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![Figure 3. Structures of picrocrocin and safranal found in saffron [6].](publication/334901678/figure/fig3/AS:787616685383682@1564793859835/Structures-of-picrocrocin-and-safranal-found-in-saffron-6_Q320.jpg)
Crocus sativus L. has been cultivated throughout history to obtain its flowers, whose dried stigmas give rise to the spice known as saffron. Crocetin esters, picrocrocin, and safranal are the main metabolites of this spice, which possess a great bioactivity, although the mechanisms of action and its bioavailability are still to be solved. The rest...
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Context 1
... the flower of C.s., petals and sepals are undifferentiated and are called tepals. Their flowers have six tepals, three yellow stamens, and a white filiform style culminated in a red stigma divided into three threads ( Figure 1). The genus Crocus comprises about 160 species occurring in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa and is mainly used as ornamentals all over the world for their colorful flowers [1]. ...
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Background
The increasing demand for saffron metabolites in various commercial industries, including medicine, food, cosmetics, and dyeing, is driven by the discovery of their diverse applications. Saffron, derived from Crocus sativus stigmas, is the most expensive spice, and there is a need to explore additional sources to meet global consumption...
Citations
... Employing a first derivative with 13 points and a smoothing of 13 points, an R 2 cv of 98.83% was achieved. However, it is worth noting that individual calibrations were conducted for cis and trans-crocins, since it is known that their bioactivity is different [27]; so, for this reason, it was considered necessary to perform a separate calibration of them. In this case, the use of higher derivatives and additional smoothing points to mitigate noise during derivation was requited. ...
Saffron, obtained by dehydrating the stigmas of the Crocus sativus flower, is a spice of great importance. In saffron, the flower emerges before leaf formation, thanks to the nutritional reserves of the corm. Early knowledge of metabolite levels such as crocins, picrocrocin, safranal, anthocyanins, or kaempferols in flowers serves as a guide to evaluate the quality of the corm (coloring power, flavor, aroma, or antioxidant capacity, among others). In this study, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) was calibrated and validated to determine the main saffron metabolites, both in stigmas and in floral residue. To achieve this, saffron flowers from different locations of the Denomination of Origin (D.O.) “Azafrán de La Mancha” (Castilla-La Mancha, Spain) were analyzed using NIR spectroscopy. Prior to this, samples were analyzed by RP-HPLC-DAD, where the concentration of all cited metabolites was determined. The development of a predictive model through NIR calibration and validation was successful, achieving high R2 values, especially in the case of the sum of crocins and kaempferol-3-O-β-sophoroside. Using these predictive models, it is possible to determine the quality of saffron corm by analyzing the flower.
... The dried stigma of saffron (Crocus sativus L.) has excellent preventive and therapeutic effects on circulatory system diseases, irregular menses, mental depression, tumors, etc. [1][2][3]. It can be used as a drug substitute to improve the immune system and self-repair ability for people, resulting in an increasing market demand for saffron [4]. ...
Leaf photosynthesis largely determines the daughter corm yields in vegetative growth for saffron (Crocus sativus L.). Most of the previous researches focus on the spectral response in various species, but research on saffron leaves at different leaf ages is lacking. In this study, the action spectrum based on photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and irradiance were distinguished and interpreted. The optical properties and photosynthetic performances of leaves were, respectively, investigated at two leaf ages, dependent on customized narrow-band LED spotlights from 380 nm to 780 nm with an interval of 20 nm and a band width of 10 nm. The younger leaves were characterized by higher reflectance and transmittance values at 500−600 nm, resulting in lower absorptance compared to the older leaves. The spectral response curves including the action spectrum and quantum yield for younger leaves were higher than the older, but their relative curves displayed coincidence. The spectral response curves exhibited two peaks at 440 and 640 nm, but no obvious troughs between 500 and 600 nm were observed. Nevertheless, the photosynthetic energy efficiencies of spotlights demonstrated very low values in the green/yellow region. Accordingly, more attention should be paid to green and yellow LED lighting during the vegetative stage for saffron, as well as improving their manufacturing technology.
... For instance, research on safflower predominantly focuses on its seeds rather than other parts, including the flower. Additionally, most studies are mostly addressed to investigate the bioactive compounds within their respective botanical families, pushing the research to deepen this area and report on the new discovery and identification of new compounds belonging to these categories [34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42]. Table S1 consolidates information from various types of studies, such as proximate and phytochemical analyses, highlighting the most prevalent compound or family of compounds for each product along with their potential concentrations. ...
