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Research from Top Food Chemists
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Research from Top Food Chemists

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 11292

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Manuel A. Coimbra

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
LAQV-REQUIMTE, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Interests: carbohydrates; structure and properties; food wastes; extraction; functional foods; packaging
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue entitled “Research from Top Food Chemists” is dedicated to recent research from top scientists in the field of food chemistry, in the hope of making a great contribution to the community. We intend for this issue to be the best forum for disseminating excellent research findings as well as sharing innovative ideas in the field. The Special Issue solicits manuscripts addressing topics including but not limited to the following:

  • Sustainable foods;
  • Food quality;
  • Valuation of food industry byproducts;
  • Circular economy;
  • Development of food products.

Research on the structural features of the molecules and their properties is particularly encouraged. Both original research articles and comprehensive review papers are welcome. Papers will be published after peer review with full open access.

Prof. Dr. Manuel A. Coimbra
Guest Editor

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. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2700 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 chemistry
  • food quality
  • food sustainability
  • food safety
  • nutrition
  • novel foods

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 1602 KiB  
Article
Interactions between Beer Compounds and Human Salivary Proteins: Insights toward Astringency and Bitterness Perception
by Leonor Gonçalves, Mónica Jesus, Elsa Brandão, Paulo Magalhães, Nuno Mateus, Victor de Freitas and Susana Soares
Molecules 2023, 28(6), 2522; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28062522 - 9 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1849
Abstract
Beer is one of the most consumed beverages worldwide with unique organoleptic properties. Bitterness and astringency are well-known key features and, when perceived with high intensity, could lead to beer rejection. Most studies on beer astringency and bitterness use sensory assays and fail [...] Read more.
Beer is one of the most consumed beverages worldwide with unique organoleptic properties. Bitterness and astringency are well-known key features and, when perceived with high intensity, could lead to beer rejection. Most studies on beer astringency and bitterness use sensory assays and fail to study the molecular events that occur inside the oral cavity responsible for those perceptions. This work focused on deepening this knowledge based on the interaction of salivary proteins (SP) and beer phenolic compounds (PCs) and their effect toward these two sensory attributes. The astringency and bitterness of four different beers were assessed by a sensory panel and were coupled to the study of the SP changes and PC profile characterization of beers. The human SP content was measured before (basal) and after each beer intake using HPLC analysis. The beers’ PC content and profile were determined using Folin–Ciocalteu and LC-MS spectrometry, respectively. The results revealed a positive correlation between PCs and astringency and bitterness and a negative correlation between SP changes and these taste modalities. Overall, the results revealed that beers with higher PC content (AAL and IPA) are more astringent and bitter than beers with a lower PC content (HL and SBO). The correlation results suggested that an increase in whole SP content, under stimulation, should decrease astringency and bitterness perception. No correlation was found between the changes in specific families of SP and astringency and bitterness perception. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research from Top Food Chemists)
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11 pages, 1424 KiB  
Article
Delphinidin-3-rutinoside from Blackcurrant Berries (Ribes nigrum): In Vitro Antiproliferative Activity and Interactions with Other Phenolic Compounds
by Bojana Miladinovic, Miguel Ângelo Faria, Mafalda Ribeiro, Maria Madalena Costa Sobral and Isabel M. P. L. V. O. Ferreira
Molecules 2023, 28(3), 1286; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28031286 - 28 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2241
Abstract
Blackcurrant berries (Rigrum L.) are of great interest for food scientists/technologists as a source of delphinidin-3-rutinoside (D3R). This is an uncommon phenolic compound in diets that unveils potent antiproliferative activity besides its colour. Other phenolic compounds, such as chlorogenic acid (CA) and [...] Read more.
