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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Nutrition
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1416539

Sonchus asper (L.) Hill extracts: phytochemical characterization and exploitation of its biological activities by loading into nanovesicles

Provisionally accepted
Valentina Parisi Valentina Parisi 1Valentina Santoro Valentina Santoro 1Immacolata Faraone Immacolata Faraone 2Nadia Benedetto Nadia Benedetto 2Antonio Vassallo Antonio Vassallo 2,3Nunziatina De Tommasi Nunziatina De Tommasi 1*Luigi Milella Luigi Milella 2*Antonio Nesticò Antonio Nesticò 4Gabriella Maselli Gabriella Maselli 4Anna Maria Fadda Anna Maria Fadda 5Carla Caddeo Carla Caddeo 5
  • 1 Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, Fisciano, Campania, Italy
  • 2 Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Basilicata, Italy
  • 3 Spinoff TNcKILLERS srl, Potenza, Italy
  • 4 Department of Civil Engineering, University of Salerno, Fisciano (SA), Campania, Italy
  • 5 Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The current investigation presents a two-fold approach to rediscovering the potential of Sonchus asper as a wild edible plant, both in its raw extract form and as a nano-formulated product. S. asper is commonly utilized as a food ingredient, and through HPLC-MS analysis of raw and cooked leaf extracts, 38 compounds and 6 essential amino acids were identified. The antioxidant activity and the hypoglycemic effect of non-edible leaves were demonstrated. The incorporation into liposomes maximized the health-promoting properties for potential pharmaceutical or food applications. Furthermore, the study aimed to promote the valorization of traditional dishes, and contribute to biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of S. asper, thus enhancing economic profits. In this regard, the commercialization of S. asper could: (i) contribute to improving the well-being of rural and urban communities, being S. asper a wild edible plant available at low cost, environmentally friendly, resilient, and adaptable; (ii) generate landowner economic returns.

    Keywords: Sonchus asper (L.) Hill extract, eudragit-coated liposomes, antioxidant, Hypoglycemic, GLP-1, economic evaluation

    Received: 12 Apr 2024; Accepted: 25 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Parisi, Santoro, Faraone, Benedetto, Vassallo, De Tommasi, Milella, Nesticò, Maselli, Fadda and Caddeo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Nunziatina De Tommasi, Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, Fisciano, 132 - 84084, Campania, Italy
    Luigi Milella, Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Basilicata, Italy

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.