Cereal Lignans, Natural Compounds of Interest for Human Health?

Abstract

Cereals are suggested to be the most important sources of lignan in the diets of western populations. Recent epidemiological studies show that European subpopulations in which the major source of lignans are cereals, display lower disease frequency regarding metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. The biological mechanisms of lignan are several. Beyond their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions at nutritional doses some lignans regulate the activity of specific nuclear receptors (NRs), such as the estrogen receptors (ERs), and also NRs that are central switches in glucose and fatty acid metabolism such as PPAR, PPAR and LXRs, highlighting them as selective nuclear receptor modulators (SNRMs). These include enterodiol (END) and enterolactone (ENL), the metabolites produced by the gut microbiota from food lignans. The available knowledge suggests that given some additional research it should be possible to make 'function' claims for a regular intake of lignans-rich foods related to maintaining a healthy metabolism.

7-Hydroxymatairesinol improves body weight, fat and sugar metabolism in C57BJ/6 mice on a high-fat diet

“…Moreover, the ENL levels (39 ng/ml) reached in plasma of our mice treated with 3 mg/kg of 7-HMR are quite close to the concentration of ENL that can be found in people consuming conventional northern European diets (14·8 and 12 ng/ml) ( 20 , 46 ) and lignan-fortified diets (21 ng/ml) ( 47 ) , but we can realistically hypothesise that it can be found at a higher concentration in people consuming lignan-richer diets with the food components cited above (i.e. Middle Eastern or Mediterranean diets) ( 48 ) .…”

The Multifunctional Roles of Polyphenols in Plant-Herbivore Interactions

“…On the other side, p -coumaric acid leads to the formation of the lignans without 9(9′) oxygen such as furan, dibenzocyclooctadiene, and dibenzylbutane [ 86 ] ( Figure 2 ). Lignans are widely distributed in Gramineae, including cereals like wheat bran, rye bran, oats ( Avena sativa L. Family: Poaceae), barley ( Hordeum vulgare L. Family: Poaceae), triticale, and corn to name a few) [ 87 ]. Pumpkin ( Cucurbita pepo L. Family: Cucurbitaceae), flax ( Linum usitatissimum L. Family: Linaceae; richest source), sunflower ( Helianthus annus L. Family: Asteraceae), poppy ( Papaver somniferum L. Family: Papaveraceae), sesame ( Sesamum indicum L. Family; Pedaliaceae) and oilseed crops are also observed to have high lignin content- mostly concentrated in the seeds [ 88 ].…”

Quercetin, Epigallocatechin Gallate, Curcumin, and Resveratrol: From Dietary Sources to Human MicroRNA Modulation

“…Lignans are present in a wide variety of plant foods, including seeds (flax, pumpkin, sunflower, poppy, sesame), whole grains (rye, oats, barley), bran (wheat, oat, rye), beans, fruit (berries in particular), and vegetables [18][19][20]. Among edible plant components, the most concentrated lignan sources are sesame and flax seeds.…”