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Nutrients
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Bioactive Compounds and Functional Foods in Human Health—2nd Edition
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Bioactive Compounds and Functional Foods in Human Health—2nd Edition

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemicals and Human Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 December 2025 | Viewed by 463

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Vassilis Athanasiadis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Thessaly, Terma N. Temponera Str., 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: functional foods; polyphenols; antioxidants; public health; nutritional evaluation; natural product extracts
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Stavros I. Lalas

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Thessaly, Terma N. Temponera Str., 43100 Karditsa, Greece
Interests: food lipids; food analysis; pulsed electric field; cloud point extraction; deep eutectic solvents; humic and fulvic acids
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Bioactive compounds are important for developing functional foods that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. These substances, many of which are sourced from plants, include polyphenols, flavonoids, carotenoids, and vitamins. They have been recognized for their potential in promoting biological processes and contributing to preventing and managing chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer. Numerous studies have examined bioactive substances’ anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic, and antioxidant qualities. Functional foods enriched with these compounds can target specific mechanisms, offering a promising approach to disease management and prevention and overall health enhancement.

Considering the success of the previous Special Issue, entitled “Bioactive Compounds and Functional Foods in Human Health”, we announce a second Special Issue on this topic. The most recent findings on bioactive compounds and functional foods in relation to human health are highlighted in this Special Issue of Nutrients. We invite researchers, scientists, and industry experts from food and nutritional sciences to share their expertise and contribute to this Special Issue.

Dr. Vassilis Athanasiadis
Prof. Dr. Stavros I. Lalas
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 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. Nutrients 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

  • antioxidants
  • bioactive compounds
  • food technology
  • functional food
  • green extraction techniques
  • health potentials
  • molecular mechanisms
  • polyphenols
  • shelf life
  • vitamins

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 995 KiB  
Article
Nano-Encapsulated Phytosterols Ameliorate Hypercholesterolemia in Mice via Dual Modulation of Cholesterol Metabolism Pathways
by Aixia Zhu, Wenjing Pan, Wenjia Jiao, Kai Peng, Chunwei Wang, Chi Zhang and Jiaqi Zhang
Nutrients 2025, 17(13), 2086; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17132086 - 23 Jun 2025
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Abstract
Background: The limited bioavailability of free phytosterols restricts their clinical application in managing hypercholesterolemia. This study aimed to develop phytosterol nanoparticles (PNs) to enhance bioactivity and investigate their cholesterol-lowering efficacy and underlying mechanisms in vivo. Methods: Phytosterol nanoparticles (PNs) (93.35 nm) were engineered [...] Read more.
Background: The limited bioavailability of free phytosterols restricts their clinical application in managing hypercholesterolemia. This study aimed to develop phytosterol nanoparticles (PNs) to enhance bioactivity and investigate their cholesterol-lowering efficacy and underlying mechanisms in vivo. Methods: Phytosterol nanoparticles (PNs) (93.35 nm) were engineered using soy protein isolate and administered orally at concentrations of 4.00–12.50 mg/mL to high-fat-diet-induced hypercholesterolemic mice (n = 60) over a 4-week period. Serum and hepatic lipid profiles, histopathology, gene/protein expression related to cholesterol metabolism, and fecal sterol content were evaluated. Results: PNs dose-dependently reduced serum total cholesterol (TC: 28.6–36.8%), triglycerides (TG: 22.4–30.1%), and LDL-C (31.2–39.5%), while increasing HDL-C by 18.7–23.4% compared to hyperlipidemic controls (p < 0.01). Hepatic TC and TG accumulation decreased by 34.2% and 41.7%, respectively, at the highest dose, with histopathology confirming attenuated fatty degeneration. Mechanistically, PNs simultaneously suppressed cholesterol synthesis through downregulating HMGCR (3.2-fold) and SREBP2 (2.8-fold), while enhancing cholesterol catabolism via CYP7A1 upregulation (2.1-fold) at protein level. Although less potent than simvastatin (p < 0.05), the nanoparticles exhibited unique dual-pathway modulation absent in conventional phytosterol formulations. Fecal analysis revealed dose-responsive cholesterol excretion (36.01 vs. 11.79 mg/g in controls), indicating enhanced enteric elimination. While slightly less potent than simvastatin (p < 0.05), PNs offered unique dual-pathway modulation absent in conventional phytosterol formulations. Conclusions: Nano-encapsulation significantly improves the bioavailability and hypocholesterolemic efficacy of phytosterols. PNs represent a promising nutraceutical strategy for cholesterol management by concurrently regulating cholesterol synthesis and catabolism, with potential application in both preventive and therapeutic contexts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Compounds and Functional Foods in Human Health—2nd Edition)
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Review

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23 pages, 2198 KiB  
Review
Dietary Polyphenols: Luteolin, Quercetin, and Apigenin as Potential Therapeutic Agents in the Treatment of Gliomas
by Weronika Justyńska, Mikołaj Grabarczyk, Ewa Smolińska, Aleksandra Szychowska, Andrzej Glabinski and Piotr Szpakowski
Nutrients 2025, 17(13), 2202; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17132202 - 1 Jul 2025
Abstract
Polyphenols are a group of plant-derived compounds that possess a wide range of possible industrial and pharmaceutical applications. Their mechanisms of action are often enabled by their multifaceted anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. As a result of their promising biological profile, they have been [...] Read more.
Polyphenols are a group of plant-derived compounds that possess a wide range of possible industrial and pharmaceutical applications. Their mechanisms of action are often enabled by their multifaceted anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. As a result of their promising biological profile, they have been the focus of extensive research, which has examined their potential in the treatment of various diseases. These studies have observed that polyphenols may be associated with decreased neoplastic cellular growth, therefore offering valuable potential in oncological therapies. Quercetin, luteolin, and apigenin belong to the group of polyphenols with the most documented efficacy in this regard, particularly against tumors of glial origin. This review gathers information from a multitude of in vitro investigations and animal-model-based research that explore the molecular pathways and biochemical mechanisms engaged by polyphenols which enable their anti-tumoral activity in the central nervous system. Ultimately, this article aims to summarize this research and use this data to comment on the influence of polyphenols on glioma-affected subjects, in addition to exploring methods for increasing their bioavailability for the purposes of clinical application. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Compounds and Functional Foods in Human Health—2nd Edition)
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