Polyphenols in Plants assists plant scientists and dietary supplement producers in assessing polyphenol content and factors affecting their composition. It also aids in selecting sources and regulating environmental conditions affecting yield for more consistent and function dietary supplements. Polyphenols play key roles in the growth, regulation and structure of plants and vary widely within different plants. Stress, growth conditions and plant species modify polyphenol structure and content. This book describes techniques to identify, isolate and characterize polyphenols, taking mammalian toxicology into account as well. Defines conditions of growth affecting the polyphenol levels Describes assay and instrumentation techniques critical to identifying and defining polyphenols, critical to researchers and business development Documents how some polyphenols are dangerous to consume, important to dietary supplement industry, government regulators and lay public users

This book was developed from the proceedings of the 2nd North American Tan nin Conference held in Houghton, Michigan, June, 1991. The objective of this con ference was to bring together people with a common interest in plant polyphenols and to promote interdisciplinary interactions that will lead to a bet ter understand ing of the importance of these substances. Another objective of this conference was to extend the 'tannin family' by making special efforts to encourage participation by scientists outside the United States, obtain more coverage of the hydrolyzable tannins, and further broaden the scope of coverage from the initial concentration on forestry and forest products. Com parison of the contents of this book with 'Chemistry and Significance of Condensed Tannins' that resulted from the proceedings of the 1st North American Tannin Conference shows the degree that these objectives were met. In developing the second conference, care was taken to assure that this book extends rather than duplicates the coverage of the first conference. Therefore, the two books should be taken together to obtain an up to date coverage of the broad area of chemistry and significance of plant polyphenols. Our thanks go to the authors who so kindly contributed chapters and so pa tiently responded to our requests. We thank the Conference Assistance Staff of Michigan Technological University for their help in planning and conducting the conference.

“Antioxidant Activity of Polyphenolic Plant Extracts” is a collection of scientific articles regarding polyphenols, that is, substances occurring naturally in plants and exhibiting many beneficial effects on human health. Among polyphenols’ interesting biological properties, their antioxidant activity is considered the most important. This book brings together experts from different research fields on topics related to polyphenols, such as their isolation and purification, assessment of their antioxidant activity, prevention from oxidative stress-induced diseases and use as food additives. The polyphenols used in the present studies are derived from a great variety of plants, ranging from well-known species to rare ones that are only found in specific regions. Moreover, some of the studies provide evidence that polyphenols may be used for the prevention and treatment of common diseases such as diabetes mellitus, Alzheimers’ disease, cardiovascular and intestinal diseases. Importantly, in several of the studies “green extraction methods” for the isolation of polyphenols were developed using modern technologies, where few or no organic solvents were used, in order to minimize environmental and health impacts.

This volume summarizes current research on the influence of plant polyphenols on human health, promoting collaboration between chemists and biologists to improve our understanding of their biological significance, and expanding the possibilities for their use.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) accounts for up to one-third of combat-related injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to some estimates. TBI is also a major problem among civilians, especially those who engage in certain sports. At the request of the Department of Defense, the IOM examined the potential role of nutrition in the treatment of and resilience against TBI.

Plant polyphenols are secondary metabolites that constitute one of the most common and widespread groups of natural products. They express a large and diverse panel of biological activities including beneficial effects on both plants and humans. Many polyphenols, from their structurally simplest representatives to their oligo/polymeric versions (also referred to as vegetable tannins) are notably known as phytoestrogens, plant pigments, potent antioxidants, and protein interacting agents. Sponsored by Groupe Polyphénols, this publication, which is the third volume in this highly regarded Recent Advances in Polyphenol Research series, is edited by Véronique Cheynier, Pascale Sarni-Manchado, and Stéphane Quideau (the current President of Groupe Polyphénols). Like their predecessors, they have once again put together an impressive collection of cutting-edge chapters written by expert scientists internationally respected in their respective field of polyphenol sciences. This Volume 3 provides the latest information and opinion on the following major research topics about polyphenols: Organic chemistry and physical chemistry Biosynthesis, genetics and metabolic engineering The role of polyphenols in plants and ecosystems Health and nutrition Analysis and metabolomics Chemists, biochemists, plant scientists, pharmacognosists and pharmacologists, biologists, ecologists, food scientists and nutritionists will all find this book an invaluable resource. Libraries in all universities and research institutions where these disciplines are studied and taught should have copies on their bookshelves.