Phenolic Compounds from By-Products for Functional Textiles.

Textile dyeing is known to have major environmental concerns, especially with the high use of toxic chemicals. The use of alternatives such as natural dyes rich in phenolic compounds has become extremely appealing in order to move towards a more sustainable circular economy. Phenolic dyes have the potential to functionalize textile fabrics with properties such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, and UV protection. Wastes/residues from the agri-food industries stand out as highly attractive sources of these compounds, with several by-products showing promising results in textile dyeing through the implementation of more sustainable and eco-friendly processes. This review presents an up-to-date exploration of the sources of phenolic compounds used in the textile industry over the past two decades, with a primary focus on the functional properties they provide to different fabrics. The research highlights a surge in interest in this theme since 2017, accentuating a noticeable upward trend. Throughout this review, emphasis is given to by-products from the agri-food industry as the sources of these compounds. The reviewed papers lay the foundation for future research, paving the way for exploring the potential of raw materials and by-products in the creation of functional and smart textiles.

Strategies to Assess the Impact of Sustainable Functional Food Ingredients on Gut Microbiota.

Nowadays, it is evident that food ingredients have different roles and distinct health benefits to the consumer. Over the past years, the interest in functional foods, especially those targeting gut health, has grown significantly. The use of industrial byproducts as a source of new functional and sustainable ingredients as a response to such demands has raised interest. However, the properties of these ingredients can be affected once incorporated into different food matrices. Therefore, when searching for the least costly and most suitable, beneficial, and sustainable formulations, it is necessary to understand how such ingredients perform when supplemented in different food matrices and how they impact the host's health. As proposed in this manuscript, the ingredients' properties can be first evaluated using in vitro gastrointestinal tract (GIT) simulation models prior to validation through human clinical trials. In vitro models are powerful tools that mimic the physicochemical and physiological conditions of the GIT, enabling prediction of the potentials of functional ingredients per se and when incorporated into a food matrix. Understanding how newly developed ingredients from undervalued agro-industrial sources behave as supplements supports the development of new and more sustainable functional foods while scientifically backing up health-benefits claims.

Lignin from sugarcane bagasse as a prebiotic additive for poultry feed.

Diet is a crucial factor on health and well-being of livestock animals. Nutritional strengthening with diet formulations is essential to the livestock industry and animal perfor-mance. Searching for valuable feed additives among by-products may promote not only circular economy, but also functional diets. Lignin from sugarcane bagasse was proposed as a potential prebiotic additive for chickens and incorporated at 1 % (w/w) in commercial chicken feed, tested in two feed forms, namely, mash and pellets. Physico-chemical characterization of both feed types with and without lignin was performed. Also, the prebiotic potential for feeds with lignin was assessed by an in vitro gastrointestinal model and evaluated the impact on chicken cecal Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. As for the pellet's physical quality, there was a higher cohesion of the pellets with lignin, indicating a higher resistance to breakout and lignin decreases the tendency of the pellets for microbial contamination. Regarding the prebiotic potential, mash feed with lignin showed higher promotion of Bifidobacterium in comparison with mash feed without lignin and to pellet feed with lignin. Lignin from sugarcane bagasse has prebiotic potential as additive to chicken feed when supplemented in mash feed diets, presenting itself as a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to chicken feed additives supplementation.

The Health-promoting Potential of Edible Mushroom Proteins.

Edible mushrooms have been classified as "next-generation food" due to their high nutritional value coupled with their biological and functional potential. The most extensively studied and reported mushroom macromolecules are polysaccharides. However, macrofungi proteins and peptides are also a representative and significant bioactive group. Several factors such as species, substrate composition and harvest time significantly impact the mushroom protein content, typically ranging between 19 and 35% on a dry weight basis. Proteins work based on their shape and structure. Numerous extraction methods, including chemical and non-conventional, and their implications on protein yield and stability will be discussed. Beyond their biological potential, a great advantage of mushroom proteins is their uniqueness, as they often differ from animal, vegetable, and microbial proteins. According to recently published reports, the most relevant mushroom bioactive proteins and peptides include lectins, fungal immunomodulatory proteins, ubiquitin-like proteins, and proteins possessing enzymatic activity such as ribonucleases laccases, and other enzymes and ergothioneine. These are reported as antioxidant, antiviral, antifungal, antibacterial, antihypertensive, immunomodulatory, antitumour, antihypercholesterolemic or antihyperlipidemic, antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory properties, which improved proteins and peptides research interest and contributed to the increase of mushroom market value. This review provides an overview of the most relevant biochemical and biological properties of the main protein groups in edible mushrooms, explicitly focusing on their biomedical potential. Although mushrooms are a rich source of various proteins, many of these molecules have yet to be identified and characterised. Accordingly, it is crucial to identify and characterise new macromolecules of macrofungi origin, which opens an opportunity for further investigation to identify new bioactives for food, nutraceutical, or medicinal applications.

Potential prebiotic effect of fruit and vegetable byproducts flour using in vitro gastrointestinal digestion.

