Grapefruit Juice Research Articles

Numerical studies on thermal processing of solid, liquid, and solid–liquid food products: A comprehensive analysis

AbstractThis article uses the computational fluid dynamics approach to analyze the thermal processing of solid, liquid, and solid–liquid food products. To understand the underlying transport phenomena, microbial deactivation, and nutrient degradation, three food products, viz. lamb (solid), grapefruit juice (liquid), and paneer cubes in a brine solution (solid–liquid), are studied. The food products are processed under constant retort temperature for fixed durations of heating and cooling. The numerical models are solved to obtain the velocity and temperature distribution inside the food products. The solid food exhibits a low heating rate at the slowest heating zone due to the absence of convection. The solid–liquid food shows uniform microbial destruction with a standard deviation of 2.27 min in the lethality distribution. The maximum possible average retention of nutrients is 90.36% (at 80°C and 59.81 min) and 60.64% (at 125°C and 21.30 min) for liquid and solid–liquid foods, respectively. However, the average thiamine retention in solid food monotonically decreases in the temperature range of 120–140°C.Practical ApplicationsThe computational fluid dynamics approach offers practical applications in optimizing food processing parameters, improving thermal processing equipment, and preserving nutrient quality in diverse food products. The analysis of the velocity and temperature distribution enables the design of more efficient heating and cooling methods, assisting food processors in determining the ideal duration and temperature to achieve microbial destruction while minimizing nutrient degradation. Furthermore, this approach facilitates the evaluation and enhancement of thermal processing equipment by identifying areas of slow heating or inadequate heat transfer, ultimately leading to improved design and more uniform processing. Understanding nutrient retention during thermal processing is vital for maintaining nutritional quality. The findings of this work could be applied to develop guidelines for preserving nutrients in specific food products. In summary, the computational fluid dynamics approach enhances food safety by optimizing processing parameters, improving equipment design, and preserving nutrients in solid, liquid, and solid–liquid food products.

An eco-friendly ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method for quantification of rivaroxaban and ticagrelor in rat plasma: grapefruit interactions.

Aim: An eco-friendly ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed to study the pharmacokinetics of rivaroxaban and ticagrelor in rat plasma, utilizing moxifloxacin as an internal standard. The food-drug interaction between grapefruit juice and these drugs was also investigated. Methods: Liquid-liquid extraction was used. A nonporous stationary phase Agilent® Poroshell 120EC C18 column was used with methanol: 0.1% aqueous formic acid (95:5 v/v) as a mobile phase. The detection was performed in multiple reaction monitoring mode using positive electrospray ionization. The method's validation was conducted in accordance with US FDA and European Medicines Agency guidelines. Results & conclusion: Grapefruit juice should be ingested with caution in patients treated with antithrombotic medications as it may increase their plasma concentration, inducing bleeding, and requires close clinical monitoring.

Structure optimization of pulsed electric field processor and its sterilization effect

Abstract Pulsed electric field (PEF) technology is a highly promising non-thermal processing technique, which holds great potential for sterilizing liquid food. The effectiveness of this treatment depends on two crucial factors: pulse parameters and the structure of the processor. In this study, we focus on optimizing the shape of insulators within the PEF processor to improve the sterilization effect. This research provides a reliable technical reference for designing industrial equipment. The numerical simulation of multi-physics fields was employed to analyze the temperature, electric field, and fluid field distributions for different insulators. Ultimately, the geometric structure of the insulator was optimized by embedding a 0.7-mm arc. Sterilization experiments were then conducted on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus suspensions with conductivities similar to those of real grapefruit juice. The sterilization effect of the processor with the optimized structure and the maximum applied voltage was examined at the same driving frequency. The results indicate that compared to the original structure, there is an increase in withstanding voltage by 5–10 kV while maintaining significantly improved bactericidal effects at the same applied voltage. Furthermore, we preliminarily discussed the sterilization mechanism by combining electroporation theory with the electroporation threshold of S. aureus.

