New powerful antioxidant discovered in tomato plants
25 Jul 2011
Juan Valverde
A new antioxidant from tomato plants (Solanum esculentum L.) has been discovered. The new antioxidant compound is nearly 5 times more antioxidant than Vitamin E, 10 times more antioxidant than Vitamin C and 14 times more antioxidant than Resveratrol a potent antioxidant found in red wine and linked to the French paradox.
This strong antioxidant substance is synthesized by the tomato plants when they are under the stress of a bacterial pathogen (Pseudomonas synringae) and therefore why it wasn't discovered previously. The plant in order to protect itself from the exposure to the pathogen releases a range of secondary metabolites (mostly form the family of phenyl propanoids) that accumulate in the areas of the infection.
Four compounds never described in literature were identified. In addition the researchers from the Institute for Plant Molecular and Cell Biology (IBMCP) in Valencia (Spain) have developed a simple and economical process of synthesizing feruloylnoradrenaline (FNA) in the laboratory. FNA possessed high free radical scavenging activity.
This new discovery could have multiple applications; for example the breeding/development of tomato plants with higher contents of these compounds could make them more resistant to infections; also the high antioxidant capacity of the FNA makes it an interesting candidate for food ingredients. Antioxidants are among the most common food ingredients used to avoid undesirable oxidation in lipids or proteins (rancidity).
For further details on this subject:
López-Gresa, M. P.; Torres, C.; Campos, L.; Lisón, P.; Rodrigo, I.; Bellés, J. M.; Conejero, V., Identification of defence metabolites in tomato plants infected by the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. Environmental and Experimental Botany In Press,
