The effect of information on the health benefits of bio-active compounds on the acceptability of 5 tea infusions made from grape skins generated from wine processing waste (from Vitis vinifera var. ...Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris) was investigated. Samples of tea infusions with natural additives (PNHGT25 and PGGT50) and without additives (control PN, control PG, and PNPG50) were evaluated by 45 in-home consumer panels (30 female, 15 male) before and after information on the health benefits of grape skins were provided. Information significantly increased the overall acceptability, overall aroma, flavor, and aftertaste of the infusions. The results obtained showed a clear tendency toward increased purchase intention (by 29%) when information on the health benefits of the tea infusion samples was provided to consumers. Interactions existed between gender/infusion samples and stage of information on the purchase intention. Females recorded a significant increase (by 53%) in purchase intention, whereas no change in the males' purchase intention was found after information was provided.
Osmotic treatment (OT) is applied to obtain high quality intermediate moisture products impregnated with particular solutes, for instance phenolics from commercial grape seed extracts. To investigate ...how the nature of osmo-active solutes affects mass transfer of grape phenolics in a solid model food, sucrose, sodium chloride and glycerol were used as osmo-active solutes. Mass transfer of total and individual grape phenolics of low molecular weight were characterized by the diffusional approach and Peleg’s model. Of all the osmo-active solutes investigated, sodium chloride led to the highest phenolic infusion rate for each individual phenolic analyzed. With all the osmo-active solutes, the non esterified flavan-3-ol monomers showed a higher initial rate of phenolic mass transfer (1
/k
1) than their corresponding gallate esters and flavan-3-ol dimers. The phenolic content in the osmo-treated model food was similar or higher than that of the richest fruits and vegetables in all the conditions tested, thus increasing the antioxidant capacity of the product.
Ilex paraguariensis is known to contain compounds with antioxidant properties, such as phenolic acids, and its stimulant properties are attributed to methylxanthines, such as caffeine. The aims of ...this study were to evaluate the phenolic, methylxanthinic, and tannin composition of a mate residue (mate powder), to compare the quali-quantitative phenolic composition and the antioxidant potential of extracts obtained from distinct solvent systems. Among the extracts prepared with different solvents, the 80% methanol extract showed the highest total polyphenol content (11.51 g/100 g) and antioxidant activity. HPLC analysis showed that 4,5 dicaffeoylquinic acid is the major component of the phenolic fraction of mate powder. The caffeine, theobromine, and tannin contents in mate powder were 1.01, 0.10, and 0.29 g/100 g, respectively. Consumption of mate powder would significantly contribute to antioxidant and stimulant intake, providing high amounts of phenolic acids, tannins, and methylxanthines with biological effects potentially beneficial for human health. Practical Application: This article contributes to the minimization of residues in yerba-mate processing.
Fructosyl transferase (FTase) production by Aspergillus oryzae CFR 202 was carried out by solid-state fermentation (SSF), using various agricultural by-products like cereal bran, corn products, ...sugarcane bagasse,cassava bagasse (tippi) and by-products of coffee and tea processing. The FTase produced was used for the production of fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), using 60% sucrose as substrate. Among the cereal bran used, rice bran and wheat bran were good substrates for FTase production by A. oryzae CFR 202. Among the various corn products used, corn germ supported maximum FTase production, whereas among the by-products of coffee and tea processing used, spent coffee and spent tea were good substrates, with supplementation of yeast extract and complete synthetic media. FTase had maximum activity at 60 degrees C and pH 6.0. FTase was stable up to 40 degrees C and in the pH range 5.0-7.0. Maximum FOS production was obtained with FTase after 8 h of reaction with 60% sucrose. FTase produced by SSF using wheat bran was purified 107-fold by ammonium sulphate precipitation (30-80%), DEAE cellulose chromatography and Sephadex G-200 chromatography. The molecular mass of the purified FTase was 116.3 kDa by SDS-PAGE. This study indicates the potential for the use of agricultural by-products for the efficient production of FTase enzyme by A. oryzae CFR 202 in SSF, thereby resulting in value addition of those by-products.
The aim of this study was to determine how the potential to rely on arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) for plant nutrition differs between a conventional and a low-input cropping system in the long term. The ...roles of fertilisation rate, composting of recycled plant residues and stage of the rotations in the overall impact of the cropping systems on soil quality and AM were also identified. The conventional cropping system with a non-leguminous crop rotation (barley–barley–rye–oat–potato–oat) was fertilised at either full or half the recommended rate. In the low-input cropping system, one year with barley was replaced by clover, and oat was cultivated mixed with pea. Straw and clover were returned to the soil either with or without composting. In the low-input system, biotite and rock phosphate were used to compensate for K and P in the harvested yield, while animal manure was applied at the start only. After 15 years, crop growth and nutrition, AMF colonisation and soil quality were assessed in the field, while the AM contribution to growth and nutrient uptake were determined in a bioassay in a growth chamber. AM functioning made a higher contribution to soil quality in terms of crop performance and environmental benefits in the low-input cropping system than at either fertilisation rate in the conventional system. Halving fertilisation in the conventional system prevented some costs and enhanced some of the benefits of AM in comparison with full fertilisation. However, only the low-input system with composting conclusively favoured AM in comparison with the conventional system. It resulted in the highest percentage colonisation and, in a bioassay with flax and clover, gave a relative average contribution to growth of 27% and to P uptake of 68% in comparison with 4 and 36%, respectively, for the conventional cropping system with full fertilisation. Rye yield was in the low-input system without composting similar to that in the conventional system with full fertilisation, and with composting 87% of the latter one. Incorporation of clover green manure without composting inhibited AM functioning, leading to a temporary loss of AM contribution to crop performance. This effect draws attention to the impact of the form of recycled organic matter on supporting ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling.
