Abstract
Aging is one of the main risk factor for the onset of cardiovascular diseases; one of the possible explanations could be linked to the age-associated overproduction of free radicals. This increase of oxidative stress can be overcome with a high intake of food antioxidants. In this context, a number of studies have been addressed to assess the antiaging potential of natural antioxidant compounds. Recently, it has been shown that the juice of bergamot (Citrus bergamia Risso et Poiteau), a fruit mostly produced in the Ionian coastal areas of Southern Italy (Calabria), is a valuable source of health-promoting constituents with, among other, antioxidant properties. In order to investigate the potential antiaging effects of this Mediterranean natural antioxidant source, bergamot juices of three different cultivars (“fantastico,” “femminello,” and “castagnaro”) were herein characterized by the mean of high-performance liquid chromatography-photodiode array-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry. Then, juices were investigated for the evaluation of total polyphenolic and flavonoid contents, cell-free model antioxidant activities, and in vitro antiaging properties on two different cellular models of induced myocardial senescence. The best performing juice was also assessed in vivo. The phytochemical profiles confirmed that juices were rich in flavonoids, both flavone and flavanone glycosides. In addition, two limonoid glycosides were also identified in all cultivars. Each cultivar showed different phenolic and flavonoid contents. In tube results showed the juice robust antioxidant activities that correlate with their phenolic and flavonoid contents. Moreover, for the first time, the ability of juice to counteract the chemical-induced senescence was here demonstrated in both cellular models. Lastly, the in vivo data obtained from mouse hearts evidenced an increase in transcription of genes involved in antiaging and antioxidant responses. The overall results suggest that bergamot juice exerts antioxidant and antisenescence effects, making it useful for nutraceutical purposes.
Highlights
The pathogenesis of many age-associated diseases can be due to an increase of oxidative stress; the overproduction of free radicals could impair protein and fatty acid functions and could lead to DNA damage, predisposing to age-related disorders [1]
Bergamot (Citrus bergamia Risso et Poiteau), a fruit mostly produced in the Ionian coastal areas of Southern Italy (Calabria), has been demonstrated to be a valuable source of health-promoting molecules that contribute to its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and cholesterol reduction capacities [8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17]
Natural polyphenols have gained considerable attention as potential agents for prevention and treatment of oxidative stress-related diseases, such as aging and cardiovascular diseases [5, 51], and in particular, the Mediterranean citrus fruit bergamot has been demonstrated to be a valuable source of antioxidant molecules
Summary
The pathogenesis of many age-associated diseases can be due to an increase of oxidative stress; the overproduction of free radicals could impair protein and fatty acid functions and could lead to DNA damage, predisposing to age-related disorders [1]. The accumulation of dysfunctional mitochondria in aged cardiomyocytes could alter the redox state and contribute to the pathological myocardial remodeling and heart failure [3] In this line, a great deal of interest has been recently devoted to the antiaging potential of natural compounds with antioxidant properties [4]. Whereas the bergamot essential oil obtained from the fruit peel is extensively characterized [18,19,20] and used in cosmetic and food industries, only recently the bergamot by-products, such as the pulp and its juice, were evaluated for their healthy biological properties [8, 11, 21,22,23,24,25] This reevaluation could represent an economic advantage in the industrial processes, reducing costs of their disposal and gaining a good source of beneficial compounds. The best performing juice was assessed in vivo
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