Plant Extracts as Antioxidant Additives for Food Industry

Abstract

Plants have phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity. These compounds are distributed in tissues and cells of plants and their abundance depends on the species, the part of the plant used, maturity stage, light hours, among others. On the other hand, the profile and quantity of phenolic compounds extracted from plant matrices changes depending on the species, cultivar, climate, and other factors. Plant extracts do not present a unique phenolic component, they correspond a mixture and its antioxidant activity will be affected by the concentration of each one and their action depends on this composition. In this chapter, some generalities about the phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity present in plant matrices will be exposed, also the principal methods for their extraction and quantification will be described and this information will be complemented with a review on applications of these compounds in food industry. In that sense, the reader can infer the importance of continue to studying and developing techniques to obtain, extract, and characterize this kind of compounds, also they can identify possible application of them, the most important, they can recognize them as an alternative to replace chemical synthetized antioxidants used in food industry improving the market of natural products.

Phenolic Contents and Antioxidant Activity of Extracts of Selected Fresh and Dried Herbal Materials

“…Herbal plants are an extremely vast group of medicinal, spicy, and melliferous plants, and those rich in essential oils. They are used in food and pharmaceutical industries because of their strong antioxidant properties caused by the presence of phenolic compounds [Pabón-Baquero et al, 2018;Shahidi & Ambigaipalan, 2015], which are accumulated in various plant parts, including fruits, leaves, seeds, and rhizomes, and can be classified into flavonoids, phenolic acids, stilbenes, lignans, and tannins. Plant phenolics positively influence human health, by inhibiting the oxidation of low density lipoproteins and the growth of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and by stimulating the growth of beneficial bacteria and activating or inhibiting enzymes that bind a specific receptor [Papuc et al, 2017;Shahidi & Ambigaipalan, 2015].…”

Vegetable Additives in Food Packaging Polymeric Materials

“…Plant-derived phenolic compounds are natural antioxidants [228] that can scavenge reactive oxygen species by inhibiting the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins [229], which makes them substitutes for synthetic antioxidants in the food industry [230][231][232][233]. These polyphenols could be incorporated [234] within a film or coating applied to the food [235], which could release the antioxidant into the product or act on its surface, limiting the oxidative reactions of food components [236].…”

Ameliorative Effects of the Sesquiterpenoid Valerenic Acid on Oxidative Stress Induced in HepG2 Cells after Exposure to the Fungicide Benomyl

“…In this context, the use of natural products for health purposes due to their antioxidant properties has become widespread. Nevertheless, it is undoubtful that such substances could be proven to exert toxicity; therefore, their toxic potential should be evaluated very carefully [ 11 , 12 ]. Since herbal products can be used both alone or as part of a mixture, their beneficial and harmful profile assessment becomes more complex [ 10 ].…”