Application of batter coating for modulating oil, texture and structure of fried foods: A review.

Food surface modulation by batter coating is a promising approach to reduce the presence of oil in fried products. This review critically discussed the functionalities, mechanism of actions, rheology, ingredients of formulation, mathematical modeling of the process, cooking method, safety and regulatory aspects, physicochemical, thermal-microstructural characterization of batter coatings, and future research directions. Enormous list of ingredients could be used in preparation of oil-reducing viscoelastic batter coating that includes mostly flours, hydrocolloids, and starches. Bioactive compounds, enzymes, minerals, herbal extracts, baking agents, sugar alcohols, etc. could be incorporated in batter formulation to affect the taste and texture of coated products. Overall mass-transfer process of batter-coated fried foods could be characterized by several mathematical models (Fick, Newton, Page, Henderson & Pabis, modified Page, Arrhenius). Surface and internal microstructural characterization techniques, thermal probing, physicochemical characterization techniques and artificial intelligence can characterize different functionalities of batter coatings including oil reduction and textural evolution.

A systematic review of dietary data collection methodologies for diet diversity indicators.

The purpose of the current study was to critically assess the gaps in the existing methodologies of dietary data collection for diet diversity indicators. The study proposed the importance of smartphone application to overcome the drawbacks. The review paper identified and assessed the conventional methodologies used in diet diversity indicators including Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W), Minimum Dietary Diversity of Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices (IYCF-MDD), and Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS). The 80 research studies from 38 countries were critically assessed on the basis of their research aim, study design, target audience, dietary data collection methodology, sample size, dietary data type, dietary data collection frequency, and location point of dietary data collection. Results indicated that most studies employed interviewer-administered 24-h recall assessing the dietary diversity. The review paper concluded that smartphone application had potential to overcome the identified limitations of conventional methodologies including recall bias, social-desirability bias, interviewer training, and cost-time constraints.

Thermomechanical transitions of meat-analog based fried foods batter coating.

This study aimed to characterize the thermomechanical transitions of meat-analog (MA) based coated fried foods. Wheat and rice flour-based batters were used to coat the MA and fried at 180 °C in canola oil for 2, 4 and 6 min. Glass-transition-temperature (Tg) of the coatings were assessed by differential scanning calorimetry, directly after frying or after post-fry holding. Mechanical texture analyzer and X-ray microtomography were employed to assess textural attributes and internal microstructure, respectively. Batter-formulation substantially impacted the Tg of fried foods coating i.e., crust. Tg of fried foods crust were ranged between -20 °C to -24 °C. Tg was positively correlated with frying time and internal microporosity (%), whereas negatively correlated with moisture content. Internal microstructure greatly influenced the textural attributes (hardness, brittleness, crispiness). Post-fry textural stability considerably impacted by Tg. Negative Tg value explains post-fry textural changes (hard-to-soft, brittle-to-ductile, crispy-to-soggy) of MA-based coated products at room-temperature (25 °C) and under IR-heating (65 °C).

An Adaptive Partial Least-Squares Regression Approach for Classifying Chicken Egg Fertility by Hyperspectral Imaging.

Partial least-squares (PLS) regression is a well known chemometric method used for predictive modelling, especially in the presence of many variables. Although PLS was not initially developed as a technique for classification tasks, scientists have reportedly used this approach successfully for discrimination purposes. Whereas some non-supervised learning approaches, including, but not limited to, PCA and k-means clustering, do well in identifying/understanding grouping and clustering patterns in multidimensional data, they are limited when the end target is discrimination, making PLS a preferable alternative. Hyperspectral imaging data on a total of 672 fertilized chicken eggs, consisting of 336 white eggs and 336 brown eggs, were used in this study. Hyperspectral images in the NIR region of the 900-1700 nm wavelength range were captured prior to incubation on day 0 and on days 1-4 after incubation. Eggs were candled on incubation day 5 and broken out on day 10 to confirm fertility. While a total number of 312 and 314 eggs were found to be fertile in the brown and white egg batches, respectively, the total number of non-fertile eggs in the same set of batches was 23 and 21, respectively. Spectral information was extracted from a segmented region of interest (ROI) of each hyperspectral image and spectral transmission characteristics were obtained by averaging the spectral information. A moving-thresholding technique was implemented for discrimination based on PLS regression results on the calibration set. With true positive rates (TPRs) of up to 100% obtained at selected threshold values of between 0.50 and 0.85 and on different days of incubation, the results indicate that the proposed PLS technique can accurately discriminate between fertile and non-fertile eggs. The adaptive PLS approach was, thereby, presented as suitable for handling hyperspectral imaging-based chicken egg fertility data.

