pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Consumer acceptance of quality protein maize (QPM) in East Africa

BACKGROUND : Undernutrition in sub-Saharan Africa remains problematic, and quality protein maize (QPM) can benefit populations whose diets are heavily based on maize and who are consequently at risk for inadequate intakes of quality protein. However, the changes in QPM‟s chemical composition may affect its sensory characteristics and, hence, acceptance. Acceptance tests were, therefore, conducted to evaluate QPM varieties in three East African countries using central location tests with one or two varieties in each country, using the most popular preparations: ugali (Tanzania), githeri (Kenya), and injera (Ethiopia). In total, 281 urban and rural consumers of both sexes and varying levels of education evaluated the products on standard sensory criteria: appearance, aroma, texture, taste, and overall, using a Likert scale.RESULTS : The results show African consumers can differentiate QPM products from their conventional counterparts, indicating that the QPM trait results in distinguishable sensory changes. Analysis by ordinal mixed regression models showed that consumers found QPM acceptable and even preferable to conventional maize. CONCLUSION : The sensory characteristics of QPM are, therefore, no impediment to its adoption; on the contrary, when coupled with good agronomic performance, they may help its utilization, leading to a positive impact in nutritionally vulnerable populations.Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and  the Nutritious Maize for Ethiopia (NuME) Projecthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1097-00102015-05-30hb201
Valorization of traditional foods: nutritional and bioactive properties of Cicer arietinum L. and Lathyrus sativus L. pulses

The use of traditional foods can enrich our diet, perpetuating important elements of local knowledge and cultural inheritance. Raw, soaked and cooked samples of two Fabaceae species (Cicer arietinum L. and Lathyrus sativus L.) were characterized regarding nutritional and bioactive properties. 
Results: L. sativus gave the highest carbohydrate, protein, ash, SFA and PUFA content, and lowest fat and energy value. Furthermore, it also showed the highest concentration in flavonoids and antioxidant activity. C. arietinum gave the highest concentration of sugars, organic acids and tocopherols. Soaking process did not affect significantly macronutrients, but cooking (boiling) decreased protein, ash, sugars and organic acids, and increased carbohydrates, fat, tocopherols, bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity. No differences were obtained for fatty acids composition. 
Conclusion: The present study highlights the nutritional profile and bioactive properties of these farmer varieties of C. arietinum and L. sativus pulses, and valorises their traditional consumption and the use in modern diets
Effects of processing sorghum and millets on their phenolic phytochemicals and the implications of this to the health-enhancing properties of sorghum and millet food and beverage products

Sorghum and millet grains are generally rich in phytochemicals, particularly various types of phenolics. However, the types and amounts vary greatly between and within species. The food processing operations applied to these grains: dehulling and decortication, malting, fermentation and thermal processing dramatically affect the quantity of phenolics present, most generally reducing them. Thus, the levels of phytochemicals in sorghum and millet foods and beverages are usually considerably lower than in the grains. Notwithstanding this, there is considerable evidence that sorghum and millet foods and beverages have important functional and health- promoting effects, specifically antidiabetic, cardiovascular disease and cancer prevention due to the actions of these phytochemicals. Also their lactic acid bacteria fermented products may have probiotic effects related to their unique microflora. However, direct proof of these health-enhancing effects is lacking as most studies have been carried out on the grains or grain extracts and not the food and beverage products themselves, and also most research work has been in vitro or ex vivo and not in vivo. To provide the required evidence, better designed studies are needed. The sorghum and millet products should be fully characterised, especially their phytochemical composition. Most importantly, well-controlled human clinical studies and intervention trials are required.http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1097-00102016-01-31hb201
Effect of sorghum type and malting on production of free amino nitrogen in conjunction with exogenous protease enzymes

