Breast cancer is the most common cancer among females worldwide. Several epidemiological studies suggested the inverse correlation between the intake of vegetables and fruits and the incidence of breast cancer. Substantial experimental studies indicated that many dietary natural products could affect the development and progression of breast cancer, such as soy, pomegranate, mangosteen, citrus fruits, apple, grape, mango, cruciferous vegetables, ginger, garlic, black cumin, edible macro-fungi, and cereals. Their anti-breast cancer effects involve various mechanisms of action, such as downregulating ER-α expression and activity, inhibiting proliferation, migration, metastasis and angiogenesis of breast tumor cells, inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest, and sensitizing breast tumor cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. This review summarizes the potential role of dietary natural products and their major bioactive components in prevention and treatment of breast cancer, and special attention was paid to the mechanisms of action. Full article

Liver injuries and diseases are serious health problems worldwide. Various factors, such as chemical pollutants, drugs, and alcohol, could induce liver injuries. Liver diseases involve a wide range of liver pathologies, including hepatic steatosis, fatty liver, hepatitis, fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocarcinoma. Despite all the studies performed up to now, therapy choices for liver injuries and diseases are very few. Therefore, the search for a new treatment that could safely and effectively block or reverse liver injuries and diseases remains a priority. Melatonin is a well-known natural antioxidant, and has many bioactivities. There are numerous studies investigating the effects of melatonin on liver injuries and diseases, and melatonin could regulate various molecular pathways, such as inflammation, proliferation, apoptosis, metastasis, and autophagy in different pathophysiological situations. Melatonin could be used for preventing and treating liver injuries and diseases. Herein, we conduct a review summarizing the potential roles of melatonin in liver injuries and diseases, paying special attention to the mechanisms of action. Full article

The fruit of Melastoma sanguineum Sims is an edible and sweet wild fruit. In our previous study, the fruit was found to have a strong antioxidant property. In this study, an ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) method was developed to extract natural antioxidants from the fruit of Melastoma sanguineum Sims, and a response surface methodology was used to optimize the conditions of UAE to maximize the extraction efficiency. The influence of five independent extraction parameters (ethanol concentration, solvent/material ratio, extracting time, temperature, and ultrasound power) on the extraction efficiency were investigated using a single factor experiment, and then a central composite rotatable design was used to investigate the interaction of three key parameters. The results showed that the optimal extraction conditions were 42.98% ethanol, 28.29 mL/g solvent/material ratio, 34.29 min extracting time, 60 °C temperature, and 600 W ultrasound power. Under these conditions, the Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) value of the extracts was 1074.61 ± 32.56 μmol Trolox/g dry weight (DW). Compared with conventional maceration (723.27 ± 11.61 μmol Trolox/g DW) and Soxhlet extraction methods (518.37 ± 23.23 μmol Trolox/g DW), the UAE method improved the extraction efficiency, in a shorter period of time. In addition, epicatechin gallate, epicatechin, rutin, epigallocatechin, protocatechuic acid, chlorogenic acid, and quercetin, were identified and quantified in the fruit extracts of Melastoma sanguineum Sims by UPLC-MS/MS. Full article

Natural antioxidants are widely distributed in food and medicinal plants. These natural antioxidants, especially polyphenols and carotenoids, exhibit a wide range of biological effects, including anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, anti-atherosclerosis and anticancer. The effective extraction and proper assessment of antioxidants from food and medicinal plants are crucial to explore the potential antioxidant sources and promote the application in functional foods, pharmaceuticals and food additives. The present paper provides comprehensive information on the green extraction technologies of natural antioxidants, assessment of antioxidant activity at chemical and cellular based levels and their main resources from food and medicinal plants. Full article

