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Topic Review
Apple Bioactive Compounds
Population studies have associated a diet high in fruits to lower incidence of cancer. Specifically, research shows that secondary plant metabolites known as phytochemicals, which are commonly found in fruits, have onco-preventive and chemo-protective effects. Apple is a commonly consumed fruit worldwide that is available all year round and is a rich source of phytochemicals. The health benefits of apples are thought to be mainly due to their phytochemical composition. Additionally, apple consumption is associated with lower incidence of some cancers based on animal and cell culture studies.
  • 3.3K
  • 30 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Vitamin Supplements and Chronic Alcohol Consumption
Alcoholic drinks are extensively consumed worldwide. Drinking alcohol has negative and positive consequences. The health consequences of alcohol intake vary depending on the amount and pattern of consumption.
  • 3.3K
  • 24 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Lactoferrin and Ferrous Sulfate Supplementation in Iron-Deficiency Anemia
Ferrous sulfate is a commonly used iron supplement for the correction of iron-deficiency anemia but with frequent gastrointestinal side effects. Milk-derived iron-binding glycoprotein lactoferrin possesses well gastrointestinal tolerance and fewer side effects caused by the intake of high-dose iron. However, the underlying mechanism of the iron-enhancing effect of lactoferrin remains unclear. In addition, the comparative efficacies between lactoferrin and ferrous sulfate are also remained to be determined. Studies support lactoferrin as a superior supplement to ferrous sulfate regarding the improvement in serum iron parameters and hemoglobin levels. 
  • 3.2K
  • 13 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Ginger
Ginger in its many forms, from juices of the fresh rhizome, to ginger powder and ginger essential oil, is growing in popularity for claimed universal health benefits. Nevertheless, and contrarily to the common notion of the public, ginger is not devoid of side effects, especially interactions with other drugs, and many of the claimed benefits remain to be substantiated. 
  • 3.2K
  • 17 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Potato Proteins
About 35-45 % of all soluble potato proteins are fractions of albumin and globulin characterised by high molecular weight in the range of 40-45 kDa and high nutritive value, comparable to proteins of animal origin. They are soluble in water and in water and salt solutions, respectively; these are patatin glycoproteins, with a pIs in the range of 4.8–5.2. The second large group of potato proteins comprise fractions of protease inhibitors with a molecular weight in the range of 7–21 kDa, mostly acid soluble; they are often heat-resistant, showing a wide spectrum of healthpromoting effects, such as antimicrobial or antitumor, as well as antioxidant and antiradical. Properties of potato proteins depend strictly on the method of isolation and the applied factors, such as pH, ionic strength and temperature.
  • 3.2K
  • 26 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Milk Fat Globule Membrane (MFGM)
Milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) is an important component of milk lipids that showed several biological properties (such as anticarcinogenic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anticholesterolemic activities). In this review we analyse the latest results obtained from comparative proteomic studies regarding the variations and the similarities of MFGM proteome across species and lactation stages. Infant formula supplementation with MFGM represents an interesting opportunity to implement the bioactive properties exerted by MFGM, in order to narrow the gap between human breast milk and infant formula. 
  • 3.1K
  • 27 Sep 2020
Topic Review
Frying Technology and Starchy Food
Frying is commonly used by consumers, restaurants, and industries around the globe to cook and process foods. Compared to other food processing methods, frying has several potential advantages, including reduced processing times and the creation of foods with desirable sensory attributes. Frying is often used to prepare starchy foods. After ingestion, the starch and fat in these foods are hydrolyzed by enzymes in the human digestive tract, thereby providing an important source of energy (glucose and fatty acids) for the human body. Conversely, overconsumption of fried starchy foods can induce overweight, obesity, and other chronic diseases. Moreover, frying can generate toxic reaction products that can damage people’s health. Consequently, there is interest in developing alternative frying technologies that reduce the levels of nutritionally undesirable components in fried foods, such as vacuum, microwave, air, and radiant frying methods.
  • 3.1K
  • 25 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Precooling and Cold Storage for Fruits and Vegetables
Cold chain systems, such as cold storages, are crucial to minimizing postharvest losses of fresh fruits and vegetables. Cold storage alone cannot prevent crop losses, but should be considered as one component that needs to be integrated into a cold chain network from the point of harvest to the point of purchase by the consumer. Cold chains are still in their infancy in developing countries due to the lack of basic infrastructure and management skills needed to support the development of integrated cold chain systems.
  • 3.1K
  • 08 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Citrus Uses in the Food Industry
Citrus fruits occupy an important position in the context of the fruit trade, considering that both fresh fruits and processed products are produced on a large scale. Citrus fruits are recognized as an essential component of the human diet, thanks to their high content of beneficial nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, terpenes, flavonoids, coumarins and dietary fibers. Among these, a wide range of positive biological activities are attributed to terpenes and flavonoids derivatives.