BACKGROUND : Sorghum types suitable for brewing and bioethanol production are required. The effect of sorghum type (white non-tannin versus white type II tannin) on free amino nitrogen (FAN) production from sorghum grain and malt using exogenous protease enzymes was investigated over extended incubation at moderate temperature (45 oC). RESULTS : With grain in the absence of exogenous proteases, white non-tannin sorghum produced substantially higher levels of FAN than white type II tannin sorghum, due to the tannins in the latter. Incubating sorghum grain with neutral proteinase and amino-peptidase in combination, improved FAN production. The two sorghum types produced similar FAN levels when malted and incubated in the absence of the exogenous proteases. When both sorghums were malted and incubated with neutral proteinase alone substantially more FAN yield (124-126 mg 100 g-1) occurred than with grains (61-84 mg 100 g-1). The combination of amino-peptidase and proteinase did not improve further. Neither, did malting influence wort free amino acid profile. Group B amino acids constituted the highest percentage (42-47%). CONCLUSION : With grain, white non-tannin sorghum plus proteinase and amino-peptidase yields the highest FAN, with malt both white non-tannin and white type II tannin sorghums plus proteinase yield the highest FAN.INTSORMIL and SABMiller Africahttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1097-0010hb201
Variation in bioactive content in broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) grown under conventional and organic production systems

This is the accepted version of the following article: Valverde, J., Reilly, K., Villacreces, S., Gaffney, M., Grant, J. and Brunton, N. (2015), Variation in bioactive content in broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) grown under conventional and organic production systems. J. Sci. Food Agric., 95: 1163–1171, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.6804peer-reviewedBACKGROUND
Broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables contain a number of bioactive compounds, in particular glucosinolates and polyphenols, which are proposed to confer health benefits to the consumer. Demand for organic crops is at least partly based on a perception that organic crops may contain higher levels of bioactive compounds; however, insufficient research has been carried out to either support or refute such claims.


RESULTS


In this study we examined the effect of conventional, organic, and mixed cultivation practices on the content of total phenolics, total flavonoids, and total and individual glucosinolates in two varieties of broccoli grown over 2 years in a split-plot factorial systems comparison trial. Levels of total phenolics and total flavonoids showed a significant year-on-year variation but were not significantly different between organic and conventional production systems. In contrast, levels of the indolyl glucosinolates glucobrassicin and neoglucobrassicin were significantly higher (P < 0.05) under fully organic compared to fully conventional management.


CONCLUSION


Organic cultivation practices resulted in significantly higher levels of glucobrassicin and neoglucobrassicin in broccoli florets; however, other investigated compounds were unaffected by production practices.The Irish Department of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food (FIRM 06/NITAFRC6) is gratefully acknowledged for financial suppor
Solid state fermentation with lactic acid bacteria to improve the nutritional quality of lupin and soya bean

BACKGROUND: The ability of bacteriocin-like inhibitory substance (BLIS)-producing lactic acid bacteria (LAB) to degrade biogenic amines as well as to produce L(+) and D(−)-lactic acid during solid state fermentation (SSF) of lupin and soya bean was investigated. In addition, the protein digestibility and formation of organic acids during SSF of legume were investigated. RESULTS: Protein digestibility of fermented lupin and soya beanwas found higher on average by 18.3% and 15.9%, respectively, compared to untreated samples. Tested LAB produced mainly L-lactic acid in soya bean and lupin (D/L ratio 0.38–0.42 and 0.35–0.54, respectively), while spontaneous fermentation gave almost equal amounts of both lactic acid isomers (D/L ratio 0.82–0.98 and 0.92, respectively). Tested LAB strains were able to degrade phenylethylamine, spermine and spermidine, whereas they were able to produce putrescine, histamine and tyramine. CONCLUSIONS: SSF improved lupin and soya bean protein digestibility. BLIS-producing LAB in lupin and soya bean medium producedamixture of D-andL-lactic acidwith a major excess of the latter isomer.Mosttoxic histamine andtyraminein fermented lupin andsoyabeanwere foundat levels lower those causing adverse health effects. Selection of biogenic amines non-producing bacteria is essential in the food industry to avoid the risk of amine formation
Use of lyophilised and powdered Gentiana lutea root in fresh beef patties stored under different atmospheres

