Research Publications (Food Safety)

The effects of UV-C treatment (5.8 kJ m−2) alone and combined with the addition of orange juice on the bioactive properties, microbiological, and sensory quality of fresh-cut strawberries for 12 days at 0 °C were studied. During storage, the contents of ascorbic acid (AA), total phenols, flavonoids, and anthocyanins were enhanced in strawberry slices only treated with UV-C (UV slices), whereas ellagic acid slightly decreased in correlation with the antioxidant capacity.

Aflatoxins (AFs) are the most frequent contaminants of maize and maize-based products, and its consumption can cause severe adverse effects to humans and animals. The efficacy of essential oils (EOs) and their bioactive compounds as potential antifungal agents has been well documented against food-borne fungi.

Cherry tomatoes are one of the most popular tomato varieties known for their bioactive compounds and sensory properties. One way to reduce the contamination of tomato is to coat them with natural or antimicrobial substances.

This study aimed at limiting hemolysis of fish red blood cells (RBCs) as a strategy to limit hemoglobin (Hb)-induced lipid oxidation during post-mortem handling and processing. Effects of varying temperature, salinity, and mechanical impact were studied using washed resuspended RBCs (wr-RBCs) and whole blood (WB) from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and herring (Clupea harengus).

Sodium hypochlorite has been used in the food industry to reduce microbial contamination in food; however, the use of sodium hypochlorite is insufficient considering the human health hazards and environmental pollution. To overcome this issue, plant-derived antimicrobial agents have been developed.

Sapota (Manilkara Zapota) belongs to the Sapotaceae family and is one of the sweetest, delicious, and popular tropical fruits with high nutritional benefits. Due to its high water content (78%), it is easily damaged, which in turn reduces its shelf life. Also, significant post-harvest losses occur due to insufficient storage, poor handling, and transportation conditions, which also increase the microbial or pathogenic contamination.

This study focused on the development of novel active packaging methods based on natural compounds. Its main objective was the quality enhancement of refrigerated packaged fish. For it, the effect of the inclusion of a protein concentrate (PC) extracted from microalga Spirulina platensis into a crosslinked gelatine-based biofilm was investigated during the preservation of hake (Merluccius merluccius) muscle.

The effect of pulsed light (PL) on numerous important quality characteristics of pineapple juice was studied and compared with untreated and thermally pasteurised samples. The laboratory scale PL batch system used was operated with each three different voltages (1.8, 2.1, and 2.4 kV) and numbers of pulses (47, 94, and 187). Treatments with 2.4 kV and either 94 or 187 pulses (757/1479 J·cm−2) resulted in a 5-log reduction in aerobic mesophiles and the yeast and mould counts.

Fungal contamination of food is responsible for health issues and food waste. In this work, the incorporation of a lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with antifungal properties (Lactobacillus buchneri UTAD104) into whey protein-based films and coatings was tested for the control of an ochratoxigenic fungi (Penicillium nordicum) in a cheese matrix. The incorporation of L.

Microwave processing techniques have been extensively used in the food industry due to its significant reduction in time and energy consumption, but its effect on the potential degradation of the extracted target compounds cannot be ignored.

Biophysical properties and aggregation of natural actomyosin (NAM) from threadfin bream (Nemipterus bleekeri) subjected to atmospheric pressure cold plasma (APCP) treatment with different contact times were determined. Protein solubility, turbidity, Ca2+-ATPase activity, total sulfhydryl (SH) group content, protein carbonyl content, and SDS-PAGE were monitored.

Heat-resistant spores on a dry, heat- and water-sensitive food matrix are difficult to inactivate. Radioactive or X-ray exposure is allowed and accepted only for some selected commodities. Non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma treatments could offer an efficient, fast, and chemical-free solution.

The effects of processing time (10, 20 and 30 min) and plasma flow rate (10, 20 and 30 mL min−1 of synthetic air) on the bioactive compounds of camu-camu juice (Myrciaria dubia) treated using glow plasma were evaluated herein. Plasma technology promoted the increase of the bioactive compounds’ concentration (antioxidant compounds, ascorbic acid and total monomeric anthocyanins) in the juice serum.

Liposomes have been broadly studied as delivery systems for bioactive compounds, although its relatively low stability remains a limitation for commercial application.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of electron beam (EB) irradiation dosage on the physical and structural properties of kafirin-quercetin (KQ) films for packaging cod (Gadus morhua) fillets during cold storage at 4 °C. The results showed that irradiation significantly increased mechanical and thermal properties of KQ films, while decreased water vapor permeability, water solubility, and transparency.

This study aims to produce a biodegradable active packaging film that is pH sensitive, and has a good antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. To do this, a novel phenolic extract was interfacially assembled onto a cellulose film, resulting in a film with a pH-triggered release mechanism of the active polyphenol agent. First, an aqueous extraction of cashew nut testa (CTE) was performed and subsequently, the CTE was characterized.

UV-C treatment technology is proposed as a potential alternative to thermal treatments for decontamination of beverages because heat may adversely affect the nutritive value and quality. Effects of UV-C irradiation processing on microbial inactivation, ascorbic acid, and volatile aromatics of watermelon beverage were evaluated using a flow-through UV system.

Nanotechnology is poised to have a huge impact on food packaging applications. Bimetallic and trimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) are formed by combining two and three different metals and metal oxides, respectively.

The solubilization of peanut protein isolate (PPI) powders modified by atmospheric pressure cold plasma (ACP) treatment was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (low-field NMR) spectroscopy, and FTIR spectroscopy. Significant improvements in both the solubility and water holding capacity (WHC) of the PPI gel were observed after treatment with ACP.

Herein, we examined the effects of plasma-activated water (PAW) treatment on the native microflora survival, quality maintenance, and antioxidant activity of fresh-cut pears, which were washed with PAW under three different conditions (peak voltage = 6, 8, and 10 kV) for 5 min and then stored at 4 °C for 12 days. Distilled water and sodium hypochlorite treatment were used as control and comparison, respectively.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the replacement aspects of conventional methods (petroleum-based solvent and Folch assay) by alternative methods (bio-based and biodegradable solvent 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF) and supercritical CO2 (SC-CO2)) for seed oil extraction from anise (Pimpinella anisum L.) and fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Mill.).

High-performance electrochemical enzymatic biosensor based on flowerlike α-Fe2O3 nanostructures was successfully developed for the detection of potential food adulterant, formaldehyde (formalin). The biosensor was found to be highly sensitive (744.15 μA mg−1 Lcm−2) with linear range of detection (0.01–0.3 mg/L) and showed high shelf-life (9 weeks) and precision (0.73% RSD) with reasonably good reproducibility.

Microchip has been widely used in the biochemical field, but it is rarely applied in the food area. In this paper, an optimal microelectrode model was obtained via the improved evolutionary structural optimization (ESO) method, the effect of topological parameters on the sterilization efficiency was clarified, and the optimized microchip was applied to the sterilization of blueberry juice to verify its feasibility.

This study evaluated the effect of plasma-activated water (PAW) treatment and blanching on the microbial and quality attributes of tiger nuts. In this study, 15 min of single PAW-10 washing and blanching at 60 °C for 5 min (BLN) resulted in 3.53 and 3.51 log CFU/g reductions for Klebsiella pneumoniae and 3.22 and 3.14 log CFU/g for total background bacteria. The sequential treatment of PAW-10 and BLN led to 3.7 and 4.36 log CFU/g reductions in K.

Publication date: Available online 13 October 2018

Source: Toxicology

Author(s): Eliza Drwal, Agnieszka Rak, Ewa L. Gregoraszczuk