Assessment of cholesterol-lowering bioactive compounds in Italian-standard Espresso coffee.

Espresso Coffee (EC) is one of the most popular coffee brews in the world, obtained from the percolation of hot water under pressure through compacted cakes of roasted ground coffee [1]. To our knowledge, among all the bioactive compounds investigated in coffee-based products, phytosterol (PS) content has never been assessed in coffee brews such as EC. This class of bioactive compounds is known for their LDL cholesterol-lowering properties, which contrast with the blood cholesterol increment effect of diterpenes, another class of phytochemicals present in coffee [2,3]. This study aims thus, to assess for the first time the content of PS in EC to improve the knowledge on the phytochemicals and health potentials of coffee brews. 14 EC samples produced with coffee cultivated in 13 different countries were studied. PS were extracted by hot saponification followed by derivatization for HPLC-DAD analysis. β-sitosterol (48.1-178 mg L−1) was the most abundant followed by stigmasterol (11.4-46.3 mg L−1) and campesterol (9.9-48.8 mg L−1). Total PS fraction ranged from 69.8 mg L−1 to 275.0 mg L−1 with an average level of 145.4 ± 52.7 mg L−1. Therefore, a standard cup of EC (25 mL) could provide 3.7 ± 1.4 mg of PS. This quantity is not enough for bloodcholesterol reduction but is a quantity that could inhibit the potential unhealthy physiological effects of diterpenes in coffee brews.