The potential health benefits associated with dietary intake of fruits have attracted increasing interest. Among berries, the strawberry is a rich source of several nutritive and non-nutritive bioactive compounds, which are implicated in various health-promoting and disease preventive effects. A plethora of studies have examined the benefits of strawberry consumption, such as prevention of inflammation disorders and oxidative stress, reduction of obesity related disorders and heart disease risk, and protection against various types of cancer. This review provides an overview of their nutritional and non-nutritional bioactive compounds and which factors affect their content in strawberries. In addition, the bioavailability and metabolism of major strawberry phytochemicals as well as their actions in combating many pathologies, including cancer, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, neurodegeneration, along with microbial pathogenesis have been reviewed, with a particular attention to human studies.

Abstract:Colon cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases across the world. Numerous epidemiological studies indicate that diets rich in fruit, such as berries, provide significant health benefits against several types of cancer, including colon cancer. The anticancer activities of berries are attributed to their high content of phytochemicals and to their relevant antioxidant properties. In vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that berries and their bioactive components exert therapeutic and preventive effects against colon cancer by the suppression of inflammation, oxidative stress, proliferation and angiogenesis, through the modulation of multiple signaling pathways such as NF-κB, Wnt/β-catenin, PI3K/AKT/PKB/mTOR, and ERK/MAPK. Based on the exciting outcomes of preclinical studies, a few berries have advanced to the clinical phase. A limited number of human studies have shown that consumption of berries can prevent colorectal cancer, especially in patients at high risk (familial adenopolyposis or aberrant crypt foci, and inflammatory bowel diseases). In this review, we aim to highlight the findings of berries and their bioactive compounds in colon cancer from in vitro and in vivo studies, both on animals and humans. Thus, this review could be a useful step towards the next phase of berry research in colon cancer.

Coenzyme Q (CoQ) is an essential endogenously synthesized molecule that links different metabolic pathways to mitochondrial energy production thanks to its location in the mitochondrial inner membrane and its redox capacity, which also provide it with the capability to work as an antioxidant. Although defects in CoQ biosynthesis in human and mouse models cause CoQ deficiency syndrome, some animals models with particular defects in the CoQ biosynthetic pathway have shown an increase in life span, a fact that has been attributed to the concept of mitohormesis. Paradoxically, CoQ levels decline in some tissues in human and rodents during aging and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation has shown benefits as an anti-aging agent, especially under certain conditions associated with increased oxidative stress. Also, CoQ10 has shown therapeutic benefits in aging-related disorders, particularly in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Thus, we discuss the paradox of health benefits due to a defect in the CoQ biosynthetic pathway or exogenous supplementation of CoQ10.

Periodontal disease, a relevant public health problem worldwide, is generally considered a common pathology of elderly people. In this respect, there is agreement about that nutritional status may be a modifying factor in the progression and healing of the periodontal tissues. Vitamins have been recommended as nutraceuticals for prevention and treatment of some pathological conditions, such as cardiovascular diseases, obesity or cancer. Thus, a systematic approach to determining how the different vitamin type could ameliorate periodontal risks or improve periodontal health is necessary to further the understanding of the potential benefits and risks of vitamins supplementation use. For this, a systematic review of English-written literature in PubMed until February 2018, which included both human and animal research on the relationship of each vitamin with periodontal disease, was conducted. Among all the analyzed vitamins those with antioxidant capacity and effects on immune system seem to be useful for prevention or improvement of periodontal disease, as well as those implicated in bone metabolism. In the first case, there are quite information in favor of various vitamins, mainly vitamin C, that is the most studied. In the second case, vitamin D seems to have the most relevant role.

