Chronic intestinal inflammation is associated with pathophysiology of obesity and inflammatory bowel diseases. Gastrointestinal inflammation increases barrier dysfunction exacerbating the immune response and perpetuating chronic inflammation. Anti-inflammatory flavonoids may prevent this intestinal barrier dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the polyphenol composition of Colombian Passiflora edulis var. Flavicarpa (Maracuyá), Passiflora edulis var. Sims (Gulupa), and Passiflora ligularis var. Juss (Granadilla) (passion fruits) and to evaluate their ability to inhibit disruption of intestinal barrier dysfunction of Caco-2 (colorectal adenocarcinoma) cells by an inflammatory cocktail (IC). Polyphenols (flavan-3-ols, phenolic acids, flavonols), xanthenes, and a terpene were identified in passion fruits. Cyanidin 3-rutinoside, (+)-catechin and ferulic acid were the most abundant phenolics in P. edulis var. Flavicarpa, P. edulis var. Sims, and P. ligularis var. Juss, respectively. Fruit extracts prevented loss of transepithelial electrical resistance in Caco-2 cells treated with the IC. Among the extracts, P. ligularis var. Juss was most effective at maintaining Caco-2 transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) with ~73% relative to the IC-treated cells with about 43% of initial TEER values. This fruit had cyanidin-3-rutinoside, (+)-catechin, (−)-epicatechin, and ferulic acid in its phenolic profile. Results of this work support the hypothesis that consumption of passion fruit extracts could benefit intestinal health.

Passiflora edulis Flavicarpa, Passiflora edulis Sims, and Passiflora ligularis Juss are Colombian fruits (passion fruits) of important exportation value. They act efficiently as antioxidants, antifungal, and antimicrobial compounds due to their high polyphenol content. Polyphenols can be quantified by the Folin-Ciocalteu (F-C) reaction. Food matrices, solvent polarity, and several different reacting conditions are critical for the optimum extraction and quantification of polyphenols. Chromatographic identification and quantitation are satisfactory with access to a vast number of reference standards considering the availability of abundant phenolic compounds in crude extracts. The purpose of this study was to evaluate alternatives and specific F-C reacting conditions aiming at determining the highest total phenolic content (TPC) in three Colombian Passifloras. Among optimum reacting conditions, reduced reaction time and diluted alkali conditions yielded desirable positive results highlighting lower working time and minimum reagent waste production. For higher extraction yield, acetone 70% was the best solvent to capture more phenolics from the seedless pulp of these Colombian passion fruits.

Studies on polyphenols and flavonoids in natural products reveal benefits in the prevention of multiple diseases. Proper extraction, treatment of extracts, and quantification of polyphenols and flavonoids demand attention from the scientific community in order to report more specific biological action. Total polyphenol content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) (measured at three different times) of ethanol, methanol and acetone extracts of Mauritia flexuosa (aguaje) and Theobroma grandiflorum (copoazú) fresh pulp, from the Colombian Amazon region, were evaluated with the purpose of focusing in the polyphenol/flavonoid proportion and its effective antioxidant activity. This objective could help to explain specific flavonoid biological action based on higher flavonoid proportion rather than higher total polyphenol content. Differences in extracting solvents resulted in statistically significant different yields; the highest TPC was observed with acetone 70% in Mauritia flexuosa and ethanol 80% for T. grandiflorum. The best flavonoid/polyphenol ratio in M. flexuosa was about 1:2.4 and 1:12.8 in T. grandiflorum and the antioxidant efficacy was proportionally higher for flavonoids extracted from T. grandiflorum. HPLC analysis revealed 54 µg/g of the flavonoid kaempferol in M. Flexuosa and 29 µg/g in T. grandiflorum. Further studies evaluating this proportionality, in seeds or peel of fruits, as well as, other specific biological activities, could help to understand the detailed flavonoid action without focusing on the high total polyphenol content.

Weight-related disorders affect more than half of the adult population worldwide; they are also concomitant with a state of chronic low-grade inflammation manifesting in abnormal cytokine production. The present study evaluated the effect of polyphenol and flavonoid extract from Passiflora ligularis (granadilla) on low-grade inflammation and body weight in overweight Wistar rats. To induce weight-gain, rats were fed a chow diet with 30% sucrose water and supplemented with 2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 g/L polyphenol extracts (n = 16). The design was a 3 +1 factorial model performed for 42 days (granadilla polyphenols, 3 levels of supplementation, and 1 control group). In addition to total polyphenol and total flavonoid content, the major identified and quantified polyphenol, via UHPLC, was ferulic acid. Interleukin 6 (IL-6), and cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were evaluated in serum. A decline in the concentration of TNF-α and in weight-gain was found in P. ligularis (granadilla) groups treated with the 2.5 g/L dose. Consumption of polyphenol extracts from granadilla inhibits interleukin-activity as an indicator of inflammation and aids in body-weight control, considering similar food intake, in overweight Wistar rats.