A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of growing soybean on N2O emission from soil. When soybean was growing in pots, the cumulative N2O emission during the growing season was 2.26 ...mg N pot(-1), which was 5.9 times greater than that from the identical but unplanted pots (CK). However, the difference in N2O fluxes between the two treatments was not significant until the grain-filling stage. Of the total N2O emission, 94% took place during the period from grain-filling to ripening. Premature harvesting of the aerial parts of the plants at various growth stages substantially stimulated N2O emission from the soil. These results implied that the process of symbiotic N fixation per se does not stimulate N2O production or emission, but rather senescence and decomposition of the roots and nodules in the late growth stage. Therefore, additional N2O would be emitted from the soil after harvesting of soybean with roots, litter, and residues left in situ.
The effect of storage conditions on compost suppressiveness against fusarium wilt of melon, caused by
Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.
melonis (FOM) was studied in relation to the dynamics of compost ...microbial activity and biodegradability. For this purpose, mature suppressive compost, prepared from tomato plants and separated cow manure, was divided into four portions and stored for one year under cool/warm (12 or 28 °C) or dry/wet (15–35 or 55–65% moisture content) conditions, in four different combinations: cool-dry, warm-dry, cool-wet and warm-wet. All composts retained and even enhanced their suppressive capacity during storage, with no significant differences among them by the end of the storage period. However, significant differences were found in the dynamics of some of the measured chemical and microbial properties. The microbial activity of composts stored under wet conditions was higher than that of those stored under dry condition, which resulted in a substantial decrease in dissolved organic matter content (expressed as dissolved organic carbon; DOC) and increase in its recalcitrance to biological degradation, decrease in basal heat emission, slower response to added glucose or citric acid, and higher NO
3 concentration, indicating increased nitrification under wet conditions. The DOC significantly correlated with several microbial properties as well as with compost suppressiveness of fusarium wilt of melon seedlings, and may be regarded as a most suitable general index for compost maturity. A best-subset multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the three best predictors, namely dissolved organic carbon (DOC), basal heat, and mesophilic bacterial counts, could explain as much as 83% of the total variance in compost suppressiveness. The generally agreed association between compost maturity and suppressiveness was verified in this case. It appears that compost microbial populations might compete and interfere with the saprophytic stage of FOM conidia, between germination and host invasion. In conclusion, it was demonstrated that compost suppressiveness against fusarium wilt of melon can be maintained for at least one year under a wide range of storage conditions, without any loss of suppressive capacity. This fact has positive logistical implications for the use of suppressive composts against FOM.
Saprophytic soil-borne pathogens can be either actively suppressed by organic amendments or enhanced, depending on soil health conditions. This can be deleterious in the event of selection of a ...soil-borne population by previous soil management and short crop rotation. Trials were performed in the open field and in pots, using naturally infected soil from intensive crop systems, i.e., soil from fields with 8 years of strawberry cultivation. The aim was to study short-term response of Pythium and soil microbial populations to green manure. The use of green manure in these naturally infested soils, 3-10 weeks after fresh tissue incorporation, caused Pythium populations to increase concurrent with an increase in soil microbial populations, and did not result in the suppression of the pathogen. A more elaborate trial was performed under controlled conditions, amending soil with fresh wheat plant material, air-dried wheat plant material and an organic fertilizer with a high level of humic substances. Although compared to the original soil, all amendments caused a similar increase in organic matter content and small differences in soil respiration, incorporation of fresh, not decomposed, plant material strongly increased Pythium, while the organic fertilizer did not affect the original level of the pathogen population. The increase in total number of fungi and bacteria did not have any suppressive effect on the Pythium population in naturally infested soil used for this study.
The suppressive ability of three plant residue-based composts that could serve as components of soilless media for several vegetable crops was tested on four different formae speciales of Fusarium ...oxysporum: melonis, basilici, radicis-lycopersici and radicis-cucumerinum. The composts were prepared under controlled conditions from a mixture of separated cow manure (SCM) with orange peels (OP), wheat straw (WS), or dried tomato plants that had been removed from the greenhouse after the end of the season (TP). Disease development in melon, tomato and cucumber seedlings growing in the three composts was significantly less than that observed in peat. Plant inoculation was achieved by conidia produced in culture, conidia naturally produced on infected stems and soil inoculum produced by enriching the soil with infected tissues. Pathogen colonization of the roots and stems of infected melon plants grown in TP-SCM and OP-SCM composts was significantly lower than that of peat-grown plants. Sterilization by gamma irradiation reduced the suppressive capability of TP-SCM and OP-SCM composts, whereas it did not affect the disease development and final disease incidence in peat. Tested formae speciales exhibited differing decline rates of the conidia incorporated in the composts, compared with the rate in the peat control, which suggests that different mechanisms may be involved in the suppression of the different pathogens. The present study shows that composts based on plant-waste residues suppress diseases caused by different formae speciales of Fusarium oxysporum.
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