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An increase in life expectancy leads to a greater impact of chronic non-communicable diseases. This is even more remarkable in elder populations, to whom these become main determinants of health status, affecting mental and physical health, quality of life, and autonomy. Disease appearance is closely related to the levels of cellular oxidation, pointing out the importance of including foods in one’s diet that can prevent oxidative stress. Previous studies and clinical data suggest that some plant-based products can slow and reduce the cellular degradation associated with aging and age-related diseases. Many plants from one family present several applications that range from the food to the pharmaceutical industry due to their characteristic flavor and scents. The Zingiberaceae family, which includes cardamom, turmeric, and ginger, has bioactive compounds with antioxidant activities. They also have anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anticancer, and antiemetic activities and properties that help prevent cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. These products are abundant sources of chemical substances, such as alkaloids, carbohydrates, proteins, phenolic acids, flavonoids, and diarylheptanoids. The main bioactive compounds found in this family (cardamom, turmeric, and ginger) are 1,8-cineole, α-terpinyl acetate, β-turmerone, and α-zingiberene. The present review gathers evidence surrounding the effects of dietary intake of extracts of the Zingiberaceae family and their underlying mechanisms of action. These extracts could be an adjuvant treatment for oxidative-stress-related pathologies. However, the bioavailability of these compounds needs to be optimized, and further research is needed to determine appropriate concentrations and their antioxidant effects in the body.

The chemical profiling of phenolic and terpenoid compounds in whole cardamom, skin, and seeds (Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton) showed 11 phenolics and 16 terpenoids, many of which are reported for the first time. Herein, we report the anti-inflammatory properties of a methanolic extract of whole cardamom in colon and macrophage cells stimulated with an inflammatory bacteria lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The results show that cardamom extracts lowered the expression of pro-inflammatory genes NFkβ, TNFα, IL-6, and COX2 in colon cells by reducing reactive oxygen species (ROS) while not affecting LXRα. In macrophages, cardamom extracts lowered the expression of pro-inflammatory genes NFkβ, TNFα, IL-6, and COX2 and decreased NO levels through a reduction in ROS and enhanced gene expression of nuclear receptors LXRα and PPARγ. The cardamom extracts in a range of 200–800 μg/mL did not show toxicity effects in colon or macrophage cells. The whole-cardamom methanolic extracts contained high levels of phenolics compounds (e.g., protocatechuic acid, caffeic acid, syringic acid, and 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid, among others) and are likely responsible for the anti-inflammatory and multifunctional effects observed in this study. The generated information suggests that cardamom may play a protective role against low-grade inflammation that can be the basis of future in vivo studies using mice models of inflammation and associated chronic diseases.

Cardamom Essential oils are highly demanded because of their antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities. Nonetheless, retrieving quality extracts quickly with efficient energy savings has been challenging. Therefore, green technologies are emerging as possible alternatives. Thus, this study evaluates the yield and quality of the instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) process coupled with ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) of cardamom essential oil (CEO). Likewise, the antioxidant activity, chemical profile of CEO, and microstructure of seeds were analyzed. This study analyzed 13 different treatments with varying saturated steam processing temperatures (SSPT), thermal processing times (TPT), and 1 control. The results showed that CEO yield increased significantly by DIC (140 °C and 30 s) and UAE compared to the control (22.53% vs. 15.6%). DIC 2 (165 °C, 30 s) showed the highest DPPH inhibition (79.48%) and the best Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) by the control with 0.60 uMTE/g. The GC/MS analysis showed 28 volatile constituents, withα-Terpinyl acetate, geranyl oleate, and oleic acid being the most abundant. DIC (140 °C and 30 s) and UAE showed the best yield and chemical profile. The SEM microscopy of untreated seeds revealed collapsed structures before the oil cell layer, which reduced the extraction yield, contrary to DIC-treated seeds, with more porous structures. Therefore, combining innovative extraction methods could solve the drawbacks of traditional extraction methods.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS), as a health-threatening factor, consists of various symptoms including insulin resistance, high blood sugar, hypertension, dyslipidemia, inflammation, and abdominal obesity that raise the risk of diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular diseases are important causes of mortality among the world population. Recently, there has been a growing interest in using phytomedicine and natural compounds in the prevention and treatment of various diseases. The data was gathered by searching various standard electronic databases (Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed) for English articles with no time limitations. All , , and clinical studies were included. (cardamom) is a rich source of phenolic compounds, volatile oils, and fixed oils. Cardamom and its pharmacologically effective substances have shown broad-spectrum activities including antihypertensive, anti-oxidant, lipid-modifying, anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerotic, anti-thrombotic, hepatoprotective, hypocholesterolemic, anti-obesity, and antidiabetic effects. This review aims to highlight the therapeutic effects of cardamom on MetS and its components including diabetes, hyperlipidemia, obesity, and high blood pressure as well as the underlying mechanisms in the management of MetS. Finally, it can be stated that cardamom has beneficial effects on the treatment of MetS and its complications.

