Publications by authors named "Romeu A Videira"

Onion skin, often discarded during processing, remains rich in bioactive compounds, particularly flavonoids. This study assessed phenolic extraction (37 °C, 60 min) from and cultivars, using 70:30 ethanol:water. Extracts were rich in phenolics (103-155 mg/g), mainly quercetin and quercetin-4'--glucoside (61-67 %), and showed strong O (IC = 26-27.

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Ethnopharmacological Relevance: The use of "Mexican calea" (Calea zacatechichi Schltdl.) in ritualistic ceremonies, due to its dream-inducing effects, was until recently limited to indigenous communities in Mexico. However, the plant has recently gained popularity in Western societies being commonly used in recreational settings.

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Electrogenerated hydrophilic carbon (EHC) nanomaterials emerge as a highly attractive option for mimicking the activity of the superoxide dismutase enzyme (SOD) due to their exceptional water solubility and electron-transfer reversibility. Motivated by these properties, the EHC nanomaterials were utilized to assess the effect of ionic strength on the SOD-like activity. Superoxide anion radicals (O) were generated using the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system, with nitro blue tetrazolium chloride serving as the detecting system.

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Article Synopsis
  • Gelidium sesquipedale waste, often discarded after agar extraction, is rich in valuable nutrients and bioactive compounds.
  • A subcritical water extraction (SWE) method at high temperature and pressure was found to produce a superior extract compared to traditional ethanol extraction, offering a better nutritional profile and antioxidant properties.
  • The SWE extract is safe for human consumption and has potential applications in food and nutraceutical industries, highlighting its value in waste valorization.
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Article Synopsis
  • Onion skin waste (OSW), a byproduct of onion processing, can be transformed into valuable bioactive compounds using subcritical water extraction (SWE) methods.
  • This study found that SWE produced a phenolic-rich extract with significant health benefits, including various phenolic compounds and nutrients, which showed strong antioxidant properties and the ability to inhibit certain enzymes linked to diabetes.
  • The findings suggest that utilizing OSW through SWE offers a sustainable approach to create functional food ingredients without harmful solvents, supporting circular economy initiatives.
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The development of new therapeutic options for Parkinson's disease (PD) requires formulations able to mitigate both brain degeneration and motor dysfunctions. Nanophytosomes, an oral mitochondria-targeted formulation developed with membrane polar lipids and elderberry anthocyanin-enriched extract, promote significant brain benefits on a rotenone-induced rat model of PD. In the present work, the effects of Nanophytosome treatment on the skeletal muscle tissues are disclosed.

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Pest resistance against fungicides is a widespread and increasing problem, with impact on crop production and public health, making the development of new fungicides an urgent need. Chemical analyses of a crude methanol extract (CME) of leaves revealed the presence of sugars, phospholipids, phytosterols, guieranone A, porphyrin-containing compounds, and phenolics. To connect chemical composition with biological effects, solid-phase extraction was used to discard water-soluble compounds with low affinity for the C18 matrix and obtain an ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) that concentrates guieranone A and chlorophylls, and a methanol fraction (MF) dominated by phenolics.

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Mitochondrial dysfunction and cytosolic oxidative stress are pathological biomarkers interlinked in several chronic diseases and cellular toxicity promoted by high-energy radiation or xenobiotics. Thus, assessing the activities of the mitochondrial redox chain complexes and the cytosolic antioxidant enzymes in the same cell culture system is a valuable approach to addressing the challenge of chronic diseases or unveiling the molecular mechanisms underlying the toxicity of physical and chemical stress agents. The present article gathers the experimental procedures to obtain, from isolated cells, a mitochondria-free cytosolic fraction and a mitochondria-rich fraction.

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Parabens are esters of -hydroxybenzoic acid, used for decades as a preservative in many products, including agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, foods and cosmetics. Concerns regarding parabens toxicity include adverse effects on endocrine activity, carcinogenesis, infertility, spermatogenesis, and adipogenesis. The present study aimed to investigate the administration of methyl and butylparaben at concentrations of 100 and 200 mg/kg body weight, by subcutaneous injection, in variable murinometric measurements, antioxidant systems and genotoxicity.

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The anti-inflammatory potential of oleacein, the main polyphenolic compound found in olive oil, and its main metabolites were characterized by their effects on RAW 264.7 macrophages challenged with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and by their ability to inhibit enzymes of the arachidonic acid metabolism with a key role in the synthesis of pro-inflammatory lipid mediators. Oleacein at 12.

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Mitochondria are an attractive target to fight neurodegenerative diseases due to their important functions for cells and the particularly close relationship between the functional connectivity among brain regions and mitochondrial performance. This work presents a mitochondria-targeted therapy designed to modulate the functionality of the mitochondrial respiratory chain and lipidome, parameters that are affected in neurodegeneration, including in Parkinson's disease (PD). This therapy is supported by -Nanophytosomes constructed with membrane polar lipids, from , and elderberry anthocyanin-enriched extract, from L.

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From the simple unicellular eukaryote to the highly complex multicellular organism like Human, mitochondrion emerges as a ubiquitous player to ensure the organism's functionality. It is popularly known as "the powerhouse of the cell" by its key role in ATP generation. However, our understanding of the physiological relevance of mitochondria is being challenged by data obtained in different fields.

