Comparative study of the biochemical changes and volatile compound formations during the production of novel whey-based kefir beverages and traditional milk kefir

Cheese whey (CW) and deproteinised cheese whey (DCW) were investigated for their suitability as novel substrates for the production of kefir-like beverages. Lactose consumption, ethanol production, as well as organic acids and volatile compounds formation, were determined during CW and DCW fermentation by kefir grains and compared with values obtained during the production of traditional milk kefir. The results showed that kefir grains were able to utilise lactose from CW and DCW and produce similar amounts of ethanol (7.8–8.3 g/l), lactic acid (5.0 g/l) and acetic acid (0.7 g/l) to those obtained during milk fermentation. In addition, the concentration of higher alcohols (2-methyl-1-butanol, 3-methyl-1-butanol, 1-hexanol, 2-methyl-1-propanol, and 1-propanol), ester (ethyl acetate) and aldehyde (acetaldehyde) in cheese whey-based kefir and milk kefir beverages were also produced in similar amounts. Cheese whey and deproteinised cheese whey may therefore serve as substrates for the production of kefir-like beverages similar to milk kefir.     

水态、氨基酸组成及抗氧化活性对黄精切片干燥过程的影响

目的 探究冷冻干燥和热风干燥对黄精切片颜色、抗氧化活性、氨基酸组成等品质的影响。方法 本研究使用氨基酸分析仪分析氨基酸的组成变化,并采用低场核磁技术表征黄精切片干燥过程中的水态变化,通过研究其色度、抗氧化活性变化,探析不同方法干燥黄精切片的效果差异。结果 与热风干燥样品相比,冷冻干燥样品可以更多的保留其抗氧化活性,冷冻干燥样品的色度更接近于新鲜样品;相较于冷冻干燥,热风干燥处理对黄精的游离氨基酸组成及含量的影响更显著。除此之外,冷冻干燥可以更大程度的降低切片中束缚水的含量,而且热风干燥处理结合低场核磁共振成像实现了干燥过程的水分变化的可视化。结论 冷冻干燥可以更好的保留黄精切片的生物活性,相关研究为相关的食品干燥过程中的水态变化研究提供了理论指导。     

蓬莪术干叶和鲜叶精油化学成分分析与抗氧化、抑菌活性研究

通过GC/MS技术分析了蓬莪术叶片精油的化学组成,确定了各成分在精油中的相对含量,并采用清除DPPH自由基、清除ABTS自由基、抑制亚油酸脂质过氧化和抑制卵黄脂质过氧化能力,测定了精油的抗氧化能力,以滤纸片琼脂扩散法测定抗菌活性。结果表明:蓬莪术干叶中鉴定出31种成分,鲜叶中鉴定出36种成分,分别占总峰面积的83.05%和82.29%,主要由单萜烯类和倍半萜类组成,并含有微量的醇类、醛类、酮类和烷类等物质。蓬莪术叶精油对金黄色葡萄球菌、大肠杆菌、枯草芽孢杆菌和沙门氏菌均有抑制作用,且随浓度的增加抑制作用增强。      

Comparative studies on the antioxidant properties and polyphenolic content of wine from different growing regions and vintages,a pilot study to investigate chemical markers for climate change

Many health benefits of wine result from specific polyphenolic compounds. Factors such as climate, CO₂ levels and region are known to affect polyphenolic compounds in wine; therefore a pilot study was conducted to focus on the Australian climate which has shifted from El Niño to La Niña. This research paper presents the influence of climate conditions and growing regions on the in vitro and ex vivo antioxidant capacity of red and white wine and the profile and concentration of polyphenols in these wines from the 2008 and 2009 vintages. The ORAC and polyphenolic data show that warmer climate wines had lower in vitro antioxidant capacity values but retained good bioavailability based on data from the RBC ex vivo assay compared to cool climate wines. Based on this pilot study, further research is being conducted at the National Measurement Institute, Australia (NMIA) with the goal of determining more polyphenolic compounds which appear to be affected by climate conditions.     

Comparative analyses of seeds of wild fruits of Rubus and Sambucus species from Southern Italy: Fatty acid composition of the oil,total phenolic content,antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of the methanolic extracts

Fruit seeds are byproducts from fruit processing. Characterisation of the bioactive compounds present in seeds and evaluation of their potential biological properties is therefore of particular importance in view of a possible valorisation of seeds as a source of health beneficial components. In this work, we have analysed the seeds of Sambucus and Rubus species in order to identify their bioactive components and to determine the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of the extracts. We first analysed their oil content, in order to assess the fatty acid profile and tocopherol content. Moreover, the methanolic extracts of the seeds were analysed for their total phenolic contents and antioxidant capacities. Polyphenols were identified by HPLC–ESI–MS/MS analysis. Furthermore, extracts were evaluated for their inhibitory effects on the production of LPS-induced inflammatory mediators (NO, CCL-20) in RAW 264.7 cells.