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Anti-diabetic activity of red Pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) fruit
RSC Advances
Abstract
This study investigated the anti-insulin resistant activity of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) fruit. Fresh pitaya along with two heat-processed pitaya samples with different proportions of phenolic contents, scavenging activities, and soluble dietary fibers were tested in insulin resistant rats over 6 weeks of treatment in a cause-effect study to investigate the anti-insulin resistant components of red pitaya. The results showed that fresh pitaya significantly (p < 0.05) attenuated the insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia and atherosclerotic changes induced by fructose supplement in rats. Thermally-treated pitaya at 95 °C for 30 min (containing a low antioxidant content) significantly (p < 0.05) improved hyperinsulinemia. Thermally-treated pitaya at 105 °C for 60 min (containing a low antioxidant and soluble dietary fiber content) fed to rats had no significant effect on insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and atherogenesis. Based on this study, the anti-insulin resistant effect of red pitaya can be attributed to its antioxidant and soluble dietary fiber contents.
... Pitaya fruit has been extensively studied for its potential antidiabetic properties. Omidizadeh et al. (2014) studied the anti-insulin resistance effectiveness of pitaya fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) in insulin-resistant rats persuaded by fructose feeding. Pitaya was shown to decrease insulin resistance in this study, implying that the antioxidative and dietary fiber (soluble) concentration of pitaya's pulp is responsible for its anti-insulinemic resistance potential (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). ...
... Omidizadeh et al. (2014) studied the anti-insulin resistance effectiveness of pitaya fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) in insulin-resistant rats persuaded by fructose feeding. Pitaya was shown to decrease insulin resistance in this study, implying that the antioxidative and dietary fiber (soluble) concentration of pitaya's pulp is responsible for its anti-insulinemic resistance potential (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). Poolsup et al. (2017) conducted an analysis and evaluated the effects of pitaya fruit with no therapy in prediabetes or type 2 diabetes individuals. ...
... Antioxidants found in Pitaya have attracted researchers' interest because of their potential to treat and prevent oxidative stressrelated disorders. According to Omidizadeh et al. (2014), the cardioprotective components of red pitaya are polyphenols and antioxidant content. They also recommended that when it comes to food processing, adopting the right thermal processing methods is critical for retaining the nutritional content and cardioprotective benefits of tropical fruits (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). ...
Hylocereus undatus, occasionally referred to as the dragon fruit or white‐fleshed pitaya, is a rich in nutrients fruit appreciated because of its colorful look and health benefits. It is inexpensive in calories but packed with minerals like iron, magnesium, and calcium in addition to essential nutrients like vitamin C and B vitamins. Similarly rich in dietary fiber, particularly promotes gut wellness and improves digestion, is pitaya. It additionally contains antioxidants, such as phenolic compounds, flavonoids, and betalains, which help with scavenging free radicals and reducing the detrimental effects of oxidative stress on the human body. The substantial amount of betalains in Hylocereus undatus phytochemical composition is notable because it contributes to the plant's anti‐inflammatory and antioxidant properties. There has been an association among these phytochemicals and a decreased likelihood of contracting long‐term conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Omega‐3 fatty acids and omega‐6 fatty acids, in particular, that reduce cholesterol levels while improving blood circulation, are plentiful in the fruit's seeds and are beneficial to heart wellness. The objective of this review is to highlight the nutritional profile, phytochemical and health benefits of Hylocereus undatus in detail.
... After six weeks, the rats exhibited a significant reduction in insulin resistance, alongside improved atherosclerotic changes and lower hypertriglyceridemia. The polyphenols, soluble dietary fiber and antioxidant compounds in dragon fruit were credited for these effects, suggesting that the fruit could be beneficial in reducing insulin resistance through dietary intervention [81]. ...
... A study conducted by Omidizadeh et al. showed that consuming red dragon fruit reduced atherosclerotic changes in rats fed a fructose-rich diet. This was attributed to the high levels of soluble dietary fibers, polyphenols, and antioxidants present in the fruit, which collectively improved lipid metabolism and reduced oxidative stress [81]. Polyphenols, in particular, act as antioxidants that neutralize free radicals and prevent lipid peroxidation, protecting against vascular damage and reducing cardiovascular risk. ...
Dragon fruit, which is native to northern South America and Mexico, has become a significant crop in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, including Vietnam, China, and Australia. The fruit (Hylocereus spp.) is rich in various bioactive phytochemical compounds, including phenolic acids, flavonoids, and pigments such as betalains and anthocyanins, which contribute to its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-microbial properties. This comprehensive review introduces the origin, classification, and global production of dragon fruit, with a particular focus on its bioactive phytochemicals and therapeutic potential. Additionally, it critically evaluates the current industry standards for fresh dragon fruit production across key producing countries. While these standards primarily focus on quality, classification, and grading criteria, they lack focus on parameters related to the fruit’s bioactive content. The absence of established quality standards for fresh produce in the Australian dragon fruit industry presents a unique opportunity to develop guidelines that align with both international benchmarks and the therapeutic potential of the fruit. By addressing this gap, this review can potentially help Australia to position its dragon fruit industry to achieve greater consistency, competitiveness, and consumer appeal. As the demand for functional foods continues to rise, aligning Australian production practices with global standards becomes critical to meeting domestic market expectations. This review provides a comprehensive understanding of dragon fruit’s nutritional and therapeutic significance and highlights its potential role in establishing a robust standard for the Australian dragon fruit industry. A review of global industry standards reveled that Australian standard could incorporate classifications of dragon fruits, including external factors like appearance, size, and defect tolerance. Future research is needed to prioritize understanding of the impact of cultivation practices and environmental factors on the bioactive composition of dragon fruit, enabling the development of best practices for growers. Additionally, further studies are needed to evaluate the therapeutic effects of these bioactive properties through clinical trials, particularly their potential in preventing chronic diseases. The advancement of analytical methods for quantifying bioactive compounds will provide deeper insights into their health benefits and support the establishment of bioactive-oriented industry standards. Moreover, investigations of post-harvest handling and processing techniques could optimize the preservation of these valuable compounds, enhancing dragon fruit’s role as a functional food.
... It contains a variety of phytochemicals, including flavonoids, fiber, vitamins B complex (B1, B2, and B3), phosphorus, calcium, and polyphenols, and has antioxidant capacity that is beneficial for human health [9,10]. Flavonoids help to cure cardiovascular disease, fiber assists in digestion, vitamin B1 assists in carbohydrate metabolism and energy production, vitamin B2 helps to improve and recuperate from appetite loss, vitamin B3 helps to decrease harmful cholesterol levels, phosphorus and calcium strengthen bones and teeth, and anticancer properties play an essential function in tissue generation [11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. S. undatus is also beneficial in lowering blood sugar levels in those with type 2 diabetes; research shows that the glucose in dragon fruit aids in diabetes patients' blood sugar control. ...
... Various in vitro and in silico investigations revealed that the S. undatus fruit may be useful as a natural source of drugs to control the three human pathogenic bacteria: E. coli, Pseudomonas sp., and Staphylococcus sp. Because of its wide range of applications in treating cancer, heart disease, vaginal discharge bleeding, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes, lowering harmful cholesterol levels, and creating new tissues, among others, it can be regarded as a good source of medicine [11,12,14,17]. ...
Objectives: Antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections are a growing global concern. A natural remedy for bacterial infections could be available in the Selenicereus undatus fruit, but its antibacterial and biochemical properties are not fully known. Methods: In this study, the biochemical composition and antibacterial, antioxidant, and cytotoxic activities of the Jindu No. 1 (JD) and Bird’s Nest (YW) dragon fruit varieties and their potential effects against E. coli, Pseudomonas sp., and Staphylococcus sp. were scrutinized. Results: The JD fruit extract showed higher antibacterial activity than the YW variety against E. coli, Pseudomonas sp., and Staphylococcus sp. in vitro. Additionally, the JD variety demonstrated more significant antioxidant activity than the YW variety and showed less cytotoxic activity. The JD variety had a higher glucose content, while the YW variety had a higher fructose content, and the phytoconstituents analysis confirmed 659 metabolites in total from the two varieties. Through in silico analyses, phytoconstituents were evaluated to identify potential drug molecules against the selected bacterial strain. Moreover, the molecular docking study revealed that riboprobe and Z-Gly-Pro might be effective against E. coli, 4-hydroxy retinoic acid, and that succinyl adenosine may target Pseudomonas sp., and xanthosine and 2’-deoxyinosine-5’-monophosphate may be effective against Staphylococcus sp. These results were further validated by 100 ns Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation, and all of the selected compounds exhibited acceptable ADMET features. Conclusions: Therefore, phytoconstituents from S. undatus fruit varieties could be employed to fight human bacterial diseases, and future studies will support the continuation of other biological activities in medical research.
... Phytochemicals derived from DF in various in-vivo and in-vitro studies have been reported to possess significant anticarcinogenic (Perumal et al. 2021), antibacterial (Hendra et al. 2019), antifungal (Taguiam et al. 2020) and antidiabetic (Omidizadeh et al. 2014) activities. The consumption of dragon fruit in some past studies have been reported to improve gut health (Khuituan et al. 2019), insulin resistance, adipose hypertrophy, reduce body weight, visceral obesity (Song et al. 2016) and lower total blood cholesterol, LDLc, T.A.G. and increasing the HDLc level which in turn can prevent the risk of hyperlipidemia (Hernawati et al. 2018). ...
... Pulp of mature DF of both species was found to contain comparatively less amount (Vunchi et al. 2011), Kiwi (Dias et al. 2012), Banana (Phillips et al. 2021) and apple (Patil et al. 2020). DF with the low amount of sugar will be beneficial for the consumption by diabetic patients to maintain their daily dietary requirement of antioxidants having anti diabetic and anti-insulin resistant properties (Omidizadeh et al. 2014). ...
Current study investigates the changes in physical, nutritional, and antioxidant compositions of two dragon fruit species H. costaricensis (HC) and H. udantus (HU) from 7 days after fruit set (DAFS) to maturity. In both species during development, physical parameters such as length, diameter, weight, volume, and pulp percentage increased, while peel percentage decreased. Mature HC fruits have a spherical shape with a length of 7.91 ± 0.14 cm, while HU fruits were oval, measuring 9.13 ± 0.19 cm. Moisture content declined during maturation, with mature HC and HU fruits containing 82.91 ± 1.23% and 80.53 ± 0.46% moisture, respectively. In both HC and HU, ash content remained around 1%, and dietary fiber content decreased significantly, while crude protein levels increased, reaching 4.04 ± 0.03% in HC and 4.64 ± 0.05% in HU at maturity. Chemical composition analysis indicated increases in total soluble sugars, reducing sugars, and total soluble solids (TSS) during maturation, with mature HC fruits having higher TSS (13.59 ± 0.92 ºBrix) compared to HU fruits (11.91 ± 0.04 ºBrix). Antioxidant activity and total phenolic content peaked during the early developmental stages and in the peel of mature fruits for both species, then decreased as the fruits matured. This study enhances the understanding of dragon fruit's maturation process and nutritional benefits, offering crucial information for optimizing cultivation, postharvest handling, and consumption practices. By identifying key stages for nutrient and antioxidant maximization, these findings may contribute to improved agricultural practices and the development of value-added products from dragon fruit.
... Several research have looked into the anti-diabetic properties of dragon fruit. In insulin resistance rats caused by fructose supplementation, Omidizadeh et al. (2014) [18] studied the anti-insulin resistant activity of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus). The findings of this study revealed that pitaya reduced insulin resistance, implying that the antioxidant and soluble dietary fibre content of red pulp pitaya is to blame for its anti-insulin resistance properties. ...
... Several research have looked into the anti-diabetic properties of dragon fruit. In insulin resistance rats caused by fructose supplementation, Omidizadeh et al. (2014) [18] studied the anti-insulin resistant activity of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus). The findings of this study revealed that pitaya reduced insulin resistance, implying that the antioxidant and soluble dietary fibre content of red pulp pitaya is to blame for its anti-insulin resistance properties. ...
... Hylocereus polyrhizus, often known as the Red Dragon fruit or the red pitaya, is a tropical fruit that is a member of the cactus family, Cactaceae [21]. Fresh red pitaya significantly reduced insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia, and atherosclerotic alterations in rats caused by fructose supplements [22]. Bambusa vulgaris is a significant plant both for its medicinal uses and high mineral content [23]. ...
... In the current study, antidiabetic activities of the extracts of three medicinal plants, red dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) pulp and peel, bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris) shoot, turnip (Brassica rapa L.) shoot and leaf were evaluated and proved through α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity with the reference anti-diabetic drug acarbose. A number of prior in vivo investigations revealed that these selected samples have considerable hypoglycemic potential [22,25,27]. However, extracts from these plants were not examined in vitro for enzyme inhibitors against either α-amylase or αglucosidase. ...
Background
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic condition marked by persistently elevated blood sugar levels. Key digestive enzymes viz. α-amylase and α-glucosidase, hydrolyze consumed carbohydrates into glucose which raises the postprandial blood glucose level in a diabetic patient. So, the development of α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors procured from medicinal plants to retard starch digestion is an alternative approach for controlling type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Objective
The current study aimed to evaluate the inhibitory potentials of the key digestive enzymes viz. α-amylase and α-glucosidase by the extracts of three medicinal plants; red dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) pulp and peel, bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris) shoot, turnip (Brassica rapa L.) shoot and leaf by performing α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition assays in vitro.
