INTEGRATING SENSORY ANALYSIS AND HEDONIC EVALUATION FOR APPLE QUALITY ASSESSMENT

ABSTRACT

Apple cultivars were subjected to a consumer test in order to appreciate individual preferences and set up a protocol for a practical hedonic‐sensory evaluation. Cultivars subjected to the test were “Golden Delicious,”“Modì,”“Pink Lady” and “Fuji” of two different origins. Apples had the sensory profile defined by a trained panel and were evaluated by 154 consumers. According to their preferences, consumer population could be divided in six clusters. Consumer preference responses clearly associated the two “Fuji” and showed “Modì” and “Pink Lady” to have appeal on the same consumers groups. Besides expressing hedonic judgment, consumers were requested to indicate the positive sensory attributes determining their choice. Consumers appreciated “Golden Delicious” and “Fuji” on the basis of sweetness and aroma, while preferences for “Pink Lady” and “Modì” were expressed by consumers appreciating crispness, juiciness and a certain degree of acidity. The involvement of consumers in defining attributes driving preferences provides details useful for weighing up the consistency between consumers' response and sensory panel profile.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

This work contributes to the knowledge on consumer preferences and concerning apple sensory quality. In particular, the tested varieties could be divided in three groups on the basis of perceived attributes. Knowledge of consumer preferences related to apple qualities can be a key point in planning production and marketing strategies. A protocol integrating sensory characteristics defined by a trained panel, hedonic consumer judgments and sensory preference drivers is proposed.     

HPLC determination of thioglycolic acid and other aliphatic thiols in cosmetic formulations using ethacrynic acid as precolumn derivatization reagent

Limits imposed on the usage of thioglycolic acid, its salts and esters in cosmetic formulations require selective and sensitive analytical methods for their determination. In this study a convenient and reliable method based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been developed. The method involves a precolumn reaction of the thiol compounds with ethacrynic acid to give thiol adducts which can be separated by reversed-phase liquid chromatography and detected at λ= 273 nm.
The derivatization reaction proved to be quantitative under mild conditions (20 min at pH 7.4 and room temperature) and the chromatographic conditions allowed thioglycolic acid, glyceryl monothioglycolate, thiolactic acid, and thioglycolic acid ethyl ester to be discriminated.
The proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of commercial cosmetic formulations containing thioglycolic acid and glyceryl monothioglycolate, fulfilling the requirements of a general and selective method for the analysis of aliphatic thiols in cosmetics.     

Shoot thinning effects on seasonal whole‐canopy photosynthesis and vine performance in Vitis vinifera L. cv. Barbera

Background and Aims: While shoot thinning is one of the most widely applied practices in the vineyard as a tool to regulate canopy density and/or crop level, its physiological bases are still fairly obscure and have been poorly investigated. Our aim was to assess seasonal modification of whole‐canopy net CO₂ exchange rate (NCER) in thinned and non‐thinned grapevines, as well as establishing correlations with grape composition. Methods and Results: Potted, mature cv. Barbera vines were thinned (ST) to 10–15 shoots/m over the two trial years and compared with a non‐thinned control (C). The data logged each season included whole‐vine NCER monitored pre‐ and post‐veraison for periods of variable lengths, vine growth, yield components and grape composition. While final leaf area per vine did not differ between treatments, ST showed reduced yield and improved berry colour and must sugar accumulation. In 2009, NCER/vine recovery in ST was 85% of C at verasion, whereas in 2010 full recovery was already reached around bloom. Conclusions: A load of 15 shoots/m maximised canopy efficiency by inducing the fastest recovery of whole‐vine photosynthesis and markedly improved sugar, colour and phenolics. Retaining 10 shoots/m delayed NCER recovery while improving overall grape composition as compared to C. Significance of the Study: Direct assessment of the complex seasonal canopy NCER dynamics triggered by shoot thinning indicates that the source‐sink balance evolves in ST towards a higher supply of assimilates per unit of crop than that available in non‐thinned canopies during the veraison‐to‐harvest period.     

Dental-derived stem cells and biowaste biomaterials: What’s next in bone regenerative medicine applications

The human teeth and oral cavity harbor various populations of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), so called dental-derived stem cells (D-dSCs) with self-renewing and multilineage differentiation capabilities. D-dSCs properties involves a strong paracrine component resulting from the high levels of bioactive molecules they secrete in response to the local microenvironment. Altogether, this viewpoint develops a general picture of current innovative strategies to employ D-dSCs combined with biomaterials and bioactive factors for regenerative medicine purposes, and offers information regarding the available scientific data and possible applications.