In the last decade, the use of multivariate statistical techniques developed for analytical chemistry has been adopted widely in food science and technology. Usually, chemometrics is applied when ...there is a large and complex dataset, in terms of sample numbers, types, and responses. The results are used for authentication of geographical origin, farming systems, or even to trace adulteration of high value‐added commodities. In this article, we provide an extensive practical and pragmatic overview on the use of the main chemometrics tools in food science studies, focusing on the effects of process variables on chemical composition and on the authentication of foods based on chemical markers. Pattern recognition methods, such as principal component analysis and cluster analysis, have been used to associate the level of bioactive components with in vitro functional properties, although supervised multivariate statistical methods have been used for authentication purposes. Overall, chemometrics is a useful aid when extensive, multiple, and complex real‐life problems need to be addressed in a multifactorial and holistic context. Undoubtedly, chemometrics should be used by governmental bodies and industries that need to monitor the quality of foods, raw materials, and processes when high‐dimensional data are available. We have focused on practical examples and listed the pros and cons of the most used chemometric tools to help the user choose the most appropriate statistical approach for analysis of complex and multivariate data.
The design of functional foods has grown recently as an answer to rising consumers' concerns and demands for natural, nutritional and healthy food products. Nanoencapsulation is a technique based on ...enclosing a bioactive compound (BAC) in liquid, solid or gaseous states within a matrix or inert material for preserving the coated substance (food or flavor molecules/ingredients). Nanoencapsulation can improve stability of BACs, improving the regulation of their release at physiologically active sites. Regarding materials for food and nutraceutical applications, the most used are carbohydrate-, protein- or lipid-based alternatives such as chitosan, peptide-chitosan and β-lactoglobulin nanoparticles (NPs) or emulsion biopolymer complexes. On the other hand, the main BACs used in foods for health promoting, including antioxidants, antimicrobials, vitamins, probiotics and prebiotics and others (minerals, enzymes and flavoring compounds). Nanotechnology can also play notable role in the development of programmable food, an original futuristic concept promising the consumers to obtain high quality food of desired nutritive and sensory characteristics.
Market interest in aromatic plants from the Mediterranean is continuously growing mainly due to their medicinal and bioactive compounds (BACs) with other valuable constituents from essential oils ...(EOs). From ancient times, these plants have been important condiments for traditional Mediterranean cuisine and remedies in folk medicine. Nowadays, they are considered as important factors for food quality and safety, due to prevention of various deteriorative factors like oxidations and microbial spoilage. EOs have different therapeutic benefits (e.g. antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antifungal), while BACs mostly affect nutritive, chemical, microbiological, and sensory quality of foods. Currently, many plant extracts are used for functional (healthy) foods, which additionally fuels consumer and industrial interest in sustainable and non-toxic routes for their production. EO yields from dried plants are below 5%. Their extraction is strongly dependent on the hydrophobic or lipophilic character of target molecules, hence the common use of organic solvents. Similarly, BACs encompass a wide range of substances with varying structures as reflected by their different physical/chemical qualities. Thus, there is a need to identify optimal non-toxic extraction method(s) for isolation/separation of EO/BCs from plants. Various innovative non-thermal extractions (e.g. ultrasound-, high-pressure-, pulsed electric fields assisted extraction, etc.) have been proposed to overcome the above mentioned limitations. These techniques are “green” in concept, as they are shorter, avoid toxic chemicals, and are able to improve extract yields and quality with reduced consumption of energy and solvents. This research provides an overview of such extractions of both BAC and EOs from Mediterranean herbs, sustained by innovative and non-conventional energy sources.
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•Green extraction of bioactive compounds and essential oils from Mediterranean herbs.•Innovative non-thermal vs. conventional extraction techniques.•E3 principle of innovative non-thermal techniques.•The potential of Mediterranean herbs in food industry application.
Citrus is a major processed crop that results in large quantities of wastes and by-products rich in various bioactive compounds such as pectins, water soluble and insoluble antioxidants and essential ...oils. While some of those wastes are currently valorised by various technologies (yet most are discarded or used for feed), effective, non-toxic and profitable extraction strategies could further significantly promote the valorisation and provide both increased profits and high quality bioactives. The present review will describe and summarize the latest works concerning novel and greener methods for valorisation of citrus by-products. The outcomes and effectiveness of those technologies such as microwaves, ultrasound, pulsed electric fields and high pressure is compared both to conventional valorisation technologies and between the novel technologies themselves in order to highlight the advantages and potential scalability of these so-called "enabling technologies". In many cases the reported novel technologies can enable a valorisation extraction process that is "greener" compared to the conventional technique due to a lower energy consumption and reduced utilization of toxic solvents.