Polyphenols are attributed to multiple biological activities that providenutritional and therapeutical benefits. The present paper is a descriptive review focused on polyphenolic chemical structural aspects contributing to explain biological and biochemical functions offered by these phytochemicals. Element conformation differences, ring modifications, the presence of specific functional groups, and the tridimensional chemical arrangement are fundamental to explain specific effects presented by polyphenols. The anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory actions of polyphenols suggest that basic chemical reactions and element re-organization are important in understanding their function, well-known polyphenols such as quercetin, curcumin, and catechin have been evaluated in multiple studies. Moreover, anti-bacterial and anti-viral activities have been proven to be dependent on hydroxylation, methoxylation, and alkylation of several polyphenol ring components. Polyphenols extracted from tea, like catechins, proved to inhibit efficiently hepatitis C, Zika, and Chikungunya viruses. They have also acted as promising prophylactic and therapeutic agents against SARS-CoV-2.Epicatechin extracted from the hawthorn tree showed antiviral activity on several bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. The inclusion of these natural components in daily diets is of primary nutritional benefit and importance in the prevention of several diseases.

Plant polyphenols offer several benefits for the prevention of diverse illnesses. Fruit’s edible and inedible parts (pulp, seeds, peels, stems, flowers) are important sources of polyphenols. Different industrial processes for fruit treatment and commercialization affect the total polyphenol content (TPC), and probably the biological activity. The purpose of the present work was to determine the TPC and antioxidant activity (by DPPH) of polyphenols extracted from the pulp and seeds of Mauritia flexuosa (aguaje), in fresh and dehydrated forms, in order to determine the possible connection with the quantity of polyphenols and their specific antioxidant activity. The highest phenolic content for M. flexuosa seeds in fresh form (non-dehydrated) was 270.75 mg GAE/100 g with a 96-h extraction. With respect to the dehydrated samples, the best yield was quantified in the 96-h dehydrated seed sample. For all pulp and seeds, dehydrated for 24, 48, and 96 h, TPC showed a slightly decreasing pattern. The DPPH results were the highest in the 96-h dehydrated samples and the differences among all dehydrated pulp and seed samples were minimal. More studies testing the presence of other antioxidant components could help in understanding the detailed antioxidant activity, and related more to the specific action, rather than only total polyphenol content.

Fruits and vegetables are important sources of nutritional and therapeutic compounds. Polyphenols and flavonoids are plant secondary metabolites with several biological functions and multiple benefits for humans. Their general chemical characteristics, such as their structures and functional groups, are key to explain their variability and functionality. This review covers 21 Colombian fruits and vegetables containing different amount of polyphenols and flavonoids. They have several applications and offer various benefits, such as antioxidant, bactericidal, and anti-inflammatory activities. Nutritional contributions and therapeutic applications of polyphenols and flavonoids have been reported in multiple studies, and these phytochemicals can be incorporated into dietary products. It is feasible that further beneficial effects of these natural compounds may be discovered in fruits and vegetables found in several regions of Colombia.

The consumption of fruits or by-products from plants of the Passifloraceae family has been associated with multiple health and nutritional benefits, due to their phenolic compound content. Likewise, the effects of polyphenols from Camellia sinensis (green tea) have been explored and are considered a reference for different biological actions of these bioactive substances. This study compared the hypoglycemic and antilipemic activity of polyphenol-rich extracts of Passiflora ligularis Juss (passion fruit) and Camellia sinensis (green tea) given to a group of Wistar rats induced to be overweight. The individuals were subjected to three doses of supplementation of both sources of polyphenols in the drinking water. An additional group without polyphenol supplementation served as a control group. Water consumption, weight gain, glycemia, cholesterol, serum triglycerides and percentage of fecal ethereal extracts were analyzed. Although Passiflora ligularis Juss had five times less polyphenol content than Camellia sinensis, rats fed doses of 2.5 and 3.0 g/L Passiflora ligularis Juss showed reduced glycemia by 16%, suggesting an antiglycemic activity similar to that of Camellia sinensis. On the other hand, higher doses of polyphenols from Passiflora ligularis Juss and Camellia sinensis significantly reduced triglyceride levels (p = 0.05) by more than 17% compared to the unsupplemented control group. The polyphenol-rich extracts produced effective inhibitory activity of lipemic metabolites with a reduction in the percentage of fecal lipids (p < 0.05), with no side effects on liver tissue. The 3.0 g/L dose produced the best result on signs of metabolic syndrome associated with excess weight. Polyphenols extracted from fresh Colombian passion fruit showed the potential to decrease metabolic syndrome risk factors in a murine model.