A narrative review on clinical trials showing contraindicated drugs with grapefruit juice

Medication and food are frequently consumed together. However, some foods have interactions with medicines by changing key regulators of systemic medication availability. Their consumption is linked to interactions with a wide range of medications. One of the most significant beverages that can be harmful when combined with certain medicines is grapefruit juice. Furanocoumarins' mechanism-based suppression of intestinal cytochrome P450 3A4, which increases the bioavailability of drugs that are substrates, is the main mechanism by which interactions are mediated. There have also been reports of interactions between grapefruit products and uptake transporters such as P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and organic anion-transporting polypeptides (OATPs). It has been suggested that polyphenolic substances like flavonoids are what cause the interactions between P-gp and OATP. The amounts of furanocoumarins and flavonoids in the grapefruit product, the amount of juice consumed, the medium PH, and the inherent diversity of enzymes and transporter components in humans can all have an impact on the processes and magnitudes of interactions. In this review, we are going to shed light on clinical trials showing grapefruit juice-drug interactions and what should the health provider do for better clinical care.

Ultrasensitive and selective determination of naringin using eggplant peel- derived nitrogen doped-carbon dots after extraction with Amberlite IRA-400: Evaluation the bitterness of grapefruit juice

This work presents a novel approach for the accurate determination of naringin (NAR) in grapefruit juice. In the proposed method, N-doped carbon dots were employed, which were synthesized via hydrothermal synthesis using eggplant peel food waste as a green precursor. Detection of NAR relied on measuring the probe's emission response, which exhibited a decrease at 430 nm in the presence of NAR. The bitterness caused by NAR in grapefruit juice significantly impacts customer acceptability and can lead to economic losses if its levels exceed a certain threshold. It was found that the fluorescence quenching method showed excellent linearity in the concentration range of 0.0–2500.0 ng mL−1 (R2 = 0.9990), with a remarkable limit of detection(S/N = 3) of 16.37 ng mL−1. Furthermore, selective extraction of NAR from grapefruit juice samples was achieved using Amberlite IRA-400 ion exchange resin. The adsorption parameters were carefully selected, and adsorption isotherm models were evaluated to determine the adsorption mechanism. The efficacy of the developed method was demonstrated by its successful application in determining NAR levels in grapefruit juice at various stages of maturity. This study demonstrates the potential of the proposed method as a reliable and efficient tool for accurately determining NAR in grapefruit juice.

Facile preparation of carbon dots with multicolor emission for fluorescence detection of ascorbic acid, glutathione and moisture content

The nitrogen-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) with multicolor emission (green, yellow, and red) were fabricated with naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride as carbon precursor, and different alkylamines as passive agents. The structures of the as-prepared carbon dots were confirmed by the Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectra, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern. The characterized results and UV–vis absorption spectrum demonstrated that the luminescence variations of different CDs were probably attributed to the difference of N-related states, oxygen-containing groups, and oxidation degree in the CDs structure. Moreover, the green emitting CDs (G-CDs) could be utilized as fluorescent probe for ascorbic acid (AA) detection with detection limit (LOD) of 5 μM. The yellow emitting CDs (Y-CDs) could be used to detect glutathione (GSH) in the range of 1–70 μM with LOD of 0.07 μM. The red emitting CDs (R-CDs) could detect the water content in THF, DMF, acetone, and EtOH with LODs of 0.44%, 0.31%, 0.55% and 0.55%, respectively. Remarkably, G-CDs and Y-CDs can distinguish AA and GSH respectively with high selectivity and accuracy. Finally, the fluorescent probes based on G-CDs and Y-CDs were successfully applied for the AA and GSH determination in vitamin C tablet, grapefruit juice, and GSH whitening serum samples with high reliability and feasibility, which provided the guidance for the selection of AA and GSH supplements.

Grapefruit juice containing rich hydroxyl and oxygenated groups capable of transforming 1D structure of NiCo2O4 into 0D with excessive surface vacancies for promising energy conversion and storage applications