Coenzyme Q (CoQ) is a naturally occurring molecule located in the hydrophobic domain of the phospholipid bilayer of all biological membranes. Shortly after being discovered, it was recognized as an essential electron transport chain component in mitochondria where it is particularly abundant. Since then, more additional roles in cell physiology have been reported, including antioxidant, signaling, death prevention, and others. It is known that all cells are able to synthesize functionally sufficient amounts of CoQ under normal physiological conditions. However, CoQ is a molecule found in different dietary sources, which can be taken up and incorporated into biological membranes. It is known that mitochondria have a close relationship with the aging process. Additionally, delaying the aging process through diet has aroused the interest of scientists for many years. These observations have stimulated investigation of the anti-aging potential of CoQ and its possible use in dietary therapies to alleviate the effects of aging. In this context, the present review focus on the current knowledge and evidence the roles of CoQ cells, its relationship with aging, and possible implications of dietary CoQ in relation to aging, lifespan or age-related diseases.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have become the largest contributor to worldwide morbidity and mortality. Among them, cancer and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are responsible for a 47% of worldwide mortality. In general, preventive approaches modifying lifestyle are more cost-effective than treatments after disease onset. In this sense, a healthy diet could help a range of NCDs, such as cancer and CVDs. Traditional Mediterranean Diet (MD) is associated by the low-prevalence of certain types of cancers and CVDs, where olive oil plays an important role. In fact, different epidemiological studies suggest that olive oil consumption prevents some cancers, as well as coronary heart diseases and stroke incidence and mortality. Historically, the beneficial health effects of virgin olive oil (VOO) intake were first attributed to the high concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids. Nowadays, many studies indicate that phenolic compounds contained in olive oil have positive effects on different biomarkers related to health. Among them, phenolic compounds would be partially responsible for health benefits. The present work aims to explore, in studies published during the last five years, the effects of the main phenolic compounds isolated from olive oil on different cancer or CVD aspects, in order to clarify which compounds have more potential to be used as nutraceuticals with preventive or even therapeutic properties.

Abstract:Aging is a multifactorial and tissue-specific process involving diverse alterations regarded as the "hallmarks of aging", which include genomic instability, telomere attrition, epigenetic alterations, loss of proteostasis, deregulated nutrient sensing, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, stem cell exhaustion and altered intracellular communication. Virtually all these hallmarks are targeted by dietary olive oil, particularly by virgin olive oil, since many of its beneficial effects can be accounted not only for the monounsaturated nature of its predominant fatty acid (oleic acid), but also for the bioactivity of its minor compounds, which can act on cells though both direct and indirect mechanisms due to their ability to modulate gene expression. Among the minor constituents of virgin olive oil, secoiridoids stand out for their capacity to modulate many pathways that are relevant for the aging process. Attenuation of aging-related alterations by olive oil or its minor compounds has been observed in cellular, animal and human models. How olive oil targets the hallmarks of aging could explain the improvement of health, reduced risk of aging-associated diseases, and increased longevity which have been associated with consumption of a typical Mediterranean diet containing this edible oil as the predominant fat source.

One of the main factors able to explain the pathophysiological mechanism of inflammatory conditions that occur in periodontal disease is oxidative stress. Given the emerging understanding of this relationship, host-modulatory therapies using antioxidants could be interesting to prevent or slow the breakdown of soft and hard periodontal tissues. In this context, non-nutrient phenolic compounds of various foods and plants have received considerable attention in the last decade. Here, studies focusing on the relationship between different compounds of this type with periodontal disease have been collected. Among them, thymoquinone, coenzyme Q (CoQ), mangiferin, resveratrol, verbascoside and some flavonoids have shown to prevent or ameliorate periodontal tissues damage in animal models. However evidence regarding this effect in humans is poor and only limited to topical treatments with CoQ and catechins. Along with animal experiments, in vitro studies indicate that possible mechanisms by which these compounds might exert their protective effects include antioxidative properties, oxygen and nitrogen scavenging abilities, and also inhibitory effects on cell signaling cascades related to inflammatory processes which have an effect on RNS or ROS production as well as on antioxidant defense systems.