encouraging sustainable, responsible cocoa growing

Cacao Research: Human Nutrition

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In this section:

• Phytonutrients
• Antioxidents
• Flavanols
• Polyphenols
• Phenolics
• General Review
• Antimicrobial

Phytonutrients

• Cocoa intake, blood pressure, and cardiovascular mortality. Archives Intern Medicine. 2006. Vol. 166, p 411-417. by Buijsse, B.; Feskens, E.J.M.; Kok, F.J.; Kromhout, D. [PDF: 100KB]
• Plant Compounds Inhibit Blood Clotting by R.M. Bliss [225 kb]
• Cocoa, diabetes, and hypertension: should we eat more chocolate? by C. Fraga [PDF: 32kb]
• Cocoa Has More Phenolic Phytochemicals and a Higher Antioxidant Capacity than Teas and Red Wine by K. W. Lee et al. [PDF: 66.6 kb]
• Comparative Study of different cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) clones in terms of their phenolics and anthocyanins contents. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, vol. 19, p. 612-619. by N. Niemenak, C. Rohsius, S. Elwers, D.O. Ndoumou, and R. Lieberei. [PDF: 217]
• Isolation and characterization of an AGAMOUS homologue from cocoa. Plant science, vol. 170. p.968-975. by T. Chaidamsari, Samanhudi, H. Sugiarti, D. Santoso, G.C. Angenent, and R.A. Maagd. [PDF: 587 KB]
• Cocoa flavanol-enriched snack bars containing phytosterols effectively lower total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, vol. 106., p. 1804-1813, 2006. by J.A. Polagruto, J.F. Wang-Polagruto, M.M. Braun, L. Lee, C. Kwik-Uribe, and C.L. Keen. [PDF: 152 KB] posted Jan. 2 2007
• Caffedymine from Cocoa has COX Inhibitory Activity Supressing the Expression of a Platelet Activation Marker, P-Selectin. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, vol. 5, p. 2171-2175, 2007. by J.B. Park [PDF: 222 KB] posted May 1 2007
• Dietary supplementation with cacao liquor proanthocyanidins prevents elevation of blood glucose levels in diabetic obese mice. Nutrition, vol. 23, p. 351-355, 2007. by M. Tomaru, H. Takano, N. Osakabe, A. Yasuda, K. Inoue, R. Yanagisawa, T. Ohwatari, and H. Uematsu. [PDF: 190 KB] posted July 3 2007
• The effect of cocoa and polydextrose on bacterial fermentation in gastrointestinal tract simulations. Bioscience, Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Vol. 71, p. 1834-1843, 2007. by H. Makivuokko, H. Kettunen, M. Saarinen, T. Kamiwaki, Y. Yokoyama, J. Stowell, and N. Rautonen. [PDF: 263 KB] posted October 31 2007
• Repression of cacitonin gene-related peptide expression in trigerminal neurons by a Theobroma cacao extract. Journal of Ethnopharamcology, vol. 115, p. 238-248, 2008 by M.J. Abbey, V.V. Patil, C.V. Vause, P.L. Durham [PDF: 116 KB] posted February 1 2008
• Predictive Relationship Between Polyphenol and Nonfat Cocoa Solids Content of Chocolate. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, vol. 56, p. 260-265. by K.A. Cooper, E. Campos-Gimenez, A.D. Jimenez, A. Rytz, K. Nagy, and G. Williamson. [PDF: 162 KB] posted March 3 2008