Gentiana lutea root is a medicinal herb that contains many active compounds which contribute to physiological effects, and it has recently attracted much attention as a natural source of antioxidants. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects on the colour, pH, microbial activities, sensory quality and resistance to lipid oxidation (through the thiobarbituric acid method) during storage of beef patties containing different concentrations of G. lutea. Fresh beef patties were formulated with 0–5 g kg−1 of G. lutea and 0 or 0.5 g kg−1 of ascorbic acid and packed in two different atmospheres, Modified Atmosphere 1 (MAP1) and Modified Atmosphere 2 (MAP2), and stored at 4 ± 1 °C for 10 days. MAP1 contained 20:80 (v/v) O2:CO2 and MAP2 contained 80:20 (v/v) O2:CO2.\ud
\ud
RESULTS\ud
G. lutea extracts possessed antioxidant activity measured by the ferric reducing antioxidant power and the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assays. Beef patties containing 2 g kg−1 of lyophilised G. lutea were stable towards lipid oxidation in both atmospheres (P < 0.05). Beef patties containing a combination of 2 g kg−1 G. lutea and 0.5 g kg−1 ascorbic acid showed significantly reduced changes in colour and in lipid oxidation (P < 0.05).\ud
\ud
CONCLUSION\ud
The results from this study demonstrate the potential of G. lutea as a food ingredient in the design of healthier meat commodities
Classification of potato cultivars to establish their processing aptitude

BACKGROUNDThe commercial potato cultivars are diverse not only in their physical characteristics but also in their nutritional compositions and their content of functional compounds (resistant starch, total phenolic content and antioxidant activity), but there is little information about these differences. The aim of this study was to characterise the nutritional value (focusing on carbohydrates and functional compounds) and instrumental parameters of eight potato cultivars consumed in Spain and to determine whether these parameters are useful for classifying the cultivars.; RESULTSSignificant Pearson's correlations were found due to the common and complex interactions between the constituents of potatoes and their properties (P < 0.05). Principal component analysis revealed the correlations among the physicochemical properties, and the first two principal components explained 56.84% of the variance among the cultivars studied.; CONCLUSIONThe eight cultivars could be classified into three groups: (1) Red Pontiac, Caesar, Kennebec, Agria and Cherie cultivars, (2) Agata and Monalisa cultivars and (3) Spirit cultivar. The results demonstrated that certain nutritional and functional parameters indicated the potential efficacy of different cultivars to satisfy the nutritional needs of consumers, improving the knowledge on the biochemical basis of potato processing to obtain higher-quality products. (c) 2015 Society of Chemical IndustryPreprin
Impact of casein and egg white proteins on the structure of wheat gluten-based protein-rich food

BACKGROUND: There is a growing interest in texturally and nutritionally satisfying vegetable alternatives for meat. Wheat gluten proteins have unique functional properties but a poor nutritional value in comparison to animal proteins. This study investigated the potential of egg white and bovine milk casein with well-balanced amino acid composition to increase the quality of wheat gluten-based protein-rich foods.
RESULTS: Heating a wheat gluten (51.4 g) - water (100.0 ml) blend for 120 minutes at 100 °C increased its firmness less than heating a wheat gluten (33.0 g) - freeze dried egg white (16.8 g) - water (100.0 ml) blend. In contrast, the addition of casein to the gluten-water blend negatively impacted firmness after heating. Firmness was correlated to loss of protein extractability in sodium dodecyl sulfate containing medium during heating, which was higher with egg white than with casein. Even more, heat-induced polymerization of the gluten-water blend with egg white but not with casein was larger than expected from the losses in extractability of gluten and egg white on their own. 
CONCLUSION: Structure formation was favored by mixing gluten with egg white but not with casein. These observations were linked to the intrinsic polymerization behavior of egg white and casein, but also to their interaction with gluten. Thus, not all nutritionally suitable proteins can be used for enrichment of gluten-based protein-rich foods.status: publishe
In vitro screening of natural feed additives from crustaceans, diatoms, seaweeds and plant extracts to manipulate rumen fermentation

