On-line application of visible and near infrared reflectance spectroscopy to predict chemical–physical and sensory characteristics of beef quality

The aim of this study was to assess the on-line implementation of visible and near infrared reflectance (Vis-NIR) spectroscopy as an early predictor of beef quality traits, by direct application of a fibre-optic probe to the muscle immediately after exposing the meat surface in the abattoir. Samples from M.longissimus thoracis from 194 heifers and steers were scanned at quartering 48 h postmortem over the Vis-NIR spectral range from 350 to 1800 nm. Thereafter, samples from M.longissimus thoraciset lumborum were analysed for colour (L^∗, a^∗, b^∗; 48 h postmortem), cooking loss (14 days postmortem), instrumental texture (Volodkevitch, 10 days aged meat; slice shear force, 3 and 14 days aged meat) and sensory characteristics. Vis-NIR calibrations, tested by cross-validation, showed high predictability for L^∗, a^∗ and b^∗ (R² = 0.86, 0.86 and 0.91; SE_CV = 0.96, 0.95 and 0.69, respectively). The accuracy of Vis-NIR to estimate cooking loss and instrumental texture ranged from R² = 0.31 to 0.54, suggesting relatively low prediction ability. Sensory characteristics assessed on 14 days aged meat samples showed R² in the range from 0.21 (juiciness) to 0.59 (flavour). Considering the subjective assessment of sensory characteristics the correlations of Vis-NIR measurements and several meat quality traits in the range from 0.46 to 0.95 support the use of on-line Vis-NIR in the abattoir. Improvement of predictability was achieved if only extreme classes of meat characteristics have to be predicted by Vis-NIR spectroscopy.     

Relationship between pungency and food components – A comparison of chemical and sensory evaluations

The influence of food ingredients (water, starch, fat, and sugar), individually and in combination, on the sensory perception of the pungency of capsaicin was studied in model food systems using the time-intensity method. Furthermore, the transferability of the results obtained using model food matrices to complex matrices, such as convenience salsas, was investigated. Significant differences between the samples (p < 0.05) were examined by analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by the Tukey-HSD post hoc test. A highly complex matrix and a high starch content reduced the perception of pungency in both the model food matrices and the convenience salsa products. Therefore, the time-related maximum intensity of pungency (I_max) was affected by other factors in addition to the capsaicin concentration.The total capsaicinoid content in the salsas was quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS) and correlated to the results of the sensory evaluation. The best correlation (R² = 0.8029) was observed for the total capsaicinoid content and the maximum intensity of pungency (I_max) in comparison to the duration of the total pungency perception T_Dur (R² = 0.5176) and the area under the curve (R² = 0.6898). The calculated regression models serve as an example of how empirical calculations can be generated and used in a specific context.     

Acceptability of partially dealcoholized wines – Measuring the impact of sensory and information cues on overall liking in real-life settings

In this study, the effect of partial alcohol reduction in wine on consumer expectation and overall liking was investigated in real-life settings (by a Home-Use-Test). By varying the wine in the bottle and by manipulating the information on the label, it was possible to assess the relative impact of sensory properties and information cues on overall liking.Standard Chardonnay and Syrah wines were partially dealcoholized from about 13.5% to about 9.5%. After bottling, these dealcoholized wines were presented once with information about real alcohol content (9.5%) and once with false information about alcohol content (13.5%). A third bottle with standard wine inside was also presented with real information about alcohol content (13.5%). A group of 194 French wine consumers rated the three wines at home for liking before and after tasting on continuous hedonic scales. Another group of 90 French wine consumers evaluated the wines at the laboratory.The same order of preference was obtained in both laboratory and home conditions but wines generally attained significantly higher hedonic scores in Home-Use-Tests. A strong segmentation of consumers highlighted specific consumer behaviors regarding expectation and overall liking of wines. Results emphasized the importance of both sensory and information cues in the development of overall liking by consumers.     