Blackcurrant berries (Rigrum L.) are of great interest for food scientists/technologists as a source of delphinidin-3-rutinoside (D3R). This is an uncommon phenolic compound in diets that unveils potent antiproliferative activity besides its colour. Other phenolic compounds, such as chlorogenic acid (CA) and epicatechin (EC), also known by their antiproliferative effects, are abundant in foods and beverages. To design smart food/supplements combinations containing blackcurrant and improved anticancer properties at the gastrointestinal level, there is the need for more data concerning the combined effects of those molecules. In this work, synergistic, additive, or antagonistic effects against gastric and intestinal cancers of D3R, CA, and EC were assessed in vitro. The antiproliferative activity of D3R, CA, and EC, alone and in binary combinations (D3R+CA, D3R+EC, and CA+EC) on NCI-N87 (gastric) and Caco-2 (intestinal) cells, was assessed following the Chou-Talalay theorem at equipotent contributions (i.e., (IC50)1/(IC50)2). D3R presented the strongest antiproliferative activity of the single molecules tested, with IC50 values of 24.9 µM and 102.5 µM on NCI-N87 and Caco-2 cells, respectively. The combinations D3R+CA and CA+EC were synergic against NCI-N87 until IC50 and IC75, respectively, while D3R+EC shifted from slight antagonism to synergism at higher doses. On Caco-2 cells, antagonism at low doses and synergism at high doses was observed. Therefore, the synergisms observed on the gastric cancer model at low doses occurred on the colon model only at high doses. Data herein described is vital to the targeted smart design of foods and supplements, as it is foreseen that the same combination of phenolic compounds causes different interactions/effects depending on the dose and gastrointestinal compartment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research from Top Food Chemists)
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17 pages, 2092 KiB  
Article
Upcycling Rocha do Oeste Pear Pomace as a Sustainable Food Ingredient: Composition, Rheological Behavior and Microstructure Alone and Combined with Yeast Protein Extract
by Ana Fernandes, Sara Simões, Isabel M. P. L. V. O. Ferreira, Maria João Alegria, Nuno Mateus, Anabela Raymundo and Victor de Freitas
Molecules 2023, 28(1), 179; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28010179 - 25 Dec 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2319
Abstract
This work explores the potential of Rocha do Oeste pear pomace to be used as a sustainable and healthy food ingredient. Moreover, the enrichment with yeast protein extract (YPE) may be useful to design innovative food products. The main goals of this study [...] Read more.
This work explores the potential of Rocha do Oeste pear pomace to be used as a sustainable and healthy food ingredient. Moreover, the enrichment with yeast protein extract (YPE) may be useful to design innovative food products. The main goals of this study were to assess pear pomace concerning: (i) chemical composition and antioxidant capacity; (ii) rheology, texture, and microstructure characterization (alone or enriched with YPE), before and after heating. The results showed that pear pomace was a rich source of dietary fibers (74.5% DW), with phenolic compounds (3.9 mg chlorogenic acid equivalents/g dry weight), also presenting antiradical activity (3.90 μmol Trolox equivalents/g DW). Pear pomace showed a shear thinning behavior and a typical soft-gel behavior, which was not affected by YPE enrichment, thus suggesting that YPE did not affect pear pomace technological properties. Thermal treatment also did not alter pear pomace rheological properties. YPE addition induced a decrease in the apparent viscosity and a destabilizing effect, compared to the samples that were subjected to thermal processing. These results highlight the importance of pear pomace and the use of YPE for protein enrichment, opening new opportunities for their exploitation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research from Top Food Chemists)
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13 pages, 662 KiB  
Article
Food Ingredients Derived from Lemongrass Byproduct Hydrodistillation: Essential Oil, Hydrolate, and Decoction
by Luís Rodrigues, Elisabete Coelho, Renata Madeira, Pedro Teixeira, Isabel Henriques and Manuel A. Coimbra
Molecules 2022, 27(8), 2493; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27082493 - 12 Apr 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 4088
Abstract
Essential oil (EO), hydrolate, and nondistilled aqueous phase (decoction) obtained from the hydrodistillation of lemongrass byproducts were studied in terms of their potential as food ingredients under a circular economy. The EO (0.21%, dry weight basis) was composed mainly of monoterpenoids (61%), the [...] Read more.
Essential oil (EO), hydrolate, and nondistilled aqueous phase (decoction) obtained from the hydrodistillation of lemongrass byproducts were studied in terms of their potential as food ingredients under a circular economy. The EO (0.21%, dry weight basis) was composed mainly of monoterpenoids (61%), the majority being citral (1.09 g/kg). The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of lemongrass EO against Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, and Staphylococcus aureus, were 617, 1550, and 250 μg/mL, respectively. This effect was dependent on the citral content. Particularly for Gram-negative bacteria, a synergism between citral and the remaining EO compounds enhanced the antimicrobial activity. The polymeric material obtained from the nondistilled aqueous phase was composed of phenolic compounds (25% gallic acid equivalents) and carbohydrates (22%), mainly glucose (66 mol%). This polymeric material showed high antioxidant activity due to bound phenolic compounds, allowing its application as a functional dietary fiber ingredient. Matcha green tea formulations were successfully mixed with lemongrass hydrolate containing 0.21% EO (dry weight basis) with 58% of monoterpenoids, being citral at 0.73 g/kg, minimizing matcha astringency with a citrus flavor and extending the product shelf life. This holistic approach to essential oils’ hydrodistillation of Cymbopogon citratus byproducts allows for valorizing of the essential oil, hydrolate, and decoction for use as food ingredients. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research from Top Food Chemists)
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