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Flavonoid-based therapies supported by nanotechnology are considered valuable strategies to prevent or delay age-related and chronic neurodegenerative disorders. Egg yolk phospholipids were combined with flavonoid-rich extracts obtained from Trichilia catigua A.Juss.

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The combination of two or more active pharmaceutical ingredients in the same dosage form - fixed-dose combination products - for topical administration represents a promising therapeutic approach for treating several pathologies, including pain. The pre-clinical development of fixed-dose combination products aims to characterize the interactions between the different APIs and ensure that the final medicinal product has the required safety characteristics. To this end, there are several regulatory accepted in vitro tests to assess the safety of medicinal products intended for cutaneous administration.

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The combination in a fixed dose of two or more active pharmaceutical ingredients in the same pharmaceutical dosage form is an approach that has been used successfully in the treatment of several pathologies, including pain. In the preclinical development of a topical fixed-dose combination product with analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities for pain management, the main objective is to establish the nature of the interaction between the different active pharmaceutical ingredients while obtaining data on the medicinal product safety and efficacy. Despite the improvement of in vitro assays, animal models remain a fundamental strategy to characterise the interaction, efficacy and safety of active pharmaceutical ingredients at the physiological level, which cannot be reached by in vitro assays.

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Scope: Exposure to a high-fat diet (HFD) from early-life is associated with a testicular metabolic signature link to abnormal sperm parameters up to two generations after exposure in mice. Hereby, this study describes a testicular lipid signature associate with "inherited metabolic memory" of exposure to HFD, persisting up to two generations in mice.

Methods And Results: Diet-challenged mice (n = 36) are randomly fed after weaning with standard chow (CTRL); HFD for 200 days or transient HFD (HFD ) (60 days of HFD + 140 days of standard chow).

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The development of nanomedicines to modulate the mitochondrial function is a great scientific challenge since mitochondrial dysfunction is a pathological hallmark of many chronic diseases, including degenerative brain pathologies like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. To address this challenge, the mitochondriotropic features of the elderberry anthocyanin-enriched extract (Sambucus nigra) were combined with the self-assembling properties of the membrane polar lipids from Codium tomentosum in an innovative SC-Nanophytosomes formulation. Membrane polar lipids, obtained by a new procedure as chlorophyll-free extract, are characterized by 26% of non-phosphorus polar lipids and 74% of phospholipids (dominated by anionic lipids) containing a high degree of polyunsaturated fatty acids.

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Reversible acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors are key therapeutic tools to modulate the cholinergic connectivity compromised in several degenerative pathologies. In this work, four alkyl esters of homarine were synthesized and screened by using Electrophorus electricus AChE and rat brain AChE-rich fraction. Results showed that all homarine alkyl esters are able to inhibit AChE by a competitive inhibition mode.

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Several environmental pollutants, including pesticides, herbicides and persistent organic pollutants play an important role in the development of chronic diseases. However, most studies have examined environmental pollutants toxicity in target organisms or using a specific toxicological test, losing the real effect throughout the ecosystem. In this sense an integrative environmental risk of pollutants assessment, using different model organisms is necessary to predict the real impact in the ecosystem and implications for target and non-target organisms.

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Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Flavonoids interact with multiple targets in Central Nervous System resulting in a broad neuroprotection mediated by complementary processes and synergic interactions. Therefore, flavonoid-based therapies may input positive outcomes in the prevention and early management of neurodegenerative diseases. In Brazilian folk medicine Trichilia catigua is used for its neuroactive properties, such as neurostimulant, antioxidant and anti-neuroinflammatory, while Turnera diffusa is traditionally used as a tonic in neurasthenia.

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Parabens, alkyl ester derivatives from p-hydroxybenzoic acid, are extensively used as antimicrobial preservatives. Nonetheless, due to its widespread and massive employment, several studies highlighted the association between parabens and alterations in the reproductive system. This study aimed to relate the adverse effect of the most commonly used parabens in testis mitochondria with male fertility.

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Caryota urens L. has long been valued as a traditional food, the edible fruits being eaten raw and the inflorescences commonly used on sweet sap and flour production. In the current work, the phenolic profile of methanol extracts obtained from the inflorescences and fruits was unveiled for the first time, nine caffeic acid derivatives being identified and quantified.

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Childhood obesity is a serious concern associated with ill health later in life. Emerging data suggest that obesity has long-term adverse effects upon male sexual and reproductive health, but few studies have addressed this issue. We hypothesized that exposure to high-fat diet during early life alters testicular lipid content and metabolism, leading to permanent damage to sperm parameters.

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A polyphenols-rich extract was obtained from polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP) winery residue, and its neuroprotective effects and ability to modulate the kinetics of type 2 diabetes-relevant enzymes were characterized. The PVPP-white wine extract is a mixture of polyphenols (840.08 ± 161.

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A new protocol to obtain egg yolk phospholipids in ethanol is presented. Rutin-phospholipids nanoliposomes were prepared and characterized. The procedure takes advantage of the different solubility of egg yolk lipids in ethanol and acetone at low temperature, to efficiently obtain a phospholipid-rich fraction of high purity degree.

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