Blueberry extract boosts blood vessels and cuts inflammation
An extract from a South American blueberry helps blood vessel cells form new branches. It also dampens one of the most damaging inflammatory responses known.
Researchers tested a microencapsulated extract of the Ecuadorian blueberry Vaccinium floribundum. Microencapsulation wraps active compounds in a protective layer that improves their stability and absorption in the body. In laboratory studies, they treated endothelial cells, the cells lining the inner wall of blood vessels, with the extract, and assessed its effects on inflammation in both cell and mouse models. The findings are described in the study, published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
What is in the extract?
The researchers identified seventeen bioactive compounds. Chlorogenic acid and quercetin were the most abundant. The extract also contained anthocyanins, the pigments responsible for the fruit’s blue and red colour, which have previously been studied for their effects on oxidative stress.
In the cell studies, the extract stimulated the formation of capillary-like networks, small branching blood vessels. It also reduced the production of pro-inflammatory signalling proteins (cytokines), the enzyme iNOS, and the adhesion protein VCAM-1. All three play a role in damage to the blood vessel wall triggered by bacterial lipopolysaccharide, a component of bacterial cell walls that provokes a strong immune response.
How relevant is this for humans?
The findings are preliminary and come from laboratory and animal studies. Whether the effects occur in humans, and at what doses, has not been investigated. Clinical studies are still lacking. The paper was also published in a veterinary journal, which underlines its primary application in animal medicine.
Nevertheless, the mechanisms measured, including protection of blood vessels against inflammation and stimulation of vessel formation, are relevant to ageing processes. Vascular dysfunction is one of the early hallmarks of ageing. Dietary polyphenols that influence these processes are an active area of longevity research. These results from this extract justify follow-up studies in a human context.