Parvatam Giridhar

Introduction: Tea (Camellia sinensis L., family Theaceae) is a widely consumed, low-cost beverage valued for its rich aroma, cultural significance, and various health benefits. However, the value of processed Tea Dust (TD) residues in terms of nutritional, bioactive, and functional properties is not well characterized. This study aimed to evaluate the nutritional and bioactive compounds in processed tea dust residues. It included samples with sugar and with both milk and sugar. The study also assessed their antioxidant and anti-cancer properties. Methods: Standardized protocols were implemented to assess nutritional components (carbohydrates, proteins, and minerals) and bioactive compounds (phenolics, flavonoids, and alkaloids, including theobromine, theophylline, and caffeine) using HPLC and GC-MS. The anticancer activity of these compounds was tested against Hep-G2 and MCF-7 cell lines in vitro. Results: The data reveal that carbohydrate and protein retention were significantly good in the processed TD residue. The C16:0 was the major fatty acid across all samples (40-45 µmol%), followed by about 20 µmol% of oleic acid (C18:1) and linoleic acid (C18:2). Processed samples with sugar for 15 minutes had the highest gallic acid (313.88 mg/100 g) and rutin (59.54 mg/100 g) content. Theobromine content increased with prolonged extraction and sugar addition but decreased with milk addition. Added sugar also maximised total phenolics and flavonoids extraction. These bioactives showed promising antioxidant and anticancer properties. Discussion: The spent tea dust biomass was proven to be rich in nutritional and nutraceutical activities. In addition, the extracts of spent biomass possess bioactive metabolites and good anti-cancer activity against Hep-G2 and MCF-7 cell lines. Hence, the tea dust spent residue (with and without sugar processing) could be used for various commercial-scale industrial applications. Conclusions: These research findings support the reuse of TD residue possessing a quality profile of nutritional, phenolic, flavonoid, and antioxidant activities exhibiting a very good anticancer activity. Hence, it could be

Light is one of the essential environmental factors that significantly influences the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites in plants. To explicate their effect, exposure of monochromatic LED light spectra (yellow, blue, green, red, and white) on the accumulation of capsaicinoids, phenolic compounds, antioxidant capacity, and regulation of transcriptional changes in capsaicinoids biosynthesis genes at 24, 48, and 72 h in chili callus cultures was investigated. Blue light significantly increased capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin contents by 41.43‐fold and 4.36‐fold, respectively, compared to white light. Pearson correlation analysis confirmed a strong positive correlation between total phenolics, total flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity ( r > 0.85). Gene expression analysis revealed that the biosynthetic genes ( pAMT, KAS, ACS, ACL, CL, C4H , and CS ) were upregulated, and their associated transcription factors—MYB, ERF, and JERF—showed varied expression, indicating their putative regulatory role in capsaicinoid biosynthesis under different monochromatic LED conditions. Our findings demonstrate that the targeted monochromatic LED lights can enhance bioactive compound production in C. annuum callus cultures, providing a favorable strategy for feasible production of the industrially important compound “capsaicin” on a large scale for pharmaceutical and food applications.

An aqueous extract from the tuberous roots of Decalepis hamiltonii was encapsulated by spray-drying and freeze-drying for food applications. The study aimed to identify suitable carrier materials among sodium caseinate, maltodextrin, and gum acacia, used alone and in blends, to understand their collective effect during encapsulation. The physicochemical characteristics of freeze-dried and spray-dried samples revealed differences of 14%–20% in 2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzaldehyde, 12%–40% in phenolic content, and 7%–40% in flavonoid content in the dried powders. Similarly, the methanol extracts of freeze-dried encapsulated samples demonstrated good antioxidant potential compared with those of spray-dried encapsulated powder. Among the carrier materials used, sodium caseinate showed good retention of bioactives and a flavor metabolite (2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde), which was quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography (encapsulation efficiency 82%; yield 40 w/w) and confirmed by ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). However, in this study considering flavor retention and powder yield (encapsulation efficiency 74% and 59 w/w), maltodextrin in combination with sodium caseinate (MS) was observed to be the best carrier material for spray-drying. These "maltodextrin–sodium caseinate" microcapsules are stable and show 70% retention of flavor metabolite after 3 months of storage at room temperature, with the microbial load remaining within acceptable limits. The particle size of the carrier materials ranges from 11.1 to 17.6 µm. Thus, the current study suggests that a carrier material mixture (sodium caseinate and maltodextrin) can be used as a prospective material for encapsulating Decalepis hamiltonii bioactives with flavor metabolites and may be useful in food formulations.