Polyphenols: A Nutraceutical Approach Against Diseases

Abstract

Polyphenols are abundant in red grapes and in their derived products, amongst other natural food sources. These compounds are associated with the prevention of diseases caused by oxidative stress. The present review discusses the action of grape polyphenols against diseases and the new polyphenol-rich products developed to be used as nutraceuticals. Grape polyphenols demonstrated effects such as maintenance of endothelial function, increase in antioxidant capacity and protection against LDL oxidation. Recent patents regarding polyphenols show a tendency to use a right-on-target approach and the new patented products are aiming at preventing and treating specific diseases.

Bioactive properties of Sambucus nigra L. as a functional ingredient for food and pharmaceutical industry

“…A very popular supplement with such properties that is sold as a prophylactic agent in many countries is the Sambucol preparation, patented in Israel by Dr. Madeleine Mumcuoglu (Kinoshita, Hayashi, Katayama, Hayashi, & Obata, 2012;Martens, 2008;Wierzbicki, 2002; Zakay-Rones, Thom, Wollan, & Wadstein, 2004). The healing properties of elderberry are mostly associated with the presence of phenolic compounds, which are characterized by a strong antioxidant activity and therefore are able to eliminate free radicals and counteract the oxidative stress, a factor causing the degradation of the human body, thus contributing to the development of a number of diseases (Gollucke, Peres, Odair, & Ribeiro, 2013). Thole et al used mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to demonstrate the chemopreventive potential of elderberry.…”

Proanthocyanidin Protects Human Embryo Hepatocytes from Fluoride-Induced Oxidative Stress by Regulating Iron Metabolism

“…Grape seed proanthocyanidin extract (GSPE) is a combination of biologically active polyphenolic flavonoids, including oligomeric proanthocyanidins [10]. GSPE has demonstrated a wide spectrum of biological, pharmacological, therapeutic, and chemoprotective properties against free radicals and oxidative stress [11,12]. The remarkable spectrum of biochemical and cellular functions of GSPE holds promise for the prevention and treatment of various disorders caused by oxidative stress.…”

Optimization of Supercritical Fluid Consecutive Extractions of Fatty Acids and Polyphenols from Vitis Vinifera Grape Wastes

“…Polyphenols has a high antioxidant capacity, because they can neutralize free radicals turning them less dangerous and thereby, stopping side reactions (Dugas and others ; Tikhonov and others ; Leopoldini and others ). Therefore, this property makes them interesting for many different applications such as the treatment of inflammations (Kim and others ) or human degenerative diseases as cancer (Hertog ; Cordova and Watson ), anti‐ageing aims in cosmetics (Jean‐Gilles and others ; Menaa and Menaa ), or nutraceutical purposes (Gollücke and others ). Moreover, polyphenols are known to be nootropics, owing to be helpful in several brain functions, such as learning, memory, attention, or motivation (Papandreou and others ).…”