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Journal of Ethnopharmacology Mar 2020The botanical identity of the ancient vernacular cynomorium does not correspond to the modern scientific genus while it is not clear how many species of hipocistis... (Review)
Review
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE
The botanical identity of the ancient vernacular cynomorium does not correspond to the modern scientific genus while it is not clear how many species of hipocistis (Cytinus sp.) were differentiated by the ancient physicians and whether Cynomorium coccineum was subsumed. The early history of therapeutic uses related to the herbal drugs derived from these parasitic taxa is therefore not easily accessible. Cynomorium coccineum became an important pharmaceutical commodity after the Siege of Malta but its importance decreased in the 18th century and now is considered obsolete.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
We compare the morphological, ecological and therapeutic information of Cynomorium and other parasitizing plant taxa across the past 2000 years and contextualize their uses with the pharmacological properties of their principal metabolites focusing on the raise and fall of C. coccineum as a medicine.
RESULTS
The therapeutic uses of C. coccineum, the Maltese mushroom, seem to become clearly traceable since the Canon of Medicine by Avicenna. Styptic and astringent drugs such as Cynomorium, Cytinus but also gall apples and many others have been selected for their protein-linking capacity leading to the formation of a protective layer on the mucous membranes, which can be used to reduce the secretion of water and electrolytes in case of diarrhoea, dysentery and external bleedings. Whether C. coccineum is effective as a systemically applied anti-haemorrhagic drug is questionable.
CONCLUSION
It appears that the vernacular cynomorium of the ancients corresponds to an edible Orobanche sp. while it remains doubtful whether the vernacular hipocistis was next to Cytinus sp. also applied to C. coccineum as evidence of C. coccineum parasitizing Cistus sp. is scarce. The isolation of gallic acid used as a styptic and the increasing availability of chemical styptics in the 18th century together with the availability of effective alternative anti-diarrhoeic drugs with a more reliable supply very probably led to the decline of the importance of the Maltese mushroom in pharmacy during the 18th century. The effectiveness of gallic acid as a systemic anti-haemorrhagic remains uncertain.
Topics: Agaricales; Animals; Astringents; Cynomorium; Diarrhea; Gallic Acid; Hemorrhage; Humans; Phytotherapy
PubMed: 31678417
DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2019.112368 -
Food Research International (Ottawa,... Jul 2022Green tea is popularly known for its pleasant flavor and health-care functions. Bitterness and astringency are the two important quality attributes of green tea that... (Review)
Review
Green tea is popularly known for its pleasant flavor and health-care functions. Bitterness and astringency are the two important quality attributes of green tea that enrich tea flavor. Although many research works have focused on the flavor formation of green tea, the review articles about bitterness and astringency is limited. This review article summarizes the major components of bitter and astringent substances in green tea, their sensory perception mechanism, factors influencing the formation of these substances, and the evaluation methods of bitterness and astringency. This review will shed light on the subsequent studies in tea flavor, and provide deeper insight for the research of bitterness and astringency in other foods.
Topics: Astringents; Humans; Perception; Sensation; Taste; Tea
PubMed: 35761574
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2022.111262 -
Dermatologic Clinics Jan 2019Cosmeceuticals are cosmetics that promise to deliver physiologically relevant benefits without the incorporation of prescription drugs. To entice consumers to purchase... (Review)
Review
Cosmeceuticals are cosmetics that promise to deliver physiologically relevant benefits without the incorporation of prescription drugs. To entice consumers to purchase these premium priced products, a story must be told of how the cosmeceutical delivers on these appearance improvement promises. The backbone of any cosmeceutical skin care regimen is facial cleansing and moisturizing. This article reviews the novel ingredients and technologies used to achieve these benefits examining what is real and what is not.
Topics: Astringents; Cosmeceuticals; Humans; Peptides; Skin; Skin Cream; Skin Lightening Preparations; Skin Physiological Phenomena; Soaps; Vitamins
PubMed: 30466682
DOI: 10.1016/j.det.2018.07.001 -
Food Chemistry Nov 2022An innovative approach for monitoring astringent polyphenols in beverages (wines) is described, consisting of an electrochemical biosensor constructed by adsorbing...