Influence of locally-selected yeast on the chemical and sensorial properties of Albariño white wines

The use of selected yeast strains with improved or novel properties may promote wines with special and original quality attributes. In this paper, changes in the chemical composition (aroma compounds and polyphenols) and sensorial properties of Albariño white wines elaborated with the same must and selected yeast (named as 1, 2 and 3) have been studied in comparison with wines subjected to non-inoculated fermentation (control wine). The results indicated that yeast strain can significantly influence the aroma and polyphenol composition of the wines. Wines elaborated with strain 1 had a higher concentration of terpenes and norisoprenoids, which are compounds closely associated with the fruity and fresh character of Albariño white wines. These same wines had a lower concentration of flavan-3-ols, closely associated with the astringency and bitterness of the wine and the lowest browning potential. The formal sensory analysis conducted by 8 trained judges showed that wines elaborated with strain 1 were preferred by the tasting panel. Therefore, the selection of yeast strains could offer the possibility to modulate sensorial attributes related with the aroma and phenol composition in Albariño white wines.     

African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) skin gelatin: Extraction optimization and physical–chemical properties

Large amounts of by-products are generated in fish processing. It is estimated that the residues from filleting can represent up to 75% of the total weight, and that approximately 30% of such residues consist of skin and bones. There is currently an increased interest in fish gelatin. This work investigated the variables of the extraction process that can potentially influence the gelatin properties of catfish skin and its physicochemical characteristics. The screening step determined the extraction temperature °C, extraction time h, and H₂SO₄% p/v concentration, which were selected to assemble a central composite rotational design (CCRD) in order to elucidate its effect on gelatin viscosity (p < 0.05). The viscosities of the African catfish skin gelatin were between 2.05 and 2.85 mPa·s. The extraction process exhibited a yield of 11.4% and gelatin gel strength and melting point was of 234 g and 25.7 °C, respectively.     

Antioxidant properties of resveratrol: A structure–activity insight

Resveratrol, a natural product, is known to affect a broad range of intracellular mediators. In the present study, we clarified the antioxidant activity of resveratrol by employing various in vitro antioxidant assays such as DPPH?, ABTS^?+, DMPD^?+, O₂^?? and H₂O₂ scavenging activities, total antioxidant activity, reducing abilities, and Fe²⁺ chelating activities. Resveratrol inhibited 89.1% of the lipid peroxidation of linoleic acid emulsion at 30 µg/mL concentration. On the other hand, BHA, BHT, α-tocopherol, and trolox exhibited inhibitions of 83.3, 82.1, 68.1, and 81.3% against peroxidation of linoleic acid emulsion at the same concentration, respectively. In addition, resveratrol had effective DPPH?, ABTS^?+, DMPD^?+, O₂^?? and H₂O₂ scavenging activities, reducing power, and Fe²⁺ chelating activities. The present study found that resveratrol had effective in vitro antioxidant and radical scavenging activity. It can be used in pharmacological and food industry due to its antioxidant properties.Industrial relevanceAntioxidants are often added to foods to prevent the radical chain reactions of oxidation and they act by inhibiting the initiation and propagation step leading to the termination of the reaction and delay the oxidation process. At the present time, the most commonly used antioxidants are BHA, BHT, propylgallate and tert-butyl hydroquinone. Besides that BHA and BHT are restricted by legislative rules because of doubts over their toxic and carcinogenic effects. Therefore, there is a growing interest on natural and safer antioxidants in food applications, and a growing trend in consumer preferences for natural antioxidants, all of which has given more impetus to explore natural sources of antioxidants. A variety of foods and beverages of vegetable origin contain several nonflavonoid classes of phenolic compounds synthesized by plants. Among them, resveratrol has been identified as the major active compound of stilbene phytoalexins and is presumed to be beneficial for human health. Resveratrol is naturally occurring in the fruits and leaves of edible plants, peanuts, mulberries, grapes and red wine. Resveratrol is currently in the limelight all over the world due to their beneficial effects on the human body. Resveratrol can be used for minimizing or preventing lipid oxidation in pharmaceutical products, retarding the formation of toxic oxidation products, maintaining nutritional quality and prolonging the shelf life of food products and pharmaceuticals instead of BHA and BHT and other antioxidant compounds because of their safer usage.     