Methods
Inhibition of α-amylase activity was conducted using 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid method, and 4- Nitrophenyl-α-D-glucopyranoside was used as a substrate to perform α-glucosidase inhibition assay in vitro.
Results
Among all the selected sample extracts, red dragon fruit pulp expressed the highest percentage of α-amylase inhibition (59.73 ± 4.33%) at the concentration of 1000 μg/mL which is comparable to standard antidiabetic drug Acarbose (70.59 ± 2.64%), whereas the lowest inhibition was observed in turnip shoot extract (42.48 ± 2.10%) at the same concentration. In terms of α-glucosidase inhibition activity, again, red dragon fruit pulp extract demonstrated the maximum inhibition rate (56.42 ± 2.38%) at 1000 μg/mL concentration. This is respectable in comparison to the reference Acarbose (66.45 ± 1.78%). In contrast, turnip shoot extracts displayed the lowest α-glucosidase inhibition activity (38.27 ± 2.21%) at the same concentration.
Conclusion
The current study demonstrated that the red dragon fruit pulp extract possesses substantial antihyperglycemic activity (α-amylase inhibition: 59.73 ± 4.33%, α-glucosidase inhibition: 56.42 ± 2.38%) in vitro, which could be a putative nutraceutical to manage postprandial hyperglycemia.
... The bioactive compound of FV possess various beneficial properties such as antioxidant, antidiabetic, antihyperglycemics, antiobesity, antihypercholesterol-aemia, antiinflammatory and hypolipidemics. Fruits that have been tested include noni (Morinda citrifolia L.) [95], rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum), mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana), langsat (Lansium domesticum) [96], guava (Psidium guajava) [97], passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) [98], tamarind (Tamarindus indica) [99], dabai (Canarium odontophyllum) [100], red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) [101], cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) [102]. Types of vegetables that have been tested include seaweed (Eucheuma cottonii) [103], bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) [104], galangal (Alpinia galangal) [105] and stink bean (Parkia speciose Hassk) [106]. ...
... The study observed significantly decreased blood glucose level in the diabetic rats. In another study by Omidizadeh and colleagues [101], insulin resistant rats were fed with highfat diet with red pitaya (Hylocereus undatus) (10% daily energy intake fresh pitaya, 10% daily energy intake thermally-treated pitaya at 95°C for 30 min, 10% daily energy intake thermally-treated pitaya at 105°C for 60 min for 11 weeks). There was a significant attenuation of insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia and atherosclerotic changes induced by fructose supplement in rats. ...
Fruits and vegetables (FV) are important sources of nutrients and phytochemicals. Consumption of adequate amounts of FV has been indicated to lead to reduction in the risk factors that are associated with chronic diseases. However, whether an individual appreciates the importance of fruits and vegetables and includes them in his diet is dependent upon several factors. These factors are food culture, income level, tradition, location of residence and health awareness amongst others. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of demographics, dietary choices, health awareness and food culture on FV consumption among tertiary institution students. Specifically, students of the University of Johannesburg (UJ), South Africa were selected as study samples. Structured questionnaire containing 30 items was administered via contact and online platforms and the responses obtained were analysed using principal component analysis (PCA). Based on the analysed data, the impact of daily consumption of FV and the awareness of the health benefits of FV among the students were evaluated. It was concluded that most of the students are not aware of the health benefits of FV consumption. This study, would assist the students to begin to consume the right proportion of FV and would assist them to educate their families and ultimately the wider society on the health benefits of FV consumption.
... The fruits have also been used to manage inflammation, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, brain dysfunction and other degenerative illnesses. [12][13][14][15][16][17] Betalains, phenolics and dietary fibers have been identified as the primary bioactive constituents in dragon fruits. 13,[18][19][20] The utilization of dragon fruits as natural antioxidants has been the subject of numerous earlier studies to ascertain their total phenolic content and antioxidant activity. ...
... Herbs such as a neem (Azadirachta indica), chicory (Cichorium intybus), jamblon (Syzygium cumini), ivy gourd (Coccinia indica), bitter gourd (Momordica charantia), aloe vera (Aloe barbadensis), and jamblon (Momordica charantia) were used to treat diabetes mellitus is many traditional cultures across many countries (Kooti et al., 2016 ;Adinortey et al., 2019). Omidizadeh et al. (2014) examined the anti-insulin resistant properties of red dragon fruit in rats which were given a fructose supplement to develop insulin resistance. The results of this study demonstrated that the fruit lowered insulin resistance, highlighting the fruit's anti-insulin resistance is due to its soluble dietary fiber and antioxidant levels in red pulp. ...
... According to Wong and Siow (2015), Hylocereus polyrhizus juice pasteurized for 30 min at 65°C with combined effect of 4 pH and 0.25% ascorbic acid, maximum retention of betacyanin was found, whereas betacyanin retention was 0.83 mg/L for 10 min heating at 65°C, 0.78 mg/L for pH 5 and 0.85 mg/L for 0.25% ascorbic acid from 1 mg/L, respectively. Total phenolic content was decreased from 21.41 mg GAE/g to 7.98, and 8.49 mg GAE/g for 30 min at 95°C and 60 min at 105°C; while antioxidant activity decreased by 40 and 33%, respectively for pitaya as per the study of Omidizadeh et al. (2014). The retention of betanin content was 67.8% for purple pitahaya juice HTST pasteurized at 92°C with 100 L/h flow rate, 7 sec of preheating, and 26 sec of holding time (Herbach et al., 2007). ...
The current study was planned to standardize the lime juice in dragon fruit RTS beverage, and to examine the impact of thermal, and chemical processing on betacyanin content, antioxidant activity, and sensory quality of lime-flavored dragon fruit RTS beverage. According to preliminary trials, dragon fruit RTS beverage having 0.1% citric acid, 12% fruit juice and 12°Brix TSS was incorporated with 3% lime juice on sensory basis. The prepared lime-flavored dragon fruit RTS beverage subjected to thermal (70, 80 and 90°C for 5, 10, 15 min), and chemical processing (500, 1000 and 1500 ppm ascorbic acid incorporation) and analyzed for betacyanin content, antioxidant activity and sensory evaluation. Among all the thermal treatments RTS processed for 5 min at 70°C was found best on betacyanin content (23.80 mg/L), 73.43% antioxidant activity and overall acceptability score (7.55 out of 9); However, chemically treated lime-flavored dragon fruit RTS beverage had non-significantly higher betacyanin content (38.00 mg/L) and significantly higher antioxidant activity (68.37%). The chemically treated lime-flavored dragon fruit RTS beverage retained more betacyanin content than thermally processed RTS beverage. However, antioxidant activity was higher for thermally processed lime-flavored dragon fruit RTS beverage. ABSTRACT Introduction
... Ramli et al. (2014), evaluating the hypoglycemic effect of 5% pitaya juice in obese mice induced by a diet rich in carbohydrates and fats, obtained a trend toward glucose normalization after 8 weeks of treatment and found that red pitaya juice can serve as a complementary therapy to reduce some manifestations of the metabolic syndrome. In another study, Omidizadeh et al. (2014), when investigating the antiinsulin resistance activity of the Hylocereus polyrhizus in mice, observed that it attenuated insulin resistance and reduced hypertriglyceridemia. ...
Red pitaya fruit has become a source of natural colorant, because it is rich in betalains, a pigment that imparts a red‐purple color that interests the food and cosmetics industries. This fruit also possesses high nutritional value, with a range of bioactive compounds known to confer potential health benefits and prevent chronic diseases, such as diabetes, which makes it useful for use as pharmaceutical agents and dietary supplements. In order to improve its technological and biological effects, a concentration will be required. Thus, the microfiltration, followed by vacuum concentration, can be an interesting strategy for this purpose. This study aimed to explore tangential microfiltration to produce microfiltered material, which is an important step to obtain the microfiltered red‐purple pitaya concentrate. Therefore, physicochemical and chemical characterization (including ¹H NMR analysis) and biological properties (toxicity and diabetes) of this concentrate were assessed, using adult zebrafish as a model. The results show that microfiltration was carried out efficiently, with an average consumption of 95.75 ± 3.13 and 74.12 ± 3.58 kW h m⁻³, varying according to the material used (“unpeeled pitaya pulp” or “pitaya pulp with peel,” respectively). The in vivo tests indicated non‐toxicity and hypoglycemic effect of the concentrate, since the blood glucose levels were significantly lower in the zebrafish groups treated with this concentrate in comparison with that of control group. Thus, this study suggests the potential of microfiltered red‐purple pitaya concentrate as a promising multifunctional food‐derived colorant, exhibiting beneficial biological effects far beyond its attractive color.
Practical Application
Hylocereus polyrhizus (F.A.C. Weber) Britton & Rose has attracted attention as a potential source of natural colorants because of its red‐purple skin and flesh color. In addition, this fruit has a range of bioactive compounds, which make it a valuable resource for providing potential health benefits and preventing chronic diseases such as diabetes. In this paper, the microfiltered red‐purple pitaya concentrate showed beneficial biological effects far beyond its attractive color. Thus, this product can be considered a promising multifunctional food‐derived colorant to use in the food, pharmaceutical, or cosmetics industries.
... It increased serum insulin, insulin/glucose ratio, glucose, glucose intolerance, TC (total cholesterol), and TG (total triglycerides) levels, too. The inclusion of polyphenols, soluble dietary fiber, and antioxidant content contributed to its anti-insulinresistant effect (72). Red dragon fruit extract (dosage 74.88 mg/200 g body weight) could demonstrate an impact against diabetes that was statistically equivalent to the standard diabetes treatment glibenclamide (sulfonylurea class medications) at a dose of 0.09 mg/200 g body weight. ...
Hylocereus polyrhizus (Red dragon) fruit, a Cactaceae plant with traditional and medicinal uses, is found in America and South Asia. These fruits have diversified bioactive components, which make them both therapeutically and nutritionally important. This review focuses on the various aspects of this potential plant. This literature review looked at the nutritional information, botanical description, traditional medical use, nutritional values, medicinal uses, chemical compounds, and pharmacological activities of H. polyrhizus. To evaluate the required resources, Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane electronic databases, and Google Scholar search engines were searched (for example, Hylocereus polyrhizus OR dragon fruit, red pitaya OR pitaya, pharmacological AND phytochemical, nutritional AND ethnomedicinal). Prominent bioactive elements in this plant included phenolic compounds such as α-amyrin (15.87%) and β-amyrin (13.90%). H. polyrhizus also contains antioxidant, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antibacterial, hypolipidemic, antiviral, thrombolytic, antiplasmodial, anticancer, hepatoprotective, and antidiabetic activities. Because of its colouring pigments, carbohydrates, proteins, and fat substitution properties, the fruit is commonly used in culinary and grooming. An improved understanding of H. polyrhizus, according to this study, could pave the way for the discovery of new, beneficial chemicals with therapeutic potential.
... It increased serum insulin, insulin/glucose ratio, glucose, glucose intolerance, TC (total cholesterol), and TG (total triglycerides) levels, too. The inclusion of polyphenols, soluble dietary fiber, and antioxidant content contributed to its anti-insulinresistant effect (72). Red dragon fruit extract (dosage 74.88 mg/200 g body weight) could demonstrate an impact against diabetes that was statistically equivalent to the standard diabetes treatment glibenclamide (sulfonylurea class medications) at a dose of 0.09 mg/200 g body weight. ...
Hylocereus polyrhizus (Red dragon) fruit, a Cactaceae plant with traditional and medicinal uses, is found in America and South Asia. These fruits have diversified bioactive components, which make them both therapeutically and nutritionally important. This review focuses on the various aspects of this potential plant. This literature review looked at the nutritional information, botanical description, traditional medical use, nutritional values, medicinal uses, chemical compounds, and pharmacological activities of H. polyrhizus. To evaluate the required resources, Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane electronic databases, and Google Scholar search engines were searched (for example, Hylocereus polyrhizus OR dragon fruit, red pitaya OR pitaya, pharmacological AND phytochemical, nutritional AND ethnomedicinal). Prominent bioactive elements in this plant included phenolic compounds such as α-amyrin (15.87%) and β-amyrin (13.90%). H. polyrhizus also contains antioxidant, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antibacterial, hypolipidemic, antiviral, thrombolytic, antiplasmodial, anticancer, hepatoprotective, and antidiabetic activities. Because of its colouring pigments, carbohydrates, proteins, and fat substitution properties, the fruit is commonly used in culinary and grooming. An improved understanding of H. polyrhizus, according to this study, could pave the way for the discovery of new, beneficial chemicals with therapeutic potential.
... It increased serum insulin, insulin/glucose ratio, glucose, glucose intolerance, TC (total cholesterol), and TG (total triglycerides) levels, too. The inclusion of polyphenols, soluble dietary fiber, and antioxidant content contributed to its anti-insulinresistant effect (72). Red dragon fruit extract (dosage 74.88 mg/200 g body weight) could demonstrate an impact against diabetes that was statistically equivalent to the standard diabetes treatment glibenclamide (sulfonylurea class medications) at a dose of 0.09 mg/200 g body weight. ...