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Belanche Gracia, A., Ramos Morales, E., & Newbold, C. J. (2015). In vitro screening of natural feed additives from crustaceans, diatoms, seaweeds and plant extracts to manipulate rumen fermentation. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture., which has been published in final form at htt[://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1002/jsfa.7481. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.BACKGROUND: Eight natural products from animal, unicellular algae, brown seaweed and plant origins were chosen according to their theoretical anti-microbial activity: Diatomaceous earths (DE), insoluble chitosan (ICHI), soluble chitosan (CHI), seaweed meal (SWM), Ascophyllum nodosum (ASC), Laminaria digitata (LAM), Neem oil (NOIL) and an Ivy fruit extract rich in saponins (IVY). Dose-response incubations were conducted to determine their effect on rumen fermentation pattern and gas production, while their anti-protozoal activity was tested using (14) C-labelled bacteria. RESULTS: DE, SWM, NOIL and ICHI had very small effects on rumen function when used at inclusion rate up to 2g L(-1) . ASC had anti-protozoal effects (up to -23%) promoting a decrease in gas production and methanogenesis (-15%). LAM increased VFA production (+7%) and shifted from butyrate to acetate. CHI also shifted fermentation towards propionate production and lower methane (-23%) and protozoal activity (-56%). IVY decreased protozoal activity (-39%) and ammonia concentration (-56%), as well as increased feed fermentation (+11% VFA concentration) and shifted from acetate to propionate production. CONCLUSIONS: ASC, LAM, CHI and IVY showed promising potential in vitro as feed additives to improve rumen function, thus more research is needed to investigate their mode of action in the rumen microbial ecosystem.authorsversionPeer reviewe
Effect of physicochemical parameters on the polygalacturonase of an Aspergillus sojae mutant using wheat bran, an agro-industrial waste, via solid-state fermentation

BACKGROUND: Polygalacturonases (PGs) are valuable enzymes of the food industry; therefore it is of great importance to discover new and GRAS PG-producing microbial strains. In this study, PG enzyme produced from a high PG activity producer mutant Aspergillus sojae using wheat bran at the flask scale under pre-optimized conditions of solid-state fermentation (SSF) was biochemically characterized. RESULTS: The crude PG enzyme showed optimum activity in the pH range 4.0–5.0 and was stable in the pH range 3.0–7.0. The optimum temperature for the PG was 40 °C and it retained 99% of its activity at 50 °C. The mutant A. sojae PG could preserve more than 50% of its stability between 25 and 50 °C, both for 30 and 60 min, and was found to be stable in the presence of most of the tested compounds and metal ions. The inactivation energy (Ed) was determined as 125.3 kJ mol−1. The enthalpy (ΔH*), free energy (ΔG*) and entropy (ΔS*) of inactivation were found to be stable with increasing temperature. CONCLUSION: The mutant A. sojae PG could be suitable for the clarification (depectinization) of orange and grape juices and wine. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Olive pomace valorization by Aspergillus species: lipase production using solid-state fermentation

Background Pollution by olive mill wastes is an important problem in the Mediterranean area and novel solutions for their proper management and valorization are needed. The aim of this work was to optimize a solid-state fermentation (SSF) process to produce lipase using olive pomace (OP) as the main source of nutrients by several Aspergillus spp. Optimized variables in two different designs were: ratio between olive pomace and wheat bran (OP:WB), NaNO3, Czapek nutrients, fermentation time, moisture content (MC) and temperature.  Results Results showed that the mixture OP:WB and MC were the most significant factors affecting lipase production for all fungi strains tested. With MC and temperature optimization, a 4.4-fold increase in A. ibericus lipase was achieved (90.5± 1.5 U g-1), using a mixture of OP and WB at 1:1 ratio, 0.02 g NaNO3 per g dry substrate, absence of Czapek nutrients, 60% of MC and incubation at 30 °C for 7 days. For A. niger and A. tubingensis, highest lipase activity obtained was 56.6± 5.4 U g-1 and 7.6± 0.6 U g-1, respectively.  Conclusion A. ibericus was found to be the most promising microorganism for lipase production using mixtures of OP and WB.Felisbela Oliveira and José Manuel Salgado acknowledge ﬁnancial support from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) of Portugal through grants SFRH/BD/87953/2012 and SFRH/BPD/84440/2012, respectively. Luís Abrunhosa was supported by grant UMINHO/BPD/51/2015 from project UID/BIO/04469/2013, ﬁnanced by FCT/MEC (OE). The authors thank the FCT Strategic Project of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, the project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462) and the project ‘BioInd – Biotechnology and Bioengineering for improved Industrial and Agro-Food processes’, REF. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000028, co-funded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2 – O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDER
Optimization of the process of aromatic and medicinal plant maceration in grape marc distillates to obtain herbal liqueurs and spirits