Coumarin and cinnamaldehyde in cinnamon marketed in Italy: A natural chemical hazard?

Some plants that are processed into foods often contain natural substances that may be hazardous to human health. One example is coumarin, which is known to cause liver and kidney damage in rats, mice and probably humans. The main source of coumarin in the diet is cinnamon. The name ‘cinnamon’ is correctly used to refer to Ceylon cinnamon, also known as ‘true cinnamon’. However, other plant species are sometimes sold with the label of cinnamon. This is the case of Cinnamomun aromaticum (cassia). In recent years, due to its cheaper price, cassia is replacing true cinnamon in the European food market being largely used in the preparation of some kinds of sweets. Several European health agencies have recently warned against consuming high amounts of cassia due to its high content of coumarin. In this study, 34 samples of cinnamon and 50 samples of cinnamon-containing foodstuffs were collected from the Italian market. Quantitative determinations of coumarin and cinnamaldehyde were performed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detector (DAD). The analytical method was in-house validated assessing recovery, repeatability, linearity, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ). The results showed that about 51% of cinnamon samples consisted of cassia, 10% were probably a blend of cassia and Ceylon cinnamon, whereas only 39% were actually Ceylon cinnamon. As far as cinnamon-containing foods are concerned, the samples often exceeded the maximum level fixed in the European Flavourings Directive of 2 mg kg^?1.     

Does participating in physical activity in outdoor natural environments have a greater effect on physical and mental wellbeing than physical activity indoors? A systematic review

Our objective was to compare the effects on mental and physical wellbeing, health related quality of life and long-term adherence to physical activity, of participation in physical activity in natural environments compared with physical activity indoors. We conducted a systematic review using the following data sources: Medline, Embase, Psychinfo, GreenFILE, SportDISCUS, The Cochrane Library, Science Citation Index Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, Arts and Humanities Citation Index, Conference Proceedings Citation Index--Science and BIOSIS from inception to June 2010. Internet searches of relevant Web sites, hand searches of relevant journals, and the reference lists of included papers and other review papers identified in the search were also searched for relevant information. Controlled trials (randomized and nonrandomized) were included. To be eligible trials had to compare the effects of outdoor exercise initiatives with those conducted indoors and report on at least one physical or mental wellbeing outcome in adults or children. Screening of articles for inclusion, data extraction, and quality appraisal were performed by one reviewer and checked by a second with discrepancies resolved by discussion with a third if necessary. Due to the heterogeneity of identified studies a narrative synthesis was performed. Eleven trials (833 adults) were included. Most participants (6 trials; 523 adults) were young students. Study entry criteria and methods were sparsely reported. All interventions consisted of a single episode of walking or running indoors with the same activity at a similar level conducted outdoors on a separate occasion. A total of 13 different outcome measures were used to evaluate the effects of exercise on mental wellbeing, and 4 outcome measures were used to assess attitude to exercise. Most trials (n = 9) showed some improvement in mental wellbeing on one or other of the outcome measures. Compared with exercising indoors, exercising in natural environments was associated with greater feelings of revitalization and positive engagement, decreases in tension, confusion, anger, and depression, and increased energy. However, the results suggested that feelings of calmness may be decreased following outdoor exercise. Participants reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with outdoor activity and declared a greater intent to repeat the activity at a later date. None of the identified studies measured the effects of physical activity on physical wellbeing or the effect of natural environments on exercise adherence. The hypothesis that there are added beneficial effects to be gained from performing physical activity outdoors in natural environments is very appealing and has generated considerable interest. This review has shown some promising effects on self-reported mental wellbeing immediately following exercise in nature which are not seen following the same exercise indoors. However, the interpretation and extrapolation of these findings is hampered by the poor methodological quality of the available evidence and the heterogeneity of outcome measures employed. The review demonstrates the paucity of high quality evidence on which to base recommendations and reveals an undoubted need for further research in this area. Large, well designed, longer term trials in populations who might benefit most from the potential advantages of outdoor exercise are needed to fully elucidate the effects on mental and physical wellbeing. The influence of these effects on the sustainability of physical activity initiatives also awaits investigation.     

