Antioxidant Properties and Neuroprotective Capacity of Strawberry Tree Fruit (Arbutus unedo)

Abstract

Berries contain significant amounts of phytochemicals, including polyphenols, which are reported to reduce cancer risk, coronary heart disease and other degenerative diseases. These effects are mainly attributed to the antioxidant capacity of polyphenols found in berries. Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) berries are used in folk medicine but seldom eaten as fresh fruits. Their phenolic profile and antioxidant capacity reveal a high potential, but they are not well characterized as a “health promoting food”. The aim of this study was to assess the antioxidant properties of the edible strawberry tree fruit in vitro and in a neurodegeneration cell model. Raspberry (Rubus idaeus), a well documented health-promoting fruit, was used as a control for comparison purposes. A. unedo yielded a similar content in polyphenols and a slightly lower value of total antioxidant capacity in comparison to R. idaeus. Although the chemically-measured antioxidant activity was similar between both fruits, R. idaeus increased neuroblastoma survival in a neurodegeneration cell model by 36.6% whereas A. unedo extracts caused no effect on neuroblastoma viability. These results clearly demonstrate that a promising level of chemically-determined antioxidant activity of a plant extract is not necessarily correlated with biological significance, as assessed by the effect of A. unedo fruit in a neurodegeneration cell model.

Bioactive compounds from endemic plants of Southwest Portugal: Inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and radical scavenging activities

“…Determination of total phenolic compounds was performed by the Folin-Ciocalteau method adapted to microplate reader as described in previous work (Fortalezas et al, 2010). Gallic acid was used as the standard and results are expressed in mg of gallic acid equivalents per gram of dry weight (mg GAE g −1 dw) of plant material.…”

Antioxidant activity and sensory changes of strawberry tree fruits during cold storage and shelf life

“…Berries are very rich in health-promoting phytochemicals (Fortalezas et al 2010). An increasing interest has recently been directed towards the potential health-promoting capacity of the strawberry tree fruits (Arbutus unedo L., Ericaceae), which are mainly used to obtain distillates, jams, preserves, and jellies (Alarcao-E-Silva et al 2001), while their consumption as fresh fruit is scarce.…”

Polyphenol Ellagic Acid-Targeting To Brain: A Hidden Treasure

“…DNA is damaged by H2O2 via fenton reaction in presence of oxygen and transition metal ions [76,77] . During neurodegenerative diseases, the various oxidative reactions involved that leads to neuronal cell death [78] . Some resources such as vitamins, lipoic acid, antioxidant enzymes and redox sensitive protein transcriptional factors,help to compensate oxidative stress in neuronal cells [79][80][81][82][83] .…”

“…Some resources such as vitamins, lipoic acid, antioxidant enzymes and redox sensitive protein transcriptional factors,help to compensate oxidative stress in neuronal cells [79][80][81][82][83] . Polyphenols, the nutritional antioxidants can modulate this defence system [78] . Ellagic acid prevents oxidationin liver,heart, kidney testicular and spermatozoal damages associated with oxidation [84][85][86][87][88][89] .…”

“…Amyloid beta-protein (Aβ) is the major component of senile plaques and cerebrovascular amyloid deposits in individuals with Alzheimer's disease [1] . During neurodegenerative diseases, the various oxidative reactions involved that leads to neuronal cell death [78] . The presence of activated microglia surrounding senile plaques and higher levels of inflammatory mediators are manifestations of AD [5,102] .…”