The health benefits associated with a diet rich in fruit and vegetables include reduction of the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer, that are becoming prevalent in the aging human population. Triterpenoids, polycyclic compounds derived from the linear hydrocarbon squalene, are widely distributed in edible and medicinal plants and are an integral part of the human diet. As an important group of phytochemicals that exert numerous biological effects and display various pharmacological activities, triterpenoids are being evaluated for use in new functional foods, drugs, cosmetics and healthcare products. Screening plant material in the search for triterpenoid-rich plant tissues has identified fruit peel and especially fruit cuticular waxes as promising and highly available sources. The chemical composition, abundance and biological activities of triterpenoids occurring in cuticular waxes of some economically important fruits, like apple, grape berry, olive, tomato and others, are described in this review. The need for environmentally valuable and potentially profitable technologies for the recovery, recycling and upgrading of residues from fruit processing is also discussed.

中文翻译：

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水果表皮蜡作为生物活性三萜类化合物的来源。


富含水果和蔬菜的饮食对健康有益，包括降低心血管疾病、糖尿病和癌症等慢性疾病的风险，这些疾病在人口老龄化中越来越普遍。三萜类化合物是源自直链烃角鲨烯的多环化合物，广泛分布于食用和药用植物中，是人类饮食中不可或缺的一部分。作为一类重要的植物化学物质，三萜类化合物具有多种生物效应并具有多种药理活性，目前正在评估其在新型功能性食品、药物、化妆品和保健品中的应用。在寻找富含三萜类化合物的植物组织时筛选植物材料已确定果皮，特别是水果角质层蜡是有前途且高度可用的来源。本综述描述了一些重要经济水果（如苹果、葡萄浆果、橄榄、番茄等）的表皮蜡中存在的三萜类化合物的化学成分、丰度和生物活性。还讨论了对对环境有价值且具有潜在盈利能力的技术的需求，以回收、循环利用和升级水果加工残留物。