The present study examined the chemical composition and antimicrobial and gastrointestinal activity of the essential oils of Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton harvested in India (EC-I) and Guatemala (EC-G). Monoterpenes were present in higher concentration in EC-I (83.24%) than in EC-G (73.03%), whereas sesquiterpenes were present in a higher concentration in EC-G (18.35%) than in EC-I (9.27%). Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 0.5 and 0.25 mg/mL were demonstrated against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in EC-G and EC-I, respectively, whereas MICs of 1 and 0.5 mg/mL were demonstrated against Escherichia coli in EC-G and EC-I, respectively. The treatment with control had the highest kill-time potential, whereas the treatment with oils had shorter kill-time. EC-I was observed to be more potent in the castor oil-induced diarrhea model than EC-G. At 100 and 200 mg/kg, P.O., EC-I exhibited 40% and 80% protection, respectively, and EC-G exhibited 20% and 60% protection, respectively, in mice, whereas loperamide (10 mg/kg, i.p., positive control) exhibited 100% protection. In the in vitro experiments, EC-I inhibited both carbachol (CCh, 1 µM) and high K+ (80 mM)-induced contractions at significantly lower concentrations than EC-G. Thus, EC-I significantly inhibited P. aeruginosa and E. coli and exhibited more potent antidiarrheal and antispasmodic effects than EC-G.

This study explores the impact of instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) technology on the cardamom FA profile in terms of composition and changes depending on DIC conditions, treatment time, and temperature. Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) is a spice native to Asia, which is very appreciated for its sensory characteristics, delicate aroma, and unique taste. Cardamom contains Fatty acids (FAs) that can benefit human health. For this reason, technologies such as DIC have been applied to increase FA yields and quality. The results show that the DIC process affects the FA profile of cardamom. The analysis of FAs via GC-MS revealed the presence of 8 fatty acids. Regarding the elements that influence the composition of these primary constituents, it is presumed that a combination of temperature (T) and treatment time (t) shapes their composition. This holds for seven cardamom FAs: palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, elaidic acid, α-Linoleic acid, α-Linolenic acid, and arachidic acid, where a combination of T and t contributes to their composition; in contrast, for myristic acid only the temperature exerts a significant influence. Optimizing the combination of temperature and treatment time can enhance both the yield and quality of fatty acids, suggesting that controlled DIC processing may improve cardamom’s nutritional and sensory attributes.

This study was conducted to investigate the microbial, chemical, and sensory quality of chicken drumsticks vacuum-packaged at 4 °C, using chitosan (CH) coating containing ethanol extracts and the essential oils (EO) of Elettaria Cardamomum. The treatments were stored for 16 days in cold conditions and investigated in three-day intervals. Total volatile base nitrogen analysis showed that, on the 6th day, the uncoated treatment showed unacceptable values, while treatments containing the EO and extracts stayed below the specified level even on the 16th day. In addition, during storage, the Peroxide values for the uncoated sample were higher than the documented for the coated groups. Results of the Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances index revealed that the sample containing the EO of E. Cardamomum is the best treatment. Regarding to pH on the 16th day, the microbial growth in the mixed sample was 0.46 units lower than the control group. Microbial analysis showed that coating significantly reduce the growth of all five groups of bacteria at 4 ± 1 °C; thus, on the 6th day, the differences between mesophiles, Enterobacteriaceae, psychrotrophic, and H2S-producing bacteria with the control group were 4.5, 4.5, 2.5, and 2 logs Cfu/g, respectively (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the lactic acid bacteria growth was completely stopped. Finally, it was found that adding EO and extracts could significantly preserve the sensory quality of the samples. Thus, it was concluded that vacuum-packaged CH coatings enriched with the extract and EO of E. Cardamomum can preserve the quality of chicken drumsticks during storage in refrigerators.

