Journal of Future Foods最新文献

α-Lactalbumin (α-lac), a natural food-sourced protein, exhibits high biocompatibility as delivery systems for small bioactive molecules or RNA. However, their potential clinical application as a delivery system is greatly limited due to the lack of targeting to desired tissues, such as tumors. Here, a delivery system/nanocarrier of nanotube (NT) was fabricated by the self-assembly of peptides hydrolyzed from α-lac. Among the loading of anti-tumor agents of doxorubicin (Dox) and siRNA, NTs were conjugated with the tLyp-1 peptide to specifically target the neuropilin 1 receptor, which exists on the membrane of MDA-MB-231 cancer cells. The micromorphology of NTs was not affected during the processes of loading and targeting modification. Additionally, no significant changes in the size and zeta potential of the tLyp-1/NTs/Dox/siRNA nanocarrier were observed when stored in phosphate buffered saline for 7 days, indicating outstanding stability. Moreover, both the cellular uptake efficiency and tumor accumulation effects of NTs on MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells were significantly improved after modification with tLyp-1. The relative viability of MDA-MB-231 cells was decreased by 70.1% in vitro after treatment with tLyp-1/NTs/Dox/siRNA (5 μg/mL Dox). Finally, a synergistic anticancer effect of Dox and siRNA co-loaded in tLyp-1/NTs was achieved in the anticancer treatment of MDA-MB-231 tumor-bearing mice. These findings indicate that food-sourced protein α‑lac nanocarriers could be used for the co-delivery of bioactive molecules and RNA, achieving synergistic and efficient therapeutic effects.

Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) offers many advantages for the fast and sensitive detection of specific compounds, metal ions or pathogens in foods, motivating to its increasing utilization in food safety. SERS-tags, typically constructed using signal enhanced substrate, Raman reporter molecules, a biocompatible protective layer and a specific recognition element, provide a powerful tool for the analysis of food hazards. This article reviews recent progress in the development of SERS-tags for food safety assessment covering SERS-tags with characteristic peaks in the “fingerprint” region (800–1 800 cm^–1) and the “biological-silent” region (1 800–2 800 cm^–1). Following a brief description of SERS substrates, the design, synthesis and applications of SERS-tag are explored in detail. The application of SERS-tags technology for the detection of microorganisms, pesticides and antibiotics are then investigated. Finally, the prospects of using SERS-tag in real-world food safety analysis are critically discussed.

Spores are the biological structures formed out of sporulation from vegetative cells in adverse conditions. Being tolerant to many extreme environment and conditions, they escape and survives critical processing steps in the food industry that poses food and health safety problems, as is evident from the increase in reports of food-borne outbreaks due to spore-formers. Electromagnetic radiation (EM) is used for rapid decontamination and sterilization purposes in the food industry. Many studies have reported a greater reduction in spore population upon irradiation with EM rays due to its impact on genomic material and other components of spores that destabilises overall structure and brings clonogenic death. However, there is scattered literature regarding the mechanism of its inactivation and resistance against such damage. This review attempts to concisely evaluate the potential of electromagnetic radiations in spore inactivation and details its mechanism through a collective study of scientific results and reports. It also briefs about the process of sporulation, the structure of spores and the role of its components in the resistance of spores to damage. Many studies, which demonstrated that combining various EM treatments might be an effective way for inactivation of spores, were discussed in detail.

Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) is one of the popular edible mushrooms and is widely cultivated throughout the world for its unique delicacy in flavor, aroma and taste. They exhibit excellent sources of biological proteins, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Moreover, their demands are increasing due to the presence of bioactive components such as phenol, flavonoid, terpenes, polysaccharides and reported to possess anti-microbial, anti-cancer, anti-hyperlipidemia, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory and immunostimulant activity. Owing to their beneficial health effects, they act as a potential source for formulation of functional or value-added food products. The objective of the review is to emphasize the remarkable nutritional properties and their significant relationship concerning health-promoting properties which view oyster mushrooms as a superfood and plant-based- nutraceuticals food.