Hylocereus polyrhizus (Red dragon) fruit, a Cactaceae plant with traditional and medicinal uses, is found in America and South Asia. These fruits have diversified bioactive components, which make them both therapeutically and nutritionally important. This review focuses on the various aspects of this potential plant. This literature review looked at the nutritional information, botanical description, traditional medical use, nutritional values, medicinal uses, chemical compounds, and pharmacological activities of H. polyrhizus. To evaluate the required resources, Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane electronic databases, and Google Scholar search engines were searched (for example, Hylocereus polyrhizus OR dragon fruit, red pitaya OR pitaya, pharmacological AND phytochemical, nutritional AND ethnomedicinal). Prominent bioactive elements in this plant included phenolic compounds such as α-amyrin (15.87%) and β-amyrin (13.90%). H. polyrhizus also contains antioxidant, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antibacterial, hypolipidemic, antiviral, thrombolytic, antiplasmodial, anticancer, hepatoprotective, and antidiabetic activities. Because of its colouring pigments, carbohydrates, proteins, and fat substitution properties, the fruit is commonly used in culinary and grooming. An improved understanding of H. polyrhizus, according to this study, could pave the way for the discovery of new, beneficial chemicals with therapeutic potential.
... Additionally, it is thought to be a possible source of antioxidants and minerals (Lim et al., 2010). Many research have examined dragon fruit's potential as an antidiabetic (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). It has medicinal values like reducing hypertension and diabetes (Kumar et al., 2018). ...
... [13,6] The extract of dragon fruit leaves harbors a diverse array of phytochemicals, encompassing alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, glycosides, steroids, terpenoids, and more. [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] With its enticing deep purple colored pulp, the exotic aesthetic attributes of dragon fruit make it extremely attractive in the markets and commonly grown in countries such as Malaysia, Okinawa, Taiwan, Vietnam, China, India, Southern China and Israel. [30] CULTIVATION Mexico is the native home of the Hylocereus genus, which includes the pitaya cactus. ...
... Owing to richness in antioxidants and low calorific value dragon fruit is becoming one of the most preferred fruits. Consumption of dragon fruit is reported to be beneficial to cure many human ailments due to substantial reduction in triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol levels and increase in HDL cholesterol level (AbdHadi et al., 2012;Omidizadeh et al., 2014). Hence, the biochemical analysis of dragon fruit species was carried out and the results are discussed here in detail. ...
The physical, biochemical and antioxidant properties of one white pulped (Hylocereus undatus; DG-I) and two red pulped dragon fruit species (H. polyrhizus, DG-II; H. costaricencis, DG-III) grown under sub-tropical conditions of north-west India were determined. Fruit size, fruit weight, pulp weight and pulp: peel ratio was significantly higher in DG-III, though the fruit numbers and yield per pillar was significantly less than other species. The pH, TSS, acidity, total sugar, reducing sugars and moisture content in all the species varied between 4.78-5.72, 8.63-9.31 oBrix, 0.30-0.56%, 6.64-6.91%, 4.60-4.76% and 83.44-85.82%, respectively. Total phenols and flavanols content in DG-I was 24.04 mg GAE 100 g−1 and 14.54 mg RE 100 g−1, whereas in red pulped it was significantly higher; varying between 49.12-56.40 mg GAE 100 g−1 and 30.41-31.10 mg RE 100 g−1 fruit pulp, respectively. β-carotene values in red pulped species DG-II and DG-III were 47.48 and 43.82 µg 100 g−1, respectively compared to corresponding values of 1.96 µg 100 g−1 in DG-I, a white pulped dragon fruit. Similarly, DPPH-RSC, FRAP, CUPRAC and ABTS values for red pulped dragon fruit ranged between 238.98-262.04 µmol 100 g−1, 358.8-386.40 µmol TE 100 g−1, 830.40-917.0 µmol TE 100 g−1 and 571.4-589.60 µmol 100 g−1, respectively in DG-II and DG-III in comparison to respective values of 108.75 µmol 100 g−1, 192.6 µmol TE 100 g−1, 525.6 µmol TE 100 g−1 and 400.2 µmol 100 g−1 in DG-I. The β-lain, responsible for imparting red colour in DG-II and DG-III was absent in white pulped DG-I. Seed oil content in both groups of dragon fruit varied between 31.90-33.5% with highest proportion of an essential fatty acid, linoleic acid (46.32-47.96%). In conclusion, red pulped dragon fruit has a considerably higher antioxidative potential than white one and these species may play a vital role in ensuring nutritional security for millions of people in developing nations.
... High antioxidant activity was found in the ethanolic extract in the peel of H. undatus fruit [8]. Various authors such as Omidizadeh et al. [9], Sudha et al. [8], and Ibrahim et al. [6] analyzed juice and pulp of Hylocereus with white and red pulp, which is recommended as a promising source of alternative medicine, antioxidant and antidiabetic. ...
Pitahaya (Hylocereus spp) is a fruit that, due to the characteristics of its demand, both for fresh fruit and for industrial consumption, has detonated its development in various countries. However, it presents various self-incompatibility mechanisms that impact productivity. Therefore, the viability of pollen was analyzed during the anthesis (or flowering period)of two white-fleshed H. undatus cultivars, taking pollen samples for 13 hours, from the beginning of the anthesis in the afternoon, until it ends the following day. The method used was staining with tetrazolium salt (2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride) or TZ. The results showed that there is no viable pollen at the beginning of the anthesis. At 09:00 pm the viability began to grow slowly and after 12:00 am it doubled and the viability accelerated, marking the highest from 02:00 to 04:00 am. It was possible to observe the consistency of the pollen that begins with a phase I with humid pollen without viability, up to another with lower humidity with low viability (phase II). Phase III observed very granular mealy pollen, easy to handle precisely when the staining readings marked the viability of 93 % to 95 %. Subsequently, the viability decreases until it disappears when the floral structure begins to dehydrate.
... These results indicate that H. polyrhizus fruit protects against dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease [54] and improves cholesterol metabolism [70]. Another study on rats also found that H. polyrhizus fruit juice effectively decreased fructose-induced hypertriglyceridemia, atherosclerosis, and insulin resistance in rats, concluding that the anti-insulin resistance effect could be due to soluble dietary fiber, rich polyphenols, and antioxidant contents [55]. H. undatus fruit oligosaccharide intake may help overweight and diabetic people by reducing insulinemia and calorie intake [56]. ...
Pitaya (Hylocereus spp.) is a member of the cactus family that is native to Central and South America but is now cultivated throughout the sub-tropical and tropical regions of the world. It is of great importance due to its nutritional, ornamental, coloring, medicinal, industrial, and high consumption values. In order to effectively utilize and develop the available genetic resources, it is necessary to appreciate and understand studies pertaining to the usage, origin, nutrition, diversity, evaluation, characterization, conservation, taxonomy, and systematics of the genus Hylocereus. Additionally, to gain a basic understanding of the biology of the plant, this review has also discussed how biotechnological tools, such as cell and tissue culture, micropropagation (i.e., somatic embryogenesis, organogenesis, somaclonal variation, mutagenesis, androgenesis, gynogenesis, and altered ploidy), virus-induced gene silencing, and molecular marker technology, have been used to enhance pitaya germplasm.
... It was also found that thermally treated DF and RFDF at 95°C for 30 min enhanced hyperinsulinemia while as DF and RFDF treated thermally at 105°C for 60 min given to rats had no significant effect on insulin resistance, and atherogenesis. Antioxidant activity and content of soluble fiber contents are also attributed to the maintenance of diabetes (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). RFDF contains bioactive compounds in high contents and is known as a good source of polyphenols that can be incorporated into the diet, these phenolic compounds have a beneficial effect against cancers and possess strong antioxidant activity and also have potent antimicrobial properties (Foong et al., 2012). ...
Abstract Dragon fruit (DF) or Pitaya (Hylocereus spp.) a member of Cactaceae family is gaining popularity in the market for consumption of fresh fruit due to its highly attractive fruit color with nutritional and immense bioactive potential that reduces blood sugar level, cholesterol, prevention of liver injuries, cancer, and so forth. In commercial market valorized products of DFs are available. The processing of edible and nonedible parts of DF is of immense significance to prepare nutritionally rich value‐added products and concurrently reducing the challenges occurring due to waste generation and spoilage. This review paper provides detailed insights of DF processing into different value‐added products, its medicinal benefits, bioactive potential, and the physico‐chemical changes occurring in DF during processing such as drying, fermentation, extraction, and so forth.
... Some other nicknames include 'noble woman', 'conderella plant' and 'jesus in the cradle'. Dragonfruit is also well known wordwide due to its antioxidant and medicinal properties such as antidiabetic [2,3], antibacterial [4,5,6], antiproliferative [7], antimicrobial [8,9], anticancer [7], wound healing property [10,11] etc. The wide acceptability of the fruit across the globe is not only because of it's delicious fruits enriched with medicinal components but also for its water use efficiency and early yielding ability i.e. within 2 years after planting [12,13]. ...
Dragon fruit (Hylocereus spp.) is a recently introduced super fruit in India, gaining popularity both in the rural and urban areas because of its attractive colour, delicious taste, high nutritive and medicinal values. It is adaptable to humid as well as semi-arid tropical and subtropical conditions. The growing acceptability of the fruit along with its immense antioxidants and medicinal properties has led to high demand of its cultivation followed quality planting materials in desired quantity. Dragon fruit can be propagated by various ways both sexually via seeds as well as asexually via stem cuttings, grafting and also via micropropagation. In this review various methods of propagation of dragon fruit are described along with some propagation aspects related to dragon Review Article Borchetia et al.; Int.
... Sudha et al. (2017) observed that the white dragon fruit extract had -amylase inhibitory activity ranging from 1.033 to 32.436% at concentration. They suggested that red pitaya appreciably enhanced insulin resistance and 600 g amount of red pitaya fruit eating every day decreased the blood glucose level in type II diabetics (Omidizadeh et al., 2014 andAbdHadi et al. 2012). Dragon fruit is useful in reducing blood sugar levels in people suffering from Type-2 diabetes (Wee et al., 2011). ...
Dragon fruit Hylocereus species is a recent table fruit and very much liked for its refreshing juice. The fairly low maintenance, succulent hardy nature high yielding, better keeping quality and survival low irrigation make dragon fruit a paying proposition. It is belongs to family Catacaeae. This is due to its special colour (especially red/purple pigments in red-flesh dragon fruit), high nutritional values and ant-oxidative properties of the fruit. Dragon fruit having heavy nutritional value energy 264 Kcal, water 87 g,protein1.1 g, fat 0.4 g, carbohydrate 11.0 g, fiber 3g, calcium 8.5 mg, iron 1.9 mg, phosphorus 22.5 mg,vitamin B1 (Thiamine) 0.04 mg, vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) 0.05 mg and vitamin B3 (Niacin) 0.16 mg per 100 g fruit pulp. It is very useful for lower blood sugars in type 2 diabetes. Dragon fruit is beneficial for carbohydrate metabolism, heart tissues, and teethes, healthy blood and tissue formation strengthening bones due to high calcium content, strengthening immune system, faster healing of bruises and wounds, respiratory tract infections and even as a mild laxative due to substantial fibre content. Dragon fruit has low cholesterol concentration, to balance blood sugar concentration, to prevent colon cancer, to strengthen kidney function and bone, to strengthen the brain workings, increasing the sharpness of the eyes as well as cosmetic properties. The seeds of dragon fruits are high in polyunsaturated fats that reduce triglycerides and lower the risk of cardiovascular disorders.
... Betacyanin pigments are found in both the pulp and the peel of red DF, whereas they are found only in the peel of white DF (Esquivel et al., 2007;Wu et al., 2006). Betacyanin, along with other secondary metabolites operate as potent cancer cell growth inhibitors (Wybraniec et al., 2007;Wu et al., 2006, Choo andKhing Yong, 2011), improve insulin resistance (Omidizadeh et al., 2014) and contribute to antioxidant properties (Fraga et al., 2019) of dragon fruit. ...
The current study was performed to generate a complete polyphenol and pigment profile along with the stability of color pigment extracted from the pulp and peel of two Hylocereus species H. costaricencis (HC) and H. udantus (HU) of dragon fruit. Polyphenol profiles of the pulp of both fruits at four development stages (from seven days after fruit set to fruit maturity) and the peel of mature fruits of both the species were generated using ultra high-pressure liquid chromatography technique (UHPLC). UHPLC chromatograms confirmed the presence of around 15 phenolic compounds among which the ellagic acid was found to be prominent in the pulp of both the species whereas syringic acid (in HU) and ferulic acid (in HC) dominate in the peel. Apart from the polyphenols, the peels of mature fruits of both species were found to contain a comparatively low amount of color pigment betacyanin than the pulp of red-colored matured HC fruit. Further, pigment stability analysis under various physiochemical conditions revealed the stability of color pigment in acidic pH, sugar solutions, antioxidant solutions and low temperatures.
... The reduction in these bioactive constituents due to thermal processing markedly affected the anti-diabetic and anti-dyslipidemic activities evaluated in induced insulin resistance rats supplemented with fresh or cooked red dragon fruit. 71 Ayala-Niño et al. 72 compared different thermal treatments for the preservation of prickly pear juice and found that thermoultrasonication achieved a higher bioaccessibility of antioxidant compounds than pasteurization, which may be explained by the effect that sonication exerts on the release of trapped polyphenols. ...