... Saffron is rich in minerals, including easily detectable percentages such as ~1% potassium, 0.2% magnesium, 0.4% phosphorus, and 0.11% calcium. Identified mineral fragments include Ca + , CaOH3 + , K2OH + , KPOH2 + , and KPO4H3 + , with m/z values of 40, 59, 95, 123, and 137, respectively [20,37,54]. Figure 4 illustrates the two-dimensional separation among the three groups of samples, analyzed with a 95% confidence limit. ...
Saffron, renowned for its aroma and flavor, is susceptible to adulteration due to its high value and demand. Current detection methods, including ISO standards, often fail to identify specific adulterants such as safflower or turmeric up to 20% (w/w). Therefore, the quest continues for robust screening methods using advanced techniques to tackle this persistent challenge in safeguarding saffron quality and authenticity. Advanced techniques like Time of Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), with its molecular specificity and high sensitivity, offer promising solutions. Samples of pure saffron and saffron adulterated with safflower and turmeric at three levels of inclusion (5%, 10%, and 20%) were analyzed without prior treatment. Spectral analysis revealed distinct signatures for pure saffron, safflower, and turmeric. Through Principal Component Analysis (PCA), TOF-SIMS effectively discriminated between pure saffron and saffron adulterated with turmeric and safflower at different inclusion levels. The variation between the groups is attributed to the characteristic peaks of safflower and the amino group peaks and mineral peaks of saffron. Additionally, a study was conducted to demonstrate that semi-quantification of the level of safflower inclusion can be achieved from the normalized values of its characteristic peaks in the saffron matrix.
... Nevertheless, recent studies have reported that the utilization of saffron industrial by-products may represent an interesting source of bioactive nutrients such as flavonols, flavonoid glycosides, and anthocyanins, and a significant source of income for saffron producers and processors [3]. Therefore, saffron floral bio-residues are valuable natural sources of antioxidant molecules since polyphenols have been positively correlated with the ability to eliminate free radicals and inhibit pro-oxidant enzymes, and recent studies have suggested that the intake of these phytochemicals is associated with the prevention of various diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases [4][5][6][7]. ...
Despite the rapid and dynamic evolution of research into dietary polyphenols, there is still a knowledge gap regarding their bioaccessibility since it could be influenced by the chemical and nutritional compositions of the food matrix. This study aimed to describe the impact of food thickeners (xanthan gum, guar gum, β-glucan, pectin) on the bioactivity of flavonoids from saffron floral by-products in model beverages before and after thermal processing. The different beverage formulas were characterized in terms of polyphenolic composition using HPLC-DAD-ESI-MSn and rheological properties. The impact of food thickeners and thermal processing on the inhibition of digestive enzymes was also determined. The model beverages mainly presented glycosylated flavonols (of kaempferol, quercetin, and isorhamnetin), with a reduced content in some heat-treated samples. The inhibitory effect on α-amylase was only detected in heat-treated beverages, showing the formulation without any thickener to have the greatest inhibitory effect. Finally, the presence of saffron floral by-products in the beverages showed a tendency to decrease the flow consistency index (K) and an increase in the flow behavior index (n), most probably driven by the aggregation of phenolics with thickeners. Therefore, this research provides new insights into the development of flavonoid-rich beverages in order to ensure that they exert the expected beneficial effects after their ingestion.
... Saffron is a spice used as flavoring and coloring in food, produced from the dried stigmas of Crocus sativus flowers. Saffron is also known for a wide range of health-promoting benefits in traditional and modern medicine [1]. Numerous scientific studies have highlighted the positive biomedical and pharmacological properties of saffron, specifically in regard to the nervous system, cardiovascular system, immune system and even cancer [2,3]. ...
The therapeutic effects of saffron have been reported and described in relation to its major derivatives. Among them, in terms of saffron’s properties, crocin and crocetin absorption and bioavailability have been the most studied. Nevertheless, the metabolism of these major compounds of saffron has not yet been entirely elucidated. Current data indicate that the phase 2 metabolism of crocetins go through conjugation reactions. Crocetins could also be present in isomeric forms such as other carotenoids. Nonetheless, there are still shadow areas in regard to the measurements of the different circulating forms of crocetins after oral saffron extract administration (Safr’Inside™). In using various approaches, we propose the identification of a new cis isomeric form of crocetin, the 6-cis-crocetin. This compound was found in human serum samples after an oral administration of saffron extract. The 6-cis-crocetin represents 19% of the total crocetin measured after 45 min of consumption. These data mark, for the first time, the presence of a cis isomeric form of crocetin in human serum samples. Moreover, this study led to the development of an analytical method that is able to identify and quantify both isomeric forms (trans and cis).
