Whey-protein-stabilized nanoemulsions as a potential delivery system for water-insoluble curcumin

Nanoemulsions stabilized by whey protein isolate were successfully produced. The effects of the protein concentration, homogenization pressure, oil-to-water ratio and ι-carrageenan on the properties of the nanoemulsions were investigated. The nanoemulsions prepared only by whey protein isolate exhibited a notably good stability over various ionic strengths and thermal treatments and upon storage. ι-Carrageenan added in various concentrations has scarcely any significant effect on the physicochemical properties of nanoemulsions. The results suggested that it may not be necessary to use a polysaccharide as a second layer for the preparation of nanoemulsions when a relatively high protein concentration was used as the emulsifier to stabilize the nanoemulsions.     

Preparation and characterisation of octenyl succinate starch as a delivery carrier for bioactive food components

The octenyl succinic anhydride (OSA) modified corn starch (OSAS) was synthesised with different degrees of substitution (DS) and the influences of three factors namely OSA/starch ratio, reaction temperature, and reaction time on the DS of OSAS were studied by response surface methodology (RSM). As a delivery carrier material, the characteristics of OSAS were investigated. The resistant starch (RS) content of OSAS was increased with increasing DS, indicating the improvement of colon-targeting property. The swelling ratio (SR) of the OSAS in simulated gastrointestinal fluids was higher than that of native starch and its hydrophilicity was decreased with increasing DS. For in vitro release study, the percentage of released bioactive components was less than 7% within the first 8 h and close to 100% over a period of 36 h when the DS was 0.60. These results demonstrate that OSAS can be a potential carrier for colon-targeted delivery of bioactive food components.     

Formation and microstructural characterization of whey protein isolate/beet pectin coacervations by laccase catalyzed cross-linking

The purpose of this study was to characterize the properties of stable and reinforced protein–polysaccharides complex coacervations firstly formed by electrostatic interaction between WPI and beet pectin, and followed by laccase cross-linking through ferulic acid present in beet pectin. The interaction of whey protein isolate (WPI, 6 g/100 ml) with beet pectin (0–0.16 g/100 ml) in aqueous solutions was studied at different pH (3–7). ζ-potential and light-scattering techniques were used to provide information about the electrical charge and aggregation of individual biopolymers and complex coacervations. Stable WPI/beet pectin complex coacervations were formed when system consisted of 6 g/100 ml WPI and 1 g/100 ml beet pectin at pH 3.5. The microstructure and viscoelastic properties of WPI and beet pectin complex coacervations in the presence of laccase (0, 100, 300 U) was also studied using FT-IR, rheology, and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) techniques. The results obtained clearly showed that laccase catalyzed cross-linking of ferulic acid present in beet pectin had a remarkable influence on the physical properties of WPI–beet pectin complex coacervations microstructure. The reinforced complex coacervations formed fine networking structures which may provide convenient means for food industry to incorporate bioactive components into food products.     

Beta Vulgaris root as a natural food colouring in doughnut: Dough rheological properties and bioactive composition

In the present study, the influence of Beta vulgaris root powder (BVP) incorporated at 0%, 5%, 7.5%, 10% and 12.5% levels on the empirical and fundamental rheological characteristics; dough texture properties; nutritional and bioactive components in the doughnut were carried out. The addition of BVP, decreased the WAC (58.4%–51.2%), DDT (6.19–1.31 min), extensibility (148–95 mm), and springiness (4.56–3.24 N) and viscosity parameters to varying extent. The frequency sweep test indicated that both the dynamic moduli increased and G' was higher than G" at all levels indicating the solid elastic structure of the dough. The dimensional characteristics of the doughnuts indicated a decrease in volume (103.3–85 mL) and an increase in weight (35.8–46.7 g) and compression force (11.6–14.5 N). The sensory studies indicated that 10% BVP incorporated doughnut was highly acceptable with higher dietary fibre content. The higher retention of betacyanin (17.88 mg 100 g⁻¹), betaxanthin (12.9 mg 100 g⁻¹), betanin (6.61 mg 100 g⁻¹), TPC (25.74 mg GAE 100 g⁻¹), TFC (77.08 mg QE 100 g⁻¹) and TAC (28.76 mMTE 100 g⁻¹) was observed.     