Arid-land plants from the Cactaceae family are endemic to the Americas and cultivated worldwide. Cactaceous plants and their fruits contain phenolic compounds, betalains, vitamins, carotenoids, minerals, and soluble fiber. Edible cactaceous matrices can be considered functional foods since their consumption may confer health benefits. These plants could be a source of novel bioactive compounds relevant to the area of phytomedicine. However, consumption of high concentrations of active molecules is not necessarily correlated to beneficial physiological effects because phytochemicals must be released from the food matrices under physiological conditions, resist digestion-associated chemical transformations, and remain in their active state in systemic circulation until the target tissues are reached. Notably, although digestion may either increase or decrease the bioactive phytochemicals' activity and stability, non-absorbed compounds may also be relevant for human health. Additionally, food matrices' type and composition and their technological processing operations may influence the compounds' release, stability, and accessibility. Thus, this review provides insights on the feasibility of using Cactaceae plants as sources of functional compounds. It is focused on compounds' bioactivity, bioaccessibility, and overall bioavailability after their metabolic transformation. Also, it addresses the influence of food processing on bioactive compounds. Many Cactaceae species are unexplored, and our understanding of how they confer health benefits is limited. To better understand the physiological relevance, nutraceutical potential, and therapeutic feasibility of cactaceous bioactive phytochemicals, future research should focus on the metabolic stability and safety of these compounds, as well as their assimilation mechanisms (absorption, distribution, and metabolic fate).
... Sudha et al. (2017) observed that the white dragon fruit extract had -amylase inhibitory activity ranging from 1.033 to 32.436% at concentration. They suggested that red pitaya appreciably enhanced insulin resistance and 600 g amount of red pitaya fruit eating every day decreased the blood glucose level in type II diabetics (Omidizadeh et al., 2014 andAbdHadi et al. 2012). Dragon fruit is useful in reducing blood sugar levels in people suffering from Type-2 diabetes (Wee et al., 2011). ...
The field experiment entitled "Effect of Irrigation Schedule and Fertigation Level on Nutrient Uptake and Soil Fertility of Mandarin (Citrus reticulate Blanco.) cv. Nagpur Mandarin" was conducted by deploying 10 treatments in RBD with four replication covering 160 plants in all during two successive years commencing from March 2019 to February 2021 at the Instructional Farm, Department of Fruit Science, College of Horticulture and Forestry, Jhalawar, Rajasthan. The experiment revealed that among various irrigation schedule treatments, the application of treatment I1 (100% ETc) was observed significantly superior over other treatments concerning leaf parameters in which the increase in leaf NPK content particularly N: 2.53%, P: 0.23%, K: 1.72% and soil NPK particularly N: 319.13 kg ha-1 , P:24.58 kg ha-1 , K: 290.92 kg ha-1 at 0-15cm depth were observed under this treatment I1 (100% ETc). As regard to individual effect of fertigation, maximum leaf NPK content (N: 2.56% P: 0.23%, K: 1.75%) and soil NPK particularly N: 322.28 kg ha-1 , P: 26.10 kg ha-1 , K: 295.25 kg ha-1 at 0-15cm depth were observed under the treatment F1 (100% RDF). Among the interaction of irrigation schedule and fertigation levels, leaf and soil parameters were observed significantly superior in treatment I1F1 (Irrigation Scheduling at 100 % ETc + Fertigation 100 % RDF) while treatment I2F1 (Irrigation Scheduling at 80 % ETc + Fertigation 100 % RDF) was registered followed by with it in most of the leaf parameters and soil parameters was observed at par with treatment I2F1 studied. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial 4.0 International License.
... Among the proven health benefits associated to red-pulped dragon fruit consumption, excels the protective effect in mice of betacyanins against diet-induced obesity and related metabolic disorders [17]. Moreover, when the fruit was consumed by type II diabetics, their levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol and blood glucose level were reduced whereas the levels of HDL cholesterol increased [18,19]. ...
The development of biofunctional non-dairy beverages with probiotics and prebiotics is a challenge and a frontier goal prompted by current consumers demand of health promoting foods, in particular from those with dietary restrictions related to dairy products. This study aimed to evaluate the survival of two commercially available probiotic strains, Lactobacillus rhamnosus LGG® and Lactobacillus paracasei (Lactobacillus casei 431), in a commercial sterile purple pitaya juice during storage at 5 °C. Additionally, the prebiotic effect of inulin (6.25 mg/ml) on the survival of L. rhamnosus, the most promising strain, was assessed. Physicochemical parameters such as betalain and soluble solids contents, pH, and color were also monitored during storage. Populations of L. rhamnosus and L. paracasei decreased from 11 to 7 log CFU/ml after 12 ± 1 and 0.93 ± 0.05 d, respectively. No changes on the individual betalain contents, as well as for total betalain concentrations (28 ± 3 μg/ml) were observed after probiotic inoculation nor during storage for all experimental trials and regardless of the strain evaluated (P < 0.05). Moreover, the addition of inulin did not significantly (P > 0.05) influence the survival kinetics of L. rhamnosus in the juice during storage and the juice color, pH and soluble solids content remained unaffected as well. Purple pitaya juice represents therefore a promising non-dairy food matrix for probiotics delivery.
... Abd Hadi et al. (2012) reported that the consumption of dragon fruit by type 2 diabetics substantially reduced the levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol while it increased the levels of HDL cholesterol. It also significantly improves the insulin resistance in rats and decreases the blood glucose level in type II diabetic subjects (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). Administration of white dragon fruit juice negates the ill effects of high-fat diet-induced insulin resistance, hepatic steatosis, and adipose hypertrophy, but it exerted no influence on body weight gain in mice (Song et al., 2016). ...
Nutritional and biochemical composition of dragon fruit (Hylocereus) species H. undatus (fruits with white pulp and pink skin), and H. polyrhizus (fruits with red pulp and pink skin) were investigated to develop the nutritional composition data for dragon fruit and compare the difference between H. undatus and H. polyrhizus. The pH, TSS, total sugar, moisture, ash, protein, and dietary fibre content varied between 4.8-5.4, 8-12 %, 5.13-7.06 %, 82-85%, 0.7-0.85%, 0.90-1.1 % and 0.8-1.0 %, respectively. Total phenolics and flavonoids content varied between 25-55 mg GAE and 15-35 mg CE per 100 g, respectively. H. polyrhizus have a significantly high quantum of phenolics and antioxidant potential than H. undatus. 100 g fruit contained about 120-200 mg K, 30-45 mg Mg, 20-45 mg Ca, 20-35 mg P, 0.70-1.5 mg Fe, and 0.20-0.40 mg Zn. Vitamin C was found maximum (6 mg/100g), followed by vitamin E (150 µg), pantothenic acid (50 µg), and vitamin K1 (25 µg). It is an ideal fruit for maintaining good health as it has low calories.
... Banyak penelitian yang telah dilakukan untuk mengkaji khasiat buah naga merah untuk mengobati berbagai penyakit. (Omidizadeh et al., 2014) menemukan bahwa daging buah naga merah memberikan aktivitas yaitu mengurangi resistensi insulin pada penyakit diabetes, mengurangi hipertrigliseridemia dan aterosklerosis pada tikus yang diberi suplemen fruktosa. Ekstrak dan fraksi kulit buah naga merah memberikan aktivitas antibakteri yang potensial melawan berbagai bakteri patogen [2] M.M.A et al., 2012. ...
Indonesia tengah menghadapi tantangan masalah kesehatan meningkatnya penyakit tidak menular (PTM) seperti stroke, penyakit jantung koroner (PJK), kanker dan diabetes justru menduduki peringkat tertinggi. Kurangnya kesadaran akan pola hidup dan makan yang sehat merupakan salah satu penyebab kondisi ini. Kecenderungan kehidupan masyarakat yang memilih segala sesuatunya serba instan termasuk dalam konsumsi makanan dan kosmetik yang saat ini banyak yang menggunakan bahan-bahan berbahaya termasuk pewarna menyebabkan banyak timbulnya penyakit. Begitu pula dengan kehidupan masyarakat pada lingkungan Kampung Jati, Desa Parung, Bogor. Pendekatan terpadu untuk merubah perilaku masyarakat agar mengkonsumsi makanan sehat yang akan memberikan dampak yang positif dimasa depan yang akan menurunkan PTM. Pada saat ini gaya hidup sehat atau kembali ke alam (back to nature) telah menjadi tren baru masyarakat. Konsumsi buah setiap hari memberikan banyak manfaat bagi tubuh kita, bukan saja rasanya yang enak tapi buah dan sayur kaya akan antioksidan yang bermanfaat untuk mencegah terjadinya stres oksidatif, sehingga pada pengabdian masyarakat ini kami mencoba memanfaatkan pigmen pada buah naga merah sebagai sumber antioksidan alami dan pewarna alami pada pembuatan produk makanan dan produk kosmetik sederhana. Dengan adanya kegiatan ini diharapkan peningkatan pemahaman dan pengetahuan tentang manfaat konsumsi buah naga merah dan cara pemanfaatan buah naga merah sebagai bahan dasar makanan dan kosmetik. Dengan meningkatnya pemahanam dan pengetahuan tersebut, diharapkan mampu menumbuhkan kesadaran untuk mengikuti gaya hidup sehat sehingga terhindar dari penyakit.
... Omidizadeh et al., (2011) reported that cardioprotective effects were observed only when rats' diet was supplemented with fresh fruit since the no-significant effect was observed for diets supplemented with cooked fruit (95ºC, 30 min; or 105ºC, 60 min). On the other hand, Omidizadeh et al., (2014) reported that anti-insulin resistant activity was observed when the rats' diet was supplemented with fresh fruit and fruit cooked at 95ºC for 30 min. Still, the activity was not significant with a strong cooking procedure (105ºC, 60 min). ...
Alimentation is fundamental for human subsistence to satisfy biological needs. Cactus plants have been an important solution for human alimentation in arid and semiarid zones of America. Utilization and consumption of the plants and their fruits date from prehispanic times. The most important cactus fruits by production volume are prickly pear (cactus pear), pitaya (dragon fruit), berrycacti (garambullo), and xoconoxtle. These fruits are flavorsome and present a variety of colors. They aport good quality nutrients for human subsistence, but additionally, they apport bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, betalains, flavonoids, among others, that serve for the prevention and treatment of diseases. Cactus fruits are consumed mostly fresh, but they are used to manufacture products such as processed foods, medicaments, and additives. The cultivation of these crops is emerging as new solutions for human alimentation since this adaptability to arid regions brings a solution to water shortage
... The fruit can be eaten fresh or used for juices, desserts, and other food. The plant has an important role in Mexican heritage as food, medicine, and ornament [5]. ...
The consumption of exotic fruits is rapidly increasing in European countries. Some of these products have attracted much interest due to their alleged properties of preventing malnutrition, over-nutrition, and disease, maintaining a healthy body. Scientific studies on these fruits are multiplying, including chemical characterizations and biological investigations on in vitro and in vivo experimental models. This review concerns four edible fruits: Hylocereus undatus (dragon fruit), Annona cherimola (cherimoya), Citrus australasica (finger lime), and Averrhoa carambola (carambola or star fruit). By screening biomedical databases, viz. Scopus, WOS, and PubMed, a total of 131 papers have been selected. Data reveals a wide series of biological effects that confirm traditional medicinal uses or suggest new therapeutic applications. Most studies concern problems related to nutrition, such as body redox balance, metabolic syndrome, and hepatoprotective effects, but other properties have been highlighted, including anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects, as well as cardiovascular and skin protection. Pharmacological investigations have also been focused on specific compounds, assuming a potential role in drug discovery. In summary, food products, byproducts, and single compounds derived from these plants could be exploited in the prevention of disease or for specific treatments of health problems.
... Some researchers have analyzed the benefits of red dragon fruit, both the flesh and the peel. The fruit flesh has been reported to be used for the treatment of diabetes, metabolic syndrome disease, preventing colitis and inflammation (Omidizadeh et al., 2014;Ramli et al., 2014). Furthermore, the peel has been reported to have the ability to reduce cholesterol level, triglycerides, and low-density lipids (LDL) in hyperlipidemic mice (Hernawati et al.,2018). ...
Red dragon fruit is one of the popular fruits that have been widely used both for consumption and food coloring. The red dragon fruit peel and flesh contain various antioxidant compounds that can be used as pharmaceutics and nutraceuticals. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of various extract preparations of the peel and the flesh of red dragon fruit on the viability of normal human fibroblasts. Seven conditions of peel and flesh extracts were prepared as follows, i.e. dried peel ethanolic extract, fresh blended peel ethanolic extract, dried flesh, fresh blended flesh ethanolic extract, blended fresh flesh, filtrate of pressed flesh, and pomace of pressed flesh. Each sample preparation was tested for its effect on the viability of normal human fibroblasts using MTT assay. Results showed that dried peel ethanolic extract reduce cell viability. Red dragon fruit flesh extracts caused no significant effect on the fibroblast viability. In conclusion, the fruit flesh extracts are relatively safer to normal cells than the peel extracts. IC50 value of the ethanolic extract of dried peel was 55.38±3.85 µg/mL, while the IC50 value of various types of flesh extract were more than 500 µg/mL.