Fabrication of an efficient electrode material is highly demanded for obtaining high energy conversion electrochemical system. In this study, we describe a green and innovative approach of using grape fruit juice as a high carrier of reducing and surface modifying agents for manipulating the surface properties of nickel‑cobalt bimetallic oxide NiCo2O4 nanostructures. Different amounts of grape fruit juice were used to discern its role on the morphological and surface vacancies of NiCo2O4 nanostructures during oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Importantly, the physical characterization revealed the morphological transformation of NiCo2O4 nanostructures from 1D nanorods to short range 0D nanoparticles. Furthermore, the surface studies have shown that NiCo2O4 nanostructures prepared with grapefruit juice have high density of surface vacancies and higher amount of Ni2+ and a Co2+ metallic ions on the surface of NiCo2O4 compare to pure NiCo2O4 nanostructures. The OER of electrodes modified with NiCo2O4 nanostructures, particularly (sample-2, 2 mL of grape fruit juice) gave rise to an overpotential value of 260 mV at 10 mAcm−2 in 1.0 M KOH aqueous solution along with high durability/stability for 40 h. Additionally, the obtained electrochemical impedance spectroscopy value of 80 Ω and active surface area of 18.1 μFcm−2 attested for the excellent OER performance of NiCo2O4 nanostructures (sample-2). Eventually, the proven enhancement in surface vacancies, alternation in the mixed oxidation states of both Ni and Co together with the morphological transformation that have been accomplished via the green, simple, and low-cost strategy of using grape juice make it a suitable option for large scale production of wide range of multifunctional metal oxides and related nanostructured materials for plethora of energy conversion and storage applications.

Optimization of physical and enzymatic debittering methods for grapefruit juice

The acceptability of grapefruit juice is hindered by its inherent bitterness, primarily attributed to the presence of naringin as the main bitter component. To enhance consumer preference, two distinct methods, physical and enzymatic, were employed to mitigate the bitterness of grapefruit juice. In the physical method, the juice underwent treatment with the adsorbent Amberlite IR 400, utilizing a 3-level factorial design. The enzymatic method involved the application of naringinase enzyme, employing the Box-Behnken experimental design. Notably, the physical method revealed a significant linear and interaction effect of time and temperature on the naringin content, while the enzymatic method exhibited a significant linear effect of enzyme concentration, time and temperature on the same. Both debittering methods were optimized using a numerical multi-response optimization technique to determine the optimum variable levels. This ensured that both independent and dependent variables remained within the experimental range, achieving maximum desirability. For the physical debittering method, the optimized conditions were 96 minutes and 28 °C for time and temperature, respectively. Meanwhile, the enzymatic debittering method optimized conditions included 0.83 g/L enzyme concentration, 35 °C temperature, and 3 hours 50 minutes time. Under these optimized conditions, the enzymatic method demonstrated superior results, achieving a higher naringin reduction of 55.77%, compared to the 33.18% reduction achieved by the physical method using Amberlite IR 400.

Study on the technology of kumquat grapefruit sour beer

A kumquat-grapefruit acid beer was brewed with Australian barley malt, lactobacillu, D17 yeast, Qingdao hop flower, kumquat concentrated juice and grapefruit concentrated juice as raw materials by using special mash and fermentation process. The effects of acidification degree, the addition amount of kumquat and grapefruit juice concentrate and the addition time on beer flavor were studied in this paper. The results showed that when the pH was adjusted to 3.5 by acidification, the sour beer produced by adding 6% kumquat concentrated juice and 4% grapefruit concentrated juice before the CO2 pressure of the tank rised, the beer has white and exquisite foam with prominent fruit aroma, especially those of kumquat and grapefruit. The beer body was clear and transparent, with about 5% residual sugar. The sweet and sour taste of the beer was balanced. The beer contained unique nutrients of kumquat and grapefruit also, and was especially suitable to drink for brewers and ladies.

Effects of Various Citrus Fiber Coatings on the Color, Texture, and Sensory Properties of Chicken Nuggets

Wastes from the fruit juice industry are sources rich in functional compounds like dietary fiber. The present study aimed to investigate the suitability of dietary fibers derived from the orange, lemon, and grapefruit juice production wastes in the production of chicken nuggets as a coating material. In the control group, nugget samples were coated with breadcrumbs. Obtained chicken nuggets were analyzed for color, texture, pH, and sensory properties. The results indicated that the use of dietary fiber from different sources had a statistically significant effect on the pH and L*, a*, and b* values of the product before and after cooking at the level of p < 0.01. Particularly, the use of lemon and grapefruit fiber decreased the pH value of the samples significantly, whereas the usage of grapefruit fiber increased the a* value of both raw and cooked samples significantly. The results of the sensory analysis of the cooked samples revealed that except for salinity and juiciness, all sensory parameters were influenced significantly (p < 0.05) by the use of dietary fiber, and the grapefruit-coated samples had a more bitter taste compared to the other groups. In terms of overall acceptability scores, the lowest mean value was determined in the samples coated with grapefruit fiber. All texture parameters except adhesiveness and springiness were influenced by the use of different dietary fibers in cooked samples (p < 0.05).

Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling of Bergamottin and 6,7-Dihydroxybergamottin to Describe CYP3A4 Mediated Grapefruit-Drug Interactions.

Grapefruit is a moderate to strong inactivator of CYP3A4, which metabolizes up to 50% of marketed drugs. The inhibitory effect is mainly attributed to furanocoumarins present in the fruit, irreversibly inhibiting preferably intestinal CYP3A4 as suicide inhibitors. Effects on CYP3A4 victim drugs can still be measured up to 24 hours after grapefruit juice (GFJ) consumption. The current study aimed to establish a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) grapefruit-drug interaction model by modeling the relevant CYP3A4 inhibiting ingredients of the fruit to simulate and predict the effect of GFJ consumption on plasma concentration-time profiles of various CYP3A4 victim drugs. The grapefruit model was developed in PK-Sim and coupled with previously developed PBPK models of CYP3A4 substrates that were publicly available and already evaluated for CYP3A4-mediated drug-drug interactions. Overall, 43 clinical studies were used for model development. Models of bergamottin (BGT) and 6,7-dihydroxybergamottin (DHB) as relevant active ingredients in GFJ were established. Both models include: (i) CYP3A4 inactivation informed by in vitro parameters, (ii) a CYP3A4 mediated clearance estimated during model development, as well as (iii) passive glomerular filtration. The final model successfully describes interactions of GFJ ingredients with 10 different CYP3A4 victim drugs, simulating the effect of the CYP3A4 inactivation on the victims' pharmacokinetics as well as their main metabolites. Furthermore, the model sufficiently captures the time-dependent effect of CYP3A4 inactivation as well as the effect of grapefruit ingestion on intestinal and hepatic CYP3A4 concentrations.

Patient and caregiver experience with telepharmacy in cancer care to support beginning systemic therapy: A qualitative study.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic spurred telehealth adoption for many specialties and care team roles, the patient and caregiver experience for telepharmacy visits has been relatively understudied. To our knowledge, there is a paucity of studies that have attempted to qualitatively evaluate this. This study aimed to qualitatively assess the patient and caregiver experience of telepharmacy visits in a cancer center. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 21 patients with cancer and seven caregivers that had attended a telepharmacy visit between December 1, 2021, and May 24, 2022. The interviews assessed visit content, overall satisfaction, system experience, visit quality, and future preferences for pharmacy visits as telehealth versus in-person. We used both deductive and inductive coding to identify themes. Telepharmacy delivery was generally well-received. Reasons for having the telepharmacy visit included reviewing chemotherapy procedures, side effects to expect during treatment, providing education on recently prescribed medications, offering dietary recommendations (e.g., avoiding grapefruit juice), and performing medication reconciliation. Participants were receptive to having pharmacy visits through telehealth due to the perceived lack of a need to have a physical exam and prior relationship with the pharmacist. Participants also highlighted the main reason for the telepharmacy visits was primarily to provide patient education, which participants felt was suitable for telehealth. The patient and caregiver experience of telepharmacy is influenced by several factors, such as ease of connectivity, communicating effectively with the pharmacist, and timing of the telepharmacy visit (e.g., immediately after picking up medications from the pharmacy). Participants' recommendations to improve telepharmacy delivery included health systems raising awareness of telepharmacy services and providing a list of questions to patients to guide discussions.

