Mauro Serafini

TL;DR: In vitro evidence of anti-inflammatory actions of flavonoids in vitro or in cellular models might be somehow of limited impact due to the non-physiological concentrations utilized and to the fact that in vivo flavonoid are extensively metabolized to molecules with different chemical structures and activities compared with the ones originally present in the food.

TL;DR: Either other compounds present in plasma are likely to exert antioxidant action, or a marked synergistic action between antioxidants should be postulated to exist, as the latter hypothesis is supported by the finding that the simultaneous inactivation of ascorbate and thiol groups produces a loss in antioxidant capacity of plasma greater than the sum of the decreases produced by the separate in activation of each of the two compounds.

TL;DR: The parallel and prompt increase of antioxidant status and of circulating levels ofpolyphenols in fasting subjects after bolus ingestion of a moderate amount of alcohol-free red wine suggests that polyphenols are absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal tract and might be directly involved in the in vivo antioxidant defenses.

TL;DR: FMRI results suggest that the activity of cortical nociceptive networks may be directly influenced by cognitive factors, and provide evidence for top-down mechanisms, triggered by anticipation, modulating cortical systems involved in sensory and affective components of pain even in the absence of actual noxious input.

TL;DR: Overall, although some polyphenol-rich foods exert beneficial effects on some biomarkers of cardiovascular health, there is no evidence that this is caused by improvements in antioxidant function biomarkers (oxidative damage or antioxidant capacity).