Browsing by Author "Ferreira, Ana Sofia"
Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Microwave- and Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction of Cucurbita pepo Seeds: A Comparison Study of Antioxidant Activity, Phenolic Profile, and In-Vitro Cells EffectsPublication . Macedo, Catarina; Silva, Ana Margarida; Ferreira, Ana Sofia; Moreira, Manuela M.; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Rodrigues, FranciscaNowadays there is a growing demand for nutraceuticals to prevent diseases related to redox imbalances, such as atherosclerosis and diabetes, being crucial to search for new matrixes rich in bioactive compounds. This work aims to characterize the value-added compounds extracted from Curcubita pepo seeds using green methodologies, namely microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) and ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), employing water as an extracting solvent for two ratios (condition 1: 1 mg/20 mL; condition 2: 2.5 mg/20 mL). The extract with the best antioxidant/antiradical activity in FRAP (71.09 μmol FSE/g DW) and DPPH (5.08 mg TE/g DW) assays was MAE condition 1, while MAE condition 2 exhibited the highest activity in the ABTS assay (13.29 mg AAE/g DW) and TPC (16.89 mg GAE/g DW). A remarkable scavenging capacity was observed, particularly for HOCl, with IC50 values ranging from 1.88–13.50 μg/mL. A total of 21 phenolic compounds were identified, being catechin (4.567–7.354 mg/g DW), caffeine (1.147–2.401 mg/g DW) and gallic acid (0.945–1.337 mg/g DW) predominant. No adverse effects were observed on Caco-2 viability after exposure to MAE extracts, while the other conditions led to a slight viability decrease in NSC-34. These results highlighted that the extract from MAE condition 2 is the most promising as a potential nutraceutical ingredient.
- Natural Products for the Prevention and Treatment of Oral Mucositis—A ReviewPublication . Ferreira, Ana Sofia; Macedo, Catarina; Silva, Ana Margarida; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Costa, Paulo; Rodrigues, FranciscaCancer, a major world public health problem, is associated with chemotherapy treatments whose administration leads to secondary concerns, such as oral mucositis (OM). The OM disorder is characterized by the presence of ulcers in the oral mucosa that cause pain, bleeding, and difficulty in ingesting fluids and solids, or speaking. Bioactive compounds from natural sources have arisen as an effective approach for OM. This review aims to summarize the new potential application of different natural products in the prevention and treatment of OM in comparison to conventional ones, also providing a deep insight into the most recent clinical studies. Natural products, such as Aloe vera, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Camellia sinensis, Calendula officinalis, or honeybee crops, constitute examples of sources of bioactive compounds with pharmacological interest due to their well-reported activities (e.g., antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, or wound healing). These activities are associated with the bioactive compounds present in their matrix (such as flavonoids), which are associated with in vivo biological activities and minimal or absent toxicity. Finally, encapsulation has arisen as a future opportunity to preserve the chemical stability and the drug bioa vailability of bioactive compounds and, most importantly, to improve the buccal retention period and the therapeutic effects
- New Perspectives on the Sustainable Employment of Chestnut Shells as Active Ingredient against Oral Mucositis: A First ScreeningPublication . Ferreira, Ana Sofia; Silva, Ana Margarida; Pinto, Diana; Moreira, Manuela M.; Ferraz, Ricardo; Švarc-Gajić, Jaroslava; Costa, Paulo C.; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Rodrigues, FranciscaOral mucositis (OM), a common side effect of oncological treatment, is an oral mucosal disorder characterized by painful ulcerations and increased risk of infection. The use of natural antioxidants to suppress the redox imbalance responsible for the OM condition has emerged as an interesting approach to prevent/treat OM. This study aims to explore the chestnut (Castana sativa) shells as potential active ingredient against OM. Therefore, chestnut shells were extracted at different temperatures (110–180 °C) by Subcritical Water Extraction (SWE), aiming to recover antioxidants. The extracts were also evaluated against microorganisms present in the oral cavity as well as on human oral cell lines (TR146 and HSC3). The highest phenolic content was obtained with the extraction temperature of 110 °C, exhibiting the best antioxidant/antiradical activities and scavenging efficiencies against HOCl (IC50 = 4.47 μg/mL) and ROO• (0.73 μmol TE/mg DW). High concentrations of phenolic acids (e.g., gallic and protocatechuic acids) and flavanoids (catechin, epicatechin and rutin) characterized the phenolic profile. The antimicrobial activity against several oral microorganisms present in the oral cavity during OM, such as Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Enterococcus, and Escherichia, was demonstrated. Finally, the effects on HSC3 and TR146 cell lines revealed that the extract prepared at 110 °C had the lowest IC50 (1325.03 and 468.15 µg/mL, respectively). This study highlights the potential effects of chestnut shells on OM
