A new "functional" pasta containing tartary buckwheat sprouts as an ingredient improves the oxidative status and normalizes some blood pressure parameters in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Epidemiological studies have reported that some foods, particularly those rich in (poly)phenols, may reduce cardiovascular risk and metabolic disorders such as hypertension. Buckwheat sprouts have been suggested as a new raw material for the production of functional foods due to their high content of healthy compounds such as rutin and quercetin. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the biological hypotensive and antioxidant responses of pasta containing tartary buckwheat sprouts (TBSP) on spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). In this study, dry tartary buckwheat sprouts were milled to obtain a powder that was used in the production of pasta containing 30% dry buckwheat sprouts and 70% durum wheat semolina. Afterwards, we analyzed the in vitro TBSP features compared with the control (durum wheat flour pasta, DWFP), and the in vivo effects of TBSP on SHR and their normotensive counterpart, Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY rats). The total phenolic content and antioxidant activity were higher in TBSP compared to DWFP. The results showed that SHR fed TBSP exhibited higher plasma levels of the endogenous vasodilators bradykinin (BK) and nitric oxide (NO), a lower level of the vasoconstrictor endothelin-1 (ET-1), and an improved antioxidant capacity. These data suggest that TBSP may help reduce hypertension and oxidative stress in vivo.