International Regulations of Propolis Quality: Required Assays do not Necessarily Reflect their Polyphenolic‐Related In Vitro Activities

Propolis has been proposed as a polyphenolic‐rich natural product potentially able to be used for human consumption or even for medicinal proposes. To guarantee a minimum phenolic and flavonoid content and as consequence of their related‐biological activities, international requirements of propolis quality are commonly applied. In this work we assessed phenolic and flavonoid contents of propolis; the antioxidant capacity (toward peroxyl radicals and hypochlorous acid); the ability to generate nitric oxide (NO); and, finally the antimicrobial activity of 6 propolis samples from the VI region of Chile. Our results show that the total phenolic and flavonoid content of propolis samples are not always in agreement with their polyphenolic‐associated in vitro activities. For example, P03 and P06 samples showed the lowest (25 ± 4 GAE/g propolis) and the highest (105 ± 3 GAE/g propolis) total phenolic content, respectively. This was in agreement with flavonoid content and their Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) activity. However, this dependence was not observed toward HOCl, NO release and antimicrobial activity. Based on our results, we consider that, in order to guarantee the antioxidant or antimicrobial in vitro effects, the international regulations of propolis quality should contemplate the convenience of incorporating other simple analytical test such as ORAC or antimicrobial tests.     

Sensory Characterization and Consumer Preference Mapping of Fresh Sausages Manufactured with Goat and Sheep Meat

The main objective of this study was the sensory characterization, by a taste and a consumers’ panel, of fresh sausages from 140 culled goats and 140 culled ewes. Species and type of preparation effects were studied. All data were previously analyzed by analysis of variance. Taste panel data were analyzed by a Generalized Procrustes Analysis (GPA). Consumers’ panel data were analyzed by Preference Mapping. The 1st 2 factors explained 88.22% of total variation in GPA. Different sausages samples were perfectly differentiated by assessors. Goat sausages have been considered harder, more fibrous, and less juicy than sheep sausages. The panelists observed that sheep sausages without paprika had greater intensity of flavor, tasted spicy, and had an off‐odor, while goat sausages with paprika were considered sweeter. Consumers’ panel did not show any preference for the different types of sausages. This means that all types of sausages can have market opportunity.     

Application of whey protein isolate in bone regeneration: Effects on growth and osteogenic differentiation of bone-forming cells

Recently, milk-derived proteins have attracted attention for applications in the biomedical field such as tissue regeneration. Whey protein isolate (WPI), especially its main component β-lactoglobulin, can modulate immunity and acts as an antioxidant, antitumor, antiviral, and antibacterial agent. There are very few reports of the application of WPI in tissue engineering, especially in bone tissue engineering. In this study, we tested the influence of different concentrations of WPI on behavior of human osteoblast-like Saos-2 cells, human adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ASC), and human neonatal dermal fibroblasts (FIB). The positive effect on growth was apparent for Saos-2 cells and FIB but not for ASC. However, the expression of markers characteristic for early osteogenic cell differentiation [type-I collagen (COL1) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP)] as well as ALP activity, increased dose-dependently in ASC. Importantly, Saos-2 cells were able to deposit calcium in the presence of WPI, even in a proliferation medium without other supplements that support osteogenic cell differentiation. The results indicate that, depending on the cell type, WPI can act as an enhancer of cell proliferation and osteogenic differentiation. Therefore, enrichment of biomaterials for bone regeneration with WPI seems a promising approach, especially due to the low cost of WPI.     

Rapid physicochemical characterization of innovative fucoidan/fructan powders by ATR–FTIR

Functional food has been highly demanded lately because of its benefits in counteracting diseases. Fucoidan and agave fructan are ingredients that enhance the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut (prebiotics). This mixture has great potential to develop innovative products but it has never been explored before. Because of fucoidan is more expensive than agave fructan, the innovative proposed mixture is vulnerable to adulteration. This research was aimed to assess the accuracy of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflectance (ATR–FTIR) coupled with chemometrics to identify and predict concentration of both polysaccharides in powder mixtures (0–100%). Absorption bands at 1240–1255 and 836–840 cm^?1 were attributed to fucoidan and a strong peak at ~ 936 cm^?1 confirmed the fructan presence. Peak areas were best fitted into linear models (\({\text{R}}_{\text{adj}}^{2}\) ≥ 0.92, RMSE ≤ 3.54%). This achievement may be useful to certificate ingredients contained in fucoidan–fructan mixtures, preventing adulteration.     

