Effect of fortification with asparagus powder on the qualitative properties of processed cheese

The qualitative properties of processed cheese (PC) fortified with different levels of asparagus powder (AP) (0.5%, 1% and 1.5% wt/wt) were evaluated during storage. AP decreased the pH and lipolysis indexes and increased the phenolic content, antioxidant activity and proteolysis of the processed cheeses. AP made the structure of the cheese more elastic, increased the rigidity and decreased the spreadability compared with the control sample, which corresponded to the results obtained using dynamic oscillatory rheometry. The results showed that AP as a rich source of bioactive components could be used for the fortification of processed cheeses.     

Rapid Separating and Enrichment of 4,4′-Dimethylsterols of Vegetable Oils by Solid-Phase Extraction

Phytosterols are separated into three classes: 4-desmethylsterols, 4-monomethylsterols and 4,4′-dimethylsterols. 4,4′-Dimethylsterols are used to detect vegetable oil adulteration and some compounds from this class can have anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties. There are methods such as thin layer chromatography (TLC) and solid phase extraction (SPE) used to separate phytosterol classes from each other. However, in some cases, separation of all three classes is not required. In addition, TLC has some drawbacks such as low recovery and it is time consuming. An SPE method has previously been used, but it was necessary to use high volume of solvents with this method to avoid coelution of phytosterol classes. In this study, an SPE (silica, 1 g) method was developed to separate and enrich only 4,4′-dimethylsterols from unsaponifiables of vegetable oil samples using 25 mL n-hexane and diethyl ether (95:5, v:v). This method was applied to hazelnut and olive oils and results were compared with those of TLC and the previously developed SPE method. Recovery of 4,4′-dimethylsterols was two times higher with the new SPE method compared with the TLC method. The newly developed SPE method generally gave a similar recovery compared with the previously developed SPE method. Moreover, the SPE method developed in this study has the advantage of using a 3.5 times lower volume of solvent than previously developed SPE methods. Because the newly developed SPE method has a single step requiring a low volume of solvents, it is rapid and simple, and can easily be used to detect olive oil adulteration with hazelnut oil and to analyze and quantify effective nutritional compounds in the 4,4′-dimethylsterols class.     

Milk Thistle Seed Oil Constituents from Different Varieties Grown in Iran

In this study, fatty acids, phytosterol classes and tocopherols composition of Milk thistle seeds oil were determined at four varieties grown in Ardebil-Iran. The four varieties consisted of two modified foreign varieties—Budakalaszi (originally from Hungary) and the CN-seed variety (originally from England) and two native varieties, namely Khoreslo and Babak Castle. The oil content of the seeds ranged from 26 to 31%. Among the fatty acids, linoleic acid had the highest percentage (50–54%) followed by oleic acid (23–29%) and palmitic acid (7–8%). This is the first detailed report on the phytosterol classes of milk thistle seeds oil. The 4-Desmethylsterol class was predominant (1,800–2,200 μg/g) followed by 4,4′-dimethylsterols (50–85 μg/g) and 4-monomethylsterols (26–35 μg/g). The α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherols ranged from 187 to 465, 10 to 51, 9 to 12, and 18 to 80 μg/g oil, respectively. Based on the results obtained, the extracted oil from milk thistle seeds are rich in essential fatty acids, sterols and vitamin E and can be an attractive candidate for use in food preparation mixed with other vegetable oils or alone.     

Optimization of extraction process of bioactive compounds from Bene hull using subcritical water

Bene hull contains antioxidant components. Optimum conditions for bioactive compound extraction processes from Bene hull using subcritical water with response surface methodology (RSM) were obtained. Temperature (110–200°C), processing time (30–60 min), and the water to Bene hull ratio (10:1–50:1) were the investigated factors. The optimal conditions for maximizing the antioxidant activity were 196.8°C for 52.6 min and a ratio of 43.6:1 for water to Bene hull. Under these conditions, the amount of polyphenolic compounds, the reduction power (RP) (EC₅₀), and the DPPH free radical scavenging activity (RSA) (EC₅₀) were predicted to be 2,284 mg of gallic acid/100 g of Bene hull, 0.2002 mg/mL, and 0.6284 mg/mL, respectively. HPLC analysis was used to identify the main phenolic compounds. The subcritical water extraction technique could be used as a beneficial method to obtain bioactive compounds from Bene hull.     