Fucoidans as a natural bioactive ingredient for functional foods

Functional food is considered to be any food or food component that provides health benefits beyond basic nutrition. Recently, a great deal of interest has been paid by the consumers towards natural bioactive compounds as functional ingredients in the diets due to their various health beneficial effects. Notably, marine resources have been recognized as rich sources of structurally diverse biologically active compounds with great application potential in marine functional foods. Among them, fucoidans have been found to possess various bioactivities including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, anti-tumor, anti-obesity, anti-coagulant, anti-viral, anti-hepatopathy, anti-uropathy, and anti-renalpathy effects. Hence, this contribution focuses on fucoidans derived from marine sources and presents a brief overview of their biological activities with health benefits.     

Microencapsulation as a tool for incorporating bioactive ingredients into food

Microencapsulation has been developed by the pharmaceutical industry as a means to control or modify the release of drug substances from drug delivery systems. In drug delivery systems microencapsulation is used to improve the bioavailability of drugs, control drug release kinetics, minimize drug side effects, and mask the bitter taste of drug substances. The application of microencapsulation has been extended to the food industry, typically for controlling the release of flavorings and the production of foods containing functional ingredients (e.g. probiotics and bioactive ingredients). Compared to the pharmaceutical industry, the food industry has lower profit margins and therefore the criteria in selecting a suitable microencapsulation technology are more stringent. The type of microcapsule (reservoir and matrix systems) produced and its resultant release properties are dependent on the microencapsulation technology, in addition to the physicochemical properties of the core and the shell materials. This review discusses the factors that affect the release of bioactive ingredients from microcapsules produced by different microencapsulation technologies. The key criteria in selecting a suitable microencapsulation technology are also discussed. Two of the most common physical microencapsulation technologies used in pharmaceutical processing, fluidized-bed coating, and extrusion-spheronization are explained to highlight how they might be adapted to the microencapsulation of functional bioactive ingredients in the food industry.     

Boza: A lactic acid fermented cereal beverage as a traditional Turkish food

Consumption of lactic acid fermented foods is common in many mid-Asian, Middle East, and African countries. These products have many advantages such as destroying undesirable factors in the raw products, reducing the volume of the material, and providing a safer product. Besides improving organoleptic quality by fermentation, they are also superior in digestibility and nutritive value compared to their unfermented counterparts.

Boza is a traditional Turkish beverage made by yeast and lactic acid bacteria fermentation of millet, cooked maize, wheat, or rice semolina/flour. The name, boza, in Turkish comes from the Persian word, buze, meaning millet. However, the Turks who lived in Middle Asia called this beverage bassoi. There are also similar beverages produced in East European countries (braga or brascha), the Balkans (busa), and Egypt (bouza). In the past, boza has been produced and consumed with slight differences in the recipe in the Turkish countries. Boza is made of various kinds of cereals (usually millet, maize, and wheat), but boza of the best quality and taste is made of millet flour. In the Balkans, such as Bulgaria, cocoa is also included in the boza recipe. Boza produced in Egypt has high alcohol content (up to 7% by volume) and is consumed as beer. Because of its lactic acid, fat, protein, carbohydrate, and fiber contents, it is a valuable fermented food that contributes to human nutrition.     

Olive byproducts and their bioactive compounds as a valuable source for food packaging applications

Among the most important agro-industrial activities in the Mediterranean basin, olive oil production has a high impact on the economy of many Mediterranean countries. However, olive oil extraction generates huge quantities of byproducts, including leaves, pomace residues, stones and wastewater, which have severe environmental impacts mainly because of their phytotoxicity and great organic content. Olive oil byproducts are regarded as inexpensive and abundant raw materials rich in bioactive compounds with high and varied health-related activities. Several phenolic compounds and terpenoids were recovered from olive byproducts using different conventional and advanced extraction methods due to their potential to be used in food, packaging, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. Recently, the use of olive byproducts and their functional compounds to enhance the functional properties of packaging systems was investigated as a sustainable strategy for food preservation, fostering the sustainability of the olive-oil chain, and promoting circular economy. In this framework, the main goals of this review are to summarize the main bioactive compounds in olive byproducts, to review the main advancements in their extraction, purification, and characterization, and finally to discuss their applications in food packaging systems as well as safety-related aspects.     

