This integrative review aims to identify the main flavonoids present in some species of the Myrtaceae family. Studies published between 2016 and 2022 were selected, specifically those which were fully available and written in Portuguese, English, or Spanish, and which were related to the fruits araçá (Psidium cattleianum), cambuí (Myrciaria floribunda), gabiroba (Campomanesia xanthocarpa), jabuticaba (Plinia cauliflora), and jambolan (Syzygium cumini). Scientific studies were gathered and selected in Google Scholar, Scielo, and Science Direct indexed databases, out of which 14 were about araçá, 7 concerned cambuí, 4 were about gabiroba, 29 were related to jabuticaba, and 33 concerned jambolan, when we observed the pre-established inclusion criteria. Results showed that the anthocyanins, such as cyanidin, petunidin, malvidin, and delphinidin, were the mostly identified class of flavonoids in plants of the Myrtaceae family, mainly relating to the purple/reddish color of the evaluated fruits. Other compounds, such as catechin, epicatechin, quercetin, and rutin were also identified in different constituent fractions, such as leaves, peel, pulp, seeds, and in developed products, such as jams, desserts, wines, teas, and other beverages. It is also worth noting the positive health effects verified in these studies, such as anti-inflammatory qualities for jambolan, antidiabetic qualities for gabiroba, antioxidant qualities for araçá, and cardioprotective actions for jabuticaba, which are related to the presence of these phytochemicals. Therefore, it is possible to point out that flavonoids are important compounds in the chemical constitution of the studied plants of the Myrtaceae family, with promising potential in the development of new products by the food, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries due to their bioactive properties.

The chemical composition of propolis varies between different types, due to the specific vegetation found near the hives and the climatic and soil conditions worldwide. Green propolis is exclusive to Brazil, produced by bees, with the resin of the plant Baccharis dracunculifolia. Brown propolis is a specific variety produced mainly in Northeast Brazil from the plant Hyptis divaricata, also known as “maria miraculosa”. Dark propolis is a variety of propolis produced by bees from the resin of the plant known as Jurema Preta (Mimosa hostilis benth). In this study, the aqueous extracts of green, brown, and dark propolis were analyzed for their antioxidant capacity using ABTS, FRAP, and DPPH, and their chemical profiles were determined using paper spray mass spectrometry. Among the three extracts, green propolis had the highest content of total phenolic compounds (2741.71 ± 49.53 mg GAE. 100 g⁻¹), followed by brown propolis (1191.55 ± 36.79 mg GAE. 100 g⁻¹), and dark propolis had the lowest content (901.79 ± 27.80 mg GAE. 100 g⁻¹). The three types of propolis showed high antioxidant capacity, with green showing the highest antioxidant capacity for the three methods used. Using paper spray mass spectrometry, it was possible to suggest the presence of 116 substances, including flavonoids (56), phenylpropanoids (30), terpenes (25), carboxylic acids (1), benzoic acid derivatives (1), fatty acids (1), amino acids (1) and alkaloids (1). The compounds in the green, brown, and dark propolis extracts reinforce the bioactive potential for application in these tree extracts’ food and pharmaceutical products.

Hydrogel is a gel formed by a three-dimensional network of hydrophilic polymers and copolymers, widely used for different purposes in the textile, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, biomedical, and food industries. The use of starch hydrogels in food applications is growing and can be used mainly as a release control system for bioactive compounds, ingredient for 3D printing of food and in bioactive films. This integrative review aimed to bring the current scenario of the development of starch-based hydrogels and their use in the food area. Studies published from 2011 to 2021, available in full, published in Portuguese, English or Spanish, were selected. 631 studies were found in the searched databases. Of these, 599 were excluded and 32 selected. Studies have revealed that the development of starch hydrogels has increased more and more, being widely discussed nowadays, with relevance for application in the food area.

Caracterização do amido isolado de diferentes cultivares de sorgo (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) / Characterization of starch isolated from different sorghum cultivars (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench)

Plants synthesize a wide range of secondary metabolites, including phenolic compounds and terpenoids, which play key ecological roles and have relevant agro-industrial applications. The genus Baccharis, belonging to the family Asteraceae, is highly abundant in South America, particularly in Brazil, and has long been used in traditional medicine, supporting its neotropical origin. Given the growing interest in the species that compose this genus and, in their metabolites, the present study aimed to compile a structured database to support the identification of volatile compounds occurring in Baccharis species. A total of 158 volatile compounds were identified across 15 species, most of which belong to the subgenus Baccharis. Eleven compounds were observed that may serve as chemotaxonomic markers for the genus. The species most extensively studied over the past decade were B. dracunculifolia and B. trimera. Altogether, these findings highlight the metabolic potential of the Baccharis genus and point to new prospects for pharmaceutical and agro-industrial applications .

Alecrim-do-campo (Baccharis dracunculifolia) is a species of agroindustrial and medicinal relevance that has attracted increasing interest in recent years due to its distinctive chemical profile rich in bioactive compounds. In this context, the present study evaluated the efficiency of different extraction conditions for volatile compounds in alecrim-do-campo, aiming to contribute to the traceability of products that use this species as a source of metabolites. A 2³ factorial design was employed to assess the best conditions for extracting volatiles by headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS‑SPME), using three different semipolar fibers (PDMS/DVB, DVB/CAR/PDMS and CAR/PDMS). Regarding the effect of the variation factors to which the samples were subjected, only the extraction time (min) had a significant effect on compound extraction using the CAR/PDMS fiber. In total, 79 volatile compounds were detected using the three fibers, with CAR/PDMS (43 compounds) and DVB/CAR/PDMS (44 compounds) showing the highest diversity. The nature of this study is important for the industry because it optimizes the search for quality parameters in plant-derived products.