Restructuring plant-derived composites towards the production of meat-analog based coated fried food.

This study utilized different plant-based composites to develop restructured meat-analog (MA). Physicochemical, thermal, mechanical, structural, and sensory properties of formulated MA as well as batter-coated fried MAs were studied, and compared with a commercial product. Protein (23.27-24.68 %), moisture (57.05-58.78 %), pH (7.19-7.57), color (L:64.76-66.84, a:0.62-1.98, b:18.84-20.49), and textural (MF:0.22-0.52 N, GF:0.07-0.24 N/sec, FA:0.74-1.92 N.sec) attributes of formulated MAs were substantially impacted by the ratio of soy-protein-isolate (SPI) and wheat-gluten (WG). Incorporation of higher WG and lower SPI resulted in the formation of chicken-like fibrous and porous structure, hence, increased consumers acceptability of MA-based coated fried products. Microporosity (crust:51.14-58.35 %, core: 63.57-71.55 %), surface opening (5.67-14.75 %), and fractal dimension (2.586-2.402) of coated fried MAs were dependent on the formulation of batter-coating. MA-based coated fried products surface moisture-fat (SMR:0.51-187.20 au; SFR: 2.01-20.17 au) profile significantly (p < 0.05) varied with the formulations of batter-coating. Negative glass-transition-temperature (around -23 °C) is prime concern for MA-based fried products stability at room environment.

Designing sustainable circular bioeconomy solutions for the pulse industry: The case of crude pea starch as a substrate for single cell protein production.

Valorization of crude pea starch has become a key focus in the pea industry's sustainability pursuit. This study aimed to explore the circularity potential of crude pea starch as a nutrient-dense substrate for the solid-state cultivation of yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) Single Cell Protein (SCP). Following the ISO 2006:14040/44 standard, a life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed to ascertain the environmental performance and operational dynamics of baseline and scenario pea starch-based yeast SCP process designs and identify optimal design considerations. Results demonstrated a higher relative contribution to the toxicity categories, with a relatively less contribution to global warming and land use. The distribution and media enrichment processes were identified as the hotspots, contributing about 32-55 % and 40-56 % to global warming and land use, respectively. Generally, train and air freight were more sustainable than lorry freight, respective of mileage and mass. Regarding system alteration, eliminating the media enrichment process could offset about 26 % of land footprint, with a similar trend for most impact categories. Process benchmarking showed up to a 3-fold reduction in global warming impacts relative to soybean meal, and about 71 % offset relative to fishmeal. Consequential LCA showed a general sustainability preference for substituting the aquacultural feeds with pea starch-based SCP, with a stronger emphasis on fishmeal substitution. Overall, these findings highlight the potential of the proposed SCP design as a sustainable upcycling solution with substitutionary potentials for conventional food and feeds, recommending further exploration in value and wealth creation.

Challenges and Prospects of Plant-Protein-Based 3D Printing.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a rapidly developing additive manufacturing technique consisting of the deposition of materials layer-by-layer to produce physical 3D structures. The technique offers unique opportunities to design and produce new products that cater to consumer experience and nutritional requirements. In the past two decades, a wide range of materials, especially plant-protein-based materials, have been documented for the development of personalized food owing to their nutritional and environmental benefits. Despite these benefits, 3D printing with plant-protein-based materials present significant challenges because there is a lack of a comprehensive study that takes into account the most relevant aspects of the processes involved in producing plant-protein-based printable items. This review takes into account the multi-dimensional aspects of processes that lead to the formulation of successful printable products which includes an understanding of rheological characteristics of plant proteins and 3D-printing parameters, as well as elucidating the appropriate concentration and structural hierarchy that are required to maintain stability of the substrate after printing. This review also highlighted the significant and most recent research on 3D food printing with a wide range of plant proteins. This review also suggests a future research direction of 3D printing with plant proteins.