Formation and characterization of lactoferrin/pectin electrostatic complexes: Impact of composition,pH and thermal treatment

Protein–polysaccharide complexes may be used for the development of delivery systems with applications in several industries. In the present work, the interaction of lactoferrin (LF, 0.2wt%) with a High-Methoxyl pectin (0.005–0.15wt%) in aqueous solutions was studied at different pH values (2–7) and temperatures (30–90 °C) at low ionic strength. ζ-potential and light-scattering techniques were used to provide information about the electrical charge and aggregation of individual biopolymers and complexes. At pH 7, the electrical charge went from positive to negative when increasing amounts of pectin were added to the LF solution, which was attributed to the formation of an electrostatic complex. These complexes remained soluble (low turbidity) from pH 7 to 3.5, but became turbid between pH 3.5 and 2, due to charge neutralization and bridging effects. At pH 7, the stability of LF–pectin complexes to aggregation during heating was much better than LF alone. The results of this study should provide information that will facilitate the utilization of lactoferrin as a bioactive component in food systems.     

A possible solution to minimise scotta as a food waste: A sports beverage

A pilot study trial was performed on ready‐to‐drink beverages produced in a small‐scale dairy plant starting from Ricotta whey (scotta) with the addition of fruit puree and starter cultures. Microbiological shelf life was evaluated at 4 and 12 °C. At 4 °C, the product showed moderate total viable counts until the end of the trial (~5 log cfu/mL). Yeasts proved to be the specific spoilage microorganisms of the product. When applying a thermal abuse at 20 °C for 6 h, total viable count did not increase. The addition of fruit puree changed the volatile profile of the beverages compared to raw scotta.     

Bacillus strains as human probiotics: characterization,safety, microbiome,and probiotic carrier

Food Science and Biotechnology - Both spore and vegetative forms of Bacillus species have been used as probiotics, and they have high stability to the surrounding atmospheric conditions such as...     

Beta casein-micelle as a nano vehicle for solubility enhancement of curcumin; food industry application

Curcumin is a potent anticancer and antioxidant natural polyphenol poorly soluble in aqueous solutions. Beta-casein (B-CN), an amphiphilic self-assembling protein that can form micellar nanostructures, could be used as a carrier system for hydrophobic therapeutic agents such as curcumin. In this study, camel B-CN was used for curcumin encapsulation. Critical micelle concentration of camel B-CN was determined at 25, 30 and 37 °C using pyrene fluorescence and the solubility of curcumin was evaluated according to the solvent-evaporation technique. Presence of camel B-CN increased the solubility of curcumin at least 2500 fold. Analysis of fluorescence emission of curcumin showed that hydrophobic interactions are predominant in its formulation with B-CN. Additionally, the cytotoxicity of curcumin to human leukemia cell line K-562 was enhanced in the presence of B-CN micelles giving inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) values of 26.5 and 17.7 μmol/L for free and encapsulated curcumin, respectively. Antioxidant activity of curcumin encapsulated in B-CN was higher than that of both free B-CN and curcumin.     

Review: Flow injection analysis–a new technique for food and beverage analysis

Flow injection analysis affords a means of automating many traditional wet chemical methods of food and beverage analysis, and introducing new methods which have no conventional analogue. In this technique, reactions are carried out in a continuous flow mode and it is not necessary for a state of chemical equilibrium to be reached. Therefore, analyses using standard or official chemistries may be achieved in very short times (typically 30 sec). This review outlines the principles, instrumentation and techniques of flow injection analysis and considers the scope of its actual and potential applications in food and beverage analysis.     

