Zia-Ul-Haq, M.; Riaz, M.; De Feo, V.; Jaafar, H.Z.; Moga, M. Rubus Fruticosus L.: Constituents, Biological Activities and Health Related Uses. Molecules2014, 19, 10998-11029.
Abstract
Rubus fruticosus L. is a shrub famous for its fruit called blackberry fruit or more commonly blackberry. The fruit has medicinal, cosmetic and nutritive value. It is a concentrated source of valuable nutrients, as well as bioactive constituents of therapeutic interest highlighting its importance as a functional food. Besides use as a fresh fruit, it is also used as ingredient in cooked dishes, salads and bakery products like jams, snacks, desserts, and fruit preserves. R. fruticosus contains vitamins, steroids and lipids in seed oil and minerals, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenes, acids and tannins in aerial parts that possess diverse pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, and antiviral. Various agrogeoclimatological factors like cultivar, environmental conditions of the area, agronomic practices employed, harvest time, post-harvest storage and processing techniques all influence the nutritional composition of blackberry fruit. This review focuses on the nutrients and chemical constituents as well as medicinal properties of different parts of R. fruticosus. Various cultivars and their physicochemical characteristics, polyphenolic content and ascorbic acid content are also discussed. The information in the present work will serve as baseline data and may lead to new biomedical applications of R. fruticosus as functional food.
Conclusions
R. fruticosus fruit is packed with numerous plant nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants, and dietary fibers that are essential for human health and fitness. These compounds protect from cancer, aging, inflammation, and neurological diseases. With an increased awareness associated with potential health benefits of consuming fruits, efforts are being made to enhance fruit quality and color for consumers. It can be concluded that the wild growing blackberry fruits have a great future potential to meet nutritional demands of indigenous communities besides their therapeutic efficacy. More work is needed in identification, quantification and deciphering the bioactive constituents of fruit, seeds, flesh and peel of these berries and their impact on human health needs to be explored. Community-based trials should be conducted to validate its nutraceutical claims. The consumption of fruits, vegetables, spices, legumes and grains in Pakistan is insufficient and may be supplemented by indigenous cost-effective sources like berries. Although not a famous fruit for commercial production, it has a great production, expansion and consumption potential in Pakistan, if premium prices are paid and fruits are exploited economically. Even though various types of chemical compounds have been isolated and characterized, research reports on the bioactivity and the mechanism of action of the isolated compounds under in vivo conditions are limited. Additionally the effects of these compounds on other ailments like cancer, HIV, blood pressure, cardio-vascular disease and others, need to be investigated in detail.
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