... However, dragon fruits food applications are limited to production of juice and direct consumption (Choo & Yong, 2011). On the other hand, dragon fruits were studied for their promising biological functions such as antioxidant and anti-proliferative activity (Wu et al., 2006), antibacterial activity (Nurmahani, Osman, Hamid, Ghazali, & Dek, 2012), and anti-diabetic activity (Omidizadeh et al., 2014). However, Tahera, Feroz, Senjuti, Das, and Noor (2014) observed that the antibacterial activity of dragon fruit was very low in comparison to other tropical fruits tested against 9 food-borne bacteria. ...
IIn this study dragon fruit juice was subjected to lacto-fermentation for 48 h at 37 °C using Lactobacillus plantarum
FBS05. The antibacterial and antioxidant activity were evaluated using 96 microtiter plate, DPPH and FRAP
assays. The bioactive metabolites were identified using 1H-NMR analysis with multivariate analysis. Fermented
juice was mixed with fresh dragon fruit juice at different ratios to evaluate the shelf life stability and consumer
acceptability. The antibacterial activity of fermented dragon fruit juice was 95.52 ± 0.002, 95.63 ± 0.005,
96.05 ± 0.009 and 93.38 ± 0.000 towards Escherichia coli, Salmonella Typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa
and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively. The antioxidant activity results demonstrated no significant differences
for fermented and non-fermented juice. The principal component analyses showed the presence of 21 and 12
metabolites in the fermented and non-fermented dragon fruit juice. The major compounds contributed to the
differences were lysine, alanine, acetic acid, succinic acid, lactic acid, glucose, iso-butyrate and betaine. The 1:9
ratio received the highest scores for the taste (6.24 ± 1.571), aroma (6.50 ± 1.696) and acidity
(6.21 ± 1.996) and extended the shelf life for 3 months. This study demonstrated the high potential for the
lacto-fermented dragon fruit juice for applications to improve the functional properties, consumer acceptability
and shelf life of fresh dragon fruit juice.
... Buah ini mengandung berbagai jenis antioksidan, seperti polifenol, beta karoten, dan asam askorbat sehingga banyak diteliti manfaatnya terhadap kesehatan. Omidizadeh et al. (2014) telah meneliti pemanfaatan buah naga merah untuk pengobatan antidiabetes. Ramli, Brown, Ismail, & Rahmat (2014) mendapatkan bahwa buah naga merah dapat digunakan sebagai terapi pelengkap untuk menurunkan beberapa gejala sindrom metabolik. ...
Kebun Raya Lemor Lombok mempunyai kekayaan spesies flora yang tinggi, termasukspesies tumbuhan berkhasiat obat. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menginventarisasi spesies dan menganalisis pemanfaatan tumbuhan obat di Kebun Raya Lemor Lombok. Pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui observasi di lapangan, koleksi dan identifikasi spesies tumbuhan. Selanjutnya dilakukan wawancara dengan penduduk setempat. Berdasarkan hasil identifikasi diketahui terdapat 32 spesies, 29 genus dan 23 famili tumbuhan yang telah diketahui khasiatnya dan dimanfaatkan oleh penduduk lokal untuk mengobati berbagai penyakit. Sebagian besar tumbuhan obat berhabitusherba dengan organ tumbuhan yang paling banyak dimanfaatkan sebagai obat adalah daun. Kebun Raya Lemor Lombok diharapkan dapat menjadi pusat konservasi untuk kelestarian tanaman obat lokal pulau Lombok.
... Figure-1 shows the different flesh color between red dragon fruit and white dragon fruit. The dragon fruit flesh has several activities as an antioxidant 3,4 , anticancer 5 , antidiabetic 6,7 , antihypercholesterolemic 8 , and hepatoprotective. 9 The dragon fruit peel has several activities as an antioxidant 3 , and antibacterial. ...
Dragon fruit is one of the fruits cultivated in the tropics. The fruit flesh of the dragon fruit has been widely consumed, and the fruit peel of the dragon fruit has also been extensively utilized. But the leaves of the dragon fruit have not been utilized and tend to be waste in agriculture. This study aims to utilize waste dragon fruit leaves with the test of antioxidant activity and the determination of total phenolic of red dragon fruit leaves extract and white dragon fruit leaves extract by spectrophotometric method. Methods performed for antioxidant activity test by 1,1- diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) with ascorbic acid as the comparator and total phenolic determination by Folin- Ciocalteu (FC) with gallic acid as the comparator. Measurements were done with a spectrophotometer. Antioxidant activity test results of red dragon fruit leave extract and white dragon fruit leaves extract obtained scavenging concentration 50% (SC50) 135.00 μg/mL and 142.47 μg/mL. Total phenolic determination results of red dragon fruit leave extract and white dragon fruit leaves extract obtained value 756.75 mg/g and 707.07 mg/g. Both red dragon fruit leaves extract and white dragon fruit leaves extract to have moderate antioxidant activity.
Pitaya (Hylocereus spp.) kırmızı rengi, dikkat çeken görünümü ve sağlık
açısından yararları nedeniyle beğenilen ve besin açısından zengin bir meyve
türüdür. Kalorisi düşük, C ve B vitamini, magnezyum ve kalsiyum gibi
minerallerce zengindir. Ayrıca, serbest radikalleri temizlemeye ve oksidatif
stresin insan vücudu üzerindeki zararlı etkilerini azaltmaya yardımcı olan fenolik
bileşikler, flavonoidler ve betalainler gibi antioksidanlar içermektedir. İçerdiği
yüksek fitokimyasallar ile diyabet, kanser ve kardiyovasküler gibi hastalıklara
yakalanma riskini de azaltıcı etkisi olduğu bilinmektedir. Özellikle
çekirdeklerinde bulunan Omega-3 ve Omega-6 yağ asitlerinin kalp sağlığında
önemli ölçüde katkı sağlamaktadır. Sağlık açısından bu denli önemli bir meyve
olan pitayanın, ülkemizde çok fazla tanınmıyor olması bu konuda yürütülen
kısıtlı çalışmalardan kaynaklanmaktadır. Dolayısıyla bu derlemede, pitayanın
yetiştiriciliği ve sağlık açısından önemi ortaya konulmuştur.
From Seed to Succulence: Mastering Dragon Fruit Propagation Techniques delves into the intricacies of propagating dragon fruit, a fascinating tropical fruit known for its exotic appearance and nutritional bene its. This article explores various propagation methods, including seed germination, stem cuttings, and grafting, shedding light on the challenges and rewards associated with each technique. By elucidating the principles of dragon fruit propagation and offering practical tips for success, this article equips growers with the knowledge and skills to cultivate thriving dragon fruit plants from seed to succulence. Whether you're a novice enthusiast or an experienced horticulturist, this comprehensive guide serves as an invaluable resource for mastering the art of dragon fruit propagation and reaping the rewards of homegrown delicacies.
A BSTRACT
Background
Diabetes is a chronic metabolic condition affecting mainly carbohydrate metabolism. Dragon fruit is a commonly consumed fruit in Asia-pacific countries, with reported anti-diabetic potential.
Objectives
The presents study explores the use of dragon fruit peel as an anti-diabetic supplement.
Materials And Method
Fruit peels from two varieties (Red and Yellow) were evaluated for their ability to absorb glucose, inhibit glucose diffusion, and inhibit starch digestion using in vitro models.
Result
Both red and yellow dragon fruit peel powder samples decreased starch digestion significantly compared to wheat bran and inhibited glucose diffusion, as indicated by the glucose dialysis retardation index (GDRI) values.
Conclusion
The findings of the study indicate that both red and yellow dragon fruit peel possesses significant antidiabetic potential.
From Seed to Succulence: Mastering Dragon Fruit Propagation Techniques delves into the intricacies of propagating dragon fruit, a fascinating tropical fruit known for its exotic appearance and nutritional benefits. This article explores various propagation methods, including seed germination, stem cuttings, and grafting, shedding light on the challenges and rewards associated with each technique. By elucidating the principles of dragon fruit propagation and offering practical tips for success, this article equips growers with the knowledge and skills to cultivate thriving dragon fruit plants from seed to succulence. Whether you’re a novice enthusiast or an experienced horticulturist, this comprehensive guide serves as an invaluable resource for mastering the art of dragon fruit propagation and reaping the rewards of homegrown delicacies.
Pitaya (Hylocereus sp) is an exotic and attractive fruit with promising consumption due to 11 its nutritional qualities and its flavor and color. However, this fruit and its nutritional benefits for 12 the human diet is not widespread. This paper compared biometric and physicochemical character-13 istics, mineral elements, nutrients and bioactive compounds of Pitaya with white and red pulps. 14 Nutrients and bioactive compounds were analyzed by HPLC. Total phenolic compounds and the 15 antioxidant capacity were determined by spectrophotometry. Pitaya red pulp showed higher vita-16 min E (140.76Gg µ g.100g-1), antioxidant capacity (36.41 AAT%), eriodictyol (178.75 µ g.100g-1) and 17 anthocyanins. The α-carotene was more expressive in white pulp (110.21 µ g.100g-1). Total phenolic 18 was similar in both fruits. Pitaya consumption should be encouraged due to the presence of nutri-19 ents and bioactive compounds relevant to our basic nutrition. 20
Diseases are spreading like a trend and victimising every other individual globally. Here, we are referring to one such most common disease that has not even spared young lives i.e., diabetes. Annually, several people lose their lives and loved ones because of this dangerous disease. This has compelled the researchers to think and work on some life saving treatment. People suffering from hyperglycaemic conditions have insulin resistance which can be improved by intake of myo-inositol. Myo-inositol has potential to regulate this insulin hormone which can prevent and control diabetes mellitus. In this research, we have used a natural source (fruit) Hylocereus undatus; it has proved to be a good source of myo-inositol and some proteins that help in insulin regulation naturally. Several techniques and tests were performed such as extraction, purification, crystallisation, proteolytic activity assay, protein estimation, etc. Positive results of myo-inositol were observed through crystallisation together with decent amount of protein concentrations by Folin Lowry test and SDS-PAGE analysis.
Dragon fruit or pitaya is an exotic tropical plant that brings multiple benefits to human health thanks to its high nutritional value and bioactive compounds, including powerful natural antioxidants. Extracts from stems, flowers, peels, pulps of dragon fruit own a range of beneficial biological activities against pathogenic microbes including bacteria, fungi and viruses, and diseases like diabetes, obesity, hyperlipidaemia, and cancer. Moreover, dragon fruit extracts have cardiovascular- and hepato-protective properties, as well as prebiotic potential. Vietnam is a tropical country with favourable climate conditions for the development of pitaya plantations, which have great adaptability and tolerance to a wide range of environmental conditions (e.g. salinity adaptation, favour light intensity, drought resistance, etc.). The dragon fruit, thanks to its nutritional properties, biological activities, and commercial value has become a cost-effective good for the Vietnamese economy, particularly in the poorest areas of the Mekong delta region, and a driving force in the sustainable development of Vietnam under the challenges posed by the global climate change such as saline intrusion and drought.
Chronic hyperglycemia and oxidative stress promote non-enzymatic glycation that leads to the production of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs casue significant damage to physiological proteins which result in several complications. The scenario also corresponds to the chronic consumption of a diet rich in AGEs. Despite understanding these mechanisms at the molecular level, the discovery of new drugs for these complications is under progress. Natural compounds might have great therapeutic potential for treating glycative consequences. In view of this, the study aimed to evaluate fruit extracts of Hylocereus polyrhizus towards determining its phenolics and flavonoid contents, as well as assessing it’s in vitro antiglycative potential through the use of multistage glycation markers (early, intermediate and end stage products of β-aggregation) in sugar-protein model. In vitro hypoglycemic activity of H. polyrhizus extracts was evaluated through α-amylase and α glucosidase inhibitory activities. In vitro antioxidant potential of the fruit extracts was also examined against different free radical types including DPPH and ABTS. Among the different in vitro assays performed, methanolic and acetone extracts of the fruit, with higher phenolics and flavonoid content, have exerted significant antiglycation and antioxidant activities than other extracts namely aqueous, ethanol, hydro-ethanol, hydro-methanol, and petroleum ether. Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS) analysis was employed to identify active polyphenolics that may be responsible for the antiglycative potential of H. polyrhizus. The analysis revealed some high-profile compounds that have well documented for their therapeutic benefits. Additionally, In silico analysis also showed the possible connection between identified compounds and mechanisms of action. 4- Prenylresveratrol, Vicenin, and Luteolin had observed as effectively interact with target protein in molecular docking analysis. This suggests H. polyrhizus as a good source of anti-glycation and antioxidants that may have potential applications for the treatment and prevention of glycation associated diabetic and aging complications
Red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus Weber Britton & Rose) is rich in antioxidants, which might help regulate oxidative stress, exacerbated in Diabetes Mellitus (DM). This study aimed to determine the centesimal composition, physicochemical characteristics and in vivo antioxidant effect of red pitaya in diabetic swiss mice. Pulp, seeds and peel were isolated and used for physicochemical and centesimal composition analysis. DM was induced in female Swiss mice through intraperitoneal Alloxan Monohydrate injection. Groups with 6 animals were formed: Healthy (SAUD), Untreated A and B (DNT A and DNT B), Metformin (MET), and groups fed with 20 (PIT20), 40 (PIT40), 200 (PIT200) and 400 (PIT400) mg of pulp with seeds extract/kg of animals’ body weight, by gavage, for 28 days. Thiobarbituric acid reactive species (TBARS) hepatic content was quantified by Malondialdehyde (MDA), to evaluate lipid peroxidation. Pitaya’s composition was similar to that previously reported. Pulp and peel showed insignificant lipid contents, expressive presence of carbohydrates, and fibers in all samples, especially peel. Lowest MDA was observed in PIT400, PIT200, and PIT40, compared to DNT A and B, and MET. Results were dose-dependent, suggesting pitaya consumption was associated with lower lipid peroxidation. Further studies on its composition and applications as a functional food are required, especially for humans and in DM.