An innovative approach for monitoring astringent polyphenols in beverages (wines) is described, consisting of an electrochemical biosensor constructed by adsorbing salivary α-amylase or proline-rich protein (PRP) onto amined gold screen-printed electrodes. Interaction with polyphenols was tested using pentagalloyl glucose (PGG) as a standard, an important representative element for astringency. The analytical properties of the resulting biosensors were evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy at different pHs. The PRP-biosensor was able to bind to PGG with higher sensitivity, displaying lower limit of the linear range of 0.6 µM. Wine samples were tested to prove the concept and the concentrations obtained ranged from 0.17 to 4.7 µM, as expressed in PGG units. The effects of side-compounds on PRP and on α-amylase binding to PGG were tested (gallic acid, catechin, ethanol, glucose, fructose and glycerol) and considered negligible. Overall, concentrations > 1.0 µM in PGG units are signaling electrochemical impedance, providing a quantitative monitoring of astringent compounds.
Topics: Astringents; Biosensing Techniques; Electrodes; Equipment Design; Glucose; Polyphenols; Wine
PubMed: 35802982
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2022.133587 -
Food Chemistry Nov 2022Aronia berry has extremely strong and unpleasant astringent mouthfeel. However, detailed information on the key astringent compounds is still limited. To fill this gap,...
Aronia berry has extremely strong and unpleasant astringent mouthfeel. However, detailed information on the key astringent compounds is still limited. To fill this gap, astringent compounds were firstly separated from aronia juice. Following sensory evaluation, phenolic profile determination, validation by in-vitro models, and thiolytic degradation, key astringent compounds were identified. Results showed when most proanthocyanidins (PAs) were removed while other phenolic compounds remained, the astringency intensity of aronia juice was significantly decreased. In-vitro models, including saliva precipitation index and mucin turbidity, validated PAs rather than anthocyanins as the key astringent compounds. The protein-precipitated PAs from aronia juice were identified as polymers, linked by B-type bonds, with (-)-epicatechin as the extension unit and predominantly as the terminal unit, having a 69.56 mean degree of polymerization (mDP), far higher than the 35.38 mDP of PAs separated directly from juice. These findings would be valuable to the development of targeted astringency mitigation approaches.
Topics: Anthocyanins; Astringents; Fruit; Phenols; Photinia; Proanthocyanidins
PubMed: 35751215
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2022.133431 -
Neuroscience Jun 2023Taste and oral somatosensation are intimately related to each other from peripheral receptors to the central nervous system. Oral astringent sensation is thought to...
Taste and oral somatosensation are intimately related to each other from peripheral receptors to the central nervous system. Oral astringent sensation is thought to contain both gustatory and somatosensory components. In the present study, we compared the cerebral response to an astringent stimulus (tannin), with the response to one typical taste stimulus (sweet - sucrose) and one typical somatosensory stimulus (pungent - capsaicin) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of 24 healthy subjects. Three distributed brain sub-regions responded significantly different to the three types of oral stimulations: lobule IX of the cerebellar hemisphere, right dorsolateral superior frontal gyrus, and left middle temporal gyrus. This suggests that these regions play a major role in the discrimination of astringency, taste, and pungency.
Topics: Humans; Taste; Astringents; Brain; Taste Perception; Brain Mapping; Magnetic Resonance Imaging
PubMed: 36966878
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.03.011 -
International Journal of Molecular... Oct 2023Chinese fir ( (Lamb.) Hook.) stands as one of the pivotal afforestation tree species and timber resources in southern China. Nevertheless, the occurrence of seed...
Chinese fir ( (Lamb.) Hook.) stands as one of the pivotal afforestation tree species and timber resources in southern China. Nevertheless, the occurrence of seed abortion and a notably high proportion of astringent seeds significantly curtail the yield and quality of elite seeds, resulting in substantial economic losses. The development of astringent seeds is accompanied by significant physiological and biochemical alterations. Here, the first combined lipidomic and metabolomic analysis was performed to gain a comprehensive understanding of astringent seed traits. A total of 744 metabolites and 616 lipids were detected, of which 489 differential metabolites and 101 differential lipids were identified. In astringent seeds, most flavonoids and tannins, as well as proline and γ-aminobutyric acid, were more accumulated, along with a notable decrease in lipid unsaturation, indicating oxidative stress in the cells of astringent seeds. Conversely, numerous elemental metabolites were less accumulated, including amino acids and their derivatives, saccharides and alcohols, organic acids and nucleotides and their derivatives. Meanwhile, most lipid subclasses, mainly associated with energy storage (triglyceride and diglyceride) and cell membrane composition (phosphatidic acid, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine), also exhibited significant reductions. These results reflected a disruption in the cellular system or the occurrence of cell death, causing a reduction in viable cells within astringent seeds. Furthermore, only one lipid subclass, sphingosine phosphate (SoP), was more accumulated in astringent seeds. Additionally, lower accumulation of indole-3-acetic acid and more accumulation of salicylic acid (SA) were also identified in astringent seeds. Both SA and SoP were closely associated with the promotion of programmed cell death in astringent seeds. Collectively, our study revealed significant abnormal changes in phytohormones, lipids and various metabolites in astringent seeds, allowing us to propose a model for the development of astringent seeds in Chinese fir based on existing research and our findings. This work enriches our comprehension of astringent seeds and presents valuable bioindicators for the identification of astringent seeds.
