Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2021 Feb 23;10(2):328.
doi: 10.3390/antiox10020328.

Polyphenols in the Mediterranean Diet: From Dietary Sources to microRNA Modulation

Roberto Cannataro  1   2 , Alessia Fazio  1 , Chiara La Torre  1   2 , Maria Cristina Caroleo  1   2 , Erika Cione  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Polyphenols in the Mediterranean Diet: From Dietary Sources to microRNA Modulation

Roberto Cannataro et al. Antioxidants (Basel). .

Abstract

It is now well established that polyphenols are a class of natural substance that offers numerous health benefits; they are present in all plants in very different quantities and types. On the other hand, their bioavailability, and efficacy is are not always well proven. Therefore, this work aims to discuss some types of polyphenols belonging to Mediterranean foods. We chose six polyphenols-(1) Naringenin, (2) Apigenin, (3) Kaempferol, (4) Hesperidin, (5) Ellagic Acid and (6) Oleuropein-present in Mediterranean foods, describing dietary source and their chemistry, as well as their pharmacokinetic profile and their use as nutraceuticals/supplements, in addition to the relevant element of their capability in modulating microRNAs expression profile.

Keywords: epigenomic; microRNA; nutraceutical; polyphenols.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Main foods and beverages that contain naringenin, according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021) and USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Main foods that contain apigenin, according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021) and USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Main foods and beverages that contain kaempferol, according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021) and USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Main foods that contain hesperidin according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021) and USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Structure and main foods that contain ellagic acid, according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021). There is no value reported for the USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Olive is the main food that contains oleuropien, according to the database Phenol-Explore (http://phenol-explorer.eu/ accessed on 29 January 2021). There is no value reported for the USDA Database for the flavonoid content of selected foods (https://www.ars.usda.gov/ accessed on 13 February 2021).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Phenylpropanoid Pathway. The metabolites of the shikimate pathway and p-coumaroyl CoA are shaded in grey.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Basic structures of flavonoid subclasses.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Structures of naringenin (a) and naringin (b).
Figure 10
Figure 10
Biosynthetic pathway of naringenin.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Biosynthetic pathway of apigenin.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Biosynthesis of kaempferol.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Structure of hesperidin.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Gallic and ellagic acids.
Figure 15
Figure 15
Structure of oleuropein.
Figure 16
Figure 16
A simplified scheme of the oleuropein biosynthesis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Martínez-Huélamo M., Rodríguez-Morató J., Boronat A., de la Torre R. Modulation of Nrf2 by Olive Oil and Wine Polyphenols and Neuroprotection. Antioxidants. 2017;26:73. doi: 10.3390/antiox6040073. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Georgoulis M., Kontogianni M.D., Yiannakouris N. Mediterranean diet and diabetes: Prevention and treatment. Nutrients. 2014;6:1406–1423. doi: 10.3390/nu6041406. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Widmer R.J., Flammer A.J., Lerman L.O., Lerman A. The Mediterranean diet, its components, and cardiovascular disease. Am. J. Med. Sci. 2015;128:229–238. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2014.10.014. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mentella M.C., Scaldaferri F., Ricci C., Gasbarrini A., Miggiano G.A.D. Cancer and Mediterranean Diet: A Review. Nutrients. 2019;11:2059. doi: 10.3390/nu11092059. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zamora-Ros R., Knaze V., Rothwell J.A., Hémon B., Moskal A., Overvad K., Tjønneland A., Kyrø C., Fagherazzi G., Boutron-Ruault M.C., et al. Dietary polyphenol intake in Europe: The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. Eur J. Nutr. 2016;55:1359. doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-0950-x. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources