Cornus mas, also known as the Cornelian cherry, is a plant that grows in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Its green leaves and reddish oval fruits are associated with many beneficial properties such as antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects. These features are driven by the rich polyphenolic composition, with anthocyanins and iridoids in Cornelian cherry fruits as well as flavonoids and phenolic acids in leaves. The antioxidant behavior as well as the composition significantly depends on the cultivar of the plant and its genotype. The functional properties of Cornelian cherry have been recognized in many in vitro and toxicological studies. Cornus mas fruits and their extracts have been found to have significant antiatherogenic, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective effects. The beneficial effect of C. mas fruits as a food component has been determined in numerous papers focused on functional food. However, there is no information in existing literature about C. mas leaves in functional food applications. This paper presents the results of current studies including their synthesis to answer the question whether the Cornelian cherry exhibits positive properties due to its bioactive compound content.

Diabetes is a metabolic disease that affected 9.3% of adults worldwide in 2019. Its co-occurrence is suspected to increase mortality from COVID-19. The treatment of diabetes is mainly based on the long-term use of pharmacological agents, often expensive and causing unpleasant side effects. There is an alarming increase in the number of pharmaceuticals taken in Europe. The aim of this paper is to concisely collect information concerning the few antidiabetic or hypoglycaemic raw plant materials that are present in the consciousness of Europeans and relatively easily accessible to them on the market and sometimes even grown on European plantations. The following raw materials are discussed in this mini-review: Morus alba L., Cinnamomum zeylanicum J.Presl, Trigonella foenum-graecum L., Phaseolus vulgaris L., Zingiber officinale Rosc., and Panax ginseng C.A.Meyer in terms of scientifically tested antidiabetic activity and the presence of characteristic biologically active compounds and their specific properties, including antioxidant properties. The characteristics of these raw materials are based on in vitro as well as in vivo studies: on animals and in clinical studies. In addition, for each plant, the possibility to use certain morphological elements in the light of EFSA legislation is given.

Common hop (Humulus lupulus L.) has significant health-promoting properties. Hop cones contain resins, essential oils, proteins, polyphenols, lipids, waxes, and cellulose. Hop extracts include bioactive compounds such as polyphenolic compounds (phenolic acids, and flavonols), and chlorophylls. The aim of this study was to compare the pro-health potential of hop cone extracts obtained from three cultivars (Magnum, Lubelski, and Marynka). The results showed that the cones of Magnum cultivar demonstrated the highest biological activity. The sum of phenolic acids and flavonols in ethanol extract was the highest for this variety and was equal 4903.5 µg/g dw. Ethanol extracts of Magnum cultivars showed the highest degree of iron ion chelation (55.43–88.76%) as well as the activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (4.75 mmol Tx/g dw). Hop cone extracts as cholinesterase inhibitors showed high potential for aqueous variants. In terms of antimicrobial activity, all investigated extracts demonstrated strong inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, with the Magnum cultivar showing the strongest inhibition. Owing to the biofunctional features of hop cone, it can be concluded that it is an attractive raw material with pro-health potential that can be used much more widely in food technology. However, it should be noted that toxicological tests and in vitro tests must be carried out before the raw material is used in food production.

This study evaluated the effect of adding a new step, termed conditioning, to the traditional processing of leaves from Morus alba var. zolwinska wielkolistna grown in Poland (WML-P). This step, modeled on tea leaves processing, was conducted in a controlled environment on a semi-technical scale. The primary goal was to evaluate the effect of the WML-P conditioning for 1–4 h at 32–35 °C on the content of bioactive compounds (total phenolics, phenolic acids, flavonols, 1-deoxynojirimycin) and antioxidant activity (radical scavenging against DPPH, antioxidant capacity, chelating activity and ferric reducing antioxidant potential) of the lyophilized extracts. For the first time WML-P extracts content was comprehensively characterized by assessing dietary fiber fractions, fatty acids, amino acids, macro- and microelements and chlorophyll content. Compared to the traditional process, adding the conditioning step to WML-P processing resulted in an increased total phenolics content, radical scavenging capacity, ability to quench 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH^•) and iron-chelating ability in the lyophilized extracts. The beneficial effect depended on conditioning time. The highest flavonols and phenolic acids content were found after 2-h conditioning. We concluded that adding a 2-h conditioning step to traditional WML-P processing results in getting WML-P lyophilized extract with increased bioactive compounds content and high antioxidant activity.

Since ancient times, fruits and edible plants have played a special role in the human diet for enhancing health and maintaining youthfulness. The aim of our work was to determine the interactions between naringin, a natural ingredient of grapefruits, and DNA using an electrochemical biosensor. Electrochemical methods allow analyzing the damages occurring in the structure of nucleic acids and their interactions with xenobiotics. Our study showed that the changes in the location of electrochemical signals and their intensity resulted from the structural alterations in DNA. The signal of adenine was affected at lower concentrations of naringin, but the signal of guanine was unaffected in the same condition. The dynamics of changes occurring in the peak height and surface of adenine related to naringin concentration was also significantly lower. The complete binding of all adenine bases present in the tested double-stranded DNA solution was observed at naringin concentrations ranging from 8.5 to 10.0 µM. At larger concentrations, this active compound exerted an oxidizing effect on DNA. However, the critical concentrations of naringin were found to be more than twice as high as the dose absorbable in an average human (4 µM). The results of our work might be helpful in the construction of electrochemical sensors for testing the content of polyphenols and would allow determining their genoprotective functionality.

Background/Aim: The leaves of white mulberry (Morus alba L.) contain various polyphenolic compounds possessing strong antioxidant activity and anticancer potential. This study was designed to investigate the chemopreventive effect of aqueous extract of mulberry leaves against N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA)-induced liver carcinogenesis. Materials and Methods: Wistar rats were divided into four groups: control, mulberry extract-treated, NDEA-treated, and mulberry extract plus NDEA-treated. Mulberry extract was given in the diet (1,000 mg/kg b.w./day); NDEA was given in drinking water. Results: Mulberry extract reduced the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma, dysplastic nodules, lipid peroxidation, protein carbonyl formation, and DNA degradation. Treatment with mulberry leaf extract along with NDEA challenge did not affect the activity of antioxidant enzymes and glutathione content. Conclusion: Treatment with mulberry leaf extract partially protected the livers of rats from NDEA-induced hepatocarcinogenesis and a direct antioxidant mechanism appears to contribute to its anticarcinogenic activity.