Topics: Cunninghamia; Astringents; Lipidomics; Seeds; Lipids
PubMed: 37894783
DOI: 10.3390/ijms242015103 -
Chemical Senses Apr 1994Two-component mixtures of astringent materials were rated for perceived intensity of astringent and taste attributes over time. Components included alum (a complex...
Two-component mixtures of astringent materials were rated for perceived intensity of astringent and taste attributes over time. Components included alum (a complex salt), gallic acid (the monomeric component of hydrolyzable tannins), catechin (the monomeric component of condensed tannins) and citric acid. Mixtures of alum and gallic acid showed mixture suppression, in that the 50/50 mixture was less intense than either component in astringency, drying, roughing and puckery/drawing sensations. Suppression was seen at concentration levels producing moderate to strong astringency but was absent or less pronounced at lower concentration levels. A similar pattern held for citric acid, although the suppressive effects were less pronounced. Catechin and gallic acid mixtures were additive. Sensory interactions between astringent materials appears to depend on the substances involved and their concentrations (or intensity levels).
Topics: Adult; Alum Compounds; Astringents; Catechin; Citrates; Citric Acid; Drug Interactions; Female; Gallic Acid; Humans; Male; Tannins; Taste
PubMed: 8055264
DOI: 10.1093/chemse/19.2.141 -
Journal of Agricultural and Food... Oct 2020Applying the sensomics approach, a combination of activity-guided fractionation and taste dilution analysis (TDA) followed by high-performance liquid...
Applying the sensomics approach, a combination of activity-guided fractionation and taste dilution analysis (TDA) followed by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS), ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-TOF-MS), and one-dimensional and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1D/2D NMR) allowed the elucidation of key off-taste compounds in potato dietary fiber isolates. Previously already having been described as off-taste compounds in potato tubers, saponins α-chaconine and α-solanine were shown to be also major contributors to overall off-taste in potato fiber isolates. Moreover, fatty acids as well as fatty acid oxidation products, namely, -9,10,13-trihydroxy-octadec-11-enoic acid as well as newly identified compounds hexadecyl(/)-ferulate and octadecyl(/)-ferulate, were shown to be key inducers to off-taste in the isolates, exhibiting taste recognition thresholds between 18 and 981 μmol/L. This paper demonstrates the isolation, structure determination, quantitation as well as sensory attributes of these key off-taste compounds.
Topics: Astringents; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Dietary Fiber; Flavoring Agents; Humans; Plant Preparations; Plant Tubers; Solanum tuberosum; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Taste
PubMed: 32930579
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.0c04853 -
Chemical Senses Dec 1995Astringency, astringent subqualities (drying, roughing and puckering) and sourness were compared among six acids: hydrochloric, lactic, citric, acetic, fumaric and malic... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
Astringency, astringent subqualities (drying, roughing and puckering) and sourness were compared among six acids: hydrochloric, lactic, citric, acetic, fumaric and malic acids. The attribute profiles of organic acids were similar to each other but different from hydrochloric acid, the only inorganic acid, which was the most astringent and the least sour. In a second experiment, two inorganic acids (hydrochloric and phosphoric) and two organic acids (citric and malic) were tested at three concentration levels. At approximately equal levels of overall sensory impact, the inorganic acids were alike in astringency and sourness, receiving higher ratings for roughing and drying, and lower ratings for sourness than the organic acids. Interactions with concentration (differences in psychophysical functions) for the subquality of drying were noted, in addition to the differences in the astringent subqualities of roughing and drying seen across acids in both experiments. The higher level of astringency for inorganic acids suggests that the current model for tannin binding to salivary proteins as an explanation of astringency needs to be extended to include a direct pH-dependent effect.
Topics: Adult; Analysis of Variance; Astringents; Carboxylic Acids; Female; Humans; Male; Mouth; Mouth Mucosa; Taste
PubMed: 8788093
DOI: 10.1093/chemse/20.6.593