Flavonoids are plant pigments that are synthesized from
phenylalanine and generally display marvelous colors in the flowering
parts of plants. Flavonoids comprise a large group of polyphenolic
compounds that are characterized by a benzo-γ-pyrone structure.
Flavonoids are now considered as an indispensable component in a
variety of nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, medicinal and cosmetic
applications.
Flavonoids are an important class of pigments,
with variable phenolic structures naturally found in fruit and also in
vegetables.
This class of naturally occurring polyphenolic
compounds which cannot be synthesized by humans possesses a series of
biological properties, acting on biological systems as antioxidants.
Many flavonoids are shown to have antioxidative activity, free-radical
scavenging capacity, coronary heart disease prevention, and anti-cancer
activity, while some flavonoids exhibit potential for anti–human
immunodeficiency virus functions.
Flavonoids also act as
anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumoral agents, affecting capillary
permeability and acting as exogenous antioxidants. Research on
flavonoids received an added impulse with the discovery of the low
cardiovascular mortality rate and also prevention of CHD.
Flavonoids
capture and neutralize the oxidative agents, and quench free
radicals, inhibiting several enzymes (ciclo-oxigenase, lipo- oxigenase,
NADPH-oxidase, xantine-oxidase, fosfolipase) and stimulating
enzymes with antioxidant activity (such as catalase and superoxide
dismutase).
Carrageenan, extracted from red seaweeds, stands as a leading hydrocolloid
in the realm of food technology. Its applications span a variety of
culinary are...