Effects of α-Tocopherol on Oxidative Stability and Phytosterol Oxidation During Heating in Some Regular and High-Oleic Vegetable Oils

The first part of this study evaluated oxidative stability in high-oleic rapeseed oil, palm olein, refined olive oil, low erucic acid rapeseed oil and sunflower oil. The results showed oxidative stability in the order: palm olein > high-oleic rapeseed oil > refined olive oil > low erucic acid rapeseed oil > sunflower oil, as determined by the Rancimat method. Addition of α-tocopherol at high levels of up to 0.2% increased the oxidative stability of refined olive oil, whereas the opposite effect was generally observed in the other oil samples. In the second part of the study, high-oleic rapeseed oil, palm olein, refined olive oil and refined olive oil containing 0.2% α-tocopherol were heated for 3, 6, 9 and 12 h at 180 °C. The peroxide and p-anisidine values generally increased over time in the samples, including olive oil containing 0.2% α-tocopherol. High-oleic rapeseed oil contained the highest amount of total sterols and total phytosterol oxidation products (POPs), but during heating the total POPs content increased moderately (~10%), in contrast to the threefold increase after 12 h of heating in palm olein and refined olive oil. Very high levels of 6-hydroxy derivatives of brassicastanol, campestanol and sitostanol and of 7-ketobrassicasterol were observed in high-oleic rapeseed oil samples. Addition of 0.2% α-tocopherol during heating significantly decreased POPs formation in refined olive oil (P < 0.05).     

Review of the use of phytosterols as a detection tool for adulteration of olive oil with hazelnut oil

Adulteration of virgin olive oil with less expensive oils such as hazelnut oil is a serious problem for quality control of olive oil. Detection of the presence of hazelnut oil in olive oil at low percentages (<20%) is limited with current official standard methods. In this review, various classes of phytosterols in these two oils are assessed as possible markers to detect adulterated olive oil. The composition of 4-desmethyl- and 4-monomethylsterols is similar in both oils, but the 4,4′-dimethylsterols differ. Lupeol and an unknown (lupane skeleton) compound from 4,4′-dimethylsterols are exclusively present in hazelnut oil and can be used as markers via GC–MS monitoring to detect adulteration at levels as low as 2%. The phytosterol classes need to be separated and enriched by a preparative method prior to analysis by GC or GC/MS; these SPE and TLC methods are also described in this review.     

Effect of pretreatment with microwaves on oxidative stability and nutraceuticals content of oil from rapeseed

Demand for oil extracted by cold press, such as rapeseed oil, is increasing, but oil extraction yield, and nutraceuticals content are lower for cold pressed oil, compared with oil extracted by solvent. In this study, rapeseed was treated with microwaves, to investigate the possibility of enhancing oil extraction yield, oxidative stability and nutraceuticals content. Rapeseed was pretreated with microwaves for two different times (2 min and 4 min) and oil was then extracted with a press. To compare the results, oil was also extracted from untreated rapeseed by solvent and press. Results showed that solvent-extracted oil had the highest phytosterol content. Microwave pretreatment of rapeseed can increase the oil extraction yield (by 10%), phytosterols (by 15%) and tocopherols (by 55%) of the oil extracted by press. Oil extracted from untreated rapeseed by press had the lowest oxidative stability (1 h); this was increased to 8 h by pretreatment of rapeseed with microwaves. Therefore, from the obtained results, it is advisable to treat rapeseed with microwaves before extraction by oil press, because it gives a relatively good recovery of oil, with a high amount of nutraceuticals, and can produce oil with a longer shelf life and enhanced value.     

Cost of Energy Quantum Correlation in a Spin Model

Identification of quantum phase transitions has been a long standing issue in quantum systems. In this work, we study the renormalization of Wigner–Yanase skew information in XY spin chain and compare its relation with cost of energy quantum correlation near the critical point. This study is presented by implementing the quantum renormalization group (RG) technique. We apply the (RG) method to examine existing phase transition in XY spin chain by using the cost of energy quantum correlations and Wigner–Yanase skew information. We demonstrate that cost of energy quantum can provide crucial information about quantum phase transitions as well as quantum correlations.