3. Results and Discussion
3.1. Phytochemical analysis
Phytochemicals, especially phenolics are known to be major bioactive compounds for health benefits. Plant extracts containing different classes of polyphenols are very attractive in the food industry. Therefore, in this study, the total phenolics content and total flavonoids content of the faba beans’ extract were investigated. Folin-Ciocalteu phenol method estimated a total phenolic content of 22.415 GAE equivalents (µg GAE/mg sample). The presence of a high phenolic amount in the faba seeds indicates its potential as a good natural antioxidant.
It has been recognized that flavonoids show antioxidant activity[24]. The total flavonoid content of the reconstituted extract was estimated by the aluminium chloride method and the results were expressed in µg of Catechin equivalents (CE) per mg of dry weight of the extract based on the calibration curve of the standard. Total flavonoid content in the dried faba seeds was estimated to be 7.814 in µg of Catechin equivalents (CE) /mg.
Crude alkaloids and saponins in the faba seeds extract were estimated to be 2.99% and 0.002% respectively. Their presence in moderate amount in faba seeds divulges its therapeutic significance. These alkaloids in a diet consisting of faba seeds may prove helpful for healing of wounds, varicose ulcers, hemorrhoids, frost-bite and burn in herbal medicine. Saponins, on the other hand, are anti-nutritional factors and can reduce the uptake of certain nutrients including cholesterol and glucose at the gut through intra lumenal physicochemical interaction (Okwu & Okwu)[25]. Saponin was observed in negligible amounts in the sample.
Table 1: Phytochemical analysis of faba seeds sample Total phenolic
(µg GAE/ ...
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...ds of analysis, AOAC, Association of Official Analytical Chemists. Edition 18: AOAC, 2005.
23. Official methods of analysis, AOAC, Association of Official Analytical Chemists. Edition 17: AOAC, 2003.
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25. Okwu D. E,O Okwu M. E. Chemical composition of Spondias mombin Linn plant parts. Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and the Environment 2004; 6: 140-147.
26. Chanda Sumitra, Dudhatra Sandeep , Kaneria Mital. Antioxidative and antibacterial effects of seeds and fruit rind of nutraceutical plants belonging to the Fabaceae family. Journal of The Royal Society of Chemistry 2010.
27. Claude B, Paule S. The Manual of Natural Living. Edition 1, Biddles Limited Guildford Surrey, 1979,98.
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Murray, Michael T., Joseph E. Pizzorno, and Lara Pizzorno. "The Healing Power of Nuts and Seeds." The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods. New York: Atria, 2005. N. pag. Print.
By Dorotea Gucciardo. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Print. Morley, Joyce Anne Deane.
Anthocyanins, flavanols, flavanones,secoiridoids, phenolic acids, stilbenes, coumarins, and isoflavones form a large class of polyphenols, which are phenolic compounds. This study, however, focuses on one category of these phenolic compounds: phenolic acids. These particular compounds have been classified into two groups, namely hydroxycinnamic acids and hydroxybenzoic acids. The most common hydroxybenzoic acids are protocatechuic acid and gallic acid, while hydroxycinnamic acids include ferulic acid, coumaric acid, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, and sinapic acid, (Nigdikar, Williams, Griffin, & Howard). Unlike hydroxycinnamic acids, hydroxybenzoic acids usually occur at very low levels in some black radish, red fruits, and onions, accounting for about 10 ppm on a fresh weight basis. Protocatechuic ac...
The actual amount of crude product was determined to be 3.11 grams. The percent yield of the crude product was determined to be 67.75 %. The actual amount of pure product formed was found to be 4.38 grams. The percent yield of the pure product was determined to be 95.42%. Regarding the thin layer chromatography, the line from the solvent front is 8 centimeters.
But with a growing evidence that wild edible plants are often superior in comparison to processed foods (Somnasang and Moreno-Black, 2000), provide substantial nutritional and dietary benefits in remote rural areas to tribal populations (Sundriyal and Sundriyal, 2001) and can be used to prevent chronic and under nutrition diseases (Green, 1993) ethno botanical studies are becoming increasingly important (Sundriyal and Sundriyal 2000, 2004; Bhattarai and Chaudhary, 2009). The role of ethno-medicinal plants as the prerequisite of culturally pertinent and economically affordable health care in creating both sustainable livelihoods and the critical conservation of biodiversity is gaining an unprecedented importance and consequently a strong emphasis has now been laid on the need to broaden the biological diversity in human nutrition as well as to document and conserve the indigenous knowledge associated with these plants (Javaid M Dad,
Wheat germ oil is a rich source of dietary fiber, unsaturated fatty acids, minerals vitamin E, vitamin B group and proteins. Furthermore, it contains some functional phytochemicals at a relatively low cost such as flavonoids, octacosanols, sterols and glutathione. Thus, Wheat germ is deemed to be healthy foods that can protect people from certain cancers and other health problems. Raw wheat germ (RWG), containing as much as 10 to 15% oil is mainly used in food, medical and cosmetic industries as a source of oil (Zhui et al., 2006). The antioxidants that are found in vegetable oils proved to be a better source for dietary antioxidants to the humans. The major antioxidants present in the vegetable oils are wheat germ oil, soya bean oil, polyphenols -olive oil and tocopherols-
The phenols present in Pumpkin Seeds inhibit these free radicals from causing harmful oxidative stress.