• Nutritional contribution of coffee, cacao, and tea phenolics to human health. Journal Verbr. Lenensm, vol. 2, p. 399-406, 2007. by H. M. Rawel and S. E. Kulling. [PDF: 296 KB] posted April 1 2008
• Cocoa procyanidins protect PC12 cells from hydrogen-peroxide-induced apoptosis by inhibiting activation of p38 MAPK and JNK. Mutation Research, vol. 640, p. 130-151, 2008 by E.S. Cho, K.W. Lee, and H.J. Lee [PDF: 750 KB] posted April 25 2008
• Effects of long-term administration of a cocoa polyphenolilc extract (Acticoa powder) on cognitive performances in aged rats. British journal of Nutrition, vol. 100, p.94-101, 2008. by J-F. Bisson, A. Nejdi, P. Rozan, S. Hidalgo, R. Lalonde, and M. Messaoudi. [PDF: 142 KB] posted August 1 2008
• Protective effect of polyphenol-rich extract prepared from Malaysian cocoa (Theobroma cacao) on glucose levels and lipid profiles in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. J. Science Food Agriculture, vol. 88, p. 1442-1447, 2008. by A.M.M. Ruzaidi, M.M.J. Abbe, I. Amin, A.G. Nawalyah and I. Amin [PDF: 324 KB] posted August 1 2008
• Expectancy for food or expectancy for chocolate reveals timing systems for metabolism and reward. Neuroscience, vol. 155, p. 297-307, 2008 by M. Angeles-Castellanos, R. Salgado-Delgado, K. Rodriguez, R. Buijs, and C. Escobar. [PDF: 1.3 MB] posted August 27 2008
• Intestinal immune system of young rats influenced by cocoa-enriched diet. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, vol. 19, p. 555-565, 2008. by E. Ramiro-Puig, F.J. Perez-Cano, S. Ramos-Romero, T. Perez-Berezo, C. Castellote, J. Permanyer, A. Franch, M. Izquierdo-Pulido and M. Castell. [PDF: 650 KB] posted August 27 2008.
• Survey of the trans-Resveratrol and trans-piceid content of cocoa-containing and chocolate products. J. Agric. Food Chem., vol. 56, p. 8374-8378, 2008 by W.J. Hurst, J.A. Glinski, K.B. Miller, J. Apgar, M.H. Davey, and D.A. Stuart. [PDF: 190 KB] posted September 29 2008
• Impact of alkalization on the antioxidant and flavanol content of commercial cocoa powders. J. Agric. Food Chem., vol 56, p. 8527-8533. by K. Miller, W. Hurst, M. Payne, D. Stuart, J. Apgar, D. Sweigart and B. Ou. [PDF: 974 KB] posted September 29 2008
• The medicinal use of chocolate in early North America. Mol. Nutr. Food Res., vol. 52, 13 pp., 2008 by D. Pucciarelli and L. Grivette [PDF: 398] posted September 29 2008
• Cocoa intake modulates intestinal immune responses in young rate, influencing gammadelta T-cells and S-IgA production. J. Nutritional Biochemistry, vol. 19, p. 555-65, 2008 by E. Ramiro-Puig, F. Perez-Cano, S. Ramos-Romero, T. Perez-Berezo, C. Castellote, J. Permanyer, A. Franch, M. Izquierdo-Pulido, and M. Caster [PDF: 650 KB] posted September 29 2008
• Hypolipidemic effect in cholesterol-fed rats of a soluble fiber-rich product obtained from cocoa husks. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, vol. 56, p. 6985-93, 2008 by S. Ramos, L. Moulay, A.B. Granado-Serrano, O. Vilanova, B. Muguerza, L. Goya and L. Bravo. [PDF: 2.6 MB] posted September 29 2008

