A doctoral research by nutritionist Ângela Giovana Batista confirmed the benefit brought by jabuticaba and red jambo for learning and memory in animal models, as well as the action of bioactive antioxidant compounds and fibers of these red fruits in the prevention of diseases associated with obesity.
The thesis, supervised by professor Mário Roberto Maróstica Júnior, was developed at the Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, at the Faculty of Food Engineering (FEA) at Unicamp, and was co-supervised by professor Maria Alice da Cruz Höfling, from the Laboratory of Cellular Ultrastructure, of the Institute of Biology (IB). So far, the research has yielded five articles, two of which have already been published.
Nutritionist Ângela Giovana Batista, author of the thesis: the first step was to evaluate the chemical composition of fruits
“Our group has been working with jabuticaba since 2008 and, as studies have shown the beneficial effects of the fruit, we decided to continue the line of research”, explains Ângela Batista. “Jambo is a fruit that we didn’t know about and that we decided to investigate because there are no reports in the literature about its effects, given that the production of a red jamb tree is very high in Brazil. At harvest time, the tree produces a lot and, except in the North and Northeast, people do not consume the fruit, perhaps due to lack of knowledge.”
According to the nutritionist, red jambo is typical of hot regions, such as Araçatuba, where she collected the samples for the research. “I consumed the fruit in natura and its flavor is acidic-sweet, light, similar to an apple – those from the North and Northeast must taste different. The interesting thing is its smell, it is a fruit that smells like roses. Jambo showed significant amounts of fiber and polyphenols in its composition, especially anthocyanins, which are compounds associated with beneficial properties against metabolic diseases.”
Ângela explains that the first step was to evaluate the chemical composition of jabuticaba and jambo, because each year, and also depending on the region, their composition changes. “The plant produces these bioactive compounds (antioxidants) to defend itself against the effects of an unwanted climate and, as the climate changes, it presents different amounts of these compounds. It was according to the composition that we formulated the hyperlipidic diets for the animals, using lard to better simulate what is consumed in terms of fat in these times of fast foods.”
During the biological assays, the mice spent ten weeks consuming diets with low and high concentration of fat, supplemented with jabuticaba bark and red jambo pulp. “After this treatment, the animals showed improvements in obesity markers, such as a decrease in body fat mass, greater resistance to peripheral insulin, a reduction in pro-inflammatory markers and an increase in antioxidant defense (which fights free radicals in the body). All these parameters are associated with the prevention of type 2 diabetes – a large-scale public health problem in Brazil and worldwide.”
maze test
Ângela Batista considers that an unprecedented aspect of her thesis was the investigation of the role of jabuticaba and jambo in the memory of animals. “Early in the research, we observed that the hippocampus, which controls memory and learning (and one of the first regions of the brain to be affected when Alzheimer’s disease begins), suffered oxidative damage due to the high production of free radicals after consumption of a fatty diet, in addition to not responding adequately to insulin signaling in cells, promoting the phosphorylation of a protein called Tau.”
In other words, the nutritionist explains that Tau is responsible for the polymerization of microtubules, helping to maintain the structure of neurons and especially axons. “When phosphorylated at various sites, Tau separates from microtubules and associates to form neurofibrillary tangles. These tangles impair neuronal plasticity and, thus, neurons lose their connections and synapses, being prevented from performing memory access and acquisition tasks. Supplementing a fatty diet with both fruits (jambo-red and jabuticaba) not only prevented this damage, but also increased insulin sensitivity, preventing the formation of Alzheimer’s markers such as Tau phosphorylation.”
To confirm the findings, adds the author of the thesis, the animals were submitted to the test known as “Morris water maze”: for five days, they were trained to find a platform hidden in a swimming pool. “On the last day, the platform was removed. When looking for it, the animals that did not receive the supplement in their diet swam at random, while those that consumed jambo and jabuticaba bark swam exactly in the place where the platform was – a joke within the group was that these animals were using GPS. ”
preventive effect
Ângela Batista anticipates that other students in the research group are already getting involved with the technological part of the research line, seeking to incorporate these red fruits into products that reach consumers quickly. “We have already investigated, for example, the effects of jabuticaba peel tea and also in cereal bars. We started to publish our studies with this fruit in 2012 and, I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, news arrives about the use of its skin for the production of flours, juices, yogurts and ice creams. But it is important to point out that such products, when made available, have a preventive and not a curative effect.”
The researcher’s belief, in any case, is that prevention really is the best medicine, giving the example of Alzheimer’s disease, which begins to develop ten or fifteen years before it is diagnosed. “It turns out that the Alzheimer’s markers are already there – and that’s when food is very important. Today, people are more aware that ‘you are what you eat’, returning to ancient medicine values preached by Hippocrates: let your food be your medicine.”
