Antioxidant vitamin E

Many researches have reported that banana is rich in many bioactive compounds. This compound including vitamin E the major lipid-soluble component in the cell antioxidant defense system and is exclusively obtained from the diet.

Vitamin E has numerous important roles within the body because of its antioxidant activity and well recognized for their effective inhibition of lipid peroxidation in foods and living cells.

Vitamin E consists of four tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and ẟ-T) and the corresponding tocotrienols (α-, β-, γ- and ẟ-T3), which contain unsaturated side chains. RRR-a-T is the most biologically active form.

Tocopherols are widely distributed throughout the plant kingdom, α-tocopherol is the most widespread, being found essentially in the chloroplast. Other tocopherols are located outside the chloroplast.

The lipophilic extract of ripe banana pulp from several cultivars of the M. acuminata and M. balbisiana species has been found to be a source of α-tocopherol, thus offering well established nutritional and health benefits.

The biological activity of the tocopherols varies greatly and this variation is only partly correlated with the antioxidant action.
Antioxidant vitamin E

Vitamin E content in banana

Banana is rich in many bioactive compounds, such as carotenoids, flavonoids, phenolics, amines, vitamin C, and vitamin E having antioxidant activities to provide many human health benefits. Banana contains about 0.1 mg/100 g of α –tocopherol. 0.02 mg/100 g of γ-tocopherol and 0.01 mg/100g δ-tocopherol

Vitamin E includes tocopherols and tocotrienols. They can be in eight different forms (four tocopherols and four tocotrienols). All the isomers have aromatic rings with a hydroxyl group that can donate hydrogen atoms to reduce reactive oxygen species (ROS).

It protects the skin from various deleterious effects due to solar radiation by acting as a free-radical scavenger. Experimental studies suggest that vitamin E has antitumorigenic and photoprotective properties.

Vitamin E acts mainly as an antioxidant preventing polyunsaturated fatty acids from being damaged by lipid peroxidation. Oxidative damage has been linked to numerous chronic diseases conditions, including cardiovascular diseases and cancer, and dietary vitamin E intake and lower circulating vitamin E concentrations have been linked to cardiovascular disease and cancer in observational studies.

Vitamin E content in banana