Polyphenols in carobs: A review on their composition, antioxidant capacity and cytotoxic effects, and health impact

Carob (Ceratonia Siliqua L., tree of the pea family Fabaceae) and its products have recently attracted great interest due to their polyphenolic composition. This review summarizes the polyphenolic compounds that are contained in different carob parts (leaves, pod, seeds, barks) and products (syrup, flour, fiber). It also states the main differences of polyphenolic composition due to environmental and natural reasons, such as region, variety, and gender, and due to the processes used for preparation, extraction and analysis. The gender, along with the extraction procedure, proved to be the most important factors affecting the polyphenolic composition. Supercritical fluid extraction is the most efficient technique used because it protects polyphenols from decomposition. Due to the relatively low number of publications, it is concluded that further development of optimum methods for extraction, analysis and isolation of polyphenols should be carried over to assess their antioxidant capacity and their food technological and pharmaceutical industry.