Black cumin (Nigella sativa) seeds: Chemistry, Technology, Functionality, and Applications


Book Description

Recent developments in the field of nutrition have led to increased interest in herbs and medicinal plants as phytochemical-rich sources for functional food, nutraceuticals, and drugs. As research sheds light on the therapeutic potential of various bioactive phytochemicals, the demand for plant extracts and oils has increased. Black cumin or black seeds (Nigella sativa) have particularly widespread nutritional and medicinal applications. In traditional medicine, black seeds are used to manage fatigue and chronic headache. Black seed oil is used as an antiseptic and analgesic remedy and for treatment of joint's pain and stiffness and can be mixed with sesame oil to treat dermatosis, abdominal disorders, cough, headache, fever, liver ailments, jaundice, sore eyes, and hemorrhoids. Thymoquinone, the main constituent in black seed volatile oil, has been shown to suppress carcinogenesis. Black cumin (Nigella sativa) seeds: Chemistry, Technology, Functionality, and Applications presents in detail the chemical composition, therapeutic properties, and functionality of high-value oils, phytochemicals, nutrients, and volatiles of the Nigella sativa seed. Organized by formulation (seeds, fixed oil, essential oil, and extracts), chapters break this seed down into its chemical constituents and explore their role in the development of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, novel food, natural drugs, and feed. Following numerous reports on the health-promoting activities of Nigella sativa, this is the first comprehensive presentation of the functional, nutritional, and pharmacological traits of Nigella sativa seeds and seed oil constituents.




Black Seeds (Nigella sativa)


Book Description

Black Seeds (Nigella sativa) is a comprehensive resource covering all aspects of this medicinal plant, well-known for its positive effects in many human ailments. It has been used to promote health and fight diseases, and has been found to have antioxidant, antihypertensive, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic effects. It has also been known to have antimicrobial, anticancer, neuro-protectant, cardio protectant, immunomodulator, hepatic protectant characteristics. Thymoquinone, the active compound of the plant, also exhibits these protective qualities against many disorders. This book summarizes the effect of this plant on all the organ systems of the body. Black Seeds (Nigella sativa) is a comprehensive resource for researchers working in pharmacology, food chemistry and pharmaceutical chemistry, both in industry and academia. - Contains global coverage of the latest research on the pharmacological properties of Nigella sativa - Includes the medicinal effects of Nigella sativa: antioxidant, antihypertensive, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer effects among many others - Features many figures with mechanisms and tables to illustrate key details about Nigella sativa




Bioactive Phytochemicals from Vegetable Oil and Oilseed Processing By-products


Book Description

This book comprehensively reviews the phytochemistry, functional properties, and health-promoting effects of bioactive compounds found in oil processing by-products, and it also explores the food and non-food applications of these by-products. Several oilseeds, vegetables, and fruits are cultivated for their oils and fats, wherein the oil extraction industry generates a huge amount of waste (meal or cake). The valorisation of this waste would be very beneficial not only from the economic and environmental perspectives, but also for the potential applications in food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries, in which phytochemicals derived from vegetable oil and oilseed processing by-products play an important role in, for instance, extending the shelf life of several products and providing added-value properties with their antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. In this work, expert contributors discuss about the added-value of biowaste from common and non-traditional vegetable oils and oilseeds processing, as well as fruit oils processing, and offer an extensive overview of the different bioactive compounds found in extracts from oil processing by-products and their chemical composition. The book also collects several examples in which oil processing by-products are integrated into industrial activities such as food production, livestock production and in pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. Professionals and scholars alike interested in the recycling of agro-industrial wastes derived from vegetable oil and oilseed processing by-products will find this book a handy reference tool.




