Because of their ability to form gels and because of their contributions to the mechanical and textural properties of fruits and vegetables, pectins are extremely valuable in the food industry. These polysaccharide also perform critical functions that impact upon development and defense. This book provides an overview of the current understandings relating to pectin structure and its manipulations. It also addresses the ways by which pectin functions in growing plants and the industrial uses of pectins.
Pectin extracted from suitable plant sources is used as food ingredient for its gelling, stabilizing and thickening functionalities. Pectic substances also have a great impact on the quality of fresh and processed foods particularly fruits and vegetables. Plant products, fresh, extracted or processed, constitute a large part of the human diet. As a fibre, naturally present in these food products, pectic substances fulfil a nutritional function and are increasingly of interest as a health promoting polysaccharide. Pectin is one of the major components of the cell wall of dicotyledonous plants and probably one of the most complex macromolecules in nature. This book provides an update account of the most significant state of the art research on pectin and demonstrates that significant progress has been made in recent years. The book addresses progress made in the fields of biosynthesis and health modulating activities of pectin fractions, among other things. Research reported uses the most advanced current spectroscopic techniques and immunodetection methods combined with microscopy and chromatography, genomics of pectic enzymes of Aspergillus niger, and interaction of pectins with proteins. The progress documented in this book allows us to increasingly identify and influence the functionality of pectins and pectic enzymes both in vitro after isolation, as well as in the plants themselves. This knowledge is also reflected in new applications of pectin and pectin degrading enzymes. 'Pectins and Pectinases' is of interest to beginning and advanced researchers and food specialists in academic and commercial food industry settings globally.
A fundamental understanding of polymers has evolved in recent years concurrent with advances in analytical instrumentation. The theories and methodologies developed for the galacturonan biopolymers (collectively called pectins) have seldom been discoursed comprehensively in the context of the new knowledge. This text explains the scientific and technical basis of many of the practices followed in processing and preparing foods fabricated with or containing pectin. The material is presented in a very readable fashion for those with limited technical training. Structural analysis Commercial extractions methods Pectin formulations and tropical fruit analysis Molecular mechanisms of gelatin Enzymology Polymer comformation techniques Analytical methods of polymer analysis
Pectin is an industrial product of certain fruit peels that contain it, such as citrus fruits, apples, pears, grapes, plums, beets, sunflowers, and so on. It is the traditional gelling agent for jams and jellies, but its applications extend to fruit products for food, dairy, dessert, soft drink, pharmaceutical, and other industries. This book discusses pectin production, pectin biotechnology, and pectin applications. Chapters cover such topics as the production of pectin from citrus, fungal pectinases in food technology, pharmaceutical applications of pectin, and more.
This text presents the technological and physiological properties of pectin in an educational approach that encompasses all of the essential information a researcher needs to fully understand their function and use in foods. Utilizing basic information on pectin as well as recent technological advances, this book is designed to be the primary resource for individuals seeking out an up to date reference work covering all the necessary informational and functional aspects of pectin. Pectin: technological and physiological properties is the first book to fully focus on the introductory concepts on pectin. Individual chapters cover localization and function, the structural aspects of pectin, pectinases, isolation and characterization and recovery from agricultural wastes. Important current advances such as emulsions, films, digestion, metabolism and bioactive properties are also focused on. With its combination of vital basic information and technological advances, this book presents full and up to date coverage on this pectin and its many forms and uses in foods.
Comprehensive in scope, Food Polysaccharides and Their Applications, Second Edition explains the production aspects and the chemical and physical properties of the main classes of polysaccharaides consumed as food, highlighting their nutritional value and their technological characteristics. Chapters in this new edition detail the source,
This book deepens the study and knowledge on pectins, especially in the processes of extraction, purification, and characterization, in short its many and wide applications. Among the most prominent applications are the food, pharmaceutical, and other industries. The development of pectins has a very promising future with a marked annual increase and with a wide range of sources. As written above, this book will help its readers to expand their knowledge on this biopolymer with vast application in the industry worldwide.
