Screening Interactive Impact of Dietary Bivalent Metallic Ions on <i>S. anguivi</i> Bioactive Components: Bitterness Attenuation and Antioxidant Activities Augmentation

ABSTRACT Bioactive components of S. anguivi have been scientifically and ethnomedically reported to possess a plethora of therapeutic values, notably antidiabetic, anticancer, antioxidant, etc. However, its inherent unpleasant bitterness, responsible for its consumption apathy among all and sundry, remains a challenge to be addressed. In this study, a simple but effective strategy involving the application of dietary metallic ions was employed to modulate bitterness and antioxidant properties of bioactive components of S. anguivi (SA). The impacts of treatment of bioactive components of S. anguivi at four regimes with dietary Mg 2+ and Zn 2+ on modulation of taste and antioxidant activities were evaluated. Sensory results showed treatment‐induced differential taste scores (Mg 2+ = 2.2–7.3) and (Zn 2+ = 2.2–2.4) compared to the taste score (9.00) for the untreated sample with characteristic enduring unpleasant inherent bitterness. The values (Zn 2+ = 58.33, Mg 2+ = 81.34) of RSA (radical scavenging activity) (%) at 0.3 mL metallic ion‐treated SA were comparatively high compared to the low value (46.60) of RSA of neat SA (control sample). In addition, the values (0.0074–0.0375; 0.035–0.0875) of RRP (mg ascorbic acid reducing power equivalent/mL of extract) were higher for Zn‐SA and Mg‐SA, respectively, compared to the low (0.0079) RRP of the untreated sample. The best result obtained for three RSA kinetic indices, EC 50 , T EC50 and RAE were evaluated. The best result of Zn‐SA, Mg‐SA obtained for three RSA kinetic indices, EC 50 mg/mL (1.22, 0.968), T EC50 min (22.78, 11.58), and RAEx 10‐3 (32.695, 89.21), were compared to the corresponding values of EC 50 mg/mL = 1.60, T EC50 min = 31.09, and RAE x 10‐3 = 20.10 obtained for the control sample. This study demonstrated the applicability of a simple treatment of S. anguivi bioactive components using dietary divalent metallic ions to attenuate inherent unpleasant bitterness with concurrent augmentation of antioxidant activity.