Electromagnetic, Air and Fat Frying of Plant Protein-Based Batter-Coated Foods.

There is growing consumer and food industry interest in plant protein-based foods. However, quality evolution of plant protein-based meat analog (MA) is still a rarely studied subject. In this study, wheat and rice flour-based batter systems were used to coat plant protein-based MA, and were partially fried (at 180 °C, 1 min) in canola oil, subsequently frozen (at -18 °C) and stored for 7 days. Microwave heating (MH), infrared heating (IH), air frying (AF) and deep-fat frying (DFF) processes were employed on parfried frozen MA products, and their quality evolution was investigated. Results revealed that the fat content of MH-, IH- and AF-treated products was significantly (p < 0.05) lower than DFF-treated counterparts. Batter coatings reduced fat uptake in DFF of MA-based products. Both the batter formulations and cooking methods impacted the process parameters and quality attributes (cooking loss, moisture, texture, color) of MA-based coated food products. Moreover, the post-cooking stability of moisture and textural attributes of batter-coated MA-based products was impacted by both the batter formulations and cooking methods. Glass transition temperature (Tg) of MA-based products' crust ranged from -20.0 °C to -23.1 °C, as determined with differential scanning calorimetry. ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that surface structural-chemical evolution of MA-based products was impacted by both the coating formulations and cooking methods. Overall, AF has been found as a suitable substitute for DFF in terms of studied quality attributes of meat analog-based coated products.

Designing nutrition-sensitive agriculture (NSA) interventions with multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA): a review.

Despite the efforts to end malnutrition through intensive agriculture of caloric crops, micronutrient deficiencies and other forms of malnutrition persist in vulnerable communities worldwide. Nutrition-sensitive agriculture (NSA) interventions are recognized as chances to address the causes of malnutrition. In this work, the different types of NSA interventions were explored, as well as the pathways through which they can improve nutrition (e.g., increasing biofortified crops and income generation via agricultural sales for a positive impact on access to nutritious foods, and simultaneously involving nutrition education to improve care practices and eventually nutritional status). Some NSA interventions focus on one pathway. Well-designed interventions, however, should follow multi-pathway approaches targeting the underlying causes of undernutrition within the selected population. The circumstances in which certain indicators should be used to measure the impact of an NSA intervention in each stage of the full pathway were also explained, as well as the need of enhancing the design of such interventions. Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) has been employed to solve agriculture-related issues, but it has not been used to identify the optimal types of NSA interventions, metrics, and indicators based on the context of the community, priorities and objectives of the project managers and designers, etc.

Design and Development of 'Diet DQ Tracker': A Smartphone Application for Augmenting Dietary Assessment.

The purpose of the current study was to describe the design, development, and validation of the 'Diet DQ Tracker'. The 'Diet DQ Tracker' is the first self-administered smartphone app designed to collect dietary data for diet diversity indicators. The main objective of the app was to replace the traditional methods of dietary data collection, such as in-person or telephone 24 h recall via pen and paper questionnaire or tablets. The real-time meal recording, extensive food database, and automatic score calculations and visualizations for MDD-W, IYCF-MDD, and HDDS have the potential to overcome the drawbacks of 24 h recalls. Recall depends on respondent memory, food expertise, and time consumption and demands skilled interviewers. Further, SAIN, LIM recommendations in the app prompt users to diversify diets with healthy foods. The pilot study determined the acceptability, feasibility, and relative validity of the 'Diet DQ Tracker' with a 24 h dietary recall. The results demonstrated minimal differences in dietary scores by both methodologies. The app, being convenient, easy to use, less time-consuming, and enjoyable, was preferred by the entire study sample over 24 h recall. The app will be continually updated with foods from different cultures for validating in large-scale studies. The future studies will help to improve the subsequent versions of the app.

Effect of ultrasound pretreated hydrocolloid batters on quality attributes of fried chicken nuggets during post-fry holding.

