Flavonols from the Ripe Fruits ofOpuntia ficus-indicaVar.sabotenProtect Neuronal PC-12 Cells against Oxidative Stress

Abstract

Fruits of prickly pear cactus Opuntia ficus-indica have been traditionally used as a folk medicine with various pharmacological activities, partly due to their antioxidative flavonoids. The ripe fruits of O. ficus-indica var. saboten were extracted with 70% v/v aqueous ethanol to obtain phenolic extracts, which were separated into five fractions of n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and water. The ethyl acetate fraction showed the highest levels of total phenolics, total flavonoids and antioxidant capacity among the fractions tested. A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and quadrupole time-of-flight liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of the ethyl acetate fraction revealed seven major flavonols: isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside, kaempferol, kaempferol-3-O-glucoside, kaempferol-7-O-neohesperidoside, quercetin and quercetin-3-methylether. The ethyl acetate fraction increased the in vitro viability of neuron-like PC-12 cells against intracellular oxidative stress in a dose-dependent manner. These results suggest that the ethyl acetate fraction rich in flavonols protecting neuronal cells from oxidative stress may be utilized as a functional food ingredient for nutraceuticals. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSFruits of Opuntia ficus-indica var. saboten are edible berries with a thick skin and many seeds, and have long been used as an oriental folk medicine with various health-promoting effects, in part due to antioxidative phenolics. Antioxidative flavonols such as isorhamnetin, kaempferol and quercetin in the O. ficus-indica var. saboten ripe fruit were identified and quantified as major phenolics, indicating that its extract can be standardized to use as an antioxidant source for product development in food manufacture. The O. ficus-indica var. saboten ripe fruit phenolics attenuated intracellular oxidative stress and reduced the release of intracellular lactate dehydrogenase in the cytosol of neuron-like PC-12 cells. Therefore, the ethyl acetate fraction rich in flavonols might be utilized as a food ingredient for nutraceuticals.

Opuntia ficus-indica Fruit: A Systematic Review of Its Phytochemicals and Pharmacological Activities

“…PC-12 neuronal cell line viability increased up to 73%, after H 2 O 2 insult, at 100 µg/mL of ethyl acetate extract of Korean “Saboten” fruits [ 136 ]. Portuguese wild fruits juice extracts showed an anti-proliferative effect on the human colon cancer cell line HT29, an effect that may be attributed to an increment of 12 to 16% of ROS compared to the control [ 57 ].…”

Inhibitory effects of Orostachys malacophyllus var. iwarenge extracts on reactive oxygen species production and lipid accumulation during 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation

“…Antioxidant capacities as determined by ABTS assays in descending order were: OME 70 [ OME 30 [ OMW. The antioxidant capacity of the OME 70 was attributed to its higher total phenolic content, as it has been reported that antioxidant activity is directly proportional to total phenolic content (Son et al, 2014). Therefore, the OME 70 was deemed optimal for the extraction of phenolic compounds and was used to evaluate the inhibitory effect of O. malacophyllus on ROS production and adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells.…”

Effects of the Consumption of Prickly Pear Cacti (Opuntia spp.) and its Products on Blood Glucose Levels and Insulin: A Systematic Review

“…The findings of this review provide rationale for the use of Opuntia spp. products in applications such as incorporation into functional foods or nutraceuticals, given the additional substantial bioactive contents [18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31].…”

“…The fruit of the cacti is also referred to as the ‘cactus fruit’ or ‘Indian fig’ and also as the PP [6,7] is predominantly known for relatively high levels of macro- and micronutrients including fiber, mineral composition, numerous amino acids; and significant lipid and phytosterol content [13,14,15,16,17]. In addition, there are a number of different bioactive compounds found in PP such as polyphenols [18,19], flavonols [19,20,21] and betalains [18,22,23], as well as considerably strong antioxidant characteristics [17,18,20,21,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31]. The PP fruit is commonly consumed fresh, although it can be formulated into several different including dried fruits, tea’s, jams, drinks, tinctures and dietary supplements [6,32,33].…”