Recent Advances in Natural Polyphenol Research.
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)
confidence
Key findings
Review of structure-bioactivity relationships, processing impacts, nanocarrier delivery, and recovery methods for plant polyphenols; no clinical/biological endpoints reported.
View source on PubMed (PMID 36557912) ↗
- Sample size
- N/A
- Population
- Not applicable (review article on natural polyphenol research)
- Dosing
- N/A
- Duration
- N/A
- Route
- N/A
- Blinding
- not_reported
- Controls
- not_reported
- Drug class
- phytonutrient
Full abstract
Polyphenols are secondary metabolites produced by plants, which contribute to the plant's defense against abiotic stress conditions (e.g., UV radiation and precipitation), the aggression of herbivores, and plant pathogens. Epidemiological studies suggest that long-term consumption of plant polyphenols protects against cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, and neurodegenerative diseases. Their structural diversity has fascinated and confronted analytical chemists on how to carry out unambiguous identification, exhaustive recovery from plants and organic waste, and define their nutritional and biological potential. The food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries employ polyphenols from fruits and vegetables to produce additives, additional foods, and supplements. In some cases, nanocarriers have been used to protect polyphenols during food processing, to solve the issues related to low water solubility, to transport them to the site of action, and improve their bioavailability. This review summarizes the structure-bioactivity relationships, processing parameters that impact polyphenol stability and bioavailability, the research progress in nanocarrier delivery, and the most innovative methodologies for the exhaustive recovery of polyphenols from plant and agri-waste materials.