In this study, batters formulated with different hydrocolloids (i.e., pectin, locust bean gum, xanthan gum, guar gum, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and methylcellulose) were treated with ultrasound as edible coatings for fried chicken nuggets. Quality characteristics (i.e., batter pickup, flow behaviours, thermal properties, moisture loss, color and textural properties) in chicken nuggets coated with ultrasound treated batters were evaluated before and after post frying exposure to heat lamp. Ultrasonication significantly reduced batter pickup, flow behavior and gelatinization enthalpy, revealing its tendency to alter functional properties of batter systems. Rheological evaluation of all batter samples revealed a pseudoplastic (shear thinning) flow characteristic when fitted to power law model, with ultrasonicated (US) samples exhibiting a significantreduction in viscosity over non-ultrasonicated (NUS) samples. Compared to the control NUS, fat content of chicken nuggets coated with US-treated batters decreased by 39.0, 60.9, 62.87, 64.1, 65.7, and 65.0 % for pectin, locust bean gum, xanthan gum, guar gum, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose and methylcellulose, respectively. Finally, chicken nuggets coated with US and NUS treated batters exhibited greater cutting force values immediately after frying but declined within the first 10 min of heat lamp exposure and increased subsequently with extended heat lamp holding time. Furthermore, NUS-treated guar gum resulted in chicken nuggets with the most minimal variability in cutting force during post-frying holding, indicating that crispiness was maintained. Overall, application of ultrasound as a batter pretreatment technique can be exploited by the frying food industry as an alternative approach to producing low fat chicken nuggets with appreciable quality attributes.

3D Food Printing Applications Related to Dysphagia: A Narrative Review.

Dysphagia is a condition in which the swallowing mechanism is impaired. It is most often a result of a stroke. Dysphagia has serious consequences, including choking and aspiration pneumonia, which can both be fatal. The population that is most affected by it is the elderly. Texture-modified diets are part of the treatment plan for dysphagia. This bland, restrictive diet often contributes to malnutrition in patients with dysphagia. Both energy and protein intake are of concern, which is especially worrying, as it affects the elderly. Making texture-modified diets more appealing is one method to increase food intake. As a recent technology, 3D food printing has great potential to increase the appeal of textured foods. With extrusion-based printing, both protein and vegetable products have already been 3D printed that fit into the texture categories provided by the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative. Another exciting advancement is 4D food printing which could make foods even more appealing by incorporating color change and aroma release following a stimulus. The ultra-processed nature of 3D-printed foods is of nutritional concern since this affects the digestion of the food and negatively affects the gut microbiome. There are mitigating strategies to this issue, including the addition of hydrocolloids that increase stomach content viscosity and the addition of probiotics. Therefore, 3D food printing is an improved method for the production of texture-modified diets that should be further explored.

Ultrasound-assisted processing: Science, technology and challenges for the plant-based protein industry.

The present-day consumer is not only conscious of the relationship between food consumption and positive health, but also keen on environmental sustainability. Thus, the demand for plant-based proteins, which are associated with nutrition and environmental sustainability. However, the plant-based protein industry still demands urgent innovation due to the low yield and long extraction time linked with traditional extraction methods. Although ultrasound is an eco-innovative technique, there exist limited data regarding its impact with plant-based protein. In this paper, the scientific principles of ultrasonication with regards to its application in plant-based protein research were reviewed. After comparing the cavitational and shearing impacts of different ultrasonic parameters, the paper further reviewed its effects on extracted protein characteristics and techno-functional properties. Additionally, current technological challenges and future perspectives of ultrasonication for the plant-based protein industry were also discussed. In summary, this review does not only present the novelty and environmental sustainability of ultrasound as a plant-based protein assisted-extraction method, but also highlights on the correlation between protein source, structure and subsequent functional properties which are important crucial factors for maximum application of ultrasound in the growing plant-based protein market.

A novel Bacillus ligniniphilus catechol 2,3-dioxygenase shows unique substrate preference and metal requirement.

