Bioactivity of Blueberry Extracts

Dear Colleagues,

Blueberries (Vaccinium spp.) are economically important as fruit crops worldwide, and the fruits are used as ingredients in fresh and processed products, such as jams and juices. The geographic area of blueberry cultivation has expanded from the traditional regions in North America to Europe, New Zealand/Australia, Japan, and most recently China. Blueberry fruits are a rich source of dietary bioactive compounds, including phytochemicals such as phenolics, particularly hydroxycinnamic and hydroxybenzoic acids and their derivatives (chlorogenic, caffeic, gallic, p-coumaric, ferulic, ellagic, syringic and vanillic acids), flavonols, anthocyanins, flavan-3-ols, and proanthocyanidins. The formation and accumulation of dietary bioactive compounds in the fruits are influenced by several factors, including the genotype, environmental conditions, ripeness, and storage conditions. Recent in vitro and in vivo studies and clinical trials for human health have revealed that blueberry fruit extracts can inhibit angiogenesis, prevent carcinogenesis and heart diseases, and combat cancer cell proliferation and increased apoptosis. Surprisingly, mature blueberry leaves are also becoming an important source of food and pharmaceutical ingredients, such as tea and dietary supplements in the global market. This Special Issue of Plants will thus highlight the bioactive and chemical profiles of health-related compounds of various blueberry tissues and organs (fruits, leaves, roots, and stems) for medical and pharmaceutical applications. The Special Issue also focuses on recent advances in physiological and molecular biological studies conducted to elucidate the absorption and metabolism of health-related compounds.

Prof. Dr. Hisato Kunitake
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• blueberries
• fruit crops
• bioactive compounds
• phytochemicals
• bioactivity