The quality of red juices is strongly determined by their content of anthocyanins since these are responsible for the nutritional value and organoleptic properties. The final anthocyanin concentration greatly depends on juice production and, more specifically, on the disintegration of the pectic substances in the cell walls during maceration which increases anthocyanin extractability. This work evaluates the potential of ultrasound treatment during enzymatic maceration to enhance pectin degradation. The application of this technique allows for gentle processing conditions regarding temperature and time compared to the conventional enzymatic treatment. Concurrently, the arising pool of soluble pectic oligosaccharides and polysaccharides can be increased which beneficially affects anthocyanin stability by complexation. The resulting interactions are multifaceted depending on the structural properties of both involved compounds. This thesis expands the knowledge of the molecular mechanisms of pectin degradation leading to soluble polymers that increase the stability of anthocyanins by complexation.
Valued for its unique flavors, textures, and colors, berry fruit is a rapidly-growing crop that provides significant health benefits due to its many bioactive components. Berry Fruit: Value-Added Products for Health Promotion provides an understanding of the functional chemicals, shelf-life and microbial safety concerns, and applications in the food industry. Written by international experts, each chapter presents scientific background, research results, critical reviews of relevant issues, and case studies. Chapters include worldwide production information, bioactive food constituents and their potential health benefits, methods of enhancing food quality, and potential uses of berry processing by-products.
Superfoods and functional foods are receiving increasing attention because of their important roles in health. This book focuses on the production of superfoods and functional foods and their role as medicine. In the early chapters, prominent researchers introduce the roles and production of microalgae and functional fruits through metabolic engineering, the use of food waste, and effective cooking procedures. In the latter chapters, other prominent researchers introduce the medical effects of polyphenols, glutamine, and unsaturated fatty acids, which are contained in superfoods and functional foods. They suggest the importance of superfoods and functional foods in the treatment and prevention of many diseases. It is also recommended for readers to take a look at a related book, Superfood and Functional Food: An Overview of Their Processing and Utilization.
The integration of enzymes in food processing is well known, and dedicated research is continually being pursued to address the global food crisis. This book provides a broad, up-to-date overview of the enzymes used in food technology. It discusses microbial, plant and animal enzymes in the context of their applications in the food sector; process of immobilization; thermal and operational stability; increased product specificity and specific activity; enzyme engineering; implementation of high-throughput techniques; screening of relatively unexplored environments; and development of more efficient enzymes. Offering a comprehensive reference resource on the most progressive field of food technology, this book is of interest to professionals, scientists and academics in the food and biotech industries.
In recent years there has been an unprecedented expansion of knowledge about anthocyanins pigments. Indeed, the molecular genetic control of anthocyanins biosynthesis is now one of the best understood of all secondary metabolic pathways. There have also been substantial improvements in analytical technology that have led to the discovery of novel anthocyanin compounds. Armed with this knowledge and the tools for genetic engineering, plant breeders are now introducing vibrant new colors into horticultural crops. The food industry has also benefited from the resurgence of interest in anthocyanins. A greater understanding of the chemistry of these pigments has led to improved methods for stabilizing the color of anthocyanins extracts, so that they are more useful as food colorings. Methods for the bulk production of anthocyanins from cell cultures have been optimized for this purpose. Possible benefits to human health from the ingestion of anthocyanin-rich foods have also been a major feature of the recent scientific literature. Anthocyanins are remarkably potent antioxidants, and their ingestion has been postulated to stave off the effects of oxidative stress. These pigments, especially in conjunction with other flavonoids, have been associated with reductions in the incidence and severity of many other non-infectious diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. An industry is developing around anthocyanins as nutritional supplements. Finally, there has been significant progress in our understanding of the benefits of anthocyanins to plants themselves. Originally considered an extravagance without a purpose, anthocyanins are now implicated in multifarious vital functions. These include the attraction of pollinators and frugivores, aposematic defense from herbivores, and protection from environmental stressors such as strong light, UVB, drought, and free radical attacks. Anthocyanins are evidently highly versatile, and enormously useful to plants. This book covers all aspects of the biosynthesis and function of anthocyanins (and related compounds such as proanthocyanidins) in plants, and their applications in agriculture, food products, and human health. Featured areas include their relevance to: * Plant stress * Flower and fruit color * Human health * Wine quality and health attributes * Food colorants and ingredients * Cell culture production systems * The pastoral sector