Identification of novel enzymes from lignin degrading microorganisms will help to develop biotechnologies for biomass valorization and aromatic hydrocarbons degradation. Bacillus ligniniphilus L1 grows with alkaline lignin as the single carbon source and is a great candidate for ligninolytic enzyme identification. The first dioxygenase from strain L1 was heterologously expressed, purified, and characterized with an optimal temperature and pH of 32.5 °C and 7.4, respectively. It showed the highest activity with 3-ethylcatechol and significant activities with other substrates in the decreasing order of 3-ethylcatechol > 3-methylcatechol > 3-isopropyl catechol > 2, 3-dihydroxybiphenyl > 4-methylcatechol > catechol. It did not show activities against other tested substrates with similar structures. Most reported catechol 2,3-dioxygenases (C23Os) are Fe2+-dependent whereas Bacillus ligniniphilus catechol 2,3-dioxygenase (BLC23O) is more Mn2+- dependent. At 1 mM, Mn2+ led to 230-fold activity increase and Fe2+ led to 22-fold increase. Sequence comparison and phylogenetic analyses suggested that BL23O is different from other Mn-dependent enzymes and uniquely grouped with an uncharacterized vicinal oxygen chelate (VOC) family protein from Paenibacillus apiaries. Gel filtration analysis showed that BLC23O is a monomer under native condition. This is the first report of a C23O from Bacillus ligniniphilus L1 with unique substrate preference, metal-dependency, and monomeric structure.

Anisotropic effect on the predictability of intramuscular fat content in pork by hyperspectral imaging and chemometrics.

The fibrous structure of meat muscle makes it an anisotropic optical material. As such, spectral information varies with the orientation of the muscle. In this study, spectral data from pork cuts were obtained by a transverse scan (TRANSCAN), radial scan (RADISCAN), and longitudinal scan (LONGSCAN) by using hyperspectral imaging. The information was used to develop and compare the prediction models for intramuscular (IMF) content prediction by partial least square regression (PLSR), support vector machines regression (SVMR), and backpropagation artificial neural network (BPANN). The three modeling algorithms showed equal capability for modeling IMF in pork. The accuracy of the prediction models from the three scans was in the order of TRANSCAN ≥ RADISCAN ≥ LONGSCAN. Successive projection algorithm reduced the wavelengths to 93%. The reduced wavelengths were used to build new models that showed similar accuracy to the models of the original wavelengths. This study shows that muscle orientation influences the accuracy of the prediction models.

Impact of thermo-sonication on quality indices of starch-based sauces.

In this study, ultrasonication, a physical, relatively cheap, and environmentally benign technology, was investigated to characterize its effect on functional properties of rice starch and rice starch-based sauces. Temperature-assisted ultrasound treatment improved the granular swelling power, fat and water absorption capacities, and thermal properties of rice starch, signifying its suitability in the formulation of starch-based sauces. Rheological characterization of the formulated sauces revealed a shear-thinning flow behavior, well described by the Ostwald de Waele model, while viscoelastic properties showed the existence of a weak gel. Results indicated that ultrasonication significantly enhanced the pseudoplastic behavior of starch-based sauces. Additionally, textural analysis showed that textural attributes (stickiness, stringiness, and work of adhesion) were also improved with ultrasonication. Moreover, enhanced freeze/thaw stability was also achieved with ultrasound-treated starch-based sauces. Overall, the results from this study show that ultrasound-treated starches can be used in the formulation of sauces and potentially other food products, which meets the requirements for clean label and minimally processed foods.

Research Note: Effects of supplementing cranberry and blueberry pomaces on meat quality and antioxidative capacity in broilers.

Cranberry and blueberry pomaces are rich in antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds. They have been identified as potential antibiotic alternatives in animal feed, but their antioxidative capacity for maintaining or improving the meat quality in broilers is not well documented. This study was to determine whether cranberry and wild blueberry pomaces in diets could positively influence the broiler meat quality. A total of 3,150 broilers were randomly allotted to 10 dietary treatments with bacitracin methylene disalicylate, wild cranberry pomace (CRP) (0.5 and 1% of the basal diet), and wild blueberry pomace (BLP) (0.5 and 1% of the basal diet) alone or in combination with a mixture of feed enzymes. The results showed that supplementation with the CRP or BLP did not affect meat lightness and yellowness, while the deeper red meat (higher a∗ values) was observed in the birds receiving the diet containing 0.5% BLP against those in CRP treatments (P = 0.015). In addition, inclusion of CRP or BLP in the diet did not change meat texture and proximate composition (moisture, protein, fat, ash) irrespective of pomace concentrations. Although there were no obvious effects of CRP or BLP supplementation on meat antioxidant capacity and the incidence of myopathies (P > 0.05), the upward trend of antioxidant capacity and less severity of woody breast were observed in birds fed with 0.5% CRP. Furthermore, supplementation of 0.5 or 1.0% CRP without the enzyme resulted in higher mRNA levers of Nrf, Gpx2, and HO-1 (P < 0.05). Taken together, 0.5% CRP supplementation without the enzyme could potentially maintain meat quality and attenuate the severity of woody breast.