Interaction of Statins with Grapefruit Juice

Grapefruit juice, which discovered to interact with felodipine for the first time, is now known to interact with more that 80 drugs. Statins are among the drugs that interact with grapefruit juice. Grapefruit juice-statin interactions were first investigated in 1998 in human pharmacokinetic studies with lovastatin and simvastatin. The pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic basis of the interaction has been extensively investigated in studies. Flavonoids and furanocoumarins, the main components of grapefruit juice, have been reported to cause drug interactions. Furthermore, statin-grapefruit juice interactions occur mostly through inhibition of cytochrome-3A4 (CYP3A4), to a lesser extent through inhibition of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and organic anion transporting polypeptides (OATPs). Changes in plasma drug levels as a result of interaction may increase the side-effect of statins or reduce their therapeutic efficacy. Therefore, patients using statins are generally advised to avoid grapefruit juice consumption.

Change in habitual intakes of flavonoid-rich foods and mortality in US males and females

BackgroundHigher baseline intakes of flavonoid-rich foods and beverages are associated with a lower risk of chronic disease and mortality in observational studies. However, associations between changes in intakes and mortality remain unclear. We aimed to evaluate associations between 8-year changes in intakes of (1) individual flavonoid-rich foods and (2) a composite measure (termed the ‘flavodiet’) of foods and beverages that are known to be main contributors to flavonoid intake and subsequent total and cause-specific mortality.MethodsWe evaluated associations between 8-year changes in intakes of (1) individual flavonoid-rich foods and (2) a novel ‘flavodiet’ score and total and cause-specific mortality. We included 55,786 females from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and 29,800 males from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS), without chronic disease at baseline in our analyses. Using multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazard models, we examined associations of 8-year changes in intakes of (1) flavonoid-rich foods and (2) the flavodiet score with subsequent 2-year lagged 6-year risk of mortality adjusting for baseline intakes. Data were pooled using fixed-effects meta-analyses.ResultsWe documented 15,293 deaths in the NHS and 8988 deaths in HPFS between 1986 and 2018. For blueberries, red wine and peppers, a 5%, 4% and 9% lower risk of mortality, respectively, was seen for each 3.5 servings/week increase in intakes while for tea, a 3% lower risk was seen for each 7 servings/week increase [Pooled HR (95% CI) for blueberries; 0.95 (0.91, 0.99); red wine: 0.96 (0.93, 0.99); peppers: 0.91 (0.88, 0.95); and tea: 0.97 (0.95, 0.98)]. Conversely, a 3.5 servings/week increase in intakes of onions and grapefruit plus grapefruit juice was associated with a 5% and 6% higher risk of total mortality, respectively. An increase of 3 servings per day in the flavodiet score was associated with an 8% lower risk of total mortality [Pooled HR: 0.92 (0.89, 0.96)], and a 13% lower risk of neurological mortality [Pooled HR: 0.87 (0.79, 0.97)], after multivariable adjustments.ConclusionsEncouraging an increased intake of specific flavonoid-rich foods and beverages, namely tea, blueberries, red wine, and peppers, even in middle age, may lower early mortality risk.

Integrated Use of In Vitro and In Vivo Information for Comprehensive Prediction of Drug Interactions Due to Inhibition of Multiple CYP Isoenzymes.

Mechanistic static pharmacokinetic (MSPK) models are simple, have fewer data requirements, and have broader applicability; however, they cannot use in vitro information and cannot distinguish the contributions of multiple cytochrome P450 (CYP) isoenzymes and the hepatic and intestinal first-pass effects appropriately. We aimed to establish a new MSPK analysis framework for the comprehensive prediction of drug interactions (DIs) to overcome these disadvantages. Drug interactions that occurred by inhibiting CYP1A2, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP2D6, and CYP3A in the liver and CYP3A in the intestine were simultaneously analyzed for 59 substrates and 35 inhibitors. As in vivo information, the observed changes in the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) and elimination half-life (t1/2), hepatic availability, and urinary excretion ratio were used. As in vitro information, the fraction metabolized (fm) and the inhibition constant (Ki) were used. The contribution ratio (CR) and inhibition ratio (IR) for multiple clearance pathways and hypothetical volume (VHyp) were inferred using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method. Using in vivo information from 239 combinations and in vitro 172 fm and 344 Ki values, changes in AUC, and t1/2 were estimated for all 2065 combinations, wherein the AUC was estimated to be more than doubled for 602 combinations. Intake-dependent selective intestinal CYP3A inhibition by grapefruit juice has been suggested. By separating the intestinal contributions, DIs after intravenous dosing were also appropriately inferred. This framework would be a powerful tool for the reasonable management of various DIs based on all available in vitro and in vivo information.

