Angiotensin I‐converting enzyme inhibitory and Ca‐binding activities of peptides prepared from tuna cooking juice and spleen proteases

Tuna cooking juice is a by‐product from the tuna canning industry. In this study, tuna cooking juice was hydrolysed by proteases extracted from the spleen. Tuna cooking juice showed the highest ACE inhibitory and Ca‐binding activities after hydrolysis for 270 and 180 min, respectively. The hydrolysate was further fractionated by ultrafiltration. The permeate exhibited highest ACE inhibitory and Ca‐binding activities when passed through 1 and 5 kDa cut‐off membranes, respectively. Gel filtration chromatography was used to determine the MW of bioactive peptides that exhibited highest ACE inhibitory and Ca‐binding activities. Those peptides that exhibited highest ACE inhibitory and Ca‐binding activities were the MW range of 238–829 Da and 1355–1880 Da, respectively. These results suggest that the tuna cooking juice and the spleen protease extract are a potential source of bioactive peptides that can be utilised as bioactive ingredients in functional food and nutraceuticals.     

Synthesis of poly(ethylene terephthalate-co-isophthalate) via ring-opening polymerization of their cyclic oligomers

Syntheses of poly(ethylene terephthalate-co-isophthalate) (PET-co-PEI) were achieved via ring-opening copolymerization of corresponding cyclic oligoesters. The ring-opening polymerization (ROP)-PET-co-PEI were prepared by equilibrating an equimolar amount of cyclic oligo(ethylene terephthalate) and cyclic oligo(ethylene isophthalate) using di-n-butyltin oxide catalyst under high concentration conditions at 270 and 290 °C for 8 and 12 h. The copolyesters were obtained in yields of up to 91% with the inherent viscosity (η _inh) of up to 2.89 dl/g indicating the drastically high molecular weight compared with the conventional and ROP routes for the synthesis of PEI. The differential scanning calorimetry data of ROP-PET-co-PEI showed the melting temperatures above 400 °C indicated the potential used in high temperature application.     

Comparison of dynamic viscoelastic and physicochemical properties of pressurised and pasteurised longan juices with xanthan addition

Physical and biochemical properties of pressurised and pasteurised longan juices with various xanthan additions, such as viscoelastic behaviour, colour L (lightness), −a^∗ (greenness), b^∗ (yellowness), ΔE (total different colours) and BI (Browning Index) parameters, polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity, ascorbic acid, gallic acid, ellagic acid, total phenols and antioxidant capacity (DPPH assay) were studied. Viscoelastic determination indicated that longan juice with 0.15% xanthan addition was optimal for a fruit drink. Colour parameters showed pressurised longan juice at 500 MPa was brighter and more transparent than fresh and other processed juices. PPO was completely inactivated in pasteurised juices, whereas in pressurised juices at 300 and 500 MPa, the activities were more than 100% and 95–99%, respectively. Bioactive components including ascorbic acid were significantly reduced according to treatment severities, whereas gallic and ellagic acids were relatively stable in all processed juices. Total phenols and DPPH radical-scavenging activity decreased significantly on pasteurisation, but were stable on pressurisation.     

Resistance of industrial mango peel waste to pectin degradation prior to by‐product drying

Susceptibility of industrial mango peel waste to pectin degradation during storage at ambient conditions (25 °C, 63% relative humidity) for up to 5 h before by‐product stabilisation by drying was explored. Depending on the interim storage period in the wet state, pectins were recovered from the dried peels by hot‐acid extraction. Most important, pectin degradation during the temporary storage of the wet peels was insignificant, as revealed by yields, composition, average molecular properties, and techno‐functional quality. Hardly acetylated (DAc 2.5–4.5%), rapid‐set high‐methoxyl pectins were obtained at starch‐corrected net yields of 14.1–15.6 g hg^?1. Irrelevant de‐esterification during peel storage in the wet state was confirmed by overall uniform setting temperatures. Arabinogalactans, uniformly indicated by high molar galactose/rhamnose ratios of 13.8–16.9 mol/mol and an arabinose percentage of 9.5–14.4 mol hmol^?1 of galactose residues, affected the galacturonide contents, intrinsic viscosities, and gel strengths throughout. The wet peels, derived from widespread manual peeling in mango canning, tolerated intermediate storage for 5 h, thus facilitating by‐product stabilisation on smaller scales.     