  • 3.1K
  • 03 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Medicinal Value of Dandelion
The genus Taraxacum is part of the Asteraceae family of the Cichorioideae subfamily, Lactuceae tribe. This plant's geographical distribution is usually around the warm areas of the Northern Hemisphere and its users have been cherishing it for its curative properties since ancient times. Reports show that traditional medicine practitioners used Taraxacum officinale L. for treating dyspepsia, spleen, liver disorders, hepatitis, and anorexia. Aqueous extracts of dandelion were also used traditionally through Asia, Europe, and North America for treating different types of cancer like leukemia and breast cancer, even if their working mechanisms were unknown. The main reported components of dandelions consist of phenolic acids (chicoric, caffeic, and chlorogenic acids), terpenes (taraxacoside, ainslioside, taraxinic acid), and storage carbohydrates (inulin), which are thought to be accountable for the plant’s health-related properties. This entry is based on a literature review and highlights the beneficial and therapeutic action of dandelion extracts and their confirmed or hypothesized mechanism of action in diabetes, hepatic disorders, and cardiovascular disease, as indicated by the results of in vivo an in vitro studies, on cell lines, human and animal models.
  • 3.1K
  • 10 May 2021
Topic Review
Functional Fruit Juices
Lately, consumers are increasingly concerned about their dieting, hence expect to eat foods that will improve their well-being and health: This can be achieved by eating foods with added functional components. Fast-paced modern lifestyle reduces time to consume fresh fruits and vegetables, so people prefer to consume juices, and that caused demand for functional fruit juices to grow rapidly. Accordingly, the recent trends in juice and beverage industry are oriented towards production of functional juices and drinks with various raw materials, such as vitamins and their precursors, minerals, biologically active compounds (BACs; e.g. polyphenols, carotenoids, chlorophylls, tannins, etc.), antioxidants, probiotics and prebiotics. Due to respectable nutritive value, fruit juices were found to be an excellent carriers or delivery vehicles of probiotic bacteria. Juices produced from “superfruits” can be considered excellent functional matrices, because they contain a high proportion of various types of BACs. Further, fruit juices with added probiotics (e.g. lactic acid bacteria Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus) and prebiotics (e.g. lactulose, inulin, fructooligosaccharides, etc.) are becoming popular beverages among consumers.
  • 3.0K
  • 05 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Safety of Food Fungal Pigments
Pigments play a major role in many industries. Natural colors are usually much safer when compared to synthetic colors and may even possess some medicinal benefits. Synthetic colors are economical and can easily be produced compared to natural colors. In addition, raw plant materials for natural colors are limited and season dependent. Microorganisms provide an alternative source for natural colors and, among them, fungi provide a wide range of natural colorants that could easily be produced cheaply and with high yield. Along with pigment, some microbial strains are also capable of producing a number of mycotoxins. The commercial use of microbial pigments relies on the safety of colorants.
  • 3.0K
  • 26 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Beer Brewed from Sorghum
Beer is a complex beverage system despite being made up of only four ingredients: yeast, water, hops, and malted grain. Typically, malted barley is used as the primary grain source for brewing, however alternative grains/pseudo-grains like sorghum are gaining popularity. However, the use of sorghum in beer manufacturing does have its issues, which are largely due to its low amylolytic activity (which is insufficient for complete saccharification), high gelatinization temperature, and low free amino content. Sorghum malt has a higher concentration of alpha-amylase and a lower concentration of beta-amylase compared to malted barley. Due to the reduced enzymatic activity of sorghum this deficiency can lead to insufficient production of fermentable sugars, high dextrin content, and increased viscosity. Due to sorghum’s higher gelatinization temperature, the hydrolysis of sugars into fermentable sugars is only partially completed. Thus, resulting in fewer fermentable sugars for the yeast to metabolize for the production of ethanol, and volatile and semi-volatile compounds.
  • 2.9K
  • 17 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Oral Bioavailability of Ellagic Acid
Ellagic acid, a polyphenolic compound present in fruit and berries, has recently been the object of extensive research for its antioxidant activity, which might be useful for the prevention and treatment of cancer, cardiovascular pathologies, and neurodegenerative disorders. Its protective role justifies numerous attempts to include it in functional food preparations and in dietary supplements, and not only to limit the unpleasant collateral effects of chemotherapy. However, ellagic acid use as a chemopreventive agent has been debated because of its poor bioavailability associated with low solubility, limited permeability, first pass effect, and interindividual variability in gut microbial transformations. To overcome these drawbacks, various strategies for oral administration including solid dispersions, micro and nanoparticles, inclusion complexes, self-emulsifying systems, and polymorphs were proposed. Here, we listed an updated description of pursued micro and nanotechnological approaches focusing on the fabrication processes and the features of the obtained products, as well as on the positive results yielded by in vitro and in vivo studies in comparison to the raw material. The micro and nanosized formulations here described might be exploited for pharmaceutical delivery of this active, as well as for the production of nutritional supplements or for the enrichment of novel foods.
