Vascular Health and Risk Management (Nov 2021)
Promising Nutritional Fruits Against Cardiovascular Diseases: An Overview of Experimental Evidence and Understanding Their Mechanisms of Action
Abstract
Nur Zulaikha Azwa Zuraini,1 Mahendran Sekar,1 Yuan Seng Wu,2,3 Siew Hua Gan,4 Srinivasa Reddy Bonam,5 Nur Najihah Izzati Mat Rani,6 M Yasmin Begum,7 Pei Teng Lum,1 Vetriselvan Subramaniyan,8 Neeraj Kumar Fuloria,9 Shivkanya Fuloria9 1Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Royal College of Medicine Perak, Ipoh, Perak, 30450, Malaysia; 2Centre for Virus and Vaccine Research, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia; 3Department of Biological Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia; 4School of Pharmacy, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor Darul Ehsan, 47500, Malaysia; 5Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre de Recherché des Cordeliers, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, Paris, France; 6Faculty of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Royal College of Medicine Perak, Ipoh, Perak, 30450, Malaysia; 7Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, King Khalid University (KKU), Asir-Abha, 61421, Saudi Arabia; 8Faculty of Medicine, Bioscience and Nursing, MAHSA University, Selangor, 42610, Malaysia; 9Faculty of Pharmacy & Centre of Excellence for Biomaterials Engineering, AIMST University, Kedah, 08100, MalaysiaCorrespondence: Mahendran SekarDepartment of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Universiti Kuala Lumpur Royal College of Medicine Perak, Ipoh, Perak, 30450, MalaysiaTel +6016 – 3346653Fax +605 – 2536634Email [email protected]: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in both developed and developing countries, affecting millions of individuals each year. Despite the fact that successful therapeutic drugs for the management and treatment of CVDs are available on the market, nutritional fruits appear to offer the greatest benefits to the heart and have been proved to alleviate CVDs. Experimental studies have also demonstrated that nutritional fruits have potential protective effects against CVDs. The aim of the review was to provide a comprehensive summary of scientific evidence on the effect of 10 of the most commonly available nutritional fruits reported against CVDs and describe the associated mechanisms of action. Relevant literatures were searched and collected from several scientific databases including PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar and Scopus. In the context of CVDs, 10 commonly consumed nutritious fruits including apple, avocado, grapes, mango, orange, kiwi, pomegranate, papaya, pineapple, and watermelon were analysed and addressed. The cardioprotective mechanisms of the 10 nutritional fruits were also compiled and highlighted. Overall, the present review found that the nutritious fruits and their constituents have significant benefits for the management and treatment of CVDs such as myocardial infarction, hypertension, peripheral artery disease, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathies, dyslipidemias, ischemic stroke, aortic aneurysm, atherosclerosis, cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure, diabetic cardiovascular complications, drug-induced cardiotoxicity and cardiomyopathy. Among the 10 nutritional fruits, pomegranate and grapes have been well explored, and the mechanisms of action are well documented against CVDs. All of the nutritional fruits mentioned are edible and readily accessible on the market. Consuming these fruits, which may contain varying amounts of active constituents depending on the food source and season, the development of nutritious fruits-based health supplements would be more realistic for consistent CVD protection.Keywords: nutritional fruits, cardiovascular diseases, heart disease, antioxidant, hypertension, nutraceuticals
