Ahmet Altındişli

Evaluation of the Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Raisins (Vitis vinifera L.) in Human Gastric Epithelial Cells: A Comparative Study.

Raisins (Vitis vinifera L.) are dried grapes largely consumed as important source of nutrients and polyphenols. Several studies report health benefits of raisins, including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, whereas the anti-inflammatory activity at gastric level of the hydro-alcoholic extracts, which are mostly used for food supplements preparation, was not reported until now. The aim of this study was to compare the anti-inflammatory activity of five raisin extracts focusing on Interleukin (IL)-8 and Nuclear Factor (NF)-κB pathway. Raisin extracts were characterized by High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Diode Array Detector (HPLC-DAD) analysis and screened for their ability to inhibit Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)α-induced IL-8 release and promoter activity in human gastric epithelial cells. Turkish variety significantly inhibited TNFα-induced IL-8 release, and the effect was due to the impairment of the corresponding promoter activity. Macroscopic evaluation showed the presence of seeds, absent in the other varieties; thus, hydro-alcoholic extracts from fruits and seeds were individually tested on IL-8 and NF-κB pathway. Seed extract inhibited IL-8 and NF-κB pathway, showing higher potency with respect to the fruit. Although the main effect was due to the presence of seeds, the fruit showed significant activity as well. Our data suggest that consumption of selected varieties of raisins could confer a beneficial effect against gastric inflammatory diseases.

Changes of Phenolic Acids During Aging of Organic Wines

Grapes (Vitis vinifera L. origin var: Carignane, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Grenache, Columbard, and Semillon) were cultivated and processed according to accepted organic agriculture and organic wine techniques. Aged wines (5 years) were evaluated for changes of their phenolic acids. The highest reduction of gallic acid concentrations were determined in Cabernet Sauvignon (24.36 mg/L) and Carignane (16.00 mg/L) wines. The quantities of p-hydroxybenzoic acid decreased mostly in Carignane (22.47 mg/L) and Columbard (20.84 mg/L) wines. The decreases of syringic acid were dominant in Cabernet Sauvignon (2.34 mg/L) and Carignane (1.69 mg/L) wines. In the case of ferulic acid, the highest reduction was determined in Cabernet Sauvignon (3.97 mg/L) wines. The decreases of p-coumaric acid contents were the same and mostly in Merlot (1.06 mg/L) and Grenache (1.035 mg/L) wines. The principal component analyses results demonstrated the relations among aged wines produced from different grape varieties and their phenolic acids. The distribution of data was accumulated into two groups. The first group included total phenols, gallic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, syringic acid, p-coumaric acid, and Merlot/Carignane/Grenache wines. The second one included ferulic acid and Cabernet Sauvignon wine.