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Food Processing and Human Health: Impact on Nutritional, Safety, and Organoleptic Properties of Foods

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A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Process Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 May 2023) | Viewed by 9299

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Cristina Soares

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Guest Editor

REQUIMTE–LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto, 4249-015 Porto, Portugal
Interests: bioresources; seaweeds; food safety and processing; functional products; bioactivities; green technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Clara Grosso

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Guest Editor

REQUIMTE–LAQV, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto, R. Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida 431, 4249-015 Porto, Portugal
Interests: seaweeds; medicinal plants; secondary metabolites; bioactivities; green extraction processes; nanotechnology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food processing allows safely preserving and packaging foods, increasing shelf-life, and destroying or eliminating naturally occurring toxins, chemical contaminants, and antinutritive factors. Furthermore, it can reduce restrictions to the consumption of what is produced locally or seasonally. In this way, food processing greatly extends food availability and accessibility, increasing food choice and contributing to a more varied diet, which can provide all the nutrients required for good health. An unbalanced diet may lead to the progression and development of human diseases. These include metabolic and inflammatory disorders, cancer, and depression and can impact infant health and longevity. Food processing is a crucial factor determining the amount and type of nutrients and antinutrients affecting health. For example, food processing is usually related to the Maillard reaction that generates advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Alternatively, high-fermented foods are linked to increased microbiota diversity and decreased inflammatory markers. While the benefits are numerous, processing can also be detrimental, affecting foods’ nutritional quality, causing chemical changes that result in toxic or antinutritive factors.

This Special Issue aims to highlight the current progress in food design and processing and its potential effects on food quality and human health. In addition, strategies for improving the nutritional value of foods, food wastes, and food losses from current or future food manufacturing processes are welcomed. Moreover, analytical advances related to the analysis of food, biotransformation of food ingredients and the identification of the most interesting microbial metabolites obtained from dietary precursors are appreciated.

In this perspective, the contribution of original research manuscripts or relevant critical review articles in this scientific field is welcome and essential for the current issue.

Dr. Cristina Soares
Dr. Clara Grosso
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

food processing
food design
fermentation
gut microbiome
roasting
Maillard reaction
personalized nutrition
food wastes
food losses
byproducts
analytical methods
safety

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 2528 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

A Critical Assessment of Extraction Methodologies for the Valorization of Agricultural Wastes: Polyphenolic Profile and Bioactivity

by Cristina Soares, Manuela M. Moreira, Sandra Ramos, M. J. Ramalhosa, Manuela Correia, Jaroslava Svarc-Gajić, Cristina Delerue-Matos and M. Fátima Barroso

Processes 2023, 11(6), 1767; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pr11061767 - 10 Jun 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1191

Abstract

Different extraction techniques were used to exploit fruit processing residues for their use as a source of phenolic compounds. Three different extraction methods, namely microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), subcritical water extraction (SWE), and maceration (M), were assessed to gauge their respective efficacies. Total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and radical scavenging activity ABTS assay were evaluated. High-performance liquid chromatography was used to assess the polyphenolic profile. MAE was the extraction technique that allowed the highest recovery of polyphenolic compounds. Concerning the fruit by-products analyzed, the extract of pomegranate peels obtained using M60C and MAE had the highest TPC (313 ± 24 mg GAE/g dry weight (dw)) and TFC (36.0 ± 2.8 mg EE/g dw), respectively, and the highest antioxidant activity (FRAP = 740 ± 67 mg AAE/g dw and ABTS (628 ± 27 mg TE/g dw) corresponded to M60C. The phenolic composition obtained for this sample using high-performance liquid chromatographic–diode array detection (HPLC–DAD) showed that gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, β-resorcylic acid, (+)-cathechin, and rutin were the main phenolics found. The findings underscore the capacity of agricultural by-products to act as a source of phenolic compounds. This offers a feasible solution to enhance the nutritional content in food while simultaneously minimizing environmental waste. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Processing and Human Health: Impact on Nutritional, Safety, and Organoleptic Properties of Foods)

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16 pages, 2807 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Potential Efficacy of Bacillus coagulans BACO-17 to Modulate Gut Microbiota in Rats Fed High-Fat Diet

by Zu Chan, Chiou-Yeong Saw, Yi-Ching Wu, Der-Kai Lau, Wei-Jen Chen, Hui-Fang Chu, Cheng-Yen Liu, Ai-Lun Tseng and Chi-Fai Chau

Processes 2022, 10(12), 2692; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pr10122692 - 13 Dec 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1525