Sensory and chemical characteristics of ‘dry’ wines awarded gold medals in an international wine competition

The objective of this work was to identify the sensory attributes associated with the highest awards given to wines in large competitions. Data from the Mundus Vini annual wine competitions (editions) from 2014 to 2016 were used. The chemical analysis and sensory attributes were subjected to cluster analysis and logistic ridge regression to identify predictors of grand gold and gold medal awards. High ethanol levels and sugar concentrations, mainly in red wines, were observed. For both red and white wines, three clusters were identified which broadly separated grand gold from gold medal awarded wines. The discrimination of G wines was mainly due to higher scores of bitterness and green/vegetative characters in both red and white wines, and with barnyard attributes only in red wines. The prediction regression for white wines showed that the exotic fruit was the most valued sensory attribute along with the quality indicators of body and complexity. Red wines had a higher number of predictors, including positive attributes like dried fruits and spicy or negative attributes like green/vegetative and red berries. This study identified the most relevant sensory features most valued by competition jurors, which were broadly consistent with the so-called international commercial wine style.     

Effect of grape pre-drying and static pomace contact on physicochemical properties and sensory acceptance of Brazilian (Bordô and Isabel) red wines

Wine quality is evaluated by sensory attributes and physicochemical properties whose relationship is intensely investigated. This work aimed to analyze the physicochemical properties and sensory attributes of wines from Bordô and Isabel American grapes elaborated by a traditional and two novel winemaking processes: pre-drying and submerged static pomace. It was possible to observe significant differences between the samples in all physicochemical properties (P < 0.001), except in volatile acidity. Bordô and Isabel pre-drying wines presented the highest values of dry extract (43.00 and 33.66 g L^?1) in comparison with the other wines which presented dry extract below 30 g L^?1. Furthermore, pre-drying wines showed the highest phenolic content (1340.80 and 908.80 mg L^?1) in comparison with static pomace (998.02 and 433.46 mg L^?1) and traditional treatments (983.96 and 560.26 mg L^?1). Sensory analysis showed significant differences between the samples in all attributes, except in appearance acceptance. Cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling was successfully applied and allowed to observe the relationship between physicochemical properties and sensory attributes. Total phenolic content and color indexes were associated with the appearance of wines, as well as alcohol content and acidity on aroma. The results also revealed the connection between dry extract and total and reducing sugars with the body of wines from innovative vinification. The flavor was associated with several physicochemical properties and also influenced the global acceptance of the samples. The innovative wines showed great acceptance in all sensory attributes, and the employment of these treatments on an industrial scale should be considered once providing wines with unique characteristics.     

Effect of oat's soluble fibre (β-glucan) as a fat replacer on physical, chemical, microbiological and sensory properties of low-fat beef patties

This study evaluated the effect of adding oat fibre source of β-glucan (13.45%) on physical, chemical, microbiological and sensory traits of low-fat (<10%) beef patties as compared to 20% fat control patties. Significant (p<0.05) improvements in cooking yield (74.19%), and retentions of fat (79.74%) and moisture (48.41%) of low-fat patties were attributed to the water binding ability of β-glucan. Because of larger water retentions moisture contents of raw and cooked low-fat patties were higher (p<0.05) than those of the control patties. Cholesterol content was similar across formulations. Low-fat and control beef patties remained stable in microbiological quality during 60days frozen storage. Low-fat patties were found to be of lower degree of likeness in the taste but juicer than control (p<0.05). Besides appearance, tenderness and colour were not affected by the addition of oat's soluble fibre. Oat fibre can be used successfully as a fat substitute in low-fat beef patties.