- Potential therapeutic application of chestnut shells in oral mucositis treatment: Green extraction of polyphenolsPublication . Ferreira, Ana Sofia; Silva, Ana Margarida; Pinto, Diana; Ferraz, Ricardo; Moreira, Manuela M.; Švarc-Gajić, Jaroslava; Costa, Paulo; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Rodrigues, FranciscaOral mucositis (OM), a common side effect of oncological treatment, is an inflammatory condition characterized by painful ulcerations, difficulty swallowing and speaking, and increased risk of infection, which can compromise the primary treatment outcome. The use of natural antioxidants to inhibit theredox imbalance responsible for OM development has emerged as an interesting approach for OM prevention and treatment. This study aims to explore chestnut (Castana sativa) shells (by-products) aspotential active ingredient against OM [2]. To recover antioxidants using sustainable technology, chestnut shells were extracted using Subcritical Water Extraction (SWE) at different temperatures (110-180 °C). The extracts were evaluated against microorganisms present in the oral cavity as well as in human oral cell lines (TR146 and HSC3). The optimal extraction temperature was 110 °C, exhibiting thehighest phenolic content and the best antioxidant/antiradical activities and scavenging efficiencies against HOCl (IC50 = 4.47 μg/mL) and ROO● (0.73 μmol TE/mg DW). High concentrations of phenolicacids (e.g., gallic and protocatechuic acid) and flavanoids (catechin, epicatechin and rutin) characterizedthe phenolic profile. Antimicrobial activity against several microorganisms present in the oral cavity during OM, such as Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Enterococcus, and Escherichia, was also demonstrated. The effects on HSC3 and TR146 cell lines revealed that the extract prepared at 110 °C showed the lowest IC50 (1325.03 and 468.15 µg/mL, respectively). Therefore, this extract was selectedfor encapsulation and incorporation into an oral film as buccal drug delivery system. Methocel 1000 demonstrated ideal physicochemical properties from different set of polymers, such as thickness, mass, content uniformity, dissolution time in artificial saliva, superficial pH, folding, tensile strength, and elongation.
- Sustainable valorization of phenolic compounds from Castanea sativa shells for pharmaceutical VPublication . Ferreira, Ana Sofia; Silva, Ana Margarida; Pinto, Diana; Moreira, Manuela M.; Ferraz, Ricardo; Švarc-Gajic, Jaroslava; Costa, Paulo; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Rodrigues, FranciscaChestnut (Castanea sativa) fruits have an enormous global ecological and economic impact, despite the large generation of by-products during its industrialization process, namely shells, 1 . On the last years, the valorisation of chestnut shells for nutraceutical purposes arises as a challenge due to its richness in bioactive compounds, particularly phenolics. Subcritical Water Extraction (SWE) is an eco-friendly promising method to extract bioactive compounds using water as solvent, with fast processing time and high yield2 . Therefore, the aim of this work was to produce a bioactive extract with antioxidant, antiradical scavenging power and antimicrobial activity, as well as low cytotoxic effect on buccal epithelial cell lines (HSC3 and TR146), by optimizing the extraction temperature (110 °C – 180 °C) of C. sativa shells through SWE. The optimal temperature of extraction was 110 ºC, revealing the highest phenolic and flavonoid contents (239.53 mg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g dry weight (dw) and IC50=148.68 µg/ml, respectively) as well as the highest antioxidant activity (4240.38 µmol of ferrous sulphate (FeS)/g). Additionally, the 110°C extract showed the higher antiradical activity (IC50=426.88 g/ml for DPPH assay) and a good capacity to scavenge reactive oxygen species, namely HOCl and ROO• (IC50=4.47 g/ml and 0.73 mol of Trolox equivalents/mg dw, respectively). Also, high concentrations of phenolic acids, such as gallic and protocatechuic acids and flavonoids (catechin, epicatechin and rutin), composed the phenolic profile. All extracts obtained demonstrated antimicrobial activity against different microorganisms present in the oral cavity during oral mucositis state, such as Porphyromonas gingivalis, Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis and Escherichia coli. The MTT assay revealed that the lowest IC50 was achieved for the 110°C extract in the HSC3 and TR146 cell lines (IC50=1325.03 and 468.15 µg/ml, respectively). This work demonstrated the potentialities of SWE to valorize C. sativa shells as a valuable source of compounds that may be suited for the potential application for oral mucositis treatment.