*2.4. Swiss Chard*

Green chard also known as Swiss chard (*Beta vulgaris* var. *cicla* L.) belongs to the Amaranthaceae-Chenopodiaceae family and is considered an important leafy vegetable grown for its green or reddish leaves and the white, yellow, or red leaf stalk. Green beet belongs to the same family of the root vegetable red beet (*Beta vulgaris* var. *rubra* L.). Traditionally, Swiss chard has been employed for its health-promoting properties as folk remedy for liver/kidney diseases, for triggering the hematopoietic and immune systems and also as a target diet in some tumors treatment [88]. As they grow, Swiss chard leaves accumulate a wide range of macro and micro minerals such as P, K, Ca, Mg, and Fe and several lipophilic vitamins (such as A and E and also carotenoids), as well as hydrophilic vitamins (such as B3, B5, B9, and C) [89]. According to Mzoughi et al. [90] Swiss chard leaves have a nutritional and functional profile catering to modern human diets. In the latter study, Swiss chard leaves were characterized by high concentrations of secondary metabolites such as (myricitrin, *p*-coumaric, and rosmarinic acid), flavonoids, carotenoids (β-carotene, chlorophyll, and lycopene) and some target volatile compounds (decanal, E-anethole, and octanoic acid). Mzoughi and co-workers demonstrated that the high antioxidant capacity on ABTS and DPPH of Swiss chard ethanol extract was accompanied with significant inhibitory effects on α-amylase and α-glucosidase; thus the Swiss chard extract could be explored in the near future as potential functional food with antioxidant and anti-diabetic properties [90].

In a recent review paper, Ninfali et al. [91] reported that green beet extract may regulate the hematic concentration of glucose, decrease lipid peroxidation, lower triglycerides and cholesterol levels, and improve glutathione levels. The health protective secondary metabolites found in *B. vulgaris cicla* have been identified as a class of G-Glycosyl flavonoids including (i) isovitexin, (ii) vitexin, (iii) vitexin-2-*O*-xyloside and iv) vitexin-2-*O*-rhamnoside, which are characterized by high biological activity [91]. According to Lee et al. [92], vitexin is able to reduce drastically the mitochondrial membrane potential in leukemia cell. Similarly, Nifali et al. [93] and Gennari et al. [94] reported that vitexin-2-*O*-xyloside and vitexin-2-*O*-rhamnoside were able to reduce the proliferation rate of

MCF-7 breast and RKO cancer cells. Concerning the anti-inflammatory properties of Swiss chard, Borghi et al. [95] demonstrated that the administration of 10 mg/kg of vitexin is able to decrease the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Overall, in vitro and in vivo experiments carried out on animals and humans demonstrated that the biological activity of vitexin, vitexin-2-*O*-xyloside, and vitexin-2-*O*-rhamnoside can trigger the expression of a wide range of genes associated with inhibition of cancer cell proliferation and anti-inflammation activities.