Fruit Oils: Chemistry and Functionality


Book Description

Fruit Oils: Chemistry and Functionality presents a comprehensive overview of recent advances in the chemistry and functionality of lipid bioactive phytochemicals found in fruit oils. The chapters in this text examine the composition, physicochemical characteristics and organoleptic attributes of each of the major fruit oils. The nutritional quality, oxidative stability, and potential food and non-foodapplications of these oils are also extensively covered. The potential health benefits of the bioactive lipids found in these fruit oils are also a focus of this text. For each oil presented, the levels of omega-9, omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are specified, indicating the level of health-promoting traits exhibited in each. The oils and fats extracted from fruits generally differ from one another both in terms of their major and minor bioactive constituents. The methods used to extract oils and fats as well as the processing techniques such as refining, bleaching and deodorization affect their major and minor constituents. In addition, different post-processing treatments of fruit oils and fats may alert or degrade important bioactive constituents. Treatments such as heating, frying, cooking and storage and major constituents such as sterols and tocols are extensively covered in this text. Although there have been reference works published on the composition and biological properties of lipids from oilseeds, there is currently no book focused on the composition and functionality of fruit oils. Fruit Oils: Chemistry and Functionality aims to fill this gap for researchers, presenting a detailed overview of the chemical makeup and functionality of all the important fruit oils.




Green Adsorbents


Book Description

Adsorption technology is a promising avenue for wastewater treatment. Numerous adsorbent materials are presently synthesized. Green or environmental friendly adsorbents are derived from plants and agricultural crop sources, giving them a very low production cost when compared to synthetic polymers. This monograph explains the basic principles of green adsorption technology, their production processes and strategies to remove different categories of environmental pollutants (dyes, heavy metals and phenols/pesticides). The book explains details in terms of features such as adsorption capacity, physico-chemical kinetics and reuse potential. A summary of the economics and future prospect for green adsorption technology is also given. This text is a handy reference for environmental chemistry students, researchers and policy makers.




Dietary Phytochemicals and Microbes


Book Description

Humans have utilized the bioactive principles of different plants for various beneficial physiological properties including antimicrobial properties for many centuries. However, interests of using medicinal plants declined in the 20th century with the availability of effective synthetic antimicrobial drugs. The development of microbial resistance to various drugs has accelerated research interests towards the use of phytochemicals as alternatives to synthetic drugs in the recent years. This book presents an comprehensive reviews on the antimicrobial and antiviral properties of numerous recently reported phytochemicals, and their mechanisms of antimicrobial actions. Some of the chapters have critically discussed the beneficial and adverse effects of antibacterial, and stimulatory activities of dietary phytochemicals on rumen microbial populations, and gut microbial populations of humans and animals. Microbial adaptation and resistance of microbes to phytochemicals has also been highlighted. On the applied apects, the use of phytochemicals against drug resistance microbes, to treat microbial diseases, for food preservation, to inhibit methanogenic archaea in the rumen, and to modulate lipid biohydrogenating microbial populations to increase conjugated linoleic acids in animal-derived foods have been presented in different chapters.




Opuntia spp.: Chemistry, Bioactivity and Industrial Applications


Book Description

The Opuntia fruits, commonly known as cactus pears or prickly pears, have been suggested by the Food and Agriculture Organization to be a promising and strategic crop in regions suffering from lack of water. In Mexico, India, South Africa, and the Mediterranean, the Opuntia fruits have become popular due to their nutritive value and health-promoting benefits, including antioxidant, antiulcerogenic and antiatherogenic traits and protective effects against LDL oxidation. Additionally, readily absorbable sugars, high vitamin C and mineral content, and a pleasant flavour make Opuntia tailor-made for novel foods. Due to their ecological advantages, high functional value, and health-related traits, Opuntia fruits can be highly exploited in different food processing applications. For instance, Opuntia cactus fruits are used for the preparation of juices and marmalades; Opuntia cactus plants are used to feed animals in African and Latin American countries; Peruvian farmers cultivate Opuntia cactus for growing the cochineal (Dactylopius coccus) insect and producing the natural dye carmine; and the commercial production of food and non-food products from Opuntia has been established in Mexico, USA and several Mediterranean countries. Opuntia spp.: Chemistry, Bioactivity and Industrial Applications creates a multidisciplinary forum of discussion on Opuntia cactus with special emphasis on its horticulture, post-harvest, marketability, chemistry, functionality, health-promoting properties, technology and processing. The text includes detailed discussion of the impact of traditional and innovative processing on the recovery of high-added value compounds from Opuntia spp. by-products. Later chapters explore the potential applications of Opuntia spp. in food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical products.




