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The qualities of selected honey samples of``Serra da LousaÄ '' (Portugal) from three consecutive harvests (20 samples from each harvest) were evaluated by determing the pollen spectrum and physicochemical attributes. The following determinations were carried out: moisture, electrical conductivity, hydroxymethylfurfural, diastase activity, pH, acidity (free, lactone and total), formol number, reducing sugars, apparent sucrose, insoluble material and ash. The samples were found to meet all major national and international honey speci®cations. Honeys were considered to be mono¯oral whenever the dominant pollen was found to be over 45% of total pollen. From the 60 studied samples, 70% were mono¯oral honeys from Erica sp., 17% mono¯oral honeys from Ericaceae (Erica sp. and Calluna vulgaris (L.) Hull) and 13% multi¯oral honeys with a high percentage of Erica sp.

Liquid chromatography coupled to diode array and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry detection was used to establish the polyphenolic profile of an ethyl acetate fraction from Agrimonia eupatoria L. aqueous-alcoholic extract. Additionally, an HPLC technique with post-column derivatization by p-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde was employed for the selective detection and quantification of flavan-3-ols. Important information was obtained by combining the data of these two HPLC techniques. Flavan-3-ols (catechin and procyanidins B1, B2, B3, B6, B7, C1, C2 and epicatechin-epicatechin-catechin), quercetin 3-O-glucoside, quercetin 3-O-galactoside, kaempferol 3-O-glucoside, kaempferol 3-O-(6''-O-p-coumaroyl)-glucoside, apigenin 6-C-glucoside and various phenolic acids were identified. Antioxidant activity of the Agrimonia eupatoria L. fraction containing these compounds was assessed through the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances methods. Significant activity was observed for this fraction, where compounds with recognized antiinflammatory properties such as procyanidins, kaempferol 3-O-(6''-O-p-coumaroyl)-glucoside and quercetin glycosides were identified for the first time. These results are predictive of the beneficial effects of this fraction, or some of its compounds, in human health, as possible anti-inflammatory drug.

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The antioxidant activity of an aqueous extract (infusion) and respective ethyl acetate fraction of Equisetum telmateia Ehrh. (Equisetaceae), a plant used in traditional medicine for its anti-inflammatory and diuretic properties, has been evaluated by DPPH, TEAC and TBARS assays. A high and significant antioxidant activity was detected in the ethyl acetate fraction. Analysis of the aqueous extract and the ethyl acetate fraction by HPLC-PAD-ESI/MS allowed the identification of the major phenolic compounds as flavan-3-ol, kaempferol and phenolic acid derivatives. Among the flavan-3-ols, A-type proanthocyanidins and afzelechin derivatives were detected as well as the more common B-type procyanidins, B2 and C1, whose identification was further confirmed by HPLC using detection involving chemical reaction with p-dimethylamino-cinnamaldehyde. The results suggest that the anti-inflammatory activity of E. telmateia could be due, at least in part, to the presence of compounds with antioxidant activity.