Aspectos generales sobre los elagitaninos y su conversión a ácido elágico

Abstract

At present, many biomolecules are associated with "special" properties, some useful for combating certain degenerative diseases. Ellagic acid and ellagitannins have achieved great relevance due to the reduction or prevention of diseases such as cancer, heart disease, hypertension, cholesterol reduction, inhibition of bacteria, parasites and viruses, such as HIV and Papilloma. This has led to its commercial interest, for consumption as a supplement or even as a medicine, so that demand has been increasing in recent years.

The traditional way of obtaining ellagic acid is through processes that involve highly polluting substances such as acids and alkalis, and that also require a large amount of heat energy; This has led to the search for the development of biological processes that allow ellagic acid to be obtained.

Recent research on these processes has been directed towards natural sources rich in phenolic compounds, such as ellagitannins, which can be degraded by enzymes from filamentous fungi species, or yeast-like fungi, the latter being the most novel alternative in recent years.