Chelucci Elisa, Chiellini Carolina, Cavallero Andrea, Gabriele Morena
Institute of Agricultural Biology and Biotechnology, Italian National Research Council, Via Moruzzi 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
Antioxidants (Basel). 2023 Jan 3;12(1):115. doi: 10.3390/antiox12010115.
Bee pollen represents one of the most complete natural foods playing an important role in the diet for its health qualities and therapeutic properties. This work aimed to characterize a Tuscan bee pollen by evaluating its phytochemical profile and the in vitro and ex vivo antioxidant activities. The isolation and taxonomic and functional characterization of yeasts in the sample has been also conducted. Finally, the pollen anti-inflammatory potential has been assessed on a TNFα-inflamed human colorectal adenocarcinoma cell line (HT-29). Our results highlighted a good phytochemical composition in terms of polyphenols, flavonoids, flavonols, monomeric anthocyanins, and carotenoids. In addition, we detected good antioxidant activity and radical scavenging capacity by in vitro and ex vivo assays, as well as good antioxidant activity by isolated yeasts. Data showed no cytotoxic effects of bee pollen extracts, with average viability values >80% at each tested dose. Moreover, TNFα treatment did not affect HT-29 viability while upregulating IL-8, COX-2, and ICAM-1 gene expression, otherwise reduced by both doses of bee pollen. In conclusion, our sample represents an interesting functional food and a potential probiotic product, having high phytochemical compound levels and good antioxidant activities, as well as anti-inflammatory effects on the TNFα-inflamed HT-29 cell line.
蜂花粉是最完整的天然食物之一，因其健康特性和治疗功效在饮食中发挥着重要作用。这项工作旨在通过评估其植物化学特征以及体外和离体抗氧化活性来表征一种托斯卡纳蜂花粉。还对样品中的酵母进行了分离、分类和功能表征。最后，在肿瘤坏死因子α（TNFα）炎症刺激的人结肠直肠腺癌细胞系（HT - 29）上评估了花粉的抗炎潜力。我们的结果突出表明，该蜂花粉在多酚、黄酮类化合物、黄酮醇、单体花青素和类胡萝卜素方面具有良好的植物化学成分。此外，我们通过体外和离体试验检测到其具有良好的抗氧化活性和自由基清除能力，分离出的酵母也具有良好的抗氧化活性。数据显示蜂花粉提取物无细胞毒性作用，在每个测试剂量下平均活力值均>80%。此外，TNFα处理不影响HT - 29的活力，但会上调白细胞介素 - 8（IL - 8）、环氧化酶 - 2（COX - 2）和细胞间黏附分子 - 1（ICAM - 1）的基因表达，而两种剂量的蜂花粉均可降低这些基因的表达。总之，我们的样品代表了一种有趣的功能性食品和潜在的益生菌产品，具有高含量的植物化学化合物、良好的抗氧化活性以及对TNFα炎症刺激的HT - 29细胞系的抗炎作用。