Antioxidents

• Quantitative analysis of N-phenylpropenoyl-L-amino acids in roasted coffee and cocoa powder by means of a stable isotope dilution assay. J Agricultural Food Chem., vol. 54, p. 2859-2876. 2006. by T. Stark, et al. [PDF: 200 kb]
• Chocolate and cocoa : New sources of trans-resveratrol and trans-piceid. Food Chemistry, vol. 98, p. 649-657. 2006. by C. Counet, et al. [PDF: 214 kb].
• Antioxident activity and polyphenol and procyanidin contents of selected commercially available cocoa-containing and chocolate products in the United States. J. Agricultural Food Chemistry, vol. 54, No. 11, p. 4062-4068, 2006 by K. Miller, D.A. Stuart, N.L. Smith, C. Lee, N.L. McHale, J.A. Flanagan, O. Boxin, and W. J. Hurst. [PDF: 191 kb]
• Procyanidin and catechin contents and antioxidant capacity of cocoa and chocolate products. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, vol. 54, p. 4057-4061, 2006. by L. Gu, S. House, X. Wu, O. Boxin, and R.L. Prior [PDF: 115 kb]
• Chocolate is a Powerful ex Vivo and in Vivo Antioxidant, an Antiatherosclerotic Agent in an Animal Model, and a Signficant Contributor to Antioxidents in the European and American Diets. Journal of agriculture and food chemistry, vol. 54, p. 8071-8076, 2006. by J.A. Vinson, J. Proch, P. Bose, S. Muchler, P. Taffera, D. Shuta, N. Samman, and G. Agbor. [PDF: 103 KB} posted Dec. 4 2006
• Antioxidant capacity and phenolic content of cocoa beans. Food Chemistry, vol. 100, p. 1523-1530, 2007. by A. Othman, A. Ismail, N.A. Ghani, and I. Adenan. [PDF: 163 KB] posted Jan. 2 2007
• Preventive antioxidant effects of cocoa polyphenolic extract on free radical production and cognitive performances after heat exposure in wistar rats. Journal of food science, vol. 72, p. S203-S206, 2007. by P. Rozan, S. Hidalgo, A. Nejdi, J.F. Bisson, R. Lalonde, and M. Messaoudi. [PDF: 105 KB] posted July 3 2007
• Cocoa-enriched diet enhances antioxidant enzyme activity and modulates lymphocyte composition in thymus from young rats. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, vol. 55, p. 6431-6438, 2007 by E. Ramiro-Puig, M. Urpi-Sarda, F.J. Perez-Cano, A. Franch, C. Castellote, C. Andres-Lacueva, M. Izquierdo-Pulido, and M. Castell. [PDF: 267 KB] posted October 2 2007
• Cocoa confers lifespan extension in Drosophilia melanogaster. Nutrition Research, vol. 28, p. 377-382, 2008 by S. Bahadorani and A.J. Hilliker. [PDF: 617 KB] posted August 1 2008
• Effects of cocoa extract on glucometabolism, oxidative stress, antioxidant enzymes in obese-diabetic (ob-db) rats. J. Agric. Food Chem, vol. 19, p. 7877-7884, 2008. by A. Jalil, C. Pei, M. Hamid, and S. Kamaruddin [PDF: 979 KB] posted September 29 2008

