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Nowadays, advanced extraction techniques and highly sensitive metabolic profiling methods are effectively employed to get new information on plant chemical constituents. Among them wild medicinal plants or their parts, with large and ancient use in folk medicine, are investigated for their potential functional use and cultivation. In this context, Inula viscosa leaves engaged our attention. A simple experimental design, based on Soxhlet extraction and chromatographic fractionation, allowed us to obtain the investigated polyphenol fraction ( Iv E). UHPLC-HRMS analyses revealed shikimoyl depsides of caffeic acid and unusual dihydrobenzofuran lignans as main secondary metabolites. These compounds, together with cinchonain-type phenols, and hydroxycinnamoyl flavonol glycosides, are reported for the first time in inula. Overall, forty-three secondary metabolites were identified. The extract exerted a remarkable antiradical activity towards DPPH • and ABTS +• . Furthermore, it was able to inhibit cell viability and mitochondrial redox activity of neuroblastoma, hepatoblastoma and colon carcinoma cells, whereas it did not affect cell density of HaCaT cells immortalized human keratinocytes. As detected by the oxidant-sensing probe 2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, the inhibitory responses seemed to be related to Iv E-induced increase of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). The obtained results highlighted that inula leaves, nowadays even undervalued and unexplored, could be considered a renewable source of nutraceutical compounds.

The present study aims to valorize the apple peels (AP) and grape seeds (GS) by the fortification of the yogurts using their powder. Firstly, the optimization of the extraction parameters for assessing maximum of total phenolic content (TPC) was achieved. Under the optimized conditions, the experimental maximum yields of TPC were 19.33 ± 2.33 and 240.59 ± 4.77 mg Gallic Acid Equivalents (GAE)/100 g Dry Weight (DW) for AP and GS, respectively, which was in close agreement with predicted values (19.32 ± 0.91 and 242.26 ± 11.08 mg GAE/100 g DW for AP and GS, respectively). The antioxidant capacity of GS extract was better with IC50 of 12.22 ± 0.89 and 225.47 ± 7.10 µg/ml in DPPH and phosphomolybdenum assays, respectively. Besides, powder from these by‐products was incorporated into yogurt samples. The classification test revealed that the yogurt prepared with GS powder was the preferred one. Practical applications Natural products rich in antioxidants are increasingly in demand for their use to preserve, in particular, the perishable foods such as dairy products. Apple and grape are widely consumed fruits and they generate an enormous amount of waste, including peels and seeds. These by‐products are valuable sources of natural antioxidants especially the phenolic compounds. In this line, the present study aims to optimize the extraction conditions to obtain the highest PC from these by‐products. Additionally, a yogurt enriched with AP and GS as natural ingredients with antioxidant virtue was produced.

The use of Nigella seeds in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic fields is common, since the iniquity and the virtues of these plants are directly related to their characteristic phytochemical composition. This investigation focused on the comparative study of the botanical aspect, phenolic profile, and in vitro and in vivo biological activities of Nigella sativa L. (NS) and Nigella damascena L. (ND) seeds. The macro- and micro-morphological properties of these seeds were studied, and the key dissimilarities between them were clearly illustrated. The phytochemical contents and phenolic profiles were determined, and the in vitro antioxidant activity was assessed using four methods. The in vivo antioxidant and biochemical parameters of the blood of supplemented mice were determined. The results of the macro- and micro-structure analysis revealed differences between the two plants. Here, ND is characterized by higher phytochemical contents and the best antioxidant activities. The HPLC analysis indicated the presence of nine compounds, namely seven phenolic acids, particularly hydroxybenzoic and caffeic acids, and two flavonoids. The administration of ND extract to mice for 21 days at a concentration of 500 mg/kg allowed a substantial amelioration of plasma antioxidant properties. In addition, the extracts ameliorate blood parameters (cholesterol, triglycerides, glycemia, and urea). Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity of extracts demonstrated their effects on Staphylococcus and Aspergillus. Nigella seeds, in particular ND, expressed considerable in vitro antioxidant properties and demonstrated significant amelioration of mice blood properties. Consequently, these species can serve as a valuable source of compounds with various applications.

Background Essential oils, infusion and decoction extracts of Calamintha nepeta L. were evaluated for their bioactive substances (polyphenols and essential oils) and antioxidant activities. Methods The amounts of phenolic compounds were determined by colorimetric assays and identified by high performance and liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet detector (HPLC-UV) method. The chemical composition of essential oils was determined by gas-chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS) method. For the evaluation of the antioxidant activity of essential oils and extracts, two different assays (reducing power and DPPH radical scavenging activity) were used. Results Infusion extract presented the highest phenolic content, followed by the decoction one, while the lowest amount was observed in essential oils. The amount of flavonoids of the decocted extract was higher than that of the infused one. The phenolic profile of C. nepeta infusion and decoction extracts revealed the presence of 28 and 13 peaks, respectively. Four phenolics compounds were identified in infusion (gallic acid (GA), rosmarinic acid (RA), caffeine (C) and caffeic acid (CA)) and two were identified in decoction (GA and RA). The chemical composition of essential oils revealed the presence of 29 compounds, accounting for the 99.7% of the total oils. Major compounds of essential oil (EO) were trans-menthone (50.06%) and pulegone (33.46%). Infusion and decoction extracts revealed an interesting antioxidant activity which correlates positively with their total phenolic contents. Conclusions These results showed that Calamintha nepeta could be considered as a valuable source of phenolics and essential oils with potent antioxidant activity.