... The compounds tentatively identified in the chromatograms are given in Table 2 by their polyphenol classes sequence in each case (http://phenol-explorer.eu; accessed on 19 February 2024), together with their retention times (t R (min)) and MS characteristics. The methanolic extract was rich in flavonols, especially kaempferol and quercetin derivatives, in agreement with the findings of previously described studies [16,36,37]. ...
... The compounds tentatively identified in the chromatograms are given in Table 2 by their polyphenol classes sequence in each case (http://phenol-explorer.eu; accessed on 19 February 2024), together with their retention times (tR (min)) and MS characteristics. The methanolic extract was rich in flavonols, especially kaempferol and quercetin derivatives, in agreement with the findings of previously described studies [16,36,37]. ...
The cultivation of Crocus sativus L. to obtain the saffron spice generates a large amount of biowaste, constituted mainly by the flower’s tepals. The aim of this work was to evaluate the antioxidant and dermo-protective effect of a complex methanolic extract of C. sativus tepals. The extract’s major phenolic content was analyzed using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization, coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS). Then, the antioxidant in vitro activity of the extract was studied and related to their chemical composition. Likewise, the effect on intracellular ROS levels in HepG2 and Hs27 cell culture was determined in normal culture and under hydrogen-peroxide-induced oxidative stress. Finally, tyrosinase, hyaluronidase, collagenase, elastase, and xanthine oxidase assays were carried out to determine the dermo-protective capacity of the extract. The high polyphenol content, including flavonoids and anthocyanins, explains the antioxidant effect of the extract both in vitro and in culture assays. The extract has a significant and remarkable protective capacity against oxidative stress induced in culture of the two studied cell lines. It is also remarkable in its ability to inhibit hyaluronidase, tyrosinase, and xanthine oxidase. Results pointed out this biowaste extract as a promising ingredient in the composition of cosmetics.
... Crocetin, the metabolite of crocin, was proven to possess significant hypolipidemic effects and was used to decrease serum lipids and treat coronary heart disease (Abedimanesh et al. 2019;Moratalla-López et al. 2019). In present investigation, hyperlipidemia rats were successfully induced and were employed to perform the pharmacokinetics investigation of crocetin in the pathological state of hyperlipidemia. ...
... Previous studies had reported that crocetin can be distributed to different tissues of the body after entering the body, and part of crocetin was metabolically converted to monoglucuronide and diglucuronide acid conjugates (Asai et al. 2005;Hosseini et al. 2018). The bimodal phenomenon after oral administration of crocetin may be related to the fact that it undergoes an enterohepatic circulation (Moratalla-López et al. 2019;Zhang et al. 2017). In the document of Zhang et al. (2017), the absorption and disposition of crocetin was considered to be related to triple recycles including enterohepatic recycling. ...
Crocetin as one of the main components of saffron possesses a lot of pharmacological effects, especially the beneficial effects in the treatment of hyperlipidemia. However, the pharmacokinetics of crocetin in the pathological state of hyperlipidemia has not been reported. In present study, the pharmacokinetics of crocetin in hyperlipidemia rats after oral administration of crocetin was investigated and the possible mechanisms for the pharmacokinetics were explored. High-fat diet was used to induce hyperlipidemia in rats. The pharmacokinetics of crocetin was investigated in hyperlipidemia and normal rats after oral and intravenous administration of crocetin, and the possible mechanisms of the pharmacokinetic changes were investigated in terms of metabolism and absorption using in vitro incubation with liver microsomes and the everted gut sac method, respectively. Results indicated that the AUCs of crocetin in hyperlipidemia rats after oral administration of crocetin were remarkably decreased when compared with those in normal rats. Moreover, crocetin was also metabolized more rapidly in the liver microsomes of hyperlipidemia rats and intestinal absorption of crocetin was significantly reduced in hyperlipidemia rats. It suggested that the remarkably decreased AUCs of crocetin in hyperlipidemia rats might partly result from the result of faster metabolic elimination and reduced absorption of crocetin in the hyperlipidemia pathological state. And the present investigations conducted on rats demonstrate that further investigations into the kinetics of crocetin in humans with hyperlipidemia are necessary in order to ensure an adequate dosage in this indication.
... However, DNA purification can be hindered due to the high content of phenolic compounds and other secondary metabolites in C. sativus. DNA degradation during extraction is also a common problem (Moratalla-López et al. 2019). Further, polyphenols and polysaccharide compounds interfere with total DNA isolation. ...