The study focuses on the physico-chemical characteristics of the wild fruit Meyna laxiflora Robyns (Alu) and fruit powder, which was gathered from the Konkan region of Maharashtra. Alu fruit powder is made by using a drying aid called maltodextrin (MD). Powder samples (MP1, MP2, MP3, MP4 and MP5) were made using different amounts of MD (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 g). Preliminary phytochemical screening of fruit pulp and powder showed the presence of some phytoconstituents such as reducing sugar, saponin, flavonoids, and terpenoids, whereas alkaloids, tannins, steroids and protein were absent in both. The parameters of the powder are directly influenced by the amount of MD, as evidenced by the variations in bulk density, total soluble solids, pH, specific gravity and the proximate among the powder samples. High solubility was found in the sample with a medium of MD. The highest of particle distribution was found in MD-added samples (MP2 (1 g), MP3 (1.5 g), MP4 (2 g)) whereas the raw (MP0) showed the least. Sensory analysis was done using 9-point hedonic scale, which revealed that MP2, MP3, and MP4 were highly acceptable. This study assumed that fresh Alu fruit, pulp and in the form of powder can be useful for the development of new products.

Sourdough flavors were closely related to microbial metabolism. The microbial diversity of foxtail millet dough during fermentation has never been studied. Here, the metabolic potential and diversity of the bacterial community were analyzed by metagenomic during dough fermentation. Firmicutes was the dominant phylum in the dough, within heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria (e.g., Companilactobacillus, Limosilactobacillus, Pediococcus and Lactobacillus) as the most abundant bacteria. Proteobacteria was gradually inhibited after fermentation. Companilactobacillus_crustorum was notably found abundant during dough leavening. Limosilactobacillus_fermentum increased markedly during fermentation, while Companilactobacillus_crustorum decreased significantly. For further exploration, genes associated with metabolism were annotated through metagenomics. Limosilactobacillus, Companilactobacillus and Pediococcus were actively engaged in glycolysis (ko00010), starch and sucrose metabolism (ko00500), and pyruvate metabolism (ko00620), leading in part to lactic and acetic acid accumulations and dough acidification. Limosilactobacillus and Lactiplantibacillus were the main contributors to key aminopeptidases or/and transaminases involved in amino acid metabolism, which was responsible for flavor metabolite formation. This study will provide an enhanced understanding of the predominance and diversity of dough bacterial communities, and contribute to future strain screening in the dough for better flavor.

Electrospinning is a simple and versatile technique that uses electrostatic forces to create fibers in the nano to micro range from a variety of materials, both synthetic and natural. Due to the high surface area to volume ratio, high porosity, and desirable mechanic characteristics of electrospun fibers, they are of current interest for a wide variety of applications. Some of the most significant applications of these fibers being researched include tissue engineering, drug delivery, wound dressings, environmental and energy applications, and protective materials. Notably, electrospun fibers may be specially tailored to better fit their final application through the direct loading of materials during the spinning process as well as by choosing the correct base material for the fiber. For example, it is desirable to use a biocompatible and biodegradable material in fibers desired for applications in the biomedical field; this way the fibers are able to safely interact with the human body. This review will explore the applications, as previously listed, with a focus on how fibers are made using carbohydrate polymers (such as alginate, cellulose and its derivatives, chitosan and chitin, starch, pullulan, hyaluronic acid, dextran, and levan) as their base material, and their applicability and functionality in various applications.

