Antioxidant activity, total phenolics and flavonoids contents: Should we ban in vitro screening methods?

Granato D 1 , Shahidi F 2 , Wrolstad R 3 , Kilmartin P 4 , Melton LD 5 , Hidalgo FJ 6 Show all authors , Miyashita K 7 , Camp JV 8 , Alasalvar C 9 , Ismail AB 10 , Elmore S 11 , Birch GG 11 , Charalampopoulos D 11 , Astley SB 12 , Pegg R 13 , Zhou P 14 , Finglas P 15

Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Food Engineering, State University of Ponta Grossa, Av. Carlos Cavalcanti, 4748, 84030-900 Ponta Grossa, Brazil. Electronic address: dgranato@uepg.br
  • 2 Department of Biochemistry, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL A1B 3X9, Canada
  • 3 Oregon State University, 100 Wiegand Hall, Corvallis, OR 97331, United States
  • 4 University of Auckland, Auckland Mail Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
  • 5 School of Chemical Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
  • 6 Instituto de la Grasa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Carretera de Utrera km 1, Campus Universitario - Edificio 46, 41013 Seville, Spain
  • 7 Faculty of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate 041-8611, Japan
  • 8 Laboratory of Food Chemistry and Human Nutrition (nutriFOODchem), Department of Food Safety and Food Quality, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
  • 9 TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Centre, Food Institute, Gebze-Kocaeli, Turkey
  • 10 Center for Quality Assurance (CQA), Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
  • 11 Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading, PO Box 217 Whiteknights, RG6 6AH Reading, United Kingdom
  • 12 EuroFIR AISBL, Brussels, Belgium
  • 13 University of Georgia, Athens, GA United States
  • 14 Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China
  • 15 Quadram Institute Bioscience, NR4 7UA Norwich, United Kingdom
Food Chem, 2018 Oct 30;264:471-475.
PMID: 29853403 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2018.04.012

Abstract

As many studies are exploring the association between ingestion of bioactive compounds and decreased risk of non-communicable diseases, the scientific community continues to show considerable interest in these compounds. In addition, as many non-nutrients with putative health benefits are reducing agents, hydrogen donors, singlet oxygen quenchers or metal chelators, measurement of antioxidant activity using in vitro assays has become very popular over recent decades. Measuring concentrations of total phenolics, flavonoids, and other compound (sub)classes using UV/Vis spectrophotometry offers a rapid chemical index, but chromatographic techniques are necessary to establish structure-activity. For bioactive purposes, in vivo models are required or, at the very least, methods that employ distinct mechanisms of action (i.e., single electron transfer, transition metal chelating ability, and hydrogen atom transfer). In this regard, better understanding and application of in vitro screening methods should help design of future research studies on 'bioactive compounds'.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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