High-quality genomic DNA is essential for genomic and molecular investigations such as next-generation sequencing. However, DNA extraction from medicinal plants like Crocus sativus can be challenging due to their high secondary metabolite content, which can interact with nucleic acids and affect the quality and yield of extraction. This study aimed to optimize the quality and yield of DNA using the cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) extraction method from the leaves, stigma, and saffron corm. This new method is easy to use and can be performed using standard equipment and inexpensive reagents. The modifications made to the CTAB lysis buffer in this study, with the addition of SDS, resulted in a yield of 4233 ng/µl of DNA per sample of saffron corm (100 mg). This protocol is efficient and cost-effective for DNA extraction for studies with large samples and limited resources. This method is expected to be widely used for large-scale plant extraction and has a broad application in PCR-based sequencing studies.
... Saffron is obtained from the dried stigmas of the Crocus sativus L. flower, cultivated in many countries, such as Spain, Iran, India, Italy, Greece, and Morocco [8,9]. Due to its multiple bioactive properties (neuroprotective, antidepressant, anti-anxiety, antitumorigenic, cardioprotective, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, etc.; [10,11]), in recent years, multiple saffron-based food supplements (SFS) have appeared on the market. They are commercialized in different galenic formats (capsules, tablets, etc.), based on saffron as the only vegetal source or as blends with other plants. ...
Considering the interest in the bioactive properties of saffron (Crocus sativus L.), as well as its limited production and high price, saffron-based food supplements (SFS) are highly susceptible to adulteration. However, their complex composition and the wide variety of potential fraudulent practices make the comprehensive assessment of SFS quality a challenging task that has been scarcely addressed. To that aim, a new multianalytical strategy based on gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography with diode array detection coupled to mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD-MS) was developed and validated in order to detect different frauds affecting SFS. Dried saffron stigmas and a commercial standardized saffron extract (affron®) were selected as reference samples (RS) to obtain an authenticity profile, which was further used to evaluate the quality of 17 SFS. Up to 17 crocins and crocetins, 5 kaempferol glycosides, picrocrocin (determined for the first time by GC-MS), safranal, furanone and isophorone-related compounds were determined in RS. Safranal and crocins were identified in all SFS except for one sample. However, discrepancies with the content declared were detected in 65% of the cases. Moreover, this multianalytical methodology also allowed identifying undeclared additives and the non-declared addition of vegetable sources other than saffron.
... Crocin is the highly water-soluble carotenoid of saffron (Alavizadeh and Hosseinzadeh 2014), which exhibits limited absorption following oral ingestion and undergoes a metabolic conversion within the body, leading to the formation of crocetin (Xi and Qian 2006). Crocin has low stability, poor absorption, and low bioavailability (Moratalla-López et al. 2019). Attaching crocin to a nanoparticle can enhance its bioavailability, bioactivity and its ability to crossing the blood-brain barrier (BBB) based on the particle size (Gunasekaran et al. 2014;Saraiva et al. 2016). ...
The prevalence of cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is estimated to be approximately 40–60%. There is an increasing body of evidence regarding the impact of both selenium and crocin as antioxidant agents on cognitive function. In the present study, for the first time, we investigated the effect of crocin-selenium nanoparticles (Cor@SeNs) on cognitive function and oxidative stress markers in MS patients. A triple-blind randomized clinical trial was conducted among 60 MS patients. The participants were randomly divided in a 1:1 ratio to either the Cor@SeNs or placebo group, employing block randomization. During the course of 12 weeks, the participants received Cor@SeNs capsules, containing 5.74 mg crocin and 55 mcg Selenium, or placebo capsules. Cognition assessed using the Persian version of the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS (BICAMS) battery. Serum levels of total antioxidant capacity (TAC), glutathione reductase (GR) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) determined by colorimetric kits. Data analysis was performed in SPSS, version 26. P < 0.05 was considered as the significant range. The mean ± SD of TAC change was 0.03 ± 0.07 mM vs. − 0.03 ± 0.09 mM in intervention and placebo groups, respectively (Time × group effect P: 0.01; effect size: 0.10). The time effect of intervention on the California Verbal Learning Test second edition (CVLT-II) (P < 0.01; effect size: 0.29), CVLT-II-delay (P < 0.01; effect size: 0.29), and the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) (P < 0.01; effect size: 0.18) was increasing and significant. In addition, the time effect of intervention on GR activity was significant and decreasing in both groups (P < 0.01; effect size: 0.20). Our results suggested a significant effect of the Cor@SeNs intervention in improving TAC. We also observed a significant improvement in cognitive function in both groups during our study. However, although not statistically significant, a higher amount of change in cognitive function and serum antioxidant markers was noted in the Cor@SeNs group compared to the placebo group. This is the first study on this nano product with low dose of selenium and crocin. More investigations with longer duration and varied doses are suggested.
