Studies on the health benefits of cocoa have recently focused on the anti-diabetic potential of cocoa extract. The intake of cocoa has been related to a reduction in the post-prandial levels of blood glucose in diabetic rats. A possible explanation for these observations is that cocoa extract possesses the ability to inhibit enzymes involved in the digestion of carbohydrate, attenuating the post-prandial increase in glycemia. Using an in vitro model, the activity of rat intestinal α-glucosidase has been determined in the absence and presence of cocoa extract and fractions. The addition of cocoa extract inhibited α-glucosidase activity with an IC50 of 7.9 mg/mL. The cocoa extract was further fractionated by ultrafiltration in a polyphenolic–rich fraction (<10 KDa) and a melanoidins-rich fraction (>10 KDa). Both the fractions were able to inhibit α-glucosidase with an IC50 of 2.3 and 3.9 mg/mL, respectively. To identify the bioactive compounds, the polyphenolic–rich fraction was further fractionated with Sephadex LH-20 columns to separate tannins from low molecular weight flavanols. Furthermore, the melanoidins-rich fraction was separated in two fractions using ultrafiltration at 30 KDa. All the obtained fractions were characterized for their ability to inhibit α-glucosidase and for their content in polyphenolic compounds.

Cocoa extract inhibits in vitro α-glucosidase activity: the role of polyphenols and melanoidins / Tagliazucchi, Davide; Bellesia, Andrea; Conte, Angela. - STAMPA. - 1(2013), pp. 11-11. ((Intervento presentato al convegno Second International Congress on COcoa, COffee and TEa (COCOTEA) tenutosi a Napoli nel 09-11 October 2013.

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