The aim of this work was to study the chemical composition of the essential oil extracted from ginger rhizomes (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) and cardamom seeds (Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton). Using gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS), a total of 43 compounds were identified in ginger essential oil and 17 compounds in cardamom. The most abundant components, respectively, were zingiberene (22.18%) and 1.8-cinéol (43.47%). Essential oils, methanol, ethanol and chloroform extracts for both plants were tested against nine bacteria and yeast. The highest sensitivity was noticed against Staphylococcus aureus with a 25 mm inhibition zone. The antioxidant potency of both oils and extracts were measured using DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl) free radical scavenging and the ferric reducing power (FRP) method; the ethanolic extract of cardamom fruits exhibited the best results for both tests, with an IC 50 = 0.423 ± 0.015 mg/mL and 95.03 ± 0.076 FRP mg AAE/g.

The tropical ginger genus Amomum (Zingiberaceae) has always posed challenges for classification based on morphological characters. Previous molecular phylogenetic studies showed Amomum to be paraphyletic but limited sampling and absence of the data of the type Amomum subulatum made it impossible to resolve the paraphyly and make nomenclatural changes. Here, Amomum is further investigated in a multi-marker phylogenetic framework using matK and nrITS including multiple accessions of the type, the genus Elettaria and additional accessions of Amomum, Alpinia, Elettariopsis, Geocharis, Geostachys and Hornstedtia. Amomum is shown to consist of nine clades and Alpinia of six. The genera Elettaria, Elettariopsis, Plagiostachys, and species in Hornstedtia are nested within these clades. Morphological studies of species previously subsumed in Amomum support recognition of new genera that correspond to well-delimited clades in the phylogenetic framework presented here. Recircumscription of the paraphyletic genus Amomum facilitates identification and creates nomenclatural stability. Three genera, Conamomum, Meistera and Wurfbainia, are resurrected, and three new genera Epiamomum, Lanxangia and Sundamomum are described, together with a key to the genera and a nomenclatural synopsis placing 384 specific names (incl. all synonyms) into the new generic framework. Of these 129 represent new combinations and 3 are replacement names. Types of Geocharis and Geostachys are designated. Further studies and specific sampling will be needed to resolve other branches of Alpinioideae containing other polyphyletic genera.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Elettaria cardamomum, a highly priced spice, is native to the Western Ghats of South India. Wild populations still occur in isolated patches in their natural habitats; however, much of today's commercial product comes from cultivated sources. There is no information on domestication-related traits of this species; the main objective of this study was to compare wild and cultivated populations of cardamom in terms of vegetative and reproductive features in order to identify domestication syndromes and to examine whether the two populations have developed reproductive barriers. METHODS: Two wild populations and five cultivated plantations were used for the present study. Vegetative and floral traits, flowering phenology, pollination biology and breeding systems of wild and cultivated populations were compared. Effective pollinators amongst floral visitors were identified by confirming pollen transfer as well as by fruit set following their visit to virgin flowers. Manual pollinations were carried out in order to study the breeding systems of the two populations and reproductive barriers, if any, between them. KEY RESULTS: Several productive traits including the number of branches, number of inflorescences, and total number of flowers per clump, number of flowers that open each day, the duration of flowering, the length of the flower and the amount of nectar per flower are significantly greater in cultivated cardamom. The principal pollinators in wild cardamom are solitary bees, Megachile sp. and two species of Amegilla, whereas those in cultivated cardamom are the social bees Apis dorsata, A. cerana and Trigona iridipennis. Both the wild and cultivated populations are self-compatible and there are no reproductive barriers between the two populations. CONCLUSIONS: Domestication in cardamom has brought about significant changes in vegetative and reproductive traits and a shift in effective pollinators from native solitary bees to social bees. The shift in pollinators seems to be due to the availability of a large number of flowers for prolonged periods in cultivated cardamom that can attract and sustain social bees, rather than due to co-evolution of the flower and the pollinator.