Stabilisers, thickeners and gelling agents are extracted from a variety of natural raw materials and incorporated into foods to give the structure, flow, stability and eating qualities desired by consumers. These additives include traditional materials such as starch, a thickener obtained from many land plants; gelatine, an animal by-product giving characteristic melt-in-the-mouth gels; and cellulose, the most abundant structuring polymer in land plants. Seed gums and other materials derived from sea plants extend the range of polymers. Recently-approved additives include the microbial polysaccharides of xanthan, gellan and pullulan. This book is a highly practical guide to the use of polymers in food technology to stabilise, thicken and gel foods, resulting in consistent, high quality products. The information is designed to be easy to read and assimilate. New students will find chapters presented in a standard format, enabling key points to be located quickly. Those with more experience will be able to compare and contrast different materials and gain a greater understanding of the interactions that take place during food production. This concise, modern review of hydrocolloid developments will be a valuable teaching resource and reference text for all academic and practical workers involved in hydrocolloids in particular, and food development and production in general.
The comprehensive guide to the current understanding of galectins and their promising potential in drug design This is the first book focusing on galectins. It was inspired by topics discussed at the symposium "Galectins: Structures, Functions, and Therapeutic Targets" that was a part of the 234th American Chemical Society meeting in 2007. To help chemists, biochemists, and others understand the challenges inherent in the study of galectins and build on recent advances in the field, the editors have compiled articles from leading experts on galectins and their biomedical applications. Galectins includes: * An overview of early galectin research * An explanation of the nature of galectins * A discussion of the structure and functions of galectins, their ligand specificity and molecular mechanisms of action, and the localization of galectins in the cell * An exploration of the roles galectins play in tumor growth and cancer, fibrosis, inflammation, and immunity * A discussion of the effect of galectins on cell migration, angiogenesis, and chemoresistance * An introduction to new approaches to designing galectin inhibitors This is the premier reference on galectins for organic, medicinal, carbohydrate, and pharmaceutical chemists, biochemists, molecular and cell biologists, pharmacologists, cancer researchers, and graduate-level students in these disciplines, as well as clinicians and drug developers.
This book details polysaccharides and other important biomacromolecules covering their source, production, structures, properties, and current and potential application in the fields of biotechnology and medicine. It includes a systematic discussion on the general strategies of isolation, separation and characterization of polysaccharides and proteins. Subsequent chapters are devoted to polysaccharides obtained from various sources, including botanical, algal, animal and microbial. In the area of botanical polysaccharides, separate chapters are devoted to the sources, structure, properties and medical applications of cellulose and its derivatives, starch and its derivatives, pectins, and exudate gums, notably gum arabic. Another chapter discusses the potential of hemicelluloses (xylans and xylan derivatives) as a new source of functional biopolymers for biomedical and industrial applications. The algal polysaccharide, alginate, has significant application in food, pharmaceuticals and the medical field, all of which are reviewed in a separate chapter. Polysaccharides of animal origin are included with separate chapters on the sources, production, biocompatibility, biodegradability and biomedical applications of chitin (chitosan) and hyaluronan. With the increasing knowledge and applications of genetic engineering there is also an introduction in the book to nucleic acid polymers, the genome research and genetic engineering. Proteins and protein conjugates are covered, with one chapter providing a general review of structural glycoproteins, fibronectin and laminin, together with their role in the promotion of cell adhesion in vascular grafts, implants and tissue engineering. Another chapter discusses general aspects of a number of industrial proteins, including casein, caseinates, whey protein, gluten and soy proteins, with emphasis on their medical applications, and with reference to the potential of bacterial proteins. Another natural polymer resource, microbial polyesters, although small compared with polysaccharides and proteins, is also gaining increasing interest in biomedical technology and other industrial sectors. One chapter, therefore, is devoted to microbial polyesters, with comprehensive coverage of their biosynthesis, properties, enzymic degradation and applications. By dealing with biopolymers at the molecular level, the book is aimed at the biomedical and wider materials science communities and provides an advanced overview of biopolymers at the graduate and postgraduate level. In addition it will appeal to both academic and industrial life scientists who are involved in research and development activities in the medical and biotechnology field.
