Recent Patents on Food, Nutrition & Agriculture - Volume 10, Issue 2, 2019

Background: The supercritical fluids applied to particle engineering over the last years have received growing interest from the food and non-food industries, in terms of processing, packaging, and preservation of several products. The rapid expansion of supercritical solutions (RESS) process has been recently reported as an efficient technique for the production of free-solvent particles with controlled morphology and size distribution. Objective: In this review, we report technological aspects of the application of the RESS process applied to the food and non-food industry, considering recent data and patent survey registered in literature. Methods: The effect of process parameters cosolvent addition, temperature, pressure, nozzle size among others, during RESS on the size, structure and morphology of the resulted particles, and the main differences about recent patented RESS processes are reviewed. Results: Most of the experimental works intend to optimize their processes through investigation of process parameters. Conclusion: RESS is a feasible alternative for the production of particles with a high yield of bioactive constituents of interest to the food industry. On the other hand, patents developed using this type of process for food products are very scarce, less attention being given to the potential of this technique to develop particles from plant extracts with bioactive substances.

Soybean sprouts are nutrient-rich, contain plentiful proteins, vitamin C, and minerals and are packed in small numbers after production. As soybean sprouts were mass produced in a factory, the occurrence of rotting in soybean sprouts has become a serious problem. To overcome these problems, many efforts have been made to provide healthy soybean sprouts in Korea. This paper reviewed the physicochemical techniques used for supplying water with antibacterial properties and the natural antimicrobial materials developed for soybean sprout cultivation. On the basis of this review, 11 of the antimicrobial agents and/or techniques currently used originated from mineral, non-metal ions, and metal ions, 4 from antagonistic microorganisms, 7 from agents originating from animals, 31 from medicinal and herbal plants, and 11 from physicochemical agents and/or techniques. In addition, these agents and/or techniques showed potential not only for the inhibition of spoilage and rot of soybean sprouts but also for the extension of product shelf life, the enhancement of taste and aroma, the enhancement of nutrition and functional components, growth promotion, and/or the reduction of production costs. Continuous scientific innovations and improved processing technology will aid in further advancements and improvements in this area. Therefore, this study offers useful insights suggesting direction for future research and provides information on the different anti-rotting agents and/or techniques for soybean sprouts developed to date, also as discussed in various patents.

Background: Deficit irrigation is an optimum technique for producing products under drought stress conditions. The superabsorbent hydrogel is a hydrophilic polymer with cross-linked 3-D hydrophilic nets that are able to take up and keep noteworthy values of water and aquatic liquids. Recently published patents have provided significant information about the superabsorbent application in agriculture. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the superabsorbent effect on the yield and some of the growth factors of Pisum sativum L. under drought stress conditions. Methods: The experimental factors included: irrigation treatments at two levels of 100% and 75% water requirement by the plant. The second factor included the levels of superabsorbent application which included three levels of control treatment, potting soil with a weight percentage of 0.5 and 1. The third factor was the location of the superabsorbent application. Results: According to the results, the largest root length value corresponded to I2S1U treatment plan, the largest root dry weight value corresponded to I1S2U treatment plan, the largest plant dry weight corresponded to I2S1U treatment plan, the largest grain dry weight corresponded to I2S1U treatment plan, the largest number of grains per pod corresponded to I2S2U treatment plan and the largest number of pods per plant corresponded to I2S1U treatment plan which were significant at 5% level. Conclusion: It was concluded that the presence of the superabsorbent at the lower end of the pot was effective in providing water and nutrients for the plant root.

Background: Nowadays, chlorophycean microalgae have attained a broad-spectrum attention as a potential candidate for biomass and bioenergy production. Despite their appreciated benefits, one of major problems is their low biomass and lipid productivity. Here we investigated the heterotrophic culture in shake flasks and stirred tank bioreactor to improve the lipid and biomass production in a naturally isolated strain of Chlorella vulgaris. Methods: A naturally isolated C. vulgaris strain was cultivated in BG-11 medium in shake flask and bioreactor. Its biochemical composition and growth kinetic parameters were investigated. Results: The biomass productivity was improved (3.68 fold) under heterotrophic culture compared to basal autotrophic culture condition in shake flask experiment. The total lipid content increased to 44% of total Dry Cell Weight (DCW) during heterotrophic growth after 21 days. Moreover, a great Fatty Acid Methyl Esters (FAME) yield was observed under heterotrophic cultivation. Total biomass and lipid content of microalgae in bioreactor experiment increased to 4.95 and 2.18 g L-1 respectively, during 5 days of the experiment compared to its basic autotrophic culture. Conclusion: The techno-economic aspects of exploiting C. vulgaris as a biodiesel feedstock werealso evaluated. The results imply that heterotrophic cultivation could compensate the low biomass productivity in microalgae for green energy production. Ever growing rates of established patents on application of various genetic and bioengineering-based methods have made it possible to achieve higher lipid contents with reduced total costs for microalgal biodiesel production as well.

Background: Among stone fruit, the peach (Prunus persica (L) Batsch) is one of the most widely grown species in Brazil, in both area cultivated and in production. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the physiological quality of heavy and light seeds of four cultivars of Prunus persica for two storage periods, from tests of electrical conductivity, germination, and an analysis of initial plantlets growth. Methods: The Electrical Conductivity test (EC) was conducted in a Completely Randomised Design (CRD), in a 4 x 2 x 5 factorial scheme with five replications. The germination test was carried out in CRD, in a 4 x 2 factorial scheme with eight replications. The physiological quality of the seeds was determined at zero and twelve month’s storage. For the growth analysis, the experimental design was in CRD, in a 4 x 2 factorial scheme with four replications. Results: Under the conditions of the present study, it was found that the tests of germination and electrical conductivity were complementary in evaluating physiological quality in seeds of Prunus persica rootstock, suggesting that independent of the weight of the seeds, in ‘Capdeboscq’, ‘Aldrighi’, ‘Okinawa’ and ‘Okinawa Roxo’, there is a loss of quality and viability when the seeds are stored for a period of 12 months. Conclusion: Under the experimental conditions of the present study, it was concluded that storage for a period of 12 months in Recent patents is not rather recommendable for maintaining quality and viability in seeds of Prunus persica of the Capdeboscq, Aldrighi, Okinawa and Okinawa Roxo cultivars.