Pitaya peel, a by‐product during processing, contains many phytochemicals. To make good use of it, an approach of adding pitaya peel powder (PPP) to noodle as a bioactive ingredient was applied. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of PPP level (0%‐9%) on phytochemical, textural, and sensory properties of noodle. With an increase in the PPP level, 2, 2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl radical radical scavenging capacity, free polyphenols, and total betacyanins of noodle were enhanced. PPP‐enriched noodle had a redder and darker color. The color of dried noodle was relatively stable during storage, while cooking led to an obvious decrease in betacyanin content and redness of noodle. A higher PPP level significantly reduced extensibility and elasticity of the noodle, but increased tensile strength, cutting force, and cooking loss. Noodle with 0%‐6% PPP had similar sensory scores in overall preference. Healthy and colorful noodle enriched with 3%‐6% PPP had acceptable sensory quality and higher bioactive components. Consumption of food products made with natural ingredients having more phytochemicals is beneficial to health and fits the current trend in food market. After juice processing, pitaya peels are generally discarded as a waste. Since the peels contain lots of phytochemicals including dietary fibers, betacyanins, and polyphenols, pitaya peels were utilized and prepared into pitaya peel powder (PPP) in this study. Increased consumption of PPP‐enriched noodle is proposed for health reasons. The study demonstrated PPP as a bioactive ingredient can be utilized in noodle products. Healthy noodle having good nutritional and sensory quality could be manufactured using PPP.
Dragon fruit leaves extract contains various phytochemicals, namely: alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, glycosides, steroids, and terpenoids. Diverse phytochemical content allows the dragon fruit leaves extract to have antibacterial activity. The objectives of this research were to test antibacterial activity of dragon fruit leaves extract against meningitis bacterial (Neisseria meningitidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Listeria monocytogenes). Dragon fruit leaves extract was obtained by maceration. Antibacterial activity test was done by the paper disc diffusion method with ceftriaxone as the positive control and dimethylsulfoxide as the negative control. Antibacterial activity of red dragon leaves extract with concentration 600 μg/mL and white dragon fruit leaves extract with concentration 800 μg/mL were not show significantly different antibacterial activity from ceftriaxone with concentration 10 μg/mL against meningitis bacterial (Neisseria meningitidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Listeria monocytogenes). The results prove that the red dragon fruit leaves extract was more potential antibacterial activity than white dragon fruit leaves extracted against meningitis bacterial (Neisseria meningitidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Listeria monocytogenes). © 2018 Oriental Scientific Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
To determine whether polyphenols and antioxidant contents are the possible cardioprotective agents of red pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) fruit, two thermal processing methods for this fruit were selected, and biologically active properties of fruits (phenolic content, scavenging activity and soluble dietary fibre) were measured. Pitaya cooked in oven at 95°C for 30 min had low phenolic content (62%, p<0.05) and scavenging activity (32%, p<0.05) with almost intact soluble dietary fibre content (92%, p = 0.993). Pitaya cooked in oven at 105°C for 60 min had low phenolic content (60%, p<0.05), scavenging activity (24%, p<0.05) and soluble dietary fibre content (42%, p<0.05). These two differently treated extracts of red pitaya (cooked at different temperatures for different duration of time) as well as fresh fruit were fed as supplement to hypercholesterolemic rats during a 6-week treatment in a curative study with the intention of finding the potential cardioprotective compounds of red pitaya. The results showed that treatments in different groups caused no significant change in serum triglyceride content. The fresh pitaya improved total and LDL-cholesterol, glucose level and serum antioxidant power in rats significantly (p<0.05). Likewise, serum total and LDL-cholesterol were significantly decreased by atorvastatin treatment (p<0.05). Moreover, atorvastatin treatment increased the serum total antioxidant power significantly (p<0.05). Supplementation of pitaya cooked in oven at 95°C for 30 min or at 105°C for 60 min did not significantly increase serum antioxidant power, and also the hypocholesterolemic effects were not significant. Although the components of red pitaya responsible for hypocholesterolemic effect are not completely clear, this study attributed this effect of red pitaya to be primarily due to its polyphenols and antioxidant contents.
The aim of the present study was to study the influence of several thermal processing methods such as cooking and drying on biologically active compounds of red pitaya. Flesh of red pitaya was subjected to five different thermal processes: oven cooking at 95ºC 30 min, oven cooking at 95ºC 60 min, oven cooking at 105ºC, 60 min, drum drying, and spray drying. Total phenolic content, scavenging activity, antioxidant activity and dietary fiber contents of the fresh and processed red pitaya were subsequently determined. The effect of oven cooking on antioxidant parameters of red pitaya were highly significant compared to fresh one (p<0.05). Whereas, drum drying and spray drying were the best methods for antioxidant preservation in this fruit, compared to the other thermal processes applied in this study. Among all of the heating temperatures applied in this study, drum drying was the best method for preservation of total phenolic content, radical scavenging and antioxidant activity, and 95ºC for 30 min oven cooking was the best process to preserve dietary fiber parameters of this fruit.
This study investigated the effect of administration of alpha-lipoic acid (LA) on lipid metabolism in high fructose-fed insulin-resistant rats. High-fructose feeding (60 g/100 g diet) to normal rats resulted in a significant increase in the concentrations of cholesterol, triglycerides (TGs), free fatty acids (FFAs), and phospholipids in plasma, liver, kidney, and skeletal muscle. Reduced activities of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and lecithin cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT) and increased activity of the lipogenic enzyme hydroxymethylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase were observed in plasma and liver. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was significantly lowered and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were significantly elevated. Treatment with LA (35 mg/kg body weight intraperitoneal) reduced the effects of fructose. The rats showed near-normal levels of lipid components on plasma and tissues. Activities of key enzymes of lipid metabolism were also restored to normal values. Cholesterol distribution in the plasma lipoproteins was normalized, resulting in a favorable lipid profile. This study demonstrates that LA can alter lipid metabolism in fructose-fed insulin-resistant rats and may have implications in the treatment of insulin resistance.
Studies of fruit and vegetable consumption in relation to overall health are limited. We evaluated the relationship between fruit and vegetable intake and the incidence of cardiovascular disease and cancer and of deaths from other causes in two prospective cohorts.
A total of 71 910 female participants in the Nurses' Health study and 37,725 male participants in the Health Professionals' Follow-up Study who were free of major chronic disease completed baseline semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaires in 1984 and 1986, respectively. Dietary information was updated in 1986, 1990, and 1994 for women and in 1990 and 1994 for men. Participants were followed up for incidence of cardiovascular disease, cancer, or death through May 1998 (women) and January 1998 (men). Multivariable-adjusted relative risks were calculated with Cox proportional hazards analysis.
We ascertained 9329 events (1964 cardiovascular, 6584 cancer, and 781 other deaths) in women and 4957 events (1670 cardiovascular diseases, 2500 cancers, and 787 other deaths) in men during follow-up. For men and women combined, participants in the highest quintile of total fruit and vegetable intake had a relative risk for major chronic disease of 0.95 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.89 to 1.01) times that of those in the lowest. Total fruit and vegetable intake was inversely associated with risk of cardiovascular disease but not with overall cancer incidence, with relative risk for an increment of five servings daily of 0.88 (95% CI = 0.81 to 0.95) for cardiovascular disease and 1.00 (95% CI = 0.95 to 1.05) for cancer. Of the food groups analyzed, green leafy vegetable intake showed the strongest inverse association with major chronic disease and cardiovascular disease. For an increment of one serving per day of green leafy vegetables, relative risks were 0.95 (95% CI = 0.92 to 0.99) for major chronic disease and 0.89 (95% CI = 0.83 to 0.96) for cardiovascular disease.
Increased fruit and vegetable consumption was associated with a modest although not statistically significant reduction in the development of major chronic disease. The benefits appeared to be primarily for cardiovascular disease and not for cancer.
Obesity and type 2 diabetes are occurring at epidemic rates in the United States and many parts of the world. The "obesity epidemic" appears to have emerged largely from changes in our diet and reduced physical activity. An important but not well-appreciated dietary change has been the substantial increase in the amount of dietary fructose consumption from high intake of sucrose and high fructose corn syrup, a common sweetener used in the food industry. A high flux of fructose to the liver, the main organ capable of metabolizing this simple carbohydrate, perturbs glucose metabolism and glucose uptake pathways, and leads to a significantly enhanced rate of de novo lipogenesis and triglyceride (TG) synthesis, driven by the high flux of glycerol and acyl portions of TG molecules from fructose catabolism. These metabolic disturbances appear to underlie the induction of insulin resistance commonly observed with high fructose feeding in both humans and animal models. Fructose-induced insulin resistant states are commonly characterized by a profound metabolic dyslipidemia, which appears to result from hepatic and intestinal overproduction of atherogenic lipoprotein particles. Thus, emerging evidence from recent epidemiological and biochemical studies clearly suggests that the high dietary intake of fructose has rapidly become an important causative factor in the development of the metabolic syndrome. There is an urgent need for increased public awareness of the risks associated with high fructose consumption and greater efforts should be made to curb the supplementation of packaged foods with high fructose additives. The present review will discuss the trends in fructose consumption, the metabolic consequences of increased fructose intake, and the molecular mechanisms leading to fructose-induced lipogenesis, insulin resistance and metabolic dyslipidemia.
This study analyzed the antidiabetic properties of an ethanol extract of the stem bark of Psidium guajava, an indigenous medicinal plant used to control diabetes in Indian System of Medicine. The anti-hyperglycaemic activity of this plant on blood glucose levels of normal, normal glucose loaded (OGTT) and alloxan-induced hyperglycaemic rats was evaluated. The results showed that ethanol stem bark extract exhibited statistically significant hypoglycaemic activity in alloxan-induced hyperglycaemic rats but was devoid of significant hypoglycaemic effect in normal and normal glucose loaded rats (OGTT).
There are a few reports suggesting that subtle disturbances of iron metabolism are frequently found in patients with type 2 diabetes (DM2), but it is not known if these disturbances precede or accompany the diabetic state. We investigated the serum iron indices in 41 offspring of DM2 parents (group I) with normal glucose tolerance, and in 49 offspring whose parents had no history of DM2 and were matched for sex, age, body mass index (BMI), waist to hip ratio (WHR) and blood pressure (group II). Serum iron, ferritin, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation, serum triglycerides, cholesterol, Apo-B, high density lipoprotein (HDL) and glucose and insulin values during an oral glucose tolerance test were measured. Insulin resistance was assessed using the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA - Insuline resistence index-IRI). In comparison to controls (group II), the offspring of DM2 subjects (group I) had higher fasting serum triglycerides (mean +/- SD 2.25+/-2.08 vs. 1.6+/-0.8 mmol/L, p<0,05), lower HDL cholesterol (0.96 +/- 0.2 vs. 1.1 +/- 0.2 mmol/L, p<0.001), higher total cholesterol (5.5 +/- 1.1 vs. 5.1 +/- 0.8 mmol/L, p < 0.05), higher apo-B-lipoprotein (133.2+/-34.3 vs. 125.5+/-30.5 mg/dl, p<0.05), higher LDL-C (3.7 +/- 0.8 vs. 3.2 +/- 0.6 mmol/L), higher gamma-GT (28+/-10 vs. 17+/-5.6 iu/L, p<0.01) higher insulin in the Area Under the Curve (204.7+/-140.8 v. 153.1 +/- 63.0 microU/ml, p<0.05) and higher HOMA-IRI (2.84+/-1.39 vs. 1.67+/-0.77, p<0.001), higher serum ferritin concentrations (98.3+/-57.7 vs. 62.0+/-41.1 ng/ml, p<0.01), higher serum iron concentration (20.2+/-6.0 micromol/L vs. 14.5+/-4.3, p<0.001) and higher transferrin saturation index (31.3+/-8.4 vs. 22.6+/-7.3, p<0.0001). By single linear analysis in the offspring of DM2 parents, there was a positive correlation of IRI with transferrin saturation (r=0.400, p<0.01), fibrinogen (r=0.377, p=0.025) and ferritin concentration (r=0.344, p=0.041), and a negative correlation with TIBC (r=-0.477, p < 0.0001), while stepwise multiple regression analysis, IRI showed a positive correlation with fibrinogen (b=0.64, t=3.746, p<0.001), triglycerides (b=0.37, t=2.619, p<0.01) and ferritin (b=0.20, t=1.827, p=0.05). No correlation of IRI, with any of the above parameters was seen in the offspring of normal parents. By logistic regression analysis the parameters characterizing the offspring of parents with DM2 were IRI (OR 14.9 CI 2.4-91.0) serum iron (OR 44.2 CI 6.9-281), TIBC (OR 6.1 CI 1.01-37.0 and gamma-GT (OR 29.6 CI 5.0-174). In conclusion, the data indicate that the iron load, is significantly increased in offspring of DM2 subjects with unaffected glucose tolerance. Furthermore, ferritin concentration is related to insulin resistance. Hence, the relative iron "overload" in offspring of type 2 diabetics is present along with insulin resistance and might worsen the hepatic insulin insensitivity already present in these patients.
