Suitability of Different Food Grade Materials for the Encapsulation of Some Functional Foods Well Reported for Their Advantages and Susceptibility

Functional foods find a very important place in the modern era, where different types of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, etc. are on a high. Irrespective of the abundance of bioactive components in different fruits and vegetables, their low solubility in aqueous solution, vulnerability to destruction in different environmental and gastrointestinal conditions and a low intestinal absorption becomes a concern. Because it is quite difficult to commercialize non food materials for the food encapsulation purposes due to their safety concerns in the human body, scientists in the recent times have come up with the idea of encapsulating the different bioactive components in different food grade materials that are able to safeguard these bioactive components against the different environmental and gastrointestinal conditions and ensure their safe and targeted delivery at their absorption sites. Different food grade encapsulation materials including various oligosaccharides, polysaccharides (starch, cyclodextrins, alginates, chitosan, gum arabic, and carboxymethyl cellulose) and proteins and their suitability for encapsulating various bioactive components like flavonoids (catechins, rutin, curcumin, hesperetin, and vanillin), nonflavonoids (resveratrol), carotenoids (β-carotene, lycopene, and lutein), and fatty acids (fish oil, flaxseed oil, and olive oil) of high medical and nutritional value are reviewed here.     

Physico‐chemical characterization of date varieties using multivariate analysis

BACKGROUND: The fruit of date palm is consumed as an ideal high‐energy food. It is also used for the treatment of colds, fever, liver and abdominal troubles. Its nutritional composition strongly depends upon variety and ripening stage. A number of varieties are available in Pakistan but little is known about their composition and nutritional characteristics. Inherent moisture, volatile matter, ash, fixed carbon, sugar and mineral metals of seven commercial date varieties (Aseel, Basra, Begun, Janshoor, Mazoee, Rabee and Zaidi) were investigated. The physical and chemical compositions with respect to maturation were also monitored for the Aseel variety. RESULTS: The results showed significant varietal differences in moisture, ash and mineral metal composition when analysis of means was conducted at an alpha level of 0.05. The difference between means was insignificant (P > 0.05) for volatile matter, glucose, fructose and total reducing sugars. All varieties were found to be an excellent source of total reducing sugar (78%), potassium (403–632 mg per 100 g) and calcium (27.41–81.47 mg per 100 g). A gradual increase in total reducing sugar and minerals, especially potassium and copper, was observed with maturation. Variety Aseel was grouped on the basis of maturation using principal component analysis. Local date varieties were separated with 48.63% level of similarity from Iranian variety (29.17%) using Cluster analysis. CONCLUSION: This study provides an overview of the physico‐chemical properties of date varieties. The sample varieties showed significant differences except for sugar and volatile matter. Multivariate analysis was found to be an important statistical tool for the separation of samples on the basis of geographical origin and maturations. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Fiber Quality Evaluation of Pakistan’s Locally Developed Cotton Varieties for Yarn Manufacturing

This paper discusses relation between fiber quality parameters and yarn quality, presenting results of the quality assessment of Pakistan’s five popular cotton varieties. Abadgar-901 was found to have highest effective length followed by Tarzen-1 when compared to other fibers studied and the Sattari showed the least effective length. Whereas, Tarzen-1 showed highest tenacity, Sindh-1 was second to that, yet Nayab-78 showed the least strength of the studied cotton fibers. Further, it was also found that except Nayab-78, all the other cotton varieties were found to have fineness value of premium cotton standards, however, Nayab proved to be a coarse fiber, Sindh-1 was finest fiber of them all. Moreover, Sattari was found to be the whitest in color when measured for CIE and Berger whiteness index, Nayab-78 followed it just after and the Abadgar proved to be the least white compared to the studied cotton varieties.     

