Quercus species, also known as oak, represent an important genus of the Fagaceae family. It is widely distributed in temperate forests of the northern hemisphere and tropical climatic areas. Many of its members have been used in traditional medicine to treat and prevent various human disorders such as asthma, hemorrhoid, diarrhea, gastric ulcers, and wound healing. The multiple biological activities including anti‐inflammatory, antibacterial, hepatoprotective, antidiabetic, anticancer, gastroprotective, antioxidant, and cytotoxic activities have been ascribed to the presence of bioactive compounds such as triterpenoids, phenolic acids, and flavonoids. This paper aimed to provide available information on the medicinal uses, phytochemicals, and pharmacology of species from Quercus. However, further investigation is needed to fully clarify the mode of action of its bioactive compounds and to evaluate in vivo chronic toxicity, before exploring their potential use as a supplement in functional foods and natural pharmaceutics.

Acorn oil has been receiving increasing attention due to its nutritional potentials. However, its application as a novel food ingredient has not yet been fully explored. This paper summarizes chemical composition, extraction methods, potential health benefits, and current applications of acorn oil, with the aim of providing suggestions for its exploitation. Acorn oil is an excellent source of essential fatty acids (oleic, linoleic, α-linolenic, and palmitic acids). Acorns are a rich source of tocopherols, with γ-tocopherol being the most abundant. It also contains various bioactive compounds such as polyphenols and sterols (mainly β-sitosterol). Diets enriched with acorn oil can be beneficial in preventing cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancer, and type 2 diabetes as well as offer antioxidant activity. Further studies should focus on producing better quality acorn oil such as the application of more innovative and optimized techniques that can increase its health benefits and hence utilization.

The major component of acorn is starch, which may amount up to 55% of the dry weight. Lack of systematic knowledge on acorn starch greatly hinders the further development of acorns as sustainable crops. This review aims to summarize the current knowledge of the isolation, chemical composition, physicochemical properties, and uses of acorn starches and to provide future research directions. The amylose content of the acorn starches is reported to vary in the range of 20–39%. Moisture content, lipid, ash, and protein contents of the acorn starches have been reported varying from 2.20 to 15.50%, 0.23 to 2.64%, 0.01 to 1.41%, and 0.01 to 6.7%, respectively. Thermal and pasting properties that have usually been determined using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and rapid viscoanalyzer (RVA) are also discussed in this article. Acorn starch has great potential for various food and nonfood applications due to the unique structural and functional features.

Ultrasonic extraction has emerged as an effective technique for producing modified starches. This study investigates the use of ultrasound to improve the functional properties of canary starch for industrial applications. The efficiency of combining ultrasound with alkaline treatment for extracting canary starch was studied and compared with conventional alkaline extraction (CAE). Ultrasound-assisted alkaline extraction (UAE) conditions were optimized using single factorial experiments and response surface methodology (RSM) to maximize efficiency and yield. The highest starch yield (45.53%) was obtained with UAE under the following conditions: solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:5 (w/v), 0.25% NaOH, 39 °C, and 30 min. The starch was also evaluated for the morphological, structural, and physicochemical characteristics. UAE process resulted in canary starch exhibiting higher amylose content (19.47%), increased bulk density 0.79 (g/cm³), superior water absorption capacity (0.42 to 1.02 g/g), improved oil absorption capacity 1.51 (g/g), and enhanced swelling power (1.4 to 6.6 g/g at 75 °C), compared to the CAE. Additionally, the morphology of starch granules was altered, and the transmittance of the starch suspension was more stable in the US treated samples, peaking at 6.91% at 72 h, indicating improved clarity and structural integrity. However, the molecular structure and crystal type of the starch remained unaffected. In conclusion, UAE offers a rapid, eco-friendly, and efficient method for producing canary starch with enhanced functional properties, making it a promising alternative for applications requiring high gelation efficiency, swelling capacity, and water absorption.