Flavanols

• Flavanol-rich cocoa drink lowers plasma F2-Isoprostane concentrations in humans by Wiswedel, et al. [PDF: 254 KB]
• (-)-Epicatechin mediates beneficial effects of flavanol-rich cocoa on vascular function in humans by H. Shroeter et. al. [380 KB]
• Flavonoids from Theobroma cacao Down-Regulate Inflammatory Mediators by Ramiro et al. [PDF: 300 KB]
• Research Finds Flavanols in Cocoa May Help Treat Diabetes, Strokes and Dementia by Mars, Incorporated [PDF: 42 KB]
• Dietary flavonoids: effects on endothelial function and blood pressure. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, vol. 86, p. 2492-2498, 2006. by J.M. Hodgson and K.D. Croft. [PDF: 137 KB] posted Jan. 17 2007
• Does flavanol intake influence mortality from nitric oxide-dependent processes? Ischemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, an cancer in Panama. International Journal of Medical Sciences, vol. 4, p. 53-58, 2007. by V. Bayard, F. Chamorro, J. Motta, and N.K. Hollenberg. [PDF: 140 KB] posted Mar. 30 2007
• Consumption of flavonol-rich cocoa acutely increases microcirculation in human skin. European journal of nutrition, vol. 46, p. 53-56, 2007. by K. Neukam, W. Stahl, H. Tronnier, H. Sies, and U. Heinrich. [PDF: 191 KB] posted Mar. 30 2007
• A New Process to develop a Cocoa Powder with Higher Flavanoid Monomer Content and Enhanced Bioavailability in Healthy Humans. Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry, vol. 55, p. 3926-3935, 2007. by F.A. Tomas-Barberan, E. Cienfuegos-Jovellanos, A. Marin, B. Muguerza, A. Gil-Izquierdo, B. Cerda, P. Zefrilla, J. Morillas, J. Mulero, A. Ibarra, M.A. Pasamar, D. Ramon and J.C. Espin [PDF: 457 KB] posted May 30 2007
• Spleen lymphocyte function modulated by a cocoa-enriched diet. Clinical and Experimental Immunology, vol. 149, p. 535-542, 2007 by E. Ramiro-Puig, F.J. Perez-Cano, C. Ramirez-Santana, C. Castellote, M. Izquierdo-Pulido, J. Permanyer, A. Franch and M. Castell. [PDF: 378] posted October 2 2007
• A diet rich in dietary fiber from cocoa improves lipid profile and reduces malondialdehyde in hypercholesterolemic. Nutrition, vol. 23, 332-341. 2007. by E. Lecumberri, L. Goya, R. Mateos, M. Alia, S. Ramos, M. Izquierdo-Pulido, and L. Bravo. [PDF: 137 KB] posted October 31 2007
• Sustained benefits in vascular function through flavanol-containing cocoa in medicated diabetic patients a double-masked, randomized, controlled trial. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, vol. 51, p.2141-9, 2008. by J. Balzer, T. Rassaf, C. Heiss, P. Kleinbongard, T. Lauer, M. Merx, N. Heussen, H.B. Gross, C.L. Keen, H. Schroeter and M. Kelm. [PDF: 335 KB] posted August 1 2008
• Flavanol-rich cocoa a promising new dietary intervention to reduce cardiovascular risk in type 2 diabetes? Journal of the American College of Cardiology, vol. 51, p.2150. 2008. by U. Campia and J.A. Panza [PDF: 64 KB] posted August 1 2008
• Effect of cocoa flavanols and exercise on cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight and obese subjects. International Journal of Obesity, vol. 32, p. 1289-1296, 2008. by K. Davison, A.M. Coates, J.D. Buckley and P.R.C. Howe [PDF: 145 KB] posted September 29 2008
• Cocoa flavanols lower vascular arginase activity in human endothelial cells in vitro and in erythrocytes in vivo. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, vol. 476, p.211-215, 2008 by O. Schnorr, T. Brossette, T.Y. Momma, P. Kleinbongard, C.L. Keen, H. Schroeter and H. Sies. [PDF: 224 KB] posted September 29 2008

Polyphenols

• Rapid reversed phase ultra-performance liquid chromatography analysis of the major cocoa polyphenols and inter-relationships of their concentrations in chocolate. Journal Agricultural Food Chemistry, vol. 55, p. 2841-2847, 2007. by K.A. Cooper, E. Campos-Gimenez, D. Jimenez Alvarez, K. Nagy, J.L. Donovan, and G. Williamson. [PDF: 139 KB] posted May 30 2007

Phenolics

• Human Metabolic Phenotypes LInk Directly to Specific Dietary Preferences in Healthy Individuals. Journal of Proteome Research, vol. 6, p. 4465-4477, 2007. by S. Rezzi, J.K. Nicholson, and S. Kochhar. [PDF: 390 KB] January 2 2008

General Review

• Chocolate and prevention of cardiovascular disease: a systematic review. Nutrition and Metabolism, 2006, vol. 3, p. 2. by E.L. Ding, S.M. Hutfless, X. Ding, and S. Girotra. [PDF: 513 KB] posted Feb. 27 27 2007

Antimicrobial

• Inhibition by cocoa extracts of biosynthesis of extracellular polysaccharide by human oral bacteria. Archives of Oral Biology, vol. 30, p. 359-363, 1985. by V.J. Paolino and S. Kashket. [PDF: 502 KB] posted April 1 2008