Flavonoids are widely distributed in plants, fulfilling many functions. Flavonoids are the most important in plant pigments for flower coloration, producing yellow, red, or blue pigmentation in plants designed to attract pollinators. In higher plants, flavonoids are involved in UV filtration, symbiotic nitrogen fixation and floral pigmentation. They may also act as chemical messengers, physiological regulators, and cell cycle inhibitors. Flavonoids, which are polyphenolic compounds, are a class of plant secondary metabolites possessing a broad spectrum of pharmacological activity including anti-cancer activities. Among the various natural products, flavonoids have attracted much attention due to their remarkable spectrum of pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, antimutagenic, antibacterial, antiangiogenic,anti-inflammatory, antiallergic, modulators of enzymatic activities and anti-cancer activity. Flavonoids have been found act as protein kinase inhibitors which can prevent alterations in phosphorylation that result in uncontrolled cell division, inhibition of apoptosis, and other abnormalities. Flavonoids can be known as angiogenesis agents. Angiogenesis is a physiological process resulting in formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels. Antigiogenesis cause rapid growth of solid tumor and tumor metasta-sis are promoted by uncontrolled tumor angiogenesis. The flavonoids can control this growth of tumor. Besides that, flavonoids also can act as antioxidants which known as substances that delay, prevent or remove oxidative damage to a target molecule (Ravishankar et al., 2013).
The use of alternative medicine is becoming more prevalent in society. As pharmaceuticals and other medications continue to show room for improvement, the use of herbal remedies will increase as a result. Herbal remedies involve the use of plants for medicinal purposes (Newman, 2012). Long before the modern technology, chemicals, and mechanisms that are popular today, plants were used as the basis for most medical treatments. As improvements in education and resources arose throughout the years there was a shift towards modern medicine, which is heavily based on evidence that has been gathered using the scientific method. Due to the lack of scientific reliability, the use of herbal remedies raises some doubt and concern. However, it is important to consider the effectiveness of herbal remedies that are derived from the natural sources surrounding us. Although in past eras chronic illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, hepatitis and cancer either didn’t exist or were not properly identified, it is necessary to analyze whether traditional medicines and herbs can be effective in treating these serious diseases today. This will be the focus of the discussions in this paper. In modern societies these illnesses often are not curable and therefore considering alternative methods such as herbal remedies deserves merit. Each herb has specific value when being used for medicinal purposes. Some herbs are effective when used to treat chronically ill patients.
The condensed tannins are even further categorized into many different sub-types pertaining to the compounds structure and linkages of their flavonoid groups (Barbehenn and Constabel 2011). Plant species with secondary or woody growth have been found to contain generous amounts of condensed tannins (Hattenschwiler and Vitousek 2000). Conversely, these condensed tannins are generally absent within the herbaceous plants (Hattenschwiler and Vitousek 2000).
Nutraceutical is a combination from two words i.e. ‘nutrition’ and ‘pharmaceutical. Nutraceuticals can be defined as a food or a part of food which helps in altering and maintaining normal physiological functions in healthy human beings. The principal reasons for the growth of the nutraceutical market worldwide are the current population and the health trends. The food products used as nutraceuticals can be characterized as dietary fiber, prebiotics, probiotics, polyunsaturated fatty acids, antioxidants and other different types of herbal/ natural foods. These nutraceuticals help in fighting some of the major health problems of the century such as metabolic disorders (obesity, cardiovascular disease, cholesterol & diabetes), cancer, bone disorders (osteoporosis, arthritis etc.). Altogether, ‘nutraceutical’ has led to the new era of medicine and health.
Herbal remedies’ qualities are widespread availability, lower cost, effective for chronic conditions. Herbal remedies are the use of plants or plant extract to treat a person’ overall health. Herbal treatments are prominent for developing countries for instance, “in Africa up to 90% and in India 70% of the population depend on traditional medicine to help meet their health care needs” (Wachtel-Galor & Benzie, 2011), due to their low cost and availability. Herbal remedies have gained attention in the past decades, and expanding their uses due to the increased interest of natural therapies (Wachtel-Galor & Benzie, 2011). Herbs used on the remedies grow in the wild throughout the world, therefore making it easy to
Today people are becoming more aware of the advantages of using natural health products. Apart from it being a cost-efficient solution to maintain and attain healthier body, the products made from herbal and natural ingredients offer a myriad of benefits compared to those made from chemical and artificial ingredients. The followi...
The phenolic compounds are the main component responsible for antioxidant activity, is mainly due to their redox properties, which can play an important role in absorbing and neutralizing free radicals, quenching singlet and triplet oxygen, or decomposing peroxides. Recently, phenolics or polyphenols have received considerable attention because of their physiological functions, including antioxidant, antimutagenic and antitumor activities. They have been reported to be a potential compound to combat free radicals, which are harmful to our body and foods systems (Nagai et al., 2003). Phenolic constituents are one of the major group of compounds acting as primary antioxidants especially as free radical terminators (Oviasogie et al., 1985; Ka, 1999). The level of antioxidants as evidenced in this study imply the presence of phenolics. Phenolic compounds comprise a large group of biological
Improving one’s heart health is also a benefit that this fruit has to offer. It gives healthy short chain and medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) that are important to good health. Based on researches, nearly 98% of all fatty acids ingested consists of long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) which are very dissimilar from MCFA that contains no harmful effect on cholesterol ratios; assist in taking down the risk of atherosclerosis; and protect the body against heart