Vital Characteristics of Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) Pericarp that Define Postharvest Concepts for Thai Cultivars

To assess the fruit-specific determinants of pericarp browning, litchi pericarp was characterized in terms of appearance, the polyphenol pattern as specified by HPLC-DAD-MS ⁿ without and after thiolysis, and the activities of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) by exploring “Kwang Jao,” “O-Hia,” “Kim Cheng,” and “Chacapat” fruit on the respective harvest day, “Hong Huey” fruit also throughout 52 days of cold storage (5 °C, 95% relative humidity). At harvest, PPO activity was maximum for “Kim Cheng” pericarp (126 μkat/hg), whereas POD activity was striking for that of “O-Hia” (512 μkat/hg, including membrane-bound isoforms). Flavan-3-ol and proanthocyanidin patterns were consistent for all cultivars. However, cultivars with sharp-pointed and round–obtuse protuberances differed in pericarp anthocyanin and flavonol glycosylation patterns. The molar ratio of cyanidin 3-O-rutinoside to its glucoside was ≤6:1 for “Hong Huey” and “Kwang Jao,” but ≥43:1 for “Kim Cheng” and “Chacapat” pericarp. Long-term storage gave evidence of two key processes involved in pericarp browning: (1) PPO-mediated oxidation of abundant (?)-epicatechin (1.4–2.0 g/hg), resulting in dark brown pigments, and (2) microcrack-induced formation of light brown surface scurf, supposably with involvement of POD. Accordingly, an improved scheme for litchi pericarp browning was proposed. As regards recommendable postharvest concepts for each cultivar, “Chacapat” suited most for long-distance transports due to its overall low susceptibility to pericarp browning. Properties of “O-Hia” litchi, being prone to surface scurf formation, suggested preferred distribution via domestic markets. High contents of flavonols (e.g., quercetin glycosides, 166 mg/hg) and A-type-linked procyanidins (e.g., procyanidin A2, 1,092 mg/hg) qualified pericarp of “Hong Huey” litchi as raw material for polyphenol extracts exerting antioxidant properties.     

Stabilization and Partial Purification of a Protease from Ginger Rhizome (Zingiber offinale Roscoe)

ABSTRACT: Ginger protease (GP) or zingibain is of interest as a meat tenderizing agent. The objective of this research was to investigate food-compatible methods for stabilizing GP during storage or enzyme fractionation. Crude GP extracted from fresh ginger had a half-life (t_1/2) of 2.1 (±0.16) d at 5°C decreasing to 20 min at 30°C. Addition of ascorbate (0.2% w/v) increased the t_1/2 for GP from 2 to 20 d at 5°C. Dithiothreitol or Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) had no effect on GP stability. Acetone powder preparations from ginger yielded GP with t_1/2 of 18 mo at 5°C. Crude GP extracted from acetone powder was sufficiently stabilized to allow fractionation by ion exchange chromatography without the addition of toxic or expensive additives. GP was partially purified 252-fold with a recovery of 61%. The nomimal molecular weight of GP was 34.8 kDa compared with 25.1 kDa for papain. This work shows that the stability of GP can be greatly improved, increasing its attractiveness as a commercial product. Some possible routes of GP deactivation and stabilization are discussed.     

A White LED Driver Using a Buck–Boost Converter

For mobile backlighting applications, a white LED (WLED) driver using a buck–boost converter is proposed in this letter. Unlike conventional converters using boost converters, 2×/1.5× charge pumps, and so on, the proposed converter offers the negative stepped‐down voltage to drive the LED's cathode only when the input voltage is insufficient to drive a 1× transfer mode. Furthermore, unlike the LED backlight using charge pumps, the proposed converter can adjust the output voltage by controlling the duty factor of the clock pulse. Thus, the proposed converter can realize high power efficiency. The validity of the proposed converter is confirmed by simulations and experiments. © 2010 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.