Egg white proteins and β-cyclodextrin: effective cryoprotectant mixture against oxidative changes in the myofibrillar proteins of Culter alburnus

The effect of egg white protein (EWP) and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) mixture was analysed on the myofibrillar proteins (MP) of Culter alburnus during a frozen storage at −18 °C for 60 days. Different proportions of EWP:β-CD mixture (0%, 2%, 4% and 6%) were added into MP to analyse their effect against oxidative changes. During the study, sulphydryl contents and Ca-ATPase activity (0.297 to 0.136 mmol g⁻¹) decreased. Moreover, protein denaturation also prompted the surface hydrophobicity (11.47 to 32.06 μg) and carbonyls (26.36 to 49 mg.28 nmol mg⁻¹) of control MP. A significant decline was observed in emulsifying properties. Besides, EWP:β-CD showed remarkable stability against oxidative changes, by significantly reducing the carbonyls (26.26 to 37.69 nmol mg⁻¹) and surface hydrophobicity (11.51 to 20.31 μg) and also the decline of Ca-ATPase activity (0.29 to 0.19 mmol g⁻¹). It can be concluded that EWP:β-CD (6%) is an efficient approach against oxidative changes in MP from Culter alburnus.     

A Novel Sprague-Dawley Rat Model Presents Improved NASH/NAFLD Symptoms with PEG Coated Vitexin Liposomes

Chronic liver disease (CLD) is a global threat to the human population, with manifestations resulting from alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) and non-alcohol fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD, if not treated, may progress to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Furthermore, inflammation leads to liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Vitexin, a natural flavonoid, has been recently reported for inhibiting NAFLD. It is a lipogenesis inhibitor and activates lipolysis and fatty acid oxidation. In addition, owing to its antioxidant properties, it appeared as a hepatoprotective candidate. However, it exhibits low bioavailability and low efficacy due to its hydrophobic nature. A novel rat model for liver cirrhosis was developed by CCL4/Urethane co-administration. Vitexin encapsulated liposomes were synthesized by the ‘thin-film hydration’ method. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) was coated on liposomes to enhance stability and stealth effect. The diseased rats were then treated with vitexin and PEGylated vitexin liposomes, administered intravenously and orally. Results ascertained the liposomal encapsulation of vitexin and subsequent PEG coating to be a substantial strategy for treating liver cirrhosis through oral drug delivery.     

Ion exchange with irreversible reaction in deep fluidized beds

The exchange of CI^? ion between dilute aqueous solutions of hydrochloric acid and the ion exchange resin IRA-425 in fluidized beds was studied in a laboratory size column. Analysis of the experimental data showed that axial mixing of particles in deep beds was incomplete and also that packed and fluidized bed break-through curves were similar. A model is proposed describing the bed as a series of mixing stages for solids with axially dispersed flow of liquid. Data are presented in support of such a concept. An empirical method is proposed for prediction of the break-through curves at various operating conditions, requiring only a very limited amount of experimentation.     

Copper substituted nickel ferrite nanoparticles anchored onto the graphene sheets as electrode materials for supercapacitors fabrication

Nickel ferrites with high theoretical capacitance value as compared to the other metal oxides have been applied as electrode material for energy storage devices i.e. batteries and supercapacitors. High tendency towards aggregation and less specific surface area make the metal oxides poor candidate for electrochemical applications. Therefore, the improvements in the electrochemical properties of nickel ferrites (NiFe₂O₄) are required. Here, we report the synthesis of graphene nano-sheets decorated with spherical copper substituted nickel ferrite nanoparticles for supercapacitors electrode fabrication. The copper substituted and unsubstituted NiFe₂O₄ nanoparticles were prepared via wet chemical co-precipitation route. Reduced graphene oxide (rGO) was prepared via well-known Hummer's method. After structural characterization of both ferrite (Ni_1-xCu_xFe₂O₄) nanoparticles and rGO, the ferrite particles were decorated onto the graphene sheets to obtain Ni_1-xCu_xFe₂O₄@rGO nanocomposites. The confirmation of preparation of these nanocomposites was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The electrochemical measurements of nanoparticles and their nanocomposites (Ni_0.9Cu_0.1Fe₂O₄@rGO) confirmed that the nanocomposites due to highly conductive nature and relatively high surface area showed better capacitive behavior as compared to bare nanoparticles. This enhanced electrochemical energy storage properties of nanocomposites were attributed to the graphene and also supported by electrical (I-V) measurements. The cyclic stability experiments results showed ~65% capacitance retention after 1000 cycles. However this retention was enhanced from 65% to 75% for the copper substituted nanoparticles (Ni_0.9Cu_0.1Fe₂O₄) and 65–85% for graphene based composites. All this data suggest that these nanoparticles and their composites can be utilized for supercapacitors electrodes fabrication.