Fruit and vegetable byproducts (FVBP) present high content of bioactive compounds and dietary fibers and have demonstrated a positive modulatory effect upon gut microbiota composition. In the present study, the prebiotic potential of a FVBP flour obtained from solid byproducts after fruit and vegetable processing was evaluated after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion. An initial screening with three strains of Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus casei 01, Lactobacillus rhamnosus R11 and Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5®) and one Bifidobacterium strain (Bifidobacterium animalis spp. lactis BB12®) was carried out and then the prebiotic effect of FVBP flour was performed with fecal samples of five donors. The changes in gut microbiota were evaluated at 0, 12, 24 and 48 h of fermentation by the real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) method with 16S rRNA-based specific primers. The pH and short chain fatty acids (SCFA) production at each fermentation time were assessed. The fructooligosaccharides (FOS) were used as positive control. The impact of FVBP flour upon cell viability was also evaluated. FVBP flour showed higher prebiotic effect than FOS on growth enhancement of Lactobacillus after 48 h of fermentation and similar bifidogenic effect as FOS on Bifidobacterium growth at 12, 24 and 48 h of fermentation. SCFA production was observed when FVBP flour was used as carbon source, including butyrate, which supports the prebiotic potential of this flour. Additionally, it was observed that after in vitro gastrointestinal digestion, the FVBP flour at 3% promoted cell metabolism of Caco-2 cell line up to 67%. Thus, the present study demonstrates the viability of using a fruit and vegetable byproducts flour as a potential sustainable prebiotic source.

The potential of insects as food sources - a review.

Entomophagy is a long-time practice and a food source for many cultures. Still, many societies have abandoned it a long time ago, and regard it as a primal behavior. However, nowadays, the challenge for food demand, with the urge of new nutritional sources, and the problems of undernourishment, mainly on underdeveloped countries, has reached a point where a new perspective is demanded. This review gathers some of the most recent studies regarding the potential benefits and concerns of entomophagy, trying to show the potential of insects as food source and possible ways to introduce them in cultures that have disregarded entomophagy. Entomophagy is taking its place, showing the grand potential of insects as feed and food source. As neophobia and disgust are the main western cultures barriers to accept entomophagy, today's comprehension of this practice and processing capabilities can take that source, to any dish in any form. A simple but nutritive insect powder can create a path to a widely, sustainable, rich food source-insects.

Potential prebiotic activity of Tenebrio molitor insect flour using an optimized in vitro gut microbiota model.

The Tenebrio molitor insect flour (TMIF) is considered a nutritive food ingredient, but its impact at the gut microbiota level and its potential prebiotic activity still need be assessed. For such studies, an in vitro simulation model of gut microbiota was optimized. Pure cultures of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains in monocultures and co-cultures (pairs and consortium) were used in this model to evaluate the effect of TMIF on the viability and metabolic activity of those bacteria. The optimization of the in vitro model of the gut microbiota was successful, and growth of the most important groups of bacteria in the gut microbiota was observed. So this model can be used to study the effects of other ingredients at that level. It also enabled pinpointing the prebiotic effects of the studied TMIF suggesting possible symbiotic interactions. In addition, the direct effect of the TMIF on bacterial cells, when in nutritive stress was also evaluated. In terms of TMIF effects on probiotic bacteria viability and growth, no negative effects were observed, and even an enhancement of growth and an increase of production of short chain fatty acids (SCFA) and lactate, in most of the cases, was observed. Also, this study showed that TMIF helps in maintaining the viability of bacteria during incubation time when these are under nutritional stress conditions. A potential prebiotic effect of TMIF is then predictable with this study, opening a path to new research on this subject.

In vitro ACE-inhibitory peptide KGYGGVSLPEW facilitates noradrenaline release from sympathetic nerve terminals: Relationship with the lack of antihypertensive effect on spontaneous hypertensive rats.

This study aimed to validate the antihypertensive activity of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE)-inhibitor whey protein hydrolysate (WPH) obtained through the action of proteolytic enzymes from Cynara Cardunculus. The antihypertensive activity of WPH fractions containing peptides with molecular weight below 3kDa (Whey<3kDa) and 1kDa (Whey<1kDa) along with the antihypertensive activity of three potent ACE-inhibitory peptide sequences (DKVGINYW, DAQSAPLRVY and KGYGGVSLPEW), previously identified in WPH, were also investigated. In parallel, the influence of KGYGGVSLPEW (the most potent ACE-inhibitory peptide sequence) on AT1 receptors (a common pharmacological target of antihypertensive therapies beyond ACE), was evaluated. The effect of WPH and fractions (300mg/kg) and peptide sequences (5mg/kg) on systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure was evaluated by telemetry on spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), after single oral administration. Despite their ACE-inhibitory effect in vitro, neither WPH, Whey <3kDa, Whey <1kDa or peptide sequences exhibited antihypertensive activity. In addition, KGYGGVSLPEW was not only devoid of AT1 receptor antagonism but, on the contrary, had a similar effect to that of Ang II by facilitating the noradrenaline release from sympathetic nerve terminals. In vitro ACE blockade does not always correlate with antihypertensive activity and food-derived peptides cannot be classified as antihypertensive agents based exclusively on in vitro assays. The absence of an antihypertensive effect may also be a result of the interaction of these compounds with other components of the systems involved in the blood pressure control.

Bioactive peptides: are there more antihypertensive mechanisms beyond ACE inhibition?

Diet has a high relevance in health. Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and has an important impact on public health, and consequently on countries economy. Scientific research gathered strong evidence about the role of several dietary factors either in etiology or in treatment/prevention of these diseases. Peptides from different food matrices have been studied, and indicated as compounds with particular interest in the context of hypertension. The classical approach involves the identification of peptides with an in vitro ACE inhibitory activity and the assumption that the observed in vivo effects are due to this enzyme blockade. However, in some cases the potency of ACE blockade does not correlate with the antihypertensive activity in vivo. This paper reviews the current literature that identifies mechanisms of action, other than ACE inhibition, that might explain antihypertensive effects of biologically active peptides from different food sources.