Comparative analyses of seeds of wild fruits of Rubus and Sambucus species from Southern Italy: fatty acid composition of the oil, total phenolic content, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of the methanolic extracts.

Fruit seeds are byproducts from fruit processing. Characterisation of the bioactive compounds present in seeds and evaluation of their potential biological properties is therefore of particular importance in view of a possible valorisation of seeds as a source of health beneficial components. In this work, we have analysed the seeds of Sambucus and Rubus species in order to identify their bioactive components and to determine the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of the extracts. We first analysed their oil content, in order to assess the fatty acid profile and tocopherol content. Moreover, the methanolic extracts of the seeds were analysed for their total phenolic contents and antioxidant capacities. Polyphenols were identified by HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis. Furthermore, extracts were evaluated for their inhibitory effects on the production of LPS-induced inflammatory mediators (NO, CCL-20) in RAW 264.7 cells. Our findings show that the methanolic extracts from Rubus seeds have strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and could therefore represent an attractive source of bioactive compounds for food, cosmetic, or pharmaceutical applications.