Phytochemicals sterols

This chapter reviews recent findings about the health benefits of phytochemicals present in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and herbs, including phenolics, carotenoids, sterols, and alkaloids. These phytochemicals are extracted using emerging technologies such as supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) extraction, PEF, MWE, HPP, UE, and OH. The impact of important parameters related to sample preparation (particle size and moisture content) and extraction process (temperature, pressure, solvent flow rate, extraction time, and the use of a cosolvent) on the efficiency of extraction and on the characteristics of the extracted products is evaluated based on an extensive review of recent literature. The future of extraction of phytochemicals is certainly bright with the... 

A large variety of phytochemicals are found within agricultural commodities. This chapter focuses on four main groups phenolics, carotenoids, sterols, and alkaloids. In addition, recent research related to the health benefits of these phytochemicals will be briefly reviewed. Table 9.1 summarizes the main chemical structure and solubility in organic solvents of phytochemicals such as phenolics (flavonoids), carotenoids, sterols, and alkaloids. 

In the course of our phytochemical work we studied seven Licania species all belonging to Venezuelan flora, collected in Puerto Ayacucho, Estado Amazonas and in the Parque Nacional Henry Pittieri, Maracay, Estado Aragua. A number of new and known secondary metabolites, mainly flavonoids, especially flavonol glycosides, sterols, and triterpenes having the lupane, ursane, and oleanane skeleton were isolated and characterized. The last part of this chapter deals also with the isolation of clerodane diterpenes from the methanol extract of L. intrapetiolaris by Oberlies et al., 2001 [4]. All the Licania species investigated up to now are reported in Table 1. 

Appelqvist, L.A., Kornfeldt, A. and Wennerholm, J. (1981) Sterols and sterol esters in some Brassica and Sinapis seeds. Phytochem., 20, 207-210. 

Ballantine J.A., Lavis A., Morris R.J. (1979) Sterols of the phytoplankton — effects of illumination and growth stage. Phytochem. 18, 1459—66. 

Phytochemicals are defined as nonnutritive, naturally occurring, and biologically active plant-derived chemicals that have health supporting, protective, and disease preventive properties. Several thousand phytochemicals (such as phenolics, carotenoids, allylic compounds, sterols, chlorophylls, indoles, sapoiuns, gingerols, and terpenes, among others) have been reported in fruits, vegetables, nuts, medicinal plants, herbal remedies, flowers, and red wines, among others [1-7]. Currently, there... 

Avocado (Persea americana Mill) is an important tropical fruit and a good source of lipophilic phytochemicals such as monounsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, vitamin E and sterols [46]. It has several cultivars that present great variation on time of fruit production and oil content in the pulp. Studies have indicated that the avocado oil is similar to olive oil and can be used in cosmetics and also for human consumption [47, 48]. New Zealand, Mexico, Chile United States and South America are among the main avocado oil producers. Avocado oil has the advantage that can be obtained from the fruit by means of a cold extraction methods, which is an easy and low technology that allow maintain in the oil significant amounts of the bioactive phytochemicals present in the fruit [47]. 

Cereal foods are important components of the daily diet, providing carbohydrates, proteins, dietary fibre and vitamins. Cereals are also sources of many phytochemicals, including phytoestrogens, phenolic compounds, saponins, phytic acid and sterols. 

Cotme C, Denoel A (1975) Phytochemical study of the Central African Solanaceae. 1. Alkaloids of Solanum dasyphyllum. Pleuita Med 28 168-171 Coy-Barrera CA, Cuca-Suarez LE, Qara lOP (2005) A new steroidal alkaloid, two sterols and a pentacycUc triterpenoid isolated from Solanum comifolium. section Geminata. Actualidades Biologicas (Medellin, Colombia) 27 131-134... 

Gj-S transition in the cell cycle and suggests that muscadine grape skin extracts contain chemopreventive phytochemicals other than resveratrol. Lycopene (Fig. 4), a potent antioxidant carotenoid in tomatoes and other fruits, protects against prostate (Dahan et al., 2008) and other cancers (Seren et al., 2008). Plant sterol-enriched foods are an effective dietary adjuvant in reducing cardiovascular risk by lowering total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) in serum by up to 15% (Patch et al., 2006 Jones et al., 2000). 

Feedsmffs like legumes contain several compounds that have been traditionally considered antinutrients, such as protease inhibitors, phytate, saponins, plant sterols and isoflavones. However, recent information suggests that most of these compounds may acmaUy benefit the consumer s/ animal s health. Legumes (pulses and soybeans) are excellent foods to increase dietary fibre consumption besides providing starch, vegetable protein, oligosaccharides, phytochemicals (especially the isoflavones in... 

Matsuo, A., M. Nakayama, M. Maeda, and S. Hayashi Distribution Pattern of Sterols in Liverworts Belonging to the Jungermanniales. Phytochem. 12, 2413 (1973). Matsuo, A., M. Nakayama, T. Maeda, Y. Nod a, and S. Hayashi Enantiomeric Cuparene-type Sesquiterpenoids from Bazzania pompeana. Phytochem. 14,1037 (1975). Matsuo, A., M. Nakayama, J. Ono, and S. Hayashi Isolation of (-)-Manool from the Liverwort, Jungermannia torticalyx. Z. Naturforschung 27b, 1437 (1972). 

Lenton, j. R., L. j. Goad, and T. W. Goodwin Sterols ofXanthoriaparietina Evidence for Two Sterol Pools and the Identification of a Novel C28 Triene, Ergosta-5,8,22-trien-3p-ol. Phytochem. 12, 1135 (1973). 

Safe, S., L. M. Safe, and W. S. G. Maass Sterols of Three Lichen Species Lobaria pulmonaria, Lobaria scrobiculata and Usnea longissima. Phytochem. 14, 1821 (1975). Sala, T., and M. V. Sargent Depsidone Synthesis. Part 14. The Total Synthesis of Psoromic Acid Isopropyl Ethers as Useful Phenolic Protective Groups., J ..Chem,.Soc. (London) Perkin Trans. I 1979, 2593. 

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