Background: Phytases are enzymes capable of degrading phytic acid and used in animal feed supplementation in order to improve digestibility through the release of minerals such as phosphorus. Objective: The main goal of this study was to express and characterize a Yersinia intermedia phytase expressed in Escherichia coli cells. Methods: The Y. intermedia phytase gene was synthesized and overexpressed in Escherichia coli cells. The phytase recombinante (rPHY) was purified to homogeneity using a Ni-NTA column. The biochemical and biophysical properties of the rPHY were measured in order to fully characterize the recombinant enzyme. The following patents database were consulted: Espacenet, USPTO, LATIPAT, Patent Scope, WIPO and Google Patents. Results: The results showed that the rPHY is active at 37-40ºC and presented an optimal pH and temperature of 8.0 and 40°C, respectively. The phytase rPHY was activated by Cu2+ ion and showed resistance to trypsin and pepsin, retaining 55% of the activity at the ratio of 0.02. Furthermore, the dissociation constant (Kd = 1.1150 ± 0.0087 mM), as estimated by a fluorescence binding assay, suggests a medium affinity of the enzyme with the substrate. Conclusion: The results of this article can be considered as innovative and for this reason, they were protected by Intellectual Property Law in Brazil. Take together, the biochemical properties of the rPHY could be useful in future for its industrial application of this enzyme as an additive in the monogastric feed.

Objectives: Plantain Pseudostem (PPS) wastes were biotransformed by applying Simultaneous Saccharification and Fermentation (SSF) using excised snail digestive juice and yeast slurry, and their oil properties compared with oils from commercially sold poultry feeds (PF). Patents suggesting the inclusion of certain additives (US20090226558A1), spices (US5741508A), cysteamine (US4711897A), and dextrin (US6326051B1) in animal diets are regarded as expensive, thus, requiring cheaper and readily available sources of growth. Methods: The analysis of their free radical scavenging potentials was carried by spectrophotometry, while fatty acids, volatile fatty acids, essentials oils, and phytosterols were determined by chromatography. Results: After biotransformation, the melting point, specific gravity, acid, and peroxide values of the oils from SSF-PPS were significantly lower than those of PF, and showed elevations of C6:0- C18:1(trans-9) fatty acids, palmitic, stearic, γ-Linolenic, α-linolenic, behenic, and lignoceric acids. Camphene, β-phelandrene, eugenol, β-elemene, bicyclogermacrene, guaiol, tetradecanoic acid, and hexadecanoic acid levels decreased when PPS was biotransformed. Lactic (1575.75 mg/100g), acetic (1234.26 mg/100g), propionic (845.74 mg/100g), and n-butyric (68.56 mg/100g) acids were the predominant Volatile Fatty Acids (VFAs) in the SSF-PPS oils, which were higher than those found in the PF oil while PF oil contained higher campesterol, Stigmasterol, and 5-avesmasterol. The 2,2- azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS), 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), superoxide, and nitric oxide radical scavenging potentials of PPS oil at high concentrations after biotransformation were equivalent to the standards and the PF oil. Conclusion: This study has shown that biotransformation involving snail digestive juice and yeasts extensively improves the oil qualities of agricultural residues sufficient enough for poultry nutrition.

Aims and Background: Fish serves as a good source of dietary protein which is very inexpensive in relation to other animal protein foods and it is an excellent component of human diet. This study assessed the effects of smoking methods and natural spices on studied parameters and consumer acceptance of smoked silver catfish (Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus). Methods: One hundred samples of silver catfish were obtained by purposive sampling method. The fresh fish samples were smoked in two batches, the first batch was smoked with drum smoker and the second batch with oven smoker while the control was smoked without the natural spices. Rancidity indices (TVB-N, TMA-N, TBA and pH), microbiological analysis and sensory evaluation were carried out on smoked fish samples. The recent patents on edible fat blends (US20020031595A1), long chain fatty acids (WO2008085840A2) and esters of polyunsaturated fatty acids (US20090023808A1) helped in selecting the analytical methods. Results: The results showed that there was statistical significant difference (P≤0.05) between total volatile base-nitrogen, trimethylamine values and pH of the smoked silver catfish samples treated with different concentrations of clove, ginger and garlic paste and those samples which were not treated with clove, ginger and garlic. This study showed that smoking methods has effects on quality indices, microbial quality and consumer acceptance of smoked silver catfish. Clove, ginger and garlic have some anti-oxidative effects on rancidity indices of smoked silver catfish as there was inverse relationship between clove, ginger and garlic and values of peroxide, free fatty acid and thiobarbituric acid. This was also observed for the microbial quality of the smoked silver catfish. There was also inverse relationship between clove, ginger and garlic and all the sensory parameters except for texture and as the concentrations of the natural spices increase the values of the sensory parameters decrease. Conclusion: In conclusion, this study showed that smoking methods affects the studied parameters, microbial quality and consumer acceptance of smoked silver catfish. Addition of clove, ginger and garlic had anti-microbial and anti-oxidative effects on quality parameters of smoked silver catfish. There was also a negative correlation between clove, ginger and garlic and all the sensory parameters except for texture.