Browsing by Author "Orellana, Juan Francisco"

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    Assessing quality and polyphenol in vitro bioaccessibility in healthy jelly gummies with microencapsulated and non-encapsulated pomegranate peel extract
    (Elsevier Ltd, 2025) Gonzales, Elva; Bustamante, Andrés; Garcia-Diaz, Diego; Sanhueza, Leyla; Orellana, Juan Francisco; Fredes González, Carolina Paz; Jiménez, Paula; Chávez, Vilma; Echeverria González, Francisca Cecilia
    Pomegranate peel extract (PPE) is rich in polyphenols, notably punicalagin and ellagic acid, but is sensitive to environmental degradation and has low bioavailability. Microencapsulation can enhance PPE stability and bioaccessibility, making it suitable for functional foods like jelly gummies (JG). JG containing microencapsulated PPE (MPPE) have not been studied. Objective: To characterize a JG prototype incorporating PPE or MPPE and compare the bioaccessibility of total polyphenols (TP), punicalagin, and ellagic acid after a simulated in vitro digestion. Methods: PPE-JG and MPPE-JG prototypes were evaluated for physical, sensory, and chemical properties. The bioaccessibility of the main bioactive compounds was analyzed using the INFOGEST digestion protocol. Results: Bioaccessibility was significantly higher for MPPE-JG compared to PPE-JG for TP (164.1 ± 6.0 vs. 100.0 ± 5.8 %, respectively) and punicalagin (173.4 ± 4.4 vs. 106.5 ± 4.2 %, respectively). MPPE-JG exhibited enhanced bioaccessibility, suggesting MPPE as a viable, functional ingredient in healthy gummies.
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    Impact of pomegranate peel extract on gut microbiota composition and metabolic health parameters in high-fat diet-fed mice
    (2024) Duarte, Lissette; Bustamante, Andrés; Orellana, Juan Francisco; Valenzuela, Rodrigo; Magne, Fabien; Fuentes, Jocelyn; Speisky, Hernán; Echeverria Gonzalez, Francisca Cecilia
    Background: Gut microbiota (GM) plays a crucial role in obesity pathophysiology and is heavily influenced by dietary factors. Polyphenols have shown a positive effect in preventing and treating obesity, which is blunted in the absence of GM. Pomegranate peel, known for its high content of polyphenols (ellagitannins), has been found to exhibit favorable metabolic effects in obesity. Interestingly, ellagitannins are metabolized by the action of GM. However, the specific impact of pomegranate peel extract (PPE) on GM and metabolism remains unclear.Objective: to evaluate the effect of a PPE (microencapsulated or not) on the composition of GM in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice and analyze its association with metabolic parameters.Methods: Male C57BL/6J mice (n = 40) were randomly distributed into five groups: control diet (CD), HFD, HFD + inulin (IN), HFD + PPE (50 mg/kg/d of total polyphenols; TP), and HFD + MPPE (50 mg/kg/d TP), for 14 weeks. Liver and serum antioxidant status were assessed. GM composition, further relative abundances, and biodiversity were calculated from cecal content samples. The bacterial community clustering was analyzed using a canonical-correlation analysis (CCA). GM parameters and metabolic outcomes were evaluated for correlation (Spearman’s correlation), p < 0.05.Results: PPE and MPPE showed increased energy expenditure, reduced liver arachidonic acid content, elevated antioxidant capacity, and higher GM alpha diversity compared to HFD alone.Conclusion: PPE, regardless of encapsulation, ameliorated metabolic alterations induced by HFD, potentially through modulation of GM. These findings provide data on the therapeutic potential of PPE in managing obesityrelated metabolic dysfunction.