Mondher Boulaaba

This study investigated the impact of seed coat removal (decortication) on the phenolic composition and antioxidant activities of two Tunisian faba bean (Vicia faba L.) cultivars (Local Nabeul and Local Beja). The total phenolic, flavonoid, and tannin contents, alongside three antioxidant activity assays (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging, β-carotene bleaching inhibition, and total antioxidant ability), were measured in whole and decorticated seeds. The results indicated that decortication did not significantly alter total phenolic and flavonoid content but variably influenced specific antioxidant activities depending on the cultivar. Notably, DPPH radical scavenging activity improved by 25–35% following decortication, suggesting that removal of the seed coat eliminated interfering compounds such as tannins, thereby enhancing the extract's free radical neutralizing efficiency. Conversely, total antioxidant ability slightly decreased, indicating the loss of some pro-oxidant or metal-reducing compounds concentrated in the hull. Tannin content was identified as the primary discriminating variable between cultivars and was significantly reduced by the process. Multivariate analyses, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and hierarchical clustering, demonstrated distinct discrimination among samples. Local Beja Whole Seeds (LBWS) clustered distinctly due to its high tannin content, while decorticated samples from both cultivars grouped together. This reveals that processing can dominate cultivar-based differences in functional properties. This study demonstrates that decortication's effect is not uniform but rather dependent on both the specific cultivar and the antioxidant mechanism evaluated, providing crucial insights for optimising faba bean processing to balance nutritional retention with sensory improvement.

Epidemiologic studies keep up the proposition that Allium vegetables can lower the risk of cancers. Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells exhibit high proliferative potency and have a reduced capacity of undergoing apoptosis and maturation. The beneficial effects of Allium seem related to the organosulfur products generated upon processing of these species. For this purpose, the aim of this study was to test Allium roseum fresh (FAE), crude (CAE) and dried (DAE) aqueous extracts for activity against the human acute leukemia cell line (U937). As assessed by flow cytometry, inhibited cell proliferation was in a dose-dependent manner. Firstly, study showed that cell growth was inhibited with 20 mg/mL using FAE and CAE (60% and 73% respectively). Secondly, our experiments clearly indicate that all A. roseum extracts do not induce cell apoptosis. This was confirmed by the soft binding of Annexin V to phosphatidylserine. Finally, the high expression of macrophage's marker CD11 associated with adequate morphological changes proves clearly the differentiation aspect produced by A. roseum extract. Taken together, these data suggest that A. roseum could be a promising candidate for the alternative medicine in the field of cancer therapy.

Diabetes mellitus, especially type 2 (T2DM), is a major public health problem globally. DM is characterized by high levels of glycemia and insulinemia due to impaired insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity of the cells, known as insulin resistance. T2DM causes multiple and severe complications such as nephropathy, neuropathy, and retinopathy causing cell oxidative damages in different internal tissues, particularly the pancreas, heart, adipose tissue, liver, and kidneys. Plant extracts and their bioactive phytochemicals are gaining interest as new therapeutic and preventive alternatives for T2DM and its associated complications. In this regard, isorhamnetin, a plant flavonoid, has long been studied for its potential anti-diabetic effects. This review describes its impact on reducing diabetes-related disorders by decreasing glucose levels, ameliorating the oxidative status, alleviating inflammation, and modulating lipid metabolism and adipocyte differentiation by regulating involved signaling pathways reported in the in vitro and in vivo studies. Additionally, we include a post hoc whole-genome transcriptome analysis of biological activities of isorhamnetin using a stem cell-based tool.

The edible halophyte Nitraria retusa known in traditional medicine purposes was used as a support in this study. The present study investigated the chemical analyses of the general composition of leaf and stem extracts using RP-HPLC. Results showed the richness of these extracts in phenolics especially flavonoids as luteolin-7-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside, isorhamnetin, quercetin and others. In total, nine compounds were identified for each organ extract. Luteolin-7-O-glucoside, isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside and Isorhamnetin are three flavonoids which are common in leaves and stems. Adipogenesis assay was performed to investigate the effect of organs, as well as the three last compounds on the adipocyte differentiation and on the lipid droplets accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells. Based on Oil-Red-O content quantification in 3T3-L1 cells, results showed that each extract of N. retusa at 25, 50, 100, 200 and 400 μg/mL could not inhibit the lipid droplet accumulation compared to untreated cells, in dose dependent manner. However, compounds showed better effect especially with isorhamnetin even with 5μM. Moreover, the effect of extracts and single bioactive components on cell proliferation of 3T3-L1 cells showed that stem extract was more efficient than leaf one. Besides, according to morphological observation, isorhamnetin strongly and significantly affected cell proliferation.