Spices have broadly been used as food flavoring and folk medicine since ancient times. Numerous phytochemicals have been identified in spices, namely thymol (ajowan and thyme), anethole (aniseed), piperine (black pepper), capsaicin (capsicum), cinnamaldehyde (cinnamon), eugenol (clove), linalool (coriander), sabinene (curry leaf), limonene (dill seed), estragole (fennel seed), allicin (garlic), gingerol (ginger), safranal (saffron), and curcumin (turmeric), among others. The antioxidants in spices are very effective and also render anti-mutagenic, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. Apart from their antioxidant efficacy, spices, particularly their essential oils possess strong antimicrobial activity against bacteria, fungi, yeasts, and microbial toxins synthesis. In this contribution, a summary of the most relevant and recent findings on phytochemical composition and antioxidant properties of spices has been compiled and discussed. The content of phenolic acids, flavonoids, tannins, glycosides, steroids, and terpenoids in different spices are summarized. In addition, the beneficial effects of spices in food preservation and in health promotion and disease risk reduction are briefly described.

Seaweeds, algae, and fungi are rich sources of a myriad of bioactive compounds. In recent years, special attention has been paid to these secondary metabolites with biological activities that exist in aquatic foods and might render beneficial health effects in humans. Various antioxidant, anticancer, antidiabetic, antiobesity and antimicrobial bioactives have been isolated from seaweeds, algal and fungal species may be used as functional components in foods, food supplement, and as nutraceutical or medicine to promote human health and reduce disease risk. This review provides a cursory account of the health promoting bioactives such as sulfated polysaccharides, various polyphenols, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), sterols, proteins and their hydrolysates, bioactive peptides, minerals, vitamins as well as pigments derived from various seaweeds, algal, and fungal species focusing on their potential application and health benefits. In addition, a brief description is provided for the extraction of such bioactives and techniques used to isolate and characterize them.

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