Therapeutic Application of Betalains: A Review
1
Biotechnology Research Center and Student’s Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz 51368, Iran
2
Research Center for Pharmaceutical Nanotechnology, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz 51368, Iran
3
School of Pharmacy, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, Korea
4
Drug Applied Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz 51368, Iran
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Plants 2020, 9(9), 1219; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9091219
Received: 3 August 2020
/
Revised: 8 September 2020
/
Accepted: 11 September 2020
/
Published: 17 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structurally and/or Biologically Novel Natural Products from Medicinal Plants)
Anthocyanins, betalains, riboflavin, carotenoids, chlorophylls and caramel are the basic natural food colorants used in modern food manufacture. Betalains, which are composed of red–violet betacyanin and yellow betaxanthins, are water-soluble pigments that color flowers and fruits. Betalains are pigments primarily produced by plants of the order Caryophyllales. Because of their anti-inflammatory, cognitive impairment, anticancer and anti-hepatitis properties, betalains are useful as pharmaceutical agents and dietary supplements. Betalains also exhibit antimicrobial and antimalarial effects, and as an example, betalain-rich Amaranthus spinosus displays prominent antimalarial activity. Studies also confirmed the antidiabetic effect of betalains, which reduced glycemia by 40% without causing weight loss or liver impairment. These findings show that betalain colorants may be a promising alternative to the synthetic dyes currently used as food additives.
View Full-Text
Keywords:
betalain; cancer; natural product; beetroot; Beta vulgaris
▼
Show Figures
Graphical abstract
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
MDPI and ACS Style
Madadi, E.; Mazloum-Ravasan, S.; Yu, J.S.; Ha, J.W.; Hamishehkar, H.; Kim, K.H. Therapeutic Application of Betalains: A Review. Plants 2020, 9, 1219. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9091219
AMA Style
Madadi E, Mazloum-Ravasan S, Yu JS, Ha JW, Hamishehkar H, Kim KH. Therapeutic Application of Betalains: A Review. Plants. 2020; 9(9):1219. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9091219
Chicago/Turabian StyleMadadi, Elaheh, Sahand Mazloum-Ravasan, Jae S. Yu, Ji W. Ha, Hamed Hamishehkar, and Ki H. Kim. 2020. "Therapeutic Application of Betalains: A Review" Plants 9, no. 9: 1219. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9091219
Find Other Styles
Note that from the first issue of 2016, MDPI journals use article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.