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the potential efficacy of Bacillus coagulans BACO-17 in ameliorating body fat accumulation as well as gut microbiota dysbiosis in animals, which were given a high-fat diet to mimic the adverse effect of an unhealthy dietary pattern. Compared with normal control, high-fat consumption resulted in significant (p < 0.05) elevations in weight gain (168%), feed efficiency (176%), visceral fat accumulation (228%), and a lesser total fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) (−27.5%). A significant shift of fecal Fimicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio from 1.13 to 3.14 was also observed. After 12 weeks of experiment, a supplementation of B. coagulans BACO-17 at high dose (9 log CFU/day) along with a high-fat diet could exert an apparent fat reduction ability by decreasing weight gain (by 23.7%) and visceral fat mass (by 24.0%). It was found that B. coagulans BACO-17 was able to increase fecal SCFA concentrations and revert Fimicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio back to the level comparable with the normal control. It could play a probiotic effect by increasing and decreasing the abundance of Muribaculaceae and Allobaculum, respectively. Therefore, a supplementation of adequate amount of B. coagulans BACO-17 might confer a concreted amelioration of deteriorated bacteria profiles and body fat accumulation due to high-fat consumption. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Processing and Human Health: Impact on Nutritional, Safety, and Organoleptic Properties of Foods)

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14 pages, 2172 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Enhancement of Digestion Resistance and Glycemic Control of Corn Starch through Conjugation with Gallic Acid and Quercetin Using the Free Radical Grafting Method

by Tsung-Yen Wu, Nan-Nong Sun, Zu Chan, Chao-Jung Chen, Yi-Ching Wu and Chi-Fai Chau

Processes 2022, 10(12), 2610; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pr10122610 - 06 Dec 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1518

Abstract

The objective of this study was to synthesize different polyphenol–corn starch complexes including gallic acid–starch and quercetin–starch by conjugating corn starch with gallic acid and quercetin using the free radical grafting method. This process was effective in enhancing conjugations of starch molecules with gallic acid and quercetin (5.20 and 5.83 mg GAE/g, respectively) and imparted promising antioxidant capacity to the phenolic–starch complexes. Significant interactions between these phenolic compounds and corn starch molecules were revealed with an ultraperformance liquid chromatography electrospray ionization Q-time-of-flight mass spectrometry assay. It was revealed that significantly higher levels of resistant starch in the above gallic–starch and quercetin–starch complex samples (11.6 and 15.3 g/100 g, respectively) together with an obvious reduction in glycemic response (7.9% and 11.8%, respectively) observed over the control. Complex samples functionalized with gallic acid and quercetin have exerted modified physicochemical properties, particularly reduction in swelling ability (58.7–60.1%), breakdown viscosity (62.5–67.8%), and setback viscosity (37.7–44.5%). In sum, free radical grafting treatment could be a promising method for imparting corn starch with enhanced resistance to enzyme digestion along with changes in pasting properties for specific food applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Processing and Human Health: Impact on Nutritional, Safety, and Organoleptic Properties of Foods)

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Review

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17 pages, 839 KiB

Open AccessReview

A Review of In Vitro Methods for Measuring the Glycemic Index of Single Foods: Understanding the Interaction of Mass Transfer and Reaction Engineering by Dimensional Analysis

by Yongmei Sun, Chao Zhong, Zelin Zhou, Zexin Lei and Timothy A. G. Langrish

Processes 2022, 10(4), 759; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pr10040759 - 13 Apr 2022

Viewed by 4123

Abstract

The Glycemic Index (GI) has been described by an official method ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 26642:2010 for labeling purposes. The development of in vitro methods for GI measurement has faced significant challenges. Mass transfer and reaction engineering theory may assist in providing a quantitative understanding of in vitro starch digestion and glycemic response from an engineering point of view. We suggest that in vitro GI measurements should consider the mouth and the stomach in terms of fluid mechanics, mass transfer, length scale changes, and food-solvent reactions, and might consider a significant role for the intestine as an absorption system for the glucose that is generated before the intestine. Applying mass transfer and reaction engineering theory may be useful to understand quantitative studies of in vitro GI measurements. The relative importance of reactions and mass-transfer has been estimated from literature measurements through estimating the Damköhler numbers (Da), and the values estimated of this dimensionless group (0.04–2.9) suggest that both mass transfer and chemical reaction are important aspects to consider. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Processing and Human Health: Impact on Nutritional, Safety, and Organoleptic Properties of Foods)

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