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Potential Health Benefits of Plant Food-Derived Bioactive Compounds
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Potential Health Benefits of Plant Food-Derived Bioactive Compounds

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 September 2025 | Viewed by 2714

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Qiang Peng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Yangling District, Xianyang 712100, China
Interests: natural products and nutrition
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In contemporary society, due to the improvement in individuals’ awareness of the importance of good health, the demand for nutritional foods is increasing. People are no longer satisfied with mere sustenance but prioritize the impact of food on their health. Consequently, the pursuit of pure, natural, and healthy sources of nutrition has become a prominent research issue. Against this backdrop, bioactive compounds in plant foods have garnered increased attention, as they have unique chemical structures and play pivotal roles in promoting human health. They are indispensable for sustaining the human immune system and combating diseases. Thus, studying bioactive compounds will allow individuals to make scientifically informed choices regarding their diets, enhancing their quality of life and well-being. Simultaneously, such research will facilitate advancements in food technology while offering greater possibilities for future developments within the healthcare industry.

This Special Issue of the journal Food will summarize and present the latest research findings regarding the multiple potential health benefits of bioactive compounds derived from plant foods. Our objective is to investigate the bioactive compounds derived from plant food sources. Indeed, we will not only emphasize the preventive health benefits of these compounds in terms of disease prevention but also focus in depth on their therapeutic effects in terms of preventing anti-oxidative stress, sustaining cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health, enhancing the immune system, and improving cognitive function, which are known as functional health benefits. We welcome original research articles and reviews that explore such topics and contribute to improving human nutritional health.

Dr. Qiang Peng
Guest Editor

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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

  • plant food-derived bioactive compounds
  • functional ingredients of food
  • preventive health benefits (potential to prevent certain diseases)
  • functional health benefits (with the effect of treating some diseases, such as antioxidant stress, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health, immune system and cognitive function, etc.)
  • dietary nutrition
  • individual differences
  • dose–response relationship
  • nutrition
  • healthy foods

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 6090 KiB  
Article
The Functional Components and Hepatic Protective Mechanism of Wolfberry Vinegar by Mixed-Culture Fermentation
by Xiao Qiang, Man Zhao, Ting Xia, Qi Wang, Junwei Yu, Yunru Song, Huimin Zhang, Changsheng Qiao and Min Wang
Foods 2025, 14(7), 1278; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14071278 - 7 Apr 2025
Viewed by 271
Abstract
Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum L.), as a kind of combination of medicine and food, is rich in antioxidant components. However, the deep-processed products of wolfberry need to be developed to improve its added value. This study aimed to investigate the nutrients, active antioxidant [...] Read more.
Wolfberry (Lycium barbarum L.), as a kind of combination of medicine and food, is rich in antioxidant components. However, the deep-processed products of wolfberry need to be developed to improve its added value. This study aimed to investigate the nutrients, active antioxidant ingredients, and liver-protective mechanism of mixed-culture fermented wolfberry vinegar (MFV). The results showed that MFV had significantly higher protein and significantly lower fat content than wolfberry juice before fermentation, indicating that MFV was a healthy product. The active ingredient content, which included total phenolics, total flavonoids, polysaccharides, betaine, and antioxidant activities, was significantly increased in MFV after mixed-culture fermentation. Moreover, MFV improved histopathological changes and reduced liver biochemical indicators in alcohol-treated mice, indicating the improvement of liver function. In addition, MFV effectively alleviated alcohol-induced liver injury by increasing the expression of alcohol metabolizing enzymes and inhibiting CYP2E1 activity. MFV regulated the equilibrium between pro-oxidant and antioxidant levels by downregulating pro-oxidant markers and upregulating antioxidant markers. Furthermore, MFV reduced the levels of inflammatory indexes by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway. These results suggest that MFV is a healthy food for liver protection, which provides a strategy for deep-processed products of wolfberry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential Health Benefits of Plant Food-Derived Bioactive Compounds)
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16 pages, 1107 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Multifaceted Biological Activities of Anthocyanins Isolated from Two Andean Berries
by Carlos Barba-Ostria, Saskya E. Carrera-Pacheco, Rebeca Gonzalez-Pastor, Johana Zuñiga-Miranda, Arianna Mayorga-Ramos, Eduardo Tejera and Linda P. Guamán
Foods 2024, 13(16), 2625; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13162625 - 21 Aug 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1680
Abstract
Natural pigments extracted from plant species are used in foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. This study evaluates the comprehensive biological activities of anthocyanins isolated from Andean blueberry (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth) and Andean blackberry (Rubus glaucus Benth), focusing on their antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumoral, [...] Read more.
Natural pigments extracted from plant species are used in foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. This study evaluates the comprehensive biological activities of anthocyanins isolated from Andean blueberry (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth) and Andean blackberry (Rubus glaucus Benth), focusing on their antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumoral, anti-inflammatory, and hemolytic properties. Chemical characterization revealed significant anthocyanin content with complex mass spectrometric profiles indicating diverse glycosylation patterns that may influence their bioactivity. The antimicrobial assays showed that the extracts were particularly effective against Gram-positive bacteria, with minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) as low as 1 mg/mL for Rubus glaucus, indicating strong potential for therapeutic use. The antioxidant capacity of the berries was substantial, albeit slightly lower than that of ascorbic acid. The extracts also exhibited notable antitumoral activity in various cancer cell lines, showing promise as adjunctive or preventive treatments. The anti-inflammatory effects were confirmed by inhibiting nitric oxide production in macrophage cells, highlighting their potential in managing inflammatory diseases. In terms of hemolytic activity, Rubus glaucus exhibited dose-dependent effects, potentially attributable to anthocyanins and phenolics, while Vaccinium floribundum demonstrated no significant hemolytic activity, underscoring its safety. These findings suggest that anthocyanins from Andean berries possess potent biological activities, which could be leveraged for health benefits in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical applications. Further studies are needed to isolate specific bioactive compounds and investigate their synergistic effects in clinical and real-world contexts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Potential Health Benefits of Plant Food-Derived Bioactive Compounds)
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