Invited Talk: Agave: A New Age of Functional Foods

Agave sap concentrate (ASC) is an artisanal Mexican food produced by evaporation of fresh agave sap, also known as “aguamiel”. The concentration process is conducted immediately after harvesting the fresh sap to avoid fermentation by the endogenous microbiota. Agave sap is obtained from selected agave species such as Agave americana, A. salmiana and A. atrovirens. This artisanal product has gained popularity due to its antioxidant capacity, phytochemical content, as well as anticancer and antidiabetic properties. Among the phytochemicals related to the bioactivities, saponins are the responsible for the effects on the regulation of cancer cell growth and regulation of carbohydrate and fat metabolism. But the concentration of these compounds depends on the region from where the sap is collected and it has been shown that endogenous microbiota can also affect the saponin profile in agave sap. Therefore the isolation of microorganisms able to produce fermented products with a selected profile of saponins is under investigation for a new generation of nutraceuticals.