Antioxidant and antigenotoxic activity of bioactive extracts from corn tassel

Milpa Diet for MASLD in Mesoamerican Populations: Feasibility, Advantages, and Future Perspectives

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is the leading cause of chronic liver disease, linked closely to metabolic syndrome and rising obesity rates. Affecting up to 37% of the global adult population, MASLD prevalence is exceptionally high among individuals of Hispanic descent, with genetic factors such as the PNPLA3 gene mutation playing a significant role. The subject of this review is the traditional Mesoamerican "milpa" diet, which includes unprocessed local crops like maize, beans, pumpkins, chili, and tomatoes and may represent a strategy to combat MASLD. Current treatment recommendations emphasize weight loss; a reduced intake of saturated fats, processed meats, and added sugars; and increased physical activity. The milpa diet, rich in protein, fiber, vitamins, and bioactive compounds, aligns with these recommendations and could potentially mitigate MASLD by preventing liver fat accumulation and fibrosis. This narrative review focuses on available preclinical and clinical studies adopting the milpa diet as a culturally relevant, nutritious, and sustainable dietary approach in preventing and treating MASLD. More clinical studies are needed to develop precise nutritional quantitative recommendations and guidelines.

Phytochemicals Derived from Agricultural Residues and Their Valuable Properties and Applications

Billions of tons of agro-industrial residues are produced worldwide. This is associated with the risk of pollution as well as management and economic problems. Simultaneously, non-edible portions of many crops are rich in bioactive compounds with valuable properties. For this reason, developing various methods for utilizing agro-industrial residues as a source of high-value by-products is very important. The main objective of the paper is a review of the newest studies on biologically active compounds included in non-edible parts of crops with the highest amount of waste generated annually in the world. The review also provides the newest data on the chemical and biological properties, as well as the potential application of phytochemicals from such waste. The review shows that, in 2020, there were above 6 billion tonnes of residues only from the most popular crops. The greatest amount is generated during sugar, oil, and flour production. All described residues contain valuable phytochemicals that exhibit antioxidant, antimicrobial and very often anti-cancer activity. Many studies show interesting applications, mainly in pharmaceuticals and food production, but also in agriculture and wastewater remediation, as well as metal and steel industries.

Medical physiological perspective to biochemical assays and GC-MS results of corn tassel

Corn tassel (Zea may L.) is rich in phenolic compounds including flavonoids and anthocyanins. The aim of this study is to consider the results of the contents of phenolics (TPC), flavonoids (TFC), flavonol (TF), anthocyanins (TAC), alfa-amylase inhibitory activity, and antioxidant activity including FRAP and metal chelating capabilities (MCC) as potential Antiviral and anti-Rheumatoid arthritis. Significantly high levels of antioxidant capacity, total flavonol and alfa-amylase inhibition were found in ethanolic extracts of corn tassels. It was found that their concentrations are TPC= 40 mg GA/g, TFC= 13 mg QE/g, TF= 45 mg R/g, and TAC= 8 mg cyanidin-3-glucoside/g based on dry extract. Additionally, the extracts showed relatively higher antioxidant activities due to metal chelating capabilities (MCC) were found to be 217 mg Fe2+/g dry extract. From the GC-MS analysis, corn tassel was found to be good source of arctigenin that has antiviral and anti- rheumatic properties. Further, the extracts of corn tassels showed significantly higher α-amylase inhibitory activity up to 90 %. Thus, it was concluded that extracts of corn tassels may be considered as pharmacological potential in rheumatoid and antiviral treatment.

Phenolic Profiling and In-Vitro Bioactivities of Corn (Zea mays L.) Tassel Extracts by Combining Enzyme-Assisted Extraction

In this work, enzyme-assisted extraction (EAE) of phenolic compounds from corn tassel using cellulase, protease, and their combination (1:1) was developed and optimized by central composite response surface methodology. The phenolic profile of obtained corn tassel extracts (CTE) was elucidated by high-performance liquid chromatography−diode array detection (HPLC−DAD) analysis, and their antioxidative, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic properties were evaluated in vitro. The results showed that CTE by EAE with combined enzymes had the highest total phenolic content (TPC). Under optimum enzymatic conditions, the experimental TPC values were 9.78, 8.45, and 10.70 mg/g, respectively, which were significantly higher than that of the non-enzymatic control (6.75 mg/g) (p < 0.05). Fourteen more phenolic compounds (13.80−1694.36 µg/g) were identified in CTE by EAE with the combined enzymes, and thus the antioxidant activity of that extract, determined by DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging method, was demonstrated to be stronger than that of the extracts by EAE with the single and ethanol extraction. Furthermore, this extract also showed remarkably better antimicrobial properties against all tested food-borne pathogenic bacteria and mycotoxigenic fungi than CTE by other extraction methods. CTE by EAE were nontoxic to normal lung fibroblast cell line (Wi-38) but cytotoxic to human colorectal and lung cancer cell lines (Caco-2 and A549), with IC50 values of 392.62−461.98 and 210.66−359.56 µg/mL, respectively, which indicated its potential anticancer properties. In conclusion, CTE by EAE, especially with the combined use of cellulase and protease, seems to hold promising potential for multifunctional application in food and pharma fields.

Assessment of the Antigenotoxic Activity of Poly(d,l-lactic- co-glycolic acid) Nanoparticles Loaded with Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester Using the Ames Salmonella/Microsome Assay

In the present study, the antigenotoxic activity of poly(d,l-lactic- co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs) loaded with caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) was investigated in comparison to free CAPE using the Ames Salmonella/microsome assay. Additionally, to elucidate the impacts of the type of solvent effect on antigenotoxic activity, the following systems were tested: CAPE in water (poor solvent), ethyl alcohol (good solvent), and PLGA NPs (unknown). The effect of the NP system on solubility was investigated for the first time by assessing the antigenotoxic potential. In this study, the CAPE/PLGA NPs were synthesized using an oil-in-water (o/w) single-emulsion solvent evaporation method with an average size of 206.2 ± 1.2 nm, ζ potential of -19.8 ± 2.5 mV, encapsulation efficiency of 87.2 ± 2.5%, and drug loading of 53.3 ± 1.8%. According to the results of the antigenotoxic activity, the highest antimutagenic activity in both applied strains was found for CAPE in ethanol, and the lowest activity was detected for CAPE in water. Our study has shown that NP systems exhibit high antigenotoxic activity, which is similar to the results of CAPE dissolved in ethanol. These results have shown that NP systems increase biological activity of hydrophobic substances by increasing their solubility and that the use of PLGA instead of organic solvents in drug production may provide an increase in their medical utility.