Chia Oil and Mucilage Nanoemulsion: Potential Strategy to Protect a Functional Ingredient.

Nanoencapsulation can increase the stability of bioactive compounds, ensuring protection against physical, chemical, or biological degradations, and allows to control of the release of these biocompounds. Chia oil is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids-8% corresponds to omega 3 and 19% to omega 6-resulting in high susceptibility to oxidation. Encapsulation techniques allow the addition of chia oil to food to maintain its functionality. In this sense, one strategy is to use the nanoemulsion technique to protect chia oil from degradation. Therefore, this review aims to present the state-of-the-art use of nanoemulsion as a new encapsulation approach to chia oil. Furthermore, the chia mucilage-another chia seed product-is an excellent material for encapsulation due to its good emulsification properties (capacity and stability), solubility, and water and oil retention capacities. Currently, most studies of chia oil focus on microencapsulation, with few studies involving nanoencapsulation. Chia oil nanoemulsion using chia mucilage presents itself as a strategy for adding chia oil to foods, guaranteeing the functionality and oxidative stability of this oil.

Defatted Rice Bran as a Potential Raw Material to Improve the Nutritional and Functional Quality of Cakes.

Cakes are the most popular bakery items around the world because they are easy to consume and affordable. Their baking characteristics and consumers' healthy habits have driven the adoption of new ingredients and technologies to improve their functionality. This study aimed to develop cakes in which wheat flour was replaced by different amounts of defatted rice bran and to evaluate their physicochemical composition, nutritional and technological properties, and sensory profile. The use of defatted rice bran in cakes promoted an increase in fiber content, phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity, besides decreasing their energy value. The formulation with 30% defatted rice bran exhibited high acceptance and 35% of the judges declared that they would consume the product at least once a week, if it could be found on the market. Results showed that defatted rice bran is a potential raw material that could be used in bakery products, as a cheap way to improve their nutritional quality without affecting consumer acceptability.

Antioxidant, Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitory Properties and Blood-Pressure-Lowering Effect of Rice Bran Protein Hydrolysates.

This research aimed to investigate the biological properties of different hydrolysates derived from industrial and laboratory defatted rice bran proteins. Industrial and laboratory defatted rice bran protein concentrates were hydrolyzed with alcalase or flavorzyme. The degree of hydrolysis (DH), oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), reducing power, total phenolic compounds (TPC), and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity, were determined in the hydrolysates and the molecular fractions lower than 3 kDa. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was measured using the tail-cuff method before and after oral administration of 80 mg/kg of different rice bran protein hydrolysate (RBPH) fractions lower than 3 kDa in male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats. The highest values of in vitro antioxidant activity and TPC were observed in RBPH with alcalase defatted by industry (RBPH2A), and, in all cases, these bioactivities were higher in the molecular fractions lower than 3 kDa. Once again, fractions lower than 3 kDa obtained with alcalase showed a potent ACE inhibitory activity (RBPH1A<3 and RBPH2A<3). The administration of RBPH1A<3 caused a significant decrease in the SBP in SHR, where the maximum decrease was reached at 8 h after administration. SBP in WKY rats was not modified after the administration of RBPH1A<3. These results suggest that the rice bran protein hydrolysates obtained from industry after treatment with alcalase could be an interesting source of bioactive peptides, with potential action on hypertension and other related pathologies.

Peptides from Chia Present Antibacterial Activity and Inhibit Cholesterol Synthesis.

In previous studies, it has not been reported that protein isolated from chia interferes favorably with antibacterial activity, and reduces cholesterol synthesis. The objective of this study was to determine whether commonly used commercial microbial proteases can be utilized to generate chia protein-based antibacterial and hypocholesterolemic hydrolysates/peptides, considering the effects of protein extraction method. Alcalase, Flavourzyme and sequential Alcalase-Flavourzyme were used to produce hydrolysates from chia protein (CF), protein-rich fraction (PRF) and chia protein concentrates (CPC1 and CPC2). These hydrolysates were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (G+) and Gram-negative (G-) microorganisms. The protein hydrolysates were purified by ultrafiltration through a membrane with 3 kDa nominal molecular weight, for evaluation of hypocholesterolemic activity. An inhibition zone was observed when the hydrolysate was tested against S. aureus, and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) values were obtained. Peptides from chia protein with molecular mass lower than 3 kDa reduced up to 80.7% of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMG-CoA reductase) enzymatic reaction velocity. It was also observed that, independent of the method used to obtain chia proteins, the fractions showed relevant bioactivity. Moreover, the intensity of the bioactivity varied with the method for obtaining the protein and with the enzyme used in the hydrolysis process. This is the first report to demonstrate that chia peptides are able to inhibit cholesterol homeostasis.

Addition of chia seed mucilage for reduction of fat content in bread and cakes.

In this study, breads and chocolate cakes were prepared with different levels of chia mucilage dried at 50°C or lyophilized as fat, resulting in healthier products. Results indicated that breads and chocolate cakes made with chia mucilage can replace up to 50% of fat without affecting the technological and physical characteristics. The replacement of 75% of fat, for both types of mucilage, had a significant reduction in fat content of 56.6% in breads and 51.6% in cakes, producing a slight decrease in the technological characteristics of the products. Sensorial parameters showed good acceptability, with greater purchase intent for both products when added with chia mucilage dried at 50°C. Therefore, chia mucilage proved to be a new alternative for replacing fat in food products, preserving the quality attributes and making them healthier foods.

Fractionation of protein hydrolysates of fish and chicken using membrane ultrafiltration: investigation of antioxidant activity.

In this work, chicken and fish peptides were obtained using the proteolytic enzymes α-Chymotrypsin and Flavourzyme. The muscle was hydrolyzed for 4 h, and the resulting peptides were evaluated. Hydrolysates were produced from Argentine croaker (Umbrina canosai) with a degree of hydrolysis (DH) of 25.9 and 27.6% and from chicken (Gallus domesticus) with DH of 17.8 and 20.6% for Flavourzyme and α-Chymotrypsin, respectively. Membrane ultrafiltration was used to separate fish and chicken hydrolysates from Flavourzyme and α-Chymotrypsin based on molecular weight cutoff of >1,000, <1,000 and >500, and <500 Da, to produce fractions (F1,000, F1,000-500, and F500) with antioxidant activity. Fish hydrolysates produced with Flavourzyme (FHF) and α-Chymotrypsin showed 60.8 and 50.9% of peptides with a molecular weight of <3 kDa in its composition, respectively. To chicken hydrolysates produced with Flavourzyme and α-Chymotrypsin (CHC) was observed 83 and 92.4% of peptides with a molecular weight of <3 kDa. The fraction that showed, in general, higher antioxidant potential was F1,000 from FHF. When added 40 mg/mL of FHF and CHC, 93 and 80% of lipid oxidation in ground beef homogenates was inhibited, respectively. The composition of amino acids indicated higher amino acids hydrophobic content and amino acids containing sulfuric residues for FHF, which showed antioxidant potential.