The antioxidant capability of beverage blends made from cocoa, zobo and ginger with standard antioxidant assay procedures was investigated. The DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1picrylhydrazyl) scavenging capacity ranged from 21.2-25.8% in comparison with GSH of 37.1%. The ferric reducing ability was highest in the zobo drink and lowest in ginger. The superoxide scavenging capacity was also highest in the zo...

Phytophthora pathogens are responsible for some of the most serious diseases of cocoa including phytophthora pod rot (PPR) or black pod, stem canker, leaf and seedling blight, chupon wilt and flower cushion infections. PPR causes 10–30% annual losses in production of cocoa beans globally, and much higher losses locally in particularly wet and humid conditions. Stem canker causes further losses ...

The entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana was re-isolated from surface sterilized pieces of the cocoa pod outer section and peduncle, two and three months after flowers of greenhouse cocoa plants were hand-pollinated and sprayed with a 1x107 mL-1 suspension of B. bassiana conidia. The colonization frequency of B. bassiana on cocoa pods was 0.8% and 1.3% two and three months post-spraying o...

Background: Acute effects of caffeinated and non-caffeinated cocoa on mood, motivation, and cognitive function are not well characterized. The current study examined the acute influence of brewed cocoa, alone and with supplemental caffeine, on attention, motivation to perform cognitive tasks and energy and fatigue mood states. Methods: A randomized, double-blinded, within-subjects crossover tri...

BACKGROUND AND AIM Altered glucose metabolism, oxidative stress, lipid levels and inflammatory markers are important risk factors in diabetes, cardiovascular, and many other diseases. Cocoa has been shown to exert antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. The aim of this study is twofold: to assess the effect of Cocoa on the lipid profile and peroxidation in addition to the inflammatory marker...

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of cocoa husks feeding on liver composition of the Italian heavy pig. Cocoa husks are by-products derived from chocolate production and have a high content of proteins, lipids, and NDF. Cocoa husks are also rich in antioxidants, polyphenols in particular. Eight finishing pigs were divided into 2 groups: control group fed a traditional diet...

Isolation of the volatile fraction from cocoa powder (50 g; 20% fat content) by a careful extraction/distillation process followed by application of an aroma extract dilution analysis revealed 35 odor-active constituents in the flavor dilution (FD) factor range of 8-4096. Among them, 4-hydroxy-2,5-dimethyl-3(2H)-furanone (caramel-like), 2- and 3-methylbutanoic acid (sweaty, rancid), dimethyl tr...

Cocoa is a rich source of dietary polyphenols. In vitro as well as cell culture data indicate that cocoa polyphenols may exhibit antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, as well as anti-atherogenic activity. Several molecular targets (e.g., nuclear factor kappa B, endothelial nitric oxide synthase, angiotensin converting enzyme) have been recently identified which may partly explain potential benefic...

BACKGROUND: Spontaneous cocoa bean fermentation is characterised by a succession of microbial activities. Cocoa flavour precursors are developed during fermentation and drying of cocoa beans. Polyphenols and alkaloids contribute to astringency and bitterness of cocoa and chocolate. RESULTS: Population dynamics, metabolite target analyses, and chocolate production were performed for seven indepe...