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Phytochemical, nutritional, antioxidant and anticancer properties of Juglans regia (L.).

Publication . Silva, Branca M.; Nunes, Ana R.; Ramalhosa, Elsa; Pereira, J.A.; Alves, Marco G.; Oliveira, Pedro F.

Juglans regia (L.) is a deciduous tree, spread throughout the world due to its nutritional and sensory value. Although walnuts, the J. regia seeds, have been part of the human diet for a long time, only in the recent years several studies have surfaced on this botanical species as a rich and inexpensive source of bioactive compounds. In fact, much research is available depicting the human health benefits of J. regia seeds, leaves and green husks for a wide variety of diseases mediated by oxidative stress, namelly cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. Among bioactive compounds, polyphenols play an important role. They are well known for their strong antioxidant, antihemolytic, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activities and are considered by many researchers responsible for the beneficial health effects of J. regia and its derivatives. In this chapter, we aim to emphasize the phytochemical composition, nutritional value and health promoting properties of J. regia, especially those related to its antioxidant and anticancer activities. Among several nut types, walnut stands up as a functional food, rich in antioxidants, especially in phenolic compounds and tocopherols. The potential for J. regia to be used as both preventive and therapeutic measure in several human diseases is high. For that reason, a lot of attention has been given to J. regia in the last decade. Our chapter, summarizes the main studies about J. regia and its beneficial effects on human health, focusing on its antioxidant and anticancer activities.

2016Book part

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The progression from a lower to a higher invasive stage of bladder cancer is associated with severe alterations in glucose and pyruvate metabolism

Publication . Conde, Vanessa R.; Oliveira, Pedro F.; Nunes, Ana R.; Rocha, Cátia S.; Ramalhosa, Elsa; Pereira, J.A.; Alves, Marco G.; Silva, Branca M.

Cancer cells present a particular metabolic behavior. We hypothesized that the progression of bladder cancer could be accompanied by changes in cells glycolytic profile. We studied two human bladder cancer cells, RT4 and TCCSUP, in which the latter represents a more invasive stage. The levels of glucose, pyruvate, alanine and lactate in the extracellular media were measured by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. The protein expression levels of glucose transporters 1 (GLUT1) and 3 (GLUT3), monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4), phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK1), glutamic-pyruvate transaminase (GPT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were determined. Our data showed that glucose consumption and GLUT3 levels were similar in both cell lines, but TCCSUP cells displayed lower levels of GLUT1 and PFK expression. An increase in pyruvate consumption, concordant with the higher levels of lactate and alanine production, was also detected in TCCSUP cells. Moreover, TCCSUP cells presented lower protein expression levels of GPT and LDH. These results illustrate that bladder cancer progression is associated with alterations in cells glycolytic profile, namely the switch from glucose to pyruvate consumption in the more aggressive stage. This may be useful to develop new therapies and to identify biomarkers for cancer progression.

2015Journal article

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