Presents recent research on metabolism and the health effects of polyphenols Consumer interest in the health benefits of many phenolic compounds found in plant foods and derivatives has grown considerably in recent years, giving rise to an increased demand for functional foods. Although preclinical and observational studies have promoted the protective properties of polyphenols for a range of chronic diseases, evidence has shown that most dietary polyphenols have little bioavailability. Once ingested, most of them are metabolized by either the intestinal enzymes or by the gut microbiota and then undergo extensive phase-II metabolism reaching significant concentrations of conjugated metabolites. They remain in the systemic circulation and target systemic tissues where trigger biological effects. The polyphenol-derived metabolites produced in humans are dependent upon the composition of the gut microbiota and the subject genetics. Thus all the metabolites do not show the same biological activity in different individuals. To fully understand the health effects of polyphenols, further clinical investigations are required. Dietary Polyphenols describes the latest findings on the polyphenol metabolism and reviews the current evidence on their health effects and that of their bioavailable metabolites. Emphasizing the importance of interindividual variability and the critical role of gut microbiota, this authoritative volume features contributions from recognized experts in the field, exploring specific families of extractable and non-extractable phenolic compounds that exhibit potential health effects. Topics include structural diversity of polyphenols and distribution in foods, bioavailability and bioaccessibility of phenolics, metabolism, and gastrointestinal absorption of various metabolites and their health effects. This comprehensive volume: Discusses the bioavailability, bioaccessibility, pharmacokinetics studies, and microbial metabolism of different groups of phenolic compounds Examines the interaction between polyphenols and gut microbiota Describes analytical methods for identifying and quantifying polyphenols in foods and biological samples Reviews recent epidemiological and clinical intervention studies showing protective effects of polyphenols Dietary Polyphenols: Metabolism and Health Effects is an important resource for scientists working in the area of dietary polyphenols and health effects, microbiota, and their interaction with other nutritional compounds, and for health professionals, nutritionists, dieticians, and clinical researchers with interest in the role of polyphenols in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases.
Fruits Juices is the first and only comprehensive resource to look at the full scope of fruit juices from a scientific perspective. The book focuses not only on the traditional ways to extract and preserve juices, but also the latest novel processes that can be exploited industrially, how concentrations of key components alter the product, and methods for analysis for both safety and consumer acceptability. Written by a team of global experts, this book provides important insights for professionals in industrial and academic research as well as in production facilities. - Presents fruit juice from extraction to shelf-life in a single resource volume - Includes quantitative as well as qualitative insights - Provides translatable information from one fruit to another
Flavonoids are abundant secondary metabolites found in plants and fungi that have various roles in these organisms, including pigmentation, cell signalling, plant defence and inter-organism communication. Due to their abundance in nature, flavonoids are also important components of the human diet, and the last four decades have seen an intense study focused on the structure characterization of flavonoids and on their roles in mammal metabolism. This book reviews most of the well-established activities of flavonoids, and we also present more recent research studies on the area of flavonoids, including the chemical aspects of structure characterization of flavonoids, the biosynthesis of flavonoids in model plants as well as their role in abiotic stress situations and in agriculture, the role of flavonoids in metabolism and health and their importance in foods, from consumption to their use as bioactive components.
Polyphenols: Properties, Recovery, and Applications covers polyphenol properties, health effects and new trends in recovery procedures and applications. Beginning with coverage of the metabolism and health effects of polyphenols, the book then addresses recovery, analysis, processing issues and industrial applications. The book not only connects the properties and health effects of polyphenols with recovery, processing and encapsulation issues, but also explores industrial applications that are affected by these aspects, including both current applications and those under development. - Covers the properties and health effects of polyphenols, along with trends in recovery procedures and applications - Addresses recovery, analysis and processing issues - Concludes with coverage of the industrial applications of polyphenols
