Isolation and structure elucidation of pectic polysaccharide from rose hip fruits (Rosa canina L.).

A pectic polysaccharide from rose hip (RH) fruits has been obtained by extraction with 1% aqueous citric acid. It was found that the polysaccharide fraction mainly consisted of galacturonic acid (45.5%) next to galactose (5.

Antiatherogenic and Cardioprotective Effects of Black Chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) Juice in Aging Rats.

Age-related diseases are a social problem of global significance and their prevention by natural products is a research area of particular interest. The present study is an approach to counteract the risk factors for atherosclerosis arising in the aging process by supplementation of chokeberry juice. It employed a model of healthy adult rats monitored for a number of somatometric, serum lipidogram, and histopathological parameters, related to risk factors and their response to supplementation with antioxidant-rich chokeberry juice.

Inhibition of lung tumor development by berry extracts in mice exposed to cigarette smoke.

Cigarette smoke (CS) and dietary factors play a major role in cancer epidemiology. At the same time, however, the diet is the richest source of anticancer agents. Berries possess a broad array of health protective properties and were found to attenuate the yield of tumors induced by individual carcinogens in the rodent digestive tract and mammary gland but failed to prevent lung tumors induced by typical CS components in mice.