Potential of Plant Exosome Vesicles from Grapefruit (Citrus × paradisi) and Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Juices as Functional Ingredients and Targeted Drug Delivery Vehicles.

Plant-derived extracellular vesicles (PEVs) have gained attention as promising bioactive nutraceutical molecules; their presence in common fruit juices has increased their significance because human interaction is inevitable. The goal of this study was to evaluate the potential of PEVs derived from grapefruit and tomato juices as functional ingredients, antioxidant compounds, and delivery vehicles. PEVs were isolated using differential ultracentrifugation and were found to be similar in size and morphology to mammalian exosomes. The yield of grapefruit exosome-like vesicles (GEVs) was higher than that of tomato exosome-like vesicles (TEVs), despite the latter having larger vesicle sizes. Furthermore, the antioxidant activity of GEVs and TEVs was found to be low in comparison to their juice sources, indicating a limited contribution of PEVs to the juice. GEVs showed a higher efficiency in being loaded with the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) than TEVs, as well as a higher efficiency than TEV and PEV-free HSP70 in delivering HSP70 to glioma cells. Overall, our results revealed that GEVs present a higher potential as functional ingredients present in juice and that they exert the potential to deliver functional molecules to human cells. Although PEVs showed low antioxidant activity, their role in oxidative response in cells should be further addressed.

Evaluation of metabolism and cytochrome P450 mediated interaction liabilities of naringenin

Naringenin is one of the major components of grapefruit juice. It has a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities, and many studies report that grapefruit juice inhibits cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A4 leading to drug interactions. Naringenin was profiled through various in vitro studies like metabolic stability and glucuronidation in rat and human liver microsomes while, CYP inhibition using human liver microsomes. In addition, pharmacokinetic profiling was conducted upon intravenous (i.v.) and oral administration in rats. Naringenin undergoes both phase I and phase II metabolism in rat liver microsomes, and in human liver microsomes, it is predominantly metabolized by phase II. Glucuronidation which is addition (conjugation) of glucuronic acid to various functional groups is one of the major metabolic pathways of Naringenin. Naringenin, at 1.0 μM and 10.0 μM, did not elicit any appreciable inhibition of the 5 major CYP isoforms (CYP1A2, CYP3A4, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and CYP2D6). Oral pharmacokinetic studies at 100, 300,and 1000 mg/kg dose and intravenous pharmacokinetic studies at 1 mg/kg dose were performed in male SD rats. Naringenin exhibited very short half-life (0.27 h) and rapid elimination (Clearance=110.65 mL/min/kg) after i.v. administration. There was saturation in Cmax and exposure beyond 100 mg/kg, and the absolute bioavailability was found to be ≤ 5% at the tested oral doses. This present experiment suggests that naringenin does not substantially inhibit CYP3A4 (or any of the tested five isoforms) isoforms per se. Given the minimal involvement of CYP enzymes in the metabolism of naringenin and minimal inhibition of CYP enzymes (IC50> 10 μM), the potential for drug-drug interactions involving CYP substrates and inhibitors is very minimal in humans.

Pharmacokinetic Boosting of Kinase Inhibitors.

(1) Introduction: Pharmacokinetic boosting of kinase inhibitors can be a strategy to enhance drug exposure and to reduce dose and associated treatment costs. Most kinase inhibitors are predominantly metabolized by CYP3A4, enabling boosting using CYP3A4 inhibition. Kinase inhibitors with food enhanced absorption can be boosted using food optimized intake schedules. The aim of this narrative review is to provide answers to the following questions: Which different boosting strategies can be useful in boosting kinase inhibitors? Which kinase inhibitors are potential candidates for either CYP3A4 or food boosting? Which clinical studies on CYP3A4 or food boosting have been published or are ongoing? (2) Methods: PubMed was searched for boosting studies of kinase inhibitors. (3) Results/Discussion: This review describes 13 studies on exposure boosting of kinase inhibitors. Boosting strategies included cobicistat, ritonavir, itraconazole, ketoconazole, posaconazole, grapefruit juice and food. Clinical trial design for conducting pharmacokinetic boosting trials and risk management is discussed. (4) Conclusion: Pharmacokinetic boosting of kinase inhibitors is a promising, rapidly evolving and already partly proven strategy to increase drug exposure and to potentially reduce treatment costs. Therapeutic drug monitoring can be of added value in guiding boosted regimens.

