Review: Biological, antioxidant and phytochemical activities of Musa spp.

Abstract

Banana (Musa spp.) is a food with high nutritional value. Studies about its compounds have increased considerably due to the antioxidant and biological activities of the fruit. Thus, this article synthesized and organized data related to the phytochemical constituents, as well as antioxidant and biological activities of Musa acuminata, Musa balbisiana and Musa paradisiaca, and evaluated the mutual influence and correlation of these activities. A bibliographic review was performed using the scientific databases Google Scholar, SciELO, Periódicos CAPES, Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), Science Direct, PubMed and Scopus, applying the following terms: Musa spp., antioxidant, biological and phytochemical activities, combined by the Boolean operator AND. A total of 28 articles were selected from 2017 to 2022. The results indicated that bananas are rich in flavonoids, showed good performance in DPPH and FRAP antioxidant assays and have antibacterial, anticancer and antifungal potential. Previous literature reported that phytochemical constituents improved antioxidant performance, thereby enhancing the biological activities described.

An investigation of the phytochemical richness of fresh Musa paradisiaca L. (plantain) stem juice and its anticonvulsant potential on pentylenetetrazole (PTZ)-challenged rats

“…Previous studies on MP plant have reviewed the presence of phytochemicals such as phenolic compounds, avonoids; and others including alkaloids, tannins and saponins (Onyenekwe et al, 2013;Gervásio and Batitucci 2023). Furthermore, a recent study has also proven that MP stem juice has the therapeutic ability to prevent seizures by positively in uencing the associated biochemical parameters such as GABA, glutamate, GABA-T and brain histology of the experimental rats (Ugwuoke et al, 2023).…”

Assumptions on Health Risks in Consuming Vermonia amygdalina and Fruits (Musa sp.) in Koko, Nigeria

“…is also another edible fruit in the form of banana and plantain, which is highly nutritious and, more so, an erect perennial plant with enormous benefit [11]. Numerous research has demonstrated these advantages along with antioxidant qualities that include anticancer, antifungal, and antibacterial [12]. Their physiological traits on the life cycle, plant geometry, and their nature, which happens to be a part of plant breeding, provide means to bio-accumulate pollutants from the area.…”