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Abstract
Nettles (genus Urtica, family Urticaceae) are of considerable interest as preservatives in foods for both human and animal consumption. They have also been used for centuries in traditional medicine. This paper reviews the properties of nettles that make them suitable for wider applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. Nettles contain a significant number of biologically-active compounds. For example, the leaves are rich sources of terpenoids, carotenoids and fatty acids, as well as of various essential amino acids, chlorophyll, vitamins, tannins, carbohydrates, sterols, polysaccharides, isolectins and minerals. Extracts from the aerial parts of nettles are rich sources of polyphenols, while the roots contain oleanol acid, sterols and steryl glycosides. Due to the variety of phytochemicals and their proportions they contain, nettles show noticeable activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. These properties make nettles suitable for a range of possible applications, including functional food, dietary supplements and pharmacological formulations. Despite these benefits, the nettle is still an underestimated plant source. This paper provides a unique overview of the latest research on nettle plants focusing on the possibilities for transforming a common weed into a commercial plant with a wide range of applications. Special attention is paid to the antimicrobial activity of the active compounds in nettles and to possible uses of these valuable plants in food and feed formulations.
Highlights
Nettles are of considerable interest as preservatives in foods for both human and animal consumption
The genus Urtica belongs to the family Urticaceae in the major group Angiosperms
The most prominent members of the genus are the stinging nettle Urtica dioica L. and the small nettle U. urens L., which are native to Europe, Africa, Asia and North America
Summary
6.1/4.6 det/0.036 not det/not det not det/not det not det/not det not det/0.0024. 0.40/1.35 not det/det not det/not det not det/not det not det/not det not det/0.0054. Weglarz and Roslon studied the content of polyphenolic acids in leaves and rhizomes They found that the level of these compounds was higher in the male forms, but the chemical profiles of polyphenolic acids from the female plants were much more diverse [40,41]. The hairs of Urtica plants contain an acrid fluid with the active components: acetylcholine, histamine and formic acid, as well as silica, serotonin and 5-hydroxy tryptamine. Many of these chemicals are smooth muscle stimulants [44]. The results of numerous experiments suggest that each species of nettle, a well as each part of the plant (root, stalk or leaves) have a different content and profile of bioactive compounds. The results indicate the great potential of this plant for the discovery of novel effective compounds (Tables 4 and 5) [49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56]
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