A doctoral research by nutritionist Ângela Giovana Batista confirmed the benefit brought by jabuticaba and red jambo for learning and memory in animal models, as well as the action of bioactive antioxidant compounds and fibers of these red fruits in the prevention of diseases associated with obesity.
The thesis, supervised by professor Mário Roberto Maróstica Júnior, was developed at the Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, at the Faculty of Food Engineering (FEA) at Unicamp, and was co-supervised by professor Maria Alice da Cruz Höfling, from the Laboratory of Cellular Ultrastructure, of the Institute of Biology (IB). So far, the research has yielded five articles, two of which have already been published.
Nutritionist Ângela Giovana Batista, author of the thesis: the first step was to evaluate the chemical composition of fruits
“Our group has been working with jabuticaba since 2008 and, as studies have shown the beneficial effects of the fruit, we decided to continue the line of research”, explains Ângela Batista. “Jambo is a fruit that we didn’t know about and that we decided to investigate because there are no reports in the literature about its effects, given that the production of a red jamb tree is very high in Brazil. At harvest time, the tree produces a lot and, except in the North and Northeast, people do not consume the fruit, perhaps due to lack of knowledge.”
According to the nutritionist, red jambo is typical of hot regions, such as Araçatuba, where she collected the samples for the research. “I consumed the fruit in natura and its flavor is acidic-sweet, light, similar to an apple – those from the North and Northeast must taste different. The interesting thing is its smell, it is a fruit that smells like roses. Jambo showed significant amounts of fiber and polyphenols in its composition, especially anthocyanins, which are compounds associated with beneficial properties against metabolic diseases.”
Ângela explains that the first step was to evaluate the chemical composition of jabuticaba and jambo, because each year, and also depending on the region, their composition changes. “The plant produces these bioactive compounds (antioxidants) to defend itself against the effects of an unwanted climate and, as the climate changes, it presents different amounts of these compounds. It was according to the composition that we formulated the hyperlipidic diets for the animals, using lard to better simulate what is consumed in terms of fat in these times of fast foods.”
During the biological assays, the mice spent ten weeks consuming diets with low and high concentration of fat, supplemented with jabuticaba bark and red jambo pulp. “After this treatment, the animals showed improvements in obesity markers, such as a decrease in body fat mass, greater resistance to peripheral insulin, a reduction in pro-inflammatory markers and an increase in antioxidant defense (which fights free radicals in the body). All these parameters are associated with the prevention of type 2 diabetes – a large-scale public health problem in Brazil and worldwide.”
maze test
Ângela Batista considers that an unprecedented aspect of her thesis was the investigation of the role of jabuticaba and jambo in the memory of animals. “Early in the research, we observed that the hippocampus, which controls memory and learning (and one of the first regions of the brain to be affected when Alzheimer’s disease begins), suffered oxidative damage due to the high production of free radicals after consumption of a fatty diet, in addition to not responding adequately to insulin signaling in cells, promoting the phosphorylation of a protein called Tau.”
In other words, the nutritionist explains that Tau is responsible for the polymerization of microtubules, helping to maintain the structure of neurons and especially axons. “When phosphorylated at various sites, Tau separates from microtubules and associates to form neurofibrillary tangles. These tangles impair neuronal plasticity and, thus, neurons lose their connections and synapses, being prevented from performing memory access and acquisition tasks. Supplementing a fatty diet with both fruits (jambo-red and jabuticaba) not only prevented this damage, but also increased insulin sensitivity, preventing the formation of Alzheimer’s markers such as Tau phosphorylation.”
To confirm the findings, adds the author of the thesis, the animals were submitted to the test known as “Morris water maze”: for five days, they were trained to find a platform hidden in a swimming pool. “On the last day, the platform was removed. When looking for it, the animals that did not receive the supplement in their diet swam at random, while those that consumed jambo and jabuticaba bark swam exactly in the place where the platform was – a joke within the group was that these animals were using GPS. ”
preventive effect
Ângela Batista anticipates that other students in the research group are already getting involved with the technological part of the research line, seeking to incorporate these red fruits into products that reach consumers quickly. “We have already investigated, for example, the effects of jabuticaba peel tea and also in cereal bars. We started to publish our studies with this fruit in 2012 and, I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, news arrives about the use of its skin for the production of flours, juices, yogurts and ice creams. But it is important to point out that such products, when made available, have a preventive and not a curative effect.”
The researcher’s belief, in any case, is that prevention really is the best medicine, giving the example of Alzheimer’s disease, which begins to develop ten or fifteen years before it is diagnosed. “It turns out that the Alzheimer’s markers are already there – and that’s when food is very important. Today, people are more aware that ‘you are what you eat’, returning to ancient medicine values preached by Hippocrates: let your food be your medicine.”
