A β-galactosidase from Kluyveromyces lactis was found to specifically catalyze hydrolysis of the glycosyl ester linkage of stevioside to yield steviolbioside, a rare sweetener that also exists in Stevia rebaudiana leaves. In a packed bed reactor, a reaction coupling separation was realized and a production yield of steviolbioside reached 90% in 6 h. The hydrolysis product steviolbioside presented higher cytoxicity on human normal cells (hepatocytes cell L02 and intestinal epithelial cell T84) than stevioside did. Comparing to the typical chemotherapy agent, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), steviolbioside presents much lower cytotoxicity on all assayed human normal cells; it presented notable inhibition on human hepatocarcinoma cell Hep3B, human breast cancer cell MDA-MB-231 and human pancreatic cancer cell BxPC-3. The remarkable inhibition on MDA-MB-231 cells makes steviolbioside a potential remedy for human breast cancer, when steviolbioside is served as a natural sweetener. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26593477/
Regarding nutritional benefits, the available studies, while numerous, do not provide proof that the consumption of artificial sweeteners as sugar substitutes is beneficial in terms of weight management, blood glucose regulation in diabetic subjects or the incidence of type 2 diabetes. Regarding nutritional risks (incidence of type 2 diabetes, habituation to sweetness in adults, cancers, etc.), it is not possible based on the available data to establish a link between the occurrence of these risks and the consumption of artificial sweeteners. However, some studies underline the need to improve knowledge of the links between intense sweeteners consumption and certain risks. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26430511/
The essential oil extracted by hydrodistillation from the flowering twigs of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni (Asteraceae) was fractioned by chromatography. Forty-three constituents were characterized with the help of GC, GC-MS and other spectroscopic techniques. The essential oil was found to be a complex mixture of mono- and sesqui-terpenes. The cytotoxicity of the essential oil and its fractions was evaluated by sulforhodamine B (SRB) based assay against two cancer cell types viz. C-6 (rat glioma cells) and CHOK1 (Chinese hamster ovary cells). The essential oil and its fractions showed promising cytotoxicity against both cell lines. The highest activity (95.6+/-0.6%) was show by the essential oil on the C-6 cell line at a concentration of 400 microg/mL, which was comparable with that of the standard drug vinblastin. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25026731/
Stevia, a zero-calorie sugar substitute, is recognized as safe by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). In vitro and in vivo studies showed that stevia has antiglycemic action and antioxidant effects in adipose tissue and the vascular wall, reduces blood pressure levels and hepatic steatosis, stabilizes the atherosclerotic plaque, and ameliorates liver and kidney damage. The metabolism of steviol glycosides is dependent upon gut microbiota, which breaks down glycosides into steviol that can be absorbed by the host. In this review, we elucidated the effects of stevia's consumption on the host's gut microbiota. Due to the lack of randomized clinical trials in humans, we included in vitro using certain microbial strains and in vivo in laboratory animal studies. Results indicated that stevia consumption has a potential benefit on the microbiome's alpha diversity. Alterations in the colonic microenvironment may depend on the amount and frequency of stevia intake, as well as on the simultaneous consumption of other dietary components. The anti-inflammatory properties of stevioside were confirmed in vitro by decreasing TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 synthesis and inhibiting of NF-κB transcription factor, and in vivo by inhibiting NF-κB and MAPK in laboratory animals. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35456796/
Steviol glycosides (SGs) in Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) leaves are important due to their high sweetness and low calorific value. The yield of SGs is dependent on fertilization regimes, but the relationship between nitrogen (N) administration and SGs synthesis is still unclear. In this study, we investigate the effects of N rates on SGs production through hydroponic and plot experiments. The SGs yield was not significantly changed by N fertilization, but leaf SGs concentrations were significantly reduced due to the "dilution effect". Additionally, N addition decreased leaf carbon (C)/N ratio and soluble sugar concentration, accompanied with the inhibited phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and L-phenylalanine ammonia_lyase activities. A significant positive correlation between leaf SGs concentrations, C/N ratio and soluble sugar concentration was observed. Overall, we suggest that N-driven Stevia growth negatively affects SGs concentrations. The leaf C/N ratio and soluble sugar changes indicated the occurrence of metabolic reprogramming. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31195254/
Plant growth and secondary metabolism are commonly regulated by external cues such as light, temperature and water availability. In this study, the influences of low and high temperatures, dehydration, photoperiods, and different growing stages on the changes of steviol glycosides (SGs) contents and transcription levels of fifteen genes involved in SGs biosynthesis of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni were examined using HPLC and RT-PCR. The observations showed that the transcript levels of all the fifteen genes were maximum under 25 °C treatment, and the transcription of SrDXS, SrDXR, SrMCT, SrCMK, SrMDS, SrHDS, SrHDR, SrIDI, SrGGDPS, SrCPPS1, SrUGT85C2 and SrUGT76G1 were restrained both in low temperature (15 °C) and high temperature (35 °C). Most genes in SGs biosynthesis pathway exhibited down-regulation in dehydration. To elucidate the effect of photoperiods, the plants were treated by different simulated photoperiods (8 L/16 D, 1 0L/14 D, 14 L/10 D and 16 L/8 D), but no significant transcription changes were observed. In the study of growing stages, there were evident changes of SGs contents, and the transcript levels of all the fifteen genes were minimal in fast growing period, and exhibited evident increase both in flower-bud appearing stage and flowering stage. The obtained results strongly suggest that the effect of environmental cues on steviol glycosides contents and transcription of corresponding biosynthetic genes in S. rebaudiana is significant. It is worth to study deeply. #Stevia#kombucha#ikombucha_ro#ikombucha https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25500454/