The effect of taurine on lipid metabolism in male Wistar rats fed a fructose-rich diet (60%w/w) was investigated. Fructose feeding caused significant elevations in the concentrations of plasma triglycv and free fatty acids. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was significantly reduced and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) was significantly elevated. Activities of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and lecithin cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT) in plasma were reduced significantly (p<0.001) as compared to animals fed starch diet. Alterations in the activities of plasma cholesterol ester hydrolase (CEH) and cholesterol ester synthetase (CES) were observed in fructosefed rats. Fructose feeding also induced alterations in fatty acid composition of liver lipids. Simultaneous administration of taurine in drinking water along with fructose diet mitigated the effects of fructose. These rats showed near-normal levels of the parameters studied. We conclude that taurine normalizes the plasma and liver lipid alterations in this nutritional experimental model.
Phenolic compounds are a large class of plant secondary metabolites, showing a diversity of structures, from rather simple structures, e.g. phenolic acids, through polyphenols such as flavonoids, that comprise several groups, to polymeric compounds based on these different classes. Phenolic compounds are important for the quality of plant based foods: they are responsible for the colour of red fruits, juices and wines and substrates for enzymatic browning, and are also involved in flavour properties. In particular, astringency is ascribed to precipitation of salivary proteins by polyphenols, a mechanism possibly involved in defence against their anti-nutritional effects. Finally, phenolic compounds are considered to contribute to the health benefits associated to dietary consumption of fruits and vegetables. During food processing and storage, plant phenolics are converted to a variety of derived compounds. While methods to analyse lower molecular weight phenolic compounds are well developed, analysis of polymeric compounds remains a challenge. Indeed, strong interactions of polymeric phenolics with plant cell wall material limit their extraction. Besides, their polydispersity results in poor resolution and detection, especially of derived structures such as oxidation products. However, recent advances of the analytical techniques have allowed some progress in their structural characterisation. This review summarizes the current knowledge on methods to analyse polyphenols. It presents their reactions in foods and beverages and the resulting structures, and highlights some aspects related to their impact on colour, flavour and health properties, with examples taken mostly from wine research.
The red pitaya, rich in micronutrients, has recently generated a great deal of consumer interest, therefore, this paper was designed to study the total phenolic content, antioxidant activity and antiproliferative activity of red pitaya on melanoma cells and to determine if it is a valuable source of antioxidants and an anticancer agent. The total phenolic contents of flesh (42.4±0.04mg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/100g of flesh fresh weight) and peel (39.7±5.39mg of GAE/100g of peel fresh weight) were similar. The flavonoid contents of flesh and peel did not vary much (7.21±0.02mg vs. 8.33±0.11mg of catechin equivalents/100g of flesh and peel matters). The concentrations of betacyanins expressed as betanin equivalents per 100g of fresh flesh and peel were 10.3±0.22 and 13.8±0.85mg, respectively. The antioxidant activity, measured by the DPPH method at EC50, was 22.4±0.29 and 118±4.12μmol vitamin C equivalents/g of flesh and peel dried extract; the values of EC50, determined by the ABTS+ approach, were 28.3±0.83 and 175±15.7μmol of trolox equivalents antioxidant capacity (TEAC)/g of flesh and peel dried extract, respectively. The antiproliferative study on B16F10 melanoma cells revealed that the peel (EC50 25.0μg of peel matter) component was a stronger inhibitor of the growth of B16F10 melanoma cancer cells than the flesh. The results indicated that the flesh and peel were both rich in polyphenols and were good sources of antioxidants. The red pitaya peel fulfilled its promise to inhibit the growth of melanoma cells.
The typical Mexican diet includes beans and tortillas, which are foods with a low glycemic index. The objective of this paper was to compare the effects of a lower and a higher glycemic index Mexican style diet on metabolic control. In a randomized, controlled crossover design, eight subjects with type 2 diabetes were assigned to either a high glycemic index (GI=72), lower dietary fiber (30g/d) diet or a moderate glycemic index (GI=60) higher dietary fiber (53g/d) for three weeks each. Biochemical data was obtained at the start and finish of each dietary period. Multi and univariate one-factor repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to compare biochemical data. The overall differences in the total and LDL cholesterol (5.02±0.6 to 3.36±0.83) population means were significant (P
Quantitative estimates of conjugated flavonoid content were obtained by using HPLC to analyze the level of free flavonoids present in acid-hydrolyzed extracts from commercial fruits and vegetables. Cherry tomatoes contained 17−203 μg of quercetin g-1 fresh weight compared to 2.2−11 μg g-1 detected in normal-sized Scottish, Spanish, and Dutch beef tomatoes. The quercetin levels in onions ranged from 185 to 634 μg of quercetin g-1 fresh weight. “Round” lettuce contained 11 μg of quercetin g-1 fresh weight compared to 911 μg g-1 in the outer leaves and 450 mg g-1 in the inner leaves of “Lollo Rosso” lettuce. The conjugated flavonoid content of celery was very variable, ranging from undetectable to 40 μg of luteolin and 191 μg of apigenin g-1 fresh weight. Cooking lowered the quercetin content of both tomatoes and onions with greater reductions being detected following microwaving and boiling than after frying. Keywords: HPLC; quantitative analysis; flavonoids; tomatoes; onions; lettuce; celery; diet
The market for dietary fibre is highly competitive and, for new products, new healthy properties are necessary in addition to those of traditional products. This article deals with the production of high dietary fibre powders from fruit by-products and the potential preparation of those fibres with associated bioactive compounds. While milling and screening have been the main steps in obtaining high dietary fibre powders from cereals; wet milling, washing, drying and dry milling are very important in producing fibres from fruits. The effects of some technological treatments on the quality of the fibres obtained from orange, mango and other materials are also illustrated.
Aortic damage during the prediabetic stage of diabetes mellitus (DM) was investigated in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats, as an animal model of type II DM. In 30 OLETF and 30 nonDM rats, an oral glucose tolerance test was performed at 10, 20 and 30 weeks of age. At 15 and 30 weeks, intravascular ultrasound images and aortic pressure were recorded and the stiffness parameter beta was calculated. The aortic walls were excised at 5, 15 and 30 weeks for histopathology and the measurement of hydroxyproline. At 10 weeks, blood glucose (mg/dl) and insulin concentrations (ng/ml) of the OLETF rats (2h; 168+/-30 and 0.82+/-0.15) were significantly high (nonDM: 118+/-15; p = 0.02 and 0.16+/-0.64; p = 0.003). At the prediabetic stage (15 weeks), beta in the OLETF rats (2.5+/-0.9) was larger than in nonDM rats (1.4+/-0.4; p = 0.0006), and the collagen (hydroxyproline) content/dry weight (mg/g) of the aortic wall was significantly higher in OLETF (33.5+/-3.1) than in nonDM rats (28.7+/-3.5; p<.05). Histopathological examination showed that from 15 weeks of age the medial wall thickness increased gradually. In the prediabetic stage, collagen accumulation may contribute to impairment of aortic wall stiffness in the OLETF rats, which would accelerate the aging process in the aortic wall.
A simple, automated test measuring the ferric reducing ability of plasma, the FRAP assay, is presented as a novel method for assessing "antioxidant power." Ferric to ferrous ion reduction at low pH causes a colored ferrous-tripyridyltriazine complex to form. FRAP values are obtained by comparing the absorbance change at 593 nm in test reaction mixtures with those containing ferrous ions in known concentration. Absorbance changes are linear over a wide concentration range with antioxidant mixtures, including plasma, and with solutions containing one antioxidant in purified form. There is no apparent interaction between antioxidants. Measured stoichiometric factors of Trolox, alpha-tocopherol, ascorbic acid, and uric acid are all 2.0; that of bilirubin is 4.0. Activity of albumin is very low. Within- and between-run CVs are <1.0 and <3.0%, respectively, at 100-1000 micromol/liter. FRAP values of fresh plasma of healthy Chinese adults: 612-1634 micromol/liter (mean, 1017; SD, 206; n = 141). The FRAP assay is inexpensive, reagents are simple to prepare, results are highly reproducible, and the procedure is straightforward and speedy. The FRAP assay offers a putative index of antioxidant, or reducing, potential of biological fluids within the technological reach of every laboratory and researcher interested in oxidative stress and its effects.
In type II diabetic patients, one can detect several pathologic changes including insulin resistance and hypertension. Sprague-Dawley rats fed a fructose-rich diet (group F) exhibited these characteristic abnormalities within 2 weeks and were an excellent laboratory animal model for research on insulin action and development of hypertension. Since fish oils containing omega-3 fatty acids have a beneficial effect in preventing atherosclerotic diseases, we performed repeated experiments to test the effects of fish oil supplementation in group F rats. Compared with control rats on a normal diet (group C), group F consistently developed hypertriglyceridemia without elevated plasma free fatty acid (FFA), fasting hyperinsulinemia together with fasting hyperglycemia (insulin resistance syndrome), and systolic hypertension within 3 weeks. Insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and insulin binding of adipocytes were significantly reduced. Rats fed the same high-fructose diet but supplemented with fish oil (group O) had alleviation of all of these metabolic defects and a normalized insulin sensitivity and blood pressure. beta-Cell function as shown by plasma glucose and insulin responses to oral glucose remained intact in group F and group O. The plasma endothelin-1 (ET-1) level and ET-1 binding to adipocytes were not different among the three groups. Based on these results, we suggest that dietary high fructose induced hypertriglyceridemia and insulin resistance with normal islet function, and that the induced hypertension was not associated with plasma ET-1 abnormalities and was probably caused by other undefined pathologic changes that can be prevented by dietary omega-3 fatty acids.
The effect of dietary persimmon (Pers, 7.0%) on lipid metabolism and antioxidant activity was investigated in 40 male Wistar rats adapted to cholesterol-free or 1% cholesterol diets. The rats were divided in four groups of 10. The basal diet contained wheat starch, casein, soybean oil, and mineral and vitamin mixtures. The control group (C) consumed the basal diet. To the basal diet were added 7 g/100 g dry persimmon (Pers), 1 g/100 g cholesterol (Chol), or both (Chol/Pers). The experiment lasted 4 wk. Plasma total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C), HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), total phospholipids (TPH), HDL phospholipids (HDL-PH), lipid peroxides (LP) and liver TC concentrations were measured. Groups did not differ before the experiment. In the Chol/Pers vs. Chol group, the persimmon-supplemented diet significantly (P < 0.05) lessened the rise in plasma lipids due to dietary cholesterol: TC (3.88 vs. 4. 88 mmol/L; -20%), LDL-C (2.24 vs. 3.27 mmol/L; -31%), TG (0.72 vs. 0. 89 mmol/L; -19%), LP (2.20 vs. 3.25 mmol/L; -32%) and TC in liver (32.8 vs. 49.9 micromol/g; -34%), (P < 0.001). The Chol/Pers diet significantly reduced the decrease in HDL-PH due to dietary cholesterol (0.73 vs. 0.58 mmol/L; -25.8%, P < 0.001) and decreased the level of TPH (1.32 vs. 1.73 mmol/L; -23%, P < 0.001). Persimmon in rats fed the basal diet without cholesterol did not significantly affect the variables measured. These results demonstrate that persimmon possesses hypolipidemic and antioxidant properties that are evident when persimmon is added to the diet of rats fed cholesterol. These properties are attributed to its water-soluble dietary fiber, carotenoids and polyphenols.
In animal models, a small (catalytic) dose of fructose administered with glucose decreases the glycemic response to the glucose load. Therefore, we examined the effect of fructose on glucose tolerance in 11 healthy human volunteers (5 men and 6 women). Each subject underwent an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) on 2 separate occasions, at least 1 week apart. Each OGTT consisted of 75 g glucose with or without 7.5 g fructose (OGTT+F or OGTT-F), in random order. Arterialized blood samples were obtained from a heated dorsal hand vein twice before ingestion of the carbohydrate and every 15 min for 2 h afterward. The area under the curve (AUC) of the change in plasma glucose was 19% less in OGTT+F vs. OGTT-F (P: < 0.05). Glucose tolerance was improved by fructose in 9 subjects and worsened in 2. All 6 subjects with the largest glucose AUC during OGTT-F had a decreased response during OGTT+F (31 +/- 5% decrease). The insulin AUC did not differ between the 2 studies. Of the 9 subjects with improved glucose tolerance during the OGTT+F, 5 had smaller insulin AUC during the OGTT+F than the OGTT-F. Plasma glucagon concentrations declined similarly during OGTT-F and OGTT+F. The blood lactate response was about 50% greater during the OGTT+F (P: < 0.05). Neither nonesterified fatty acid nor triglyceride concentrations differed between the two OGTT. In conclusion, low dose fructose improves the glycemic response to an oral glucose load in normal adults without significantly enhancing the insulin or triglyceride response. Fructose appears most effective in those normal individuals who have the poorest glucose tolerance.
