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The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits
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The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2025) | Viewed by 4316

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Ruth Belmares

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Functional Foods & Nutrition Group, Food Research Department, School of Chemistry, Autonomous University of Coahuila, Saltillo 25280, Coahuila, Mexico
Interests: functional foods; dietary supplements; nutrition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Mario Alberto Cruz-Hernández

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Functional Foods & Nutrition Group, Food Science and Technology Department, Antonio Narro Autonomous Agrarian University, Saltillo C.P. 25315, Coahuila, Mexico
Interests: functional foods; dietary supplements; nutraceuticals
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue ‘The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits’ aims to explore the dynamic field of food bioactives, focusing on their chemical composition, innovative applications, and profound health impacts. This issue invites contributions from experts actively engaged in researching bioactive compounds present in foods, emphasizing their extraction techniques, molecular structures, and physiological roles. Topics will encompass novel methodologies for bioactive isolation, analytical approaches to characterize their chemical diversity, and bioactive ingredient-enriched innovative food formulations. Furthermore, the issue will highlight the potential health benefits of bioactive consumption, including their roles in disease prevention and health promotion. This Special Issue seeks to advance our understanding of food bioactives and their implications for human health by gathering state-of-the-art research and innovative perspectives.

Prof. Dr. Ruth Elizabeth Belmares Cerda
Prof. Dr. Mario Alberto Cruz-Hernández
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bioactive compounds
  • food chemistry
  • nutraceuticals
  • functional foods
  • health benefits
  • food innovation
  • extraction techniques
  • antioxidants
  • phytochemicals
  • dietary supplements

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 51606 KB  
Article
Ellagic Acid Prevents Obesity in High-Fat Diet-Fed Rats by Ameliorating Oxidative Stress via Modulation of the PPARG/STAT3/p-AKT1 Axis
by Yuancui Zheng, Qin Yuan, Shiyao Hu and Huiqun Wang
Foods 2026, 15(5), 890; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15050890 - 5 Mar 2026
Viewed by 515
Abstract
This study investigated the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of ellagic acid (EA) against high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity. Using network pharmacology, STAT3 and AKT1 were identified as pivotal regulatory targets. In vivo experiments demonstrated that EA intervention significantly reduced body weight inducement, improved [...] Read more.
This study investigated the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of ellagic acid (EA) against high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity. Using network pharmacology, STAT3 and AKT1 were identified as pivotal regulatory targets. In vivo experiments demonstrated that EA intervention significantly reduced body weight inducement, improved lipid profiles, and attenuated intestinal oxidative stress and inflammation in HFD-fed rats. Furthermore, EA restored intestinal architecture and mitochondrial morphology. Mechanistically, EA markedly downregulated the expression of PPARG, STAT3 and p-AKT1 in both intestinal tissues and TNF-α-stimulated HaCaT cells. Collectively, these findings suggest that EA prevents HFD-induced obesity by alleviating intestinal oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction through the modulation of the PPARG/STAT3/p-AKT1 signaling axis. This study provides novel evidence for EA as a potential natural bioactive compound for the management of metabolic disorders. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits)
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22 pages, 3060 KB  
Article
Exopolysaccharides from Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus Fmb14 Ameliorate Fructose-Induced Hyperuricemia and Fatty Liver via Gut Modulation
by Hongyuan Zhao, Zihan Zhang, Xiaoyu Chen, Chao Tang, Li Song, Zhaoxin Lu and Yingjian Lu
Foods 2026, 15(3), 409; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15030409 - 23 Jan 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 816
Abstract
Fructose dietary intake is one of the most common risk factors for hyperuricemia, which is a critical threat to human health, and the lack of an effective biological intervention method is the main problem in preventing hyperuricemia caused by fructose intake. Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus [...] Read more.
Fructose dietary intake is one of the most common risk factors for hyperuricemia, which is a critical threat to human health, and the lack of an effective biological intervention method is the main problem in preventing hyperuricemia caused by fructose intake. Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus Fmb14 (L. rhamnosus Fmb14) has a fructose-metabolizing ability to produce extracellular polysaccharides (EPSs), and the yield of EPSs reached 0.50 and 0.42 g/L after 48 h of fermentation in liquid media of glucose-MRS and fructose-MRS. Six pure polysaccharide components were obtained after purification. A hyperuricemic mouse model was subsequently established by feeding a 60% high-fructose diet with potassium oxyazinate for 8 weeks, and the results revealed that L. rhamnosus Fmb14 and fructose-derived EPS (F-EPS) intervention significantly reduced the serum uric acid level of the model mice from 133.6 μmol/L to 106.7 to 111.0 μmol/L. The content of XOD in the liver decreased from 2188.1 ng/L in the model group to 1797.9 ng/L in the H-Fmb14 group and 1906.6 ng/L in the H-F-EPS group, alleviating fatty liver degeneration and improving intestinal barrier (increasing OCLN and ZO1 expression in colon). The abundances of allobaculum, bacteroides, Lactobacilli prevotella, and clostridium, the new potential biomarkers of fructose-induced hyperuricemia, were found to be modulated after Fmb14 and F-EPS intervention. The effects of Fmb14 and F-EPS in reducing uric acid synthesis and protecting the intestinal tract are very promising as food intervention agents in the prevention of hyperuricemia caused by fructose dietary. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits)
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16 pages, 7427 KB  
Article
Egg Yolk Granule Nanoparticles Promote Longitudinal Bone Growth in HFD-Obese Mice
by Wanyu Xue, Chunhui Yu, Haodong Liu, Jingxuan Zhang and Bo Li
Foods 2025, 14(17), 3109; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14173109 - 5 Sep 2025
Viewed by 1696
Abstract
The relationship between obesity and bone development remains uncertain and requires further study. Egg yolk granules (EYGs), due to their high content of phosvitin (PV), are speculated to have the potential to promote bone growth. And EYGs nanoparticles (EYG NPs) may help improve [...] Read more.
The relationship between obesity and bone development remains uncertain and requires further study. Egg yolk granules (EYGs), due to their high content of phosvitin (PV), are speculated to have the potential to promote bone growth. And EYGs nanoparticles (EYG NPs) may help improve their digestibility. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of EYG NPs on longitudinal bone growth in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. EYG NPs were prepared by treating EYGs with (NaPO3)6 and ultrasonication, then characterized. The simulated gastrointestinal digestion experiment indicated that the modification of EYG significantly enhanced the digestibility of PV. After 12 weeks of intervention, body growth indicators, serum bone metabolism markers, tibial length, bone mineral density (BMD) and growth plate height were measured. In obesity model, the body length increased, while serum ALP activity decreased, and BMD showed no differences compared to those in Normal group. High-dose EYG NPs supplementation promoted longitudinal bone growth of obese mice, as evidenced by increased tibial length, elevated serum ALP activity, and enhanced growth plate height, while maintaining BMD. These findings suggest that EYG NPs have the potential of promoting longitudinal bone growth among the adolescent obese population. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Power of Food Bioactives: Chemistry, Innovation, and Health Benefits)
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