Dietary fibre: The scientific search for an ideal definition and methodology of analysis,and its physiological importance as a carrier of bioactive compounds

There is a growing need for a global consensus on the definition of dietary fibre and the use of appropriate methodologies for its determination in different food matrices. Oligosaccharides (prebiotic effect) and bioactive compounds (antioxidant effect) are important constituents of dietary fibre, which enhance its beneficial effects in the body, such as those related to maintaining intestinal health. These dietary components need to be quantified and addressed in conjunction with fibre in nutritional studies due to the close relationship between them and their common destiny in the human body. This review discusses updates to the concept of dietary fibre, with an emphasis on biological and methodological aspects, and highlights the physiological importance of fibre as a carrier of bioactive compounds.     

Availability of lactoferrin as a natural solubilizer of iron for food products

Lactoferrin (LF) was investigated as a natural solubilizer of iron. Under neutral conditions, 1 mole of LF solubilized 200 moles of iron. In a single dose oral toxicity study, 2.5 g iron solubilized by lactoferrin (FeLF) per kg body weight had no side effects on the rat gastric mucosa, while ferrous sulphate and ferrous citrate (at the same level with respect to iron) caused some serious injuries. FeLF was orally administered to rats for 28 days to investigate its potential toxicity. Haemoglobin content and its regeneration efficiency in rats fed with FeLF were superior to those observed with ferrous sulphate, which is the most frequently used iron supplement. The availability of FeLF in a rat model of iron-deficiency anaemia was demonstrated. LF is useful as a natural iron solubilizer for food products and neutraceuticals from the viewpoints of safety, bioavailability, and productivity.     

Mangiferin nanoparticles fortified dairy beverage as a low glycemic food product: its quality attributes and antioxidant properties

Mangiferin-encapsulated β-lactoglobulin–chitosan (mangiferin/βLG-CS) nanoparticles were fortified in milk to obtain a low glycemic index (GI) food product with high antioxidant capacity. The present study evaluated the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of mangiferin in milk fortified with nanoparticles. Fortification reduced the GI of milk by 34.5%. A mathematical model was developed to evaluate the lactose digestion, in terms of reducing sugar formed in milk by determining the digestion rate (k), and a significant reduction in k was observed. The bioaccessibility of mangiferin was enhanced by fortification. Fortified milk showed good antioxidant, lipid peroxidation inhibition and protein oxidation inhibition properties. Mangiferin nanoparticles fortified dairy beverage as an ideal food product with high antioxidant capacity and can inhibit lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation. It may be used as a low GI food product.     

Formation and characterization of noncovalent ternary complexes based on whey protein concentrate,high methoxyl pectin,and phenolic acid

Protein-polysaccharide-polyphenol noncovalent ternary complexes possess unique physicochemical, structural, and functional properties. In the present study, ternary complexes based on whey protein concentrate (WPC; 2%, wt/vol) and high methoxyl pectin (HMP; 0.5%, wt/vol) complexes and 0.2 to 0.6% (wt/vol) chlorogenic acid (CA) or rosmarinic acid (RA) were formed and characterized at 3 pH values (4, 4.5, and 5). The pH conditions were decided according to phase diagram of WPC and HMP during acidification. Fluorescence quenching experiments indicated that WPC-HMP complexes bound RA stronger than CA and the binding constant increased with increasing pH for both phenolic acids. Particle size of ternary complexes decreased and absolute ζ-potential increased with pH values changing from 4 to 5, and RA influenced the particle size of WPC-HMP complexes greater than CA. The CA and RA in ternary complexes showed good stability against UV light with pH order of pH 5 > pH 4.5 > pH 4. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy spectra indicated the involvement of hydrogen bonding between WPC-HMP and CA or RA. Antibacterial tests showed that ternary complexes had good antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli at concentrations of 6.2 mg/mL and the ability increased with decreasing pH values. All ternary complexes possessed strong scavenging radical capacities with median inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) values ranging from 2.71 ± 0.05 to 6.20 ± 0.41 μg/mL. Antioxidative ability of ternary complexes increased as pH went up and WPC-HMP-RA showed significantly higher antioxidative property compared with WPC-HMP-CA. Data may provide useful information for rational design of ternary complexes and applications of the formed complexes in food matrices such as beverages and emulsions.