Pomelo Juice–Drug Interactions: A Word of Caution

The main of this article is to study the interactions of certain commonly used drugs with pomelo juice which is commonly consumed as easily available fruit or fruit juice in certain parts of India. Relevant literature was identified by searching PubMed and other articles on the web. Various search words which were used are “Grapefruit,” “pomelo,” “drug interactions,” and “juice-drug interactions.” Inclusion criteria included grapefruit juice–drug interaction studies and pomelo juice–drug interactions. Exclusion criteria were articles actually irrelevant to the juice–drug interaction topics. After reviewing the summary of each article, few articles were directly excluded because of actually irrelevant topics. Finally, eight articles were selected as reference articles and certain data were obtained and our opinion about the same is mentioned in the present article. The full text of each included article was critically reviewed, and valuable information was summarized by data interpretation. Pomelo “(Citrus maxima/Citrus grandis)” is the largest citrus fruit from the family Rutaceae and the principal ancestor of the grapefruit. It is a natural, nonhybrid citrus fruit native to Southeast Asia. Pomelo is commonly consumed and used for festive occasions throughout Southeast Asia. It has also been found to have drug interactions similar to grapefruit. The fruit is large, 15–25 cm in diameter, and weighing 1–2 kg. It has a thicker rind than the grapefruit and is divided into 11–18 segments. Pomelo is closely related to grapefruit and extensively studied and contains furanocoumarins which have been identified as inhibitors of cytochrome P450 3A4 in grapefruit juice in vitro. The fruit was first described in 1750 by Griffith Hughes, and in 1789, Patrick Browne referred to it as “forbidden fruit” or “smaller shaddock.” Its taste also varies from sour or bitter to sweet. The fruit is nearly round or slightly pear shaped in clusters similar to grapes, 10–15 cm wide with smooth, finely dotted peel, up to 1 cm thick. The pulp is yellow or pink to red, which has 11–14 segments with thin membrane. The fruit is very juicy. The fruit presents with pointed seeds about 1.25 cm in length. In Karnataka, a type of pomelo named Devanahalli pomelo (Gi registered) is exclusively grown in the region around Devanahalli taluk, Bangalore, as an exotic crop variety. It is locally known as chakkota. Besides, pomelo has many names such as batabi lebu or jambura in Bengali and chakotra in Hindi-speaking states. In the present pandemic outbreak, in-home consumption of packaged fruit juices has increased among people in the cities, whereas in-home consumption of easily grown and easily available fruits such as pomelo, grapes, apples, and their juices has increased among people in the villages. Hence, caution is required while consuming pomelo juice (similar to grapefruit juice) with certain drugs.

FUNCTIONAL FOODS OF PAKISTAN AND THEIR ROLE IN SENESCENCE

Functional foods can be used as a tool for healthy & longer life span. The term “functional food” is tossed to emphasize the role of nutritive substances in the prevention and eradication of chronic disease development. The aim of this study is to identify functional foods of Pakistan for their anti-aging potential. In this regard, the ethanolic extract or fresh juices of fifty functional foods, mostly advised by nutritionists, were assessed for their ability to inhibit glycation and oxidative stress. Our analysis showed that out of 50 functional foods, 44 of them have significantly reduced the formation of advanced glycation end products. The Pomegranate peel extract, Strawberry juice, coffee powder, and areca nut showed more than 90% AGEs inhibition at the concentration of 1 mg/ml. Furthermore, antioxidant potential of all these 50 functional foods was also assessed for antioxidant activity using DPPH assay. In this assay, the most pronounced effect (90% free radical scavenging activity) was observed with Cumin seeds extract, Purple Onion extract, Grapefruit juice and Oregano extract. In conclusion, the present study highlights several easily available dietary substances of Pakistan, whom consumption can help prevent age related disabilities and may contribute to healthier and longer life span.