chlorophyllase (Chlase) and lipoxygenase (Lox) activities of olive (Olea europaea L.) drupes during the development of the fruit from 'Arbequina' and 'Farga' in order to find better ways to characterize cultivars such as 'Arbequina' that produce virgin olive oils that are highly appreciat...

The aim of this work was to determine the effect of the climatological conditions of the olive crop season on the composition of monovarietal virgin olive oils obtained from the Arbequina cultivar with special emphasis on the phenolic fraction, its percent distribution, and related oil quality parameters such as oxidative stability and bitter index...

The main objective of this research was to determine the extent to which irrigation practices affect the partitioning of phenolic compounds between olive paste, pomace, olive oil and wastewater. The current paper also aimed to study the effect of technological natural micro-talc (NMT) addition during the oil extraction process on the partitioning o...

The aim of this study was to characterize antioxidant activities of phenolic compounds that appear in olive pulp and olive oils using both radical scavenging and antioxidant activity tests. Antiradical and antioxidant activities of olive pulp and olive oil phenolic compounds were due mainly to the presence of a 3,4-dihydroxy moiety linked to an aro...

During the olive drupes (Olea europaea L.) development we have observed significant correlations (r = 0.82, r = 0.82 and r = 0.64 for Arbequina, Farga and Morrut varieties) between l-phenylalanine ammonia-lyase enzymatic activity (PAL, EC 4.3.1.5) and the olive drupe phenolic content. l-Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity and the total phenol cont...

The purpose of the work was to investigate the effect of the maturation process of the olive fruit on the phenolic fraction of drupes and oils from Arbequina, Farga, and Morrut cultivars. The level in the phenolic content of olive drupes declines rapidly during the black maturation phase. A general decreasing trend was observed too in the phenolic...

The purpose of this investigation was to study differences in the chlorophyll, carotenoid, and phenolic fractions of virgin olive oils from the Arbequina variety cultivated in different olive growing areas of Spain. Virgin olive oil from Lleida was less heavily pigmented, and these oils showed more negative values for the ordinate a* (of the CIELAB...

The aim of this work was to study the effect of freeze damage during the harvest period on the composition and quality indices of olive oil from the Arbequina cultivar. No differences were found in the quality indices of oils extracted from olives affected by freeze injuries. On the other hand, slight differences were observed in the carotenoid and...

In recent years a growing demand for agricultural produce with an identifiable geographical origin has developed. The aim of this work was to study differences in quality and composition of virgin olive oils produced over four consecutive crop seasons in the region of the protected designation of origin “Les Garrigues” (Catalonia, Spain), taking th...

The HPLC phenolic profile of virgin olive oils obtained from young olive trees (Arbequina cv.) grown under different deficit irrigation strategies was studied. Deficit irrigation (RDI) did not affect all the phenolic compounds in the same way. Lignans, vanillic acid, vanillin, and the unknown phenolic compound named P24 increased in the oils from t...

Changes in L ‐phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase (PAL, EC 4.3.1.5) activity and total phenolic, ortho ‐diphenolic and fat contents of olive flesh in response to different irrigation treatments applied to olive tree cv Arbequina were studied during fruit ripening. Results indicate that the fat content of olive flesh at harvest was not affected by irrigatio...