Non-Destructive Assessment of Chicken Egg Fertility.

Total hatching egg set (for both egg production chicks and broilers) in the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada report 2017 was over 1.0 billion. With the fertility rate for this year observed to be around 82%, there were about 180 million unhatched eggs (worth over 300 million Canadian dollars) incubated in Canada for the year 2017 alone. These non-hatching (non-fertile) eggs can find useful applications as commercial table eggs or low-grade food stock if they can be detected early and isolated accordingly preferably prior to incubation. The conventional method of chicken egg fertility assessment termed candling, is subjective, cumbersome, slow, and eventually inefficient, leading to huge economic losses. Hence, there is a need for a non-destructive, fast and online prediction technology to assist with early chicken egg fertility identification problem. This paper reviewed existing non-destructive approaches including ultrasound and dielectric measurements, thermal imaging, machine vision, spectroscopy, and hyperspectral imaging. Hyperspectral imaging was extensively discussed, being an emerging new technology with great potential. Suggestions were finally proffered towards building futuristic robust model(s) for early detection of chicken egg fertility.

Ultrasonic assisted phenolic elicitation and antioxidant potential of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) sprouts.

Limited literature is available concerning the phenolic biosynthesis and antioxidative potential of common bean sprouts induced by ultrasound elicitation. In this study, common bean seeds were treated with ultrasound at different power (0, 180 and 360 W) and time (0, 30, 45 and 60 min) levels, before they were subjected to sprouting (24, 48, 72 and 96 h). Stress markers (H2O2, catalase and guaiacol peroxidase), activities of defense phenolic triggering enzymes (phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and tyrosine ammonia-lyase), phenolic contents (total phenolic acids, total flavonoids and anthocyanins) and antioxidant capacities (DPPH, ABTS and Fe2+ scavenging) were monitored. Results showed that, ultrasound elicitation (especially 360 W, 60 min) significantly increased accumulation of stress markers at 96 h of sprouting, leading to elevated activities of defense phenolic triggering enzymes, and final accumulation of phenolics and antioxidant capacities at significant levels compared to control. Ultrasound treatment at 360 W and 60 min reduced sprouting time by 60 h, compared to control. Results from principal component analysis clearly differentiated latter stages of sprouting and high ultrasound levels from other sprouting conditions as distinct treatments for the production of phenolic-rich common bean sprouts. Overall, results from this study indicated that elicitation with ultrasound can be a green and novel approach for producing phenolic-enriched common bean sprouts as an organic nutraceutical vegetable.

Effect of Non-Conventional Drying Methods on In Vitro Starch Digestibility Assessment of Cooked Potato Genotypes.

Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) are a good dietary source of carbohydrates in the form of digestible starch (DS) and resistant starch (RS). As increased RS content consumption can be associated with decreased chronic disease risk, breeding efforts have focused on identifying potato varieties with higher RS content, which requires high-throughput analysis of starch profiles. For this purpose, freeze drying of potatoes has been used but this approach leads to inaccurate RS values. The present study objective was to assess the starch content (RS, DS and total starch (TS)) of three cooked potato genotypes that were dried using freeze drying and innovative drying techniques (microwave vacuum drying, instant controlled pressure drop drying and conductive hydro-drying) relative to freshly cooked potato samples. Depending on the genotype, all drying methods showed one or more starch measures that were significantly different from freshly cooked values. The combination of ultrasound and infrared assisted conductive hydro-drying was the only method identified to be associated with accurate assessment of DS and TS content relative to fresh samples. The drying treatments were all generally associated with highly variable RS content relative to fresh controls. We conclude that freshly cooked samples must be used for selecting varieties with a high proportion of RS starch as drying of cooked potatoes leads to unreliable RS measurements.