Based on a systemic analysis for the global burden of disease study from 1990 to 2016, the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) 2016 Alcohol Collaborators reported that alcohol use was a leading risk factor for global disease burden and caused substantial health loss. However, alcoholic drink (wines and sakes) contains abundant nutrients, particularly fermentable amino acids derived from grapes and rice. Amino acid nutrition and metabolism is strongly associated with health and prevention against various diseases. The purpose of this study was to elucidate 40 kinds of free amino acid (FAA) profiles in wines and sakes. In addition, the present study also provided the contents of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) involved in the vital functionality of mitochondria. FAAs were detected and analyzed by use of an automatic amino acid analyzer. Aromatic amino acid, branched chain amino acid and Fischer ratio were calculated for each beverage. Individual FAAs showed significant differences between wines and sakes. Sakes abundantly contained almost all FAAs whereas wines had just a little content in some FAAs. Sake were rich in arginine, glycine, alanine, valine, glutamic acid and leucine, while wines were remarkably rich in proline (Pro). Wines showed increased FAA levels in 6 kinds of variables (4-hydroxyproline, 3-methyl histidine, β-alanine, α-aminobutyric acid, Pro and α-aminoadipic acid). In functionally characteristic FAAs, both wines and sakes were considerably abundant in γ-aminobutyric acid and 5-ALA. The total amount of aromatic amino acid and branched chain amino acid were markedly higher in sakes than in wines. These results revealed that there were the apparent different characteristics in FAA profiles between wines and sakes. This difference resulted from fermentation process in wines (single fermentation) and sakes (parallel double fermentation). Forty kinds of FAA profiles are more useful in investigating characteristics of the taste of wines and sakes. In future, detailed FAA analysis has the potential to find functional nutrients such as 5-ALA, whereas other foods generally contain little amount of these FAAs.

To effectively assess the extent of the mycotoxin contamination of grapes, a method was developed to analyze 22 mycotoxins by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole/orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS). Samples were extracted and purified using the QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) procedure. The extracts were separated on a BEH Shield C₁₈ column (100 mm × 2.1 mm, 1.7 μm), using methanol and water with 0.1% formic acid solution and 2 mmol/L ammonium acetate as the mobile phases. The quantification was performed according to a matrix-matched external standard method. There was a good linear relationship within the respective mass concentration ranges of 22 mycotoxins; the correlation coefficients were not less than 0.998 1. The limit of quantification was 0.3–10.0 μg/kg. Mycotoxin recovery ranged from 68.6% to 109.0%, with a relative standard deviation of 1.28%–12.80%. The method is simple, rapid, highly sensitive, and accurate, making it useful for screening grapes for common and emerging mycotoxins.

Taste interaction is a well-known phenomenon in sensory studies, but how to quantify the magnitude of the effect of one tastant on other taste attribute(s) is still largely unsolved, let alone further explorations from a salivary biochemistry perspective. Upon acquiring the individual taste threshold and evaluating the just noticeable difference (JND), this study firstly established a quantitative method to assess the magnitude of taste interaction in a binary taste mixture by evaluating the concentration difference upon psychologically-comparable stimulation. The change of salty taste intensity (CSI) was therefore defined as the subtraction of JND using sour-salty taste stimulant from JND using pure salty taste stimulant, with a dimension of concentration in mmol/L. CSI was then used to demonstrate how citric acid affected salty taste perception in a salty - sour binary taste mixture in 16 young and healthy participants. Concentrations of citric acid used in the binary taste mixture were 0.05, 0.09, 0.14, 0.24 and 0.40 mmol/L, respectively, and results showed that salty taste perception was enhanced (average CSI of 0.93 mmol/L) when the citric acid concentration was low (at 0.05 and 0.09 mmol/L), but with an increasing concentration of citric acid ranging from 0.14 to 0.40 mmol/L, this effect gradually turned from enhancement to suppression of salty taste perception (correspondingly a continuously decreasing CSI all the way down to an average of –2.94 mmol/L). It was also found that cystatin SN concentration in participants’ unstimulated saliva samples was significantly negatively correlated with salty taste threshold (with and without the presence of citric acid), and it was one of the most significant factors affecting CSI, as shown in multiple regression analysis. Carbonic anhydrase VI concentration in participants’ unstimulated saliva samples was also found to be significantly negatively correlated with salty taste recognition (with and without presence of citric acid), but it did not pose significant effect on CSI. From these results, this study had not only demonstrated a citric acid concentration-dependent salty taste perception phenomenon based on a proposed methodology to quantitively assess the taste interaction in binary taste mixtures, but also showed how salivary biochemical properties (cystatin SN and carbonic anhydrase VI) might have been associated with salty taste perception during food oral processing.