Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Unidad Irapuato, Km. 9.6 Libr. Norte Carr. Irapuato-León, Apdo., Postal 629, Irapuato, Guanajuato 36821, Mexico.
Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2010 Sep;65(3):299-308. doi: 10.1007/s11130-010-0177-1.
The importance of the diet in relation to human health has increased the interest of consumers on nutraceuticals rich foods, and especially on fruits and vegetables. Berries are rich sources of a wide variety of antioxidant phenolics; these phytochemicals include flavonoids, stilbenes, tannins, and phenolic acids. Reactive oxidant species and free radicals are produced in an extensive range of physiological processes. In addition to the antioxidant defenses produced in the body, there are exogenous sources supplied by the diet; this is the case of berry fruits, among others. The insufficiency of antioxidant defense mechanisms is associated to the pathology of chronic disorders such as cardiovascular diseases, inflammation, and diabetes. Therefore, the enforcement of the latter mechanisms is of the utmost importance. The isolation and characterization of compounds that may delay the onset of aging is receiving intense research attention; some berry phenolics are being associated with this functional performance. Berry phenolics may also act as antimicrobials which may be of help in the control of the wild spectra of pathogens, in view of recent problems associated with antibiotic resistance. Most of the research works on the antioxidant activity of bioactive constituents of berries has been carried out using in vitro assays. In view of this, the human studies investigating the bioavailability and potential toxicity of phenolics are receiving more attention. Finally, we would like to emphasize the necessity of associating new plant breeding and genetic studies of berries with the expression and overexpression of compounds for human health and healthy aging.
饮食与人类健康的关系日益密切，这增加了消费者对富含营养的食物，特别是水果和蔬菜的兴趣。浆果是多种抗氧化酚类物质的丰富来源；这些植物化学物质包括类黄酮、白藜芦醇、单宁和酚酸。在广泛的生理过程中会产生活性氧化物质和自由基。除了体内产生的抗氧化防御机制外，还有饮食提供的外源性来源；浆果就是其中之一。抗氧化防御机制的不足与心血管疾病、炎症和糖尿病等慢性疾病的病理有关。因此，加强这些机制至关重要。目前正在对可能延缓衰老的化合物进行分离和特性描述，其中一些浆果类多酚具有这种功能。浆果类多酚还可以作为抗菌剂，鉴于最近与抗生素耐药性相关的问题，这可能有助于控制广泛的病原体。大多数关于浆果生物活性成分抗氧化活性的研究工作都是使用体外测定法进行的。有鉴于此，人们越来越关注研究类黄酮生物利用度和潜在毒性的人体研究。最后，我们强调需要将新的植物育种和浆果遗传研究与化合物的表达和过表达联系起来，以促进人类健康和健康老龄化。
