Hippophae rhamnoides L. is an important source of natural antioxidant and antimicrobial agents. Phytochemical compounds, antioxidant and antibacterial properties of berries, and leaf extracts from four Romanian sea buckthorn cultivars were investigated. Large differences in the content of total polyphenols and flavonoids between the varieties were observed. HPLC analysis of the polyphenolic compounds showed greater differences in content in leaves than in berries. This study confirmed that sea buckthorn leaves and berries are a rich source of phenolic compounds, especially quercetin derivatives and hydrocinnamic acid derivatives. Five carotenoid compounds were identified in the berries: lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, cis-β-carotene, and β-carotene. From the results obtained in this study, it can be stated that the varieties whose berries yielded the highest quantities of polyphenols, flavonoids, and antioxidant activity, can be ranked as follows: SF6 > Golden Abundant > Carmen > Colosal, and for leaf extracts the ranked order is SF6 > Golden Abundant > Colosal > Carmen. A strong correlation between the total flavonoid yield and antioxidant activity (r = 0.96), was observed. All extracts showed antibacterial activity against S. aureus, B. cereus, and P. aeruginosa, however extracts from berries were less potent than extracts from leaves.

Bee Bread samples from Romania and India were analysed by microscopy and High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode Array Detection (HPLC/DAD) and compared with pollen from the correspondent taxa. The quantification of sugars, fructose/glucose ratio, total phenolics and flavonoids was also carried out. From the results was possible to identify Brassica and Eucalyptus samples that present similar HPLC/DAD profiles with the respective ultraviolet (UV) identification of the main compounds as Kaempferol-3-O-glycosides and Hydrocinnamic acid derivatives. The Fructose/Glucose (F/G) ratio and the total amounts of phenolics and flavonoids was in line with the prevalence of the specie identified. These coincident fingerprints gave the identification of the samples, as was previously proposed for bee pollens. This paper relates for the first time the achievement on the taxon carried out previously only for bee pollens. It was reported for the first time that this phenolic profile remains unchanged in the case of floral pollen (hand collected), bee pollen and bee bread. Despite the biochemical transformation that occurs during the fermentation of bee bread, it seems that these phenolic compounds are not affected and remain unchanged. Also, variables such as soil and climate do not seem to influence these compounds for the kind of samples under study.

In recent years, probiotics have attracted public attention and transformed the social perception of microorganisms, convening a beneficial role/state on human health. With aging, the immune system, body physiology, and intestinal microbiota tend to change unfavorably, resulting in many chronic conditions. The immune-mediated disorders can be linked to intestinal dysbiosis, consequently leading to immune dysfunctions and a cluster of conditions such as asthma, autoimmune diseases, eczema, and various allergies. Probiotic bacteria such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species are considered probiotic species that have a great immunomodulatory and anti-allergic effect. Moreover, recent scientific and clinical data illustrate that probiotics can regulate the immune system, exert anti-viral and anti-tumoral activity, and shields the host against oxidative stress. Additionally, microbiota programming by probiotic bacteria can reduce and prevent the symptoms of respiratory infections and ameliorate the neurological status in humans. This review describes the most recent clinical findings, including safe probiotic therapies aiming to medicate respiratory infections, allergies, cancer, and neurological disorders due to their physiological interconnection. Subsequently, we will describe the major biological mechanism by which probiotic bacteriotherapy expresses its anti-viral, anti-allergic, anticancer, and neuro-stimulatory effects.

The present study investigates the impact of solid-state fermentation on bee-collected pollen using a consortium of Lactobacillus plantarum, Apilactobacillus kunkeei, and Lactobacillus acidophilus. Another aim is to compare the nutritional and bioactive properties of natural versus fermented pollen, focusing on macronutrient composition, pH, acidity, lactic acid content, and profiles of polyphenolics and flavonoids. Our results indicated significant enhancements in the contents of amino acids, suggesting improved protein content, alongside increases in polyphenolic and flavonoid contents post-fermentation. According to the heat mapping and cluster analysis, increased antioxidant and antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, particularly E. coli, were observed in the fermented bee-collected pollen samples, which may have been due to the accumulation of phenolic compounds (e.g., ellagic acid, kaempferol, quercetin, and quercetin-3-O-rutinoside). Furthermore, significant positive correlations of the fermented bee-collected pollen samples with non-essential amino acids were recorded compared with the unfermented bee-collected pollen samples, which may have been due to the fermentation process and the conversion of proteins into free amino acids via proteolysis. Future research could explore the underlying mechanisms, the scalability of fermentation, its application in functional foods, and the health benefits of fermented bee-collected pollen in human diets.

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of supplementation with inorganic sources of manganese (MnO, MnSO₄), zinc (ZnO, ZnSO₄) and copper (CuSO₄) at different levels (0.06%DM for Mn, 0.05%DM for Zn; 0.01 and 0.05%DM for Cu) on in vitro rumen fermentation, solubility and bioavailability. Fermentation activity was measured by total gas production (TGP) and dry matter degradability after 70 h of fermentation (dDM%). Trace mineral (TM) solubility was estimated via the TM concentration in the supernatant of the final fermentation medium (SOL) and TM bioavailability from the TM concentration in a bacterial-enriched fraction (BACT). Mn (regardless of source) and ZnO tended (p < 0.10) to decrease, while Cu showed no significant effect on TGP. The addition of inorganic Mn and of ZnO tended (p < 0.10) to decrease, ZnSO₄ tended to increase (p < 0.10), whilst Cu showed no effect on dDM%. Concerning solubility, Mn (MnO and MnSO₄), ZnSO₄ and CuSO₄ significantly (p < 0.05, p < 0.001 and p < 0.01) increased, while ZnO did not affect TM content in the SOL. These results indicate that MnSO₄, ZnSO₄ and CuSO₄ are highly soluble, MnO is quite soluble, while ZnO has a low solubility in the rumen. Based on the TM content in BACT, MnO, MnS₄ and CuSO₄ have high bioavailability, while ZnO is poorly assimilated by rumen bacteria. However, the lack of clear inhibition or improvement in fermentations suggests that the rumen microbiota have a low requirement for TM supplementation.