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Review
. 2022 Dec 11;27(24):8777.
doi: 10.3390/molecules27248777.

Recent Advances in Natural Polyphenol Research

Irene Dini  1 , Lucia Grumetto  1
Affiliations
Review

Recent Advances in Natural Polyphenol Research

Irene Dini et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Polyphenols are secondary metabolites produced by plants, which contribute to the plant's defense against abiotic stress conditions (e.g., UV radiation and precipitation), the aggression of herbivores, and plant pathogens. Epidemiological studies suggest that long-term consumption of plant polyphenols protects against cardiovascular disease, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, and neurodegenerative diseases. Their structural diversity has fascinated and confronted analytical chemists on how to carry out unambiguous identification, exhaustive recovery from plants and organic waste, and define their nutritional and biological potential. The food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries employ polyphenols from fruits and vegetables to produce additives, additional foods, and supplements. In some cases, nanocarriers have been used to protect polyphenols during food processing, to solve the issues related to low water solubility, to transport them to the site of action, and improve their bioavailability. This review summarizes the structure-bioactivity relationships, processing parameters that impact polyphenol stability and bioavailability, the research progress in nanocarrier delivery, and the most innovative methodologies for the exhaustive recovery of polyphenols from plant and agri-waste materials.

Keywords: agri-food wastes; antioxidant; bioavailability; circular economy; cosmeceuticals; flavonoids; functional food; health; nano-delivery; nutraceuticals; polyphenols activity; polyphenols bioavailability; sustainability.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chemical structures of the different polyphenol classes. The colors indicate the sub-class. The numbers indicate the positions in the nomenclature.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Reactions between lipids and phenols.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The polyphenols’ effects on glucose homeostasis and insulin resistance.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The polyphenols’ traditional and modern extraction methods. Blue arrows: traditional extraction methods; red arrows: modern methods; in the orange circle: techniques used to improve polyphenol management.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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