Optimization of ultrasonic-assisted extraction of phenolic compounds from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Justicia spicigera</Emphasis> leaves

A Box–Behnken design (Extraction-time, pulse-cycle, sonication-amplitude) was employed to extract phenolic compounds from Justicia spicigera leaves by ultrasonic-assisted extraction. The muicle leaves extracts were analyzed measuring total phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity. According to response surface methodology the optimal conditions of ultrasonic-assisted extraction to obtain the highest soluble phenolic content were 2 min (extraction time) for 0.7 s (pulse cycle) at 55% of sonication amplitude. Under these optimal conditions, the total phenolic content was higher when was used ultrasonic-assisted extraction (54.02 mg/g) than stirring (46.46 mg/g) and thermal decoction (47.76 mg/g); however, the antioxidant capacity from J. spicigera extracts did not increase by ultrasonic-assisted extraction. The extracts or aqueous infusions from J. spicigera leaves are used for therapeutic proposes, therefore the ultrasonic-assisted extraction is a useful technology to improve the extraction of phytochemicals from J. spicigera leaves.     

Tensile behavior of Basalt/Glass single and multilayer-woven fabrics

High strength fabrics are perfect materials for use in automotive and aerospace systems, where high performance and light weight structures are demanded. Mechanical characterization under constant loading is of great importance for these materials. The purpose of this study is to analyze the tensile properties of Basalt and Glass-woven structures at different pick density, weave design, stitch distance, and number of layers. For this purpose, single and double layerwoven fabric structures have been prepared using Basalt and Glass yarns on sample weaving loom. Their uniaxial testing has been performed to analyze their tensile curves. Analysis of variance showed the statistical significance of material, pick density, direction of applied load, weave, and stitching in strength of fabric, while the effect of stitch distance was insignificant.     

Determination of the complex permittivity of cherry,pulped, green,and roasted coffee using a planar dielectric platform and a coaxial probe between 0.3 and 6 GHz

The complex permittivity for four processing stages of coffee: coffee cherries, pulped coffee, green coffee, and roasted coffee was obtained and divided into two groups. The wet group is constituted by cherry and pulped coffee, and the dry group by green and roasted coffee. The wet group presented a dielectric constant between 64 and 43, and a loss factor between 34 and 12. The dry group has values oscillating between 1.55 and 1.1 for the dielectric constant, and 0.037 and 0.005 for the loss factor. The permittivity difference between the wet and dry groups suggests the dependence of the coffee permittivity on the water content, along with the presence of other polar compounds. A decaying response for the dielectric constant was seen, with a proportion of 30:1 from the wet to the dry group. The loss factor presents a convex response for the wet group and a constant response for the dry group with a factor of 500 to a 100:1 from the wet to the dry group. A set of 18 samples at every stage was used to estimate the moisture content by partial least squares. The Meyer and Schilz coefficient was used for these models, that resulted in prediction errors of 2.8% and 3.8% when compared to the stage mean moisture content for the wet group. The dry group resulted in errors of 21% and 89.7%. These results indicate that the complex permittivity of coffee is capable of estimating physicochemical variables as the moisture content of the beans at distinct processing stages.     

Deoxynivalenol in wheat,maize, wheat flour and pasta: surveys in Hungary in 2008–2015

Among Fusarium mycotoxins, deoxynivalenol (DON) is the most common contaminant in case of cereals and cereal-based foods in Hungary. In this study, Hungarian wheat (n = 305), maize (n = 108), wheat flour (n = 179) and pasta (n = 226) samples were analysed (N = 818). The samples were collected during 2008–2015 in Hungary. Applied methods of analysis were enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and liquid-chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer. Results were compared and evaluated with Hungarian weather data. Among cereal samples, in 2011, wheat was contaminated with DON (overall average ± standard deviation was 2159 ± 2818 µg kg^?1), which was above the maximum limit (ML). In case of wheat flour and pasta, no average values above ML were found during 2008–2015, but higher DON contamination could be observed in 2011 as well (wheat flour: 537 ± 573 µg kg^?1; pasta: 511 ± 175 µg kg^?1).