  • 2.9K
  • 28 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Medicinal Value of Chicory
Cichorium intybus L., commonly named chicory, is a perennial herbal plant of the dandelion family Asteraceae, mainly seen with bright blue flowers, and seldom pink or white. Generally distributed in Asia and Europe, all the plants’ parts were traditionally used in medicinal preparations due to their considerable contents of antioxidant phytochemicals thought to have a beneficial impact in preventing and treating various illnesses such as fever, diarrhea, jaundice, and gallstones. Different chicory types are grown for their salad leaves, chicons, or roots, and regularly used for inulin extraction, for preparing coffee substitutes, or for feeding livestock. This entry is based on a literature review and highlights the beneficial and therapeutic action of chicory extracts and their confirmed or hypothesized mechanism of action in diabetes, hepatic disorders, and cardiovascular disease, as indicated by the results of in vivo and in vitro studies, on cell lines, human and animal models.
  • 2.9K
  • 10 May 2021
Topic Review
Freeze-Drying of Foods
Freeze-drying is a process in which water is sublimated by the direct transition of water from solid (ice) to vapor, thus omitting the liquid state, and then desorbing water from the “dry” layer.
  • 2.9K
  • 16 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Chemical Composition of Kombucha
Kombucha is a fermented sweetened tea with a mixed fermenting culture of yeast and acetic acid bacteria. The proponents of kombucha consumption tout the varied health benefits it can provide. The final kombucha flavor and composition is a function of both the initial tea used and the fermentation process.
  • 2.9K
  • 29 Aug 2022
Topic Review
DNA-Based Methods in Identification of Fish Species
Various methods, differing in their principle and detected target molecules, can be used for fish species identification and adulteration detection. Parvalbumin detection has been preferred, but this is quite demanding compared to other food allergens because of its high biochemical and immunological variability among fish species and differing thermostability. This in itself sidelines the use of some types of methods, e.g., proteomic ones, and favors DNA-based methods, whose target, DNA, is not destroyed by the processing. Using DNA analysis, for example, a common form of adulteration—replacing the species (a more expensive one with a cheaper one)—can be detected. Additionally, DNA-based methods have the potential to detect the consumer being misled about the fish’s origin, another common type of adulteration. This is even more relevant, since genetically modified (GM) fish can be bought on the world market. Even though GM organisms do not pose a threat to public health and their quality is no different, consumers should be informed about the content of GM products, and because the public can be skeptical about GM products, sellers may want to hide this information and deliberately deceive the consumer.
  • 2.9K
  • 20 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Raisins
Raisins are dried grapes consumed worldwide that contain beneficial components for human health. They are rich in fiber and phytochemicals such as phenolic compounds. Despite a 60% sugar content, several studies have reported health-promoting properties for raisins and this review compiles the intervention studies, as well as the cell line and animal model studies carried out to date. It has been demonstrated that raisins possess a low-to-moderate glycemic index, which makes them a healthy snack. They seem to contribute to a better diet quality and may reduce appetite. Their antioxidant capacity has been correlated to the phenolic content and this may be involved in the improvement of cardiovascular health. In addition, raisins maintain a good oral health due to their antibacterial activity, low adherence to teeth and an optimum oral pH. Raisin consumption also seems to be favorable for colon function, although more studies should be done to conclude this benefit. Moreover, gut microbiota could be affected by the prebiotic content of raisins. Cell line and animal model studies show other potential benefits in specific diseases, such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. However, deeper research is required and future intervention studies with humans are needed. Overall, incorporating an 80–90 g portion of raisins (half a cup) into the daily diet may be favorable for human health.
  • 2.8K
  • 29 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Phlorotannins
Phlorotannins represent an important group of phenolic compounds, exclusively occurring in brown algae that can form simple structures of 126 Da to very large and complex polymers. Although the biosynthetic pathway of these compounds is still not consensual, it is known that they are formed via C–C and/or C–O–C oxidative coupling of several monomeric units of phloroglucinol, which in turn is known to be biosynthesized through the acetate–malonate pathway. According to the type of linkage formed between these units and the number of hydroxyl groups, phlorotannins can be classified in four sub-classes, namely phlorethols and fuhalols (ether linkages), fucols (aryl-aryl linkages), fucophlorethols (aryl-aryl and ether linkages), and eckols and carmalols (dibenzodoxine linkage).
  • 2.8K
  • 13 Oct 2023
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