DEFINITION Secondary metabolites are organic compounds that are not directly involved in the normal growth, development,

or reproduction of an organism.Unlike primary metabolites, absence of secondary metabolites does not result in immediate death, but rather in long-term impairment of the organism's survivability, fecundity, or aesthetics, or perhaps in no significant change at all. Secondary metabolites are often restricted to a narrow set of species within a phylogenetic group.Secondary metabolites often play an important role in plant defense against herbivory and other interspecies defenses. Humans use secondary metabolites as medicines, flavorings, and recreational drugs. CLASSIFIED Secondary metabolites can be classified on the basis of chemical structure (for example, having rings, containing a sugar), composition (containing nitrogen or not), their solubility in various solvents, or the pathway by which they are synthesized (e.g., phenylpropanoid, which produces tannins). A simple classification includes three main groups: the terpenes (made from mevalonic acid, composed almost entirely of carbon and hydrogen), phenolics (made from simple sugars, containing benzene rings, hydrogen, and oxygen), and nitrogen-containing compounds (extremely diverse, may also contain sulfur). 1. Terpenoids are made of isoprene units and are found in all plants. They are the largest group of secondary metabolites and are very volatile, which means they evaporate easily. Terpenoids are the largest and most diverse family of natural products, ranging in structure from linear to polycyclic molecules and in size from the five-carbon hemiterpenes to natural rubber, comprising thousands of isoprene units. All terpenoids are synthesized through the condensation of isoprene units (C5) and are classified by the number of five-carbon units present in the core structure (Mahmoud et al. 2002). Many flavor and aromatic molecules, such as menthol, linalool, geraniol and caryophyllene are formed by monoterpenes (C10), with two isoprene units, and sesquiterpenes (C15), with three isoprene units. Other bioactive compounds, such as diterpenes (C20), triterpenes (C30) and tetraterpenes (C40).

2. Phernol. Phenolic compounds are widely distributed in nature. Their chemical structures may vary greatly, including simple phenols (C6), such

as hydrobenzoic acid derivatives and catechols, as well as long chain polymers with high molecular weight, such as catechol melanins (C6)6, lignins (C6-C3)n and condensed tannins (C6-C3-C6)n. Stilbenes (C6-C2C6) and flavonoids (C6- C3-C6) are phenolic compounds with intermediate molecular weight that present many pharmacological and biological activities. Examples of plant phenolics are the flavonoids and their glycosides, the phenyl propanoids, anthocyanins, xanthones, coumarins,tannins and quinones. Many of the phenolic compounds are reported to have antioxidant and anticancer activities. 3. Alkaloids are a group of nitrogen-containing bases. Most of them are drugs. Only a few (like caffeine) are derived from purines or pyrimidines, while the large majority is produced from amino acids. Morphine was the first alkaloid to be found. Morphine comes from the plant Papaver sonniferum, or the opium poppy. It is used as a pain reliever in patients with severe pain levels and cough suppressant. Another example of an alkaloid is cocaine. It can be highly dangerous and addictive. However, it has also been used as an anesthetic. Cocaine has long been used by the people of South America to alleviate hunger. Perhaps the most loved and known alkaloid is caffeine. While we use it to stay alert, it has protective properties for the plants it comes from: cocoa, coffee and tea.

Polyphenol Secondary Metabolite Acts as an Antioxidant Phenolics are broadly distributed in the plant kingdom and are the most abundant secondary metabolites of plants. Plant polyphenols have drawn increasing attention due to their potent antioxidant properties and their marked effects in the prevention of various oxidative stress associated diseases such as cancer. Polyphenols are becoming increasingly important, especially because of their beneficial effects on the health. Indeed, their role of natural antioxidants is generating more and more interest for the prevention and the treatment of cancer, inflammatory, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases.

Antioxidants are defined as compounds that can delay, inhibit, or prevent the oxidation of oxidizable materials by scavenging free radicals and diminishing oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is an imbalanced state where excessive quantities of reactive oxygen and/or nitrogen species (ROS/RNS, e.g., superoxide anion, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radical, peroxynitrite) overcome endogenous antioxidant capacity, leading to oxidation of a varieties of biomacromolecules, such as enzymes, proteins, DNA and lipids. Oxidative stress is important in the development of chronic degenerative diseases including coronary heart disease, cancer and aging. It has been proposed that the antioxidant properties of phenolic compounds can be mediated by the following mechanisms: (1) scavenging radical species such as ROS/RNS; (2) suppressing ROS/RNS formation by inhibiting some enzymes or chelating trace metals involved in free radical production; (3) upregulating or protecting antioxidant defense.