Anthocyanins are plant secondary metabolites belonging to the class of polyphenols, whose beneficial roles in the prevention and treatment of several important human diseases have been demonstrated in many epidemiological studies. Their intake through diet strictly depends on the eating habits, as anthocyanins are contained in red and purple fruit and vegetables as well as in some processed foods and beverages, such as red wine. Genetic engineering and breeding programs have been recently carried out to increase the content of anthocyanins in candidate plant species which cannot offer satisfactory levels of these precious compounds. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a vegetable commodity where these strategies have resulted in success, leading to the production of new anthocyanin-rich fruit varieties, some of which are already marketed. These varieties produce purple fruits with a high nutraceutical value, combining the health benefits of the anthocyanins to the other classical tomato phytochemicals, particularly carotenoids. The antioxidant capacity in tomato purple fruits is higher than in non-anthocyanin tomatoes and their healthy role has already been demonstrated in both in vitro and in vivo studies. Recent evidence has indicated a particular capacity of tomato fruit anthocyanins to act as scavengers of harmful reactive chemical species and inhibitors of proliferating cancer cells, as well as anti-inflammatory molecules.

中文翻译：

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紫番茄中的花青素作为新型抗氧化剂促进人类健康


花青素是属于多酚类的植物次生代谢产物，许多流行病学研究已证明其在预防和治疗多种重要人类疾病中的有益作用。它们通过饮食的摄入量严格取决于饮食习惯，因为红色和紫色水果和蔬菜以及一些加工食品和饮料（例如红酒）中都含有花青素。最近进行了基因工程和育种计划，以增加候选植物物种中花青素的含量，但这些植物物种不能提供令人满意的这些珍贵化合物的水平。番茄（ Solanum lycopersicum ）是一种蔬菜商品，这些策略取得了成功，产生了富含花青素的新水果品种，其中一些已经上市。这些品种生产的紫色水果具有很高的营养保健价值，将花青素与其他经典番茄植物化学物质（特别是类胡萝卜素）的健康益处结合在一起。番茄紫色果实的抗氧化能力高于不含花青素的番茄，其健康作用已在体外和体内研究中得到证实。最近的证据表明，番茄果实花青素具有特殊的能力，可以充当有害活性化学物质的清除剂、癌细胞增殖的抑制剂以及抗炎分子。