The circular economy is an umbrella concept that applies different mechanisms aiming to minimize waste generation, thus decoupling economic growth from natural resources. Each year, an estimated ...one-third of all food produced is wasted; this is equivalent to 1.3 billion tons of food, which is worth around US$1 trillion or even $2.6 trillion when social and economic costs are included. In the fruit and vegetable sector, 45% of the total produced amount is lost in the production (post-harvest, processing, and distribution) and consumption chains. Therefore, it is necessary to find new technological and environmentally friendly solutions to utilize fruit wastes as new raw materials to develop and scale up the production of high value-added products and ingredients. Considering that the production and consumption of fruits has increased in the last years and following the need to find the sustainable use of different fruit side streams, this work aimed to describe the chemical composition and bioactivity of different fruit seeds consumed worldwide. A comprehensive focus is given on the extraction techniques of water-soluble and lipophilic compounds and
functionalities, and the link between chemical composition and observed activity is holistically explained.
Camu-camu (Myrciaria dubia) pulp, seeds, and skin are widely known because of their nutritional properties. However, the seed coat has never been studied as a source of bioactive compounds. Herein, ...we characterized the phenolic composition, the antioxidant activity, and inhibition of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) of three different extracts (water, propanone, and ethanol) from this residue and assessed the structure-activity using bivariate and multivariate statistical approaches. Phenolic acids and flavonoids were quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography while the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), inhibition of lipid peroxidation using egg yolk and Wistar rat brain, scavenging of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) radical, Folin-Ciocalteu reducing capacity (FCRC), and the inhibition of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) by the extracts were also analyzed. t-Resveratrol was found in camu-camu seed coat for the first time. The aqueous extract had the highest total phenolic content, FRAP, DPPH•, FCRC, and inhibition of lipid oxidation using both chemical and biological assays, while the propanone extract showed the opposite behavior but it presented higher in vitro antihypertensive activity. The ethanolic extract exhibited intermediate values for the responses. The association between chemical composition and the functional properties of the camu-camu seed coat extracts were revealed using correlation analysis and principal component analysis.
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•Cultivation had no significant effect on anthocyanin content.•Cultivar and processing significantly influenced anthocyanin content.•Processing purees to jams decreased anthocyanins content for ...28%.•ΔE∗ab significantly increased with processing to jams.•Color parameters are strongly correlated with content of anthocyanins.
The objective of this study was to detect influences of cultivar, cultivation and processing on anthocyanin content and color in purees and low-sugar jams produced from strawberry cultivars (Elsanta, Maya, Marmolada, Queen Elisa), grown under conventional and organic cultivation. Color was determined by CIELab values while anthocyanins were quantified by HPLC-UV/VIS-PDA. Queen Elisa was the best cultivar for processing as it had highest total anthocyanin content (TAC) that was well preserved in processing. On average, processing purees to jams decreased TAC for 28% where pelargonidin-3-glucoside revealed most noticeable loss (53%) and cyanidin-3-rutinoside was best preserved in processing. Obtained results indicated that measurement of colorimetric parameters are strongly correlated with content of anthocyanins. In other words, loss of anthocyanins during processing was accompanied by noticeable decrease in lightness, red/yellow color and total color change. Results showed that change of color is useful predictor for estimating anthocyanins in strawberry purees and jams.
Consumers are becoming more mindful of their well-being. Increasing awareness of the many beneficial properties of peppermint essential oil (EO) has significantly increased product sales in recent ...years. Hydrodistillation (HD), a proven conventional method, and a possible alternative in the form of microwave-assisted hydrodistillation (MWHD) have been used to isolate peppermint EO. Standard Soxhlet and alternatively supercritical fluid (SFE), microwave-assisted, and ultrasound-assisted extraction separated the lipid extracts. The distillations employed various power settings, and the EO yield varied from 0.15 to 0.80%. The estimated environmental impact in terms of electricity consumption and CO2 emissions suggested that MWHD is an energy efficient way to reduce CO2 emissions. Different extraction methods and solvent properties affected the lipid extract yield, which ranged from 2.55 to 5.36%. According to the corresponding values of statistical parameters, empiric mathematical models were successfully applied to model the kinetics of MWHD and SFE processes.
Over the last decade, fruit juice consumption has increased. Their rise in popularity can be attributed to the belief that they are a quick way to consuming a dietary portion of fruit. Probiotics ...added to fruit juices produce various bioactive compounds, thus probiotic fruit juices can be considered as a new type of functional foods. Such combinations could improve nutritional properties and provide health benefits of fruit juices, due to delivering positive health attributes from both sources (fruit juices and probiotics). However, this review discusses the other side of the same coin, i.e., the one that challenges general beliefs that probiotics are undoubtedly safe. This topic deserves more acknowledgments from the medical and nutritional literature, as it is highly important for health care professionals and nutritionists who must be aware of potential probiotic issues. Still, clinical trials have not adequately questioned the safety of probiotics, as they are generally considered safe. Therefore, this reviews aims to give an evidence-based perspective of probiotic safety, focusing on probiotic fruit beverages and nutraceuticals, by providing documented clinical case reports and studies. Finally, the paper deals with some additional insights from the pharmacological and toxicological point of views, such as pharmacological repercussions of probiotics on health.
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