BACKGROUND

Herbal liqueurs are alcoholic beverages produced by the maceration or distillation of aromatic and medicinal plants in alcohol, and are also highly valued for their medicinal properties. The process conditions, as well as the number and quantity of the plants employed, will have a great influence on the quality of the liqueur obtained. The aim of this research was to optimize these important variables.


RESULTS

A BoxBenhken experimental design was used to evaluate the independent variables: alcohol content, amount of plant and time during the experimental maceration of plants in grape marc distillate. Four plants were assessed, with the main compound of each plant representing the dependent variable evaluated with respect to following the evolution of the maceration process. Bisabolol oxide A in Matricaria recutita L., linalool in Coriander sativum L. and eucalyptol in Eucalyptus globulus Labill. were quantified using a gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. Glycyrrhizic acid in Glycyrrhiza glabra L was determined using a high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detector. Other dependent variables were also evaluated: total phenolic content, color parameters and consumer preference (i.e. appearance).


CONCLUSION

The experimental designs allowed the selection of the optimal maceration conditions for each parameter, including the preference score of consumers: 70% (v/v) of ethanol, 40 g L1 plant concentration and a maceration process of 3 weeks.Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness - (project CTQ2015-71436-C2-1-R)Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia a (FCT) - grant SFRH/BD/87953/2012FEDER funds of the European Unio
Fruit quality assessment of watermelons grafted onto citron melon rootstock

BACKGROUND: The grafting of watermelons (Citrullus lanatus) is a common technique that increases yield under stressful soil conditions. The most common rootstocks for watermelons are Cucurbita hybrids. However, they often have a negative impact on fruit quality. Exploiting novel Citrullus germplasm such as citron melon (Citrullus lanatus var. citroides) is an alternative to avoid these quality problems. RESULTS: Citron melon has been validated as watermelon rootstock, comparing its eﬀects on watermelon quality to those of Cucurbita hybrids. Larger fruits with thicker rinds were observed in fruits from plants grafted onto both citron and Cucurbita rootstocks. The citron melon had no signiﬁcant eﬀect on ﬂesh sugars or acid proﬁles compared to non-grafted watermelons, except for an increase in glucose and malic acid content, which also occurred in the Cucurbita rootstocks. The aroma proﬁle of fruits produced on citron melon was similar to that of the non-grafted and self-grafted controls. The citron rootstock did not display the increased levels of (Z)-6-nonen-1-ol (a compound associated with pumpkin-like odors) found in fruits produced with Cucurbita hybrids.
CONCLUSION: The low impact of citron melon rootstock on fruit quality, along with the enhanced resistance against nematodes, make the citron a promising alternative to Cucurbita rootstocks.This study was partially supported by the projec t funded by the
Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad AGL2014-53398-C2-2-R
(jointly funded by FEDER)
Zn-biofortification enhanced nitrogen metabolism and photorespiration process in green leafy vegetable Lactuca sativa L

Excessive rates of nitrogen (N) fertilizers may result in elevated concentrations of nitrate (NO3(-) ) in plants. Considering that many programs of biofortification with trace elements are being performed, it has become important to study how the application of these elements affects plant physiology and, particularly, N utilization in leaf crops. The main objective of the present study was to determine whether the NO3(-) accumulation and the nitrogen use efficiency was affected by the application of different doses of Zn in Lactuca sativa plants