High concentrations of glucose induce insulin resistance, impair insulin secretion, and affect hepatic glucose production in a manner that mirrors Type 2 diabetes, and hexosamines mimic many of these effects. This has led to the hypothesis that cells use hexosamine flux as a glucose- and satiety-sensing pathway. The hexosamine hypothesis for glucose sensing has been validated by overexpressing the rate-limiting enzyme for hexosamine synthesis, glutamine: fructose-6-phosphate amidotransferase (GFA) in several tissues including muscle, liver, fat, and beta cells. With overexpression of GFA in transgenic animals, skeletal muscle becomes insulin resistant, the liver synthesizes excess fatty acid, and the beta cell secretes excess insulin leading to hyperinsulinemia. Thus, excess hexosamine flux leads to a coordinated response whereby fuel is shunted toward long-term storage, mirroring the "thrifty phenotype." Chronically, however, these same adaptive changes result ultimately in obesity, hyperlipidemia, beta cell failure, and Type 2 diabetes. These results suggest a mechanism by which chronic overnutrition leads to the phenotype of Type 2 diabetes.
The roles of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in vascular proliferation, atherosclerosis, and plaque still remain controversial. TGF-β1 has been previously reported to inhibit the proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells, in vitro. On the other hand, administration or transgenic overexpression of TGF-β1 enhances extracellular matrix synthesis and cellular hyperplasia of the intima and media in the normal artery and injured artery in vivo. We evaluated the correlation of arterial proliferation with plasma levels of TGF-β1 and TGF-β receptor type II, respectively, in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats, a new strain of spontaneous non-insulin-dependant diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) models. OLETF rats (n=30) were divided into three groups aged 5,15, and 30 weeks. Long-Evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) rats (n=30) were used as age-matched non-diabetic controls. Plasma TGF-β1 and insulin were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Immunoreactive TGF-β receptor type II antigen was detected by immunohistochemistry on the thoracic artery. Arterial media area was measured microscopically. Oral glucose tolerance test was performed to examine the stage of diabetes mellitus. The thoracic aorta wall section area increased significantly from the age of 15 weeks in OLETF rats, versus LETO rats. In both OLETF and LETO rats, plasma TGF-β1 increased significantly from the age of 15 weeks. In OLETF rats, plasma TGF-β1 increased significantly over that in LETO rats (P
Insulin resistance is a major contributor to the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and plays a key role in associated metabolic abnormalities, such as dyslipidemia and hypertension. Obesity, especially visceral adiposity, is negatively correlated with insulin sensitivity. The release of free fatty acids from adipocytes can block insulin-signaling pathways and lead to insulin resistance. In addition, recently identified adipocyte-specific chemical messengers, the adipocytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha, adiponectin, and resistin, appear to modulate the underlying insulin resistance. When insulin resistance is combined with beta-cell defects in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, impaired glucose tolerance, hyperglycemia, or type 2 diabetes can result. The thiazolidinediones are potent peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma agonists and directly improve insulin resistance and glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes. Increasing evidence supports the early use of thiazolidinediones for preventing, delaying, or treating diabetes by improving insulin sensitivity and beta-cell insulin secretion.
Chronic fructose treatment in rats has repeatedly been shown to elevate blood pressure in association with insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of the leaf methanol extract of Bidens pilosa on systolic blood pressure (SBP) and plasma glucose, insulin, cholesterol, triglycerides and creatinine levels in rats with fructose-induced hypertension. Wistar rats that drank a 10% fructose solution for 3-6 weeks showed significant increase not only in plasma insulin and cholesterol levels but also in SBP. B. pilosa extract was able to prevent the establishment of hypertension and lower elevated blood pressure levels. The extract also reduced the highly elevated plasma insulin levels provoked by the high fructose diet. These results suggest that the leaf methanol extract of B. pilosa exerts its antihypertensive effect in part by improving insulin sensitivity.
Consumption of fruits and vegetables has been shown to be effective in the prevention of chronic diseases. These benefits are often attributed to the high antioxidant content of some plant foods. Apples are commonly eaten and are large contributors of phenolic compounds in European and North American diets. The peels of apples, in particular, are high in phenolics. During applesauce and canned apple manufacture, the antioxidant-rich peels of apples are discarded. To determine if a useful source of antioxidants is being wasted, the phytochemical content, antioxidant activity, and antiproliferative activity of the peels of four varieties of apples (Rome Beauty, Idared, Cortland, and Golden Delicious) commonly used in applesauce production in New York state were investigated. The values of the peels were compared to those of the flesh and flesh + peel components of the apples. Within each variety, the total phenolic and flavonoid contents were highest in the peels, followed by the flesh + peel and the flesh. Idared and Rome Beauty apple peels had the highest total phenolic contents (588.9 +/- 83.2 and 500.2 +/- 13.7 mg of gallic acid equivalents/100 g of peels, respectively). Rome Beauty and Idared peels were also highest in flavonoids (306.1 +/- 6.7 and 303.2 +/- 41.5 mg of catechin equivalents/100 g of peels, respectively). Of the four varieties, Idared apple peels had the most anthocyanins, with 26.8 +/- 6.5 mg of cyanidin 3-glucoside equivalents/100 g of peels. The peels all had significantly higher total antioxidant activities than the flesh + peel and flesh of the apple varieties examined. Idared peels had the greatest antioxidant activity (312.2 +/- 9.8 micromol of vitamin C equivalents/g of peels). Apple peels were also shown to more effectively inhibit the growth of HepG(2) human liver cancer cells than the other apple components. Rome Beauty apple peels showed the most bioactivity, inhibiting cell proliferation by 50% at the low concentration of 12.4 +/- 0.4 mg of peels/mL. The high content of phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, and antiproliferative activity of apple peels indicate that they may impart health benefits when consumed and should be regarded as a valuable source of antioxidants.
Antioxidant activity of betalain pigments (seven pure compounds and four combined fractions) from plants of the family Amaranthaceae was evaluated using the modified DPPH(*) (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl) method. All tested betalains exhibited strong antioxidant activity. Their EC(50) values ranged from 3.4 to 8.4 microM. Gomphrenin type betacyanins (mean = 3.7 microM) and betaxanthins (mean = 4.2 microM) demonstrated the strongest antioxidant activity, 3-4-fold stronger than ascorbic acid (13.9 microM) and also stronger than rutin (6.1 microM) and catechin (7.2 microM). Antioxidant activity of the tested betalains decreased in the following order: simple gomphrenins > acylated gomphrenins > dopamine-betaxanthin > (S)-tryptophan-betaxanthin > 3-methoxytyramine-betaxanthin > betanin/isobetanin > celosianins > iresinins > amaranthine/isoamaranthine. This study also investigated and discussed the relationship between the chemical structure and the activity of the betalains. The free radical scavenging activity of the betalains usually increased with the numbers of hydroxyl/imino groups and, moreover, depended on the position of hydroxyl groups and glycosylation of aglycones in the betalain molecules.
In the present study, we investigated the effect of an association of micronutrients (zinc (Zn), selenium (Se) and vitamin E (vit E)) on insulin activity and antioxidant status in an animal model of insulin resistance, the high-fructose-fed rat.
Five experimental groups were compared: a control group (C) receiving a standard diet, a high-fructose-fed group (F) where 58% of the diet carbohydrate was fructose, a high-fructose-fed group supplemented with Zn alone (FZn group), a high-fructose-fed group supplemented micronutrients (Zn, Se and vit E) (FMicro group). A fifth group consumed a high-fructose diet and received metformin in the drinking water (200mg/day/rat) (FMet group). Insulin sensitivity was measured using the euglycemic hyperinsulinic glucose clamp technique. Metabolic parameters, trace elements and antioxidant parameters were measured in blood samples from all groups.
High-fructose-fed rats were resistant to insulin as indicated by the lower glucose infusion rate. The insulin sensitivity of FZn, FMicro and FMet groups was higher than that of F group, with the highest insulin sensitivity for the FMicro group. No statistically significant difference in glycemia between the groups was observed. The ratio of reduced to oxidized glutathione was higher in FZn and FMicro groups than in all other groups, as a consequence of decreased oxidized glutathione.
Our results provide direct evidence that micronutrients have a beneficial effect on insulin sensitivity and some components of the antioxidant defense system in an animal model of insulin resistance.
Whether the intake of high dietary fiber may improve glycemic control in individuals with type 2 diabetes has been controversial. This study was conducted to observe the long-term effects of dietary fiber intake on glucose tolerance and lipid metabolism in rats. Thirty male type 2 diabetic model GK rats were divided randomly into 3 groups. Each group was fed either a barley (high-dietary fiber) diet, rice (low-dietary fiber) diet, or cornstarch (very-low-dietary fiber) diet. The rats were pair-fed for 9 months. The intake of the barley diet significantly improved the area under the plasma glucose concentration time curves, lowered the fasting plasma glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin levels, and decreased plasma total cholesterol (T Chol), triglycerides (TG), and free fatty acid (FFA) levels. This study demonstrated that long-term intake of barley has beneficial effects on glucose tolerance and lipid metabolism and suggests the intake of unrefined cereal foods should increase as a diet therapy for type 2 diabetes.
Patients with insulin resistance exhibit endothelial dysfunction with decreased nitric oxide (NO) production and increased oxidative stress. We postulated that daily sildenafil improved endothelial function in fructose-fed rats.
Wistar rats were fed a standard or fructose-enriched diet (FFR) for 9 wk. From weeks 6-8, sildenafil was administered twice daily (sc, 20 m g/kg), followed by a 1-wk washout. Concentration-response curves (CRCs) to endothelium-dependent (acetylcholine [Ach] and A23187) and -independent (sodium nitroprusside [SNP]) relaxing agents were performed on isolated precontracted aortas and superior mesenteric arteries (SMAs). Vascular cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) content, urinary excretion of nitrates/nitrites (NOx) and 8-isoprostanes (IPT), and plasma levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) were evaluated. Relaxations to ACh were significantly reduced in aortas and SMAs of FFR. Sildenafil restored ACh-induced relaxations in aortas and provoked a significant leftward shift of the CRC to ACh in SMAs, whereas it did not modify the enhanced relaxations to SNP in FFR. IL-6, TNF-alpha, vascular cGMP, and urinary NOx levels were not modified by the fructose or sildenafil treatment. Urinary IPT levels were significantly elevated in FFR and normalized by sildenafil.
Endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress associated with insulin resistance can be reversed by daily sildenafil, even 1 wk after treatment cessation.
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors have been shown to upregulate GTP cyclohydrolase I (GTPCH-I), the key enzyme for tetrahydrobiopterin de novo synthesis and to normalize tetrahydrobiopterin levels in hyperglycemic endothelial cells. We sought to determine whether in vivo treatment with the HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor atorvastatin is able to upregulate the GTPCH-I, to recouple eNOS and to normalize endothelial dysfunction in an experimental model of diabetes mellitus.
In male Wistar rats, diabetes was induced by streptozotocin (STZ, 60 mg/kg). In STZ rats, atorvastatin feeding (20 mg/kg/d, 7 weeks), normalized vascular dysfunction as analyzed by isometric tension studies, levels of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (FACS-analysis), superoxide formation (assessed by lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence and dihydroethidium staining), vascular levels of the phosphorylated vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein (P-VASP), tyrosine nitration of the prostacyclin synthase, expression of GTPCH-I, dihydrofolate reductase and eNOS, translocation of regulatory NADPH oxidase subunits rac1, p47phox and p67phox (assessed by Western blot) and vascular tetrahydrobiopterin levels as measured by HPLC. Dihydroethidine staining revealed that the reduction of vascular superoxide was at least in part due to eNOS recoupling.
HMG-CoA reductase inhibition normalizes endothelial function and reduces oxidative stress in diabetes by inhibiting activation of the vascular NADPH oxidase and by preventing eNOS uncoupling due to an upregulation of the key enzyme of tetrahydrobiopterin synthesis, GTPCH-I.
The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of three common cooking practices (i.e., boiling, steaming, and frying) on phytochemical contents (i.e., polyphenols, carotenoids, glucosinolates, and ascorbic acid), total antioxidant capacities (TAC), as measured by three different analytical assays [Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter (TRAP), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP)] and physicochemical parameters of three vegetables (carrots, courgettes, and broccoli). Water-cooking treatments better preserved the antioxidant compounds, particularly carotenoids, in all vegetables analyzed and ascorbic acid in carrots and courgettes. Steamed vegetables maintained a better texture quality than boiled ones, whereas boiled vegetables showed limited discoloration. Fried vegetables showed the lowest degree of softening, even though antioxidant compounds were less retained. An overall increase of TEAC, FRAP, and TRAP values was observed in all cooked vegetables, probably because of matrix softening and increased extractability of compounds, which could be partially converted into more antioxidant chemical species. Our findings defy the notion that processed vegetables offer lower nutritional quality and also suggest that for each vegetable a cooking method would be preferred to preserve the nutritional and physicochemical qualities.
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