Biochemistry, Nutrition, and Therapeutics of Black Cumin Seed


Book Description

Biochemistry, Nutrition, and Therapeutics of Black Cumin Seed covers the history of medicinal uses of N. sativa and its position in various cultures, agronomy, cultivation and agricultural practices. The book also brings the biochemical composition, carbohydrates, polysaccharides and nutritional value of black cumin seeds, while also exploring them as a potential functional food. Written by an international team of black cumin seeds researchers, this book aims to reach producers, nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical companies, unconventional oil producing companies, seed oils researchers, Institutes and research groups of medicinal plants, Food and chemistry students what they need to understand about the black cumin seed. Black cumin's application as a food additive and flavoring agent have been reported in various countries around the world. Furthermore, previous studies have identified many volatile components present in N. sativa seeds, including thymoquinone, a main compound that has antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-malarial, anti-cancer activities and help in treatment of bronchial asthma, ischemia and cardiovascular diseases, besides many other compounds that can induce pharmacological effects and have therapeutic potential in humans. - Thoroughly explores the biochemical composition, nutritional values, functional and medicinal potentials of black cumin seed and where they can be grown worldwide - Covers the cultivation and agricultural practices of black cumin seeds - Brings medicinal uses of black cumin seeds, such as anti-malarial and anti-cancer activities - Details the biological activities of the black cumin seeds and its nutritional effects




Chemistry of Spices


Book Description

This book (24 chapters) covers the chemistry (chemical composition and structure) of the following spice plants and their products, and provides brief information on the morphology, and postharvest management (storage, packaging and grading) of these crops: black pepper (Piper nigrum), small cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum), large cardamom (Amomum subulatum), ginger, turmeric, cinnamon and cassia (Cinnamomum spp.), clove, nutmeg and mace, coriander (Coriandrum sativum), cumin (Cuminum cyminum), fennel, fenugreek, paprika and chilli (Capsicum spp.), vanilla (Vanilla spp.), ajowan (Trachyspermum ammi), star anise (Illicium verum), aniseed (Pimpinella anisum), garcinia (Garcinia spp.), tamarind, parsley, celery, curry leaf (Murraya koenigii) and bay leaf (Laurus nobilis). This book will be useful to researchers, industrialists and postgraduate students of agriculture, horticulture and phytochemistry, and to spice traders and processors.




Clove (Syzygium aromaticum)


Book Description

Organized into four sections, Clove (Syzygium aromaticum): Chemistry, Functionality, and Applications addresses the cultivation, composition, and applications of clove, along with the chemistry, functionality, and applications of clove fixed oil, clove essential oil, and clove extracts and their role in food and medicine. Beginning with the introduction of clove, this book aims to establish a multidisciplinary discussion on the development of Syzygium aromaticum phytochemistry, technology, processing, agricultural practices, functional traits, health-enhancing potential, mechanism of action, and toxicity as well as food and nonfood uses. The studies reported in this book confirm the functional applications of Syzygium aromaticum as a medicinal plant, standing out for the significance of novel applications. This book delves into the functional, nutritional, and pharmacological traits of clove. Therefore, the book will serve as a valuable reference for food scientists, technologists, chemists, nutritionists, and pharmacists developing new pharmaceutical and food products. - Explores the chemistry and functionality of clove buds, clove oils and clove extracts - Discusses clove bioactive phytochemicals and their health-promoting potential - Presents the functional applications of clove buds, clove oils and clove extracts in food - Includes applications, literature reviews, and coverage of recent developments