Previous studies have shown that fruits have different effects on alcohol metabolism and alcohol-induced liver injury. The present work selected three fruits and aimed at studying the effects of Syzygium samarangense, Passiflora edulis and Solanum muricatum on alcohol-induced liver injury in mice. The animals were treated daily with alcohol and fruit juices for fifteen days. Chronic treatment with alcohol increased the levels of aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), total bilirubin (TBIL), triglyceride (TG), malondialdehyde (MDA), and decreased total protein (TP). Histopathological evaluation also showed that ethanol induced extensive fat droplets in hepatocyte cytoplasm. Syzygium samarangense and Passiflora edulis normalized various biochemical parameters. Solanum muricatum increased the level of ALT and induced infiltration of inflammatory cells in the liver. These results strongly suggest that treatment with Syzygium samarangense and Passiflora edulis could protect liver from the injury of alcohol, while Solanum muricatum could aggravate the damage. Full article

Wild fruits are exotic or underutilized. Wild fruits contain many bioactive compounds, such as anthocyanins and flavonoids. Many studies have shown that wild fruits possess various bioactivities and health benefits, such as free radical scavenging, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer activity. Therefore, wild fruits have the potential to be developed into functional foods or pharmaceuticals to prevent and treat several chronic diseases. In the present article, we review current knowledge about the bioactivities and health benefits of wild fruits, which is valuable for the exploitation and utilization of wild fruits. Full article

Many mushrooms have been used as foods and medicines for a long time. Mushrooms contain polyphenols, polysaccharides, vitamins and minerals. Studies show that mushrooms possess various bioactivities, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, immunomodulatory, antimicrobial, hepatoprotective, and antidiabetic properties, therefore, mushrooms have attracted increasing attention in recent years, and could be developed into functional food or medicines for prevention and treatment of several chronic diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus and neurodegenerative diseases. The present review summarizes the bioactivities and health benefits of mushrooms, and could be useful for full utilization of mushrooms. Full article

The consumption of alcohol is often accompanied by other foods, such as fruits and vegetables. This study is aimed to investigate the effects of 20 selected fruits on ethanol metabolism to find out their potential health benefits and harmful impacts. The effects of the fruits on ethanol metabolism were characterized by the concentrations of ethanol and acetaldehyde in blood, as well as activities of alcohol dehydrogenase and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in liver of mice. Furthermore, potential health benefits and harmful impacts of the fruits were evaluated by biochemical parameters including aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transferase (ALT), malondialdehyde, and superoxide dismutase. Generally, effects of these fruits on ethanol metabolism were very different. Some fruits (such as Citrus limon (yellow), Averrhoa carambola, Pyrus spp., and Syzygium samarangense) could decrease the concentration of ethanol in blood. In addition, several fruits (such as Cucumis melo) showed hepatoprotective effects by significantly decreasing AST or ALT level in blood, while some fruits (such as Averrhoa carambola) showed adverse effects. The results suggested that the consumption of alcohol should not be accompanied by some fruits, and several fruits could be developed as functional foods for the prevention and treatment of hangover and alcohol use disorder. Full article

Nonalcoholic beverages are usually consumed accompanying alcoholic drinks, and their effects on alcohol metabolism are unclear in vivo. In this study, the effects of 20 nonalcoholic beverages on alcohol metabolism and liver injury caused by alcohol were evaluated in mice. Kunming mice were orally fed with alcohol (52%, v/v) and beverages. The concentrations of ethanol and acetaldehyde in blood as well as the activities of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) in liver were assessed to indicate alcohol metabolism. The levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT) in serum as well as the levels of malonaldehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in liver were measured to reflect the alcohol-induced liver injury. The results showed that the treatment of soda water, green tea and honey chrysanthemum tea could accelerate ethanol metabolism and prevent liver injuries caused by alcohol when companied with excessive alcohol drinking. They might be potential dietary supplements for the alleviation of harmful effects from excessive alcohol consumption. On the contrary, some beverages such as fresh orange juice and red bull are not advised to drink when companied with alcohol consumption due to their adverse effects on ethanol induced liver injury. Full article